Around the table of the hotel bar where Mike, Uryan, Gabriel, Ralph, and Meth were sitting the tension could be cut with a knife.
“So,” Meth said looking at Mike and then sipped his vodka. “How are you doing?”
“Better than you, as far as I can tell,” Mike replied with a defiant look.
Meth smiled ironically.
“That depends on the way you see it,” he answered. “I am happy here, believe it or not. You should have a drink to relax a bit. You seem stressed.” An ironic laugh escaped him again.
Mike sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“I’m not in the mood for ironies, Meth. So let’s get straight to the point. Why are we sitting here with you?”
“I want to have a conversation with an old friend and meet new ones,” Meth answered, looking at Ralph, Uryan, and Gabriel in a friendly manner. “That way, we give Jev the time to clear his mind after the party he’s having in the room with my friends.”
“That’s why you wanted to lose your wings?” mumbled Mike. His eyes were filled with anger. “To turn into an alcoholic and drug-addicted sex machine?”
“And the best bike repairman in Los Angeles,” Meth answered him with a good dose of sarcasm. “Yes, Mike, I love my life.”
“I don’t regret ripping out your wings.”
“I don’t miss them either.”
“That’s enough. Stop it!” Ralph complained. “We’re not here to discuss your differences. I think that the issue with Jev is the most important thing. So if you don’t mind, let’s behave like mature adults and find a solution for Jev’s situation.”
“And, according to you, Raphael,” Meth told him keeping his challenging tone. “What’s Jev’s situation?”
“I see why Mike ripped your wings out. You’re unbearable.”
The ironic smile on Meth’s face disappeared.
“Watch your mouth, Raphael. All the fallen are by my side and even though we don’t have wings, we still have powers. I don’t think that you want to start a fight in front of humans.”
Ralph stood up.
“Sit down,” Meth commanded. “We are not finished.”
Now, the tension could be cut with a knife.
“What do you want?” asked Gabriel “And stop beating around the bush, please.”
Meth sighed. “Well, it might be difficult to believe, but I’m very worried about Jev.”
Mike snorted in a teasing tone.
“Yes, that’s evident. You give him women, alcohol, drugs and who knows what else and now you come and tell us that you are very worried for him. If you are so worried, why the hell didn’t you call us before to tell us that he was with you? We’ve spent almost four weeks looking for him around the world.”
“Except here,” said Uryan. “Around the world except for this city.”
“By orders of Jev himself we haven’t set foot in this city before,” added Gabriel.
“Yes, I can imagine why he gave you that order.”
“Me too,” Mike added, looking at Meth in the eyes.
“I didn’t call you before because I only saw him three days ago in the city. He walked past my garage. He was barefoot. He wore no shirt and with all certainty he was about to fall into a drunken stupor. He was trashed. I thought he might be a tourist. If I hadn’t seen the tattoo on his back I would have never thought that it was him. He looked horrible.”
“Tattoo?” asked Mike, surprised.
Meth smiled sincerely and it even could be said that a bit of tenderness appeared in his eyes when he remembered seeing the tattoo on Jev’s back.
“Yes, it was fresh. The skin still had scabs and the tattoo that covered his back was of Lilith. When I saw her tattoo I realized that it was Jev and that things must be pretty bad with her.”
The archangels widened their eyes in surprise.
Mike’s phone rang.
Everyone remained silent as he answered the call.
“Hi, Evelyn. Yes, we’ve already found him. Hmm, is she there? With you? Aha, ok. I think that’s a good idea. Although, I don’t think it’s necessary. We’re planning to take him back home. We’ll let you know if we need help. Ok. Sure. Bye.” He hung up the phone. “She sends you a kiss,” he told Uryan. “Lilith is with her.”
“I’m starting to like this story,” Meth said, amused.
Mike explained to them why Lilith had arrived at Evelyn’s house and her intentions of looking for Jev if he refused to get out of the pit of despair he had fallen into.
“Well, it’s not an easy situation,” Meth assured. This time he looked worried. “Jev is like a father to me. The fact that I’m a rebel without a cause doesn’t mean that I want this life for him.”
Mike dropped his guard for a moment. “You’ve just told me that you are happy with your life.”
“Yes, Mike, I am.” Meth smiled sincerely. “I decided to live like a human. I love eating, sleeping, having sex,” he paused, “I like all the vices but I’ve learned that you have to be careful with them. I’ve chosen this and I wouldn’t change it for anything or anyone. But also, I myself felt how it is to suffer from love and I don’t want Jev to go through that. He has to fix his issue with Lilith. Those two have always loved each other. It’s just that Jev believes that he will neglect his important position if he decides to surrender to her.”
Gabriel sighed. “Is that the problem? Jev is scared?”
“Yes, a lot,” Meth answered, serious.