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The shrill ring of the phone interrupted the tension outside and I got up to answer it this time, just for the sheer need to get away from the three of them.
“Hello?” I managed without a stutter.
“Is Mr. Chris Ryan available?” the formal voice inquired.
“This is he,” I answered, sticking with one-syllable words.
“My name is John Anderson, I’m with KMR Associates in New York and based on the national news story coming out of Boston this evening, we’d like to sit down and talk to you about signing with our agency.”
“Ex...cuse me?” This time the stutter was prevalent and I turned back toward the sliders.
“You were filmed singing at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute,” he said.
“And?”
“You have an incredible talent that we would like to represent.”
“Are you kid...ding me?”
Valerie stepped inside and put her hand out for the phone and I narrowed my eyes, turning away. I could handle this.
“No. I am not kidding you. I’m prepared to hop on the first commuter jet out of JFK in the morning to discuss terms of representation.”
“Why?”
“Because you have the specific star quality we have been searching for.”
I laughed. “You know I was in a co...ma for the last two years, right?”
“It doesn’t matter. I have never seen a roomful of both men and women swoon at a voice like that. You have the raw talent to be bigger than Elvis or The Beatles. I want to represent you and make you a star.”
“I couldn’t care less about being a star.” I liked singing for the kids, but it wasn’t a passion the way being a doctor was for Valerie.
“You could impact millions of people. It could change your life.”
“No dis...re...spect, sir, but I don’t need an ent...ter...tain...ner plat...form to do that,” I struggled to get the words out. I knew I was rich beyond most people’s wildest dreams and could do a lot of good in the world with the money. I also knew from my limited exposure to entertainment that stars never had privacy and I had a feeling that, with the talents both Valerie and I possessed, privacy was more critical for us than the average Joe.
“You could reach a lot more sick children,” he said, very softly, trying to appeal to my humanity. I got a strange sensation, one that chilled me the same way that the vision had and I turned back to Valerie.
A familiar voice overrode all my senses.
“CJ!” Tom’s voice barreled through my head and I dropped the phone, covering my ears at the decibels.
Valerie picked up the phone. “Sir, I’m sorry, but we are late for an appointment. If you would be so kind as to call back during normal business hours, either Chris or I would be glad to discuss this further.” She didn’t wait for a response; she just hung up the phone and grabbed my arm, yanking me toward the car.
“Tell him we’re coming,” she said, and I closed my eyes.
“No!”
My eyes snapped open and I stared at her.
“No, don’t jump the distance, not right now.”
“But he sounded terrified,” I said, and she nodded.
“The reason he is terrified is also the reason you can’t leave yourself open. Just trust me.” She pushed me into the passenger seat and nearly slid over the hood to the driver’s side. She hit the gas, sending the little sports coup barreling toward the slowly opening gates. I had a moment to gasp and then I mentally pushed the gates faster, so we wouldn’t crash into the solid iron. “Open a path for us, Chris, I’m not slowing down.”
She wasn’t kidding, either. Thank God it was late enough in the evening that the summer traffic had thinned to a reasonable rate. There were only a handful of cars that I had to push over into the parking spots. Pedestrians were a different thing. Any that I saw hit a wall and couldn’t progress or became speed demons as they crossed the road faster than humanly possible. I would have loved to see their faces, but I didn’t have time to check out the complete shock; I was still concentrating on keeping the path clear.
We squealed into Tom’s driveway less than five minutes after she dragged me out of the house and both of us were out of the car and sprinting for the door before the engine’s last click sounded. I didn’t bother with knocking; instead, I opened the door with a thought and skidded to a halt in the living area.
My brother’s wide eyes met mine and my brain just stalled. He sat in a chair, his arms bound at the elbows and his wrists sliced open. The cascade of blood shocked me into motion.
“Valerie,” I said and turned to let her pass.
The vision I had seen through Jennifer’s eyes was standing before me. A red-eyed Raven held a knife to Valerie’s throat and my jaw dropped. I knew I should do something, but again my brain stalled and fear froze me in place.
“Are you ready to let me in or do I have to slice up this bitch, too,” Raven said in a voice that could only be categorized as right from the bowels of hell.
“Don’t you dare,” Valerie said, her eyes broadcasting a warning I didn’t understand.
“Will you let them go?” I asked with a voice that shook with raw fear.
Raven’s eyes narrowed and she sent an evil smirk my way.
Please don’t kill her; Tom’s voice echoed in my head with such pain that I took a second to glance back at him. If I didn’t do something soon, he’d bleed to death.
Is Hannah okay? I sent the thought and he gave a small nod.
The demon hurt Raven, though, so she needs help. He looked directly at Valerie and I turned trying to grasp what was happening. Valerie turned her head enough to plant a kiss on the hand grasping the knife.
Layers of fear drove through me as the tip of the knife pressed farther into the flesh of Valerie’s neck. A thin line of blood dripped from where the blade broke skin. Underneath the fear bloomed a righteous anger and my hands curled into fists.
“Let her go,” I issued the command in a growl I didn’t recognize, and the knife came away from her throat.
It was only a second but the command gave Valerie enough time to turn in to Raven’s elbow, away from the blade and drop her to the ground. The minute she was clear, she sprinted to Tom’s side and delivered the healing kiss to his temple.
A horrific cry of pain came from his chest and Valerie met my gaze and then her eyes darted beyond me. I turned back to Raven, raising my hand as if I was directing traffic. The knife stopped an inch from my palm and clattered to the ground when I let the barrier surrounding me down.
“Keep her there, Chris,” Valerie said, and in my mind, I cast a net over Raven to hold her in place.
“What is wrong with her?” I asked, turning back to Valerie and my now unconscious brother.
“She’s possessed.”
Motion outside the window caught my attention. A giant shadow landed on the lawn outside and I nearly lost control of the thing that had control over Raven.
Valerie turned the moment the door blew open. Damian stood outside, his eyes dark and his features tense.
“It’s about time,” Valerie snarled, and he sent a glare in her direction.
“I have three kids,” he said, like that accounted for his less than desirable arrival time.
I knew it wasn’t the time to ask how he got to the house from the ocean side; instead, I turned back to Raven, still holding her snarling form against the wall like a trapped wild cat. The red of her eyes kept transitioning back to the bright blue of Raven’s eyes and terror lay behind those irises. I got fragments of her thoughts before the dark presence put a gag order on her.
The scrape of a chair behind me pulled my attention in that direction and Valerie pulled the other armchair onto the tile lining the foyer and met my gaze.
“Make her sit here.”
I nodded and focused back on Raven, forcing her body to cross the distance to the chair in stiff steps. Making her sit took a little more effort. Whatever was in her was a strong force, but not as strong as I seemed to be. Once she was sitting, Valerie dumped a line of salt around the chair and then stepped in the circle, binding Raven’s wrists to the armrests.
When she stepped out of the salt barrier, she reached for the wall to steady herself.
“You can let go,” she whispered to me and I pulled the imaginary net away before stepping to Valerie’s side and wrapping my arms around her.
“What the fuck?” I whispered, because, really, what the hell else was there to say?
Valerie let out a nearly hysterical laugh and pulled out of my arms. Her palms found each of my cheeks and she held my face. “You can never, ever, give in to them, you hear me? Even if it means my life. If you do, the world will end.”
“Why don’t you poison the boy’s mind some more,” the thing inside of Raven purred and I tried to turn my head to look, but Valerie held me still.
“Do you know who Lucifer is?” she asked me and the world began to shake. “Chris?” her cry followed me into the blackness.
Another argument filtered in and I kept my eyes closed this time, still trying to get my bearings. A cool cloth swiped over my forehead but I knew it wasn’t Valerie, she was going at it with Damian again, but this time it was Damian reading her the riot act.
I blinked open my eyes and Tom’s bloodshot gaze met mine. He looked haggard and nearly ten years older than when we left the lake. He tried to smile at me, but it only succeeded as a sad contortion of his lips. His fingers touched his lips and then lowered into his other palm. That was one sign I knew, even without the soft voice thanking me.
I gave him a nod and looked beyond him at Raven cackling in the chair like a raving lunatic.
“She triggered another seizure, didn’t she,” I whispered, trying not to draw Valerie’s attention and Tom nodded, handing me the wet rag. That’s when I noticed he was in different clothes and I glance around the room. Whatever stains had been on the floor were gone. “How long was I out?”
Tom glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed before he held up six fingers.
“Six hours?” I shot up to a sitting position.
He broke out in an amused smile. “Ya,” he said. “Fu up.”
“Did you just call me a fuck up?”
This time the smile reached his eyes and he shook his head. He twirled his finger. I meant this whole thing is fucked up.
I relaxed and agreed with him. The morning twilight seemed to be breaking and he followed my gaze outside.
“How long have they been going at it?”
I hooked my thumb at Valerie and Damian standing toe-to-toe in a heated exchange.
Tom put up all six fingers again and rolled his eyes. I got it even without words.
“Do you know what to do with her?” I pointed to Raven.
He rocked his hand on the air in the universal code for sort of. I really need you to remember the exact sequence of things we did for Valerie.
I stared at him, disbelief and remorse centered in my chest. I hoped like hell their cure didn’t lie with my memory being miraculously restored, because if it did, he was in for a hell of a disappointment.
Valerie and Damian were still going at it and I sighed, meeting the gaze of the demon possessing Raven.
“What if I trade?” I asked and moved my gaze to Tom’s.
The conflict there tore at my heart and he slowly shook his head. “I can’t let you,” he signed and met my gaze.
The bitch in Raven had the audacity to laugh. “Lucifer said you were no more than a vegetable,” she said and I stared at her, blinking rapidly.
“Who the hell is Lucifer?” I asked and the back door opened.
Valerie glared at the demon and then turned her sharp gaze toward me. “He’s the one who put you in the hospital.” The level of venom in her voice shocked me more than her statement. What surprised me even further was the fact I wasn’t jerking around on the floor, like a fish out of water, at the hint of what happened. Maybe this was a breakthrough. Minor, but still, the name didn’t trigger a seizure.
“That’s all you’re going to tell the poor man?” Raven’s mouth said, but the voice sounded like a host of evil beasts growling the words, instead of a human.
“Shut up,” Damian said and Raven’s mouth clamped closed.
Valerie moved to my side, carefully guarding her thoughts now that I didn’t drop into a slobbering mess. The way she was handling me was both amusing and irritating. I climbed to my feet and met her halfway.
“I’m not going to fall apart,” I said, meeting her gaze. “Despite what everyone thinks.”
“I know, but as much as I’d like your memory to come back, I also know forcing it could land you back in the hospital.” Her hand palmed my cheek and she pressed her lips to mine.
“Stop protecting me,” I said when she pulled away.
“Chris,” she started and I pressed my finger to her mouth.
“Who has the clearest memory of what I need in order to help Raven?”
Her eyes jumped to Raven before they moved to Tom. “Your brother has the best recollection.”
“I’m going to need that memory,” I said and went to turn, but she stopped me.
“Chris.” This time her voice was little more than a whisper and I met her gaze.
“I will be fine,” I assured her even though I was clueless as to how this would affect me. “I’ve got to try.”
Tom looked up at me from his position on the couch.
“I don’t know if I can do the selective memory thing,” he signed. The worry in his eyes matched that of Valerie, his, tempered with the need to help his wife.
“Don’t worry; I can command the memory if I know what it is.”
“It was when I was possessed,” Valerie said and I met her gaze for a moment, digesting her words before my gaze slid to Raven.
I could only imagine what kind of basket case I would be if that was Valerie in the chair, and I had to give props to Tom for keeping it together as much as he was. I had no clue how he could be so damned calm right now. I’d be climbing the walls.
I took a seat next to him and focused on my hands for a minute, collecting the power I needed to command him. When the skin of my stomach started to burn with the force inside me, I turned and met his gaze. “Show me what happened when Valerie was possessed.” The command came in perfectly formed words and along with a hint of a growl.
His eyes widened in shock and then the images encompassed everything, drowning out reality and taking me back a little over two years ago, from Tom’s perspective.
“Are you two ready for a storm?” Raven asked and I nodded. CJ was a little more cautious but he nodded after a second.
Raven started unpacking the duffel bag, setting jewelry, and what looked like fancy paperweights, on the table, along with candles and oils and a big sea-salt grinder. She turned and tossed a necklace to CJ. The black Wiccan star reflected in the light and he raised an eyebrow.
“Just put it on,” she said and looked from CJ to me. “Do you have yours on?”
I never go anywhere without it and I unbuttoned my shirt, showing her the necklace that had saved my ass back in high school.
When she finished setting up the table, she turned and walked into the living room, away from the demon, beckoning to us to follow.
“Block your thoughts,” she said.
I consciously put up the wall in my head and CJ confirmed our thoughts were masked.
She looked at me. “The only reason I let you stay is because I may need you’re special skills."
I started to sign but she shook her head, stopping me.
“You told me you once put your father’s spirit back in his body.”
I nodded and glanced at CJ. He had been there; he knew damned well what I could do.
“Well, I might need you to do that with Valerie. Okay?”
“Okay,” I signed.
Raven turned to CJ. “Do you think your protective shield can repel demon spirits?”
“I don’t know.”
“Well, let’s hope that’s the case, because the moment the spirits separate from her physical form and Tom has Valerie’s, I’ll need you to block anything else from getting to her. Or us, for that matter. She’ll still be vulnerable until her spirit is back in her body. If we fail and the demon gets in there first, she will be lost to us. Understand?”
CJ blinked a couple of times, and I don’t know if he realized it, but his mouth dropped open a little, like it does when he’s going to argue a point, but Raven’s face hardened.
“Understand?” she said more forcefully this time.
“Yes. I understand,” CJ said. “How do you know this will work?”
“I’ve seen it done before,” she whispered. “But we didn’t have the benefit of a ghost whisperer or a psychic shield.”
“Did it work?” CJ asked.
She stared at him for a long moment and then shook her head. “No.”
“What happened?”
“My father happened,” she said and turned away, storming back to the kitchen, leaving CJ and me staring at each other. A chill settled over me and I looked toward the kitchen. Her father was rotting in jail for two consecutive life sentences for the crimes he committed as the Windwalker.
“What do you mean?” CJ asked when we got back into the kitchen.
“We can discuss that later. You know what I expect of you.” She turned back to the table and Valerie chuckled, the demon quality of it left me cold and I traded a glance with CJ.
“I want Val back,” CJ growled at the thing holding her hostage.
“Maybe we can trade?” it said, raising one of her manicured eyebrows.
“As tempting as that sounds, I think I’ll see what Raven can do with you first.”
A shadow passed over her face and her teeth clenched as she focused on Raven’s array of potions and precious rocks on the table.
Raven turned to CJ. “Can you hold her still for a minute?”
The demon snarled and tried to thrash, but the physical form it inhabited wouldn’t budge under CJ’s power. The beast within Valerie roared when Raven slipped a bloodstone necklace over her head, the red jewel rested on her chest, right above her heart and the skin under it singed, sending off a waft of steam.
Raven stepped out of the salt ring, visibly shaken by the scorching skin. She glanced at me and I gave her a nod of encouragement. With a deep breath, she arranged four pyramid shaped stones at the north, south, east and west spots inside the circle and stepped back.
In the teak bowl, she mixed salt, some fine black powder and added a drop of green, red, and yellow potions to the mixture. Raven paused and glanced at CJ, waving him forward. She took his hand and raked a knife across his palm.
“Squeeze,” she said, holding his hand over the mixture.
After three drops of blood hit the mixture, she moved CJ’s hand away and mixed the cocktail, whispering an incantation.
“Mháthair a chara, cruthaitheoir go léir, cabhrú liom banish an Demon as an cailín. Cabhraigh léi a fháil ar ais ar a anam. Dhíbirt an olc as a corp. Cabhraigh léi a fháil ar ais ar a anam. Demon a bheith imithe!”
The mixture bubbled and sizzled and she turned toward Valerie.
“Repeat after me, boys,” Raven said and Valerie stared thrashing in the chair. “Spiorad olc saoire an gcomhlacht seo. Demon a bheith imithe!”
CJ repeated the foreign chant, clearly enunciating over my tongue-less mutter. “Spiorad olc saoire an gcomhlacht seo. Demon a bheith imithe!”
Raven flung a spoonful of the mix at Valerie and the scream that followed tore through me. From the look on CJ’s face, he was a breath away from freaking out.
“Again,” Raven ordered and moved to Valerie’s side.
We repeated the chant and Raven flung another spoonful at Valerie, this time, the mixture produced scorching welts on her skin and the struggle of souls began, writhing together in a fight to the death. Whatever my wife was doing, was working. CJ stepped towards Raven but I grabbed his arm and opened my mind, letting him see what I was seeing.
He traded a glance with me before we refocused on the struggle. When Raven ordered us to speak the incantation again, neither of us hesitated.
The third time brought forth a wail of pain that made me want to cover my ears. The earth around us rumbled to the point the jars on the counter rattled. The dishes in the cabinets shifted, knocking open cabinet doors and sending plates and glasses crashing to the counter. Even the refrigerator door opened, crashing contents to the floor in a mad swirl.
The fourth time, I let go of CJ and stepped forward, grabbing onto Valerie’s spirit like Raven had instructed, and sent the command “Now” out to CJ along with what I was seeing.
I knew CJ had put up that barrier just by way of the electrical quality in the air and I forced Valerie’s spirit back into her body. The melding of spirit to skin arched her back and she took a deep wheezing breath. Her eyes locked on CJ’s and she moaned in pain.
“Will yourself to heal,” CJ whispered and her eyes widened and then dropped closed.
I glanced up at the black cloud trying to attack us and sent the vision to CJ. The mask of anger that transitioned his features froze my blood, and I prayed I’d never be the recipient of his wrath, ever. It was ten times scarier than the demon trying to breach his protective barrier. Flames licked the protective bubble and blackened the ceiling, an explosion rocked the kitchen, blowing the window over the sink open and obliterating the salt line protecting that exit. What was left of the demon spirit fled through that portal, sending a plume of black smoke out into the yard and into the night sky.
I blinked, back in my own skin with my own thoughts and I met Tom’s wide-eyed stare. “Holy shit,” I whispered and slumped into the cushions, running my hands through my hair. Tom gave me a crooked smile and raised an eyebrow.
“I got it,” I said and exhaled. “Do you have her bag?”
Tom nodded and we both stood. Before he stepped away, he pulled me into a hug.
“Thank you,” his thought echoed in my head.
“I haven’t done anything yet,” I said and he pulled away, disappearing down the hall. When he came back, he carried the same duffel bag from his memory. He handed it to me and I crossed to the table, emptying the contents, inspecting each element and setting them in two piles. One that corresponded to the memories and one that didn’t. I looked through the jewels, looking for the same type of stone, and when I came up empty, I glanced at Valerie and my hand went to the pendant around my neck.
“No,” both Valerie and Tom said at the same time. Tom stepped forward and pressed his hand over the star lying on my skin. He shook his head. Even without words, he said everything with his eyes. I still needed the protection just as much as Raven. He reached beyond me and picked up a different emblem.
“This is also made of blood stone even though it isn’t red. Not as potent as the one around your neck, but it will do,” his thoughts rang in my head and I took the offering.
I picked up one of the pyramid stones. “Do you know which direction true north is?”
“Facing her, it’s at ten o’clock,” Damian said.
I tried to remember what he was referencing and finally I held out the stone. “Can you put this in the right place just inside the salt line?”
Damian’s lips pressed together and he grabbed the pyramid, putting it on the ground just to the left of center behind her. I could place the rest now that I had the right reference. After all four stones were placed, I clasped the necklace around her neck, despite the hissing coming from Raven’s lips. A welt immediately seared the exposed skin of her neckline and I met the demon’s fiery gaze.
“Don’t worry, I’m planning on sending you back to hell,” I stumbled on the words, prompting a chuckle from the demon possessing Raven.
“You do know you have to speak the words precisely for the spell to work,” it said and laughed.
I leaned close. “I may stutter like a fool when I speak, but I’m flawless when I sing.”
I stepped out of the salt ring and back to the table, ignoring the incessant cackling. I scanned the bottles I had put aside. Half of them were ruled out just on the basis of color, and now I was presented with a challenge. Concocting the serum she made was not going to be as easy as she made it look and I closed my eyes, going step-by-step through the memory. With each ingredient, I inspected Tom’s memory, matching symbols on the canisters before I added it to the mini-cauldron. It took me a little over a half hour before I got to the point of adding the three drops of blood.
I picked up the knife and positioned my hand over the mixture.
“No,” Tom said; his voice clear in my head, he stepped next to me, offering his hand instead, and I paused meeting his gaze.
“True love’s blood,” his thought announced and I started laughing. It was too fairytale for me, but the seriousness in his stare gave me pause.
“Okay,” I said. “Just three drops,” I added and he nodded. This part he did remember and when I drew the blade across his palm, he squeezed. The blood sizzled on contact and after three drops, he withdrew his hand, wrapping it in one of the cloth diapers folded in the clean laundry basket in the corner.
I took a deep breath and stirred the mixture, letting my vocal chords relax and in a haunting melody, I recited the incantation Raven had whispered.
“Mháthair a chara, cruthaitheoir go léir, cabhrú liom banish an Demon as an cailín. Cabhraigh léi a fháil ar ais ar a anam. Dhíbirt an olc as a corp. Cabhraigh léi a fháil ar ais ar a anam. Demon a bheith imithe!”
The mixture bubbled and I traded a glance with Valerie before turning toward Raven. “Repeat after me,” I said and Raven thrashed in the chair. I spattered her with a spoonful of the mixture and sang the spell. Damian, Valerie and Tom repeated it without the melodic flow. “Spiorad olc saoire an gcomhlacht seo. Demon a bheith imithe!”
My voice echoed off the walls as I repeated the phrases, the power of it penetrating the demon and Tom opened his mind as he had done before, but the struggle was less pronounced, it was almost as if my voice actually hypnotized the demon right out of Raven. The thrashing and cries were weak in comparison to what possessed Valerie. When Tom stepped forward and grabbed Raven’s spirit, I could have sworn she placed a gentle kiss on his lips.
Instead of focusing on his tender moment, I closed my eyes and let the sudden swell of anger eviscerate the thrashing demon hovering just outside my protective bubble.
This time when the demon screamed, Tom’s gaze afforded me the fruits of my labor. The bastard didn’t escape this time. I made damn sure it perished in the ball of flame. As soon as the fire dissipated, I let my guard down and glanced at Raven.
The awe in her bright eyes made me shift my stance and I shoved my hands into my pockets, opting to stare at the floor.
“You have the voice of the angels,” she said in a thick Irish lilt, and I moved my gaze back to hers, letting the absurdity of her statement peel a laugh from my throat. She kept my gaze for all of two seconds before her eyes rolled back and she slumped in Tom’s arms.
Valerie stepped to her side and delivered another dose of healing via a kiss on her forehead before she turned to me.
“Are you okay?”
I shrugged and met her gaze, the entire ordeal leading me to question so much more about my past. “Who is Lucifer?” I asked again, returning to my earlier question. “And how the hell could he put me in a coma for two years?”
“Chris,” she sighed.
“Lucifer is the devil,” Damian said and I met his gaze. “He’s the fallen archangel and his level of power probably rivals yours when he is in angel form.”
For the first time since I woke up, a vision surfaced that didn’t throw me into a twitching mess. It was only a moment but the face I saw was my father’s and it wasn’t human. His white wings spanned the small clearing and his preternatural eyes fell upon me.
I blinked and stumbled back, reaching for the wall.
“My father was an angel?” I gasped and my gaze landed on Tom.
He issued a sharp laugh and shook his head. “No. Dad wasn’t an angel,” he signed. “The news stories were accurate. He was a badass most of his human life. When he died, well, I guess he was assigned a job as penance for his less than moral deeds.”
I cocked my head and my brow furrowed in confusion.
“Talk to Steve. He can tell you more of the details, but Dad was assigned to keep him out of trouble.”
“I remember Dad with wings,” I said and all motion in the room stopped.
“You remember?” Valerie said approaching me.
“I guess so,” I said. “I saw my father with angel wings.” I crossed to the couch and took a seat before my legs gave out from under me. “So, is that somehow related to why Lucifer tried to kill me?”
“No,” Valerie answered. “Lucifer wants to possess you and you refused. He needs you in order to defeat Damian and get to Naomi and Grace.”
“Why?”
“Naomi is a descendant of two archangel bloodlines. Michael and Raphael. I’ve got Michael’s bloodline, so I’m on Lucifer’s hit list just because he considers the heart of Michael’s descendants a delicacy.” She paused and glanced at Damian. “Damian is Gabriel’s son, so when he and Naomi hooked up, they had the possibility of creating a true trinity for the first time in over two thousand years. Their children are trinities. Do you understand the significance of that?”
I just stared at her, the only thing I correlated was what I got out of the Sunday morning services that Jennifer and Steve took me to, and I just couldn’t wrap my head around it. The boundaries of good and evil, which I understood from church. God and the devil, I understood and even the son of God made sense, but Damian’s children, trinities like Jesus? I just couldn’t grasp that.
“Yes. Grace is a trinity and Naomi is capable of creating more. That’s why Lucifer wants them. He is interested in breeding an army of dark trinities so he can rule the earth and I am standing in his way,” Damian said.
I couldn’t help it. I started laughing. Demons, vampires, angels and the devil. What the hell kind of nightmare did I live in?
“One where you are the white knight,” Valerie said to my train of thought. “You went up against the devil and lived. The only other person I know who faced off against him and survived is in this room.” She turned to Damian.
He shrugged. “Naomi’s the one who nearly killed him.”
“And you stole his grace,” Valerie clarified.
“I couldn’t have done it without CJ.” He tapped his temple and met my gaze. “You gave me the extra edge I needed to steal Lucifer’s grace.”
Tom placed Raven’s unconscious form on the couch and then met my gaze. “Thank you,” he signed and offered me a hint of a smile. But it wasn’t his signing or his voice that sounded in my head that caught my attention. It was the memories swarming in his mind that triggered my own of the same situation.
My throat constricted and I couldn’t pull a breath. The room disappeared along with everyone’s voices and what replaced it was a snowy scene and a black winged man with a severed head in each hand. He dropped them on the ground so they faced the window Tom and I stood at, and then the bastard wiped his hands together as if they were nothing more than dirt and grime.
The face was familiar and drew a level of fury to the surface, pulling at my mind and for a moment, I felt the jolt of each muscle in my body clenching, but I ignored the obvious signs of seizure and clung to the memory.
The two angels charged, slamming into each other and creating an explosion that rattled the window. I stared at the horror in front of me; the shrill cry of the baby in the background couldn’t pull my attention away, not with the fight to the death unfolding on the snow-covered lawn. The battle between my father and Lucifer raged, dredging up a white flurry around the two angels. My heartbeat rammed my throat, drawing my breath in fast pants of anxiety as I watched each mighty blow.
Red splattered white and I bellowed at the vision of my father’s head in the demon’s grip. My palms banged against the cold windowpane as blood rained down on my father’s wings. Even my brother couldn’t break through the devastation layering my heart. A second trembling cry broke through the blackness shrouding me and I glanced at my brother. Tom’s gaze was glued to the scene outside, while tears slowly tracked down his cheeks. His lips pressed together and he grieved in silence, but I felt the darkness grip his heart as surely as it gripped my own.
White light drowned all thought, and then blackness pulled me under.