The Taking (13 page)

Her frown deepened. “As much as I love it, it’s just a trinket.”

“He has charmed his so the angel will glow if either of us are in trouble.” I whisper, determined not to tell her my angel heats up as well.

Her eyes dash to the charm hanging just below his waist glimmering in the streetlight. “But you were not in physical danger.”
 

“No, but I was in mental danger. He found me spying on my . . . Ethan. I wanted to make sure he was okay after my sudden departure.”
 

Through the whole conversation, Ben has remained unmoving in the squatting position, his eyes focussed on Ethan’s place. I reach out, touching the bare skin on his side out of Cindy’s sight. His eyes do not leave the building.
 

We watch and wait, occasionally looking around for any movement. After a while I realise I don’t know how this mission will play out. “Do either of you know what to expect for a removal of a conscience?"

Cindy shakes her head. “Do you Ben?”

He finally moves his head and looks at her. “No. But I would imagine that it would involve actual demons visiting and removing the conscience and inserting something evil. Something of their essence.” His voice remains unemotional and distant.

“What’s up with you tonight?” Cindy asks him. “You’ve suddenly gone all silent and stiff on us.”

He glances at her briefly. “Nothing — I just have a bad feeling about this mission.”

I know he is lying about the nothing part, but I just hope he is wrong about the mission. Perhaps it is just concern over my emotions and who I lean toward more. “Maybe we should go inside?” I am not sure why we decided to wait in the street. “That way we will be closer to protect him. After all, can’t demons teleport also?” I suddenly realise just how little I know about demons. It is not the best way to enter a fight with them.

“Probably,” Cindy says. “Are you going to be able to concentrate inside?”

I look directly into her eyes. “I’ll be fine. I am here to protect him not to reminisce the past. I am determined to not let him become a perpetrator.”

Yeah, I bet.
The voice sounds almost spiteful in my head, and I can’t help but look at him.
 

Ben, don’t do this. I need you. Remember?
I project back hoping he has still left the transmission open.
I can’t let him fall. Surely you know that. I really need you.

He clamps his teeth tight squaring his jawline. But I am greeted with silence, so I don’t know if he heard me or not.

“Are you two having a private conversation?” Cindy looks from one of us to the other. “’Cause you sure look like it.”

I gaze at her. “No,” I lie. I stand slowly. “Come on, let’s go inside; I don’t think waiting outside is the best option.”

They follow me up the driveway, and we approach the cream rendered building. I reach down and find the key in the same hiding spot it has been for years. I gaze at it in wonder as it sparkles in the light from the street. It is so completely human.

“Are you kidding?” Cindy asks. “You’re using a key? We can just teleport in there.”

I shrug. “I know. It just doesn’t feel right. He doesn’t know we are coming.”

“Heck, would it make you feel better if we knocked and waited for him to answer the door?” She is gawking at me, and I understand why — it
’
s a crazy notion. “I know for sure that the demons aren't going to use the key.”
 

I smile and enter the key in the keyhole, opening the door. I am positive if Cindy sensed a demon presence my attitude would be a lot more urgent. I return the key, and we push through. In my peripheral vision, I can see both of their eyes frantically observing the inside of the apartment. I am confident it is not because they are searching for demons. More than likely if I were going to the house of their past life, I would also be scouring the building, curious to find out a little more of how they lived. I kind of feel like my life is on display. It is making me a little apprehensive, but at the same time I know I can trust my two best friends.
 

After closing the door quietly, I gaze across the familiar room with plain cream walls and floor, carpeted in a small section. I find Ben standing beside the double blue couch. If he weren’t in such a bad mood, I would have found it humorous because his colouring matched the couch flawlessly. The irony, deep royal blue always was one of my favourite colours. Exhaling, I know my emotions are such a mess right now, but I have to get a hold of them or else Ethan will be lost forever. He will never make it to an angel or be able to spend immortality with me if he is murdered as an innocent. I swallow. I am doing it again. I feel Ben’s gaze. Turning away, I ignore it. Is he assessing my emotions or is he trying to portray support again. I don’t know. I need to focus and escape this emotional turmoil so I can do my job.
 

Progressing up the stairs, they follow. They can sticky beak all they like after we have saved Ethan. I have nothing to hide. The building is fairly new allowing us to progress up the stairs without a creak.
 

When we climb to the next level we pass the open doors of the spare bedroom, then the office and we enter Ethan’s bedroom. Tousled short, light brown hair peeks over the top of the blankets. His body faces the far wall as he lay in a deep sleep on one side of the double bed. On the side he is facing is a small laminated bedside drawer. On top, under the lamp, sits a glass photo frame with my picture sitting inside.
 

Upon seeing this, my heart melts. The urge fills me to climb into the empty side of the bed and lay sprawled across him, creating a barrier to any evil that may come. I wander to the other side of the room wanting to see his face. I feel so awkward knowing I am being watched closely by the love of my new life and a friend who until now has known nothing of my past. I gaze at Ethan’s sleeping face. His brown eyelashes touch the top of his well-defined cheeks concealing the smallest part of his tanned skin. The sound of his rhythmic breathing is calming despite knowing what is about to come. He stirs and pulls the deep blue bedspread further up around his ears, hiding the familiar square jawline.

Pulling my eyes away, I glance at Cindy. She is standing on the opposite side of the bed. Her face is full of curiosity as she is stepping on her tippy toes trying to catch a glimpse of his face. It would be so much easier if we were allowed to know about each other’s last life openly. As I watch her, I realise I do not know anything about her past life either. I make a mental note that I will have to prod for information sometime soon. After all, she is getting to know a little about mine.
 

I force my eyes to turn to Ben. He is staring openly at Ethan, but he is not trying to see his face, as he already knows what he looks like. Looking up, he catches my eyes. His face is unreadable, just like it is when he faces the archangels.
 

“Aurora.” The voice calls from the bed.
 

My eyes widen, and I see something flick across Ben’s face. Apprehension runs through me. He is not supposed to be awake. I glance down only to find his eyes closed with the eyelids flickering. He must be dreaming.
 

“Aurora, you’re alive.”
 

I let out the breath I was holding. He’s eyes remain closed, but he stirs slightly.
 

“Did he see you last time?” Cindy asks her eyes study me intensely. We are still in our invisible form, so even if Ethan were awake, he would not be able to hear us.
 

“Yes,” I say quietly, as I look down.

“What?” Her golden yellow wings flutter in anticipation lifting her slightly off the ground.
 

I look back at her. “But that was only an accident. Ben turned up distracting me and Ethan spotted and snuck up on me.”

“Then you should have wiped his memory,” she rebukes.

“I did. I cleared it in front of Ben and he looked completely lost and dazed afterward. Didn’t he Ben?”

Ben grunts a noise that sounds like he agrees.
 

Creases form on her forehead. “Then why is he calling out that you are alive?”

“I don’t know,” I snap. “Maybe they remember in their dreams. Maybe we don’t completely wipe their memory.” I shrug.
 

Her lips pucker as she watches the back of Ethan’s wriggling form. Suddenly her body stiffens, and her eyes widen. “They’re here,” she whispers.

My shoulders are completely tense as I look around the room. I don’t even know if they can be invisible to us or if we can see them as the gatekeeper saw us in our transparent form in Somalia. We all turn our backs to Ethan, standing guard on three sides; the fourth being the wall, and we wait. The room is not big and has very little spare space around the bed for a fight, but we don’t have another option unless we wake Ethan and take him elsewhere.
 

Seconds tick past that seem like hours, and there is no sign of them. I look over my shoulder at Cindy. “Are you sure?” She glares at me, and I instantly rebuke myself, hoping this shows in my expression. I don’t even know why I asked. I do not doubt Cindy’s ability to sense the different beings. It must be the nerves.

My heart is rising to my throat. “Do you know if we are going to be able to see them?” I ask.

“No idea,” Ben says keeping his eyes in the opposite direction. I glance at the back of his head and spot the tension just under his short dark brown hair. The neck muscles are strained and straight, pulling the muscles in his back taut, but mostly concealed under the sheath and handles for his butterfly swords, hanging between his wings and shoulder blades.

Cindy speaks. Her voice is pitchy as she keeps her eyes focussed on the door directly in front of her. “They are not in the room yet, but I can feel their essence getting closer.” Her knees are bent and she stands with her fists raised ready. As I study her, she claps one of the Chakram with her right hand removing it from her left wrist and holds it firm, taking care not to cut herself.
 

I stand mostly facing the furthest wall, not sure if they are going to come through the door or appear out of nowhere by teleporting. My heart is thumping harder in my chest as my eyes flick in all directions trying to spot the first movement that appears. It suddenly occurs to me. “Why don’t we just grab him and teleport him somewhere away from here?”

“Nice thinking.” Cindy glances over her shoulder, to look at me. “But I am pretty sure that they can follow us. We would just be playing hide and seek all over the world. We might as well just wait here and get it over and done with.”

As I turn in her direction, I see a dark image behind her that had just climbed the stairs. After blinking twice, I swear it is the splitting image of the demon that I fought in Somalia after the dead people dropped. The Archangels tell me that was Separus, except this one is shorter and is absent of horns. Skin sticks to its bone making it appear gnarly and thin. Its chest is mostly bare except for a loosely wrapped sarong. Its mouth opens as if to say something. Cindy swivels her head to see what has my attention. Just as I reach down to below my hip, grabbing my dagger out of its sheath I hurl it at the demon landing it in the cavity between the ribs as it takes a step toward Cindy. The dagger shines and before the demon’s mouth could let out a cry of agony it disappears into dust that crumples to the floor.
 

Cindy glances back at me. “Thanks.” A look of relief is on her face.
 

“No problem,” I say. Although there is one problem — my weapon is now out there and I have to retrieve it, or I will not have a weapon. “Do you think it was alone?”

Cindy shakes her head. Letting out an agitated breath, I go to retrieve my dagger. “Watch my side for a second would you?”

Ben nods. “Sure thing.”
 

I step out onto the internal balcony overlooking the rest of the townhouse. I have nearly reached my dagger lying on the floor when the same type of beings suddenly surround me. Surveying the area I conclude there are about twenty of them and they all look the same. “Wow, they really broke the mould with you guys didn’t they.”

“Joke all you wish Aurora.” One of them says to me.

I can’t believe he knows my name.

“But you will be the last one to laugh shortly, as it is you he wants. Now we have you where we want you.” He reaches out to grab me as I dive for my dagger.

- Chapter Twelve -

Hitting the ground, I grab my dagger and summersault to my feet slashing as I rise. I strike the first demon on my left in his chest and watch the dagger glow as he turns to dust. I fling my arm backward stabbing the dagger into the stomach of the demon on my right. The telltale flash of light comes from the dagger and dust drops to the floor as another demon disappears.
 

The scraping of swords being removed from their sheath echoes through the room. Hideous hands grab me from behind, and instantly I feel my strength crumbling. While cursing myself for my lapse in defence, I focus on summoning my protective barrier. It arises, but not to the strength that I need. These hands need to be removed so they will stop draining my energy. Spinning around, I swipe the hands of the culprits that attained me, knocking them from my skin. Reaching out with my hand on my left side, I touch whatever skin I can, and my ears fill with instant cries of pain. As the other demon approaches from the right, I lash out with my dagger. It dodges narrowly and at the same time I feel hands touching me from behind, instantly draining more of my power.