Hades (43 page)

bodies seemed to hum and vibrate and then ever so slightly

levitate off the ground. Then Gabriel spoke.

“In the name of Christ Our Lord and al that is Holy, I

command you be gone. Return this earthly body to the

hands of God and slither back into the pit of fire where you

belong.”

The demon’s head began thrashing back and forth like a

whip, as though it were having some sort of seizure. The

cloud of muted, golden light crept forward, beautiful to the

human eye, but a mark of death for any agent of darkness.

The demon tried to dart past my siblings, but the light was

like a force field keeping it back. It struggled violently, but to

no avail. The misty cloud had almost reached it and I

watched the demon throw itself to the floor. As the light

surrounded it, descending like a fog, Sister Mary Clare’s

body began to emit smoke from her nose and a sizzling

sound like meat on a barbeque fil ed the air. Mol y’s jaw

dropped in horror and she backed away from the scene

before her, covering her ears against the demon’s

strangled screams. Xavier too went pale and swal owed

hard, watching with a pained expression. The body on the

ground had gone rigid, its torso lurching upward in

shuddering convulsions. I saw a bulge appear in Sister

Mary Clare’s abdomen, it seemed to be shifting upward,

through her chest, like a hideous tubershaped growth.

Xavier winced as the sharp crack of a snapping rib was

heard amid the grunts and gasps. The bulge distorted the

woman’s throat until suddenly her mouth flew open and she

began to choke and gurgle. My siblings concentrated

harder, their light constricting around the nun’s throat and

sure enough, a steaming, thick black substance came

pouring through her open mouth and flopped onto the floor

like a dead fish.

Ivy dropped her hand, retracted her wings, and sank to

her knees in exhaustion while Gabriel knelt beside the body

on the floor. Free at last from the poisonous creature that

had been holding her hostage, Sister Mary Clare looked

very different. The vicious expression was replaced by one

of liberation, despite the pain she must have been in. Her

face was stil bruised and battered, but as her eyelids

fluttered open I caught sight of a pair of pale blue eyes. The

young woman seemed to sigh in relief and her head lol ed

to one side. Gabriel looked concerned and bent low over

her, his fingers pressed lightly against her neck, searching

for a pulse.

He looked up at Ivy. “It’s not good.”

My sister floated across to join him and together they

began to work on Sister Mary Clare. Gabriel seemed to be

healing the physical wounds while Ivy went deeper, trying to

reach Mary Clare’s soul and restore it to health and to God.

I couldn’t imagine the state her soul must be in after sharing

a body with a demon for months. It would be shredded

almost beyond recognition, but if anyone could help her, it

was a seraphim. I watched as Gabriel touched her cheeks

and the bruising and swel ing began to subside. His fingers

traced across her lips and they were whole once again.

Sister Faith hurried to bring a wet cloth and gingerly wiped

away the dried blood that caked her lips and chin. When

Gabriel moved his hands, I saw that Sister Mary Clare’s

teeth had been restored as wel . My brother had left her with

no physical reminder of the torment she’d endured.

Although her body was returned to ful health, her chest was

stil . Ivy remained hunched over her, eyes tightly shut. My

sister’s body trembled with the effort and Gabriel put his

hands on her shoulders to steady her. Bringing a soul back

from the brink of death was tiring work even for an angel as

strong as Ivy and I could see that Sister Mary Clare was

almost beyond help. A soul, once taken by Death, was

almost impossible to get back. The soul belonged to him

until it was claimed by either Heaven or Hel . If no one

wanted it, it was tossed into Limbo like garbage.

I knew Ivy had to travel down the tunnel of Sister Mary

Clare’s subconscious and coax her back before she

slipped away forever. I imagined her mind was like a mess

of crawling vermin, contaminated by the evil that had

inhabited her body for so long. Death was close, anybody

could see that. She was probably teetering on the edge,

unwil ing to return to life lest it be ful of the agony she

remembered. The tunnel of death sucks the life out of you, it

wants you to give in. It wants you to surrender. Of course,

the darkness could never touch my sister, but it could stil

deplete her strength and being inside Sister Mary Clare’s

infected mind was bound to take its tol .

Eventual y, after what seemed like forever, Ivy released

the nun’s hand and watched as her eyes blinked and then

opened. She immediately took a deep, gasping breath like

someone who had been held underwater too long.

“Oh praise the Lord!” Sister Faith cried. “Thank you,

bless you.” She seized Mary Clare in a tight hug as the

bewildered woman sat up and looked around in confusion. I

saw her properly then and realized just how young she was

—no more than early twenties with a clear face and a

sprinkling of freckles across her nose.

“What … what happened?” she stammered. Her hand

reached up to touch her knotted hair, which was caked with

blood. Sister Faith’s mouth fel open.

“She doesn’t remember?”

“She’s in shock,” replied Gabriel. “Over the next few days

it wil come back to her through flashes and nightmares.

She wil need your support.”

“Of course.” Sister Faith nodded frantical y. “Whatever

she needs.”

“Right now she needs a shower,” my brother said. “And

then you should get her into bed.” He looked around the

trashed room. “Is there somewhere she can stay while this

mess gets cleaned up?”

“Yes, yes,” Sister Faith was muttering to herself. “I’l have

Adele set up a bed.” She looked at Gabriel and Ivy. “I don’t

know how to thank you,” she said, her eyes wel ing up

again. “I thought we had lost her forever, but you have given

us our sister back and reaffirmed our faith like I never

expected in this lifetime. You have our unending gratitude.”

Gabriel only smiled. “It was our pleasure,” he said simply.

“Now take care of your sister. We wil see ourselves out.”

Sister Faith gave my siblings one final look of rapture

and then hurried the frail Mary Clare out of the room. I heard

her cal ing through the house to the others. I wondered if

they would believe the story of the mysterious visitors and

the heavenly retribution they’d delivered.

When

they

were

gone,

Ivy,

who

had

been

uncharacteristical y quiet, let out a soft sigh and seemed to

sway for a moment on her feet.

“Easy there,” Xavier said, taking a step toward her. “Are

you okay?”

With a resounding swish Gabriel’s wings retracted,

folding behind his muscular back. He wrapped a strong

arm around Ivy’s waist to support her and she leaned

against his shoulder, regathering her strength.

A moment later her wings also retracted, but I could see

the effort it cost her. She took a deep breath and gave

Xavier a faint smile.

“I’m just drained,” she said. “I’l be fine in a minute.”

Gabriel began to usher the little party toward the door.

“Come,” he said. “Our business here is finished, we should

leave.”

Outside on the porch, Gabriel caught sight of Mol y.

Clearly, the ful impact of what she’d witnessed had just hit

her. She clutched the porch post, her hands shaking. She

looked as if she could hardly support her own weight and

took one wobbly step forward, stretching out her hands to

regain her balance. Gabriel slipped an arm around her

waist to help her down the steps, and when they reached

the bottom, he wordlessly sank down beside her as she

knelt on the ground and threw up into the flower beds. One

hand stil on her shoulder, he gently lifted her hair away from

her face and held it back—not speaking, just patiently

waiting for her to finish.

27

He Loves Me Not

IT was the early hours of the morning by the time the four of

them made it back to the Easy Stay Inn. Although some

color had returned to Mol y’s face, she seemed overcome

with exhaustion. Xavier looked equal y worn-out and badly

in need of sleep. Only my siblings remained as composed

and pokerfaced as always. The only indication of the stress

they’d just undergone was their rumpled clothing. Ivy’s

strength seemed to have replenished by the time they got

back, but I knew it had been a tough night for her. It must be

frustrating, I thought. Her strength and power in the

Kingdom was boundless. But from what I could see, the

longer angels lingered on earth and mingled with humanity,

the more finite their powers seemed to become.

At the first opportunity, Xavier disappeared to his room

without saying a word to anyone. I wanted to fol ow him so

we could be alone for a while. I imagined myself lying down

beside him on the bed and pressing my head against his

chest the way I used to do. I wanted to focus every shred of

energy on letting him know I was there; to offer him what

little comfort I could and let his presence comfort me. But Ivy

and Gabriel were the ones planning the next move and I

needed to stay put if I wanted to be kept in the loop.

“What’s with him?” Mol y muttered as soon as Xavier shut

the door behind him.

“I imagine he’s disturbed by tonight’s events,” Ivy said

drily as she fitted her key into the lock. “He needs some

time to process it.” I knew Mol y’s naivete irritated her

sometimes.

For some reason, Mol y was stil purposelessly hovering

beside my siblings. They both had the good grace not to

ask what she wanted. Maybe she wanted out of the whole

rescue mission. Maybe she’d taken on more than she

bargained for and was ready to go home.

The bedroom door was painted a murky maroon color.

With a heavy sigh Gabriel pushed it open and flicked the

switches on the wal . The room was fil ed with a harsh

amber light and the rattle of a defective overhead fan. The

twin beds were covered in thin floral duvets with matching

bedside tables and fringed nightshades. The carpet was a

faded salmon color and curtains on a metal rod covered a

single rectangular window.

“It has a certain charm,” Ivy said with an ironic smile.

Although my siblings had grown used to the luxury of Byron,

their surroundings were immaterial to them. They could’ve

been in a luxury suite at the Waldorf Astoria for al the

difference it made.

“I’m going to take a shower,” Ivy said, scooping up a bag

of toiletries and disappearing into the bathroom. Mol y

watched her go, biting her lip and shifting anxiously from

foot to foot. Gabriel’s penetrating eyes watched her

patiently. They reminded me of a snowstorm—clear and

pale and so ful of depth that you could easily lose yourself

in them. He removed his jacket and hung it on the back of a

chair. The tight white T-shirt he wore accentuated his

impossibly perfect physique. Mol y couldn’t seem to tear

her gaze away from his rippling body and the way the fabric