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  Claudia stood her ground, looked straight into his eyes and shook her head. “I won’t give you my soul.”

  “Don’t be foolish, my child. You see what I can do. With a snap of my finger, I can break his spine.” He gazed toward where Ryan lay, lifeless. Aliah pointed at Ryan, and his body elevated off the ground. “Shall I drop him?”

  “No, no, no…I’ll say it! Please, don’t hurt him. Put him down,” she cried. “Please…I’ll do it.”

  Ryan was lowered to the ground. Aliah looked at Claudia. “Say it right now.”

  “I…um…I…give…”

  Aliah was losing patience. “Now!” he shouted.

  Startled by the loudness and anger in his tone, she surrendered, knowing with all her heart that there was no escape. “I give my soul…willingly…unto…thee,” Claudia said reluctantly, as tears streamed down her face.

  “Now, now, that’s a good girl. Everything will be just fine.” Aliah gave a deceiving smile, placed his left hand behind her back and pretended to give her a hug. With the other hand, he drove his sword straight into her heart and muttered, “In the sweet of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return.”

  With Aliah’s last word, he leisurely pulled out his sword, savoring the sound of tearing flesh. Claudia gasped deeply and collapsed in his arms. Blood oozed out of her mouth. Aliah lowered his lips and gently placed his mouth over hers. Carefully, he inhaled and drew Claudia’s breath from her mouth, and with one final gasp, her soul was gone.

  Without care, Claudia’s body was thrown to the ground. Aliah ran his tongue across his lips to wipe away Claudia’s blood. Relishing the taste, he raised his arms and looked up to where the light beamed through, anticipating his prayer to be heard. He spoke. “By the word of the Lord where the Heavens made, their starry host by the breath of His word. Thy soul given, freely to take. To ascend into Heavens and proclaim.” He waited for something to happen, but nothing. He tried again…nothing.

  “You fool!” he shouted fervently. “She isn’t the one! You brought me the wrong Claudia Emerson!”

  “But, Master, you told me to look for a girl with long auburn hair, about my height, who is dating a guy named Ryan. It has to be her. Everything matched. It’s difficult to match all the elements of what I’m looking for,” Kyle replied, panicking, backing away to create a wider gap between them.

  “There are many Claudia Emersons, just like the one that died in the car accident. Nicholas killed her by accident when he escaped from Aden. He was lucky she wasn’t the one or I would have killed him myself. Now, go and find the right one this time.”

  “But there are so many!”

  “The reason I have plenty of demon spirits looking for her! Find all Claudia Emersons! I don’t care how many we kill. Now that Aden is dead, it’s free for all. I want her soul. It shall belong to me. I will rule Heaven and Crossroads and have everyone bow to me.”

  “Yes, Master, I won’t fail you.”

  “You just did. Now, go. Go back to Canada. Find Nicholas in Banff, Alberta.”

  “What do I do with him?” Kyle pointed to Ryan.

  “Weak, pathetic human,” Aliah mumbled, gravitating Ryan toward him. Ryan, still unconscious, floated unresponsively. Aliah pointed his sword at a precise angle and Ryan’s body plunged into it. Scarlet liquid dribbled along the sword, down to Aliah’s arm. “Beautiful,” he expressed. Then he swung the sword toward the pool of water and Ryan’s body thumped onto the surface like a rag doll, spreading red fluid. The water started to bubble and rise. Acid, it ate away Ryan’s body, engulfing him completely until there was no sign of his existence.

  He could have let him escape or ordered Kyle to take him back home, but killing the wrong Claudia got him fuming beyond anger to the point that if Ryan wasn’t there, he would have killed Kyle. With a twirl of his wings, he flew upward, creating a tunnel of dust and tumbling the loose pebbles. Kyle covered his face with his arms. Then in a matter of seconds, Aliah disappeared, leaving behind only a few scraggly feathers.

  Chapter One

  Sunday morning came. All was quiet as I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling and reflecting on all that had happened. My life was like a young adult novel; something I would have enjoyed reading about, but for me it was real. It was my life and I was living it –surreal.

  I could have never imagined Gamma to be an Earth angel and my dad to be one of the Royal Council, God’s first angels. And to top it all off, I found out that I was adopted and my real mother, Sophia, was dead. Aden killed her when I was a baby. I’d never know the color of her hair, her eyes, or what she looked like. I wondered if I resembled her in any way.

  Everything about my life was too unbelievable, something I could never share with anyone. My mom didn’t even have a clue. To make it even worse, she didn’t even know I was not her daughter. In fact, she never got married or had children. She was thrown into this life all because of me.

  Many times I wanted to tell her, but I thought about the consequences. She would think I went bonkers. Who knows, being a nurse she may even seek professional help. Hiding this part of my life was agonizing, especially since we were very close. I couldn’t even tell my best friend, Patty. We’d shared so many secrets ever since we met, but hiding this big secret from her was eating at me. I had to tell her lies about what I’d done or where I’d been. Though our times together became infrequent because of Andrew and my secret life she had no clue about, she was still Patty, someone I knew would be there for me.

  I hoped one day, I could share this part of my life with her, because there were times when I felt like I was going to break apart, with nobody to vent to or express my feelings to; all those emotions bottled up, locked away deep within my soul, I didn’t know when I would explode from a nervous breakdown. Regardless of my unsettling emotions, I had to hold myself together. I didn’t want Michael to see me as this weak, fragile being. He would worry constantly, something I did not want. Life is a precious gift and every moment counts. I refused to let demons, fallen or fear take over my life.

  As many thoughts whirled through my mind, I decided to take a bath. Usually, I took my baths at night, but I felt like one right then; I guess I was hoping it would help me relax. The warm water, fragranced with lavender Epsom salt, would surely bring relief to my achy muscles, I thought. Recalling the events from the weeks before—falling off a cliff and being tossed around—it was no wonder I was so sore.

  It wasn’t until I stepped into the bathtub that I realized how much my body ached. Seeing the water rise, I gently sat down, carefully stretching my body across the length of the tub, until I was completely in the water from my neck to my toes. I closed my eyes and let out a soft “ahhhh.” It was like being wrapped inside a hot towel, completely separate from all other elements. The warmth penetrated my skin, flowing to every part of my body, and I became one with the water. For a brief moment, I could almost feel my worries and sorrows melting away.

  We had buried Gamma about a week ago. Though I knew that it was real, it seemed more like a nightmare, one that I couldn’t wake up from. A part of me still had not accepted that she was really gone. I wanted to call her, just to hear her voice, but I couldn’t. I wanted to go visit her, and again realized I couldn’t. Thinking back, I wished I had done more with Gamma, but now it was too late. All of the coulda, woulda, shoulda’s didn’t matter; none of them would give her back to me.

  I recalled Mom’s words, ‘Be good to those who are alive because what good is it when they are dead?’ Much as I hated to admit it, she was right. Gamma and I had shared a final moment, and for that, I felt very lucky. It was brief, but I knew how fortunate I was–I was given the opportunity to hold her hand, tell her how much I loved her, and whisper one last good-bye. It was something I would treasure forever.

  Shortly after Gamma passed away, the executor of her will stopped by. Gamma left the house and all her possessions to me. T
here were enough funds in the bank that I could actually retire. I never knew Gamma was that rich. Not sure of what I wanted to do with my life, given the unbelievable life I was living, I decided to hold off on college for a year, though I’d thought about applying to the universities. With all that had happened, I wanted to take one day at a time.

  Given the heart-wrenching week, Mom thought it was best that we stay home instead of going to church. I was glad, because I didn’t want to face everybody with all of their questions and “I’m sorry’s” again. I was drained, and was certain that I didn’t have an ounce of politeness left. Patty understood; in fact, she was the one who arranged the day off from work for me. She always knew what I needed without me saying anything. Friends like her were rare, and I knew how lucky I was to have her.

  As I inhaled the warm vapors, I slowly waved my hands inside the water. Gentle ripples swaying back and forth reminded me of the waterfall where Michael and I had been. It was a magical place where he took me on our first date. A rush of joy and excitement coursed through me as I reminisced about the way he’d held me in his arms when we were there—the way he kissed me, the way he wanted me, and the way he melted me to my very core. The thought of him caused my body to react, and I became even hotter in the tub.

  I kept my eyes closed and took in long, deep breaths in an attempt to clear my mind. It was so peaceful just doing nothing. Suddenly, images of demons and faces of the fallen flashed in my head, invading my thoughts. All I wanted to do was think of nothing and I was being bombarded with these images. I tried to shake them out of my head, but it wasn’t working.

  The water was now lukewarm, and had become almost unbearably uncomfortable. What had been calm and soothing was now suffocating me–I felt like I was drowning. My chest was tight as if someone was squeezing my lungs, and it became extremely difficult to breathe. I stood up and prepared myself to get out.

  After I wrapped the towel around my body, I reached for the second towel to wrap my hair. At that moment, something flew upward and started falling straight down to the water. The fear of my T-shirt getting wet sent a jolt of heat down my spine. As I instinctively reached my right hand out to catch it, a tingling sensation shot through my hand, unlike anything I had ever felt before, and the shirt floated in mid-air.

  I was so perplexed at what had happened that I backed away in surprise, almost falling flat on my butt as I watched my T-shirt continue falling and sink straight down into the water, now drenched. It had only floated for a split second, but it was just long enough for me to know that there was something bigger than me at work here. Intrigued with what I had just experienced, I reluctantly extended my hand in the direction where my T-shirt had appeared to be floating, much the same way Alexa Rose had floated when Michael extended his arms.

  Was it the supernatural, divine intervention? Did it really happen? Immediately, I rubbed the palms of my hands, feeling confused, excited, and frightened, all at the same time. The warmth once shooting through me had subsided. I couldn’t wait to talk to Michael and show him my new power! But could I do it again? Wanting to repeat this phenomenon, I got out of the tub, got dressed, drained the water out, and positioned the towel and a dry T-shirt exactly the way it had been.

  I could feel my heart race with anticipation as I clenched my fist several times, hoping, wanting, and wishing that I could do it again. Here goes nothing, I thought. As I reached for the towel like before, my hand was positioned in exactly the same way, ready to do the magic thing, but…nothing. The T shirt flew off the towel bar, then fell straight down. It was a good thing that I had drained the water. I tried it again and again, but to no avail. Frustrated and disappointed, I realized that my hands didn’t feel the same tingling sensation as before. Why did it happen just once? Was I doing something differently from the first time? Was it the water?

  About to attempt it one last time, I was interrupted by my cell phone ringing. Thinking it was Patty, I headed out of the bathroom and tossed the towel and the T-shirt on the floor. To my surprise, the caller ID read Andrew. Had something happened to Patty? Nervously I answered, “Hello, Andrew.”

  “Hello, Claudia. You’re probably wondering why I’m calling. I was hoping you could help me with Patty’s eighteenth birthday party.”

  With all that was going on in my life, it had totally slipped my mind that her birthday was coming up in two weeks. I was so glad that he’d called me for help. Knowing Patty was fine, I said enthusiastically, “Yes, of course. How can I help you?”

  “I want it to be a surprise for her; not too many people. I haven’t worked out the details yet, but I’ll keep you informed.”

  “That sounds great. I can’t wait. Let me know how I can help.”

  “I will. Thank you. I’ll call you soon,” he said and we hung up.

  Excited about Patty’s surprise party, I decided to forget about what I was trying to do for now, since it was only making me aggravated. Patty’s party became a great distraction. After all, Patty had done so much for me that this seemed like the perfect way to be able to thank her. I turned on the computer to get some ideas on party favors. Such a simple act reminded me of Davin. He told me once that he had learned human mannerisms by observing us and doing research on search engines on the computer. I giggled at the thought of the alkin Davin Googling or Yahooing us humans. Curiosity got the best of me, and I wanted to know what things he searched for on my computer.

  I typed “how to,” and immediately a bunch of “how to” options popped up on the history: how to dance video, how to drive a car video, how to treat a date, and many more. I smiled and chuckled out loud. No wonder he’d known how to be a perfect gentleman when he met my mom. Davin, Michael, and all of them were such powerful beings, yet they were constantly learning new things about humans. Thoughts of Davin, Vivian, and Caleb put a smile on my face. And of course, Michael—how he made me laugh, how he made me smile, how he made me feel special, and how he made me crazy for him. It was easy to care deeply for him, especially knowing what a wondering being he was. The way he cared for his friends, the way he cared for me, and him having a genuine warm heart made him all the more attractive.

  Michael had said to me, when I asked him how long he would be gone, “However long will be too long,” and that’s exactly how I felt. As I Googled party favors, thoughts of Michael and the alkins were on my mind, and I couldn’t help but wonder what they were doing.

  Lost in thought, I accidently entered a website. The headline read: ‘Missing girl, Claudia Emerson. Last seen in Los Angeles, California with her boyfriend Ryan Weber.’ That’s bizarre, I thought. A name identical to mine was on the news website, and this Claudia’s boyfriend had the same name as my ex-boyfriend; except my Ryan’s last name was Powell. What were the odds? I wondered what had happened to her. Was she kidnapped by her own boyfriend? Maybe they ran away together. Either way, her parents must have been devastated. I hoped she would be found or go back home soon, but I couldn’t help the icy chills that settled in as I wondered if this had anything to do with any demons or fallen looking for me. But, perhaps it was pure coincidence–I hoped.

  As I continued to search the computer, I brushed the back of my neck. Michael had shown me where my birth mark was located. My fingers traced the Omega sign that looked like an upside down horseshoe; a birth mark given to the one with the soul of the Holy Spirit. Only a child born from one of the Royal Council, God’s first angels, would have this mark. An icy, frightful chill started to creep up again and fear over took me.

  Chapter Two

  Statues of the archangels Michael and Gabriel were stationed tall in the center of a fountain as if they were ice sculptures, flawless and perfect in every way. Their grand majestic wings were expanded, showing their glorious status. Michael held his sword, pointing toward the sky victoriously, and Gabriel’s arms extended outward, giving a feeling of peace and comfort.

  The water from the fountain glistened like sparking diamonds as it reflected from the beaming
light, giving off golden hues. It blinded Michael for a brief second as he walked toward it. He noted the rose bushes that were nearby as their fragrance awakened him, and he recalled Davin explaining how red roses symbolized love in the human world. Immediately, a warm flame ignited inside his heart at the thought of Claudia…he could sense that she was safe, but wondered how she was spending her days without him.

  He rarely visited this section of Halo City and for the first time appreciated the beauty of the place. His perspective about anything and everything had gotten brighter since he’d found his true love, so that even the ugliest creature would have looked just as beautiful in his eyes.

  He stood there, gazing into the water. Only the Twelve knew that the deathly crystals were hidden there, so fine and grain like that there was no way of telling the difference between the water and the crystals. But Michael knew the precise location where they were hidden. Aden had told him when he once fought alongside him.

  The Twelves’ swords were made from these crystals, a gift by the Royal Council to insure the death of an angel. Without permission, Michael had used the crystals to make the beaded butterfly necklace for Claudia on her birthday. Then his gaze shifted upward to the archangels, wondering who Claudia’s father could be. Even in their perfection, they could not resist the temptation of being with mortal women. If they couldn’t, how could they ask it of him or any other angel? As these thoughts ran through his mind, Alexa Rose surprised him by placing her delicate thin arms around him from behind.

  “Hmmm…I wonder who it could be?” Michael asked playfully.

  Alex Rose giggled inaudibly, trying not to give away her identity, but then was unable to control her laughter when Michael reached behind and tickled her.

  “It’s me, Michael,” Alexa Rose announced, twisting and turning, trying to escape his tickling hold as she continued to laugh.