Inside the Fire Book One in the Warden's Series (28 page)

“Nice, well I need to get to bed I have a
church thing in the morning super early. I just wanted to call and
let you know that it was getting around.” He started laughing. “You
want to come over for lunch tomorrow?”

“Yeah that would be cool.” I said my
farewell and put my phone down.

“Dad!” I screamed just as the familiar odor
of sulfur hit the air.

I stood up and started to sprint from my
room when the door slammed shut. I could hear my father on the
other side banging trying to get in, but it was too late he was
already in my room with that sinister grin on his face.

“Did you miss me? Oh it seems so long since
I saw you last.” He looked at me brooding, licking his pale lips.
“Your broken bleeding body tossed aside, used for my own
infatuation.” He was glaring at me now his gaze staring straight
into my soul.

“Dawn!” My father was screaming through the
door. He was panicking, trying to figure out why he couldn't get
in.

I stood there frozen staring at him. I felt
fear and anger purge through my body and the images of that night
swarming my brain cells. Every inch of me screaming to run, to run
and hide, but I just stood there face to face with my violator lost
in horrible memories of the last we met. I could feel his punches
and smell his breath, that horrible feeling that something was
being ripped from me. I pushed it down into my gut I was not going
to run, I was not going to hide.

“Oh, Daddy is here.” He smiled widely and
took a step forward, I did not move. “Oh sweet princess do let
Daddy come in.” With a snap of his fingers my door shattered into
wooden splinters and in stepped my father his eyes black as night
his hands burning with a blue flame. He looked fearsome like
something out of a horrible nightmare, and again I just stood
there.

“Jonathan Borrows, long time no see.” My
father spit.

I could see fires of Hell in his black eyes.
If this had happened four years earlier I would have cowered, cried
myself into madness but now I understood the amazing power that my
father held in his agile body.

“Has it been so long?” My violator spoke
moving his focus from me to my father. “You look ravishing as ever
Damien.” He teased flashing a big toothy grin.

“What business do you have here?” My father
seethed the flames were slowly rising up his body enveloping his
arms and shoulders.

“Oh hasn’t your daughter told you.” He
clasped his hands together and attempted to look innocent. “We are
madly in love. We plan on getting married in the spring. Do you
object Daddy dearest?” His eyes blackened, and he dropped his
hands.

He glared at me with such hatred in his
eyes.

“It just sucks that she was already impure.”
For a dark soul stuck in such a young body the boy was absolutely
horrifying. He wore a beautiful young face but had eyes that could
rip your soul right from your body with just a blink.

“That is my daughter you speak of.” My
father seethed, the fire was now at his waist.

“Oh don’t sound so surprised. The child of
demon beams with sexual promiscuity. Oh no, I know your secret!” He
exclaimed a laugh erupted from his throat. “You see, I know who you
are.” He went dead serious. “I didn't quite make it to the Hell
that you told me about. I was saved by a glorious angel. She told
me things about you. Now look at you, a family man with such a
beautiful daughter. Needless to say I do see that my message was
well received.”

“What do you want with my daughter?” My
father commanded, the fire had erupted, engulfing his body, and he
was suddenly reaching for me. “Dawn, get inside the fire he cannot
hurt you there.” I reached out and grabbed my father’s hand
instantly erupting into flames. I felt a dark pull inside of me and
did my best to hold it at bay. The power was immense and I swear I
could hear the cries of all the souls my father had taken.

How was this supposed to save me from being
hurt?

“What every love struck teenager wants, a
life with the woman he loves.” He looked sad for a moment then
looked back at my father with a devious grin on his face. “Well in
this case loved. You know she never told me what she was, but it
was already too late for her. He had already spoken to me through
my muse.” I could have sworn I just saw the boy twitch.

“What are you talking about?” My father
demanded. I could feel his power surging through my hand I could
hear his thoughts I could hear his heart not beating.

Wait my father's heart wasn't beating?

I suddenly became more concerned with my
father's lack of a pulse than with the boy standing ten feet in
front of me. Unexpectedly behind us the room turned white.

“The girl was half angel, you beast. A child
born of purity, who told you what she was? I demand it!” My
mother’s voice rang behind us deep and hollow her blonde hair
flowing like a ribbon behind her head, her eyes white as milk, her
lips as red as blood.

John looked horrified as he looked at her. I
don’t think he was expecting this.

"That girl loved you, she trusted you and
you turned around and did those awful things to her!" My mother was
screaming at him there were tears streaming down her face.

John seemed to stammer as his eyes took in
my mother. “Lucifer himself told me. It was all through the voice
of a beautiful demon.” He hissed unable to control his words. “I
did as he commanded, ripped her of her purity and took her life. If
she loved me she would have told me!" He screamed back at her his
voice faltering. For a second I could have sworn I saw a scared boy
behind those eyes.

“Lucifer would never demand the death of a
hybrid Angel. He knows that it can lead to war with the kingdom of
Heaven.” My mother growled at John.

“I did to her what I tried to do with your
daughter. She told me it would make her go away. That if I killed
her she could be mine! Except apparently it doesn’t work the same
way as it did before.” He looked confused as he backed away from
her. She was pulling the truth from him unwillingly.

Suddenly his eyes burst back onto me inside
my flame armor. There was a second where he looked pleading and
finally recognition crossed his face.

“A child of darkness and light oh how she
will love this. I am not prepared for this fight. She did not know
what you were oh but I do.” he let out a sinister giggle and
pointed at me. “When I am ready though I will return and my hands
will spill your precious Halfling blood and in death you will be
mine.” And just like that he was gone.

The only thing that remained was a slight
smell of sulfur in the air. My mother’s light went out first, her
eyes turning blue and sad. She had pulled a truth from my violator
a truth that she did not want to know. And the anger and hate that
seared through me kept me ablaze even after my father dropped my
hand. I stood there burning, vowing that I would get vengeance.
First for Wesley and then for myself and if I had to bring the
worlds of Heaven and Hell with me so be it.

“Dawn?” My mother’s voice penetrated my
brain, but it was like I could not hear her. I glanced at her
blindly and in a voice that wasn’t exactly my own I spoke.

“I need to get out of here. I need to think.
He knows about me and he will tell her and he will be back. I have
no idea what to do I need to find the answers.” I could feel hot
tears running down my face.

They both just watched as I left the room
slowly fizzling out leaving smoke rings behind me. I grabbed my
keys and walked out the door getting behind the wheel of my car I
had no idea where I was going.

I put the car in reverse and drove off into
the night. Wherever I was headed I would know when I got there.
Something was pulling me, a force I could not understand. It had a
pleasant burn to it which was what was making it so tempting.

Maybe it was the residual power of my father
in my veins or maybe it was the truth of what I had been told.
Either way I would figure this entire mess out and prevent any of
it from happening. I was not going to be his in life or death and
Wesley was not going to fall prey to that half-demon slut.

****

I wound up by the water, my own little
island of serenity where I sat and stared at the stars. How could
it seem that the world was so peaceful when in fact there was so
much in it that wasn't? The Heavens looked so inviting, no wonder
my mother loved being up there with the stars. I was sitting there
looking up thinking when a heard a twig break behind me, I turned
to look. I saw nothing at first then finally a foot stepped out
into the clearing of my sanctuary. A tall male with blue eyes and
golden hair. I knew I shouldn't fear him as he ascended on me his
eyes staring straight into mine.

"Child of darkness, child of light why is
there pain and fear inside your heart?" He looked at me with
remorse in his eyes.

"Who are you?" I asked softly still not past
the nights events.

"I am Ramiel." He took a seat next to me.
"Have no worries I come from there." he pointed up at the sky.

“There are not many things that I fear.” I
said quietly as he stretched out his long legs.

“That is always reassuring. He said you
would be a strong one.” Ramiel smiled at me. His voice was very
comforting.

“Who said what about me?” I asked raising an
eyebrow.

If one was to look at him long enough you
would assume we were the same age but something in me said that he
was far older than I was.

"God of course! He watches you grow and
learn each day. He has not given up hope for your mother either.
After all she was tempted and corrupted by a demon. He has forgiven
her but it is not her time to come home. She has far too much work
here to do."

Was this some weird twisted way of answering
my prayers?

"We cannot help you, young one, we observe
but never interfere. Well I shouldn't say never, there was a time
when Angels walked the Earth and took mortal wives and husbands.
You know we created our own breed of human." He looked at me and
smiled. "God took that right because of wars, corruption, death,
disease. I could keep going but I won't. Somehow your mother fell
through the cracks. She held on dearly to her love even after the
fires of Hell had consumed him."

"Why are you here Ramiel?" I asked
quietly.

Was this night ever going to end?

I didn't want to sound snippy, it's just
after everything that had happened all I wanted was for someone to
be straight with me.

"I came to show you the truth. I came to
show you how a boy so young could kill something so pure. This is
quite a twisted web you have woven here. It is going to take a lot
to get out of your sticky little predicament. You are going to have
to do things that you would never otherwise do. Your mothers mind
holds quite a few disturbing images of what was done to that poor
girl and it's eating at her. I figured I would assist an old
friend, and with permission here I am. She called out to me when
you left asking me to watch over you."

Yeah that sounded like my mother that was
for sure.

"Why are they coming for me?" I whimpered. I
could feel the raw emotions surging through my body. My father's
strength must have faded. I felt vulnerable, and scared, and
lost.

“Hell has a lot to gain to have you. So does
Heaven. You are a half blood angel. On the other hand you are
half-blood demon. It is quite uncommon to find someone that carries
the blood of both lines. You are a rare being indeed.” He looked at
me with a peaceful expression on his face. “Heaven could use your
demon blood to their advantages against Hell. While Hell can use
your angel blood to their advantages against Heaven. It's a two way
street, either way someone is going to win. However when it comes
to the two beings that haunt you it would seem they are more in
tuned with your demon nature. They are trying to feed off of it to
make you vulnerable, a quick target." He said this while putting an
arm around me. He was unusually warm. "I'm sure you know the story
of Pandora's Box.”

"What does Greek and Roman mythologies have
to do with what's going on now?" I asked resting my head on his
shoulder as he slowly rocked me from side to side.

He laughed softly.

"There is nothing wrong with sharing a
story. Do you remember what was at the bottom of Pandora's Box?
After all the bad things came out into the world?" He asked me.

"Hope." I said into his shoulder.

"Yes child, hope." He whispered.

"Are you the hope at the bottom of the box?"
I asked him suddenly.

There had to be a reason he was here. Each
time an Angel set foot on Earth some man wrote a long, drawn out
story about how he was charged with a quest from the All Mighty
himself. It makes you wonder how many Angels enjoyed playing jokes
in his name.

"In a way yes." He just sat there rocking in
silence watching the water ripple on the banks of the lake and
listening to the animal’s conversations.

I felt so much better with Ramiel by my
side. Like a weight had been lifted from my chest. It felt that
maybe for once there was hope on my side. I would finally
understand what all this was about.

"Does God know what I’m supposed to do?" I
asked cautiously after about an hour of silence.

"God does not know what you will become. He
has an idea but no solid proof. He may have created you but he made
sure to give you free will. What may be your path today could very
well change tomorrow." He stopped rocking. "Come, it is time."

I raised my head from his shoulder as he
stood towering over me.

"Time for what?" I asked as he helped me to
my feet.

"Time for a walk in the past. Maybe if you
see what happened before you can prevent it from happening again."
He took my hand and led me into the trees.