Last Rite (30 page)

I nod. “Huge. But I think it’s true.” I catch myself. If this is gonna work, I have to be more convincing. “No. I
know
it’s true. He’s changed. He wants forgiveness.”

She brings a finger to the side of Her nose and taps it there. “You’re quite sure about that?”

The pendant throbs on my chest. “Yes.”

She looks at me a moment longer, familiar worry lines creasing Her brow, and I feel myself start to shake. Suddenly, I’m anything but sure. I feel the pendant’s energy flare and it feels dirty and dark. I want it off. I lift my hand to pull it over my head but then stop. I don’t want Grandma to see it … to know I have it.

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.” My words are a plea, and I don’t realize I’m crying until Grandma lifts Her hand and wipes a tear off my cheek with Her fingers.

She stands from the couch and paces to the table next to Grandpa’s worn recliner, where he keeps his pipe stand. “Your path is your own,” She says, fingering the pipe with a melancholy smile. “And your strength is your own,” She adds with a pointed glance at me, Her fingers drumming Her chest, just where the pendant lays on mine. “You have great potential, but how you use it is up to you.”

“So … would you let Him come back?”

“My dear girl,” She says, and I shudder hearing those old, familiar words coming from Her mouth again. “For eons, he’s had the option to return.”

“Seriously? He can come back? Just that easy?”

Her sad smile tells me it’s anything but easy. Which means I was wrong. My purpose isn’t convincing God to let Lucifer come home.

“What does He have to do to come back?”

“Forgiveness is the key to everything, but forgiveness can only be given to those who wish it.”

Forgiveness is the key to everything
. I flash back to Gabe saying those same words to me not that long ago.

“Gabe!” I gasp. “I put him in danger by making him think…” I grimace and drop my head. I was so stupid, using my Sway to try to persuade him Lucifer was good. How was I so easily convinced?

“Is Gabe…?”

She glides over to me and strokes my cheek. “He can’t be killed, but he’s changed from the Gabriel you knew.” Her hand travels to Luc’s shoulder, where he’s still kneeling on the carpet. “Rise, my son.”

Luc stands, but still doesn’t look at Her. I grasp his hand, but he doesn’t squeeze back. His hand just lies limply in mine.

Her gaze falls heavily on me. “Lucifer is correct on one point. There does indeed need to be a shift in the balance, and you’re the one who can bring that about … with a little help,” she adds with a squeeze to Luc’s shoulder.

“How?”

“Lucifer may rule Hell, but he did not create it.”

“I don’t understand.”

“He is the self-proclaimed ruler of the Abyss, and under his guidance it has become something it was never meant to be.” Her gaze softens as She brushes the backs of Her fingers over my cheek. “Do you understand the true purpose of Hell, Frannie? Why I created it?”

“To punish mortals who sinned in life?” I ask.

The doleful set to Her face makes Her look suddenly older. She shakes Her head slowly, and Luc speaks up.

“To redeem souls for Heaven through penitence,” he says, his head still bowed, earning a soft smile from Grandma.

Grandma’s whole face glows when She smiles. “This is true, young man.”

“I thought that was Purgatory,” I say, confused.

“Purgatory,” She answers, “is where souls are sanctified for their entrance to Heaven. It’s a place for those who have died in grace and are marked for Heaven to, as the name would imply, purge their sins and shed their biases in preparation for a life of eternal glory in the Kingdom. Those souls are already Heaven bound. The souls in Hell, however, can choose to stay there, or they can choose to earn their way to Purgatory.” She pauses, lifting a finger to Her temple. “At least that’s how it was supposed to work.” She turns to Luc. “So, young man, do you recall Lucifer ever giving a soul up to Heaven?”

Luc slowly lifts his head and looks at Her. “No.”

Grandma nods. “And he never will.” Her expression is solemn. “Lucifer has corrupted Hell. He actively tempts mortals down the path, never intending to give them up to Heaven when they repent. There are souls in Hell who have been unjustly condemned.”

Luc’s head bows deeper and I hear him pull a long, shaky breath, making me wonder how many of those souls he’s directly responsible for. His mournful eyes lift briefly to mine and the pain I see there crushes my heart.

Grandma kisses my forehead. “The time has come for you to make your choice, dear girl. You have a gift. It’s within your power to right Lucifer’s wrongs, but you have no less free will than any other of my children. You can choose to live your life, just as you have been, or you can become more.” She smiles at Luc’s bowed head. “But, whatever you choose, keep your young man close. You will need him.”

Everything ripples, like heat off sun-baked pavement.

I reach out to Grandma. “No! Wait! What happens if I—”

But before I can finish the thought, lightning crackles all around me, making the hair on my arms stand on end, and Grandma is gone. Everything around me shifts in the mist and I’m back at the gorge, staring across at Gabe’s and Matt’s broken bodies.

LUC

“What do I do?” she says, staring across the Abyss at her brother. She turns to me. “Tell me what to do!” she pleads.

“The choice is yours, Frannie,” I answer, knowing what my choice would be if I could make it for her. I’d get down on my knees and beg her to choose the safe course if I thought she’d listen. But I can tell by the determination in her eyes as she gazes across the chasm at her brother and Gabriel that, whether she knows it or not, she’s already decided. It’s right there to see. She’s not taking the safe route.

She glances to me for an instant, and when she locks my gaze in hers I know I’m right. A fire burns behind her eyes that I’ve never seen there before. She squeezes my hand with a sad smile, and my heart crumbles as she lets me go and steps onto a jagged precipice that extends over the maw. I watch as she breathes deep and holds her arm out to Lucifer. “I’m coming,” she calls.

She only hesitates for a heartbeat at the lip of the chasm before closing her eyes, drawing a deep breath, spreading her arms and stepping headlong into it.

I lunge for her, meaning to pull her back from the precipice, but I’m not quick enough. The gasp and murmur from the other side of the standoff is audible over the rumble of the ground that closes like a bridge in front of her with every step.

I gain my feet and start moving forward again.

“What’s happening to her?”

Daniel’s voice behind me is almost lost in the wind swirling up from the maw. As I turn to look at him I see he’s got Claire in his arms, holding back her desperate attempt to cross the bridge and get to Frannie. The rest of his family is huddled together behind them. And beyond them, the cavern pulses with white energy. Four immense angels hover just above the ground, ageless and boundless, blinding me with their radiance.

The archangels.

Gabriel, the warrior and God’s Left Hand, stands at point, his triple wings spread as if ready to lead the charge at a moment’s notice. Raphael and Uriel watch Frannie’s progress closely. But Michael can’t help taking a moment to spare me a disgusted smirk.

I swallow hard and turn back to Daniel, not sure how to answer his question. “Take your family back there,” I say, moving toward Frannie’s bridge. “Stay behind the archangels.”

“The…” he starts, but trails off as he looks behind him at the spectacle.

Setting my resolve, I turn and move to the stone bridge Frannie leaves in her wake. As I step onto it, the Lake of Fire roils forever below, a kaleidoscope of gold, red, and indigo.

Home sweet home.

The smell of sulfur is stronger here above the chasm. It burns my nose and makes my eyes water. I move across the stone bridge behind Frannie, hoping beyond reason that I can be of some use to her. She must sense me behind her, because she turns and holds up her hand, warning me to stop, and I see them—tears streaking her face.

My heart is in my throat as I stand, not ten feet behind her, desperately searching for something I can do or say to keep her on this side of the maw.

Ahead, the blackness swirls, rife with anticipation at the Heavenly charge.

Frannie slows to a stop just feet from completing the bridge. “Lucifer,” she calls, her voice heavy with tears but determined. “We had a deal.”

His smile is sympathetic. “And I’ve acted in good faith. Our agreement was that I would return your brother to you.” He plants a bare foot on Gabriel’s hip, where he’s struggling to pull himself to his feet, and kicks, sending Gabriel sprawling onto his face. “This one must pay the consequences for his actions.”

“No.” Frannie says, her voice surprisingly even. “I want them both. We don’t have an agreement otherwise.”

“Come to me and we can renegotiate,” Lucifer answers, a hungry smile flickering over His face.

There is an instant where everything is dead silent. Frannie brings her hand to her chest, gripping something under her shirt, then takes the last step to complete the bridge between Heaven and Hell. She glides slowly toward Lucifer. He holds His arms out to her and she only hesitates for a second as she passes Matt and Gabriel, glancing down at their broken bodies, before she walks right into His grasp.

My gut churns and something inside my chest collapses. I spin, hoping to find the archangels preparing to intervene, but they only continue to watch. What I also find is that Daniel is as good at following directions as Frannie. Frannie’s family is standing in a cluster on the bridge behind me.

I step forward, and Rhenorian moves to intercept me, ranseur in hand.

“No!” I hear Frannie call and look up to see her standing in Lucifer’s arms, glaring out at me. “Just let me do this,” she says more quietly, her eyes locking on mine.

My heart lurches and nearly stops as a triumphant sneer creeps slowly over Lucifer’s face. His grasp on Frannie becomes more possessive.

Maggie pushes past me and runs to Matt’s side. Rhen steps toward her but Lucifer waves him off. Daniel, Claire, and the rest of her family follow her across.

Frannie’s voice pulls me back to the scene unfolding in front of us. She looks up at Lucifer, folded tightly into His grasp. “You said with me at your side you could return to your true essence, but if you want to return to Heaven, you have to ask forgiveness. Are you ready to do that?”

“I will do what is required, but what I require of you is your pledge. I have fulfilled my obligation…” He gestures toward Matt with a grand sweep of His arm. “Now it is your turn. One word, my queen, and everything will be as it should be.”

She stares into His eyes and pulls something up by a strap around her neck.

Unholy Hell.

The Udjat. She still has it.

It pulses at the end of the strap, alive. A red eye—searching.

My blood runs cold. I push forward, but Rhenorian thrusts the tip of the ranseur into my chest. Hellfire crackles over the surface of it and my T-shirt smolders.

“No,” Kate says, and before I realize she’s done it, she’s stepped forward and grasped the end of the ranseur.

And where it was scorching a hole in my shirt one second, the next it’s cold as ice.

Rhenorian looks at her for an instant then throws the ranseur aside. Opting instead for the old-fashioned approach, he grasps my shirt and cocks his fist in front of my face.

“Stop! Call him off!” Frannie stands at Lucifer’s side, white and red lightning dancing over her skin as she stares Lucifer down. Her gaze gravitates to Matt and Gabriel, broken on the ground. “I’ll do what you want,” she says, “but you have to let everyone go. Matt and Gabe too,” she adds, her voice hard.

He looks at her for a long moment, as if assessing His options. “Very well,” He says with a dismissive flick of His wrist.

I shoulder past Rhenorian as Frannie runs to Gabriel’s side and skids to her knees. I lower myself to a knee beside her.

Gabriel’s eyes crack open and he looks up at Frannie. “Hey, beautiful,” he says with a strained smile. “Come here often?”

“Gabe.” She leans in, rubbing blood off his cheek with her thumb. “What happened?”

He shudders just before a grimace twists his face. “Turns out I’m not indestructible after all.” He groans and pain contorts his face.

A tear splashes onto Gabriel’s forehead as Frannie leans over him. “I’m so sorry.”

Out of nowhere, a blast of red Hellfire hits Gabriel and he convulses.

I bound to my feet, positioning myself between Frannie and the direction of the maw, where Aaron is standing at the precipice, red lightning crackling over a fist aimed in our direction.

Hell’s newest celestial recruit.

A scorching flash of red Hellfire connects with Aaron, and I look down to see Matt propping himself on one arm and focusing everything he has on Aaron with the other. I watch Aaron’s retaliatory streak of Hellfire splinter as Maggie screams and throws herself over Matt. But Daniel lunges in front of both his children and takes a direct hit.

I’m thrown to the side as something next to me explodes. Blasts of both Hellfire and celestial lightning flash past me toward the maw. I look up to find Aaron paralyzed, encased in intertwined streaks of red and white lightning. It crackles and pops all around him for a heartbeat, then seems to focus into a single point and shoot back toward us.

A guttural cry erupts from Frannie and I throw myself in front of her. The concentrated mix of celestial and infernal energy rips through me, tearing out my soul on its way to her.

Frannie slams into me from behind, but all I can see of her is her hand reaching past me on my right, and instantly the energy is no longer coursing through me. I watch her skin drink in the fierce, dancing, electric charge.

Aaron stands at the precipice, still as stone, and in my waning consciousness, I realize he
is
stone. Brimstone. Lucifer walks over and pushes Aaron’s shoulder, sending him plummeting backward over the edge of the Abyss. Dimly, at the edge of my perception as I sink to the ground, unable to breathe, I hear the echo of stone pound off the walls of the chasm.