Sweet Peril (6 page)

“You have nothing to be sorry for. And you don’t have to talk about it unless you want.” She pulled away and touched
my cheeks. “Are you still up for our movie date?”

I sniffed. “I guess.”

“No spirits tonight?” she asked.

I shook my head.

She went to the kitchen to make drinks and pop popcorn. Her guardian angel, who was usually very still and focused, sort of bobbed next to her, expectant. When he stared down the hall I got up to see what was there, but it was empty. I sat again, considering asking her angel what was up, though I knew it would be a waste of time. Those spirits wouldn’t peep unless they’d been given higher permission.

I closed my eyes, trying to relax. My chest tightened every time I thought about that nasty Marissa acting like she owned Kaidan. And how he went without argument, hating himself for what he was about to do—what he was probably doing at this very moment.

My stomach turned.

“You okay?” Patti called from the kitchen. The scent of popcorn wafted my way.

“I need to wash up.”

I stood over the bathroom sink, contemplated being sick again.

As I leaned my palms against the cool ceramic basin, a sudden peace flooded every pore of my body. I took in a cleansing sip of air and became wholly aware of one fact.

I wasn’t alone.

“Be of cheer, little one,”
said a soft voice inside my mind.

I opened my eyes and turned too quickly, knocking the hand soap off the counter. A spirit’s wizened face hovered near
mine, as sheer as a mirage. No trace of malevolence could be found.

Was this my mother? My heart leaped . . . but she didn’t resemble the angels I’d seen. She didn’t have wings. All I could do was stare.

“You okay in there?” Patti called.

The spirit nodded and I opened the door. Patti looked at me strangely before closing her eyes with a hand on her chest. As a human, Patti could not see spirits, but she was a sensitive woman and knew they existed.

“What’s going on, Anna?” she asked. “I feel so . . .”

“I have a visitor,” I whispered, reaching out and taking Patti’s hand.

Patti looked toward the open space, marveling. Her guardian angel was smiling—something I’d never seen him do. Like most guardians, he was always so serious, but at that moment he seemed to know something we didn’t. Something that gave him great joy.

I turned my attention back to the surreal spirit as she began to speak into my mind.

“It has been difficult to navigate the earth in this form, especially when the pull heavenward is so strong, but I’ve finally found you. Finding you was my task, in death, if not in life.”

My eyes widened and I sucked in a deep breath.

“Are you . . .
Sister Ruth
?”

Patti gasped and smacked her palm over her mouth, wide-eyed.

“I am.”

Unbelievable. A giant grin spread over my face and I
nodded to Patti. Tears pooled in her eyes. The spirit nudged closer to me.

The nun I’d traveled to California to see one year ago had died before I’d had a chance to meet her and find out what she knew about me. And now she was here. She must have perceived my elation because her laughter was like the tinkle of silver wind chimes drifting into my conscience. I wished I could hug her.

“Don’t make her stand in the bathroom,” Patti whispered at me, waving us out. She drifted behind us into the living area, but when we got there neither of us could sit. The room felt unfamiliar, as if we stood on a mountaintop with clear, fresh air, more relaxed than ever. We clung together.

“I’m so sorry I didn’t get there in time,” I began, but she shushed me gently.

“I must speak quickly because I can no longer ignore my calling to the afterlife. I must tell you a story, dearest Anna. It has been my family’s purpose to keep this story, passing it down through countless generations so that it could be told. To you. My family line stopped with me, so I gave my life to the Lord, forfeiting an earthly family of my own. What I’m going to tell you could not be written. If it had fallen into the wrong hands, it could have been disastrous. And you will do well to guard it yourself.”

Prickles of anticipatory sweat beaded on my skin.

“Know this, Anna: if a demon or Satan himself were to hear what you are about to learn . . .”

“I understand.”
I took deep breaths to calm my heart so the rush of blood wouldn’t muffle her soft voice in my mind.

“So it goes: In the year of our Lord 62, while the apostle Paul
was under house arrest in Rome, a messenger angel was sent from heaven to speak a prophecy unto Paul as he slept. The apostle awoke in the dark and carved the words of the prophecy into the dirt floor with his fingers, bleeding into the earth. He covered the words with straw, hoping they would be found by someone trustworthy. The very next day he was beheaded. Only two souls besides Paul and the messenger angel knew the prophecy: his own guardian angel, Leilaf, and a demon spirit of the night. The demon had seen the messenger angel descend upon Paul’s prison quarters. When Paul was taken, the demon spirit entered the empty cell and saw the words. He briefly possessed the body of a guard in order to destroy the prophecy. We do not know what became of that demon afterward
.

“Once the angel Leilaf had seen Paul’s soul safely to the afterlife, he was given special permission to return to earth. Having found the written prophecy destroyed, Leilaf took it upon himself to enter the body of a shepherd whose life was just ending from an untimely illness. He then took a human wife and had a child: an angelic Nephilim child. He told the prophecy to this child. And so it has passed through each generation. I had no siblings, and I felt strongly led toward the sisterhood vows, so I would have no child with whom to pass along the prophecy. I am the final Nephilim child in the line of Leilaf, guardian angel of the apostle Paul.”

A purely angelic Nephilim of light. Amazing. How did the Dukes not know about her? I realized when she paused that I was holding my breath, trying to ingest every word of her story without interruption. She waited for my breathing to steady before continuing.

“And now, here is the angel’s lost prophecy, to the best of my knowledge:

She watched me as I untangled the verses and attempted to decipher them.
Cast all demons from earth
. Could it be?
Sending home righteous lost angels
. My dad! Could there really be redemption for fallen angels? My heart and mind were racing.

“Anna, I believe you are that Nephilim.”
What? A chill of trepidation trickled down my spine.
“There is grave danger in the task ahead of you. Danger from which we are all helpless to protect you.”

Understanding racked my being to the core. This was my life’s task and it was huge. Monumental.

Focus. I had to think. This was a good thing. I wanted nothing more than to rid the earth of the despicable demons. But fear of the unknown threatened to smother me. Where would I start? How would I accomplish this?

“I need to understand exactly what it means,”
I said.
And then silently I asked,
“Can I speak freely?”

“You may. There are no Dukes nearby, and I spied no spirits when I arrived.”

I cleared my throat. “So . . . I’m supposed to cast the demons from earth?”

Patti went as rigid as a mannequin next to me. “Should you be saying this out loud?” she whispered. We’d become so accustomed to being careful. I nodded to her that it was okay.

“I believe ridding the earth of dark ones will be done through you. It is the belief of my family that this Nephilim will be the bridge that provides the fallen angels with a second chance. They have been allowed to come to earth to influence the humans, but not for eternity. Their time will come to an end very soon now that you are here.”

“Sister Ruth, I’m honored. . . .” But I was also overcome with a dire sense of urgency. I needed to find out as much as possible and she would be gone forever at any moment. I felt so small in comparison to the undertaking I’d been destined to perform. “What should I do?”

“What you do now is a matter for your own discernment. All the tools you need have been provided, and you must seek them. You may find that trustworthy allies can help you along your path, but that is at your discretion. Be careful whom you trust. Have you retrieved the box I left to you at the convent?”

“Yes, Sister. The hilt?”

“You must keep it hidden and carry it with you always. It is the flaming sword of Leilaf used in the war of the heavens.”
Just as Kaidan had guessed. I pushed down feelings of panic that came whenever I thought of having to wield the spiritual sword. I couldn’t fathom such a treasure being left in my care.

Sister Ruth’s form began to shimmer and lift higher. I reached out a hand, desperate.

“Sister, wait!”
With effort, she driftd back down. It was purely selfish of me to keep her here longer, but I didn’t want her to go yet. She was my only link. “How did you survive the Nephilim purge?”

“Mm, yes. The desperate years. I was in utero during that time and they did not know about me. My mother was warned by an angel from heaven that they were coming for her. She was my Nephilim parent, but she told my human father everything. She was lucky to have found a devout man she could trust with our secrets. She went into hiding underground in the basement of a church. Demons avoid the Holy Spirit, so they won’t breach areas where two or more are gathered together in prayer. I spent my life in churches and convents.”

Her voice was getting softer. I had to let her go.

“Thank you for finding me, Sister. Thank you for everything.”

“Yes,” Patti said. “Thank you.”

Sister Ruth looked down upon Patti and laid a hand on her head.
“I knew you were the right woman to raise her from the moment I saw you.”
And then she turned to me.
“Have faith, dear one. And do not despair.”

Her spirit glided up, disappearing through the ceiling, emanating pure joy as she ascended home. I stood there, trying to process all I’d just learned. I tried to imagine the earth without demons. What would this mean for humans? For Neph?

“She’s gone,” Patti whispered. “I can feel that she’s gone.”

By the time I’d told her all the details she was in tears and my hands were trembling with the shock of it.

“Do you know what this means for all of you?” She reached up and touched my cheek. “For the world? I knew you were destined for something big, baby girl.”

Her eyes were filled with parental joy, but the half smile showed her underlying fear.

My thoughts went to Kaidan, able to live a free life, and a noise slipped from my throat. Patti pulled me in and hugged me hard.

“It’s all gonna be okay,” she whispered. And when she said it, I believed it. She let go and swiped her fingers under her eyes.

In that moment I thought about my biological mother, the angel Mariantha. I wondered if she was watching me, and if she knew she could get her soul mate back soon.

“Oh, my gosh,” I said. “I need to call Dad.”

I pulled my phone from my pocket and scrolled through the contacts.

With a shaking hand, I typed the emergency code he’s taught me, “A911,” and hit Send.

I
couldn’t sleep that night after the revelation. Patti and I stayed up late discussing everything, rejoicing at the thought of no more demons on earth. We never mentioned the obvious fear—that I could die in the process of attempting this feat. She tucked me in after midnight and kissed my forehead like she did when I was little. My head had been hurting after I saw Kaidan, and it throbbed worse now with the weight of the prophecy.

Dad had called after I texted, and told me he’d be here to talk in person as soon as possible.

At three in the morning I still lay awake.

Thinking of Kaidan.

I was burning with the urge to call him. Or jump in my car and drive until I found him. Because he needed to know about this. Like,
now
.

My fingers were on fire, itching to dial a number I didn’t know. I picked up my cell and scrolled through the names until it landed on
Marna
. Inhaling deeply and letting it out slowly, I pressed Send.

“Gah, what time . . . ?” she muttered groggily. “Hallo?”

I sat up in bed at the sound of her sweet, sleepy English voice. “Can you talk?” I asked.