The Rise of the Fallen (The Angelic Wars Book 2) (12 page)

Everyone laughed again at the
improbable group. Chef actually ended up wiping his eyes from
laughing so hard. This time even Jamie joined in. Chef had a
contagious laugh.

Finally, the group moved on. Chef
reminded them that they'd be staying for some time and they'd have
plenty of time to explore the castle, including the delightful
murals.

Several minutes later, they finally
reached their new quarters. Natalie and Chris had rooms directly
across from each other and Chef was going to be staying just two
doors further down the hallway.

“Thank you for your help, young
Jamie,” Chef rumbled. “It was a very...amusing journey,”
he added with a smile.

Jamie gave them a slight bow. “My
pleasure, sir. I hope you are all comfortable.” He looked at
each of them, ending with Chris. “If you need anything during
the day, my number in the house is two-seven-three. Just dial nine
first. I'm the gopher on the day shift, so your wish is my command.”

They all thanked him and he left with a
wave.

“Well, I don't know about you
two, but I could use a nap,” Natalie said and stretched with a
loud groan. “I've got a few bumps and bruises that could stand
some rest to heal up.”

“Capital idea, Natalie,”
Chef said. He looked at Chris. “You're pale as milk, my friend.
Get some sleep. We'll all meet later, once the judge settles in and
gets this castle in hand.” His smile was grim. “That
won't take long, I have no doubt.”

The three of them separated, Chef
heading down the hall and Natalie entering her room. Chris crossed
the hall, hesitated a moment and then entered his new rooms.

Chris' rooms were actually
a suite. An amazing sitting room greeted him as he entered, with a
brown leather couch on the wall to his left and a beautiful fireplace
built of cream-colored brick on the right. The floor was covered with
an striking oriental rug, bright patterns and whirls glowing with
greens and blues. The air smelled of pine-scented cleaner which Chris
loved and he took a deep breath and felt himself relaxing one muscle
at a time.

There were short tables of
heavy oak at both ends of the couch and on the closest table was a
silver tea service and a covered plate that turned out to be filled
with different pastries. Chris swallowed convulsively as he saw the
apple and blueberry turnovers and reluctantly decided to wait to eat
until he had explored the rest of the suite.

There were three arches
leading out of the sitting room. To the left, Chris discovered a
marvelous bathroom, with light marble floors and a huge, cast-iron
tub that looked very inviting. I'll get back to you, he promised it.

The right-side arch led to
an office, with walls lined with shelves that were stuffed with
hundreds of books. A small oak desk and a leather chair stood in
front of a full-length window. Through the window, Chris saw gardens
and walkways stretching out into the distance. Everything was neat
and clean and he saw several groups of tourists enjoying the bright
summer day. He had to smile at the peaceful scene. He was beginning
to like Valiant.

You're staying in a
frigging castle, man, he thought and fought the urge to pinch
himself.

He went back into the
sitting room and went through the last arch that led through the back
of the room.

The bedroom in the back of
the suite was massive. Do they make anything small in this place? He
looked at the four-poster bed that was covered with a thick red and
white quilt. There was a heavy bureau and a chest of drawers that
were full of clothes. Chris checked the sizes. Yup, he thought. All
my size. How do they do that? He shrugged and moved on.

The pine-covered walls
gleamed cleanly and had several paintings hanging from them. The
scenes were simple slices of British life; children playing tag in a
farmyard, a lady wearing a flowing gown walking down a country lane
carrying an umbrella and two men riding horses. It was very tranquil.

Chris sat down on the bed
with a loud sigh. The quilt was soft and warm. It had been a crazy
few days. Between the fight in the shrine with Lilith, the
devastation of the Nest and the showdown with Askalon, he wasn't
quite sure how he was still able to think, let alone walk. Well, the
judge and Chef had told him to get some sleep, so that was what he
was going to do. But first he was going to fill that amazing bathtub
while he tucked into those pastries. He actually liked tea
occasionally and thought a few cups would be soothing.

He stood up slowly,
hearing his joints creak, and headed for the bathroom.

Chris fell asleep right
after his bath, his head barely hitting the pillow. At some point as
he wandered through restless dreams, he found himself back in the
plane confronting Askalon.

The man looked the same,
except that his eyes weren't flat black this time. Instead they
glowed with a hellish red light. He laughed as he pointed at Chris.

“
I know you now,
human host of Sariel. If I kill you, our conquest of the Earth will
be quick and easy. Prepare to die!”

And the red eyes became
bigger and bigger. And then they burst with a horrible moist pop and
wriggling bunches of tentacles pushed out from the sockets, growing
and grasping for Chris, who stood frozen with fear. The plane began
to shiver and shake and an incessant pounding echoed through the
small space; the sound of something trying to get in.

Chris sat up with a gasp
and looked around wildly. For a moment he didn't recognize his
surroundings. A loud knocking was coming from the front door out in
the sitting room. He breathed deeply and clicked on the bedside lamp.
It had to be fairly late; the view outside of the window was all in
darkness.

Chris slipped out of bed
and stumbled to his feet. He grabbed a pair of jeans and a t-shirt at
random from the bureau and put them on as he made his way into the
sitting room.

“
Coming!” he
called out at whoever was knocking. He was relieved as the banging
immediately stopped.

Chris turned on the lamps
on the end tables, made sure he was zipped up and unlocked the door.

As he opened it, he saw a
smiling Jamie standing there. The smile slipped from his face as he
saw Chris' disheveled appearance and his grumpy expression.

“
Oh, I am so sorry,
sir,” he began to say. Chris shook his head and held up a hand.

“
Look, I don't know
what the rules are here in the castle. What's the word, protocol?
Yeah, well, I'm no sir, that was my dad. And I'm younger than you
are. Just call me Chris. It'll save time. I always look around to see
who people are talking to when they call me sir.”

Jamie looked delighted and
laughed at Chris' comment. “Very well, sir, I mean Chris.
Please call me Jamie.”

Chris waved him into the
room. “Have a seat for a second. I have to find some socks and
brush my hair.” He ran a hand through his long tangled locks.
“I must look like a mess, going to sleep with wet hair.”

Jamie smiled as he sat
down on the couch. “You look fine.”

Chris walked into the
bedroom. “So what's going on?” he called out as he
rummaged through several drawers until he found some new sweat socks.

“
Lord Hawkes called
and asked me to rouse you, I'm afraid. He's convening a meeting with
all of the people that came in with him, staff included. There will
be food,” he added brightly as if trying to cheer Chris up.
Chris grinned.

“
Thanks,” he
called as he put on the socks and his rather beat-up old sneakers. He
grabbed a brush off of the bureau and pulled it through his hair
roughly, frowning as he ripped a few hairs out as he worked through
the knots. He looked in the mirror and shrugged at himself. Could
look worse, I guess.

He returned to the sitting
room and Jamie sprang to his feet.

“
I'm ready, I
guess,” he said to the older boy with a wry grin.

“
Excellent. While
I'm here, m'lord asked me to give you this.”

Jamie pulled a cellphone
and charger out of his pocket and handed them to Chris. “They're
yours. Next time you're needed, they can just call you. No need for
me to pound you awake.”

Chris laughed at that
comment, thanked Jamie and put the cell in a front pocket. He tossed
the charger on to the couch. “I'll plug it in later.” he
said.

Jamie nodded and led Chris
out of the room. Then he clapped a hand to his brow and dug into
another pocket.

“
I almost forgot
about this.” He handed Chris an ornate key. “For your
rooms. I've been asked to tell you to try not to lose it. There is
only one other and that one is only lent out to housekeeping and
immediately returned after each use. We have to call a locksmith in
every time someone loses a room key to make a new one.”

Chris thanked him and
locked his door. As he slipped the key into a pocket, he looked at
Jamie curiously.

“
Why only the two
keys? This place must have hundreds of rooms. Shouldn't spares be
kept?”

They began to walk with
the older boy in the lead.

“
Oh they are, but
not for private quarters. That has been Lord Hawkes' order since he
took over running the organization from his late father. Apparently
he's quite serious about privacy.”

Chris' estimation of the
judge bumped up yet another notch. He personally was a very private
person and had never shared any more of his affairs with others than
he absolutely had to, even on the streets. Especially on the streets,
he added bitterly. He'd learned that lesson the hard way.

The two chatted amiably as
Jamie led Chris through the maze-like corridors of the castle. Chris
finally worked up the nerve to ask his companion if the castle staff
was always hired so young. Jamie laughed and told Chris that he was
the exception.

“
My parents are both
staff members, and have been for a long time. I guess you could say
that I was born into the Angelic Dominion. This is actually just a
summer job. I'll be heading back to school come autumn.”

“
Oh, gotcha. That's
cool.” Chris looked at some of the paintings hanging from the
walls as they descended a wide staircase. “It must be a blast
working in a castle.”

“
Well, yes and no,”
Jamie replied with a lop-sided grin. “I've lived in or around
this place since I was little, so I guess I sort of take it for
granted. And, of course, I do seem to spend most of my days walking.
When I go to bed at night, sometimes my legs are aching something
fierce.” Then he laughed at himself. “I shouldn't
complain though. It keeps me fit for football, so that's a benefit.”

Chris looked at him with
interest. “You play football here?”

At his surprised tone,
Jamie looked at Chris and then shook his head.

“
Sorry. When we say
football in Britain, we mean what you guys call soccer.”

“
Oh, right. Yeah,
I'd forgotten that.” Chris felt a bit stupid but Jamie just
kept talking and took no notice.

It turned out that Chris'
new friend played football several times a week with some of the
staff.

“
We're all rather
mad about it, you know. The British, I mean.”

They were walking fairly
slowly as they talked, as if each didn't want the conversation to
end, but Chris noticed that the hallway looked familiar and realized
they were approaching the judge's new office.

“
Well, maybe while
I'm here I can come out and watch a game,” Chris said. “I'm
really not too familiar with it. Hockey is more my thing.”

Jamie seemed delighted and
promised to let Chris know when the next game would be played.

“
After what
happened, you know, at the Hawkes Nest,” Jamie said in a much
more subdued voice, “we're pretty much on lock-down at the
moment, so we can't play until the crisis is passed.”

“
Yeah, I hear you,”
Chris said as the memories of what the ruined Nest had looked like
played through his mind like a horror movie.

They didn't speak again
after that. A moment later, they were standing outside the former
office of Mr. Mahony. The plaque on the door had already been changed
to one that said simply 'Ethan Hawkes'.

Jamie knocked on the door
and opened it as the judge's familiar voice called out for them to
enter.

Chris followed Jamie into
the room and saw how quickly the judge had moved to make the office
his own.

All of the statues and
knick-knacks that had been on display were gone. There was a long
conference table in the portion of the room closest to the door with
seating for about a dozen. That still left lots of room for the
judge's desk and chair and two more sturdy leather chairs in front of
it.

All five staff members as
well as Chef and Natalie were already seated at the table. The judge
sat at the far end and smiled broadly as Chris walked in.

“
Good evening,
Christopher,” he said jovially. “Sorry to wake you, but
we have some planning to do. And I'm quite certain that you need to
eat something substantial. It's been a while for all of us in that
department.”