Bittersweet Seraphim (11 page)

Jack pushed Kate away and stomped out of the room. Soon the house was filled with the sounds of his mad search. The remaining two strangers flanked Violent and seemed to be trying to keep her attention.

Kate shook off her relief to yell after him. “Bastard, don’t you dare ransack my stuff! You’ll never find the door without me.”

Jason stepped closer. “Excuse me, Ms. Kate. I must apologize for all this callous behavior. Surely you have a life we’ve disrupted. Hell is a horrible place, especially when he’s been in charge. As far as I can tell, Jack is a filthy beast.”

Kate covered her mouth, as her inappropriate smile had no place, but Jason’s eyes sparkled as she began to laugh.

“No, truly,” he continued. “He’s just the worst. All the ladies say he’s charming, but I don’t see it. He curses, lies, smokes…” Jason pretended to puff on a cigarette.

Maybe Kate was drunk on the absurdness of the scene or the adrenaline coursing through her, but she felt almost tipsy with her giggles. This was about as interested in her as any guy had ever seemed.

Jason bit his lip and stepped closer to speak in a stage whisper. “I swear he can smoke a cigarette with one inhale. Just a huge pile of ash when he’s done.” He smiled as she laughed out loud. “May I speak with you alone, Ms. Kate? You can bring your gun if you want to.” He held out his hand as an invitation and gestured to her kitchen.

Jack must have dumped over the dresser upstairs. The ceiling reverberated, and he let out a string of expletives.

Kate shook her head. “My rifle’s on the lawn somewhere.” She shrugged and led Jason into the room.

He stayed a respectable distance from her as he began to speak. “My mom was from Hell too,” he said as she turned to face him. “In a way, at least. She was a half-breed minion, like I am. She left us a long time ago to try to stop my grandfather from finding us. So I get the missing. I understand what it’s like to want your parent. I’m sorry you know that same ache.”

Kate leaned against her counter and tried to ignore the sounds of her house being trashed. “It’s tough to find a greeting card with that on it,” she said. This guy was earnest—or at least he pretended very well.

“I’ve seen a few at the dollar store, but you have to know where to look.” He gave her a half smile.

“Do you think I’m being selfish asking for my dad?” She picked at her nail polish in between looking at Jason.

“No. I’d do almost anything to get my mother back.” Jason shuffled his feet.

“Tell me about his girl. Why does he want her so badly?”

“She was my girl first before he got his hooks in her.” Jason clenched his fist.

“Is hooks a euphemism for
penis?”
She raised an eyebrow.

He rolled his eyes. “I guess it is. She’s an angel, so I didn’t expect it.”

“I think I’m sick of guys calling their girlfriends angels—especially if she cheated on you.” Kate had trouble picturing any girl walking away from this handsome guy.

“No, she’s an actual angel. From actual Heaven. As there is a Devil with minions, there are angels.” He sat in a kitchen chair.

Kate could judge Jack’s progress by his loud footfalls. He was close to her room. “Really? Wow. I guess that makes sense. I’ve been so involved with what’s in Hell, I never really gave a thought to the opposite end.” She thought for a second. “And actually? That kind of pisses me off. If there are angels, there must be a God in charge of them. Why hasn’t He helped me?”

She pushed her hair away from her face and hated the burning anger that suddenly consumed her. If there was a God, why did He have to take her mother? If there was a God, why did she have to spend so many years alone?

“I don’t have any answers for you, Kate. My memory was taken from me so I don’t remember my trip to Heaven or Emma at all.” Jason shrugged sadly. “I just know I hate Jack.”

“Her name’s Emma?” Giving the damned angel a name made Kate feel guilty for holding her information ransom. At least the lady in question was sort of a slut…

There was a knock at the kitchen door. “Can I come in?” The other female poked her head around the door. “I was listening to your conversation, because I guess I kind of suck.”

Kate waved her in. “Sure, let’s see if we can make this any weirder.”

“I asked Emma a lot of questions when she lived with us,” the woman said. “I’m Jason’s sister, Seriana, and Dean’s our brother. I was mad that Mom was gone, that I had to face being what I am.” Seriana sat in a chair and held Jason’s hand. “And Emma was adamant that just because bad things were happening didn’t mean God was mean or wasn’t paying attention.” Dean and Violent came to lean against the doorframe. “God gave us free will on this Earth. And with the blessing of being able to make our own choices, there are also down sides. Children die, wars are fought, all because we’re allowed to live our lives. We make choices, and sometimes there are consequences. That’s what she said, anyway. It made more sense coming from her. It made me feel more connected.”

Jason patted his sister’s hand. She smiled at him for a moment before she continued. “I know you just met us, Kate. But that angel? She doesn’t have anyone else making the choice to help her. It’s just us. God’s not going to be her superhero. It has to be our free will that busts her out. At least that’s my take on it.”

The house was now quiet. Kate had just begun to process this when Jack pushed past Violent and Dean holding a pair of black sculptures, a puppy and a flower. Instead of angry, he looked sad.

“Nero loved you.” He set her prized Hell rocks on the kitchen table.

Kate ran her hand over the shovel-etched art. “He loves me, wherever he’s trapped. He keeps his promises, and he told me the lack of him here was his love for me.” The dew on the flower gained a new, glistening addition as her tear fell and landed on a leaf. “Did you ever want something so badly that just wishing for it tired you out? I’m exhausted. If I don’t do something, I’m not sure I can live this life anymore.” Her words tumbled from a deep place, a place Kate often found in the earliest parts of the morning, before the sun met the horizon.

“I’m not taking you into Hell, Kate,” Jack declared. “Not today, not tomorrow.
I’ll
get him out. That’s my word. After I defeat all the minions and the current Devil, and free Emma, on the way out I’ll get Nero.”

“How can I be sure you’re not just using me?” she asked.

Violent spoke. “He’ll do what he says. He always has.”

“I guess that’ll have to do.” Kate left her gifts from her father on the table and headed for the back door.

She could hear the others filing out behind her. Kate stopped near her shed and was about to speak when Jason neatly tackled her and covered her mouth. Seriana pulled a matching maneuver on Jack a split second later, and Dean and Violent ran off into the woods.

Chapter 11

Jason shook his head with pleading eyes as Kate started to struggle. When she was still, he leaned close and whispered in her ear. “There’s another half-breed close by. Not friendly. Shhh.”

Kate nodded as much as she could with her head immobile. Jason checked on Seriana but Jack didn’t seem to need convincing to keep still. The long car rides as they looked for Hell’s entrance had provided ample opportunity for Jason, Dean, and Seriana to explain the circumstances they lived in: the constant fear, the burning feeling of being chased that kept them overly cautious.

Jason eased himself off Kate and removed his hand. He had to admit, he was impressed with her. This night must have been blowing her mind, and yet she was rolling with the punches like a champ. Her dark hair now had leaves tangled throughout, but her clear eyes assessed him. She bit her lip as she watched his eyes. He felt himself smile and realized his burning hatred for Jack and desperate need to remember Emma had almost eclipsed the way Kate’s attention made him feel.

He tore his gaze from hers and mouthed to his sister, “Will they be okay?”

She shrugged. Then she pointed from her chest to the woods, obviously willing to trek after Dean and Violent.

He spoke quietly now. “Stay with Kate. Keep her safe.”

He stood carefully, scanning the surrounding area until he could hear the gentle cracking of papery leaves on the forest floor.

He was interrupted by Jack arguing with Seriana. “What about me? He doesn’t want you to protect me?”

Jason wanted to punch the Devil in the mouth. Instead he crept off toward the noises. In an instant, the woods went from peaceful cradle of the night to an explosion of curses and violence. Jason sprinted for the ruckus and found Violent and Dean straddling a spitting mad half-breed. He was covered in tattoos and piercings.

“Dean, get off of him so I can kill him.” Violent crackled her knuckles.

“Wait, first we need to know who he is,” Jason cried. He tried to get a better look at the prisoner’s face while Dean slipped away to check for other unexpected visitors.

“I’m your worst nightmare, asshole!” the half-breed spat.

Violent stood and yanked him to his feet, easily restraining him.

Jason shook his head. “You must be a friend of Jack’s.”

Dean came back, shaking his head. “Looks like he’s alone.”

Dean made sure the stranger’s limbs stayed still, while Jason patted him down, producing a cell phone and three knives.

“I’m not telling you people nothin’.” The man tried to swagger until Violent shifted his shoulders and cracked one of his arms out of its socket.

“Fuck you, bitch! That hurts.”

Violent turned him so she could see his face. “Next time your balls will make that same noise.”

Jason and Dean made eye contact and lifted their eyebrows. Dean smiled. “Damn, I’m glad V likes us.”

Jason nodded as he switched his attention to the cell phone. After scanning the recent calls and sent media, he handed the evidence to Dean. “Looks like he was sending this stuff out. His first call was fifteen minutes ago.” He scanned the area again. This was everything they’d been trying to avoid for years.

“Grandfather knows we’re here.” Dean dropped the phone and stomped on it. After picking through the wreckage and making sure none of the tracking devices were operational, Dean met Jason’s eyes. “What are we going to do? I mean…”

Violent interrupted. “Just tell me what you need from this one and give me four minutes.”

Jack sat up and hated that he had to stay with the ladies. Well, he loved the ladies, but being human was pissing him off. This damn close to the entrance, and most of the muscle had gotten up and bolted.

When the screaming started, Jack knew Violent was the cause. He comforted Seriana and Kate.

“What’s she doing to that half-breed?” Seriana stood.

Jack joined her and held out a hand to Kate. She looked pale.

“You might want to cover your ears, princess. That’s not going to get any prettier.” Jack nodded in the direction of the inhuman wails.

After Kate put her fingers in her ears and started singing a horrible pop song, Jack shook his head and spoke to Seriana. “You don’t want to know.”

The sudden absence of the torture noises could only mean death. Soon after the silence, Violent strode back into the backyard with Dean and Jason.

“Killed him.” She approached the largest tree and began petting it like a dog.

Dean and Jason looked spooked. Seriana hugged her brothers, and each returned her hug and kissed the top of her head. Jack hoped they could just avoid the inevitably ensuing discussion and just get the Hell to Hell.

Jason, of course, had other plans. “Jack, you need to take Kate and Seriana somewhere else. Dean, Violent, and I will get Emma. My grandfather has an army of half-breeds, and they could be here any minute. The thing we just killed said there were about twenty-five in the group. And their only goal? Finding us.”

Seriana looked to the sky and exhaled, worry etching itself on her face.

“Anything about Mom?” She looked from one brother to another.

“Ah, he died before we could ask,” Dean reported.

“She killed him before you could ask about Mom? I knew I should have gone. Damn it.” Seriana clenched her fists.

Violent left her tree and approached. “They did try to ask, but the man stepped on a flower, and I lost my temper.” The minion patted Seriana’s shoulder awkwardly. “Don’t be concerned. I’m sure your mother’s long dead.”