Conduit (6 page)

  Lev closed his eyes and shook his
head, tormented.  “When she speaks to me, I can hear her voice as plain as day,
but I can’t find her to save her.  She needs me, and I don’t know how to help.”

“We can help her,” Celia said, and
wrapping her arm around him, leading him up the porch steps where Griffin
stood, unsure what to do.

Although Celia thought her brother
might put up a fight, he went quietly into the house, his gaze trance-like and
to the sofa, and she wondered if he still heard Lizzie’s voice, and if they
could somehow use that to help them find her. As it stood, they were all at a
loss as to how to find the
dybbuks
which had taken her, and even if Evan
did manage to find angels who better knew how to deal with the situation, they
wouldn’t necessarily know how to track Lizzie down.

“Why don’t you try to relax until
Evan gets back?  Maybe he’ll have answers.”

Reluctantly, Lev nodded and sank onto
the soft couch, still staring ahead at things only he could see.  At one point,
she might’ve tried to help guide her brother through this, but she knew she
lacked the necessary skills.  He wanted some kind of a promise that Lizzie was
going to be fine, and she didn’t have the power to make it so, so there was no
point.

From the door, she watched him,
relieved when he leaned back.  She thought perhaps he might close his eyes and
drift off to sleep, but he just shifted his gaze skyward, searching.

Lev had no clue how much later it was
before Evan opened the door.  It didn’t really matter.  He’d spent the whole
time sitting on the couch, listening for Elizabeth’s voice.  He needed to hear
it to prove it hadn’t all been his imagining things, but she hadn’t spoken
again, which sent a cold chill down his spine.  He couldn’t help but wonder if
something had silenced her, or whether this newfound power had simply been
wrested out of his control, leaving him in this horrible silence.

Still, when his father appeared, Lev
forced himself to look at him.  He scowled. “So, do you know any more than when
you left?” 

“I have recruited another angel who
has had some experience dealing with
dybbuks
and will be joining us.”

            “That doesn’t help us.”  Lev
straightened and closed his eyes, reaching again for the sound of Elizabeth’s
voice, but there was nothing.  Could he summon the connection at will if he
tried hard enough?  Closing his eyes, he did just that…and failed again.  What
did it take and what was the key? 

            “I think it might.”

            Lev rose slowly to his
feet. “Perhaps there is a different way.”

            “Which is?”

            Lev hesitated. “Change me
back.”

            “How would that help? 
You have two, soon to be three, angels already working behind the scenes.  How
could switching you back alter things in our favor?”

            “None of you share the
connection I have with her.  Earlier today, I heard her voice for a few
seconds, but I couldn’t focus it, and I couldn’t glean anything from it, unlike
when I was an angel.  If I had those powers back, I think I’d be of much more
use than I am like this.”

            Evan took a deep breath
and walked over to his son.  “I understand your reasoning, and it makes sense,
but it’s not my call, Lev, not even close.”

            Evan walked down the
hall, probably heading back to talk to Celia, when Lev cut in front of him.

            “Okay, maybe it’s not
your call.  I get that.  But you know whose call it is. You’ve always paid more
mind to who was in control because it affected you more.  You’d know who to
speak with.  They’d have to listen to you because you’re so well-respected.” 
He shook his head in frustration.  “Griffin accused me of just letting this
happen.  He never would’ve done that if I were still an angel because she’d
still be here.”

            Evan frowned, and Lev
knew the conversation was over.  “You’re right; I do command their respect. But
that doesn’t mean they’ll grant your request—or even listen.  In fact, I don’t
even want to know what kind of discussions went on up there as they regarded your
becoming human in the first place.  It’s something that, before you, simply
wasn’t done and will likely never be done again.”

            “Father, please,” Lev
begged, his eyes bright with desperation.  “You above all others know that I am
floundering in a mortal body and have been since I took this form, yet I do not
regret it.  All of this I have done for Elizabeth.  Her reincarnations were my
teachers, so that I might learn to love humans, and I have.  You know I have. 
But what good is that if I fail her?  What is the lesson in this kind of loss? 
Please help me find a way.”

            Evan’s shoulders sank. 
“Lev, I don’t think it’s possible.  Once your transformation was complete, it
was irreversible regardless of the outcome. I’m sorry.”

            Evan stared at his human
son for a moment longer, sadness shadowing his face, then stepped determinedly
past.

            “I guess that means
you’re not even going to try, doesn’t it?”

            Evan stopped but didn’t
turn, but still Lev could picture the sullen frown on his face.

            “I never said that.  Just
don’t get your hopes up.”

            “Don’t get my hopes up,” Lev
repeated.  He wanted to tell Evan his every hope had been taken with Elizabeth,
and right now he was just trying to hold on to getting her back, knowing that
he’d do anything he had to for her, including giving up this mortal life, but the
words died inside of him.

Chapter Six

            “This is pointless.” Lev tightened
his grip around the sword hilt.  “I’ve been using weapons for years, or have
you forgotten that?”  He glared at Evan.

“No, I haven’t forgotten anything,”
Evan replied as he stood near the back porch.  The grass was wet with dew, and
the sun had barely come up.  “But during those years, you were an angel, not a
mortal, Lev.”

Griffin stepped outside, followed by
Celia. All wore casual clothing, and when Griffin came near, he was suddenly
given a sword of his own, something that, while Evan pushed it into his palm,
Griffin had a hard time closing his fingers around.

“What’s this for?” he asked, frowning
at the cold steel blade.

“Training.”  Evan gave him a knowing
look. “While Celia and I have supernatural powers, neither you nor Lev has, so we
need to make sure you’re both ready for what’s coming.”

Lev flipped his knife over and shook
his head.  “Okay, this is stupid; no mortal weapon is going to make an impact
on any supernatural creature.”

Evan took Lev’s knife.  Holding it up
in the bright sunlight, the blade shone far more brightly than it should have,
a shimmer that suggested otherworldly power.

“These blades have been blessed and
will deal with the spirits we run into quite nicely.”

He handed the blade back and peered
at Griffin.  “Let’s get started.  I’ll demonstrate the maneuvers and let you
two work on perfecting them.

Lev gritted his teeth. “We’re wasting
time! This isn’t going to get her back.”

“We wouldn’t have to worry about
getting her back if you’d done as you were supposed to,” Griffin muttered,
shaking his head.

“Enough,” Evan snapped, glaring.  “We
have to do this, so just be quiet and pay attention!”

Evan regarded them both, waiting
until he was sure they were focused.  This done, he briefed them on the moves, partnering
with Celia when necessary, the whole while keeping an eye on them, monitoring their
progress.  As he expected, Lev had no difficultly.  In as much as his mind had
been muddied by very human thoughts, Lev still moved fluidly, instinctively—much
more so than Griffin.  It wasn't that Griffin was clumsy; his issues simply
stemmed from having always been strictly human, and that made him a slower. 

All in all, though, it didn't take
long for them to get what Evan thought they needed before he stepped back and
let them go at it, pitting their skills against one another, hoping he had
things under control.

Control, however, even under the best
of circumstances, was all too often illusory.

Neither said anything, but all the
same Evan didn't like the expressions on their faces.  There was a brutal
antagonism to both, scarcely checked, one bordering on hatred.  Still, Evan
didn't want to broach the topic for fear it might not end up being an issue
unless he gave it voice.

As he watched them, Evan gave them
room.  At first, they circled one another warily, neither taking the initiative,
which surprised him a little.  Part of him had thought Lev’s human
transformation might compel him to take the first swing, but he hung back,
waiting, presumably waiting for an opportunity, some giveaway in his opponent’s
expression.

While Evan had been so carefully
watching Lev, he realized too late he’d made a mistake. 

“Come on—what’re you waiting for?”
Griffin growled, his voice low and menacing.

“Meaning?” Lev’s tone matched his.

“Meaning, if you hadn’t screwed up,
Lizzie would still be here.  Meaning, if you were still an angel, none of this
would have happened.”

Evan started to intercede but wasn’t
quick enough. Lev lunged, and Griffin’s blade met his.  For an instant, their
eyes locked, and then they began the next round of attacks, each successive blow
of steel on steel was more reckless and violent than the last. 

Although he thought Lev would have
the upper hand, Griffin somehow managed to disarm him—to jar the blade from
Lev’s grip and send it flying.  Evan thought it might end there, but more
quickly than he could’ve imagined, Lev reached not for his sword but instead
for a metal upright that had once been part of a tent Jimmie had meant to throw
out. Lev swung wildly, and before Evan could move, he’d lammed it into Griffin’s
cranium, knocking him off balance.  The unbridled fury on Lev’s face spoke
volumes.

“Enough!” Evan shouted. He moved to
intercede, but Lev was already following through, and all that stopped him was Celia,
who’d suddenly blindsided him, yanking the upright free before it could do any more
damage.

Even so, Lev advanced, committed.

“Stop!” Celia demanded, shoving him
back. “Get a grip!”

Lev stopped, dazed. 

“What was that?” Griffin moaned,
struggling to sit up.  Celia knelt beside, trying to get a look.

Lev blinked, as though coming out of
a trance.  He glanced at Evan and tried to move toward Griffin, but Celia had
inserted herself between them.  Even so, he’d managed to get enough of a look to
realize he’d drawn blood.

“What happened?” Lev muttered weakly. 
“Griffin is bleeding.”

“You happened!” Griffin jerked from
Celia’s aid.

“I don’t get it,” Lev replied,
uncertain.

“You hit him with this,” Evan
replied, indicating the upright. 

Lev went pale.  “Why would I do
that?”

“Your humanness got the better of
you,” Evan replied. 

Feeling very much ashamed, Lev had no
idea what to say, so all that came out was, “I’m sorry.  You okay?” It was
lame, he knew, but what else was there?

Sensing Celia wasn’t about to give up
her efforts to clean his wound—he hadn’t even realized she had medical supplies
until he saw them in her hand—Griffin finally just let her do her thing.

“I don’t know.  Why don’t you ask
your sister?”  Yes, Griffin had been angry before, but now he was furious,
which made Evan all the more concerned about how well the two of them might
manage the upcoming ordeal, especially since he was going to have to leave the
two of them in Celia’s care while he went and checked the progress on getting
backup angels.

"While there’s a bit of
bruising, I don't think the gash is going to need stitches, at least, which is
one thing in our favor, however small."  Celia offered her input without
waiting for anyone to ask, figuring she might use the opportunity to diffuse
some of the tension.  From her peripheral vision, she watched Lev, wondering
what his next move would be.  Once human, he'd gotten so unpredictable Celia
was really nervous about his future.  It had been bad enough when there’d been no
pressure resting on him.  Now, amid all this chaos, his behavior was only
getting worse.

Lev glared at Evan.  "This never
would have happened had you done what I asked."

Evan took a deep breath and forced a
stoic calm to his demeanor.  "Perhaps. But since that discussion, I’ve not
had a chance to revisit the Upper Realm."

"Of course you haven't," Lev
muttered, his fingers curling into fists. 

"Well, something damned well
better change before you kill someone," Griffin seethed, glaring
dangerously at Lev.

Evan stared first at Griffin and then
at Lev before grabbing his son's arm.  "A few words, Lev."  While
Evan failed to raise his voice, his eyes told the real story, and while Lev
wanted to jerk away, the anger boiling in Evan's blue eyes kept him from it, at
least until Evan led him through the back door and into the house.

"What?"

"It's you!" Evan snarled. 

"Fine. Yeah, okay, so it’s me.
What else is new?” Lev growled, fuming.  Still, despite the anger, he was
worried about the damage he’d done—about having wigged out like that, something
he hadn't meant to do, even though Griffin had goaded him into it and had had
it coming.

"You can't keep letting your emotions
lead you down the path of recklessness like this.  It will get people killed. 
Is that what you want?"

"What I want is to go back to
being an angel so I can do something—anything—to help.  I’m no good like
this.”  He folded his arms across his chest.  “Maybe I did get angry at Griffin
for copping an attitude, but he was right about the fact that if I’d still been
immortal, Elizabeth never would’ve fallen into this kind of danger.”

  Evan’s shoulders sank.  “Perhaps
not, but that’s neither here nor there.  But for now, at least, you’ll have to
learn how to help in this form because that’s all you can do.”

“You have to help me change that!”

“I told you I’ll try,” Evan replied. 
“But you acting like this isn’t helping.  It’s not going to get her back, so
stop.”

Lev opened his mouth to argue, but
then there was a voice. Her voice.

Elizabeth.

 “Lev?”  It came as a whisper in his
mind.

“Where are you?”  He paced,
frantically searching for where the voice came from.

“Lev?”  Evan regarded him as though
he’d heard nothing, which of course he hadn’t. How could he have?

“Help me.”  Her voice wavered in fear
and pain.  “There’s no one else.”

“Tell me where you are, where I can
find you!”  He was desperate and enraged, his motions, like his voice, frenetic
and uneven.

“What’s gotten into you?” Evan
demanded, trying to follow Lev’s gaze.

“She’s here!” Lev tried to find her
again.

“No, she’s not.”  Evan stepped into
his path.  “What you’re hearing isn’t real.”

“You’re wrong.  I can hear her like
she’s right next to me.” 

Lev pushed past and tried to listen,
dying to hear her voice again, to gain some clue to her whereabouts.

“Can you hear me?” Lev yelled loudly.

“Lev!” she called.  “Lev, save me!”

He spun on his heel, desperate.  Her
voice seemed to be coming from everywhere at once now.  “Tell me how to find
you!” 

Yet she never answered him.  Her
voice died away, and he kept spinning, waiting until the dizziness overcame him
and he fell.  He was breathing hard and fast, struggling to get his bearings
even as he kept trying to hear her voice.

“Lev, listen to me,” Evan said softly.

“No.”

Evan took a deep breath.  “I don’t
know why you’re hearing Elizabeth’s voice.  Perhaps it’s the one supernatural
link left between the two of you, but regardless of what you hear, you can’t
find her like that.  I’m willing to bet she doesn’t even know where she is.”

“Right.” Lev hissed.  “It’s not like
you give a crap about her or you’d help me get my wings back.”

“Don’t you think I’m trying,” Evan
replied.  “I’m do what I can to help you.  In return, you need to stop reacting
like this.  Stop before someone gets hurt.”

Lev’s shoulders sank.  “Would you
stop if it were all you had left?  I have no power, and I don’t know what I’m
doing.  Until there is something more, I can’t make any promises.”