Fall from Grace (Book 2: An Angelblood Novel)
Read Fall from Grace (Book 2: An Angelblood Novel) Online
Authors: Linda L. Creel
An Angel-blood Novel
Book2
Linda L. Creel
This book is a work of fiction. Any references
to historical events, real people, or real locales
are used fictitiously. Other names, characters,
places, and incidents are the product of the
author’s imagination, and any resemblance to
actual events or locales or persons, is entirely
coincidental.
Linda grew up in Maryland, but she has spent the last
fifteen years living in Florida with her husband and
best friend, Ron.
other books that are coming soon.
The Allhearts
:
Paul
(Uriel’s son) and his wife Eve (Granddaughter of Esra and Gideon)
Their children: Christina, Ruthie, Paul (PJ), Rita, Aura, Bren, Reaghan
Christina is married to David Kelly, her sister Ruthie is married to Allen
Dunn
The Dunn’s
:
Adam
(Ariel’s son) and his wife Angela (Eve’s best friend)
Their children: Mary, Allen, Jessica, Tracy, Molly and Macy (twins)
The Kelly’s
:
Martin
(Metatron’s son) and his wife Myra
Their children: John, David, Logan, Dillon, Tobias and Tabitha (twins)
John is married to Mary Dunn, they have a daughter Mia
The Donnelly’s
:
Twin son’s of Raphael
Jack
and his wife Jillian
Their children: Tristan and Tiffany
Joseph
and his wife Gina
Their children: Willow and Joey
The Gilman’
s
:
Howard
(Aura’s godfather) and his son Rusty
The Collins
:
Jane
, her twin sons Jasper and Jayden and Ella Forster
(Jasper’s mortal fiancée)
The
Hunters
:
Hespa
(the
Huntress,
brings
rogue
angels
before
the
Council), her son Elijah, her daughter Ericah, Ericah’s husband Elliot
The Archangels of the High Council
:
Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael, Ariel, Metatron, Raziel
The Guardians:
Gideon (Gabriel’s twin brother, the Shield of Heaven, Aura’s grandfather)
Jeziel (Lucifer’s daughter)
Aidan (Michael’s son, Avriel’s husband and father to Alannah and Alorrah)
Iris: closest to the Almighty, she acts as Aidan’s guide
The Eternal Children:
Alannah and Alorrah (Twin daughters of Aidan and Avriel)
Alexis: (Identical cousin of Alorrah and Alannah, daughter of Avriel’s
brother Alerael and Michael’s sister Meliah)
The Family’s of Utopia
The Fairbourne’s:
Henry (the Governor) and his wife Meredith (Lucifer’s sister’s daughter)
Their children: Richard, Caspian, Analie and Joshua
Axel (Analie’s husband), Desiree (Caspian’s wife)
Natalie (Richard’s daughter), Ambrosia (Analie and Axle’s daughter)
The Carnegies:
Arthur and his daughter Renatta (once Richard’s fiancée, now married to
Rusty Godwin)
The Allgoods:
Albert and his wife Carolyn
Their son Thomas, his wife Tess, and their daughter Meaghan
The Crestwell’s:
The first family killed. Their sons Arian, Will
The Whitehall’s:
August, his daughter’s Winifred (Jane Collins best friend), Andromeda
Jade (August’s granddaughter, Ambrosia’s best friend and Arian’s
girlfriend)
Matthew (Andromeda’s son) the last surviving member of the Godwin
family
Acadia Dearbourne: (orphaned, she works as a servant to the Fairbourne’s)
The Angel’s of the Tier:
Kaelariel (Michael’s wife, she was gifted with the sacred whip)
Bodhi (Ariel’s husband, he was gifted with the sacred bow)
Dionese (Gabriel’s wife, she was gifted with the sacred dagger)
Cerci (Metatron’s wife, she was gifted with the sacred bracelet)
Astinon (Raphael’s wife, she was gifted with the sacred diadem)
Avriel (Esra’s twin sister, Aidan’s wife, mother to Alorrah and Alannah,
gifted with the sacred ring) the only Angel of the Tier to die
The Fallen:
Lucifer
Samhael
Mortriel (Lucifer’s son)
Bael (married to Iris)
Prologue
Henry walked out of the house towards the country.
As he
entered the main street of the town, he noticed the residents
of Utopia were busy finishing their last minute shopping.
They were all in a festive mood, each wishing him a Merry
Christmas as they hurried in and out of the shops.
It was
obvious they hadn’t heard the news from Aeden.
It was Christmas Eve.
Henry should have been
celebrating.
Instead, he was left to deal with the aftermath
of the deaths of the angel-bloods.
This time it had hit the
Guild in their own backyard. He was certain there would be
repercussions,
considering
his
granddaughter
was
at
the
center of the controversy.
He sat on one of the benches in the square, trying to
understand how he could have been so foolish.
His father
would have never been deceived.
Henry thought about his father, Charles Fairbourne.
He was the first governor of Utopia. While he was in
control, there had been no deaths.
Henry
assumed
the role of
Governor,
when
his
father ascended to Heaven in his one hundred and twenty
fifth year.
At only eighteen years old, Henry was already
married with a newborn son. That was forty years ago. Now
his brown hair showed streaks of grey and Henry felt that he
had aged a hundred years.
years
of
marriage
to
Meredith
and
four
children later, he wondered where it had all gone wrong.
In the beginning he was happy, but after his father’s
death, Meredith began to change.
At first the changes were
subtle.
Perhaps he had overlooked the warnings because he
was still young, naïve and in love.
As his son Richard grew, so did Meredith’s
arrogance. Henry should have known something was amiss
when his eldest son was born with eyes the color of coal.
Meredith was a descendant of Lucifer; a fact that
was not of concern in those early years.
Now, Henry could
no longer deny that his wife and eldest son were walking the
path to Hell, and taking Richard’s seventeen year old
daughter Natalie, with them.
Natalie was as cruel and self-serving as her father.
But Henry had trusted her; wanting to believe that she had
some sense of goodness in her. That was a careless mistake.
Henry stood to lose everything that his father had worked so
hard for.
As he rested his head in his hands, he thought of his
best friend Jane.
She had already buried her daughter Ella
just
one
week
ago.
Now,
Jane
would
be
planning
a
memorial service for one of her twin sons.
Natalie had admitted to killing Jasper.
She pleaded
that it was in self-defense, but Henry knew in his heart that
Natalie felt no remorse for killing her husband’s brother. He
would leave her fate to the Guild.
He lost
track
of
the
time
as
he
sat
in silence,
reflecting on his past. The snow had started to fall, and
Henry watched the flakes shimmering, as they clung to the
Christmas lights that adorned the square.
As the snow dusted his black wool overcoat, Henry
pulled a gold pocket watch out of his waistcoat.
It was
already after six o’clock in the morning. He had no idea he
had been gone so long. Perhaps Meredith would still be
asleep when he returned home.
Richard had demanded that Natalie remain in Utopia, until
her grandfather returned. They needed to be sure of his
loyalty, before they abandoned their home.
Henry had
argued with the Guild that Jasper’s death was in self-
defense.
If he still believed that, he would be able to
convince the Council of her innocence.
When they woke the next morning, Henry had not
yet returned from his walk. Richard gathered his mother and
daughter
into
his
bedroom,
where
they
could
speak
privately. He stood next to the six drawer chest, while his
mother sat in a gold velvet winged chair in the corner.
Richard’s shoulder length black hair was uncombed
and he wore black silk pajamas and a matching robe.
His
mother’s auburn curls draped loosely down her back.
If it hadn’t been for the scar on his daughter’s face,
she would have looked like his mother’s younger sister,
except for the eyes. Meredith’s eyes were a deep blue, while
Natalie’s were black like his. Both women were dressed in
red, long-sleeved, satin nightgowns, in observance of the
Christmas holiday.
As Natalie sat on the edge of the large mahogany
bed, she addressed her father. “We should leave now. I
don’t want to wait until the Guild returns.”
“It’s Christmas Day. The Guild will not t
urn away
from tradition. I have every confidence they will prepare for
Jasper’s memorial service tomorrow. That will buy us some
much needed time.
For now, we will wait until we see if
Father will fight for you. The two of you have grown close
these last few weeks.
He stillbelieves Jasper’s death was
justified. That may be enough to convince the others of your
innocence,” Richard said.
Are you prepared to take that chance?” Meredith asked.
“Henry will be back soon. We’ll know
then if he
will continue to support Natalie.
For now, I suggest we
relax and celebrate the holiday.”
As Meredith and Natalie returned to their rooms to
dress, Richard pulled a pair of black wool slacks from the
armoire and paired it with a red cashmere sweater.
Most of the older servants had been given the day
off to spend with their distant relatives at the other colonies.
Henry insisted that they be allowed to observe the Christmas
holiday. Meredith had argued the point, but Henry didn’t
budge.
There were other servants that could attend to her
needs.
Francesca Leoni had been taking care of Meredith
for as long as she could remember.
An orphan herself at
fifteen, she came to work for the Wycoff family shortly after
the death of her parents.
Still attractive with her flowing chestnut hair and
deep azure eyes, she was in her seventies now and half of
her life was gone.
Of course seventy was still young enough to have a
life of her own.
Angelbloods didn’t age like their mortal
counterparts.
They lived for one hundred and twenty five
years, but never looked a day older than twenty five.
Francesca never married; nor did she have children
of her own. She regarded Meredith as a daughter and had no
intention of ever leaving her.
Though still a servant, Meredith regarded Francesca
as family and forbid anyone from mistreating her, including
her son Richard and granddaughter Natalie.
Meredith still blamed the Guild for removing the
younger servants from her home. She had tried to find more
help to no avail.
She wasn’t sure if it was because of the holiday
season, or because word of her conduct was well known
amongst the angel-bloods.
The other girls who left her
employ, were not quiet about the living conditions.
It was
common knowledge that the Governess, her son Richard,
and his daughter Natalie, were intolerable to work for.
Most of the angel-bloods had trust funds established
at the time of their birth.
In the event that there was an
untimely death, even the most distant relatives would be
expected to provide care for the younger children.
This usually wasn’t a problem. But there had been
some families who had turned their back on their heritage
and preferred to live amongst the mortals. They weren’t
punished.
Instead, the Guild ensured they were financially
stable and allowed them to leave. They did after all have free
will. They honored their decisions.
Occasionally,
there were instances that no
other
family existed. The males were usually adopted by friends;
while the females were often taken into the employ of the
Governor, until they reached the age of maturity, which was
sixteen years.
Henry returned home around seven. The house was
modestly decorated for the Christmas holiday; nothing like
the past years when his children were younger.
A large
Douglas fir stood in the living room, but it was sparse of
ornaments and there were no gifts underneath.
The
smell
of
fresh
pine
was
in
the
air.
But
otherwise, there was no indication that it was Christmas
morning.
Henry used to look forward to the holiday when the
children were all younger.
It was one of their favorite
holidays and they enjoyed the anticipation of opening gifts.
not under the best of circumstances.
Meredith
had
all
but
disowned
their
daughter
Analie.
She was staying at the sanctuary because it sat on
hallowed ground and the Guild felt she was no longer safe in
her own home.