Sweet Evil (16 page)

“And then, seventeen years ago, I was in a small town not too far from here called Hemet, checking on one of my dealers there. I went into his house, and I’ll never forget the moment I saw her. Damn, she was a beautiful sight,” he whispered, pausing as if to replay the memory. “She was leaning over a human woman who was passed out on a mattress in the corner curled up real small—I thought she was a kid at first. You’re a pipsqueak like her.”

His grip tightened on my hands as he studied my midsection where my aura would be.

“You feel a strong pull to drugs, don’t you?” he asked.

I nodded and he shook his head, unhappy.

“I can see it. And you’ve got a double whammy: the pull from me, plus the addiction in your genetics. That’s got to be hard.”

“I’m used to it now. My body might pull, but my mind knows better.”

“Good. That’s what I like to hear.”

“All right, back to the story,” I said, gripping his fingers.

“Yep, this is where it gets good. When I saw Mariantha she was whispering to that human woman like a mother with a feverish child. Nobody in the dealer’s house cared when I picked the lady up and took her. That is, except her guardian angel, my Mariantha.” He chuckled. “She saw
what
I was, but didn’t register
who
I was at first. She went apeshhh—um, she went crazy trying to protect her human. And then she recognized me.”

He said the last sentence with such adoration that our eyes watered at the exact same time. We both laughed, wiping them dry before clasping hands again.

“Mariantha and I took the human woman to a hotel and cleaned her up. It took a whole day for her to come to, and even then she was so far gone. Her body was ruined and her soul was barely hanging on. We both knew that if the lady died, Mariantha would have to escort her soul to the afterlife. Mariantha wouldn’t be allowed to come back to earth afterward. We would never see each other again. So, hoping for the best, she climbed into that body, something no angel of light had done since Old Testament times.”

I squeezed his hands, hanging on to every word.

“The human soul didn’t fight her; she moved easily aside. It took almost three days to detox and heal the body. It was a lot for Mariantha to deal with her first time in physical form. It was hard to watch. I had to force her to eat and drink. She fought me, but she made it through. And when her mind was clear and we were together again, it was like it’d always been, only different. For the first time we weren’t just souls; we were a man and woman overcome with physical attraction and... well, that’s how you came along.”

I blushed and he looked down, shamefaced.

“I shouldn’t have let it happen,” he said. “Not that I’m not happy you’re here. Don’t get me wrong. But in all my years as a demon, I’d been careful not to father any children of my own. It didn’t seem right to me.”

I was thankful for that.

“She knew right away that you were with her. We couldn’t help but be happy. We knew we didn’t have long together, so we cherished every single second. I left her side only once, to make my report to Azael, hell’s messenger. I couldn’t let them know about you two. Mariantha heard stories through the other guardian angels about one last angelic Nephilim. We didn’t know where else to turn.”

“Wait, what do you mean,
angelic
Nephilim?”

“That nun is a descendant of an angel of light, probably a guardian angel. I’m not sure of her exact story.”

I wanted to know how she had escaped the attention of the Dukes and Legionnaires, but I didn’t want to ask my father and risk exposing the source of my information about demons. I somehow didn’t think he’d be pleased by my relationship with Kaidan.

“We got to the convent just in time,” he said. “You came early. Do you remember that day?”

“Yes.” I pressed my lips together, feeling guilty about how I’d questioned his motives all these years. He squeezed my hands and tugged them so I’d look up at him. His face was open, full of love.

“I want you to know, baby girl, after I saw Mariantha go, I never led another soul to sin.”

His eyes held mine, pleading for me to believe.

“Never?” I whispered. “This whole time you’ve been in prison?”

“I’ve given false reports to Lucifer for sixteen years. I know it doesn’t make up for all the damage I’ve done, but I had to ensure my place on earth long enough to see you and tell you. Funny thing is, now that I’ve met you, it makes me want to stay even longer.”

When I smiled at him, he gave me a look similar to the one Patti had given me the day she broke the news about my identity. He was thankful I wasn’t mad at him, and it wrenched my heart open further, letting him all the way in. I squeezed his big hands.

“Dad,” I said. We both jumped at the surprising sound of the word between us. I pressed on. “Do you know what Sister Ruth needs to tell me?”

“What do you mean?”

“Sister Ruth told Patti there were things she needed to discuss, but she’ll tell me only in person.”

He shook his head. “No idea,” he said. His hold on my hands tightened. “I need you to listen to me, Anna. This is important. Whatever the nun tells you, you can’t tell anyone about it.
Anyone
. If it’s something big and it gets back to Lucifer, he’ll have you killed. Hell, even if it’s something small he’ll have you killed. Who else knows about this besides us?”

“Just Patti...”

“Okay. That should be okay. Is that it?”

“And Kaidan,” I added. My eyes darted everywhere but his face. I was in for it.

“Who?” There was an edge to his voice.

His eyes searched mine. I didn’t want to tell him a single thing about Kaidan. I knew how it would sound. I took my hands from his, pulling the braid over my shoulder to mess with it.

“He’s my friend. He’s the one who drove me here to see you.”

“You told some human kid?”

I coughed, buying time. “He’s Neph, too.”

Jonathan LaGray went rigid and his ruddy cheeks paled. I squirmed as his eyes bored into mine.

“Which one’s his father?” he asked through clenched teeth.

“Richard Rowe. I guess you’d know him as Pharzuph.”

Oh, boy. He wasn’t pale anymore.

“
You came across the country
—”

“Shhh!” I warned him as people looked over. He lowered his voice to a shouted whisper.

“—with the son of the Duke of
Lust
?! Son of a—”

He pounded a fist down on the table and a guard stepped toward us. I waved and nodded at the man, trying to reassure him it was fine, and my father pulled his balled hands down into his lap. After a moment the guard walked back to the wall and looked away.

“Don’t worry!” I whispered. “I told you; we’re just friends.”

He closed his eyes and massaged his forehead with his fingers to calm his temper.

“You tell him that his father is never to know about you or whatever Sister Ruth tells you. Understand?”

“He would never tell his father anything. But, um...” I swallowed. “Unfortunately, Pharzuph already knows about me.”

His eyes flashed red again and it nearly stopped my heart. I pressed my back into the seat, causing it to wobble.

“Aren’t you worried people will see your eyes when you do that?” I asked, sure that my own eyes were gigantic at that moment.

“Humans can’t see it. And don’t try to change the subject. I know Pharzuph,” he growled. “He’s a real bastard on earth and in hell. He’d do anything to gain favor.”

“Kaidan thinks he’ll forget about me if I lie low.”

“Maybe momentarily, while he’s busy or distracted with his work, but you’ll cross his mind again someday.”

He fidgeted in his chair. “I need to get out of here,” he said.

“Out of prison? How?”

“I’ve got a parole hearing coming up. I’ll use my influence to make sure it goes through. I will get myself out of here, one way or another, in a matter of weeks, and I’ll contact you when it’s safe. Don’t do anything until I’m with you. I want you to go straight home after this trip. Get there as soon as possible and stay there. Will you do that?”

“Yes. I promise.”

“Stay away from the Rowe house.”

“Definitely.”

“Good. Good girl. We’ll work this thing out together. Do you trust me?”

“Yes, sir.”

We took each other’s hands again. With him by my side nothing seemed impossible, and I felt happy.

“You’ve got a pretty smile,” he said. “A natural beauty.”

Nobody had ever called me a beauty except Patti. Parents didn’t count as far as compliments went, but it still made me feel good. I looked at the clock and was shocked to see how much time had already passed.

“We’ve got an hour left, gal. What else do you want to know?”

I still wasn’t ready to ask about the fate of Nephilim souls. That would have to wait until last. I thought for a second.

“Do you think Mariantha’s been punished?” I asked.

“Well, she’s not in hell, if that’s what you mean. I would have heard about it if she were.”

My stomach tightened at the mention of hell. “What’s it like?” I asked hesitantly. “Down there?”

“It’s another one of those things that’s hard to explain.” He let go of one hand and stroked his beard. “Imagine a dark, wide alleyway that goes on forever, between two skyscrapers that stretch as far up as you can see. It’s hard to maintain hope. Souls burn from sheer negativity.”

“You’re pretty good at describing things that are hard to explain,” I said, shaking off the chill from the image.

“I’ve had plenty of time to think about it.”

“Why didn’t God try to stop Lucifer from planning that rebellion?”

“He loved Lucifer. He saw that he had great power, and he allowed it. It could have gone either way. Lucifer was capable of choosing right. I think God was holding out hope that he would make the right choice. Maybe it seems cruel to test the angels and the human souls, but it’s not like that. We have to face difficulties to find out what our true strengths are. How we come back from a failure is a very valuable test.”

“Yes. You could have wanted revenge after the fall,” I said.

“Easily. And it’s all especially hard for humans, who are given the test of faith without ever seeing everything with their own eyes. That’s why they’re given the ability to sense the Holy Spirit.”

“How does it work?”

He leaned back in his chair, rubbing his hands over his smooth head. “The Holy Spirit is like billions of cell phone signals coming from God and connecting with each soul, a direct link. People process the messages as feelings, sometimes even hearing their own voice in their mind, so it’s easy to disregard.”

I nodded, watching him in awe. He had an answer for everything. It was a lot to take in, yet there was so much more I still wanted to know.

“Is the fate of each person set in stone?” I asked.

“No, no, no. There is no ‘fate’ in that sense. Nobody was made to fail. For individual souls, there’s always choice. Every time a choice is made, a new path forms. From what I understand, humans are told before going to earth that life will be difficult. They know what hardships they’ll have to face. They know it’s a test, and they’re
eager
for it. You, too, knew before you came to earth that you’d be born into these circumstances.”

A spark lit up in my mind. I gasped and sat up straighter. The lost knowledge from my dark days!

“I knew there was something more! I still can’t remember it, though.”

My dad chuckled at me.

“Don’t beat yourself up, kid. It’ll all come back once you shed that body. No soul can fathom how difficult it’ll be once they’re in physical form and they can’t remember anymore.”

I kept smiling, feeling buoyant with this new information. And then a question rose in my mind that robbed me of happiness.

“Why do mothers of Nephilim always die?”

He nodded, as if he’d expected this. Dropping his forearms to the table, he took my hands again.

“We talked about this a lot when Mariantha was pregnant. When the female body was created, it was made as a vessel to usher another human soul through the realms. You always hear people talking about the miracle of birth, and it’s true. It’s a miracle each time a soul makes the passage. But a Neph soul is different from a human soul. It’s something
more
. The human body wasn’t created to be able to expel such a complex soul into the earthly realm. It can’t physically survive it.”

Oh. Wow. This was huge. “And is this general knowledge among the demons?” I asked.

“Of course, but they don’t go flaunting the fact that the Neph are so powerful. Don’t want to put any ideas in the minds of their kids.”

It was yet another way the Neph had been deceived and downtrodden. I couldn’t wait to tell Kaidan the truth. I wanted to get to the bottom of everything. So many questions were bouncing around in my mind. I told him about Hollywood and how much it broke my heart to feel all of the people’s suffering.

“Angels of light are extremely sensitive to the emotions of others, so you got that from your mother, which is good, Anna, but you can’t be so sensitive that you’re blind to the bigger picture. Didn’t you ever get hurt when you were little? Fall down and skin your knee?”

“Sure.”

“Does it still hurt?”

“No. I see where you’re going with this,” I said.

“I know it sounds trite. I would never suggest saying this to someone who’s in the middle of a tragedy, but even the worst earthly pain and heartache doesn’t last into the heavenly realm. And it all serves a bigger purpose.”

“But what about the suffering of the Neph?” I asked, indignant. “The way they’re treated...”

“I know. I’ve always believed the Nephilim are the strongest souls on earth. I think even the Dukes feel threatened by them. If anyone could overthrow the demons, it’s their own children.”

But the children are scared
, I wanted to say.
We’ve been told we’ll end up in hell.
I should have asked then, but I wasn’t ready to hear it. I peeked at the clock. Time was going by way too fast.

“Tell me more,” I said. “Tell me anything. What’s the meaning of life?”