Sweet Reckoning (37 page)

“You did good, baby girl.” It was time for him to go. I squeezed him around the neck. He gave me a grateful smile as he let me go, and then his spirit rose from the body of Big Rotty. His shining soul flew above me, wings flapping.

“Good-bye,” I whispered to him. But I couldn’t be too sad, because I knew I’d see him again, and he was going to be with Mariantha. All the things that were so crazy on earth would shed away and cease to matter.

The angel army led the way up, and the newly brightened souls followed, rising through the ceiling to their long-lost home. Kaidan grabbed me in a tight hug. As we looked at each other, I felt a strange tug within me.

From our chests, where our badges appeared, dark smoke was expelled, dissipating into the air. We gasped to see each other’s badges change to bursts of white.

And then a rushing of air made us turn to the opening in the earth. Souls of redeemed fallen angels and Nephilim from the underworld were flying upward by the thousands. We watched their ascent with pure amazement.

The building gave an ominous creak all around us, followed by a vicious quaking. Dust and dirt billowed up throughout the room.

“We have to get out of here!” Kaidan yelled.

Surrounding Neph grabbed hands and pulled one another up. We all ran as fast as we could, hurdling bodies on the ground, jumping over furniture and mounds of uprooted earth. Zania fell as the tremors under us increased, but Kaidan and Kopano pulled her up, and we ran to the back alley stairway, where we pushed through the heavy metal doors and sprinted upward, out into the Nevada summer night.

I
n the aftermath of Las Vegas’s worst earthquake in recent history, humanity showed its best. The streets were crowded with people. In the midst of the mayhem, complete strangers were helping and comforting one another. Miraculously, only thirteen people were killed in the quake—an eclectic group from around the world, eleven men and two women, all in the Lunar Room of the Galaxy Nightclub, which sat directly above the fault line. Rumors flew about the scandal of Big Rotty and his “faked death” followed by his real one.

No part of the club was salvageable. Hundreds were injured, and there’d been minor structural damage to surrounding buildings, but otherwise the news called it a modern miracle.

When Galaxy’s owner was interviewed, he said, “We cleared out the club as soon as the earthquake began, but the Lunar Room was locked. We banged and banged, but nobody would answer, and we had to get out of there.”

Reportedly, shots had been fired in the Lunar Room just before the quake began, but that was all speculation.

Kaidan never let go of my hand as we fled the nightclub as quickly as possible, pressing through the crowded streets of dusty chaos and back to the enormous lobby of The Venetian, where people talked animatedly about where they had been during the quake. Lights from rescue squads flashed across the room through the glass doors.

He pulled me into a corner against the wall, where we were partially hidden by an ATM machine. Kaidan grasped my face and I held his waist. All we could do was stare at each other.

“We made it,” he whispered, sounding disbelieving.

The truth of those words exploded inside me. It was over.

“We made it,” I said back. “We really did.”

He held my face, placing kisses across my skin—my nose, forehead, chin, and cheeks, then finally my lips. We were alive. I couldn’t believe it. When he wrapped his arms around me, a terrible, gaping loss gripped my heart, and it felt like I was cracking into pieces. “Patti . . .”

Kaidan held me tight as I broke down.

“I’m so sorry, luv,” he whispered. I felt him kiss my head as I clung to him, the memory of her death slicing through me.

Knowing she was at peace couldn’t stop me from hurting for the fear she must’ve felt when she was captured, and the pain she experienced at the hands of an evil soul. And the fact that I would no longer feel her hugs or listen to her supportive words here on earth. I’d miss her every day of my life.

And then I thought of something. . . .

I pulled back from Kaidan with a frantic feeling inside me.

“Where’s Jay?” I asked. How could I not have thought of him sooner?

I turned, searching the lobby until I saw our group of friends huddled close to the glass and looking out at the craziness in silence. Marna was on her phone. When we made eye contact, her arm shot into the air, waving me over, and she was smiling.

Pure, sweet relief rushed through me. He was okay.

I ran to Marna and we embraced.

“Where is he?”

“He’s actually here in Vegas. He didn’t know where we’d be, so he checked in at another hotel, but he’s on his way over.” She was beaming.

“How did he know to come here?” I asked. “What happened?”

“I texted him last night, but I don’t know what happened on his end. Anna . . .” Her eyes softened. “I’m so sorry about your mum.”

I swallowed back another bout of tears.

Marna took my hand and we went to the window, watching for Jay. Next to me, Kaidan wound his fingers through mine, and I looked up into his tired blue eyes. I wanted to be happy that we’d made it, and be joyous about our future, but first I needed to mourn.

I looked toward Ginger, also standing by the glass. Blake had his arm around her, holding her close, and she was wiping her eyes.

I went to her and put a hand on her shoulder. Ginger turned, and when she saw it was me, she wrapped her arms around me and we cried together. Every negative thing that had ever been between us slipped away at that moment. She hadn’t known Patti very long, but I knew Ginger saw what I saw—a loving woman who accepted us and believed in us.

“She was the closest thing to a mum I ever had,” Ginger said. “I know that sounds silly. I barely knew her.”

I let her go so I could see her face. “It doesn’t sound silly at all. Patti loved you right away.”

Ginger nodded. Her jaw trembled as she wiped her eyes again.

“Jay!”

We all turned toward Marna’s voice. She ran from the hotel, crashing into Jay on the sidewalk. He lifted her off her feet in a giant hug that went on forever.

“He really does love her,” Ginger whispered.

We all nodded and watched as Jay and Marna pulled apart, talking. His face fell and his demeanor changed, his aura turning dark blue, and I realized he was probably hearing about Patti. Again, my heart ached. I pressed a hand to my chest and wondered if the pain would always be with me.

As Jay and Marna made their way inside, he came straight to me and held me. I wanted to ask what had happened, but I didn’t want to talk about it out in the open. I was just so glad he was okay. We held tight for a long time.

“I’m so sorry, Anna,” he whispered.

I couldn’t answer, and he seemed to understand.

Kopano and Zania joined us. Kope’s shirt had a bloody hole in the middle, a sight that made me shiver as I remembered how we’d almost lost him. Looking around, I saw that everyone was a little worse for wear, bloodied and scraped, with torn clothing but, thankfully, no lasting injuries.

Kaidan and Kope gave each other a man hug, then Blake and Jay, too.

Jay pointed at Kopano’s shirt, his eyes huge. “Dude!”

“Yeah, how you feeling, mate?” Kaidan asked.

Kope rubbed his chest. “It’s tender and feels strange, but I am okay. It looks bad. . . . I need to change this shirt.”

The way Zania watched him was endearing.

“Let’s all go back to the room,” Kaidan suggested, and we all agreed.

As we made our way through the lobby, we stopped to thank other Nephilim who’d fought with us. It was weird to see everyone’s badges turned white. I met Kopano’s brothers and gave them hugs.

I found Marek watching out the window with his hands in his pockets, and I punched him in the arm. He turned, surprised when he saw me standing there with my hands on my hips.

“You scared me!”

Marek laughed. “I was working for your papa!”

Dad had been there all along, playing a hand in the events.

I smiled and put a hand on my hip. “Well, did you have to be such a good actor?”

“My plan was to tell you when we met, but that did not work out.” His eyes lifted to someone behind me and he leaned closer to my ear. “So, you and the son of Pharzuph, eh? Good choice.” He gave his eyebrows a playful lift.

“Um, thanks. . . .” I glanced over my shoulder at Kai, who turned away from us with an amused smile. Yeah, it was too bad Kaidan didn’t have a twin brother to appease the masses, because I wasn’t sharing my man.

“You have my admiration in more ways than one, Daughter of Belial. Enjoy your life with that gorgeous husband. You deserve it.” He winked.

I reached up and hugged Marek now, and he hugged me back.

“Keep in touch,” I told him.

As he walked away, the back of a young girl caught my eye. She was watching out the window, her arms wrapped around herself. Her dark hair hung limp. Just a child. Was she separated from her parents? I had to find out.

“Excuse me,” I said to her.

When she turned, I sucked in a breath.
Caterina
. Her eyes were bloodshot and distant. Her hair had come out of its neat bun.

“Where is she?” Caterina asked.

“Who? Oh . . . Jezebet?”

Caterina nodded.

I spoke with care. “She’s in heaven.”

The poor girl looked pitiful. Baffled. I actually felt sorry for her. Jezebet had been working for the opposite side for who knew how long, and Caterina had to feel betrayed.

“She couldn’t tell you,” I started to explain, but Caterina cut me off with a curt nod.

“She did not trust me.”

I bit my lip. What could I say to that?

Caterina stared at my badge. “Is mine . . . ?”

“Yours is white now, too,” I said.

“And what does that mean?”

I thought about it. “It means you’re not automatically going to hell when you die. You’re not cursed anymore just because of who your father was. You can choose how you want to live your life now. You’re free.”

She looked more frightened and childlike now. The girl had had no guidance except in evil.

“Caterina . . . where will you go now?”

She looked around, lost.

“You’ll come with me,” I heard, and turned to see Ginger eyeing Caterina.

The girl’s eyes got big and she shook her head. “No.
Nu.
I will care for myself.”

“Bollocks.” Ginger stepped closer. She pushed the hair off Caterina’s shoulder, and the girl flinched away. “I’ll never hit you. But I’ll also not put up with any lying or attitude.”

Caterina shook her head, staring down at the floor. Ginger didn’t bother with gentleness when she spoke to her. She was as frank as always, which made me think they were a good match for each other.

“How old are you?” Ginger asked.

“Thirteen.”

“I know some of the things you’ve done,” Ginger told her. “I’ve done a lot, too. But that’s all going to change now. Come on.” She held out her hand.

Caterina stared at her outstretched offering. Based on everything I’d witnessed from the girl, I couldn’t imagine her taking it. But people were full of surprises. Caterina took her hand.

“Right then,” Ginger said. She marched through our group, pulling Caterina behind her and leaving us all gaping in her wake.

“Unbelievable,” Marna whispered.

Blake grinned. “I freaking
love
her.” He jogged to catch up to Ginger.

I smiled up at Kaidan, who still seemed dumbstruck, and I twined my fingers with his.

I’d always considered myself a forgiving person, but when it came to Caterina it was hard to see past the evil things she’d done, and to remember she was young and badly nurtured. It was humbling to see Ginger being more open-minded than me in this matter. I thought she understood the girl’s attitude in a way the rest of us couldn’t.

It was nearly six in the morning when we made it to the room. We were dragging, and covered in a layer of dust. I couldn’t believe we’d been in this room just five short hours ago, wondering if we’d live or die.

Caterina sat in a chair with her ankles crossed and her head down, looking nervous. Ginger tapped her shoulder and handed her a cola with ice.

“No need to be scared of anyone here. They know I’ll kick their arses if they mess with you. Got it?”

Caterina nodded and stared down at her drink.

Kaidan dug a T-shirt from his bag and tossed it to Kopano. When he came out of the bathroom, he seemed uncomfortable. The shirt was tighter than anything he usually wore. I peeked at Zania, who was sitting on the floor cross-legged and staring hard at Kope. When she met my eye she tried to hold back a smile, because yeah . . . he looked really good.

“You tryin’ to show me up, man?” Blake said to Kopano, flexing his lean biceps.

Everyone laughed and Kope gave his bashful smile, dimple and all, before he took a seat on the floor next to Zania.

Kaidan sat at the end of the couch and put his arm around me. I squished close next to him, taking his hand. This was weird. It was the first time ever that we could be affectionate without worry or fear. I smiled up at him. Wow.