“My dad tried to set off fireworks in the backyard. He had bought them illegally in Mexico—he thought he would impress me and my mom by being a rebel—but when he lit the fuse, it kept burning out. So finally, he tried to light the M-80 directly, where the fuse meets the firework, and something went wrong and it didn’t light right. It began spinning and shooting off sparks everywhere. My dad started dancing around like he was walking on hot sand or something. That’s when his shorts caught on fire. My mom ran over and pushed him to the ground and he rolled around until the fire went out. Stop, drop, and roll really worked for him. All that was left of his shorts were a few charred pieces of tattered denim, and underneath he was wearing glow in the dark Valentine’s Day boxer shorts that my mom had bought him a few years earlier. It was one of the funniest, most disturbing things I have ever seen.”
By the time she got to the “stop, drop and roll” part, everyone was laughing loudly. Even Sampson’s anger subsided, making way for his contagious smile.
“Well, I doubt we’ll witness anything that funny this year,” Chris said, “but I can promise you it will be entertaining. The Demon Spectacular has gotten bigger and bigger each year. I’ve heard rumors that even the angels watch it from the safety of their mountain.”
“It’s true,” Sampson confirmed. “You’re in for a treat.”
“Excellent,” Taylor said. “I think we can all use something to take our mind off of reality.”
They spent the rest of the day hanging out and talking, but mostly they were laughing. Sampson was back to his old self and was telling stories of the trouble that he and Gabriel used to get into as kids. They played a few games of pool, relaxed on the massive couches in the recreation room, and ate until they could eat no more. It felt like they were back at college— before everything had happened. For the next few days, at least, they all hoped that life would be good again.
The calm wouldn’t last as long as they hoped.
PART II
“I can't remember anything
Can't tell if this is true or dream
Deep down inside I feel the scream
This terrible silence stops it there
Now that the war is through with me
I'm waking up, I cannot see
That there's not much left of me
Nothing is real but pain now
Hold my breath as I wish for death
Oh please God, help me”
Metallica- “One”
From the album And Justice For All (1989)
Chapter Thirteen
It was New Year’s Eve. Gabriel and Taylor had spent the entire day together, alone with just each other as company. Now that he had purged himself of his lies, and Taylor had been able to forgive him, he felt clean again. Pure, somehow. While their relationship felt deeper and more meaningful, it had also gone full circle, back to a time when all they needed was a sunny day and each other to be happy. It was an easy kind of love. Carefree.
Chris had given them directions to a cliff on the mountainside that would provide them with privacy and the chance to get some fresh air. They eagerly took him up on the offer and had spent the day sunning themselves—sometimes talking, sometimes not. There was never an awkward silence; even silence was comfortable, beautiful.
Grudgingly gathering up the blanket and bag, while wishing they could stay for a few more hours, Taylor wondered what Sampson wanted to talk to Gabriel about. The only reason they couldn’t stay longer was that Sampson had asked Gabriel if he could speak with him in private before the New Year’s celebration. What could he want? No need to worry, she thought, Gabriel would gladly share their conversation with her afterwards. He had vowed never to keep anything from her again. And to her surprise, she believed him. She hoped she wasn’t making another stupid mistake.
After making their way down more than a thousand steps, Gabriel kissed her goodbye. As usual, the kiss left her drunk with passion. It was not your typical goodbye peck on the lips. It was more of a I’m-never-going-to-see-you-again-because-I’m-off-to-war kind of kiss. This didn’t worry her though, because he always kissed like that. Good morning kisses, nice to see you kisses, just for the hell of it kisses, and especially goodnight kisses: they were always full of passion. Even though Taylor wasn’t the romantic type, she had to hand it to him: he was very consistent in the kiss department.
Staggering slightly, Taylor went in search of Sam, to occupy herself until Gabriel returned. Gabriel headed in the other direction.
The passageways were extremely crowded, as off-duty demons, many of whom were involved in the evening’s festivities, prepared for the big event. Gabriel had promised to meet Sampson in Demon Hall. Chris had verified that it would be empty and they would be free to talk in private there.
Echoing Taylor’s question, Gabriel wondered what his best friend from birth wanted to talk to him about. A good guess was that he would want to talk about why Gabriel had been willing to help out the Council even after he knew the truth. Gabriel thought about possible responses. Temporary insanity maybe. Or blind ambition. Neither answer would satisfy Sampson. Another side of his brain clung to hope that maybe Sampson just wanted to talk strategy. You know, make sure the two angels were on the same page before the Elders started making any plans. Probably not.
Arriving at the alcove, he made his way through the To Balcony door, and bounded up the stairs using his Mag-lite to guide him. Sampson was waiting.
“Thanks for coming,” he said evenly.
“Listen, Sampson, before you start, can I just say that I was a fool and was blinded by my ambition, by a miserable, pointless desire to get ahead in life. I have completely realized the idiocy of my choices and have truly vowed to make amends for them. Lastly, I am so sorry that I was ever dishonest with you and didn’t tell you what I knew. Of all people, I should have told you.” He finished his soliloquy with a gasp—he had forgotten to breathe while the words rushed out.
To his surprise, Sampson laughed loudly at his friend. “You thought I asked you to come here to yell at you? I forgave you within a half-hour, man. I know that the angel that did all those stupid things is not who you really are.”
Gabriel looked at him blankly. “Okay, you got me then. What did you want to talk about?”
“While you’ve been out romancing your girl, I’ve been plugged into the ongoing situation. It’s time for you to get back involved, man.”
“I am involved. I didn’t realize there was an ‘ongoing situation’. I thought we were just supposed to play it cool for now.”
“That just means we aren’t going to attack the angels in their stronghold anytime soon, but it doesn’t mean there isn’t any activity happening. The Elders decided to let you have a few days to rest and reunite with Taylor before bringing you back into the strategy sessions. They asked me to talk to you now.”
Gabriel’s face contorted with anger. “You mean you’ve been involved in strategy sessions and I haven’t? And you didn’t tell me? What is that all about, man?” His voice took on an accusatory tone.
His words oozing with sarcasm, Sampson replied, “Yeah, we never keep anything from each other, huh, Gabriel?”
Gabriel’s head dropped, as he remembered that he was in no position to lay blame on anyone. “I’m…I’m sorry, man. You’re right. But why did you keep it from me?”
“I agreed with the Elders. You needed some time to recharge, both physically and mentally. Did you not enjoy your day with Taylor today?”
“Actually, it was awesome. I really needed it.”
“You’re welcome. I was in strategy sessions all day. We designed eight or nine plans, each of which ended in the garbage can. It was a big waste of time.” Sampson looked stressed, his brow furrowed in concern. “It’s all my fault.”
“Plans for what?” Gabriel asked. “And what’s your fault?”
“We have a bit of a situation, which is what I wanted to talk to you about.”
“What kind of a situation?”<
br />
“The kind where a lot of good friends die,” Sampson said cryptically.
Gabriel waited for his friend to iron out his thoughts. He could tell that he was going through a rough patch. Typically, Sampson was as sure of himself as anyone that Gabriel knew. He made decisions quickly and they always turned out to be the right ones. He was confident, but not cocky. Everyone liked him. After a minute of silence, Gabriel said, “Man, you’ve been my best friend for a long time and I am not going to leave you hanging. Whatever this is, we’re going to work it out together.”
Sampson looked at him with pained eyes. “All of the other angel spies are going to die because of me.”
Oh crap, Gabriel thought. He had completely forgotten about the other angel spies—the ones who had helped him to escape. Hadn’t the plan been for them to get out of angel headquarters as soon as possible after the prison break? “Where are they?” Gabriel asked.
“As far as we know, they’re still inside that hell-hole. Probably in prison, awaiting execution. They went dark yesterday. At first we were still receiving reports that everything seemed to be fine, that the angels were pissed that you had escaped, but that they were merely back to planning for the next battle. That’s when all communications stopped. For all we know, they could be dead already.”
Gabriel’s heart sank. “Sampson, this is not your fault. If it’s anyone’s, it’s mine. They risked their lives to break me out.”
“At least they chose to try to help you. They didn’t have a choice on how the rescue mission would be carried out. I helped the demons design it. One of the key decisions was that the remaining angel spies would stay on the inside, so that we could continue to gather intel. They should have escaped when we did. Now they’re dead.”
Gabriel had never heard Sampson sound so pessimistic. “We don’t know that. The angels probably just increased security and now sending out messages is too difficult. It’s not like we can just fly back in and check that they’re okay. I think we need to be patient.”
“That’s the same conclusion we came to today after hours of designing—and shooting holes through—various plans. There’s a battle scheduled for tomorrow, the first battle of the new year, and our hope is that the angel spies will be on the battlefield and we can rescue them then.”
“I think that’s a smart plan. I will help you find them and get them to safety. I promise you.” The look of determination in Gabriel’s eyes seemed to encourage Sampson. The defeated look in his eyes lifted, and a steely resolve replaced it.
“Thanks, man. We’ll do it together.”
They embraced, pounding each other’s backs firmly.
Chapter Fourteen
While Gabriel and Sampson were having their private conversation, Taylor was able to track down Samantha. Not surprisingly, she was wasting the day away at a pool table with Chris and Kiren. The recreational room was crowded with dozens of demons enjoying their holidays. The room was dark, as the shadowy beings cloaked most of the light provided by the fiery wall-fixtures. She squirmed her way through the crowd and over to her friends, who occupied a corner table. When Taylor arrived, her friends were playing Cut-throat, a three-person game where each player tries to pocket the other players’ balls. At the moment, Sam and Kiren were ganging up on Chris, who was a far superior player, to try to eliminate his last ball, the green six-ball.
“The two-ball is a much easier shot,” he was saying when Taylor walked in.
“Yeah, but the six-ball is yours, and Kiren and I have made a temporary truce,” Sam replied. There was a choo sound, followed by a soft clink when the white cue-ball contacted the six-ball. From across the room, Taylor heard a soft thump as one of the balls fell into the corner pocket.
“Yes!!” Sam exclaimed. Apparently the six-ball had been eliminated.
Chris groaned. “I guess I can’t win them all,” he said, embracing Sam. “Nice shot, babe.” He kissed her hard on the lips.
Kiren looked away and saw Taylor approaching. “Thank God,” she said. “Ever since Sampson left, I have been stuck here as the third wheel and these two can’t seem to keep their hands off of each other.”
Taylor grinned. “I know what you mean, but I can’t really talk, Gabriel and I are pretty bad, too.”
Upon hearing Taylor’s voice, Sam and Chris ended their public display of affection. “Hey, Tay,” Sam said. Then, turning to Kiren, she said, “You can’t talk either, Kiren, you were getting pretty flirty with Mr. Sampson during that second game of pool.” She grinned slyly.
Kiren blushed. Or at least that’s what Taylor thought it looked like. Her face just got a bit darker—a demon blush. She denied it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, we were just having a little fun. I don’t care which side he’s on—he’s still an angel.”
Sam shrugged, turning back to Taylor. “How was your romantic day with Gabriel?”
“Perfect, thanks, guys. We both really needed it.”
“No problem,” Chris said from across the table. “Up for a game of pool while you wait for him to come back? Kiren could use a teammate.”
“Sure, but don’t you want to finish your game first?”
“Well, Sam just knocked me out of the game, so it’s up to her and Kiren.”
“I forfeit,” Kiren said flatly. “Watching Chris lose was good enough for me. I prefer doubles.” She sounded like she was talking about tennis.
The game commenced with Taylor and Kiren at a distinct disadvantage given that the best player was on the other team. Taylor was shocked at how much better Sam had gotten, too. She must have been playing all day, Taylor thought. In less than five minutes the game was over, with Chris sinking the eight-ball using a pretty bank shot into the center pocket. Taylor and Kiren still had four striped balls on the table.
“Rematch?” Sam asked smugly.
Taylor was saved from having to chicken out when Gabriel reappeared just then. Sampson was close behind him. At the sight of her boyfriend, Taylor smiled widely. His lips curled into a grin, but she could tell that it was forced. Something had chilled his happy mood considerably. Something Sampson said. Or something Sampson did. Wanting to know what their secret conversation was about, she was about to suggest to Gabriel that they get some food to go and eat back in their rooms, when Sampson said, “Gabriel and I would like to talk to everyone about something.”
Chris started to say, “I’m not sure now is the right time—” but Sampson cut him off.
“The Elders asked me to tell everyone, after telling Gabriel first.”
Sampson got right to the point. “The angel spies have not communicated with us since early yesterday. We are assuming they have been discovered and will be executed as traitors. Given the last prisoner’s miraculous escape,” he looked at Gabriel with a smirk, “we suspect they may act much quicker this time around.”
“What can we do?” Sam asked.
“Nothing. We just want everyone to know what the situation is and that we may have to act quickly to save them if necessary,” Gabriel said.
“What do you mean by ‘we’? Who will have to act to save them?” Taylor asked.
Sampson fielded her question: “We have created a special task force for the mission. It will be comprised of me, Kiren, Chris, Gabriel, and some of the other highly trained demons that helped to bust Gabriel out.”
Taylor wanted to object. Everything in her heart urged her, even commanded her to cry out, to say, “No! He can’t leave me again, I’ve just found him!” But she knew her cries would be fruitless. He would feel responsible for the lives of those angels and nothing she could say would stop him from leaving if he was needed. She searched the eyes of each person in the circle and, on most of them, she saw determination and resolve, but when she reached Sam’s face, it was like looking in a mirror. Fear was all she saw. Fear of losing her true love. Fear of being alone again. Fear of never feeling safe. They were sisters in fear. At least for now.
Chapter Fifteen
Th
e close group of friends, which now included Kiren and Sampson, who were quickly becoming core members of the group, had dinner and then each went back to their rooms to rest before the festivities that were planned for the evening. While the news from Sampson had come as a shock and had put a bit of a damper on the day, they were still excited about enjoying an evening of entertainment, a chance to escape from the worries of real life.
Chris had locked in the best seat in the house—the same spot where he had picnicked with Sam just before the fateful battle where Gabriel was taken prisoner. It was also the cliff cave where, on Chris’s suggestion, Taylor and Gabriel had spent the day. A few of the Elders, including Clifford, would be joining them to watch the show.
At eight o’clock in the evening, in near synchronization, the six friends emerged from their rooms and spilled into the residential hallway. Despite the fact that they were in a massive cave network, Taylor had already grown so accustomed to the fire-lit passageways that the place felt somewhat homey to her. She had begun referring to the room as her bedroom, and to the passageways as hallways.
Reaching the right doorway, they began the thousand-step ascent to the familiar cliff cave.
Taylor’s thoughts were muddled. While she wanted to relax and just enjoy the celebration, her mind wandered back to her fears. At any moment, Gabriel could be called upon to execute a mission that he may never come back from. Screw that, Taylor thought. She wasn’t about to sit idly by and watch him get killed. Earlier that day, she had made plans of her own.
While the others had been resting, Taylor had knocked on Samantha’s door. For two hours the girls talked about the men in their lives. Not like some gossipy, complaining girls’ night out, nor like obsessed, love-crazed teenagers. Rather, they spoke about soul mates, about how life without Gabriel and Christopher would be like life without air, or water; and mostly, they spoke about how they could help them. Save them even. They plotted and schemed, and by the end of the conversation they had concocted a variety of plans that could be used in various circumstances.