“Not yet. I knew my mother as a human for thirteen years, so it’s hard to say ‘Mother’ to a dragon.”
Exhaling heavily, she stood again. “I could try to transport him. We could see where this portal goes now.”
“I thought we were going to wait for the Bannisters and Patrick and his knights.” Gabriel sat back on his heels. “If we had Sir Barlow here to help us, we could roll this lug off the side and not have to risk a portal jump.”
She touched her jeans pocket where she had put Walter’s cell phone. “Billy said they’ll fly out on their airplane today, but they won’t get to the mountain until morning.”
“Can you get a quick look through the portal and come back if it isn’t safe?”
She shrugged. “I don’t see why not. I’ve done it before.”
“Then let’s go together.” He stood and reached out a hand. “Just like in Dragons’ Rest.”
“I hope not like that.” As she rose with his pull, she looked back at the dead giant. “I guess we’ll have to straddle him to make sure he comes with us.”
Gabriel spread his legs and set a foot on each side of the massive torso. “No problem.”
“Easy for you to say.” She moved down to the giant’s thighs and matched Gabriel’s pose. “I’m shorter than you are.”
Grinning, he patted her on the head. “Okay, short stuff. Let’s light up the skies.”
Sapphira lifted her hands and shouted, “Give me light!”
New flames burst from her palms and covered her hands and wrists. She waved her arms around, making the fire swirl until it transformed into a ring of flickering orange. As she lowered her hands, the ring descended in a swirling curtain that surrounded her and Gabriel, like a cocoon spun from an inferno. When it reached below their knees, it spilled out over the giant. The flames crawled along his body and coated him in a fiery blanket.
Heat bathed her skin, raising prickles that made her shiver in spite of the warmth. A few seconds later, the flames thickened and flashed brighter, as if refueled. She furrowed her brow. That was so strange. She hadn’t pushed more energy through her hands, and the flames were usually ready to die away by this time, not strengthen. This was supposed to be a glance, not a plunge.
She looked over at Gabriel. Sweat trickled down his cheek. He gave her a “what’s going on?” kind of look, but all she could do was shrug. She had already slowed her arms, but the flames just kept growing.
After almost a full minute, the fire thinned out and vanished. They stood on a grassy meadow filled with colorful wildflowers. A warm breeze replaced the bitter wind and bathed their bodies in a fragrant aroma. On one side, the meadow stretched out for miles, grass as green as emeralds decorated with pools of brilliant blue. On the other, a bright blue sky filled their entire view, as though the meadow ended abruptly at a sheer cliff. Yet, it looked solid, like a wall painted to resemble the horizon.
Sapphira narrowed her eyes. Everything seemed brighter, fresher. “I think this is the place we saw from Earth, the place Elam was when Karen cut down the tower.”
“You mean this is Heaven?” Gabriel asked.
“I’m not sure.” She stepped away from the giant and reached toward the wall. “I think they were standing right in front of this.”
“Wait!” Gabriel leaped for her and pulled her back. “Maybe you’d better not do that. Remember all the lightning that shot out from it?”
She stepped away. “I guess you’re right.”
He walked her back to the giant and prodded its body with his toe. “So should we leave this bad boy here, or what? I don’t think Heaven’s janitors would appreciate us leaving our trash behind.”
She touched the giant’s shoulder. Something seemed different. His body now lay curled in a fetal position. Could the transport have repositioned him somehow? “We’d better not. Maybe we could—”
“Sapphira!” Gabriel pointed at the body. “His feet! They’re attached! And where did he get the sword and scabbard?”
She jumped to the spot where the giant’s legs flattened the grass. His pants had ridden up a few inches exposing his bare ankle. There was no sign of the sword’s severing blow. And a scabbard now hung from a belt strapped to his back, the hilt of a sword protruding from the end.
With a long moan, the giant shifted and stretched out his arms.
Sapphira and Gabriel jumped back. The giant turned his head and faced them. Squinting, he rose to a sitting position. “I have dreamed of my beloved Sapphira many times,” he said with a yawn, “but this is the most vivid of all.”
Sapphira edged closer. She stared at the giant’s bearded face, his bright eyes, and his gentle smile. Shivers ran across her body as she whispered, “Yereq?”
Gabriel pulled a dagger from his belt. “Are you sure it’s Yereq?”
“Of course I’m sure. Put that knife away.” She stooped and ran her fingers through the giant’s thick hair. “Wake up, sleepyhead!”
Yereq climbed to his feet and looked down at them from his staggering height. “I’m getting the impression that this isn’t a dream.”
Gabriel looked up at him, wide-eyed. “I’m starting to hope it is.”
“Oh, don’t be silly, Gabriel.” Sapphira reached up and threw her arms around Yereq’s waist. “You’re alive! I can’t believe you’re really alive!”
“My sweet angel!” He picked her up, wrapped his long arms around her, and spun in a circle. “I’ve dreamed of doing this for centuries!”
Sapphira laughed. The beautiful landscape swirled, a thousand colors stretching out into lovely ribbons of green and blue and yellow and purple. His powerful arms held her fast, arms of love that would never let her go. As he slowed his spin, she closed her eyes and laid her head on his shoulder. “Oh, Yereq! My precious spawn!”
He set her down, keeping her hand in his. Sapphira teetered. The world kept spinning, but she laughed again as her giant kept her from falling. When she finally recovered, she pulled away and set her hands on her hips, cocking her head as she stared up at him. “My, how you’ve grown!”
“You fed me well, my little gardener.” He raised his arm and flexed his bicep. “Worm guts made me big and strong.”
Sapphira giggled and spun around to Gabriel. “Isn’t he amazing?”
“Uh … yeah.” Gabriel’s smile trembled. “That wasn’t the word I was thinking, but … yeah.”
“So,” she said, looking up at Yereq again, “what happened? How did you get here?”
Yereq shrugged his massive shoulders. “I do not even know where ‘here’ is, much less how I arrived.”
Sapphira reached for Gabriel’s hand. “Can you tell him? I’m smiling so much my cheeks hurt.”
“Yeah. … Sure. … If I can figure it all out myself.” Gabriel cleared his throat and took a step closer to the giant, still gawking at him. “I think we’re at a place in Heaven, or at least nearby. We saw it from Earth when Mardon tried to lasso Heaven and bring it down, but we messed up Mardon’s plans and killed one of the Nephilim. When Sapphira and I were trying to see if we could transport him, you know, to kind of clean up our mess, it was like you took over his body, and we all showed up here.” Grinning, he stretched out his wings. “I guess that all sounds too weird to be true, especially coming from a guy who looks like me.”
Yereq let out a belly laugh. “After battling demons at the very shore of the Lake of Fire, your story seems tame by comparison.”
“The Lake of Fire,” Gabriel repeated. “Not exactly the best place for a vacation.”
“The worst of all places.” Yereq stooped, glancing between Sapphira and Gabriel as he continued. “Just before I blacked out, at least twenty demons confronted me, so close to the lake, the sulfur fumes curled my nostril hairs, and the heat in the sand radiated through my boots.”
Sapphira painted the images in her mind as he told his story, a sea of blackness with a dark red sky and skinny naked devils thrusting pitchforks at her beloved giant. “What did you d
o?”
Yereq waved his arms back and forth. “I swung my sword in every direction. I whacked off a few hands and feet, but they pushed me closer and closer to the lake. The liquid fire lapped against my boots and ignited them.”
Sapphira looked down at Yereq’s feet. Black scorch marks covered the heels of his boots, and a hole in each one exposed his skin.
“So I just leaped into the demons, kicking and punching and hacking, but when one of them stabbed me in the leg, I fell over and hit my head on something.” He rubbed the side of his head, wincing. “I suddenly felt at peace, as if all my battles were over. Soon, I heard the warble of my little songbird, asking me to awake.”
Gabriel touched the sheathed dagger at his belt. “Fighting demons is a dream I’d want to wake up from. That’s for sure.”
“It wasn’t a dream,” Sapphira said, pointing at Yereq’s boots. “We must have pulled him out of that dimension when we transported.”
“And left the dead one behind?”
“I suppose so.” Sapphira slid her hand into Yereq’s. “Back in the mobility room, I saw your body. I listened for your heartbeat. I know you were dead.”
“It is true,” Yereq said, nodding. “When I died, I was transported to the shores of final judgment. I met Walter there, and we battled a few demons together, but after he left, one of the angels who guarded that realm told me I would soon be going back to Earth. He said something about Earth and Hades combining, so, even though I was dead, I could exist there.”
“Well, we’re not on Earth right now,” Sapphira said, “but we have to go back there and meet some people on a mountaintop.”
“Yes, I remember that now.”
“You remember?”
“The angel spoke of things I knew so little about, it was difficult to piece it all together.” He pushed his hand through his hair and scratched his head, speaking slowly, as if trying to remember the exact words. “He said all the former dragons must be gathered to battle, and to regain their fire and mail, they must go to a mountaintop I would soon visit and be transported to another realm. He also told me that I would become the guardian of the tomb, whatever that means.”
Sapphira touched her chin and looked skyward. “Guardian of the tomb … I have no idea.”
“In any case, he said to gather a pocketful of soil from the place of my awakening and keep it until I learn what I must do.” Yereq pushed his fingers into the lush turf and peeled back a patch of deeply rooted grass. Then, digging into the soil, he collected a handful and transferred it to his pocket. “I suppose that will be enough.”
“More than a pocketful for most people.” Gabriel drew closer to Sapphira and the giant. “I guess it’s time to do the fiery transport thing again. Maybe we’ll find out more when we get to the mountain.”
“You bet.” Sapphira raised her hands and, locking her gaze on Yereq, shouted, “Give me light!”
While Irene disappeared in the inner darkness, Enoch backed away from the motel door. Seconds later, the latch clicked, and the chain slid across its bracket. As he turned to leave, the room’s curtain pulled aside slightly, and Bonnie’s face appeared in the narrow opening. She smiled and offered a little wave, making a necklace of colorful beads sway across the front of her frilly nightshirt.
Enoch paused and gazed at her lovely blue eyes and beautiful smile, a countenance that allowed a glimpse into what she had proven to be, an even lovelier inner spirit.
He returned her smile, nodded amiably, and hurried into the parking lot. The portal from Heaven’s Gate had dropped him off far behind the motel. He had chosen to appear deep in the woods to keep from alerting anyone in the vicinity, so now he would have to march with all speed to get back to the portal in time to meet Sapphira. Since Irene and Bonnie knew what to do, the little white-haired Oracle was next in line to receive her set of instructions for the divine plan.
When he reached the corner of the building, he glanced back at Irene’s room. In the parking space directly in front, a man had climbed on top of her rented SUV and appeared to be tying something to the luggage rack.
Enoch hurried back, raising a finger as he ran. “You there! What are you doing?”
The man looked up. His eyes shot open wide. He leaped to the pavement and dashed away in the opposite direction, far too fast for Enoch to chase.
Slowing as he approached the SUV, Enoch looked all around. No sign of the man anywhere. Either he was quicker than a jackrabbit, or he had hidden somewhere close by.
Enoch raised up on tiptoes and examined the luggage rack. Nothing there. He pulled on the passenger door handle. Although the door was locked, the lights inside flashed on, enabling him to scan the seats and floorboards. A Wendy’s cup with a protruding straw sat in a cup holder on the driver’s side, and pillows and blankets lay strewn around the folded-down area in the back. Other than that, the inside looked safe, no sign of tampering.
The motel door’s chain slid again. Enoch hurried to an old car parked a couple of spaces away and ducked behind it, but he allowed himself a peek over its rusted trunk.
Irene bustled out first, leaving the door open. Carrying a travel bag in one hand and the straps of a small black purse in her teeth, she pressed a key fob with her free hand as she quickstepped to the SUV.
Bonnie ran out the door, her eyes darting from side to side. Her blond-streaked locks waved in the cool breeze as she pulled a hefty suitcase along on its wheels. When she let it bump down to the parking level, her backpack entered the streetlamp’s glow.
Enoch nodded. Good girl. Obviously she had followed her mother’s instructions. Still, if she had wings, she likely wouldn’t be out in public without her backpack anyway.
While her mother closed the motel room door, Bonnie opened the SUV’s rear access and heaved the suitcase inside. She then slung open the front passenger door and got in, but she paused and touched her chest, a perplexed look wrinkling her face.
“What’s wrong?” Irene asked.
Enoch shuffled closer to listen.
Bonnie brushed her hand against the front of her sweatshirt. “It’s weird. It feels like spider webs or something, but I can’t see anything.”
Irene brushed her own hand across the embroidered lion on Bonnie’s sweatshirt. “It’s nothing. Close the door. We have a long way to go.”
“Aren’t we going to check out?” Bonnie asked.
“I left the key in the room, and I prepaid.”
With a quick tug, Bonnie closed the door. The engine started, and the SUV backed out, then shot away into the night.
Enoch waited behind the car for a moment. Now that he was out of sight, would the man who tried to tamper with their vehicle return? A few seconds of silence passed, then a man emerged from the shadows of a side corridor. He held both hands in front of him as if grasping a fishing pole, though there was nothing in his grip.
Inching as close as he dared, Enoch squinted at him. The man turned his way for a moment, giving Enoch a glimpse of his spectacles and thinning white hair. Something else appeared in the streetlamp’s glow, a sparkle of light that floated around the man’s head.
Enoch rose slowly to his feet and cleared his throat. “Mardon, why are you here, and how did you acquire a companion?”
Mardon froze in place, still holding to his invisible fishing pole. He just stared at Enoch and said nothing, while his companion flashed red and hovered next to his cheek.
Enoch took a step closer. Could Mardon have a weapon? He seemed too frightened to be dangerous. But what might the companion be telling him to do? How could a prisoner of Hades acquire something that only residents of Second Eden were allowed to have?
“Son of Nimrod,” Enoch said, raising his voice, “I ask again, what are you doing here?”
Releasing his grip with one hand, Mardon reached into his pocket and withdrew a gun. Holding it shakily, he pointed it at Enoch. “Please …” His voice matched his trembling hand. “Please come no closer, or I will have to shoot you.” r />
Enoch stepped back and raised his hands. “You have no reason to fear an unarmed old man. I merely saw you on top of that SUV and wondered what you were doing.”
The companion flashed red over and over. Mardon scowled at it. “I will not shoot him! He has not been aggressive.”
Enoch eased a foot forward and reached out his hand. “Mardon, come with me. I can arrange to have you released from that companion. It will not enslave you ever again.”
“Stay where you are!” Mardon hissed. The companion flew up to his nose and strobed at a frenetic rate. Its light flashed in his eyes, making him blink wildly.
“Please, Mardon,” Enoch called, taking another step. “Why make things worse than they already are? A tower of pride will not lead you to Heaven. It will only hasten your ultimate destruction.”
Mardon gritted his teeth and shouted at the companion. “I don’t have to listen to you! I am not your slave!”
A light blinked on inside one of the rooms, and a man looked out the window. He quickly snapped the curtain closed.
Enoch took yet another step. “Is your companion telling you not to explain your presence here? If so, perhaps you should tell me to prove you are not enslaved to it.”
Mardon re-aimed the gun. “I am no fool to be baited. I will keep my own counsel.”
Taking two steps back, Enoch lifted his hands again. “Do what you must, Mardon, but let it be known that you have been fully warned.”
The companion flashed brighter than ever. Pointing the gun into the air, Mardon slapped a hand over his ear. “Stop it! You’re splitting my brain in half!”
As a siren wailed in the distance, the companion dimmed. Mardon swiveled toward the sound, his eyes widening. “The rope!” He batted at the air for a moment, then, dropping the gun, dove to the ground. After brushing the pavement for a moment with his hands, he grasped something invisible. Breathing a sigh, he rose to his knees and pulled, as if winding a rope into a loop over his shoulder.
As the siren grew louder, Enoch lunged ahead and scooped up the gun. “What are you holding?”