Destine (The Watcher's Trilogy) (23 page)

M
y hands found the back of his shirt
,
and without thinking I pulled it over his head and let it hit the ground where the shattered coffee cups
had
landed on the floor
.
My hands slid
down his back
,
feeling the strong expansion of muscles underneath his stark white skin
.
I couldn’t help but open my eyes and try to catch a glimpse of the tattoo that spread down
and across
his back
.
The beautiful
grayscale
wings that
looked so life-
like and real
.
I had once thought the tattoo strange, but now I
realized
it was part of Gabriel, part of who he was, and so I loved it because I loved him
.
He must have
felt my preoccupation because he broke our kiss and looked down at me
.
He
realized
what I was staring at because he quickly sat up and began reaching for his shirt
.

“No don’t
,
” I managed to get out between gasping for breath
.
He paused and met my eyes
.
His still held a storm that looked to be churning deep inside him
.
I sat up as well and began to trace my hand along the tattoo on his back
.
“I was just admiring how beautiful your tattoo is,” I admitted
.

He paused
,
still holding his shirt in his hands
.
“I use
d
to have real wings, but I lost them when I was banished to
earth
.
This is all that was left when I awoke on
earth
in my human form.
”

“They are amazing,” I whispered
,
as I continued to trace their out
line across his shoulder blades, and let my fingers linger just above his belt where his wings disappeared below his waist
.
I leaned forward and gently kiss
ed
his back
.
He
tense
d
beneath my touch.

He slid
from the counter and turned to face me
, laying
his hand on my chee
k
.
“If we keep getting distracted like this we will never complete our mission,” he whispered
,
leaning in and laying a kiss on my forehead
.

“This seems like it
’s far more fun
then defeating the powers of Satan,” I scoffed sarcastically.

He pulled
his shirt back on over his tattoo
and held
his hand out to me.
“Come on, we have work to do.”

I dropped from
th
e counter with his hand in mine.
“S
houldn’t we clean this up first? Your d
ad might wonder what happened
,
” I asked
,
pointing to the shattered coffee cups on the floor
.

“I have another confession to make,” he admitted
.
“I don’t really live with my
d
ad, I
don’t have a human father.
”

“So whose house is
this?
”
I asked confused.

“Mine, my powers of persuasion work quite well o
n realtors and bank loan agents.” H
e smirked at me th
r
ough tussled curls
.
“And it’s a good thing because
it’s
not easy surviving in an eighteen year olds body
. N
o one takes you seriously.
”

After everything else he had told me this was just the icing on the cake
.
Of course he didn’t live with his father, it was silly of me to believe it in the first place
.
How would a fallen angel have a father on
earth
anyway
?

“Okay then, where are we off to?
”
At this point I was so confused and overwhelmed that he could tell me anything and I think I would have accepted it
.

“Tonight
Alex has set up the
first meeting of his council and we need to be there to see who he appoints.”

“Already! He was just elected to student council today
.
What’s his rush?
”
I gawked in astonishment
.

“The Anti-Christ has been waiting over two millennia for the apocalypse to be set in motion
.
I wouldn’t call that a rush.
”

W
ith that I straightened my shirt, ran a hand through my hair, and prepared myself to save humanity
.

Chapter 12

Matthew 10:34 "Think not that I am come to send peace on
earth
: I came not to send peace, but a sword."

It w
as early
October an
d the days were starting to grow
shorter, so as we left the house the sun was starting to slide below the tree line
.
I thought about calling home, maybe someone would be worried about where I was
.
I
pushed the thought from my mind;
after all
,
who woul
d really worry,
my crazy mother or my distant father
?
No
,
I was fine right where I was
,
holding the hand of the man I loved, even if we were on our way to stare into the face of true evil
.

The meeting would be held
where all the important school meetings were held, in the school’s library
.
We arrived just as the meeting was being called to order
.
Alex was
,
of course
,
seated in the center of the large boardroom style table with Cami seated directly to his right
.
I quickly scanned the room, and found us two chairs in the fa
r back corner of the room
.
Surprisingly
this was a packed house, especially for a school meeting
. N
o one
usually
came to these things
.

Alex was looking over groomed with his perfectly styled hair, and yet another perfectly tailored suit that would be b
etter suited for the boardroom
of Lyman Brothers
rather
than Shady Lane High School
.
I saw him notice us walk in
. I
f I wasn’t so fixed on his reaction it w
ould’ve been
almost unnoticeable, but his eyes narrowed and for a split second his
forehead
creased
.

Gabriel
’s
reaction was far more noticeable
. H
e took a large step in front of me, blocking me fro
m Alex’s view. I watched as t
he strain to control
himself
pulsed through ever
y
muscle in his back and arms
.
Gabriel’s reaction and body language
oozed
“I’m looking for a fight.
”
I appreciated the gesture, but I would not be protected like a
defenseless
child
. I
f I truly was meant to stop this, t
hen I was going to face it head-
on
.
I stepped out from
behind Gabriel and continued
to the seat I was originally going to sit in
.

Once I moved out from behind Gabriel he couldn’t help but follow
.
I could tell he wasn’t happy with my reaction, but I would not be
treated like some damsel in distress
.
I had no idea where my sudden
burst of courage had come from. P
erhaps it was the sight of my former best friend seated next to Alex gazing adoringly up at his face
.
Cami was still dressed in her legally blond business suit, but looked none the worse for wear
. I
t was as if she had just put the outfit and make-up on
.
Gabriel came and sat next to
me
. A
lthough I knew he wasn’t happy with my reaction he made no comment of it
.

The meeting came to order with Alex again explaining his plan for unification
.
He wanted to unite the
faculty
, students, and community under one council
.
A council which he would spear
head as student body
president
.
H
e also announced that Cami would hold the other seat for the student body and was charged with the role of public relations
.
Of course Cami beamed from ear to ear and looked all to
o
pleased with herself
.
Alex then went on to announce the seats that would be held by the
faculty
.

Principal Black was appointed to
one s
eat and the
Superintendent
of S
chools to the other
.
I have to be honest
,
I didn’t kn
ow we had a Super
intendent
of S
chools, and I was sure I had never seen that man’s face before
.
Mental note, anyone who i
s un
familiar i
s automatically a threat
.
The
community chair seats w
en
t
to the mayor and treasure of the town
.
In a town as small as Shady Lane you had few options when appointing
officials
.
The creation of the council and the people who Alex appointed
all seemed
,
on the surface
,
to be good ideas
.
These were all important members of the community and meeting together should hel
p unify
all three areas, but as Gabriel and I well knew this council was a means for Alex to gain control
.
Unify the three major areas of the community and they will be easier to control, easier to manipulate
.

Each of the members appointed to the council gave short speeches about their hopes for the
council’s
future and the
brilliance
of Alex Chase for implementing this
groundbreaking
arrangement
.
The council would meet once a month in closed session to discuss
all-important
matters concerning the community, faculty, and school
.
Their
decisions
would then be made public through the publication of the
secretarial
notes
.
I had to wonder why the council couldn’t meet in open session, but I had to hold my personal
paranoia
at bay
.
I was growing bored of the speeches and began to scan the crowd
.

Leaning against the wall in the far back of the room stood Scarlett
.
I should have noticed her
earlier
since she was fairly hard to miss with that head full of wild red hair
.
I nonchalantly elbowed Gabriel and pointed to the back of the room
.
He began to scan the back of the room, and I knew the minute
he spotted her because he again tensed
.
Geesh
,
and he had the nerve to tell me that my facial expressions gave my thoughts away; he was so tense he was like a rubber band ready to snap
.

Finally
,
after what felt like half my lifetime
,
the meeting was adjourned and everyone began to make
his or her
way out of the library
.
Gabriel and I kept an eye on Alex as we exited the room, but he was cornered holding a discussion with Principal Black
.
Gabriel and I didn’t utter a word to one an
o
ther
,
for fear of being over heard
,
until we were well away from the crowd of people leaving the meeting
.
We had
begun
walking in the opposite direct
ion of the crowd, and
simply
ended up at the
football field
.
There was no game tonight
,
so the lights were off and the field deserted
.
We strolled through the front gate and sat on the bottom row of bleachers
.

“So now what?” I asked Gabriel
.

“Well
,
to be honest, I have no idea
.
I was hoping that this meeting would shed more light on the situation then it has.”

“What
,
you thought Alex was going to la
y out his whole evil plan in detail tonight at the meeting?
”
My annoyance
was
clear in my voice.

“No of course not, but I was hoping that some of the people appointed to the council would help enlighten us as to who the final two horseman are, but everyone appointed is a well established member of the community
.
No
new faces or names, so no clues.”

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far
.
I didn’t recognize the Superintendent
.
I’ve never seen that man before in my life, and if you had asked me last week I wouldn’t have known we had a superintendent.
”

“Okay, so tha
t’s something to go on, I guess.” H
e sighed and shook his head
.
“I just wish I knew more
.
I wish this wasn’t some strung out waiting game.
”

“You’re telling me
.
At least you’ve met Michael, I’m not even sure he’s going to come through and help me when I need it.”

“Trust me, he’ll come through when the time comes
.
I know Michael.”

“
How can you be so sure
?
You fell from grace because of your interference with humanity
.
Why is Michael still in heaven
?
Shouldn’t the all knowing God know what Michael is going to do?” I questioned
.

Before he could answer my question something caught my eye and I reached out and grabbed his arm
.
Underneath the goal post I saw a faint amber
g
low
.
It was to
o
far away and to
o
dark to be able to see, but it looked like someone was leaning against the goal post smoking
.
It could
be no one, just a janitor taking a break, o
r it could be someone we shouldn’t have let sneak up on us
.

             
We both froze
.
I strained my eyes to focus
,
so I could see who was out there
, but it was no use. T
hen it became clear that the amber glow was getting closer
.
Whoever it was coming towards us
.
For what felt like eternity, I watched the amber glow of the cigarette slow
ly
come closer and closer, and finally from the shadows of the football field stepped Scarlett
.
Her skintight black pants
and gray tank top were
terribly
inappropriate for the chilly fall night, but she didn’t seem to notice
.

“Well, well, well
.
Look who I found
,
” she taunted
,
in that voice that felt like it left something clinging to my skin
.
Gabriel must have been as caught of
f
guard as I was because neither of us responded to he
r taunt, we simply
sat there and stared
.

             
Finally
, I found my voice.
“
I thought I smelled skank,
should
have
know
it was you.”

“
Eww
, ouch
! T
hat wo
uld have hurt if I had feelings.” S
he
fake
pouted in my direction
.
Then she
looked right past me at Gabriel.
“Hi sexy,
did
you miss me?
”

W
ith that one simple question Gabriel hit his knees. It was like she was sucking the air from his lungs
.
He grabbed at
his throat and struggled with whatever unknown force she was using, but he couldn’t get away
.
Without thinking I lunged forward and shoved her as hard as I could away from Gabriel
.
She began to stumble backwards and her hands shot out in front of her to catch herself
.
She grabbed at me and missed,
instead her finger caught my cross and yanked it from around my neck
,
sending it sailing off under the bleachers
.
She hit the ground hard but it didn’t seem to faze her, she
got
back up and on her feet before I could even process what was happening
.
Gabriel now lay collapsed on the bleachers looking
very still
.
I wanted to rush over and check to see if he was breathing, but I couldn’t
.
Scarlett was already up and head
ed
for me, and now without my cross I had no idea how I was going to stop her.

I did
the
only
thing left I could think to do…
I prayed
.
“
Please God, if I’m
supposed
to save humanity send me help or
a sign as
to
how I can defeat her.
”

J
ust like that
,
I was hit with a blinding flash of white li
ght.
I heard a voice in my head
,
"Think not that I am come to send peace on
earth
: I came not to send peace, but a sword."

The voice was loud, but somehow I knew I was the only one who could hear it, and then I felt a searing, burning pain in my right forearm
.
I let out a cry from the pain
.
I was still recovering from the blinding light and could
n’t get my
eyes to adjust to my now darker surroundings
.
I looked at where my arm was burning, but I couldn’t see anything
.
Then suddenly I felt a heavy weight in my right hand, as if I were holding something
.

Someth
ing heavy and cool to the touch.
I looked down again and in my hand was a sword
.
The sword was polished and gleamed in what little light the
re was;
the hilt was made of carved and polished gold, and it felt good in my hand
.
I had never used a sword before, or for that matter ever even held one, but this sword felt right, like I k
new what to do with it
.
Suddenly the wind picked up and light
n
ing crashed in the distance
.

I looked up from the sword and standing across from me with her wild red hair whipping in the breeze was Scarlett
.
“Do you even know what to do with that
over-
sized steak knife? You sorry excuse for a redeemer!”

“I know enough to
kill your ass!” I shouted back. A
s the wind continued to pick up
,
I walked towards her with the sword held at my side
.
I had no idea how to use this weapon, but at that moment I felt sure I could
use it to end her
.
She threw her hands out in my direction
with a shrill cackling laugh
and light
ning crashed onto the football field
.
The ground shook and I a
lmost lost my balance
.
I didn’t lo
se sight of my target and a
s I neared her I raised the sword and swung it in her direction
.
She
quickly dodged out of the way, managing to kick me in side of the leg in the process
.

“This is going to be easier t
han I thought,” she taunted
.
“Y
ou
’
r
e
not worthy, you
’
r
e
nothing
but a pathetic mistake!
”
The wind continued
to whip my hair about and light
ning continued to crash, but her effect on the elements had little effect on me.

I shook her kick off.
“That’s the problem with you villains
,
you always underestimate the other guy
.
I’m going to enjoy ending you!”
I walked towards her once more and this time she began to back pedal
.
She continued
raising her arms and gesturing;
she looked like a symphony conductor but instead of violins and flutes she was conducting the w
ind and light
n
ing.

“You know, for being alive for two millennia
A
ngel
B
oy was a terrible kisser,” she taunted
.
I would not let her at
tempt to emotionally distract my
work, and a
s I neared her I
again raised the sword above my head
. T
his time
,
in her attempt to dodge me, she took a large step back and lost her footing
.
Her stumble slowed her enough that the sword came crashing down into her shoulder and she fell to the ground with a wail that I was sure would shatter glass for miles around
.
Quickly
,
before she co
u
ld recover, I yanked the sword from where it had lodged in her shoulder,

“You bitch!” she wailed
.
I again lifted the sword
,
but this time I pulled it back and drove it forward with all my strength
.
At first I wasn’t sure I had hit anything
,
the wind was whipping my hair into my eyes with such ferocity that I couldn’t see, and then suddenly it stopped.