ABOUT FORTY-FIVE MINUTES AGO...
A car pulled up just outside the Thai restaurant and Josh and Isabelle stepped out of it. They held each other's hands and went inside, unaware that a few pair of eyes were watching them from afar, and one of those pairs were the eyes of Jennifer.
Jennifer stood by the entrance and peeped into the restaurant so she could get a view of where Josh and Isabelle were seated at. After she got a fix on the table that they had taken, she looked around and made sure no one could see what she was doing.
She took a blue wig out of her purse and wore it on her head. She also took out some sunglasses and put them on as well before going into the restaurant, walking past Josh and Isabelle, who didn't recognize her and heading straight for the bathroom where she would wait until Isabelle would come in eventually.
Outside the restaurant, the other pair of eyes were still watching the restaurant and planning to go in to do something to Josh and Isabelle.
"We can't let this happen! It's going to ruin the entire plan," One of the watchers said.
"You can take off. I'll handle this and make sure everything remains smooth sailing," The other watcher replied.
"Are you sure you won't need any help?"
"She's just a human. I can handle it no problem."
.
.
.
NOW!!!
Jennifer had unloaded the entire clip into the stall of the restroom and had a psychotic smile on her face because she had finally accomplished her mission of getting rid of Isabelle.
She put the gun back in her coat and slowly moved closer to the door of the stall.
"I got you now, Bitch!"
She pushed the door open and her jaw dropped in shock when she saw that Isabelle wasn't in there. There wasn't a dead body or a body at all; it was like she had just vanished into thin air.
"What the hell!" Jennifer exclaimed.
She looked around the stalls to try to make sense of it. Did Isabelle know she was there and snuck underneath the space at the bottom of the walls to enter a different stall? Jennifer wondered.
She checked but discovered that she wasn't in there at all. The door of the restroom was shut and was never opened, there wasn't any emergency window around so, how did Isabelle get out? That was the question that Jennifer just couldn't answer.
She decided to cut her losses and get out of the restaurant before somebody comes in and sees the set of bullet holes in the door. She grabbed her purse and as she tried to walk toward the door, she couldn't.
She was frozen in place and it was like her feet were glued to the floor. Jennifer struggled to regain control of her motion but it was useless; there was nothing she could do. A power was holding her and she knew it was a Celestial power that she wasn't equipped to deal with by herself.
"Whoever you are; let go of me," Jennifer grunted out, but no one answered back.
Meanwhile, Isabelle found herself at the back of a building and she had no idea or recollection of how she got there. She looked around her and noticed that the building was the Thai restaurant that she was just in a few seconds ago and somehow, she had disappeared out of it and ended up in the back.
"Hello, who's out there?" Isabelle called out, aware that something or in this case, someone had brought her here and they were still around and had their eyes on her.
"Hello, Isabelle Gilmour. It's an honour to finally meet you," A feminine voice said from behind her.
Isabelle turned around and could see the silhouette of someone standing in the shadow of the dark just ahead of her.
"Who are you? What do you want from me?" Isabelle asked and backed away slowly.
"You don't have to be afraid, Isabelle. I'm a friend and I'm not here to hurt you. As a matter of fact, I just saved your life only a few seconds ago," She said again.
"What do you mean you saved my life?" Isabelle asked.
"If I hadn't gotten you out of that bathroom stall the moment that I did, you'd be dead right now. I saved you which means I'm your ally," she said.
"If you're truly an ally, then come out from the darkness. Show your face," Isabelle demanded.
"Very well," The voice replied and slowly stepped into the light.
When she appeared in the light and Isabelle could see her face, there was no reaction or recognition from her because she had never seen this woman before but if only she knew who she really was, then perhaps she would have had a more reactive response.
"Who are you?" Isabelle asked.
"My name is not important but as I said, I am your ally," she claimed.
"What are you? An angel or a demon?" Isabelle asked again.
"What I am is also not important. Just know that my duty is to keep you and Josh safe and protect the both of you from whatever or whoever may want to cause you harm."
"And what is it that you protected me from when you snatched me out of that bathroom?" Hannah asked with a raised brow.
"Someone that wanted to end your life, but don't worry, I'll take care of them," The strange woman replied again.
"Did Hannah and Garin send you? Did they ask you to protect us?"
The woman stayed silent and began to back away. Just as she got lost in the darkness once again, she gave Isabelle one final message.
"Go back to Josh. He must be getting worried that you aren't back yet. If fate should have it, we'll run into each other again."
Just like that, she blended into the darkness and disappeared into nothing. Isabelle was confused, scared and completely oblivious of what was going on. She left the back of the building and went back into the restaurant from the front.
As she approached her table, Josh saw her coming and wondered how she got outside because there was only one way in and out of the restaurant.
"Isabelle?" He asked to make sure it was really her as she reached their table.
"How did you get outside? What's going on?" He asked.
" I don't know, Josh. Something took me out of the restroom and I ended up outside the restaurant. She claimed that she was a friend and that she was saving my life," Isabelle said.
"She?" Josh asked.
"Well, she looked like a woman but she was definitely a Celestial, but I don't know if she was an angel or a demon," Isabelle answered.
"And she claimed she was saving you?" Josh asked again.
"Apparently, something tried to kill me in the restroom but she didn't tell me what or who it was. I think we should leave right now," Isabelle suggested.
"You're right! I'll pay the cheque and we can head home," Josh said and got up.
He walked up to Isabelle and placed his hands on her shoulders.
"You sure you're okay?" He asked in concern.
"I'm fine. I just want to get out of here," she said and she seemed quite upset.
They paid for their dinner, walked out of the restaurant, walked into Josh's car and drove away from the restaurant.
*****
Jennifer was still in the restroom and was still unable to move from where she stood. She had given up struggling because she knew that she wouldn't be able to break out of whatever was holding her.
Suddenly, the door of the restroom opened and a group of three women walked in and headed straight for the sinks to retouch their makeup.
"Oh, thank God. Ladies, you have to help me. I can't move from here and I don't know why. Please, help me," Jennifer begged but the women didn't seem to be able to hear her.
"Hello! Can't you hear me?" Jennifer yelled at them.
They continued speaking to each other, not even noticing Jennifer and that was when she realized that not only could the women not hear her, but they also couldn't see her as well. What did that mean? Was she just invisible and inaudible to them OR was she completely imperceivable at all? Would that mean she was a ghost or didn't exist in the same physical plane? Jennifer's mind was filled with all of these questions and her panic was rising the longer she shouted at the women and didn't get any kind of acknowledgement back from them.
After the women were done with their makeup, they all started to leave and Jennifer called out for them to help her.
"No, please, you have to hear me. Don't leave me here, I beg of you. No, please," she shouted but it was no use.
They left and she was left all alone in the restroom, still unable to move. She didn't know how long she would be there but one thing was certain, she needed supernatural intervention to get her out of her predicament.
Jennifer remained stuck in that bathroom for several hours and was getting more afraid the longer she was there. People walked in and out but no one could sense her and no matter how much she cried out to them, it was of no use as no one could see, hear or sense her.
It got late and the restaurant closed for the night. The owner and the last of his employees left the premises after turning off the lights and locking up the business. Jennifer remained in the dark and a few minutes after the restaurant was closed for the day, the restroom light flickered on and Jennifer could hear some loud footsteps echoing as they got closer and closer to her. Someone was heading toward her and she could tell that this person would be able to see her.
“Hello? Show yourself,” Jennifer demanded.
The footsteps got louder and closer and as they did, the restroom lights began to flicker, shining brightly one moment and getting dim the next.
“Is that you, Demon?” Jennifer asked, thinking that perhaps Gentel was the one that was holding her for reasons unknown to her.
“No, I’m not a demon,” A woman’s voice answered and appeared before Jennifer.
The lights got brighter and Jennifer could see who was standing in front of her now. It was the same woman that had saved Isabelle from getting killed by Jennifer earlier and it was no other than the Nephalem; Reah.
“What are you then and why are you doing this to me?” Jennifer asked.
“I’ve had my eye on you for some time, Human. I’ve watched you try and fail several times to hurt Isabelle and seduce Josh and it was quite amusing at first but now, it has become rather problematic to my father’s plans.”
“What do you mean by that? Who are you anyway?” Jennifer asked.
Reah dashed towards her in the blink of an eye and stared her straight in the eyes.
“You don’t need to know who I am, Jennifer. All you need to know is that if you don’t stop trying to kill Isabelle, you’re the one who’ll end up dead. I could kill you right now and make sure that you don’t continue being a problem but I feel that it’s unnecessary to go to such lengths. You’re a smart girl and I’m sure you understand the severity of my warnings, don’t you?” Reah asked.
“I do,” Jennifer answered defiantly.
“I want to hear you say it, Human,” Reah demanded.
“I will stop trying to kill Isabelle,” Jennifer said.
“Good girl,” Reah slapped her softly on the cheek, “Now that we’ve come to a mutual understanding, I believe we won’t be having any more problems and I won’t have to pay you a visit again,” Reah said and turned around.
She walked away and vanished into thin air and after she was gone, Jennifer became free of her hold and fell to the restroom floor, finally able to move her body.
*****
“Why can’t we just have a fucking good time, a normal night out without getting involved with a damn Celestial that makes everything just so complicated?” Josh vented after they went inside the house.
Isabelle didn’t respond to his rhetorical question. She just moved through the house and went into the bedroom to change out of her clothes and head to bed; all she wanted at that point was a good night’s sleep.
“This needs to be over, Iz. I’m tired of it, I really am,” Josh clamoured and headed for the little bar near the kitchen.
“That’s enough, Josh,” Isabelle said from the bedroom, “Let’s just go to bed and try to get some sleep.”
Josh didn’t understand why Isabelle was sounding so comfortable about everything that had happened to them tonight, especially to her. He expected her to be flustered by it all but she seemed to be handling it all a lot better than he was.
“How come you seem so chill about all of this? Aren’t you, I don’t know, worried?” Josh walked into the bedroom with a glass of whiskey in his hand.
“Worried about what?” Isabelle asked as she took off her dress.
“The woman that took you out of the restroom said that she was saving you, which means that something must have tried to hurt you while you were in there. Doesn’t that bother you?” Josh asked.
“It does, but I don’t want to think about any of this anymore. Some beings are trying to hurt us, some beings are protecting us, and we’re cramped in the middle of a war between forces way beyond our control; it’s all so crazy and I don’t want to think about it anymore. I just want to go to sleep, wake up in the morning, go to work and try to just…live my life, with you. Can we just try to do that?” Isabelle said while slipping into a nightgown.
Josh put down his glass and walked over to Isabelle who seemed like she was ready to just accept whatever happens next without thinking about it too much. He placed his arms around her and held her for a while, not wanting to let go. Josh was scared! More than anything, he was scared for Isabelle’s safety and well-being. All he wanted was to protect her and give her a normal life. That didn’t seem to be possible anymore. Isabelle seemed to have accepted that fact tonight and now, he needed to as well.
“Let’s go to bed then,” Josh said and they kissed.
Isabelle got into bed and Josh took off his jacket. He took off his shoes and was about to get into bed but he hesitated.
“I’m going to head into the bathroom and wash up a little. I’ll be right back,” he said.
Josh walked to the bathroom and just as he was about to open the door, the front doorbell rang. Josh turned around and looked at Isabelle who also looked back at him and their nerves were now heightened. The doorbell rang again and more persistently which made Josh and Isabelle even more nervous because neither of them was expecting a visitor.
“Who do you think that is?” Josh asked her.
“It’s certainly not a late-night delivery person,” Isabelle said.
She got off the bed and followed behind Josh who cautiously led the way from the bedroom and out to the living room. He grabbed a bat from the corner and moved even closer to the door.
“Who is it?” Josh asked before opening.
“Friends,” A familiar voice answered from outside.
Josh immediately recognized the voice and so did Isabelle. He put down the bat and with a smile on his face, he opened the door.
“Glad to see that the two of you are still alive,” he said to Hannah and Garin.
“Likewise,” Garin replied and the two men embraced.
Isabelle went to Hannah and the both of them hugged as well, happy to see each other again and glad to see that they were all alright.
“Are you guys okay?” Isabelle asked the angel.
“Yeah, we’re fine,” Hannah answered.
“Where the hell have the both of you been?” Josh asked.
“It’s kind of a long story. I’ll tell you all about it later but for now, I have to see my brother. Where’s Sader?” Garin asked.
Josh and Isabelle became quiet after Garin asked about Sader. Their expressions changed and Garin noticed it and he knew right then and there; that something had gone wrong.
.
.
.
“And they just took him,” Josh finished explaining to the celestials how the demons had attacked them and taken Sader back to hell.
Garin was devastated to hear about what had happened and he knew that Sader was surely gone forever because there was no way that Lucifer was still keeping him alive.
“I’m so sorry, Garin,” Hannah said to him as she rubbed his back softly.
“So, what about you guys? Where are Cleo and your daughter?” Isabelle asked, also expecting bad news from them.
“When we got to Salem, we learned that Jasmine wasn’t there. She had been dead for a while and we were led into a trap. We fought to get out and Cleo sacrificed herself just so we could escape,” Hannah informed them.
“We barely made it out and for a few days, we were stranded and powerless,” Garin added.
At this point, the mood was solemn and the four of them remained silent, confused about what was to happen next to all of them. Sader was gone, Cleo was gone, Jasmine was gone, and nothing was going according to how they had planned. The future was unknown and that lack of knowledge was a disadvantage for them because a war was brewing and soon, it was going to erupt. The stakes were high and the chance of success was extremely low. Summum and Verum were soon to clash heads, the Nephalems and the angels would go to war and the world would watch breathlessly in hope that the end was yet to come.
“What do we do now?” Josh asked.
“We ride the storm,” Garin answered.