Chapter 21
"Well hello jailbird." Lucius teased as I stepped out of the station and into the mid afternoon sun. His smile quickly dropped and he closed the distance between us to wrap his arms around my waist. "Are you okay? Did they treat you well? Do I need to put in a complaint?"
I laughed tiredly at the barrage of questions as he led me to the passenger side of a large red and black Range Rover. Turning my head, I raised a single brow.
"It was an impulse buy. It was meant for you for Christmas but I thought you would want it now." Lucius said by way of explanation, reaching across my body to click my safety belt into place.
"So, I'm allowed to drive?" I asked, my lips twitching with the effort not to smile.
Lucius face turned into a mask of horror. "You? Drive this beauty? No, you are to enjoy this from the luxury of the passenger seat."
Laughing, I slapped him on the arm and shooed him away. He held up his hand in protest before running around on to the other side of the car. He climbed into the driver's side of the car, holding his hand up to a passing vehicle before he pulled the door shut.
"Admit it, you only bought the car because you wanted it." I teased. I had no doubt in my mind he just wanted a high value boy toy to make himself feel better.
"Never, how could you say such a thing?" He murmured as he pulled out into the stream of traffic his eyes on the path ahead.
"Because it's the truth."
Lucius lips twitched and then he smiled. "Maybe there is a bit of truth in that statement. When I'm worried about things I shop."
"You stress shop for cars? That's a little excessive." I laughed and then leant back into the leather seats.
The car was so new it still had that straight off of the production line smell to it. Still, as nice and spacious the car was, there was no getting comfortable. I felt grimy from the night in the cell, tired after the adrenaline high and the damned piece of paper was digging in my boobs. If I ended up with a papercut it would just be the icing on the cake.
We lapsed into silence for a few moments. I needed the calm, the quiet to centre myself. I knew once I told him who and what I had seen, there would be no slowing down. There would be no pausing to take a breath. I waited long enough for us to get off of the main highways and onto quieter, less populated streets to open my mouth.
"I know who is behind the kidnappings."
I spoke clearly and calmly. The radio was playing low in the background with some horrendous pop song but there was no denying that Lucius had heard me. His fingers clenched around the steering wheel , his eyes intent upon the road before him/
"It's Victor Lyle. I saw his ring yesterday before they shut the door on the police van. I saw that ring when my blindfold slipped. It's so ugly it can only be a one of a kind." I chattered on, feeling the need to convince Lucius of the truth of my words.
The car swerved. I screamed, one hand holding onto the handle above the window and the other bracing against the dashboard. There was a split second when I thought we were going to go into a head on collision with a lamppost but with a feat of strength, Lucius wrenched the wheel as far as it could do. The bumped glanced off of the post and then we were away.
"You broke my car."
"It's your fault. You distracted me." Lucius retorted, his focus now on the road before him. Only his flared nostrils and his white knuckle grip on the steering wheel gave any indication that he was feeling anything other than serene in that moment.
"Don't place the blame in me because you are a rubbish driver. My poor red tank is bruised and hurting now." I teased, my eyes never straying far from the world outside of the moving vehicle.
The car turned into the road my house sat upon so fast that skid marks branded the rad and clouds of white smoke erupted where the wheels met pavement. I jolted forwards at the abrupt stop, the seatbelt locking so that I was almost strangled when my entire body was thrown forwards by the belt would not let me move anywhere.
"Hey, do you mind? I would like to at least live long enough to kick Victor's sorry arse to Tartarus and back. I can't do that if you keep trying to kill me with this car." I chastised, releasing the seatbelt and then rubbing the abraded skin on my neck and chest where the belt had caught me. "Now, I'll head on inside while you try and find a parking space for the beast."
I almost laughed at the look of frustration on his face. We were on a permit holder's only road and there was no way he had had the time to get any permits we possessed transferred across to the new vehicle. He was a man of action, not a man who enjoyed admin and it was coming back to bite him on the backside.
Inside the house, I was immediately swarmed by people. It amazed me that I had managed to amass so many loyal and genuine people around me. Where it had once just been Danny, Mari and Me; I had an entire family of angels fallen and not, human and some not, just there for me because I might need their love and support. It was strange how life worked out this way.
"Are you okay?"
"Do you need to sit down?"
"What happened?"
I didn't say a thing, just accepted the hugs as they were given to me, desperate for the comfort in light of what was to come.
Lucius arrived quietly, his blue eyes watching me sadly as he watched me get pulled from one bear hug to another. Even Caspar, who shied away from skin to skin contract with anyone but Ms Bridger, came forwards and tugged me into a side hug. He refused to look at me the entire time our bodies were touching. He was uncomfortable but I appreciated the gesture nonetheless.
"Now, do you care to explain to everyone else what you just told me in the corner." Lucius ordered when the emotions had started to settle in the room.
He had folded his arms across his chest and he was stood at the head of the room looking every bit the commanded with his stiff back and imperious glance.
"Victor Lyle is behind the attacks. Don't ask how I know, we can go over that later." I waved a hand through the air to shush Lucius. "Now excuse me for a moment because there is more."
When Lucius opened his mouth to ask questions, I plunged a hand into my cleavage and rummaged around for the scrap of paper hidden within the depths of my bosom.
"I also saw someone else at the prison, the last person I thought I was going to see." Holding out the folded piece of paper to Lucius, I waited until he had taken the square from my hands before continuing. "I saw Star."
Eyes widened, several of the fallen started to mutter amongst themselves.
"Where is she Savannah?"
"She's gone to do her thing. She gave me that and said that it was a map. She said we need to follow the map or at least implied we should have been following the map all along."
Lucius carefully unfolded Star's paper ever so slowly and with reverence. His lips pulled up at the corners as his eyes devoured to the dots and lines drawn on to the paper.
"You're such a clever girl." He praised, his eyes never leaving the page while his smile just got bigger and bigger.
"What is it?" I asked, stepping closer so I could try and view the page as he was. I was no closer to deciphering what it was that the paper contained or what clues there were supposed to give us.
"It's code – a map. Star and I used to create maps when we were younger to lead us to our treasure." He smiled at the slightly shocked look on my face. "What the Devil's isn't allowed a childhood too? I may have been created by my father but I still had to grow up and mature. We all had to in order to become the protectors and warriors that the human race needed. I would have been one of the senior angels by now had I not fallen."
Placing a hand on his arm, I squeezed but did not say anything.
"I don't regret it, you know? If I hadn't fallen back then, I wouldn't have done all the things I had done. I would never have been here to meet you." Lucius closed the distance between us and placed a kiss on my lips. When he pulled away his eyes were centred on me and only me. "I could never regret a decision which brought you to me."
"As sweet as that was, where does the map lead?" Castiel asked, folding his arms across his chest.
I smiled up at the man before me. "They're right. As much as I love kissing you, we're supposed to be fighting the bad guys and saving the day yet again."
Lucius sighed heavily, his face drooping as false sadness crossed your features. "Well, okay then."
I shook my head at his terrible acting and instead forced him down on to the sofa. Taking the map from his hand, I spread it out on the floor before us so that everyone could see it.
Jabbing a finger, Lucius explained "They're like Star Maps. Only they're written in the code Star and I developed as younglings. It's been millennia since I last read one of these but these both specify the exact location for the two other locations run by Mr Lyle."
"She did say she was undercover." I added.
My stomach felt like it was in knots. We had the answers we needed but it also meant that things were about to get messy – very messy indeed. And there would be casualties. With any battle casualties were to be expected but they would never be any less painful.
Caspar, who had been standing silently on the edge of the group so far, chose this moment to speak up. "So what's the plan, what do we do now? Do we attack both sites simultaneously or do we attack one and hope they don't move or reinforce the security at the other bases."
Grimly, I looked to him. "I think the damage was done with our escape. No doubt the security procedures would have been upgraded by now. We caught them with their trousers down."
Lucius wrapped his fingers around mine even as I stared down at the map.
"I think we are only going to be able to target one at a time. Our numbers are not big enough for two co-ordinated attacks." I advised, my stomach churning uncomfortably at the thought.
We would be outnumbered and we would lose our window at the third site but what could we do.
"If we're only attacking one site now, we need to go for the biggest one. The site we target has to be the one with the most captives." Lucius cut in before anyone else could throw in their own opinions. "Star's note states the larger base in in the Scottish Highlands."
I could see several people opening their mouths to comment, their faces showing their internal conflict.
"Then we head to Scotland," I commanded, my voice loud and strong. There would be no movement on this. "I hate leaving the other base for another day but the truth is we just don't have enough man power. If we divide our forces we will be risking the lives of those we are trying to save but our lives too. We may not be human but we are not indestructible. I can assure you that there are things which can be done to you which are worse than death."
"Amen to that." Caspar stated, his hands curling into fists while features became closed off.
I turned away before he could see the pity as it formed on my face. He would hate me for it and so would I. Pity helps no one.
A knock sounded on the door.
Exchanging looks, I hastily picked up the sheet of paper and thrust it into Caspar's hands. He blinked up at me. "Take this upstairs and hide it. Stay up there until we tell you it is safe to come down."
"But-."
"No Caspar." I cut across his protest. "You are the only one in this house right now who is human. You are vulnerable and our weak link. If this is an ambush, I want you up and out of the way in a place where you can't be used as bait. Now go."
His face was paler than usual as he met and held my stare. I could see lots of thoughts racing through his mind as he tried to think of a rebuttal but finally he just nodded his head.
I breathed out a sigh and rested a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you, you don't realise how much I appreciate you doing this."
My eyes followed his ascent up the stairs and then I turned back to the group. Several had taken strategic places around the room while the man of my heart was approaching the front door alone. Binah was sat casually on the sofa and when I tried to march past her to stand as Lucius' back up, she wrapped a hand around my wrist. And then she tugged.
It was an unexpected move. Before I could even try to fight her hold, I tumbled back on to the sofa. She didn't release her hold even after I glared at her. Huffing, I fidgeted and shuffled until I was sat in a more comfortable position.
Glancing over his shoulder, Lucius blue eyes glinted before he stiffened his jaw and wrenched the front door open. From my position I was unable to see who was on the other side but I was watching when Lucius disappeared through the door.
My heart stopped.
Not even taking the time to think about it, I quickly yanked myself out of Binah's hold. My skin burned from the rough gesture. My feet flew across the floor and my sword formed in my grasp. My pulse had resumed and was beating so fast that it was nothing more than a continuous thrumming in my ears. I stepped into the doorway, my sword in hand and my body taught in preparation for battle.
And then I froze. Whatever I had been expecting, it certainly wasn't what was before me.
A few feet away, Lucius was embracing a man – a very familiar man. He had dark hair and was the person my son inherited all of his looks and expressions from.
"Gabriel." I whispered, my hand opening so that my sword could become incorporeal once more. My eyes lifted past the hugging pair and a genuine smile formed on my lips. "Ezekiel."
"There's no need to be so formal Vannah. I'm family." Zeke chirped, skirting around the two men who were now clapping each other on the back and pretending they hadn't just been embracing each other tightly and murmuring into each other's ears.
Holding out my arms, I allowed the man to scoop me up into a hug and swing me around. My feet flew out haphazardly and I squealed like a little girl.
Finally, the man set me on my feet and smiled down at me. Quickly a frown took its place as he allowed his eyes to take in the full sight of me. I was sure I looked a complete mess in my torn dress. Last night's make up still clung to my face and in general the scarred patches of my skin which were visible on my arms did not make for a pretty sight.
"Are you okay?" He asked, his fingers tightening and his breath hitching as his eyes found another scar.
"Yes, I am okay."
He raised a single brow at me and an unwilling chuckle escaped my lips.
"I mean it. I wasn't okay – not for a while." I turned my head to look at Lucius and an easy smile formed on my lips. Just by looking at Lucius I felt happy and being around the man himself made me even happier. "I am now."
Zeke followed my gaze and then let loose his own laugh. "You finally stopped fighting your destinies? I bet the others it would take at least another year or two."
"Hey." I exclaimed, giving him a dig on the arm.
Despite our lack of contact in recent weeks, our relationship was still easy. He had been there at my wedding to Gabriel, the one I had been forced to dissolve and forget. But some bonds didn't diminish even with a loss of memory and the Angel would always be a dear friend. Even if the amount of time he could spend on Earth was limited to matters of importance only, things between us wouldn't change.
"Don't blame me, Gabriel started it."
Turning my gaze back to the Archangel who had a propensity to be closed off to the majority of human emotions, I shook my head.
"Impossible. He would never take part in a bet."
"What do you think we do on our downtime? We may be Angels but we are still men essentially."
Folding across my chest, I stared up at him. "And what exactly was the prize?"
"Earth duty. Let's just say we're all getting a bit of Cabin Fever up there. All of the angel race in one place? It's not as picture perfect as one would expect." Zeke gave a delicate little shudder that was so out of sorts with his larger frame.
"Savannah." The words were whispered but they caught and held my attention.
"Gabriel." I replied.
The dark haired Angel looked at me with his blank face but I took no offence. I knew it was an expression he donned out of both nature and necessity. We had been married. We had been happy. We had a child together. But destiny had something else in store for the both of us.
"It's good to see you." Gabriel spoke quietly, nodding his head but making no move to make any type of physical contact.
I glanced at Lucius and he nodded. He had told him in the last few minutes – very short minutes - about our new relationship status. And now Gabriel was keeping his distance. No matter what happened between me and Lucius, I never wanted to hurt this man. He was as much of a victim of fate as the rest of us.
"And you." I replied. Silence settled over us and I was at a loss for what to say. Clearing my throat, I decided that the mundane was the best way for us to proceed. "Come on in, we're letting all of the heat out of the house standing out here."
I stepped aside and allowed the three men to pass. The fallen angels quickly slipped from their defensive positions to meet the newcomers. It was like a bizarre family reunion where the parent had been divorced and the children had been split up. They all hugged and clapped each other on the back, words spoken to one another in excited chatter.
"Is it safe?" Caspar called down the stairs, frustration and just a hint of boredom in his voice. "I can't hear any fighting down there."
Gabriel and Zeke lifted their heads to the ceiling before exchanging glances and then looking to Binah. Lucius was looking away and didn't notice the exchange but some of the other Fallen did. The Angels knew who he was to Binah and now the others were on to the trail. The secret wouldn't be staying secret for much longer.
"Yes, it's safe. Come on down, Caspar." I called back.
A second later Caspar came down the stairs; his feet were quiet on the carpet and his entire body wary as he crept closer and closer.
"I'd like you to meet some people. This is Gabriel and this is Zeke." I introduced, watching as the three men sized each other up. "Guys this is Caspar. He's our newest recruit, even if he doesn't know it yet."
"It's nice to meet you." Caspar stated calmly, holding out his hand unperturbed by the hard looks he was receiving from the taller men. It was incredible to see a normal human being face of with two angels without breaking a sweat but then again, he didn't exactly know they were angels.
Gabriel wrapped his hand around the young humans hand, his face that impenetrable mask as he gave it a firm shake.
"It's good to meet you to." He murmured, releasing his hold as he nodded his head in acknowledgement. "I have a feeling that our paths will cross many times in your lifetime. Eternity is a very long time."
I coughed and cleared my throat when an awkward silence descended on our group. Caspar after a brief shake of Zeke's hand backed up a step and scratched the back of his neck. He looked from one Angel to the other before looking over at me.
"So what do we do now? I assume these two are welcome on our little adventure up to Scotland?" He asked, trying to be subtle but in the end only earning raised brows from the men now standing on either side of me.
"We'll work on your skills of the subversive nature. They require a lot of improvement if you intend to live a long and fruitful life. Trust me. Even an Angel knows that there is an art to subtlety." Zeke advised, reaching out an arm and pulling Caspar to his side so that he could ruffle the short white blonde hairs on top of Caspar's head.
Swatting him away, Caspar's face blanched as he looked up at them. "Angel?"
"Quiet kid, don't speak so loudly. We're undercover here with the Devil and his evil minions." Zeke teased, nudging him in the shoulder and laughing when the poor boy almost fell to the floor from the unexpected gesture.
Gabriel just rolled his eyes and looked to me.
"Danny is well. I thought you would want to know. He is safe and being well cared for." The man spoke in stilted sentences as if every word was difficult to say. From the way he struggled to remain eye contact I knew it was more to do with the fact he was talking to me rather than the subject matter we were discussing. "I look in upon him often. He is a delight to watch."
There was a glimmer in his eyes, one of true joy as he spoke of our son. In all of our dealings, due to my memory wipe, it was difficult to truly connect that he was the father of my son. The bond between us as partners had been diminished. Even so, though his face had changed, he was still a man I had once lover and he was still the man who had been deprived of his son due to the destiny's laid out for each of us.
So with those thoughts in my mind, I could only reply, "I am glad. You two need time to bond."
He nodded his head and the two of us simultaneously moved away from one another to seek another person to converse with. It was too difficult to face him when I knew he was hurting because of something I could barely remember.
It was Lucius who asked the question that had been on my mind since I had seen them standing out on the street.
"Not that I don't appreciate the reunion, but why exactly are you here?"
The two angels paused and exchanged glances before simply shrugging their shoulders.
"We're your back up." Zeke stated, offering no further explanation so the Devil turned his attention the Archangel in charge.
"Our father gave us permission to assist on your quest. And we brought reinforcements."