Time flew fast, faster than I had wanted it to. We were about an hour away from what would change our lives forever.
I knew it was going to be tough, I knew something bad was going to happen, but my feelings were just feelings, they weren't always right. There was a chance, things could go downhill, people would die, I would die. But there was also that chance that everyone would be okay, unharmed, and Ty Alex and this mystery man were destroyed.
I wasn't worried about me, sure, I could be found, killed, but as long as I knew my family and friends were okay, I would be okay with it.
I was pacing the living room, the small space not quite quenching my thirst for adrenaline release. Callum was sitting on the couch, his leg tossed up on the coffee table as he chewed his nails. He was nervous, just as nervous as I was, if not more, he just didn't show it.
"You're making me dizzy" Callum mumbled through his fingers in his mouth
"You're going to get wrinkled fingers" I shot back
We both smiled, but didn't stop our habits
This continued on for about the next half hour. We probably should have been practising or talking about exactly how it was going to go down, but the truth was, we could talk all we wanted, it wasn't going to happen the way we wanted it. We weren't going to prepare for something that you couldn't really prepare for.
"I know this is probably an uncomfortable question" I began, turning to Callum in the middle of the room "But what's the easiest way to kill an Angel? And what strength do they have that's the hardest to avoid?" I asked
Callum stopped chewing his fingers and looked at me, half surprised
"It can happen as simply as it can to kill a human. It's just extremely difficult to get a hold of us, we are tactile, fast, not as fast as some Vampires, but fast. We are logical and can read a persons body language better than a retired FBI agent can" He explained, giving me full access
"So it should be somewhat easy to kill an Angel once you get a grip of them?" I asked, picking up my pacing again
"Yeah" Callum shrugged "But like I said, we know how to avoid people, Vampires, we've been doing it as long as they have"
"So I guess you are our 'secret weapon'" I used air bubbles, making bunny ears with my fingers
"How so?" Callum asked, his eyebrows creasing in the light glow of the lamp around us
"You are just like them, you'll be able to catch them because you're built just like them, you know the tricks, I bet you're faster than them, are you older?" I asked, curious
"I am, and I will have a better chance at catching them than the Vamps will, but that doesn't mean that I'm stronger than them, they're built on rage" He answered watching me like a tennis match
"Teamwork is key, you catch them, Duke and the others can take them out?" I suggested desperately
Callum raised his eyebrows and smiled
"Something like that" He shrugged after a moments silence
I realised that I had stopped my pacing, standing in the middle of the room, staring at Callum
"What time is Clu supposed to be here?" I changing subject
"In about ten minutes" He replied, pulling out his phone as he clicked a few buttons and stared intently at the screen
"What is it?" I asked, knowing he was reading a message as his eyes skimmed over it like a book
"Duke wants you to keep my phone on you while we are gone, just in case" He replied as he held the phone out towards me.
I took a step forward and picked it up, looking down at the empty screen
"Thanks" I responded shoving it into my jeans pocket
"You think you're ready to drift for this?" Callum asked as I began to pace again
I shrugged "It's not hard, I just need to keep my emotions in check"
"What if you get too freaked out by it all, will it stop?" He continued, interested in my ability
"Maybe" I shrugged again, not actually sure "If I cry it will" I told him "But I think that's out of my system now for a little while"
"I see" He nodded
Five minutes later, there was a knock on the door. I stopped pacing as Callum got up to answer it.
I knew it was Clu, but something inside me stirred uncomfortably.
I heard them greet and a second later in appeared Clu. He looked different, more polished. His hair had been cut, short along the back, longer at the front and sides, it was oiled back, a beautiful blonde shade that matched his sandy brown eyes. His skin was dark, like he'd been out in the sun everyday for many years.
"Long time no see" He smiled, charming as he stepped towards me
"Good to see you" I smiled as I stepped towards the boys side by side
"Ready for this to end?" Clu sighed as he looked inbetween me and Callum
"Nope" I shook my head as Callum stood silent
"Don't worry, you guys'll be fine" He smiled, patting a firm hand onto Callums back, his gaze still intent on mine "So what are you and I going to do to buy the time?" He asked after a minutes worth of silence
I shrugged "I'm actually going to a place not too far from here to watch it as it happens"
His eyebrows creased and his head tilted the slightest bit "Whatever do you mean?"
"I'm going to drift. Watch the fight as it happens so I know what's going on when it's going on" I informed him as he nodded slowly
"Well, that should be good, watch the victory as it unravels itself out front of your very eyes" He smiled, a little too confident about the situation.
He was awfully easy about the whole thing, like he'd been through it before or already knew the outcome.
"I should get going" Callum said, interrupting the staring match Clu and I seemed to be having
Callum nodded his head towards the door, signalling me to follow, gladly, I did
"Be back in a minute" I told Clu walking past him as I followed Callum
"See you later Clu, and thanks" Callum nodded towards Clu as he pulled the door open
"No problem" Clu winked before Callum and I stepped outside into the brisk cold air
"This is it" I sighed and shrugged, feeling a heavy drop in my stomach
"No it's not, I will see you again soon, I promise" He smiled weakly, but I could see the fright behind it
"Okay" I nodded, pushing away potential tears that threatened me
Callum took a step towards me and placed both hands on either side of my face.
I closed my eyes as he leaned in slowly and placed a long gentle kiss on my forehead. It was warm, intimate and it almost made me want to kiss him back, properly
I kept my eyes closed as his hands and lips moved from me. I was too afraid to open them again, too afraid I would do something I would regret later on when all this was over
"Be good" Callum whispered into my ear before a thick wind whirled around me signalling that he was gone
I opened my eyes and was left standing alone outside of the front door. My heart was beating erratically in my chest and I could feel my breathing coming out short and incomplete
I pushed open the door to the house and walked inside to find Clu spread across Callum's lounge, flicking through blurred channels
I walked towards him and sat down on my own lounge, the one that had become my bed within the last week and a half
"Only two channels work out here" I told him as he cursed at the ones that didn't
"Which ones?" He asked, his tone flat and frustrated
"Five, which is the western channel and 7 which is mostly lame documentaries" I shrugged
"Damn" He mumbled, switching it to channel 7
"So what have you and Callum been doing out here the whole time then?" He asked, turning his gaze on me
"Watching westerns, eating leftovers, nothing fun really" I shrugged again
He raised his eyebrows at me and smirked "That it?"
I was surprised at his sudden change of character. When I had first met him, he was quiet, gentle, respectful, nothing like the character he was playing now
"Yeah.." I trailed off, not quite sure what he was getting at
"Callum didn't pull any moves on you, show you what the difference between Vamp lovers and Angel lovers were like?" He winked, instantly putting me on edge, uncomfortable
"No" I snapped
"Shame" He shrugged, facing the TV again as I narrowed my eyes on him
"I think I might go now, I need to get ready, see what's going on" I spoke, standing up as I edged quickly to get out of the house
"How far is it? Just in case I need to find you" Clu spoke, turning his body towards me
"Not far, just up the next few hills, through some brush" I answered, not wanting him to follow or turn up and disrupt me
"Alrighty, be careful" He smiled wide before turning back towards the TV programme
Suddenly I realised that Clu, wasn't much of a 'protector'. He should have been blacklisted for this type of thing.
Making it out of the house without any further awkward interactions with Clu was a relief.
I walked up the trail, using the phone Callum had given me before he left as a light source, that and the full moon that hovered high above.
It took me about half an hour, my adrenaline high, my nerves higher, the only thing I could hear was the sound of my own heart beating and my rigid breathing.
This was it. This was it. This was it.
I found my spot on the grass and sat down to feel the cold push through my jeans into my skin. I pulled my hood over my head to protect me from the wind that rushed past in bouts. I took a deep breath in, and told myself that if I let my emotions get in the way, I would be pulled from the fight. I needed to focus, I needed to be strong, I needed to be strong like Callum, Duke and the rest were. If they could do it, I could do it.
I took one last look at the moon and closed my eyes. I let my emotions go, I had already wept too many tears. I imagined what it was going to be like once this was over, I thought about my goals as a blood donor, I thought about Jaymi and Riley becoming a family. I pictured their faces when they thanked me for having given them the opportunity to be a full and whole family.
Finally, I thought of Duke's face. His smile, his eyes, the moment he had kneeled down in front of me as he asked me to become his wife.
Within a minute, I was brought to the same 'hotel casa' scene in the outskirts of Brazil. The same horrid motel, except this time, it was dark, the only thing giving light were the street lamps and the moon.
I looked around, but could see nothing. I turned around and looked up towards the buildings. Few lights were on, it was quiet, too quiet, so I slowly began to walk towards it.
"Lets get this over and done with" I heard Parry's familiar voice groan from behind me. I whipped my body around to see the group standing beside the fence that crumpled with every gush of wind
I could see Jaymi, Riley, Darius, Parry, Seth, Callum and Duke. My entire family was there, everyone I ever cared about on their way to destroy what set out to destroy me
I wished I was there, I wished I was standing beside them, my hand clasped tightly in Duke's as we ventured out to meet fate. But instead here I was, invisible and useless.
The group disappeared faster than they appeared. I was now standing alone, cold, empty. I tried to focus more, deeply.
I focused on Callum and Duke, the most powerful memories I had of them.
The small details of their faces, their lives, their emotions and suddenly, I was there, beside them directly again.
The night was thick, the darkness thicker as we stood in the middle of a field. It was an ambush for Alex and Ty.
The field was wide, the outskirts full of wild spread grass taller than my full length. Smack bang in the middle of the field sat a house. It was small, compact, but perfect for hiding out when you were a Rogue Angel.
"Back. Left. Right" Darius snapped his fingers, clicking to the group members beside me as they spread out on command. Riley and Seth moved towards the left hand side of the field, Parry and Jaymi the right. Callum and Duke were paired towards the back while Darius stay ahead in front
I wasn't sure where to move, I was constricted, my feet as confused as my brain was. I wished I could have floated above, witnessed all angles, but I couldn't. My first reaction was to stay with Darius as he stomped forward with a confident stride towards the front door. I needed to see how this was going to play out, and clearly, Darius was to take the first move.
I stay about a meter back, watching, waiting until Darius reached the door. With one quick swift movement, his leg shot out and the door was send flying into a million pieces around us. My arms flew out instinctively and that's when all hell broke loose.
Before I could put my arms back down, the fighting had begun. Ty and Alex were aware we were there, they knew, they were waiting. It was hard for me to focus, hard for me to see at all. The wind hurled around me at the speed of lightening as I urned frantically around, trying to catch a glimpse of what was happening.
"Stop!" A voice beamed, deep and growling as the wind stopped moving around me, my body turning to face the direction of the voice
My eyes were met with Alex and Ty, both men standing on the roof of the house. But it wasn't just their frightening appearances that had me frozen, it was the long, wide and dark wings that spread from their backs, out held, mesmerising. These Angels had wings, real wings like a hawk, or an eagle. I expected them to be bright, white and glow, but they weren't, they were black, more like a crows wings.
They stood tall, strong and in that moment, I worried we were as good as defeated. I noticed the others surrounding the house, their teeth bare, their fangs ready and growling. My eyes turned on Callum, his figure catching more my notice than any other.
He was beautiful, the most beautiful I had ever seen him. His wings were outspread, just like his species on the roof. Only Callum's were different, they were white, radiating a stunning silver aura.
"I would take your next steps very carefully if I were you" Alex shouted, his eyes filled with black intensity as he watched the group around him
"Don't worry, it'll be quick and easy" Riley shouted back, enraged and ready to fight as his glistening teeth sent shivers down my spine
Alex's glare turned on Duke, his head bowed down to meet his gaze as he began to smirk wildly
"It's amazing what you filthy Vamps will do for the sake of a filthy human screw" He insulted, almost amused as he glared down at Duke who growled
Alex's gaze quickly turned on Callum
"And you, you're a traitor to your own kind, you should be ashamed of yourself, this girl doesn't love you, she's too busy screwing a Vamp" Alex continued, his voice humorous, Ty beside him laughing, his face filled with excitement
Callum took a step forward, his chest puffing with rage
Swiftly, Alex shot an arm out, his finger wiggling disapprovingly
"Ah, ah ahh" He smiled, shaking his head lightly "Wouldn't want our lovely Rose to break all of her petals now, would we?" He continued, as I watched in horror
"What are you playing at?" Seth called, his voice calm and content as he kept his cool.
He was always one to defuse the situation.
"We aren't stupid" Ty spat back, the boy looking no older than fifteen as he stood tall and angry beside his higher influence
"The girl will be dead whether you fight us here or not, whether you kill us here or not, you see, we are bait, the real threat is the one you left at her doorstep, the one you trusted, fools" Alex cackled, shaking his head as he glanced at Callum and Duke more than anyone else in the group
"What are you talking about?" Callum demanded, his anger clear in his eyes
"I'll give you a Clue" Alex spoke seriously, tapping his chin "Oh, wait, there it is" He laughed as his sidekick joined in
"No" Callum whispered, barely audible as his eyes widened
"Yes, you my friend, helped us avenge my brothers death. Now, the one you love will be taken from you" Alex spat
I felt my heart leap from my chest, I could feel my breathing begin to speed dramatically, my palms sweat and my panic set in.
Clu.
He was here, ready, the grim was at my doorstep.
My emotions began to take over, my eyes welling up as I drifted groggily in and out of the scene.
The world swirled around me and a snap of wind pushed me back into my body. I clutched my chest, struggled to breathe. I stood up but wobbled on my feet, pulling the phone from my back pocket.
I was going to die, and there was nothing anyone could do to save me. I clicked the buttons with shaky fingers, pure jelly.
I opened a text and began to type, as soon as I had finished I hit send, just as I had, the phone fell from my grip when I was flung backwards. My body collided with the ground below, my spine meeting it with great force. I winced in pain and prayed for it to be over, quick, painless.