Chapter 21.
This chapter was difficult for me to write. It has a lot of drama. And then the murder at the end was more heart wrenching than I intended and I almost reduced myself to tears. I imagined if those were my last moments how desperate I would be to live.
I had watched a Hannibal Lecter movie, I believe Red Dragon , and it inspired me for the death I wrote. If you hate graphic scenes please skip over and review what you read instead.
Q&A at the end.
Enjoy.
"Ooh! Look at this one." Mea called.
Mea, Gabriella, Gabriel decided to go early to the beach and watch the sunset and collect seashells for Gabriella's dress embroidering. Mea was really taking the bonding ceremony ever since she was told about it. Gabriel only laughed when he was told Mea hired herself as Gabriella's midwife and assistance.
Gabriella stood next to Mea a moment later, a smile on her face. "I like that." Gabriella help open her tote and Mea dropped it in and they continued their search for shells. Gabriel followed holding the girls and his shoes and picked up a few every once in a while.
Gabriella let Mea go ahead in her excitement and turned to her brother, "So we're going to talk about the pregnancy or not?"
Gabriel smiled and wiped at the sweat on his forehead, "What do you want to know now?"
"I don't know. I thought you'd just talk." Gabriella shrugged as she ran her fingers over the millions of shells collecting in her bag.
"The birth won't exactly be painful and you'll have some weird cravings. Not every pregnancy in the celestial world has the same symptoms." Gabriella sipped at his water and handed it to her. She shook her head with refusal and he tucked it back under his arm. "Expect to be happy for no reason at all though. But since we're not exactly human we don't exactly experience emotions as humans do. Though since you're here, Gabriella, you are going to experience most symptoms."
"I expected that. But it wont be too painful right?" Gabriella asked worried.
He shrugged, "Who knows?" he looked to the sky and sighed, "Mea! Come on the sun is coming up!"
Gabriella's wings spread around her, a beautiful contrast to the pink sky and her white sundress. When she flew off, Gabriel could only think of how hurt she would be when she knew of what was to come.
"Hey." Troy mumbled when Gabriella kissed down his neck to wake him from his sleep. He opened one eye and examined his crying lover, "What's wrong?"
"What if we can't save the baby, Troy?" Gabriella whimpered. Troy pulled her close and kissed her softly.
"What do you mean?" Troy asked sleepily.
"What if they die? What if Mea was right when she said they will have to be sacrificed?"
"Why did Mea say that?" Troy's ears wiggled, he perked up and listened to her silent answer. "Well, you know Mea thinks she's a know it all when she's really empty headed. Don't worry about what she says."
"But it actually made sense, Troy. Why else would the baby be this important if we can just figure it out ourselves?" Gabriella cried.
"I don't know, love, but I doubt we're having this baby for it to be sacrificed." Troy said to her in a humble tone.
"How are you so sure?" Gabriella only cried more and buried her blotchy face in Troy's shirt. Troy pulled her face up to kiss her. She deepened the kiss putting her emotions to the side to try and feel okay. The lamp light seemed so bright at the moment and Troy missed the way the dark seemed so inviting.
Troy climbed on top of her and sucked on her bottom lip. She pulled away and whispered in Troy's ear. "Play me."
Troy smiled sweetly and pulled away, he sat up on his knees and bent to read her face, "What do you want me to play?"
Gabriella pulled her nightdress over her head and kissed Troy again before laying back again, "Something slow."
Troy closed his eyes and began Saint-saens Carnival Of the Animals: Le Cygne. He played down her legs and up to her neck, swaying his head as he swayed. She watched him quietly, her love for him becoming even more sufficient as she felt she could hear the song herself. She then realized she could and it was because she had somehow tapped into Troy's mind.
As his fingers played softly on her olive skin in the lamplight, her tears stopped as she felt his swell of emotions in her heart. Above them a purple light bobbled and danced happily and then a blue orb joined it and interlaced to create a beautiful luminescent color she couldn't quite name.
Troy played softly humming it a bit of what he could. Gabriella basked in the sounds of the song as it played in and out of ears she watched the two lights move before her eyes and then looked up at Troy. He was lost in the music as much as she was.
When the song slowly came to an end the two lights slowly separated and disappeared on the last note.
Neither spoke when Troy lied back down and pulled the covers over them. For some reason, Gabriella slept easier after that.
"Gabriella, I really need to talk… I know you won't hear this message and you won't respond if you do, but I miss our late night conversations. I need my best friend, so drop by and I won't ask questions. But I'm really calling to tell you that, Chad's gone missing. He's hasn't spoke to anyone, he doesn't pick up phone calls, and his parents haven't seen him in days. They say he just got up and left, not sign of fighting, and nothing's missing…Anyway call me when you get the chance. I miss you. Bye, Gabs." Gabriella pressed repeat again.
Not just because she missed her best friend or because she was trying to pick up the details of the message.
But because she heard a faint whispering voice in the background.
She crossed out what she wrote before and then listened again. She scribbled this time, "Vigilabo ego te, puella! Anima! Sequere me post me, sequere me!"
Gabriella bit her lip and concentrated, listening once more before the message suddenly cut off and her phone died. Looking around the room and still biting her lip, she pushed away from her desk holding the paper in one hand and her dead phone in the other.
"Troy, I need your help!" she crowed. He came in with a frown and then looked around the room suspiciously.
"Why is it so cold in here?" he studied her, "Are you okay?"
He snapped his fingers and a ball of fire danced above them before he tossed it in the air. "Stay there." He spoke to it. Heat began to fill the room softly.
"Try and figure this out." Gabriella asked shoving the paper in his face, "My Latin lessons have left me today and I can't find my book."
He took it from her and examined it. "Where'd you get this?"
"Umm, Taylor left a message and I thought I heard something so I kept replaying it until I decided it was speaking Latin and I wrote what it said." she took the paper back and folded it around her finger. "What does it say, Troy?"
He took it back hesitantly, "Vigilabo, he's watching her. Anima, the soul, her soul most likely, and Sequere me, it means follow me. He's telling her that he sees her and he wants her soul to follow him."
Gabriella covered her forehead with her hand, frustrated, "Why? Why is he even speaking of it?"
"He's mocking her, he knows she can't hear him so he spoke to her of her fate. It's what demons do." Troy sighed at Gabriella's distraught.
"What if he touches her Troy?" Gabriella asked concerned, "What do we do then?"
"Nothing, Sharpay sold her soul, that's a whole other story. Taylor's soul will more than likely be all right if she isn't as naïve as we think. She'll be okay."
"What do you mean, they have to ask permission?" she asked frantically.
"Yes and no. If you leave your soul out there they'll just take it no questions asked, but if your soul is neatly tucked away, they will try and bargain with you. Taylor will be fine."
Gabriella stood and walked to the other side of the room, glaring angrily, "I'm tired of you saying everything will be alright, Troy! I say our kid will die, you say it'll be okay love! When I try and make a decision for myself and then mess up, you say it'll all be fine, no! No it won't!"
"Well, what do you want me to say?" Troy approached her, "What else is there for me to say when you are looking to me to make sure everything will be okay, sweet?"
"I just don't want to hear it anymore, Troy!" Gabriella pulled her hair from her ponytail.
"What if I knew everything wouldn't be fine, Azrael! What if I told you I was going to die for you? What if I told you what I knew? Then you sure as hell wouldn't be arguing with me?"
"But you are not going to die!" Gabriella argued.
"How do you know that!" Troy yelled. Gabriella's expression softened when she looked at him.
"How do you know I won't die?" Troy said softly. "Because in my visions someone threw themselves in front of you when you were about to do something stupid and I have a feeling it was me." he pleaded with her, "So instead of arguing with me, ask me what I know, baby. Ask me how I feel. Ask me what I'm thinking about, instead of thinking of yourself all the fucking time."
Gabriella shook her head and turned from him again picking up her brush and began raking it through her hair, "I don't think of myself all the time."
"Oh, right because you also worry about your baby, huh? Did you stop and think that this was my child too?"
"Of course I did, Troy." she replied smoothly, "But you act like everything is okay when our child can be killed!"'
"So now it's our kid? Why can't you accept the fact that everything will work out for the better? You're always expecting something bad and then you believe you can always do it yourself, when you need help, Azrael! I am trying to accept help and so can you. I'm tired of comforting you all the time, I love you Gabriella but sometimes I want a damn shoulder too. But you're never there!"
"That's because you coop yourself up in that God damn room all the time." Gabriella retorted harshly.
"That's the excuse? That's why you don't check on me and make sure I'm okay? That's why you don't acknowledge me when you walk past me in this damn house? Because I am in that room, terrified for you and for my fucking self! What if I just want to take care of you? What if I just want to be there but I don't know how, because you never showed me how?" Troy chuckled, "Let me get this fucking straight, you're mad at me? You're mad because I'm telling you it's going to be okay?" he shook his head sullenly, "You used to be the most selfless person I knew, love, what's happened?"
Gabriella stood icily, her eyes flashing from violet to brown, she looked in the mirror at herself, staring at a reflection she never truly knew. "You happened."
"What in Hell does that mean?" Troy shouted.
He appeared behind her and whipped her around, for the first time disregarding the terror in her eyes. "What do you mean I happened? You mean I caused you to be selfish? I caused you to be different?"
Gabriella tried to pull her arm from him but didn't succeed. "It means that I don't know what to do with myself, Troy. All this is new to me all over again apparently, and I want everything to be okay. And when I ask you and I know you're sure as hell lying, I worry. Is it wrong for me to fucking worry? Because you can stand here and say all this shit about me being selfish, when I usually never have time to worry about myself because I put others before me. But when I ask if everything will be okay, I'm not asking just about me, Abaddon, I'm asking about our baby, you, my family and friends, Mea, and everyone else. I don't make it my business to ask how you're feeling because you won't tell me, I know you won't because you don't want me to worry. When I sure am, so how do you feel Troy? How is this affecting you? What are you thinking about? How do you feel about our child? How do you feel about loving me? How do you think of me?"
She began to speak softly, "I'm sorry, Troy, I really am, but all the other things about being worried and being mad about you saying it's okay, I am not apologizing for."
Troy's watery eyes turned black, making her tremors of fear start to slow. At least she knew he was feeling some kind of emotion.
"Well, I'm sorry too. I'm sorry if I can't protect you and I'm sorry I keep telling you it's going to be okay. I'm sorry if there is nothing I can do to make you feel better and I want to apologize if I die."
Gabriella closed her eyes and the tears flowed freely, "What do you mean you're going to die? No, Troy, no you can't. I can't let you die, I won't let you die. Troy, no!" She buried her face in his chest and sobbed, "No, no, no."
"This time I can truly say it is going to be okay." he soothed as his black eyes refused to let his tears flow.
"Michael!" Troy called as he ran up to the archangel the next morning. "Wait!"
Michael turned with an eyebrow raised at the young angel. "Good morning, Abaddon."
"Good morning." Troy greeted when he finally reached him.
"What do I owe this pleasure?" Michael grinned.
"I've been having visions Michael, strong ones every other night about the war. Gabriel couldn't help me but I know you can."
"Really?" Michael shrugged his heavy shoulders, "Where's Azrael?"
"Asleep, Michael…May I tell you of these visions now?" Troy said lowly. Michael's brows furrowed, "I know about the twins, Michael."
"Stupid Gabriel! I should have known better! Telling is the only thing he does best as a messenger angel." Michael rumbled.
"Please, stay with me here! I want to know a few things, I have questions." Troy said with a shaking hand through his hair.
"Well, go on then." Michael said expectantly.
"First, have you chosen a name for the boy, Ariel, yet?" Troy began his questionnaire.
"No, not yet. You know the girl's name? Kalypso?" Troy nodded and grinned at him, "Yes, Violet, was the name?"
Michael smiled softly and sat in the grass, a few angel sentries looked warily at the two angels in front of the house.
"What are the other questions, Abaddon?"
"Well, I saw Gabriella trying to save the girl, one of our children and someone jumped in front of her. Was that me? Am I going to die?"
"No, boy, you won't die. Angels don't just die, you know that, it takes a lot for an angel to just "go", young one." Michael chuckled then straightened up when he realized Troy wasn't laughing with him.
"Take this seriously Michael because Azrael is terribly upset. She thinks our child, since she doesn't know it will be more than one, will be sacrificed for the world. It was then that I realized that I didn't have an answer. Do you know anything about this?"
"Innocent blood will be shed, but I know nothing of a child's, Abaddon." Michael answered smoothly. He stretched and flexed his muscles before tightening fists on the soft green grass.
Troy nodded, "Why am I having these visions?"
Michael shrugged nonchalantly, "That I don't know of. Perhaps God is trying to get in contact with you, maybe he doesn't want you clueless."
Troy nodded once more before sighing heavily, "I know we haven't had the best relationship, Michael, but I want to improve it soon." Troy looked away.
"In time son, maybe when I become as wise as yourself some day. I'm studying hard to get past the riddles you use on me." They both chuckled, "Speaking of, do you have any for me today?"
Troy shrugged and made a thinking face, "A frog fell into a hole that was fourteen and a half feet deep. He could jump three feet, but he slid back a foot each time he jumped. How many jumps does it take him to get out of the hole?"
Michael frowned, lines forming in his head thinking, "You've got me again, grasshopper. I'll come back with your answer." Michael stood and put out his hand. Troy used it to pull himself up and grinned at the taller man while brushing off his clothing.
"Till we meet again, Abaddon."
"See you around."
"Well, I think everything will be fine, personally. Nothing ever goes wrong!" Mea smiled. She was sewing and gluing the seashells they had collected yesterday morning to Gabriella's cream-colored dress. Gabriella sat cross-legged on the bed while watching her. "I don't know. He sounded serious."
Troy entered the room and looked warily at the now quiet girls in the room. "You both are very strange."
They all chuckled slightly before Troy plopped down next to his mate and kissed Gabriella's cheek sloppily, effectively sending her backwards on the bed. He only grinned at her giggled before turning to Mea, "Well, isn't that pretty?" he chuckled.
"Why thank you." she smiled cheesily.
He turned back to Gabriella, "Are you excited, love?" she nodded with a huge grin. He looked out the window at the bright sun then turned to the girls, "Do you guys want to go swimming in the river? It's a beautiful day and I'd hate to waste it."
Mea turned off her machine, tisking at Troy, "Why couldn't you have asked sooner?" she began to pick up her things, "I say we have a picnic also."
"Sounds like a plan."
When they had gotten to the river, they set up and swam for a while. Afterwards, Gabriella and Mea decided to eat and left Troy to swim for a little more.
"When Troy's godfather Uriel, comes into view, what do you do?" Mea quizzed. They had just finished their sandwiches and Mea decided she'd help Gabriella study the ceremony.
"I say Blessed Be." Gabriella did so with a nod and Mea giggled.
"Next when he opens the ceremony who starts first?" she raised an eyebrow when she saw Gabriella search her mind for the answer.
"Trick question?" she answered.
"No silly, Troy goes first! He says his piece then you say yours." Mea corrected, she looked back down at Gabriella's book and then closed it. "What do you think is going to happen next.
"Well, after we exchange our vows Michael will speak and close the ceremony then we will exchange souls and-"
"No, I mean after the ceremony, after the war, when this is all over. What do you believe will happen?" Mea pondered. "Do you think you and the child will have to stay in hiding?"
Gabriella shook her head, "No, I think everything will be okay." she smiled at her words.
Dear Michael,
As I sat and wondered what to write I realized I had more to put on this clean page than I expected. I can't believe in a short while I'll be facing the very demon who bested me once. I believe I will succeed though! I have studied and with the knowledge of my visions, I think I can beat this...thing. But since I have the help of everyone else I decided to let you know first that I, Abaddon, is planning on doing this alone. In my vision my little boy will tell me something I never thought would work and I will kill this thing!
Next, I wanted to stress that you never returned with the answer to my riddle...hmm.
I'm concerned for the well being of my lover, I want to believe I can protect her. My visions are showing me different pieces of the war at a time, in no particular order I believe. Though I was wondering if you could send a guardian to watch over this girl my lover holds dear, Taylor Mckessie.
She had left a message on Azrael's phone about 9 days ago telling Gabriella of another missing friend, Chad. I cannot recall his last name but that is not important. She heard a voice in the background, a demonic voice saying chilling things about Taylor's soul. She is very concerned. I wish to tell her of the twins, to tell her of at least something that will make her so happy she'd forget about everything and just let it happen. She worries so much that I fear it will put her in bad health.
I will not hold you for long friend, just this one thing that has weighed heavy on my conscience and has come to my concern. What is to happen to Azrael during this war? Why haven't my visions shown me my love fighting? The only vision of her was when she tried to save one of our children, but it does not tell of anything else. Is she doomed? Did the person trying to save her from the most stupid thing she could ever do, fail?
Write back soon.
Gratefully and sincerely,
Devilish Abaddon
"Please." the dark skinned boy pleaded, "You don't have to do this."
"Oh, boy I do! I must have your strong willed soul. The way you humans try and keep something you don't need amuses me." He turned to his brother, "Doesn't it amuse you brother?"
Chad was trapped, he knew it before he thought he did. All he wanted was for them to buy him some booze, when he gave them the money and they returned he didn't expect more. He thought he was going to drink in peace, to forget the stress at home. His family not being able to afford summer school meant he would have to repeat the 11th grade. He was just going to go out for a few hours.
Then the first day passed, and so did the second.
That's when he knew that summer school and failing eleventh grade was the least of his worries.
His bruised and battered body was only the beginning of what was to come, he knew. These crazy demented fools, talking of the beauty and fresh taste of a tortured soul were not only tormenting him but driving him to the edge of insanity.
"Tell me boy, when we hang you from the railing of this church balcony would you like you're bowels in or out?" one chuckled the other began to plead for the keeping of his soul and physical form.
"What do you want? I'll give you all I have but please, just let me go home to my siblings. They need me." Chad reasoned. Suddenly the two dark figures whispered between themselves before picking the young boy up and tying an extension cord around his neck.
"Please no, no!" Chad cried desperately. They ignored him. One of them, the one Chad believed was on his side, looked at him sadly before giving him a smile. Chad closed his eyes wishing it all away. With his hands tied behind his back, he knew he could not fight them off and began to sob as they helped him stand on the edge of the railing. The fear of death gripping each cry Chad made, he looked back at them and pleaded once more.
One of them snickered, holding up a knife and flicked his black tongue around it. "You can keep your bowels, young one."
Chad felt them pull on the noose once more before pushing him off the edge.
Three last words whispered hoarsely signaled the beginning of an end.
Save me, God.
And he was left dangling like a toy with thread.
Update: Saturday
Readers Q&A
Q- Can we get a preview of Seeing Gray?
A- Lol ! No way!
Q- After reading about Her Feet I wanted to know this answer, where do you find your curiosity for the supernatural world taking you in your stories?
A- Gee, that's pretty loaded! Honestly, I can see myself writing anything. Werewolves, minotaurs, vampires, shape shifters, dragons, a story on the lost city of Atlantis, centaurs, and even faeries. I love the mythological side of the supernatural world! I believe mythology makes people think or just wonder "What if?". I want my stories to snatch the attention of my readers and make them say to themselves, "What if that was true!".
Q- Are you going to do a story based on Greek Mythology?
A- I was thinking of doing one with Gabriella as a siren or with Troy as a male bean sidhe (banshee) which are usually female. I was also fiddling with the idea of Gabriella personifying Persephone, the daughter of Demeter (Goddess of Harvest), who was kidnapped by Hades. So we'll have to see where my imagination and creativity takes me :)
Q- Why and how did you become creative?
A- Why? Reality is no fun when you can't fly and do back flips for days at a time. How? I sat and wrote...
Q- Why is the boy named Ariel?
A- Because as the "Lion of God", which the name means, the child needs a name that suits them. He will be the beast of God, a gentle loving child but very troubled and angered easily.
Q- Do you write every chapter long hand?
A- Not always. :D
Q- Troy will be jealous of his daughter Ariel?
A- FIRST THINGS FIRST, ARIEL IS NOT THE GIRL, KALYPSO IS THE GIRL. Troy and Gabriella are having twins, Troy found out and Gabriella does not know! Now to the question: Troy jealous of his son? No, just annoyed.
Q- Ariel will grow quickly?
A- No, actually Ariel will grow at normal pace, as we know it, just like his sister.
Q- Will Kalypso, their daughter, be as dangerous as Troy?
A- No, she'll be as sweet as ever...just deadly...
Any questions? Ask anonymously like many reviewers and readers, PM me and I'll answer them all on my next chapter.
Review.
Rachelle. :D