CW: Mention of blood and serious injury.
Beelzebub followed closely behind Gabriel as they walked along the hallway, the only light coming from a streetlight outside. It was too dark and too quiet, and Beelzebub wished she hadn't watched so many late night horror films recently.
"Sandalphon?!" Gabriel shouted. "It's me!"
There came no response. Gabriel turned on the light switch which helped make the place less spooky, though Beelzebub still felt disconcerted.
"Maybe he's not in," Gabriel said. "Let's see if we can find his demon."
Beelzebub nodded. "Have you been in this house before?"
"Yes, but I've only been as far as the living room. I've never seen any demons here before - I didn't know he'd ever owned one. He never talked about it."
Gabriel went into the living room, and switched on the light. He jumped, let out a screech and then backed up, knocking into Beelzebub in his desperation to get out of the room.
"What?!" Beelzebub yelped, her heart racing.
Gabriel gathered himself and then strode back into the room. Beelzebub's eyes widened when she saw what had caused Gabriel's reaction.
On the floor lay a bloodied body covered in stab wounds, their wrists and ankles bound together with rope. Beelzebub felt physically sick. She could sense that there was no life left in the body.
Then Gabriel rolled the body over, and Beelzebub realised that it was Sandalphon.
Gabriel looked around the room. "His demon must have done this to him. They might still be in the house."
"Hello?" Beelzebub shouted out. "It's alright! I'm a demon too! It's me, Beelzebub! I know this was self-defence! We won't hurt you-"
An umbrella which had been leaning precariously against a wall fell over.
Beelzebub spun around, squealed, and threw out an arm towards it. The umbrella exploded.
"Beelzebub!"
"Well, I'm sorry but being at a murder scene has put me a bit on edge!"
"And you can't say, 'we won't hurt you' and then promptly explode the first thing that moves!"
Beelzebub glared at him.
Gabriel let out a shaky breath. "And I don't think it counts as self-defence if you tie someone up and stab them multiple times."
"Perhaps the demon was giving him a taste of his own medicine."
Together they searched the house, room by room, keeping very close to each other. The back door was open so they closed it, supposing that the demon must have escaped already. They continued their search of the house all the same. Soon, the only place that they hadn't looked yet was the basement. They stood at the top of the stairs, looking down into the gloom. Neither of them wanted to go down there, but eventually Gabriel sighed and led the way.
In the basement there were three rooms, all with concrete floors and walls.
The first room was bare, save for an old, filthy mattress lying in the corner with a threadbare blanket across it.
The second room was a bathroom. In the corner sat a rusty tin bath with a bucket of water beside it. The toilet was little more than a hole in the floor.
The third room... Beelzebub didn't want to think about the third room.
"I'm going upstairs," Beelzebub said, leaving Gabriel in the third room to look for somewhere a demon might be able to hide, despite the fact that they were pretty sure by now that the demon had fled long ago.
Beelzebub headed for the stairs and then froze. There were footsteps on the floor above, and then two people came down the stairs towards her. They were both angels, and the moment they saw her their eyes hardened. One of them shouted loudly to someone upstairs, "We've found a demon!" and then they ran at her.
Gabriel stormed out of the third room, grabbed Beelzebub and pushed her behind him.
"She's with me."
"Oh! Archangel Gabriel, you got here fast!"
"What's going on?" Gabriel demanded. "Tell me everything you know."
"In front of the demon?" the angel said, giving Beelzebub a dirty look.
"Yes. Get on with it."
"We have people searching outside for Sandalphon's demon: Hastur. He won't get far. And we also have people disposing of Sandalphon's damaged corporation. We've given him a new one. We're searching the house now for clues, and writing up a report."
"Where's Sandalphon? Is he back down here too? I need to talk to him."
The angel looked confused. "No. He's in Heaven's Hospital."
Beelzebub wondered why on Earth Sandalphon was in the hospital. He'd only been separated from his physical body, his angelic form should be perfectly okay.
"Why?" Gabriel asked, sounding just as confused as Beelzebub felt.
"Didn't anyone explain the situation to you? Sandalphon was exposed to the heat of Hellfire. He's lucky to be alive. He keeps losing consciousness, but they're keeping an eye on him. He should be alright."
"How the bloody Hell did he get exposed to Hellfire?" Gabriel asked.
"Sandalphon doesn't know. That's what we're trying to determine. He said Hastur escaped from his room and then attacked him from behind."
"My theory," said the other angel, "is that Hastur got onto the internet somehow and bought Hellfire there. I've heard you can buy anything online these days. The things humans come up with! We need to put a stop to this Amazon place – it's definitely under an evil influence."
Gabriel sighed. "Well, I've not seen any hellfire in this house, so Hastur must have taken it with him when he left. I hope the angels who are searching for him are able to protect themselves."
"Of course."
Gabriel led Beelzebub upstairs, leaving the two angels behind to search the basement.
Beelzebub felt better once they were back upstairs. They sat at the kitchen table while angels rushed all around them – one of them briefly stopping to fetch Beelzebub a glass of water after Gabriel ordered them to, though they clearly weren't very happy about it.
The first two angels returned from the basement. One of them held out a piece of paper towards Gabriel.
"Can you sign my statement, please? It needs an Archangel's signature."
Gabriel read it, and then he let out an angry sound. "Why have you not mentioned Sandalphon having a torture dungeon in the basement?"
The angel looked embarrassed. "Er… It didn't seem appropriate for me to mention that. It's none of my business how he likes to spend his spare time."
"Put it in."
"But he's my superior! I can't just- he'll make my life difficult!"
"For fucks sake! I'll add it in myself, and I'll put my name on it."
The angel nodded, and then the pair of them quickly scuttled away.
Gabriel clicked his fingers at an angel nearby who had been spending his time so far bossing other angels about. "I want you to contact all of the angels currently on Earth and tell them to be on high alert. In fact, have them return to Heaven. I'm sure Hastur will go into hiding, but if he has Hellfire we can't take any risks."
"I'm sure it won't be necessary to do a mass recall. Hastur will be found and destroyed soon enough. Our people are armed with Holy Water. That demon doesn't stand a chance."
Beelzebub felt sick at the thought of Hastur being destroyed. True, he'd always been a bit of an arsehole, even as an angel, but he had only been trying to escape being tortured. She gave Gabriel a desperate look. "They can't destroy him! He was only defending himself!"
The bossy angel crossed his arms. "Hastur has Hellfire! My people have been told to use any force necessary to stop him. I don't care what Sandalphon did to him, that's no excuse to attack an angel – and with Hellfire no less! He needs to be made an example of! He deserves-"
"Stop yapping, and get to work contacting those angels like I told you!" Gabriel snapped. He got to his feet, and nodded at Beelzebub. "We're going home."
Once they were in the car, Beelzebub felt free to talk properly again. "Let's find Hastur ourselves. We can convince him to surrender."
"Absolutely not. He has Hellfire – he'd destroy me in a heartbeat. And if the other angels catch you with him they'll destroy you too. Let's go home. I need a cup of herbal tea after the day I've had. Maybe even peppermint tea. I'm going to make sure Sandalphon never owns another demon ever again, so calm down."
"But what about Hastur?"
"That's out of my hands."
Beelzebub considering arguing, but Gabriel had a point - trying to find Hastur would be dangerous.
They drove away from the house, and Gabriel tried to ring Aziraphale, wanting to explain what had happened, but no one answered the phone.
"For fucks sake! What kind of angel in this day and age only has a landline? I'll have to tell him in person. I'll drop you off at home first."
"No. I'm coming with you. I want to talk to Crowley again."
Gabriel shook his head. "I'm not going to sit around while the pair of you chatter like old fishwives. I'm going to make sure this is a quick visit. Besides, I'd feel better knowing that you're safe at home with the wards up."
Beelzebub found herself being dropped off at the house, and she watched through the window as Gabriel drove away, suddenly feeling very alone.
Gabriel let himself into Aziraphale's shop. The lights were out and the shop was quiet.
"Aziraphale?" he shouted, walking deeper into the building. "I swear, if you've gone out to that bloody bakery again- Aziraphale!"
Aziraphale's voice came from the little kitchen. "Hello? Gabriel, is that you?"
Gabriel entered the kitchen in time to see Aziraphale and Crowley coming in from the small garden.
"I've been trying to call you!" Gabriel yelled.
"Terribly sorry, I can't hear the phone from outside. Is everything alright?"
"We went to see Sandalphon."
Crowley froze on his way to the kettle. He made a terrified noise in the back of his throat.
"I rang up the DRH to find out who Crawly's last owner was," Gabriel went on. "Sandalphon owned a bunch of demons before Crawly, and they were all discorporated hundreds of times, so I put a block on demon ownership for him. But he'd already bought a new demon – Hastur - so we went over there to confiscate him, and long story short, Hastur had already escaped his room somehow, discorperated Sandalphon and then escaped. I found Sandalphon's body."
Aziraphale and Crowley stared at him, shocked into silence. Aziraphale sat down heavily at the kitchen table.
"Just thought you'd like to know. Oh, almost forgot – Hastur managed to get hold of Hellfire somehow, and Sandalphon was exposed to it. I've been told that he's alive but weak – keeps fading in and out of consciousness." Gabriel paused for a moment, realising that the way Sandalphon reacted to Hellfire exposure was similar to how demons react to diluted holy water. "Anyway. We have a team of angels hunting for Hastur, and trying to figure out how Hastur got hold of Hellfire."
Aziraphale looked bewildered. "But… I thought all Hellfire was under lock and key in Hell, guarded by angels?"
Gabriel shrugged. "There have been cases of human witches and warlocks getting hold of Hellfire somehow. Some sort of dark magic – we've never been sure how they do it. I can hardly imagine Sandalphon has a secret stash of it."
They were interrupted by Gabriel's divine mobile telephone ringing loudly from his coat pocket. He grabbed it whilst turning to Aziraphale. "You really need to get one of these things so that I can actually get hold of you when I need to."
Gabriel put the phone to his ear, and then, after the call, he very carefully returned the phone to his pocket.
"Crowley, go upstairs. Now," Gabriel ordered.
Aziraphale's eyes widened. "What? Why?"
The demon left the room despite Aziraphale's protests, closing the kitchen door behind him. Gabriel listened for his footsteps on the floor above them before speaking, not wanting a demon to know how badly the situation had escalated.
Gabriel was surprised to find that his voice was shaking slightly as he spoke. "That was Heaven. They managed to hunt down Hastur but he was with a bunch of other demons including Satan. Some of our people were destroyed – they were outnumbered. Also, Michael was being held captive by Ligur in her house, and she just discorporated herself in order to escape. She's in Heaven now. She said the demons are planning an uprising."
Aziraphale had gone very pale. "Has Satan put together an army? We're not safe here! We need to go to Heaven. Let's bring Crowley and Beelzebub with us. Where is Bee-?"
The door behind Aziraphale burst open, and Hastur and Ligur strode in.
Aziraphale turned around just as Hastur lunged towards him with a gasoline soaked rag tied onto the end of a wooden stick. It burned with an unnatural flame. The Hellfire licked close to Aziraphale's chest, and he dropped to the ground with an ear-piercing scream.
Gabriel, still in shock, staggered backwards as Ligur charged towards him with another torch held aloft. Even several steps away, the heat from the Hellfire was unbearable. As the torch moved closer it felt as though he were being burned alive. He dropped to the ground as blinding pain tore through his angelic form. Within seconds, he lost consciousness.
The sound of screaming could be heard from all the way upstairs, and Crowley came running.
He froze in the doorway to the kitchen, staring in horror at the two angels on the ground. At first, he thought they were discorporated - both angels were pale and lifeless - but then he saw that Aziraphale was breathing raggedly, as though caught in a nightmare. He wanted to shake him awake.
Hastur and Ligur were stood over the fallen angels, laughing, and then Crowley saw the Hellfire torches in their hands and he felt sick.
Crowley could remember, over a hundred years ago, Ligur being led away from the cells by Michael - his new owner – while Crowley was left behind. There had been a smirk on Ligur's face. Had Ligur attacked Michael too? Crowley tried not to think about what must have happened to her. Crowley had thought Michael and Ligur were friends. Wasn't that was why she'd traded him in?
Crowley didn't know Ligur very well, but Hastur he knew all too well. He had seen Hastur numerous times over the past hundred years in the Demon Rehoming House, and seeing him now, free, no longer behind bars, and stood over Aziraphale, made him feel faint.
Hastur grinned. "Crawly! Good timing! We were just about to come looking for you!"
Crowley felt numb. "What have you done?" he said, but then he saw the looks on their faces, and he knew he had to pretend that he didn't care about Aziraphale. "We're gonna get into trouble! The other angels will kill us! I'll get the blame!"
"Don't be stupid. They won't catch us! We're rescuing you, you idiot! Be a bit happier about it! We're gonna rise up against our oppressors!"
Ligur crossed his arms. "When did you become such a coward, Crawly?"
But Crowley wasn't listening, he was staring at Aziraphale – his only friend in the entire world, the only person who cared about him – laying injured on the floor.
Hastur grunted. "You can't blame him for being a nervous wreck. I've seen first-hand what Sandalphon is capable of, and Crawly had it worse than me." Hastur grinned at Crowley. "You'll be pleased to know that I gave that bastard a taste of his own medicine. I used those knives he likes so much on him, and I hurt him with Hellfire so he was defenceless. He couldn't use his powers to stop me! It's just a shame he discorporated so quickly, I wanted to have more fun with him - and destroy him for good."
"How did you get Hellfire?" Crowley heard himself say.
"Ligur gave it to me when he broke into Sandalphon's place, and got me out of the basement."
Crowley wondered if they were planning to destroy Aziraphale and Gabriel, and why they hadn't they done it already. Did they want to have 'fun' with them first too?
"Do you both have your powers?" Crowley asked, needing to know if he stood any chance of winning if he tried to fight them. He knew at least one of them must be able to use occult magic, because they were able to break the wards protecting the bookshop.
"I've got my powers," Ligur said proudly. "I convinced Michael to stop giving me the tablets. Hastur's still got ages to go before his return though. How long ago was your last tablet, Crawly?"
"Couple of weeks ago," Crowley lied. "Michael allowed your powers to return?"
"Yeah! It was easy to get her to trust me. She thought I was still the same angel I was before. She told me all sorts of things about Heaven and everyone's demons. I convinced her to buy Hastur for me, but that bastard Sandalphon bought him first! I was trying to convince her to buy Hastur from Sandalphon, but then Satan came and rescued me, so I decided to fetch Hastur myself. Michael's been injured with hellfire. We left her tied up so that she can't escape - we're keeping her alive so we can use her for information."
Ligur stopped talking and started to kick Gabriel. "Wake up!" he hissed. "I can't torture someone who's unconscious. That's no fun!"
"We should run away," Crowley said. "The longer we're here, the more dangerous it is! Heaven will come after us-"
"Heaven's got enough on its plate! Satan is liberating all of the demons on Earth. He's starting a second rebellion - this time we can't lose!"
"We've got plenty of time to play with these angels. You can get your revenge on this pervert." Hastur said, looking down at Aziraphale. "When they're both awake you can fuck him while we make Gabriel watch. Give him a taste of his own medicine."
"Wha- No! He never touched me!"
Hastur looked surprised. "Really? Did you manage to put him off? Well, he did look a bit delicate. If you don't want to fuck him, then I'll give him a good seeing to. I bet I can make him squeal."
Shit. He had to do something to stop this.
"Hey, look," Ligur said, picking up a bottle from the counter. "Red wine! Let's celebrate while we wait for the angels to wake up." He clicked his fingers and three glasses appeared in front of him on the counter. He looked at the label on the bottle. "Looks like cheap shit, though. Michael has better stuff than this."
"He keeps all of his good wine in the back room," Crowley said, a plan forming in his mind. "I've always wanted to try it. Imagine drinking it right in front of him! I'll go steal it."
He left the room, and headed to the backroom, half expecting the others to follow him or shout at him to stay, but they didn't. On the way he heard Hastur mutter, "I wish they'd wake up already. There's no point if they're not begging us to stop."
"Keep kicking him," Ligur suggested.
Once in the backroom, Crowley grabbed one of the oldest looking bottles, yanked the cork out, and then poured half of the wine away into a large dish of potpourri. He watched the door nervously, placed the half-full wine bottle on the desk and then started looking through the drawers until he found the medicine box.
A wave of nausea washed over him at the sight of the box. When the lid clicked open and he saw the pearly orbs, his vision swam for a moment, memories of being forced to swallow them vivid in his mind. He couldn't stand to touch them, but the thought of Aziraphale being in danger made him push past his fear.
Trying to keep his hands from shaking, Crowley fed the tablets, one by one, into the bottle, horribly aware that if the coating disintegrated under his sweaty hands, it'd be game over. He worked as quickly as he could, all too aware that he could be interrupted at any moment. Eventually, he decided there were enough tablets in the bottle to incapacitate the two demons and he closed the box before hiding it back in the drawer. He was just pushing the cork back into the bottle when he heard footsteps coming towards him.
"What's taking you so long?" Hastur called irritably as he stepped into the room.
Crowley grabbed a box of chocolates from the desk, and then spun around with those in one hand and the wine bottle in the other.
"Look! I found chocolate!" said Crowley, forcing excitement into his voice.
Hastur's eyes widened and he grabbed the box, immediately ripping off the lid. "I've not had chocolate in ages," he said as he devoured several truffles in one go.
Voices could be heard from the kitchen. Hastur grinned, and ran back, the chocolates tucked under one arm. Crowley chased after him.
Aziraphale and Gabriel had been propped up into sitting positions, their wrists tied behind their backs. Gabriel was still unconscious, slumped against the wall, but Aziraphale had woken up, and his whole body was trembling.
"-So you really need to leave before our people arrive," Aziraphale was saying in a shaky voice. "They have holy water. They will destroy you-" Aziraphale broke into pained coughs. His eyes were struggling to focus, and his skin was deathly pale and covered in sweat. Ligur was standing over him, looking amused.
Hastur was eying up Aziraphale with a predatory look on his face, but he was currently too engrossed in the chocolates to want to torture him just yet.
Aziraphale looked up at Crowley, clearly relieved that he was unharmed, but then he saw the wine bottle in Crowley's hand and looked shocked. "Not the Chateau Margaux!"
Crowley sneered at him. "Why not? It's not like you'll ever get to drink it." He forced out a cruel laugh, and Hastur and Ligur joined in.
Aziraphale's face crumpled, and he seemed to be fighting back tears.
Did Aziraphale not realise that he was only acting for the benefit of Hastur and Ligur? Crowley had hoped it would be obvious to him.
"I- I'm sorry," Aziraphale said. "I tried to treat you well."
"Shut up!" Crowley snarled, his heart breaking. "How could any demon be happy trapped with an angel like you?"
Aziraphale lowered his head, and Crowley had to turn away, guilt sharp in his chest.
Ligur took the wine bottle. He popped the cork with his powers, and then started filling up the wine glasses. Crowley felt relieved he wasn't the one having to pour the drinks, his hands would have been trembling too badly. Ligur handed out the drinks, and Crowley took his carefully, trying not to seem frightened of the contents.
"Bottoms up!" laughed Ligur.
In a perfect world, Hastur and Ligur would have downed their drinks at the same time, but as it was, Hastur was still busy munching on a chocolate.
Ligur took a gulp. He screamed, choking violently, and the glass fell from his hand. The wine poured down his front and ate into his flesh like acid. He fell to the ground, thick smoke pouring from him as he melted across the floor. Soon, all that remained of Ligur was a thick tar-like puddle.
Crowley stared in horror at Ligur's remains. He hadn't expected such a fast and deadly reaction. To think, he'd been worrying that he hadn't put in enough tablets to render them unconscious.
Hastur squealed and backed away from what remained of Ligur.
"You bastard," Hastur yelled, whirling on Aziraphale, and pushing his wine glass away onto the nearest surface. "You blessed the wine!"
Aziraphale looked bewildered, his mouth hanging open.
Crowley lunged towards Hastur, throwing the contents of his glass, but his throw fell just short of its mark, and Hastur was able to dance out of the way without getting a single drop on him.
"It was you! You killed Ligur!" Hastur screamed. "You fucking traitor!"
"I won't let you hurt Aziraphale!"
Hastur's face contorted with rage. "I knew you were a dirty slut, sucking off every demon in the cells, but I didn't know you were gagging for angel cock!"
"You're only pissed I wouldn't do it with you!" Crowley grabbed the wine bottle. "Go away!" Crowley ordered. He was trembling, frightened of Hastur and frightened of the bottle in his hand. "You can escape through the garden out back. The gate is unlocked. If you don't, I'll kill you too!"
There was a groan from the floor. All of the shouting seemed to have stirred Gabriel, but Crowley refused to take his eyes off Hastur.
Hastur was glaring at him. Then he moved. It seemed at first that he was aiming for the back door, but instead he grabbed one of the flaming torches from the kitchen counter. He grabbed Aziraphale by his collar and dragged him to his feet.
Aziraphale let out an agonised cry, struggling to stay upright, and trying to pull himself away from the torch in Hastur's hand.
"Let him go!" Crowley gasped.
"Put down the wine bottle or I'll destroy him," Hastur spat. "Put it down!"
Crowley automatically did as he was told, placing the bottle on the kitchen table. "Let him go!"
Hastur smirked. "Watch him die."
Hastur started to move the flaming torch towards Aziraphale's chest. Aziraphale screamed in pain, the heat already hurting him.
Crowley focused all of his power. Hastur's arm suddenly stretched out in front of him, holding the torch away, then his fingers spasmed and the torch dropped to the floor.
Hastur gasped. He glanced around, as though expecting a hoard of angels to come rushing in, not thinking for a moment that Crowley was able to perform demonic magic. Aziraphale slipped from of Hastur's grasp and fell, limp, to the floor.
Crowley reacted quickly – he reached out a hand and the torch flew away seconds before Aziraphale would have fallen onto it. Crowley caught it and then threw it into the sink where it spluttered and sizzled in the soapy water.
"You have your powers back!" Hastur said with a humourless laugh. He let out a yelp as he was slammed back against the wall and then slid up it.
Crowley stood, arm outstretched towards Hastur, holding him in place with his mind. He didn't care if Gabriel saw him use his powers. He didn't care if every angel in Heaven saw. All he cared about was saving his best friend. He looked down at Aziraphale, slumped on the ground, terrified that he had acted too late and the damage was already irreversible.
Hastur started to struggle, snarling like a wild animal, and it took all of Crowley's strength and willpower to keep him pinned. But Crowley's powers were still new, and he was still learning how to use them properly. Hastur managed to break free, falling to the floor just as Crowley dropped, exhausted, to his knees.
Crowley looked up, panting heavily, and saw Hastur get to his feet. For a moment, it seemed that Hastur was finally aiming for the door, but no, he was either going for the torch still left on the counter or his abandoned wine glass. It didn't matter which one, Crowley would not let him hurt anyone ever again. Drawing on his occult magic, he levitated the wine bottle from the table into the air, and then hurled it across the room. It slammed into the wall behind Hastur and exploded, showering Hastur with broken glass and holy wine. The torch on the counter hissed and immediately went out, while Hastur screamed and fell to the ground, body dissolving while Crowley flattened himself against the wall and watched in horror.
Crowley snapped out of his shocked state and staggered on shaky legs over to Aziraphale, careful to keep away from any stray droplets of red wine on the floor. He dropped to his knees and shook Aziraphale carefully, then more urgently when he didn't respond.
"Aziraphale?" Crowley cried. "Angel, wake up!"
But Aziraphale did not stir. He looked lifeless, and his chest felt far too hot. Crowley summoned up his healing abilities, and half expected to find that Aziraphale wasn't in there anymore, either discorporated or destroyed for good, but Crowley could sense his spirit, and he could sense how hopelessly damaged it was. He couldn't heal him. Crowley started to cry. He clutched at him, and then shook him again.
"I'm sorry!" Crowley pressed his face against Aziraphale's hair. "Please wake up! You can't die! Please! I love you so much! Don't die!"
There was an awkward cough from beside him. Crowley looked across and saw Gabriel watching him, still sat against the wall. Gabriel must have seen him use his powers but that didn't seem important. Nothing mattered anymore. Aziraphale was going to die, and it was his fault. He should have used his powers earlier.
"He's not going to die," Gabriel said. "Heaven can save him."
"Th- They can?" Crowley said, hope blooming.
Gabriel struggled to his knees, edging closer to Aziraphale, before slumping back against the wall, exhausted. He looked pale and tired. "In the shop, under the rug… there's a portal. Help me get it working, and then we can all teleport to Heaven."
Crowley nodded, and got to his feet, picking his way carefully towards the door. He looked back at Gabriel. "Aziraphale didn't know about my powers. I tricked him. It's not his fault."
"I don't know what you're talking about. You're delirious. Now get a move on."
Had Gabriel really not seen, or was he lying? Perhaps Gabriel was scared of him now, and was waiting until he could tell the other angels. Crowley didn't know what to think. All he knew was that he had to do everything he could to save Aziraphale.
But Crowley had barely stepped foot into the shop before the bell above the front door jingled, and then a voice called out loudly into the room. Crowley froze. He recognised that voice.