Chapter Two

I hooked up with Dabria while we were both in Heaven. I was an archangel and she angel of death. The time we spent together meant more to her than it did to me and soon, she drove me crazy and I had to break things off. She never quite got over me, though. Watching her make her way toward me even now, I could see the lust in her eyes.

"Dabria?" I called, trying to recover from my surprise.

"How have you been?" She asked flirtatiously, playing with a lollipop in her mouth before throwing it in the trash.

"What are you doing here?" I asked skeptically. This was not her scene and to risk coming here was not normal.

"I sneaked out. I had to see you again. I've been trying for a long time, but security – well, you know. It's not exactly lax." She looked me up and down, with a crooked smile, still trying to look seductive and teasing. "Your kind and my kind – we aren't supposed to mix. But you know that."

"Coming here was a bad idea." I bluntly told her. Could she not get it through her head that I wasn't interested in Heaven and I'm not interested now? If she got thrown out of Heaven, I'd be stuck with her on Earth. Ugh.

"I know it's been a while, but I was hoping for a more friendly reaction." Was she actually pouting? I thought I was going to be sick. I just can't respond to that.

"I haven't stopped thinking about you." She said lowering her voice to a more intimate tone. Crap, just what I was afraid of.

"It wasn't easy getting down here. Lucianna is making excuses for why I'm absent. I'm risking her future as well as my own. Don't you want to at least here what I have to say?" She looked like she was trying to play hard to get. I realized that the sooner she talked, the sooner she'd leave.

"Talk." I told her. Not wanting to delay her anymore than absolutely necessary.

"I haven't given up on you. This whole time-" She started blinking and I noticed that her eyes were wet with tears. She took a small breath, trying to steady herself. "I know how you can get your wings back."

Ha! Her timing was a little too perfect. Why would she be down here trying to sell me on getting my wings back after all this time. Something was going on. I just stayed looking at her, waiting for her to finish.

"As soon as you get your wings back, you can come home." She talked about home with such confidence, like that was where I ultimately wanted to be. "Everything will be like it was before. Nothing has changed. Not really."

Ah, there's the bait… "What's the catch?" I asked.

"There's no catch. You have to save a human life. Very judicious, considering the crime that banished you here in the first place." Whatever, what does she know about my real motivation for leaving?

I decided to test her. "What rank will I be?"

That was it. I saw her composure slip. She knew this would not be what I wanted to hear. I had her.

A little nervously, she replied, "I just told you how to get your wings back. I think I deserve a thank-you."

I couldn't hide my triumph; I smiled a menacing smile. "Answer the question."

"Fine." She said, trying to rush through her sentence. "You'll be a guardian, all right?"

I laughed at the image in my mind. Me? A guardian angel? Uh-huh, yeah right.

"What's wrong with being a guardian? Why isn't it good enough?" She honestly expected me to bow down and kiss her feet for bringing me this great news, didn't she.

Thinking I could get rid of her quickly, I told her, "I have something better in the works."

Interesting, she didn't seem too surprised. "Listen to me, Patch. There's nothing better. You're kidding yourself. Any other fallen angel would jump at the chance to get their wings back and become a guardian. Why can't you?" She honestly seemed to be insulted.

I was tired of this conversation. I pushed away from the pool table and was about to return to the poker game, telling her, "It was good seeing you again, Dabria. Have a nice trip back."

I tried to turn and, suddenly found Dabria's hands gripping and tugging my shirt. She hastily began kissing me. My natural response, obviously, was to kiss back. I think that would be anyone's knee jerk reaction. I brought my hands up and lightly touched her arms.

Looking a little smug, Dabria pulled away. "I should go. I've already stayed too long. I promised Lucianna I'd hurry." She tried to nestle into my chest and whispered, "I miss you. Save one human life, and you'll have your wings again. Come back to me. Come home." Then she abruptly backed away saying, "I have to go. None of the others can find out I've been down here. I love you." She started to turn toward the stairs. Making a hasty retreat.

I wanted to start clapping, give her a standing ovation. She was laying it on thick and was actually playing a pretty convincing part.

Before she could get too far, I reached out and grabbed her wrist. I politely demanded, "Now tell my why you're really here." I let my impatience and my menace show through my eyes while keeping the rest of my face perfectly under control.

Keeping my grip on her wrist, I walked her to the bar and sat her on one of the stools. I quickly took the seat next to her. She was not getting away without a fight.

"What do you mean, what am I here for? I told you-" She was nervous, that was obvious. She didn't expect me to doubt her little performance.

"You're lying."

Feigning innocence, she said, "I can't believe – you think – "

"Tell me the truth, right now."

I could see the wheels turning in her head. Finally, she took a deep breath and said, "Fine. I know what you're planning to do."

I full out laughed. Was she kidding me? Trying to bait me into giving her something? I had so many things going through my mind, what would she actually know about any of my plans?

"I know you've heard rumors about The Book of Enoch. I also know you think you can do the same thing, but you can't."

I folded my arms over my chest, giving the appearance of defiance. "They sent you here to persuade me to choose a difference course, didn't they? I'm a threat, the rumors must be true." I already knew the answer.

"No, they're not. They're rumors." She was getting a little hot under the collar.

"If it happened once, it can happen again." I countered.

"It never happened. Did you even bother to read The Book of Enoch before you fell? Do you know exactly what it says, word for holy word?" Oooo, she was sounding more desparate. I was definitely on to something.

"Maybe you could loan me your copy." I was baited her now.

"That's blasphemous! You're forbidden to read it. You betrayed every angel in heaven when you fell." She cried.

"How many of them know what I'm after? How big of a threat am I?" I asked, feeling a little cocky.

"I can't tell you that. I've already told you more than I should have." She said and tossed her head to the side.

"Are they going to try to stop me?"

"The avenging angels will."

This gave me an idea. "Unless they think you talked me out of it."

Her eyes widened briefly, then she looked like she was trying to summon courage to speak her next words, "Don't look at me like that. I won't lie to protect you. What you're trying to do is wrong. It's not natural."

Showing her my dangerous side, I softly poke her name.

"I can't help you. Not that way," she said quietly. "Put it out of your mind. Become a guardian angel. Focus on that and forget The Book of Enoch." She said almost pleadingly.

I shifted in my seat, focusing my thoughts. Letting the plan stitch itself together. "Tell them we talked, and I showed interest in becoming a guardian."

"Interest?" she asked with disbelief.

"Interest. Tell them I asked for a name. If I'm going to save a life, I need to know who's at the top of your departing list." I studied Dabria's face, seeing my words sink in. "I know you're privy to that information as an angel of death."

"That information is sacred and private, and not predictable." She was back peddling. "The events in this world shift from moment to moment depending on human choices-"

"One name, Dabria," I coaxed.

A look of hope crossed her face. I had her. "Promise me you'll forget about The Book of Enoch first. Give me your word."

I found it hard not to laugh at that, "You'd trust my word?"

"No," she admitted, "I wouldn't."

I laughed, I didn't think she would. I decided to see if she'd take my bait so I grabbed a toothpick from the dispenser and began walking toward the stairs.

"Patch, wait-," it worked, I had her. "Patch, please wait."

I just looked over my shoulder, waiting.

"Nora Gray," she quickly said before covering her mouth with her hands.

I couldn't believe it! How could Nora's name be on the list, let alone toward the top of the list? It had to be accurate, Dabria didn't know about Nora and didn't know what her significance was.

"How is she going to die?" I asked, still a little shell shocked.

"Someone wants to kill her."

"Who?" There was no time to waste.

"I don't know. There's so much noise and commotion down here. All the images blur together, they come too fast, I can't see clearly. I need to go home. I need peace and calm." Oh, no, she wasn't getting away without more information. I attempted to calm her, softening my touch, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. I held her gaze and willed her to continue.

"I can't see… I don't see anything… it's useless."

"Who wants to kill Nora Gray?"

"Wait, I see her. There's a shadow behind her. It's him," she was hurrying through the scenario that she was presented with. "He's following her. She doesn't see him…but he's right there. Why doesn't she see him? Why isn't she running? I can't see his face, it's in shadow…" She suddenly dropped off, resting her wide eyes on me. Her breathing was speeding up.

"Who?" I asked, almost as anxious as Dabria appeared to be.

Dabria's shock began to make her tremble. She brought her hands up to her mouth and curled them. Softly, she whispered, "You."

I was taken aback. I didn't see Dabria make her hasty exit. I didn't hear the voices from the people that were in the bar. I felt like I was in a fog. So much had been said and so much had been learned. I had to get out of here and process everything I just learned.

I made my way out of the bar and found a good thinking spot in a nearby cemetery. I needed a sounding board, someone to bounce my inner babblings off of. I was so lost in thought that I didn't hear Rixon approach. Rixon was another fallen angel. He and I had spent the last few centuries as friends. If there was anyone I could talk to, it would be Rixon. I ran through my "chance" encounter with Dabria and told him my plans – all of them. Not surprisingly, he thought I was crazy to even attempt becoming human. The way he saw it, it was a hopeless dream and I should just be happy with possessing Chauncey for that short amount of time each year. He thought I should take Dabria's advice and save a human life, become a guardian. All of these conversations and opinions were making my head spin. It was just too much to process tonight.

What a night to have all this happen. Tonight, beginning at midnight, was our time to take possession of our humans. Time to live what little we could, feel everything we could feel before having to wait yet another year.

Trying to shake all the racing thoughts from my head, I asked Rixon, "How much money can we make before midnight?" I needed something to draw my focus from my meeting with Dabria. I needed to get back into the game.

"Playing cards or boxing?" Rixon asked.

"Cards." Definitely cards, something to occupy my mind was better than trying to knock someone off his block.

Rixon's eyes danced with menace. "What do we have here? A pretty boy? Come here and let me give you a proper clatter." Good ol' Rixon, he could always be counted on to take the suggestion of cards and turn it into a boxing match. I have to admit, it felt good to roll around and throw punches at each other. Maybe boxing was a better distraction after all.

After we had our punches in, Rixon waived the white flag. He didn't want to spoil any chances he might have with the ladies. Ha, maybe he should have opted for the game of cards instead.

We both found our nephil vessels and took possession. I decided to live the two weeks up for all I could. I was not going to waste what little time I had worrying about Nora Gray or anything else that came up tonight. Just live it up, feel all I could, enjoy everything I normally was denied. This would be like a vacation. A well earned vacation.