Chapter 3
The siren continued to sound and for a moment everyone was still. Camiel tore her eyes from the oncoming cloud and turned to the room. Percy broke the silence first, "What the hell is that?"
Bob backed up from underneath the T.V. and the spoke, "It's one of them test things."
Camiel turned to the television and read the huge bolded words—THIS IS NOT A TEST—and then nodded her head in agreement with Charlie's words, "Yeah I don't think that's a test."
Suddenly, Kyle broke in asking for the phone while offering money which Bob accepted. He gave directions to Kyle who walked away. Sandra broke in next, "Excuse me but if this were an actual emergency, wouldn't they be giving us instructions on what to do?"
Bob was silent for a time before asking Percy to check the radio. Camiel used this time to stretch her rapidly failing soul sense for the power of a certain someone which she was well in tune with. There, just at the edge of her consciousness, was the familiar feeling of her Commander. Michael was coming. Relief trickled through Cami before the lines that she could sense faded from feeling and thought. Percy continued to fiddle with the ancient radio for a time and then a second siren melded in harmony with the first. Percy moved the dial to try another station and again the siren noise intensified as another second siren joined the television's. He tried a final time with the same result. Camiel watched silently as all the humans turned to look at each other, fear causing their eyes to widen. Instantly, theories were thrown out to everyone—earthquake, terrorists, punishment.
Eventually Bob spoke up, "For crying out loud, there's no use speculating. I'll just call my brother up in Needles, he'll probably no something." Camiel looked out the window again, at the approaching cloud, she doubted that would happen, which proved true when seconds later Kyle walked out saying that the phone had died. Exclamations broke out but Bob calmed them, "Hey, hey, hey, everyone just simmer down." He slammed the off switch on the television and the siren noise was instantly silenced, "There's nothing to get excited about, they're probably just working on the lines. Besides," he raised a hand and brought it down while glancing towards the couple, "Jeep's going to have your car fixed quick as a jiffy, then you can be on your way, so…"
Howard nodded his head understandingly, "Good." Bob glanced around for a moment as if waiting for more arguments to break out. When nothing happened he eventually turned back to work. Camiel in the meantime stiffened as the soul connections blurred across her vision once more followed by a much more sinister power. Gravel crunching outside met her ears and her unease grew. She could still sense Michael's pure power but overlaying that was the power, power that was cloaked in blind obedience, of another of her 'brothers'. Gabriel. The car driving into the diner's parking lot crunched on more gravel before abruptly stopping. Her unease however continued to grow. She carefully rested a hand on the waistband of her jeans and running along the side until her fingertips met the familiar hilt of her dagger, she breathed a small breath attempting to calm down as she moved her hand away from her dagger. Her hands, hidden beneath the table, clenched into fists. She would protect these humans.
She tilted her head, causing brown black hair to cascade to one side as she heard someone come walking across the gravel. Something, someone, was here and it wasn't human. Cami's teeth snapped together as her jaw clenched and her jade eyes darkened. Camiel again forced herself to relax slightly; she doubted whether or not Gabriel knew exactly where she was…it seemed as of right now he was simply testing the humans' strength. She edged back into her seat even more as a dark shadow appeared in front of the blinds of the door which swung open to admit an old lady.
Camiel swiftly looked down towards the table top, burying her face into the paper to hide it from the dog of heaven. She gauged Percy and Kyle's expressions as they turned to watch the little old lady dressed in pink hobble in on her walker. Charlie saw her next and Cami watched her welcome the woman, "Have a seat wherever you want ma'am. Specials are on the board." She disappeared into the kitchen and Camiel once again eased back in her seat, causing the paper to crinkle loudly. She stilled but the hound of heaven disguised as a grandmother hobbled past her and sat near the family of three. Camiel was unnerved at how quickly her own hackles seemed to be rising in a need to protect these people of the diner but she had to wait. Her soul connection sense was flaring erratically and occasionally she could sense both Gabriel and Michael's presences. She only hoped that her own were masked from them though that seemed unlikely. Michael seemed so far away! She thought in anguish.
The old woman glanced about the diner and Camiel bent her head towards the paper, feigning sudden interest in an article, to avoid eye contact. The old lady watched her for a time and Camiel clearly felt the predator within the woman testing the air…so far it seemed she was safe. She shivered slightly as she watched the woman smiling eerily and quite widely in her peripheral vision. It wasn't normal. She wasn't normal and Camiel had never known a fact to be so true. However, the humans couldn't see that quite so clearly yet. Camiel prayed that this hound of heaven was simply a spy and would soon leave.
Her inner prayer was interrupted when she saw Charlie pass in front of her to hand the woman a menu. The old woman spoke, "I already know what I want."
Charlie took the menu back and placed her pad down on it. Cami heard rather than saw her smile, "'Kay, what'll it be?"
"I'll have a steak, please."
"How'd you like that cooked?" Charlie was already writing on the pad her blonde-brown hair occasionally falling into her face.
"Rare, if you would, and water and no ice." The woman again smiled and Camiel had to force herself not to shiver. However, her hand hadn't moved from the dagger hidden underneath her shirt. Nor would it until Charlie moved away to safety.
Charlie answered, "Coming right up."
The old lady turned her head to the side, "Charlie, is it?"
Charlie turned back, "Yeah."
"What an unusual name for a girl."
Cami watched Charlie nod, "So they say, I'll be right back with your water." She left and Camiel breathed a small sigh, her hand once again returning to the table.
The old lady wasted no time in turning to the couple and calling out brightly, "Hello. I'm Gladys, Gladys Foster." The wife turned to look and quickly pulled the end of her glasses from her mouth (as she had been absent mindedly chewing on it) to smile politely.
"Oh, hello, Gladys, it's so nice to meet you. I'm Sandra and this is my husband, Howard." Howard turned to give the perfunctory wave and then turned back. Charlie moved to give her water and then moved away again. Camiel watched her retreat like a hawk.
Gladys seemed to murmur to herself, "What a nice looking young couple…" and then louder, "What brings you up to these parts?"
Sandra turned back to the conversation, ever polite, "Um, we're on our way to Scottsdale but our car broke down and we're stuck here while it's getting fixed." Gladys shook her head from side to side in a tut-tut stereotypical old woman pose.
"What a nuisance."
Sandra spoke again, "Say, um, Gladys, the lines seem to be down here and I was just wondering if you'd heard something about what's going on…?"
The old woman replied in a false chipper tone with an even falser smile, "Oh, you don't have to worry about that sweetheart; it'll all be over soon." There was an awkward silence and then Camiel was once again stiffening as Charlie brought the steak over to the lady. Gladys smiled widely, "Oh, thank you dear. How far along are you?" Camiel wrinkled her nose in distaste as the bloody meat was set down in view and then recoiled slightly as suddenly the flies seemed to multiply and fly closer to the meat. The increase in the buzzing noise was disconcerting.
Charlie answered cryptically, "Oh, just about there." The flies' buzzing grew louder.
"The father must be very proud."
"Oh, I wouldn't know." Charlie deftly deflected the statement.
The old lady persisted, "He's—"
Charlie quickly cut her off and spoke rather roughly, "Out of sight, out of mind." However, from her position Camiel saw her add a smile to be polite. Charlie then bent to shoo the flies away from the meat.
Gladys spoke once again, "I see… So, I take it you're not married."
"No."
"That's too bad,"
"No, I prefer it that way. I don't need a man telling me what to do." Charlie had apparently decided to speak her mind. Camiel, upon further reflection, decided that she too would have said what she thought to someone who was meddling as well. Her fingernails bit into the flesh of her clenched hands. Charlie was too close to that thing!
That 'thing' decided to speak once more, "But what about the baby?"
Camiel could tell the politeness was fading from Charlie—she could hear it, "I got it under control."
"But it's going to burn." There was silence from Charlie only the buzz of the hungry flies punctuated the conversation.
"What did you just say?" Charlie asked defensively.
"I said your f*cking baby's going to burn." This time Sandra looked over, shock and some anger marring her features. Percy and Kyle followed the look with shocked ones of their own. Audrey looked up. Camiel clenched her hand over the silver hilt of her dagger while on the other hand her nails bit into the flesh of her palm leaving red crescents behind. The uneasiness grew.
Charlie snarled, "Go to hell, lady." Then she slammed the receipt on the table before storming away and back into kitchen. Camiel never took her jade eyes off the angel masquerading as the old lady. Gladys began to giggle and from there it escalated to mad cackling.
"All those little babies are going to burn." Bile rose in Camiel's throat. To say such things about children! Her anger grew but still the thought that perhaps the spy would leave kept her from moving forward. The lady began to saw into the meat with her steak knife and shoved the bloody morsel into her mouth ignoring the flies that crawled over the rest.
It was at this time that Percy quickly moved forward to calm the apparently mad woman with an easy, "Woah, woah."
Sandra smiled a fractured let's-not-upset-the-psycho smile, "Gladys…umm." Gladys' head jerked up with a sickening crunch that was definitely not normal human behavior.
Gladys spoke her voice sounded more evil, "Shut up you stupid c*nt, all you do is complain, complain, complain." Sandra was shocked into being quiet…her husband less so. Howard rose to his feet ignoring the cries from his wife (No, Howard. Howard, no, no, no, no.)
It was at this point, where Howard was walking towards the old lady, which Camiel decided that she had to act. She moved to stop him. There was no way she would let innocent blood spill. Then her soul sense flared bright and a voice whispered through her mind. She met the eyes of the hound of heaven and saw a different intelligence shining once more. Still her hand moved towards the dagger until Gabriel's voice whispered louder, 'Naughty, naughty Camiel. These were not your orders.' Then bonds of emotion, seemingly sprung up from nowhere shackled Camiel to where she was. Her soul sense flared as she felt sticky ropes of iron-willed, blind devotion wrap around her. Her arms pinioned to her sides she winced as the 'ropes' tightened.
Camiel could do nothing but sit frozen where she was as the woman proceeded to bite into Howard's neck. She could do nothing but sit frozen when the blood splattered across her face and pandemonium broke out. Cami railed against the bonds placed around her. She influenced by the others emotions and being the only one to see the ties that connected everyone was now being held by one of her own. One of the Seven had decided to turn against her. Gabriel, with his unceasing obedience and devotion to God's will, had decided to stretch his power and impose his own wishes and will on her own.
She struggled against him bitterly thinking that he had known she was there all along. Meanwhile, the old lady had leapt to her feet, flipped her table away from her with strength that was not her own, and with Howard's blood dripping down her chin she spoke, "You're all going to die."
Percy, with his ex-military training was the first to snap out of it and act. He seized a frying pan from the oven and whipped it through the air with all the force he could muster. It connected with a sickening crunch and the lady fell. Howard lay on the ground crying out in pain. His screams ripped into her soul and she cried out to Gabriel angrily. Again, Howard groaned and again a fresh stab of pain was pushed deep into her soul. She was an archangel and she loved the humans as her Father did. His Beloved chosen ones were her own. It followed then, that Howard's pain was also hers to bear.
'Gabriel, stop this. My will is my own,' She tried to move to no avail. His will still strongly held her in place.
'You should've followed orders, Sister. This is not what you were supposed to do.' For a few moments she felt his hold lessen and she paused and then blinked in understanding as another soul aura pulsed through her and washed away Gabriel's bonds. Michael. He was coming closer! Gladys had risen now, her cheek torn open from the frying pan, her eyes black, her teeth pointed and she was growling. Gladys stepped closer to Camiel, still bound immobile by Gabriel's presence and when she tried to glare at the hound of heaven she received a swift blow that cracked her head to one side. She was winded and then she was screaming as Gladys, once old lady now possessed being, ripped claws through her arm and tore down. Screams of horror from the others that were gathered followed as the old woman began to climb the wall and then began to crawl on the ceiling. Gabriel strengthened his bond on her—his emotional will wrapping about her throat choking the breath from her and then going further to keep her arms and legs pinioned as they were.
Gabriel spoke in her mind, 'Our Lord wishes the humans to be destroyed like in the Flood so long ago, Camiel. Why do you fight His wishes?' His whisper was faint though. He was losing power but not quick enough. Her blood continued to drip down her arm and the fiery pain continued but she ignored it. These people were in danger and it was her job to protect them.
The woman was still climbing about on the ceiling. Bob pushed Jeep away and raised a gun to aim. Percy had armed himself with a strainer that he raised in the air and Kyle was watching on seemingly incredulous to which he replied with, "What the f*ck, man?" Three shots cracked through the air and then Gladys dropped to the ground right in front of Bob and slapped him away like he weighed nothing. The gun landed at Jeep's feet.
Again a pulse of Michael's power came to life in Camiel's rapidly dimming soul sense causing the bond that held her to loosen. Still, Gabriel attempted to whisper on, though his voice grew fainter, 'I'm only doing what He wants, Camiel. Understand, Sister.'
'It isn't what He needs though, Gabriel, I beg you. Please, reconsider.' Jeep had meanwhile grabbed the gun and cocked it. The old lady opened the door of the counter and walked passed Camiel, she stopped for a moment and licked her lips as she saw the blood dripping down Cami's arm and made a move as to walk towards Camiel before Gabriel's power flashed once and then the hound of heaven was turning obediently and heading back towards Jeep. Camiel attempted to move and was rewarded with her hand moving slowly—as if pushing through syrup—towards her dagger, 'Gabriel…please.' She pleaded once more, her hand moving closer to her dagger ever so slowly. Michael's aura was cancelling out the enforced will of Gabriel but he was still too far away and she doubted whether he even knew what his archangel power was succeeding in doing. They weren't omniscient after all, that power belonged to their Father alone.
The old woman spoke to Jeep who was aiming the gun straight for her, "You cannot save her." With those words Jeep stood paralyzed and his eyes widened. Percy was yelling (Shoot her!) and finally Jeep moved. He closed his eyes tight and turned his head aside. His finger hovered over the trigger. Then suddenly, the old woman let out a guttural snarl and began to slide across the floor, mouth open and teeth glinting, with clawed hands grasping towards Jeep. Gabriel's voice and bond was nearly nonexistent, 'You will die with the child, Camiel. You've chosen death.'
Camiel struggled increasingly against the bonds and with a final effort of will; the line snapped that had held her immobile. She replied even as she reached for her dagger, 'No, Gabriel. I've chosen to hope in life.' Michael's was close now and as his power once again pulsed through her now flickering soul sense her dagger flew through the air, echoed by three shots. The old woman slid to a stop near Jeep's feet, Camiel's dagger embedded deep in her neck and her back speckled with the three gun wounds. All eyes turned to Kyle who held a gun in his hand before Sandra was moving towards her husband who had, in the ensuing struggle, been left on the ground. Eventually with much talk all decide to leave and try to take Howard to a hospital.
As the group filed out the door, forgetting for a moment, the jade-eyed stranger who remained silent and out of sight; one archangel leaned against a wall and then slid down to sit on the ground. She watched as plastic was lowered onto the body of the old woman and she sighed quietly to herself while carefully probing the wound the woman had inflicted on her—she spared no thought for the cheek that had been slapped. Camiel sighed once more, she would have to patch up those wounds soon but for now she would rest. She closed her eyes and let her head fall back—this was only the beginning.