Thank you to JoVersify for pre-reading this chapter :)
Hi guys, sorry for the late update, I had a couple of bad weeks at work (including a colleague who was an absolute terror) and was on the verge of resigning. Luckily most things have been resolved now. I know this chapter is short but I didn't want to leave you guys hanging for too long. Hope to update again soon and I think I'll manage the next one within a week :)
"Eden's son has returned home."
While Paul ogled Edvardiel, Issa frowned, studying the strange man. His hair was long and grey and his tear-filled eyes were cloudy, and from the way he turned his head, she thought he was at least partially blind. Despite seeming ancient with his knobbly limbs, hunched back, and sunken eyes, his aura radiated a strength that wasn't entirely natural.
Jacob's jaw dropped. "He's Eden's son? But he called Samael a demon. His own grandfather."
Edvardiel looked like a deer in headlights. He glanced around as though expecting to see another person and a myriad of emotions stormed through their bond: Hope, fear, distrust. The last two won. A shutter dropped over his face as he stepped in front of her. He was no longer her sweet half-angel but a stone-cold seraph. She recognized the patterns of habit as they settled over him like a second skin because she had the same. Except demons were filled with rage and bloodthirst and angels seemed devoid of feeling. Their bond was empty as it had never been before.
"Who are you?" Edvardiel asked.
"I am Ezekiel," the man said. He leaned against his cane, looking as though he were in pain. "I am the guardian of Eden's garden." A fresh wave of tears filled his cloudy eyes. "I wish I could see you clearly, Edvardiel. You have grown."
Issa felt her own heart tightening in response to Edvardiel's, whose face betrayed nothing. "How do you know my name?"
"You are Eden's son," Ezekiel breathed. "Of course I know your name. I have held you in my arms."
"I'm not Eden's son," Edvardiel said. "I can't be. I've never been here."
"You have been here, my child. You are Eden's son," the man said gently. "Thousands have passed through these gates, both humans and Nephilim alike. These gates only open for Eden's blood. The beacon called us all here." He gestured up at the remnants of fire in the sky as they faded away. "Perhaps your father will answer the summon too."
Edvardiel froze.
Issa thought he might flee and Ezekiel seemed to think the same because he held up a hand to silence the anxious crowd behind him. "Please," he said. "I do not know where you have been but give me a chance to show you. We have been waiting for you for so long."
Issa's heart leapt. He had a home. A family. These were words he should've been crying with joy to hear so why was he standing there, looking as though he were about to attack someone?
She reached out and touched his arm lightly. "Edvardiel," she murmured. "What's wrong?"
He covered her hand but didn't move.
"As far as I know, Samael is a demon," Edvardiel said to Ezekiel. "How do I know this is not a trick? How do I know I am not walking into Hell?"
Ezekiel looked stunned. Outrage burst from the crowd behind him and Jacob rolled his eyes.
Issa spoke first, the words bursting forth because she, out of all of them, knew Hell intimately.
"Because, Edvardiel, we're already in Hell," she said. "The Apocalypse brought it to Earth."
He met her gaze, and she could see and feel how torn he was.
"Trust me," she said. "This isn't Hell and Ezekiel isn't a demon. None of them are." She couldn't tell if these people were fallen angels or if this was another one of Heaven's prisons, but this was not Hell.
"From your words, I believe I know where you went." Ezekiel's expression was sober. "My boy, you have been told lies. Let me show you our truth."