Chapter Twenty

The Other Shoe

Tokyo Warehouse District: July 16, 2010

Rowen arrived at the auction with two younger priests from St. Mary's. The massive warehouse that housed the auction was brimming with people in an explosion of color, accents, and languages. It created a relaxed atmosphere despite the number of non-humans milling around. He was remaining near the entrance, waiting to see Azrial and Bobby arrive. The other two priests had left to look around the massive amount of displays that took up a good portion of the floor-space. There was a minor commotion near the entrance, and Rowen frowned at the increased attention. He glanced toward the entrance and inhaled sharply.

Azrial and Bobby had arrived, but he couldn't understand why those who saw them were so surprised. The two made a striking pair, sure, but the way some people were whispering around him was strange.

"Have the Valerius' finally allowed a male heir to take over again?"

The question barely reached his ear, and he glanced to see two women whispering amongst themselves. If he had to guess, they were goddesses, but he couldn't tell which ones just by their traditional dress. Some people parted like the red sea in front of the pair, others glared, and still more remained respectfully neutral. He'd known the Valerius name held sway, but to see it was still impressive.

Azrial briefly met his gaze, tilting her head respectfully before turning her attention back to Bobby. The two were whispering together and were heading toward the right side of the warehouse, where a massive amount of books were displayed. Rowen sighed and turned towards where some relics were being shown. Now that he knew the two had arrived safely, he could start on his honey-do list from the Vatican.

Line Break

Bobby was doing his damn best to hide how overwhelmed he was. Azrial pressed tightly into his side, her fingers running soothing circles against his arm as he guided her toward the displays of books.

"You're doing wonderfully," she soothed quietly.

"Only because you have enough grace for both of us."

She laughed softly at his pun. "If you say so." She released his arm as they approached a bookshelf, and he began running his eyes over the tomes with open curiosity. "You're like a child in a candy shop," she teased.

He snorted, glancing down at her. "Hush, princess. We both know you'll be the same once we reach the weapons."

"I'm not denying it, just pointing out how beautiful your eyes look when you're fixated on something you enjoy."

Bobby would deny until he died that his heart skipped a beat at her compliment. He cleared his throat, pulling out an interesting book to page through to fill the silence.

"I have a copy of that," Azrial said. "I can give it to you, if you'd like?"

"How many times will you end up saying that tonight?" he muttered, re-shelving the book.

"Depends on how many books you pick up."

He snorted, pulling her deeper into the aisles of shelves as he looked for anything interesting. They'd agreed not to head right for the weapons, since the auction wouldn't begin for a few hours. It wouldn't do any good to appear too eager about the weapons, especially in front of the other bidders. Someone cleared their throat, and both of them turned toward the sound. A man stood in front of them, his dark hair hanging down his back in braids that had flecks of silver through them. His dark skin was almost black in the low light, his amber eyes peering back at them with open curiosity. He was dressed in a silver toga trimmed with blood red, and silver braces around his wrists and upper arms.

"A pleasure to see you again, Matron Valerius."

"Has it really been that long?" Azrial quietly responded.

"I think we last talked in the late 80s," the man shrugged. "It's hard to keep track these days." He paused, glancing over at him. "Am I to understand that there is a new paterfamilias of the Valerius family?"

Azrial stiffened, clearly uncomfortable with the question. Bobby cut in before the conversation became too probing.

"I doubt anyone will take that mantle," he said firmly. "In her heart or in the family."

The man smirked, nodding in appreciation. "Wise words. May I get your name?"

"Robert," Bobby flatly intoned.

"A pleasure. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of each other."

"And you are?"

Azrial snorted, the tension slowly leaving her shoulders. "His name is Thanatos."

Bobby looked down at her in surprise before glancing back at the man. "As in the Greek god of death?"

"Indeed, little Valerius." Thanatos' smile became a touch predatory for a moment. "We fiercely protect our own, after all."

"Thane," Azrial growled in warning. "He is no threat."

Bobby shifted, placing a protective arm in front of Azrial. The god eyed him for several seconds before nodding in approval.

"A fine choice of lovers, sister of my heart. Cassiopeia sends her thanks for attending in her stead, and our Creator warns you that time is of the essence."

"Of course he does," Azrial huffed. "Give Cassiopeia our love. I'll update her once we are back in the States."

"Be safe and remember, you don't walk this path alone." The god's parting words hung heavy in the air as he left them alone once more.

"Do I want to know what that was about?" Bobby whispered. Azrial turned around in his arms with a sigh.

"Thanatos is one of the death gods I warned you would know me," she mumbled. "He is also the current lover of the head of the family. That means he's a touch more protective than normal."

Bobby hummed. "Guess that makes sense. Should I expect that treatment from every death god I meet?"

Azrial snorted, a laugh catching in her throat. "Doubtful, but some may surprise me."

"Well, let's enjoy the peace while we have it then."

Line Break

Balthazar scanned the warehouse, trying to find Azrial in the crowd. Knowing she'd survived the meeting with the other archangels and actually seeing her were two different things. He'd seen her enter, but since then, she'd become lost in the crowd. He sighed when someone cleared their throat and turned to glare at the demons who bugged him again.

"Have you changed your mind?" the leader asked, and Balthazar rolled his eyes.

"Do you think you're special?" he asked. "Everyone here wants weapons, not just Lucifer. Bid on them like the rest."

"And the information we want?"

"I don't have, for the tenth time!" he snarled, flashing his eyes a soft gold in warning. "The Valerius family and the Grand Coven are extremely protective of their secrets, something Lucifer should damn well know!"

The leader winced, his two cronies stepping back at Balthazar's visible threat. "We can't go back empty-handed."

"Then maybe you should have picked a better side," he huffed. "Leave me, before I decide smiting you is a better use of my time."

The leader frowned, but walked away with his cronies following behind him. Balthazar sighed, rubbing his temples as he searched the crowd again.

"Damnit sister, where are you?"

Line Break

Azrial was surprised to find herself enjoying the auction. She fully credited Bobby for that. Death gods had approached them multiple times, and the man handled himself with a grace she hadn't expected. Every time they spoke with someone, more tension eased from her body. At this point, she was as relaxed as normal despite the odd circumstances. This may as well be a standard run for Crowley!

"I think the auction is starting," Bobby whispered, his breath brushing against her ear.

"It seems so. We should head over there."

He hummed, guiding them into the flow of people. She snagged a number plate as they passed into the seating area. They ended up towards the middle of the seating, which suited her just fine, and were on the edge of the row. She handed the number plate to Bobby, kissing him on the cheek before whispering in his ear.

"It's rare for anything to go wrong after this point, but keep an eye out. I'll tap your knee if you should bid. Two taps to drop the bid. Of course, if you see anything of interest, bid."

"Sounds good," he muttered. "I'm surprised we haven't seen Balthazar."

"So am I. I'm hoping he's just busy tonight, and it's nothing bad."

Azrial blinked as she felt something catch in the fabric of her stola. She looked up and inhaled sharply as she saw Balthazar heading toward the podium. His back was tense, and a sinking feeling settled in her stomach.

"That him?"

Azrial nodded mutely at Bobby's quiet question, taking a moment to smooth the skirt of her stola. Paper caught in her fingers, and she deftly pulled it out. She carefully passed it into her other palm, monitoring the surrounding people before running the paper over the top of Bobby's hand.

She sighed in relief as he rolled his hand over to tangle his fingers into hers, carefully pulling the paper from her palm.

"Now?" he whispered.

"Be quick."

Hopefully, it would look like she'd just passed him a love note or something similar. He pulled his hand away, unfolding the small paper. He exhaled sharply, but folded it up and put it in his jacket pocket before kissing the side of her head.

"Demon attack," he muttered against her hair. "Lucifer supporters."

Azrial fought back the frown and the immediate need to get Bobby the hell out of here. She should have known things were going too smoothly. He held her hand a touch tighter, and Azrial met his eyes.

"We'll be home before you know it," he said, loud enough for people to hear. She heard the message loud and clear though: they couldn't leave now without making a scene.

"Of course," she said. "I just…miss our family."

His eyes visibly softened, and he squeezed her hand tighter. "We'll see them soon."

Azrial sighed in relief, knowing her message was heard as well. She wouldn't be able to face anyone back in the States if something happened to Bobby. Hell, she wouldn't be able to face herself.

Line Break

The auction passed painfully slow in Bobby's opinion. Azrial was doing her best to appear relaxed, but he could feel the tension in her body. She was wound tight as a spring, waiting for the shoe to drop. So far the items they needed had easily been gained, making Bobby wonder just how fair Balthazar was. The angel was as well put together as Crowley and seemed to have the same quiet power as the demon. He didn't appear like a threat right away, but if you crossed him, you'd be dead before you knew what happened.

For once, that was a weirdly comforting idea, especially since Balthazar seemed inclined to help them.

"We've come to the last item of the night," Balthazar spoke from the podium. "As always, it's been a pleasure seeing all of you again. We can only hope the world will still be spinning this time next year."

The morose tone was shared amongst the gathering, and Bobby became acutely aware of just how many people and organizations knew the world was ending. It sparked a bit of morbid hope that if they somehow failed, there were other pockets of gods and humans doing their damn best to keep this messed up world spinning.

"The last item is something I've held onto since I first left Heaven," Balthazar began conversationally. Bobby felt the angel's eyes boring into them, and Azrial sat up straighter. "For our last item tonight, I offer Gabriel's Horn of Truth. Let the bidding begin!"

Azrial practically dug her nails into his knee, and Bobby knew he'd have his hand in the air until every penny they had was on the table. So much for Balthazar helping them.

"I thought he was supposed to tell you about heavenly artifacts?" he muttered, using the crowd's boisterous yelling of bids to cover the question. Suddenly, the grip on his knee went lax, and he practically dropped his hand in shock when she tapped his knee twice.

"I'm a fool," she hissed under her breath. "He doesn't actually have it. He's trying to weed someone out!"

Bobby let his arm fall when the next exorbitant bid was shouted. "Then we're done here?"

"Yes," she said firmly. "I'll slap him later for scaring the crap out of me."

He snorted and got ready to stand when there was a massive commotion. His eyes shot back to the stage in time to see the curtain behind Balthazar go up in flames. The angel looked nonplussed and raised an eyebrow as five men stalked over toward him.

"Hand over the horn," the leader demanded. "Or we kill everyone in here."

Balthazar looked out at the crowd, and Bobby met his gaze when it lingered on him.

Do what you do best, hunter. Get the humans to safety. This is going to be a bloodbath.

The words were whispered in his mind, and Bobby exhaled sharply and pulled Azrial to her feet.

"You and what army, Argan?" the angel chuckled. "It seems like we're having a repeat of '92. God, I can't wait till someone competent takes over Hell," he huffed. "Consider the agreement of peace null!" Balthazar shouted.

The room broke into chaos, and Bobby yanked Azrial into the aisle, pulling her toward the door even as several gods leapt at the demons that had tried to accost Balthazar.

"Wait," she yelped, trying to get her wrist free. "I need to help Balthazar!"

"Are you insane?" he demanded as people went running past them. "If you're seen-"

"Those demons aren't weak!" she snapped, putting her strength into her stance to stop them from moving further. Bobby growled, pulling her to the side so they wouldn't get trampled.

"Balthazar asked me to get the humans out, and I ain't letting you out of my sight!"

"Despite your nickname, I'm not a damn princess in distress!" she snarled. Another loud bang had them both snapping their heads to look toward the stage.

"Shit," Azrial gasped. "They…how did they kill them?"

Bobby swallowed as the bodies of the three gods that had attacked the demons fell to the ground. His grip on Azrial tightened, fear coiling in his chest.

"I'm not losing you," he choked out. "We're getting the hell out of here."

It surprised him to see silver eyes looking back at him when Azrial turned her gaze toward him. She leaned forward, slamming their lips together. Bobby couldn't respond, and the feel of cold metal in his hand shocked him back to his senses as Azrial pulled away.

"That's my little brother," she whispered against his bruised lips. "I don't abandon family, and you don't abandon those who need your help. Stay safe, my hunter." She pulled away, and Bobby couldn't get a grip on her again. "Thanatos, get him out of here safely!"

Bobby lunged to grab Azrial as she took off toward Balthazar, but a firm hand on his shoulder stopped him. Thanatos' amber eyes were locked on Azrial, a slight frown on his face.

"You would have better luck bottling the wind, little Valerius. Death's daughter goes where she pleases, quiet like the Creator himself. Come, we will help those we can."

Bobby glanced down at his right hand, his heart pounding in his chest as he recognized The Colt.

"Damnit," he snarled furiously. "Fine, let's go."

Bobby had to have faith that Azrial would be okay and focus on his own mission. Hopefully, he could find Rowen and make quick work of getting everyone to safety, especially since it looked like gods could fall as easily as humans to this group.

He tried not to think too hard about what that would mean for Azrial and Balthazar.

The next update is Saturday, April 30, 2022