Chapter 29
TWENTY-NINE
CHARLES
Gabriel stood before us like something out of a Renaissance painting, all sharp angles and impossible beauty. Even in the aftermath of violence, with the cabin destroyed behind us and the scent of gunpowder still lingering in the air, he looked perfectly composed. Untouchable.
When he smiled at Eamon, there was something almost paternal in the expression.
“Hello, Eamon,” Gabriel said calmly. “I think it’s time we had a talk. I trust the assignment went well?”
“Carlo’s in custody,” Eamon replied, standing a little straighter. “Charles is safe.”
“Yes, I’m aware. The local law enforcement was quite efficient.” Gabriel’s golden eyes shifted to me, and I felt like I was being assessed by something vast and ancient. “Mr. Garrity, I apologize for the dramatic circumstances of our meeting.”
I found my voice, though it came out slightly strangled. “Call me Charles. Are you really…?”
“An archangel? Yes. Eamon’s supervisor, among other duties.” Gabriel’s attention returned to Eamon. “Though I suspect that particular professional relationship is about to change.”
Something in his tone made my stomach clench with anxiety. “What do you mean?”
“He means,” Eamon said quietly, “that my assignment is complete. Carlo’s been arrested, and you’re safe. Time for me to be reassigned to a new case, a new protectee.”
“No.” The word escaped before I could stop it. “That’s not… We can figure something out. There has to be a way—”
“Actually,” Gabriel interrupted gently, “there is.”
We both stared at him.
“Eamon,” Gabriel continued, his voice taking on a formal tone, “you have fulfilled your destiny.”
“I protected Charles. That was the assignment—”
“The assignment was secondary.” Gabriel stepped closer, and I caught the faint scent of ozone and something that smelled like…
like starlight and the sun, like endless meadows and soft rains, like fluffy clouds and newborn puppies.
He smelled like life, like the universe, like…
love. “Your true purpose was something far more profound.”
Eamon frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“Every guardian has a destiny beyond their protective duties, though many never discover what that is.” Gabriel’s expression grew almost fond.
“Your test was never really about keeping Charles safe from Carlo Ricotta, Eamon. It was about learning to love. Learning to trust that you were worthy of it. Learning to choose mortal love over immortal duty.”
The words hit me like a physical blow. “This was all a test?”
“Not a test in the way you’re thinking. The danger was real, the threat to your life genuine. But Eamon’s assignment to protect you was…shall we say, carefully orchestrated.”
“By you?”
“By El. They saw what Eamon needed to learn, and they provided the circumstances for him to learn it.” Gabriel’s smile was soft, almost proud.
“The willingness to sacrifice everything—his powers, his immortality, his very nature—for another person’s happiness is what El has always hoped their guardians would discover. ”
El? Was that their name for God?
Eamon was staring at Gabriel like he’d spoken in a foreign language. “Are you saying this whole thing was planned?”
“Not planned. Guided. There’s a difference.” Gabriel’s expression grew serious. “Your feelings for Charles are genuine, Eamon. Your love for him is real. That’s what made the test valid. El doesn’t create artificial emotions. They simply provide opportunities for authentic ones to develop.”
I felt like the ground was shifting beneath my feet. So much new information, and my mind didn’t seem capable of processing what I’d heard. It was too…vast. Too big for me to comprehend.
Eamon reached blindly for my hand, lacing our fingers together. “So what happens now?”
Gabriel turned his full attention to Eamon.
“Now you choose. You can remain as you are—an immortal guardian, bound to serve El’s will, protected by divine law from mortal concerns.
You’ll be reassigned to a new case, somewhere far from here, and in time, your feelings for Mr. Garrity will fade as all mortal attachments must.”
The blood drained from my face. He would forget me…but somehow, I knew I would never be able to do the same. He’d always be in my heart.
Eamon squeezed my hand. “Or?”
“Or you can become what you’ve spent three centuries protecting. You can become human, Eamon. Mortal. Free to live and love and choose your own path, with all the joys and sorrows that mortality brings.”
The silence that followed was deafening. I slowly turned my head to stare at Eamon, watching his face as he processed the magnitude of what Gabriel was offering.
“There would be no going back,” Gabriel added quietly. “The choice, once made, is irreversible. You would age as humans do, face illness and injury, and eventually, death. Your memories of your time as an angel would remain, but your powers would be gone forever.”
“Eamon,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper, “you don’t have to—”
“Yes,” he said immediately, turning to face me fully. “I choose mortality. I choose humanity. I choose you.”
He shouldn’t make that decision so impulsively.
It was too vast for that, too enormous. The consequences were literally life-and-death.
Surely that merited a few minutes of deliberation.
“You need to think about this. This is immortality we’re talking about.
Three centuries of existence, supernatural powers, a divine purpose. You can’t just—”
“Charles.” Eamon cupped my face in his hands, and his touch was gentle but firm. “I’ve had three centuries to think about it. Three hundred years of watching humans live and love and create beauty in the brief time they’re given. And I’ve never wanted to be part of that until I met you.”
“But—”
“I don’t want immortality if it means losing you,” he continued, his green eyes blazing with certainty.
“I don’t want divine powers if I can’t use them to make you coffee in the morning or help you bake bread or grow old beside you.
I don’t want an eternal purpose if it doesn’t include loving you for whatever time we’re given. ”
Tears blurred my vision. “You’re giving up everything.”
“No, I’m finally gaining everything that matters.”
Gabriel cleared his throat softly. “Are you certain, Eamon? Once I begin the transformation, there’s no changing your mind.”
“I’m certain.” Eamon didn’t take his eyes off mine. “I’ve never been more certain of anything in my existence.”
Gabriel nodded, and something that looked like satisfaction crossed his features. “El will be pleased. This was always the hope. That love would prove stronger than duty, that the guardian would choose to become what he protects.”
“Will it hurt?” I asked.
“The opposite,” Gabriel said gently. “Becoming mortal is like…coming home after a very long journey.”
He raised his hand and light began to gather around his fingers—not harsh or blinding, but warm and golden like sunrise. “Are you ready?”
Eamon squeezed my hand. “More than ready.”
The light exploded outward, washing over us in a wave of warmth and brilliance that left me temporarily blind. I felt Eamon’s hands tighten on mine, heard him gasp, then everything was white and silent and perfect.
When my vision cleared, Eamon was still standing before me, but something subtle about him had changed.
It was like…like an Instagram filter had been removed, showing the real him.
More wrinkly and imperfect, but also infinitesimally more human, though I only recognized that now.
His eyes, while still the same brilliant green, held no trace of supernatural awareness.
His posture was different—not diminished, exactly, but more grounded, more present in his physical form.
He was completely, utterly human.
“How do you feel?” I asked softly.
Eamon flexed his fingers, rolled his shoulders, and took a deep experimental breath.
“Different. Lighter, somehow. Like I’ve been carrying weight I didn’t realize was there.
” He smiled, and it was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.
“But also…complete. For the first time in centuries, I feel complete.”
Gabriel approached, his expression softer than I’d yet seen it. “Goodbye, Eamon. It has been an honor serving with you.”
“Thank you,” Eamon said quietly. “For everything. For seeing what I needed even when I couldn’t see it myself.”
“That’s what supervisors are for.”
“And I’m sorry for being such a grumpy bastard half the time.”
Gabriel quirked an eyebrow. “Half the time?”
Eamon grinned. “Okay, you pushy asshole. All the time, okay?”
Gabriel put a hand on his shoulder. “We’re good, brother.”
They embraced—not the formal acknowledgment I’d expected, but a genuine hug between two beings who had clearly known each other for a very long time.
Gabriel stepped back, and I saw something suspiciously bright in his golden eyes. “I’m proud of you. Of the man you’ve chosen to become.”
“Will I…? Will I see you again?” Eamon asked.
Gabriel’s smile was enigmatic. “Who knows? The universe is full of surprises.” He turned to me, inclining his head formally. “Charles, take care of him. He’s precious cargo.”
“I will,” I promised, meaning it with every fiber of my being.
“I know you will.” Gabriel began to fade around the edges, becoming translucent. “Live well, both of you. Love deeply. And remember that some of the most profound miracles happen in the quiet, ordinary moments of mortal life.”
Then he was gone, leaving only the faint scent of ozone and the memory of starlight.
Eamon and I stood alone in the aftermath, staring at each other across the space of a few feet that somehow felt like the distance between worlds.
“So,” I said finally, my voice thick with emotion. “You’re human now.”
“I’m human now,” he agreed.
“Completely human. Mortal. Going to age and get gray hair and need reading glasses eventually.”
“Eventually, yes.”
“And you’re okay with that?”