Chapter Twenty-Three
The WatchTower was full to bursting. With its actual inhabitants, their women, Aradia, Hariel, and Lika running about underfoot.
Zavier took a moment to acknowledge that this might be the last time they were all together. If Liss knew? She’d tease him about taking a mental picture: the men in fighting leathers, sticking extra weapons in pouches and pockets and sheaths every time they paced past the wall. Rhys even strapped on a freaking crossbow.
These were his brothers. The three of them had lived their entire lives as one unit. They always had each other’s backs.
Until today. When they’d be split into three different locations for this potentially final battle.
It felt like bad luck. Or a bad omen.
Or worse, a bad plan .
“Are you worried?” Hariel lightly touched his wing to Zavier’s shoulder.
“Sure. The right amount of fear is good. It keeps me sharp.”
“Have you perhaps stockpiled more than the right amount?”
Hell, yes. Because they all had more to lose than ever before. “I’m worried that you’ll pass out. Drip blood all over when your nose hits the floor. So how about you sit back down?”
It’d taken the angel four days before he resurfaced to consciousness after losing the wing blood. They’d been on the brink of asking Caraxis for help. Maisy claimed credit for finally waking him up, by playing Taylor Swift.
Nobody believed her. The fact that Hariel’s eyes flew open with a start halfway through 1989 didn’t prove anything.
Neither did the way he’d sung along with the chorus of “Bad Blood . ”
“I want to say good luck.”
“Do it from the couch.” Zavier didn’t insult the angel by flying him there. But he did keep an arm around his waist to support him. “This place has great acoustics. Or, hey, we’ll all mosey down to you.”
“What you did—giving your blood to the human woman—it was a risk. But you did it with purity in your heart. For the right reason.”
Nice to have one person that didn’t think it was the stupidest thing he’d ever done. And an angel’s opinion should count for at least double.
“As far as I’m concerned, there was no choice to be made. No risk was or is too great to save Liss.”
“Remember that today.” Hariel gripped his forearm with painful strength. “Love is always the right choice. Evil cannot stand against Truth, Divine Light, and Unconditional Love.”
“Is that all it takes? Why didn’t you say so before?” Zavier beckoned for the others to join him in front of the fireplace.
“We’re ready. We could call anything more preparation, but it’d just be stalling.” Rhys handed Aradia the relocator ring. She’d use it to get to the gathering of three covens she’d pulled together. Everything for the ritual to shield the Titans in Tartarus was set up.
Her hair was in a single braid that bisected the black cloak embroidered with silver-threaded mystical symbols. “I’ll start chanting in ten minutes. That should give us time to get to full strength. The only thing I can’t guarantee is how long we can hold it. More than a day and a night seems unlikely.”
“This thing won’t drag on like the War of the Roses. Just…give us everything you’ve got.”
“I will do my very best. For all of us.” She gave a half bow. “Thank you for trusting me.”
“In this one thing, witch,” Gideon drawled. “Don’t oversell it. You’re a useful tool.”
“And you’re just a tool. No offense, Evangeline.”
She gave Aradia a fast hug. “No, it’s fine. You two have your little ritual of hating on each other. Wouldn’t want you to break tradition.”
“Right. Like a pitcher not shaving for all of playoff season,” Maisy said with a giggle.
Aradia knelt in front of Hariel. “I know I’m not as…useful a caretaker as the Nephilim . But if you are alone and need help, I will come.”
Hell. She meant if all the rest of them died. Aradia could always be counted on to give things a dark polish. Still, it was a thoughtful offer.
“Thank you, Lady Aradia.” Hariel shook the smartphone he’d gotten much better at using. “I’ll one-click you. In four hours. Just to check in.”
Okay, so he didn’t have all the lingo down. He did, however, have an addiction to Candy Crush and TikTok.
Aradia stepped toward Maisy and Liss. Then she started blinking frantically.
Was she about to cry? That was out of character for the powerful coven leader. Not motivating at all. She closed her eyes, touched the ring, and winked away.
“Did anyone else notice that she—”
Liss cut Gideon off. “Don’t finish that sentence. She’s part of our team. You will not make fun of her for what may or may not have almost happened.”
“You’re really forcing me to behave when the world might be about to end?”
“It won’t.” Evangeline kissed the backs of his knuckles. “You and I found each other. Creatures of Heaven and Hell who managed to fall in love. A partnership that apparently gives us all the powers of a Celestial being. Do you really think all that happened just to end a few months later?”
“Ah. Mon amour, you know me so well. Making it all about me so I’d fall in line with your optimism.”
Rhys grabbed their phones from the lineup of chargers on the lab’s island. “Make sure these aren’t on vibrate. When we call to say it’s go time, you’d better take the call.”
“Are you always this bossy before a mission? How have you not been singled out for some sensitivity and leadership training? Next time you hold one of those for Metafora’s new hires, you need to sit in on it yourself.” Maisy pecked his cheek to take the sting out of the words.
“He is a good leader. All three of you are remarkable warriors. The best the Order has ever had. There is no one else I would’ve trusted to take on this most difficult mission.” Hariel struggled to stand. His single wing provided the push that got him vertical.
“We won’t let you down.”
He put his palm to Rhys’s forehead. Pure, sharply white light beamed out from the edges. Walking down the line, he repeated the angel’s blessing to each of them. When it was Zavier’s turn, he braced for a burst of powers.
Instead, it felt like he’d left his body. That he was floating in the sea…or in clouds?…and was weightless. Comfortable in every cell and speck of emotion. So…perfect. Like he’d gotten a six-handed massage. On a waterbed. With everyone he’d ever cared for praising him. After three shots of Macallan. And with Liss holding his hand.
Peace, rather than the expected pre-battle edginess, filled him up.
And then he blinked and Hariel was back on the couch.
Liss brushed her elbow against his. Then she beckoned to the other women. “Let’s be sure we’re all strapped into our vests right. Our snazzy new leathers have to be comfortable as well as protective. If I ask Zavier to help, he’ll just cop a feel.”
He knew what she was doing. Giving them time alone. Did she really think elite lifelong warriors were going to get mushy? Hug it out? They’d recently binged all of Ted Lasso . It must’ve colored Liss’s idea of male group dynamics.
This was just another mission.
They specialized in the ones that had a higher than average chance of getting them killed. Saving the world was their M.O. It was any mission—just jacked up on steroids.
Or at least that’s what he’d keep trying to believe.
Zavier jerked his chin up. Crossed his arms, spread his feet wide. “We’ve got this.”
“Obviously. Demons never manage to take us down.” Gideon bared his teeth in a cocky grimace. “One of the freaking Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse couldn’t take us down. An angel doesn’t stand a chance.”
“It’s just—Maisy…” Rhys’s voice trailed off as he rubbed the back of his neck. He didn’t have to spell it out. They all felt responsible for keeping her safe. Rhys, however, a solid 200 percent more from being head over heels in love with her.
“I know.” Gideon scrubbed his palm across his mouth. “I’m worried about Evangeline, too.”
Hell. What didn’t they do together? Might as well go all in. “Yeah. Same issue. Worried about my woman. I proposed to Liss last night.”
Rhys’s eyes bugged out. “What the actual fuck?”
“Did she say no?” Gideon twirled a dagger, then pointed it at him. “How did you screw this up, Z?”
Huh. He should probably be concerned that they didn’t assume she’d said yes. Of course, if Liss had given him an unqualified yes, the other women would’ve heard all about it. That was it.
Or it was that his best, oldest friends-like-brothers knew him so very well…
“Men do irrational things before they go off to war. In the heat of what could be their last moments. Things they regret. Things to ensure that luck is on their side. I won’t have her wondering if my love is real or a last-ditch attempt at normalcy.”
“But you proposed ?” Incredulity tightened Rhys’s eyes and mouth to slits.
“Yes. However, I won’t say I love her. Not until after we win.” Otherwise, it could jinx the whole thing. Having Liss believe how much he loved her and needed her. That was his story and he was sticking to it, no matter how hard they laughed at him.
It was the extra 2 percent push he’d need to keep fighting when he was down and bloodied and exhausted.
And, right on cue, Gideon laughed. It started as a chortle and progressed quickly to full-on, wheezing guffaws. “That’s the most half-assed, backward thing I’ve ever heard.”
“She won’t put the ring on until I say it.” He punched Rhys and Gideon on their shoulders. Hard. “So make sure you come through for me, keeping Heaven and Hell buttoned up. I’ve got a lot riding on this.”
“You bet. Screw the fate of the world. We have to help our friend get the girl.” And they all laughed—probably a little too hard—and slapped backs and walked quickly out of the circle.
Lined up at the edge of the waterfall barrier, they looked at one another. Took a collective breath. Rhys flared his wings. “Start the mission right.”
As usual, Zavier and Gideon rolled their eyes and said the same thing they said at the start of every mission. Tradition and all that. “Or else the world might end.”
One of these times, it might happen. Especially this time.
“Don’t get too comfortable hanging at the Gates of Heaven. Definitely don’t try to sneak in, just to say you got away with it. You won’t.”
“I don’t need to go hunting for angels. I’ve got my own by my side.” Gideon dipped Evangeline, giving her a noisy kiss. Holding hands, they launched through Niagara Falls.
Liss—who’d been waiting to share this surprise—bounced in front of Maisy. “There’s a tiny tweak to you accompanying us on the first step of the plan.”
“No tweaking allowed two minutes before takeoff,” Rhys growled.
“We got you our own version of an Uber to the best place to try and materialize the Tree of Life.”
Rhys’s wings drooped. “Thought we were flying?”
“Why tire yourself out?” Then Zavier remembered that they weren’t just a three-person boys’ club anymore. That sensitivity and caution needed to come into play. “No offense, ladies, but carrying an extra person—no matter how lovely and, ah, trim, adds to the effort. Better to save ourselves for battle.”
“I hooked you up with another Hippocamp !” Liss squealed. Maisy squealed.
Rhys glowered. “You and Zavier use it. I don’t need a ride.”
“I do,” Maisy piped up. “I would absolutely love to ride one. You’ll have plenty of flying to do to get us to the Gates of Hell, Rhys. Don’t be all male and stubborn about this.”
See? Everything was normal. Rhys had a stick up his ass. Maisy wouldn’t have any of it. Zavier lifted Liss into his arms. Inhaled deeply of her jasmine perfume.
And took one extra-long look at the WatchTower before leading his friends to the waterfall on Crete.
…
Maisy peered into the pre-dawn darkness. Next to her, Liss also looked straight ahead. Lots of stars out over the Sea of Crete, but no moon. The smooth water close to them was black, with barely a ripple. The horizon wasn’t visible. It was eerie, to say the least.
“I promise, once the sun comes up, you’ll love it here. The beaches are stunning. The water’s warm.”
“Well, it’s supposed to be a high of twelve back in Buffalo today. With an ice storm forecast for tonight. You’re pushing the right buttons. Except that I don’t have my bathing suit. Or a towel.”
Liss started to offer up an option, but Zavier caught her eye and shook a finger. “No skinny-dipping.”
Darn it. Well, she could try and bluff it out. She tugged at her wetsuit. “Why would you assume that would be my suggestion?”
“You enjoy pushing boundaries. And ignoring rules.”
The man knew her so well. Of course she was going to marry him.
If he survived.
If they survived.
This sort of thing was not covered in blogs on When To Say Yes .
“We’ll go on a big vacation. After this all goes according to plan,” Rhys said with extra emphasis on each word. Like he was trying to convince himself as well as them. “Greece. Australia. Bali. Anyplace warm.”
Maisy ruffled his wing feathers. “Are you trying to bribe me into doing a good job? Because I have to say, I’m already at maximum motivation what with trying to save the entire world.”
“Call it the icing on the cake.”
Mmm. That reminded Liss of how Zavier had devoured the Basque cheesecake the restaurant gave them after the whole showy public proposal. “Zavier’s got a sweet tooth. He’d do just about anything for cake.”
“Right. Because I hauled ass out here in the middle of the night just to get some exercise. Not because I have a mission that I expect to carry out.”
“Zavier’s also cranky. That’s on me. Sorry, everyone.” Liss actually found his moody snarling to be adorable. It was his defense mechanism. If it made him feel better, she was all for it.
“Z’s fine.” Rhys brushed off her comment. “I, however, am getting old standing around waiting for this ride you foisted on me.”
Gideon and Zavier were right. Rhys really did get stern and un-fun when on a mission. “Here goes.”
Liss thought hard about the Hippocamp she’d met. Then she opened her mouth and began to sing.
Unfortunately, what came out was the love theme to Titanic . Probably from being on the edge of the ocean. But yikes, what a gloomy and foreboding song for her subconscious to tee up.
They heard him before they saw him. An added oomph to the susurration of the waves. Through the darkness, the first thing visible was the stunning scarlet mane. Next to her, Maisy gasped.
“I changed my mind,” Rhys said. “I’m up for a ride.”
Soon both Hippocamps were visible. The second one seemed older. The mane wasn’t white or anything, but Liss got an impression of tired strength.
“Greetings, Lady Liss.” The voice resonated in her head.
“I am grateful that you acceded to my request for aid.”
“We are friends now, are we not? And if we weren’t, this is important enough that every creature should offer to help.”
A noble steed, indeed. Liss waded out to put a hand to his head. “Dakarai, these are my friends, Rhys and Maisy.”
Zavier translated for Maisy’s sake what the Hippocamp said next, out loud. “I have brought my father, Zopyros. He is the leader of our herd. The honor is his to carry the Nephilim and the Keeper.”
All four of them bowed to Zopyros. Liss wanted a minute to fangirl out about meeting the head Hippocamp . But they had lots of people waiting on them. “The Tree of Life is everywhere, all at once, according to the poetic and very unclear texts we read. We should be able to make it appear no matter where we are.”
“But we’re here because this is our best guess as to where Atlantis disappeared.”
Zopyros spoke in Liss’s head. “Our herds used to swim up the river and frolic in its many waterfalls. The legends are old, but oft repeated.”
She dug her fingernails into Zavier’s arm. Sort of. The wetsuit hampered her. “You know? You know for sure that Atlantis was right here, off of Crete?” Zavier tensed beneath her touch.
“Yes.” His mane bobbed as his head dipped in assent for all to see.
A lot excited at yet another confirmation—and a little annoyed at the way they’d locked down this secret for so long, Liss said, “People have been looking for it for centuries.”
“Nobody asked the Hippocamps .”
Dakarai spoke aloud, with Zavier translating again. “It took unimaginable power to disappear a colony of angels. Our herds did not want to be on the wrong side of whoever did that. No questions were asked amongst the sea creatures. What little we knew, we kept to ourselves. Until you came along, Lady Liss.”
Go figure. The almost-human coming in with the good intel yet again. She couldn’t wait to rub that in to Caraxis.
“Zopyros, will you please take my friends out just beyond that small island? We don’t want to go too far from shore, with Rhys and Maisy having to fly back to the waterfall.”
Zavier flew them up, then settled onto Dakarai’s back. They’d given this a trial run a few days ago. The Hippocamp didn’t seem to be at all hampered by their weight. Probably because it was enormous and felt like a human would with a kitten on its back.
It didn’t take long for its powerful tail to move them through the water. Liss didn’t want the Hippocamps alarmed by what would happen, so she explained the next step. “You probably know more about Keepers than Maisy and I do. But she, as Keeper, is imbued with a shard of the First Light. The purest brightness. What shines from angels’ halos.”
“Next are you going to describe water to me?” A rolling chuckle filled her head.
“Sorry. Figured it was safer to give you the warning than be caught off guard when light shoots out of her hands.”
“You are new to this. Your concern is…nice.”
Liss turned over her shoulder. “He basically just patted me on the head. Apparently, I still have a lot to learn.”
“No kidding.” Zavier’s tone was as dry as the surface of Mars.
It was the perfect segue to the idea she’d been sucking on like a sour ball. “Would you mind if I took Caraxis up on his offer to teach me? Stumbling through the Nereid thing is enough. Figuring out what parts of a Nephilim I may or may not have is too much to figure out on my own.”
“I could help.”
Oh, that was hilarious . Liss tilted her head up, out of the spray of salt water. “I thought you wanted to marry me?”
“I do.”
“Then there’s no way in hell that you’re going to be the one to test me and teach me. Neither will Rhys. You’re both too bossy. We’d snap at each other so much that our skin would be flayed after a day.”
The arm banded around her waist shifted up. Zavier caressed her ribs. “You’re probably right. And Caraxis is a fair teacher. Don’t expect him to go easy, though. Just because you started out as a human.”
“I don’t want to be a warrior. I just want to be useful. And in control of whatever power’s running rampant in my body so I don’t accidentally burn the barista when she hands me coffee.” “Do no harm” wasn’t just a good motto for doctors. Liss figured it was what she needed to live by as she got to know her new abilities.
“You aren’t just useful, Liss. You’re integral to all our lives. Don’t let your awful parents in your head. You don’t need to be useful to be loved, to be treasured. You just have to be you .”
That was why she’d marry him. Even if it took forty years and twice as many battles before he felt safe saying that he loved her. Zavier made her feel loved. Treasured. Worthwhile. Which made her finally believe it for herself.
The Hippocamps stopped. They were…well, nowhere, really.
Just the middle of the Sea of Crete. Nothing but water around them. Liss had that slightly nauseating feeling of inevitability. Like when she’d gotten her tonsils out. Once they’d wheeled her out of the pre-op holding room, she knew there was no turning back.
Same feeling. But slightly mitigated by Zavier’s rock-solid chest against her back.
“Do your thing, beautiful.” Rhys kissed Maisy’s temple, then moved his hands to her hips as an anchor.
Liss had watched Maisy practice using her power a few times over the last six months. It was always a little bit mind-bending, seeing her wonderful-but-average BFF wield this force that could destroy demons.
But watching her use it in the WatchTower was nothing like what she was witnessing now .
Light shot from her hands. Light that they’d all learned not to look directly at, like an eclipse. In the darkness of the sea, Maisy looked like a movie poster: red hair whipping into a nimbus, light all around her.
The moment definitely deserved some superhero music.
Liss realized she’d been holding her breath when she tried to gasp and couldn’t. Because the outline of a gigantic tree suddenly glimmered in front of them.
Maisy’s First Light revealed it, but the Tree of Life glowed by itself as it took shape. Liss knew absolutely nothing about how to identify any kind of tree beyond a Christmas pine. But this one probably wasn’t quantifiable, anyway, because it looked like a mash-up of every tree.
There was a section with wide palm fronds—another with curved, tiny leaves like little saucers. Long, dripping needles that looked as soft as cashmere, the spikes of pine, and broad flat leaves in every imaginable shade of green.
The trunk kept solidifying and growing. It was easily taller than a plane stood on end. Taller than the Empire State Building. So tall that as it kept growing, Liss could no longer see the top of it.
“Wow,” Liss breathed. “You really did it, Maisy.”
Her friend’s voice shook as she said, “Yeah, I’m massively impressed with myself right now.”
“Step one complete,” Zavier murmured to Gideon over his Apple Watch.
Oh. Right. Step two was when they were supposed to deface this magnificent thing. Now Liss was even queasier. They had good reason, blah blah blah, but being confronted with the Tree now? Carving off a branch seemed incredibly wrong.
They’d told Zopyros that the moment the branch was off, he was to book it back to shore with Rhys and Maisy. It was sure to create a power shift, or a ripple. Something big enough that it wouldn’t go unnoticed by celestials. Heck, just making it appear might’ve sent a shock wave through the celestial kingdom.
It had to be assumed that from this second on, there was a chance that rogue angels and demons could descend on them at any moment.
Liss was officially terrified.
Just, sort of, an out-of-body terrified, because she was also in the zone. This had to happen. Literally had to happen, or else the Titans would be released and the world as they knew it would end and millions would die.
That focused her.
As did knowing that whatever happened, she’d be with Zavier.
So she blew a kiss to Maisy across the water. Waved.
And braced for…the unknown.