Angel Fever

them – and judging from the distance, they were only a block away, heading straight for the Coliseum’s rear entrance.

Forcing himself to stay focused, Alex kept trying, aware of the seconds rushing past. The angels had almost reached the door now. He wasn’t going to make it.

He ignored the thought; at the same moment, he found a slight give in the ether. There. He shoved his consciousness through; this time the energy on the other side felt calm – homelike. Working fast, he started widening the hole.

He could feel that Raziel’s gate was much more efficient than Cully’s; to his relief, he had it open in seconds. Through it he could see only darkness.

He heard the distant sound of shouting. The angels were through the Coliseum door, streaming down the long hallway – they’d be here any moment. Alex turned quickly to Miranda, not knowing how to say thank you. He didn’t try. He reached for her hands; his own went through them, but he held on anyway, letting her tingling energy rush through him.

“You asked who I am,” he said hurriedly. “My name’s Alex; I’m in love with your daughter. And I promise you – I swear to you – I will make her happy for the rest of her life.”

Miranda looked close to tears, insubstantial at the edges again. “Thank you, Alex,” she whispered. “And when she tries to link with the energy field – she needs to do it in Pawntucket. There’s a place there where she can get through. It’s—”

Alex’s head jerked up as shouts reverberated just on the other side of the door.

“I’ve got to go,” he said in a rush. “You’d better go too, just in case.” He hastily kissed Miranda’s fading cheek, his lips brushing air – and then hurled himself through the opening.

Alex’s muscles were tight, ready for the same screaming agony as last time. It didn’t come. In a smooth, seamless motion, he was suddenly lying on a floor in the darkness, wincing only at the pain in his ribs. Silence – the gate had closed once more to a tiny pinprick behind him.

He sat up slowly, listening to the hard beating of his heart. There was no other sound. Why had it been so much easier coming through from the angels’ world? Maybe it was just that Cully hadn’t really known what he was doing.

Whatever; Alex wasn’t complaining. As he struggled to his feet, he could see a faint light: plastic runners darting along the floor. He was in the Denver Church of Angels cathedral, in an alcove formed by two pillars near the main doors. Down below, past aisles and aisles of seats, was where Willow had attempted to stop the Second Wave.

Willow. He let out a breath, hardly able to believe that he was really back – that with luck, he’d see her again in just a few days. Then, remembering what Miranda had said about Willow going to Pawntucket, he frowned, urgency pulsing through him.

A green Exit sign cast a glow over two tall silver doors. A trip alarm sat on top of them, its electronic eyes gleaming. Alex reached into his pocket for his penknife and craned upwards, slicing neatly through the alarm’s wire.

He swung open the door and stepped outside. Broad white steps shone in the moonlight. Faint unease stirred in Alex as he jogged down them, disregarding his injured foot. Moonlight? It hadn’t even been dark yet when he’d left the angels’ world. From out of nowhere came the memory of when the Third Wave had arrived – the glimpse of twilight through the gate while here it had been afternoon.

Raziel always worries about the timings now, Miranda had said.

Okay, so time in the angels’ world was a few hours off from their own. Interesting, but not hugely relevant. He had to steal a car and get to Pawntucket as soon as possible.

He’d head north-east, he decided, to the main highway. There’d be plenty of Eden staff driving along that route – he’d steal a vehicle from one if it was the last thing he ever did.

Hang on, babe, I’m on my way, he thought as he jogged across the dark parking lot. Pawntucket was almost two thousand miles away, across uncertain roads. But he’d get there, no matter what… And when he did, he knew that no power on earth would ever separate him from Willow again.

25

THE 4 X 4 TRUNDLED steadily over the empty road.

When we’d left the lodge three mornings ago, I’d felt beyond relieved to see the blue skies overhead. Only about six inches of snow lay on the ground. The truck could handle that, if the good weather held.

Two weeks, I kept thinking. Mentally counting back, I’d left the shopping mall nine days ago. If the angel I’d fought in the base corridor had been accurate, we still had five days before Raziel attacked.

It didn’t make me feel any more relaxed, even though we’d crossed the New York border that morning – and with luck, would be in Pawntucket in just four or five hours. I sat curled tensely in the passenger seat as Seb drove, staring out at the pointed, white-covered fir trees. It was so serene, like driving through a Christmas card.

The atmosphere inside the truck was quiet too, though not exactly serene. Seb and I were only speaking when we had to. I kept thinking of all the things I wanted to say and then biting them back. I didn’t want to argue any more.

The kiss between us had…not been a good idea.

At first, it had seemed perfect. We’d been propped against the bar, holding each other tight, our mouths hot and searching. I’d felt drunk with sensation as I caressed Seb’s warm back beneath his T-shirt, thinking, Oh god, I’ve missed this – please don’t stop, Seb, don’t stop. Above, our angels had explored each other too, just as they had the time we’d kissed in Tepito: a dizzying burst of energy as their winged forms met and merged.

And then it happened.

Our psychic link had faded some with our distance this past year. But now, with our angels’ energies so entwined, there were suddenly no secrets at all.

A girl with long auburn hair. The warmth of her smile – the sound of her laughter.

As images and knowledge swept through me, I stiffened. So did Seb; I think we both pulled away at the same moment. I stared at him in dismay, my pulse still hammering from the kiss, trying to get my head around what I’d sensed.

And then I saw that Seb was staring at me in the same way.

“What?” I whispered, swallowing.

The corner of his mouth lifted. There was no humour to it. “You are not ready for this,” he said. “So I think we had better forget it.”

It was the last thing I’d expected. “What? Seb, I am! It’s been over a year now. I—”

“It doesn’t matter; you’re still not over Alex.” He turned away and scooped up the sleeping bag, starting stiffly towards the fireplace.

Suddenly angry, I rushed after him and grabbed his arm. “Look, I’ll always love Alex – I never said I didn’t! But that’s got nothing to do with—”

He whirled towards me. “It’s got everything to do with it! He’s all you want. You don’t want me at all.”

“That’s…I…” I trailed off, feeling cold.

“The whole time—” Seb hurled the sleeping bag onto the sofa, hard. “How could I have been so stupid? I should have known that you just wanted a – a substituto.”

“I didn’t just want a substitute! Seb, I really care about you!”

“Not like that, and you know it,” he snapped back. “You’ve been feeling lonely – and then when I got hurt, it reminded you too much of when Alex died. You wanted someone – and lucky me, I was