Chambers agreed. “Sir, how do I write this one up?”
“How about: Dungeons & Dragons game gone horribly wrong,” Tom said. “I’m going to position a few cars at the gates just in case we’re needed. But I fear, tonight, the dead are going to seek out their own kind of justice, and we don’t need to get in the middle of it.”
Quazar was waiting for the Others at the graveyard crossroads. “I don’t like this fog. Can’t tell who’s who. Have you killed Mia Martin?”
“No,” the tall Other admitted. “She and her pet ghost took out my first partner and my squad. This is my new partner. He thought ahead and brought two squads. We’ll have them before the night is out. If they take flight, we have the Nephilim Daskalov hungry for a birdman supper. If they try to leave the graveyard, I have two hellhounds patrolling. Right now, no one gets in or out alive.”
“Remember, I want the eldest child of Mia’s alive. I have a buyer for him. The rest, feed to the Nephilim or the dogs.”
“Yes, Quazar.”
“Don’t disturb the dead. We don’t need Dis Pater’s di inferi attacking us,” he warned. “His reach is far.”
“Yes, Quazar. I have a question, sir,” the tall Other asked.
“Yes?”
“Mia and her ghost knew my squad’s moves before they did. How is this?”
“Simple, she killed all of you before. Be careful, we are dealing with one of the most dangerous creatures ever made.”
“She’s just a hybrid.”
“No, she’s a mother protecting her young.”
The new partner nodded, trying to rub the chill of death off his arms.
Ted pulled the van over in the empty lot opposite the graveyard. Cid pulled the PEEPs vehicle in beside him. Ted jumped out and started across the street.
“Ted, stop!” Cid said.
Ted turned and looked at Cid who was frantically waving him back towards him.
He didn’t want to obey Cid, but some inner voice told him that his life was at stake. He ran back.
Cid opened up the back of the command center. “Get in,” he ordered.
“What the hell?”
“Yes exactly. Listen,” he ordered, handing Ted the earphones connected to a parabolic dish.
Ted heard the panting of two dogs. “What are they?”
“Jake says, according to his mole on the Dark Web, that two hellhounds were purchased ten minutes ago. I heard them when I parked.”
“God bless your super ears,” Ted said.
“Ahem!” Marvin the Martian said from the main console.
“And God bless Jake,” Ted added. “How do we let Mia know?”
“The dead will tell her,” Cid said. “They are as frightened of the hellhounds as they are of Mia.”
“The dogs are trained to keep all within the iron fence. They can’t climb the fence or venture thirteen feet from the fence. These are Dis Pater’s rules, according to the Dark Web,” Jake announced.
“Can we contact Dis Pater?”
“Not and live,” Jake said. “Mia and Murphy barely got Tom out of his kingdom alive.”
“What do I do?” Ted asked.
“What you do best,” Cid said. “Wait.”
Acalan watched the sun dip into the trees in the west. “I feel so helpless. I should be helping the deputies find the children.”
Esther put a gentle hand on his back. “You stopped the Others from taking the children. You’ve done enough. Now, you have to think of keeping yourself alive. Heaven will want to speak with you as soon as this crisis is over.”
“What is this crisis?” Zarita asked.
“The first angel to be born is being hunted. They aim to kill him.”
“Why?” Zarita asked.
“Because there is a group of people who don’t believe angels should be on Earth. They believe that the planet is theirs to plunder. They are the Cynosura. They intend to use up all the resources here and then move on to the stars. Only the richest of their group will make the journey. They will do this on the backs of the poor and the middle class,” Esther told them.
“Why does Heaven want to speak with me?” Acalan asked.
Esther put her hand on the painting. “Because of this.”
“Because of Mia?”
“No, because you can see her wings. If you can see Mia’s wings, then you can see other wings.”
“Like the two babies in the stroller, one had black wings and the other white,” Acalan told her.
“One is an angel. The other is a birdman. A birdman like the man who took his wife to their son.”
“But their son isn’t the birdman?” Zarita asked, confused.
“No, he’s the angel. Mia’s son is the birdman.”
“She has two other sons,” Acalan said.
“One is an Attrpeur-âme, a catcher of souls. The other could be the chosen one, but that is only speculation.”
“I don’t understand, what is the chosen one?” Acalan asked.
“He is prophesized to be a great sage. A man of wisdom who grows up as a mortal and learns your faults and your strengths. He will guide your race into the next millennium.”
“But that is so far from now. Brian will be too old.”
“Mia’s children are special. They will live a long time.”
“Unless those creeps get to them. I really must go and help,” Acalan insisted.
“Alas, we cannot interfere. They have released hellhounds. You won’t be able to get near the fence, let alone cross over it.”
“You could fly me in.”
A well-timed shriek filled the town.
“Hear that? That’s a monster called a Nephilim. I can’t even leave this building without being devoured by it. I’m afraid we’ll have to sit and wait.”
“Why are you here?” Zarita asked.
“Mia told Saint Michael about Acalan, and he sent me to protect him. And
