“You are to eat and be walked,” he says watching her.
Huffing indignantly, she asks, “What am I, a dog now?”
Mark tries not to smile, as he steps back waiting for her to sit.
Varena wipes the tears from her face and sighs, “Very well, it does smell good.” Stepping over to the table, she bows down on her knees, “Father, I know you can hear me. I ask that you strengthen me tonight. Cover me with your feathers and under your wings I will trust in you!” Rising slowly she turns and sees, the angel Mark has a stunned look on his face.
“You dare to pray to him? Why, do think he can hear you?”
“I know he can, because he talks to me.” Mark moves closer, and looks around the room.
“What does he say to you?” he asks with a desperate look in his eyes.
She ponders him for a moment, then leans over and says softly, “Be still, and know that I am God.”
Stepping back from her in shock he looks at her in a new light. “God is not here!” he says fiercely.
Varena walks over to the large angel and looks up at his beautiful face. Studying him carefully she sees a handsome male with short black hair, hazel eyes, and dimples. Not all of his beauty hides the pain in his soul. Varena places her hand on his chest, over his heart, and whispers, “That’s because he is here.”
Dropping to his knees, he weeps sorrow filled tears. He begs her with his arms around her legs, “Forgive me. Show me the God you know and that I have forgotten.” Looking up at her he pleads, “Help me.”
“I will,” she softly promises, feeling a peace she can’t explain.
Three weeks later, she sits wondering how much longer this can go on before she is caught. The baby grows stronger every day. She is showing now, and the one who delivers the babies tell her that the pregnancies only last half the time of a normal pregnancy. That leaves her only a few weeks until the baby’s birth. She has to find a way to escape. They have warned her that most of her kind dies during childbirth. Her mother had six children with the Mocker and survived, so they believe she has a chance. Varena believes that because Raphaim’s mother was human, that makes this baby more human than demon. Caressing her belly, she sits comfortably and Mark urges her to try again. Samiel has been leaving the keep to visit the human world more, seeking more humans with paranormal gifts and abilities. He believes this will make for stronger demons.
During Samiel’s absences, Mark would encourage her to practice what Tieran and the others taught her. She is physically strong, and they practice together, but she does not tell him of her ability to watch without a thread. Normally her body would be attached to a thread to keep her bound to the plane she is in, but she is trying to go further each time through different planes without being detected. The demons are drawn to the golden threads and since she is pregnant, her aura flashes brightly. A thread and a flashing aura would definitely not work together.
Varena has come to care for Mark, and she is scared for him. She remembers what happened to Tieran and she does not want that same fate for Mark. Her heart beats fast at the knock on the door, and Mark enters with a look of determination in his eyes. He gives her a scroll from his bloody hands.
Taking the scroll from him, Varena asks, “What is this, Mark?” Looking up at into his battered face, she sees he is beaten and cut up. Dried blood is on his legs and arms.
“It is how he has power over us. You will take it with you and go now! Do not question me anymore. The less you know the better. It is your only chance at escape. Find the Keeper and give it to her!”
“Mark, wait…” rushing to him, she looks up into his eyes and tells him, “I shall pray for your soul every day for the rest of my days, and beg for forgiveness for you. You will not be forgotten.” He bows to her with tears in his eyes, and leaves.
She knows what will happen to him when she leaves him, but her baby must be saved. Sitting alone, she closes her eyes thinking. She decides to risk it. She will have only a few minutes before they are drawn to her thread. Tucking the scroll inside of her dress, she knows she has to try to find help. She closes her eyes, lies quietly on her bed, and begins. First, she must make it to another astral plane of existence. After a few minutes, she is through the first level, then another. This time she makes it to the third plane, that’s when a sparkle catches her eye, and she moves towards it. A young man smiles at her and waves and when she sees that he has no thread she becomes excited. Moving closer, she can see that his aura is golden surrounded by silver.
“You are flashing on and off like a beacon!” he says excitedly.
“I think it’s because I am pregnant,” she tells him.
He smiles at her with kind, brown eyes, and asks her, “Are you a Watcher?”
“My name is Varena; I am Child of the Light. I am in trouble. Can you get a message to someone for me?”
“I will do my best. Who are you looking for?” he asks with a serious look in his eyes.
“They will come for me soon. I need you to find the Keeper. Her name is Elina!” she says nervously.
“Who is coming for you?”
A vibration begins to fill her soul, and fear fills her face. “NO,” she whispers.
The boy grabs her wrist and tells her, “It
