“There’s something off about these people,” the blonde-haired angel murmured, and Surcy could feel her gaze burning into her back.
“I don’t trust them,” another muttered back.
“Quiet,” a third hissed.
She glanced at her demons. They had false smiles plastered on their faces, but she could sense the tension radiating from them. What’s the plan, guys?
Daniel took her hand and nodded at his brothers.
Leaning closer to her, he whispered in her ear. “In ten seconds, teleport us back to the building top.”
Her eyes widened. All of us?
It was tricky, but she could do it. And she could keep her teleportation path hidden from the other angels.
But am I really going to do it?
Behind her, the air tingled. The angels had called their soul-blades to them.
Shit!
Using her magic, she teleported their party.
Wind swept around them for a moment. She gritted her teeth, and spread her awareness over her entire group, keeping them close. Behind her, she could feel the glowing trail of magic, which would lead the others straight to them. Blowing softly, she sent the path scattering like stars.
When they arrived back on the rooftop, she fell to her knees, dropping Daniel’s and the woman’s hands. Mark was beside her in an instant.
“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice worried.
She nodded.
It shouldn’t have been so hard, but she wasn’t fully recovered from whatever she’d been through. She could feel it in her bones. She needed to heal and regain her strength.
“What just happened?” the woman said, backing away.
“It’s okay.” Daniel turned his attention back to her. “We just brought you somewhere safe, so we could talk.”
The woman pulled her daughter closer and took several steps back. “I’m tripping. I’ve ODed somewhere. That’s what’s happening. This isn’t possible.”
“Mom.” Her daughter looked between her mother and them. “I thought we were getting ice cream.”
“None of this is real,” the woman murmured.
Mark held up a reassuring hand. “Listen, we’re here to help. We know what you’ve been doing. We know about what you can do.”
The woman’s eyes widened. “I’m just a druggie. I can’t do anything.”
“You can sense things about other people. If you touch them, you can see pieces of their past and future. You know who they’re meant to be with.” Mark spoke with absolute certainty, but with kindness.
She shook her head and took another step back. “I can’t. Dr. Marshall says I’m imagining it. That my brain isn’t quite right.”
Surcy’s gaze slid from the woman to the edge of the building not far behind her. She's too close to the edge. I hope Mark knows what he’s doing.
“Your doctor was wrong. Everyone is wrong.”
She took another step back, tightening her grip around her daughter. “They’re not. What I do—it’s not possible. It’s all in my head.”
“No,” Mark slid closer to her. “Just because humans can’t explain your abilities doesn’t mean they’re not real. In fact, all of us have unique abilities.”
The woman stared at all of them, moving back. Far too close to the edge of the building. “This isn’t real. I’m insane. I’m useless.”
Surcy tried to uncurl her wings, but her shoulder only gave a painful twing. We can’t let her get closer. We can’t let her jump!
“Then how do you explain us appearing on the top of this building?”
The woman closed her eyes. “None of this is real.”
“Mom?” There were tears in the girl’s eyes. “I’m scared."
“You don’t have to keep living like you have, being tortured by those bastards. The voices filling your mind with doubts and lies. We can help. Please, give us a chance!”
She opened her eyes, fear and hope warring in her gaze. “What am I then?”
Mark dropped his hand. “The Goddess of Love.”
Something darkened her face. “Liar. I’m no goddess. And no one knows less about love than me. This is all just some twisted trip I’m on.”
Daniel opened his mouth.
The woman jumped back and with surprising quickness, flung herself and her daughter over the edge.
A scream tore from Surcy’s lips. She reached for them, seeing nothing but the daughter’s terrified face, but she wasn’t fast enough.
They fell.
For a second, time seemed to stand still, and then, Tristan leapt over the edge of the building and sped after the humans falling to their deaths.
As Surcy stared after them, a horrible realization hit her. Not even a demon could survive that fall.
18
Tristan grasped the human and her tiny daughter and wrapped his arms tightly around them. The ground was coming too fast. But he was faster.
From one moment to the next, his body became ice cold. Hard.
When his stone feet struck the ground, they broke the sidewalk beneath him, sending cracks all around his feet. A human in a doorway screamed and raced away.
He uncurled his stone wings from around the two humans. And the older of the two turned to look at him, horror in her eyes.
“That should have ended this episode. Why didn’t it?”
“This is not some drug-induced fantasy.” He stood slowly, still holding them in his arms. “We are here to save you and your child from cruel beings that would destroy your lives. If you don't put your trust in us, you’ll both die.”
The little girl burst out crying, but the mom stared straight through him. “What are you?”
“A gargoyle, among other things.”
After a second, determination made her mouth draw into a thin line. “And why should I trust complete strangers?”
“Because already you are feeling better, away from their cruel magic. Tell me I’m wrong.”
Her eyes widened. Then, very slowly, she nodded.
He felt a wave of relief. The angels would already be searching for her, and they weren’t far away. Their rescue would go easier if the woman and her child were willing. A shadow fell over him. He rolled, taking the humans with him.
The angel hit the ground where they had only moments before stood. Her soul-blade was clutched in her hand, and the blonde’s lips were curled in an expression of determination.
“You cannot hurt me, angel.”
She smirked. “But I can hurt the humans.”
His heart thudded
