"Who teaches them?" I asked. I was becoming more shocked that the Nephilim were this advanced and organized after all these years. I knew they existed. I knew that many angels had created them once upon a time, including my own brother.
I didn't ever suspect my husband might have or that they were still a force on this Earth. I'd thought they were retired, hiding in the shadows, occasionally visiting their descendants, the Voodoo and other magical beings on the Earth.
"They do," Michael said. "They live pretty much forever, with our long life. They're easier to kill than we are, but they're insanely powerful. It's argued that they're more powerful than the angels and Fallen, but nobody wants to put it to the test."
Luc snorted. "No joke." He grumbled as he kept eating.
"Hang on." I had to stop him. How did he not already see the link? "Raphael had you go find the Nephilim Academy right before our Earth cycle, and we know that since then he's created at least one new Nephilim?" I raised my eyebrows at him.
"Yes, I see the link." He shrugged. "But what good does it do us?"
"What happened when you found it?" Luc asked.
"The headmaster looked exactly like me," Michael said in an incredulous voice. "Freaked me the hell out. We sat down and talked and figured out that he's my son."
I sat back and processed the information. "It seems to me that Raphael may be building up the Nephilim for a selfish reason. That's the only explanation I can think of. He's in a long game. He's planned all this for who knows how many years?"
Lucifer finished his food and pushed the bowl away. Michael took the dishes to the sink and began washing them. I smiled, loving him for being so considerate even as I still tried to process the fact that I was a stepmom to an ancient Nephilim Academy Headmaster I'd never met.
Eventually, irritation and anger won out. I knew Michael hadn't kept the information from me intentionally, but he should've told me at the first opportunity—before our Earth cycle. "Why didn't you come to me before? Before we came to Earth? When you were processing your emotions and figuring out how you felt about having a son."
He froze with his hands in the dishwater. "I don't know. Even though it happened before we were a couple, I felt guilty, like I'd betrayed you."
Lucifer rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. You were afraid she'd get pissed."
Water slung as Michael whirled. "That's not true, and this isn't strictly any of your business, is it?"
Oh, geez. Not this again. They got along most of the time, but sometimes they butted heads in the worst way. "Stop it," I said as firmly as I could. "We need to focus on Ariel now. This other stuff is important but can wait, okay?"
They nodded, but both looked pissed. I was pissed myself, but shit, Luc didn't have to make it worse.
Mary walked into the kitchen as Michael finished wiping the counters. "Thank you," she said.
I jumped up to see if she was ready to tell us how to find her friend.
She shook her head and held up a hand. Then, I noticed how tired she looked. "No, it was no good. He's really hard to get ahold of."
Lucifer sighed and rubbed his fingers across his eyes. As if Mary's tired demeanor reminded us of our own, suddenly I felt the weight of the exhaustion that came along with rebirth. It always took us days of rest to acclimate back into our Elysium bodies, but this time we'd had zero time.
"Maybe we should go home for a while," I suggested. "Until you get in touch with him. We won't be any good to anyone if we're utterly exhausted. We might make dangerous mistakes."
Mary nodded. "I think that's wise," she said. "I'll contact you as soon as I have any information." She yawned. "I have to take a break myself. This sort of contact is difficult and fiddly and drains me."
I exchanged a look with Michael, but Lucifer was still pissed and staunchly not looking at us. "Thank you, Mary." Standing, I took her hand and squeezed it, hopefully sending her my intense appreciation for her efforts. "We'll talk soon.”
5
Mary looked deep into my eyes and nodded. She understood exactly how much I appreciated all she was doing for us. I let go of her hand to grab Lucifer's and blink us to the house we'd lived in as humans. Michael followed right behind.
We collapsed on the couch in silence, I was sandwiched between my mates, exactly where I needed to be after the intensity of the day. The events of the past twenty-four hours reeled in my mind. I wasn't sure how long we'd been sitting quietly when Gabriel appeared out of nowhere.
We all jumped as he sighed and plopped down on the coffee table in front of us. "You three look like your best friend just died," he said.
None of us felt like correcting him, so we just glared. "What is going on out there?" I asked.
"The world leaders know what it is. They're all talking back and forth. Joel sent a delegate of angels to put their minds at ease that our best people are on the case." He chuckled. "And they say angels can't lie."
"Is there anything we can do?" I asked.
"Did you figure out how to send the demons back to hell?" Gabe retorted.
I shook my head.
"Then, no."
"I'm going to bed," I mumbled and slowly stood. Even my Elysium body was achy. I was just that tired.
Gabe jumped up. "Ah, well, you better let Michael and I clean up a bit first." He
