Page 46 of The Angel's Kiss
The two black trucks stopped and six Guards, fully armed, climbed out and walked over to us. They all bowed their heads at me. “Guardian,” they said.
I had to admit, that shit was pretty cool. Especially since two of them used to bully me when I first got there. Not the main trio, but they were in that pack. Now, they had to show me the utmost respect. A guy could get used to that.
“Take us to the Headmaster,” I said as I started walking toward one of the trucks with Veronica at my side.
“Yes, sir,” they said and we all got inside the vehicles.
Their timing was perfect because I hadn’t felt like walking the whole way. A few minutes later, we were pulling in front of the main building and I had Veronica at my side as I made my way to Darius’ office.
“Back so soon?” his secretary joked.
“It’s serious and I need to speak with Darius,” I said. I wasn’t in the mood for banter.
The double doors to Darius’ office opened and he stood in the entryway. “Come in, Rai.”
Once inside, he closed the doors behind us. After introductions and all that, I stated the reason for my visit. “She needs to stay here.”
“Why?” Darius asked.
I explained why.
He nodded. “I see. Yes, then she should stay here, protected.” He took Veronica by her shoulders and started walking her to the door. “My secretary will take care of you. I’m sure you’re exhausted, full of emotions, and just want to sleep.”
She nodded. “I’m scared.”
Darius nodded. “I understand. Don’t worry, you’re safe here. No demon can enter. You can rest.”
“You promise?” Veronica asked.
“I promise,” Darius replied.
Once his secretary had Veronica and her instructions to take care of the girl, Darius closed the door and turned to face me. “Do you know why the demons wanted her?”
“Azazel said it’s because they need the Chosen One to open Satan’s cell. Apparently, they need a certain human’s blood as the key. He doesn’t think she’s it, though,” I said.
Darius frowned. “It’s impossible to open that cell. A Guardian and Champion died in order to seal Lucifer away.”
“Ade and his Champion Azrael?”
Darius nodded. “Yes. It took the Archangel of Death, ‘Whom God helps’ to sacrifice himself and through him, his Guardian in order to give their spell the power and celestial essence needed to lock him away. They were a Divine Weapon. Lucifer was too powerful to kill, it was all we could do before he brought upon the total destruction of mankind.”
“I guess that’s what demons want. Azazel said it was pretty much a myth in the demonic realm too, but maybe it’s not. Maybe something changed where demons believe that there really is a Chosen One and that’s why they’re looking for them,” I said.
Darius frowned as he walked back over to his desk and sat down in the leather chair. I took that as my cue to also take a seat. “I don’t understand why demons want to unleash him. For thousands of years, they’ve been ruled by the three Empresses. For all intent and purposes, Hades isn’t in chaos.”
I shrugged. “Maybe there’s a faction among them who want their original ruler to take his mantle up again.”
“He’s not their original ruler, but he was their most favored. Even the current ruling Empresses obeyed his orders,” Darius said.
“Do you think they will fight him reclaiming his throne?” I asked.
Darius arched an eyebrow. “Hard to say. If there is a dissenting faction, then they want unification.”
“Glorification under one.”
“To them, Satan is their God, so what you’re saying makes sense. I just can’t figure out why they think they have a chance to free him,” Darius said. “I need to speak with my Champion.”
Oh, this was a treat. I’d never met Darius’ Champion. I’d met one of the Guardian’s Champions. Terri had bonded with the Archangel Jeremiel to show me what it would look like to battle as one during one of our training sessions. That had been impressive enough. But Michael was a bit of a legend among all of the Archangels. I wondered if that was how Darius survived to be the oldest among us.
