Dark Saviors: The Consequence of Destiny Novella Read online

  “Think about how powerful we could be, especially if we teamed up together.”

  “I don’t give a shit about having power, Gabriel,” I spit out his name. “All I care about is getting my friends the hell out of here!”

  “Suit yourself. Then I guess I have no other options. It was nice meeting you, Carson. Too bad it was short lived, much like your life.”

  The way he said that last sentence, so nonchalant, but with so much venom, I knew he didn’t expect me or the girls to leave that room alive. I was about to be in a fight for my life.

  Chapter 11

  “Should I start with the girls first?” Gabriel asked. “Or would you rather they watch you die instead?”

  “How about neither,” I spit out as I stalked closer to Gabriel.

  “Are you getting tougher now that you have wings?” he asked mockingly.

  “No, I’m got tougher when I realized it was live or die. And I’m leaving this room alive, Gabriel. With. My. Friends.”

  With that declaration, I stopped a few inches in front of Gabriel and raised my hand. Only then did I get a whiff of Gabriel. Sure enough, he smelled exactly like clove and honey. I almost snickered about the fact that he smelled like a cup of tea. Acting on pure instinct, I allowed my anger to take control of my body and was surprised to see what looked like a bolt of lightning shoot out of my palm. It went directly through Gabriel and knocked him to the floor.

  I breathed deeply as the realization of what I’d just done took over, and I turned my hand over to examine it. My hand was shaking as I stared down, and with the exception of just a little tinge of red in the center of the palm, there was no difference. I curled my fingers into a fist and stepped over to where the girls were still seated.

  Again, allowing my instincts to take over, I raised hands and laid them shakily on their heads. I closed my eyes, breathing deeply, and concentrated on my friends and how they were when they were awake. I recalled their laughter, how Courtney talked with her hands, and how Kimmie blushed when she dripped pizza sauce down the front of her shirt.

  My arms tingled and I felt my hands heating up as my energy flowed through my palms and into their scalps. I started to quiver as I expelled more and more energy into them, willing them to wake up. And then I felt them start to stir beneath my hands, and I let them go. I dropped my hands and opened my eyes, letting out a relieved breath as I saw them blinking up at me.

  “Carson? You really came?” Kimmie asked, blinking as she took in her surroundings.

  “Of course, I did,” I replied, surprised at her choice of words. Yet too relieved they were okay to even question it.

  “My vision was right,” Courtney replied in awe as she slowly stood up. She reached down and grabbed Kimmie’s hand, helping to pull her up, as well.

  “Vision?”

  Courtney nodded. “Yes. I saw all three of us standing in this room together. I wasn’t sure why we would be here, but I felt like it was something bad. And here we are.”

  “Did you see Gabriel?”

  Courtney nodded again. “I did. And I saw him take us, as well.”

  “You didn’t tell me that,” Kimmie said sharply to Courtney.

  Courtney shrugged. “You know my visions are subjective sometimes. I saw him grab us at a department store. That’s why I suggested we go to the mall.”

  “You should have told me. Then we could’ve stayed in the house instead of going out and getting freaking kidnapped by this weirdo.”

  “He was going to grab us whether we hid or not, it was only a matter of time. But I saw Carson save us, as well.”

  I opened my mouth to interrupt their little disagreement, but no words came out. Instead, there was a pain unlike anything I’d ever felt before right in my chest. I groaned and placed my hand over my chest as if I could somehow alleviate some of the pain as I collapsed to my knees on the floor.

  My breath came out in shallow rasps, and my wings started to flap behind me, creating an odd wind that caused the flames to dance on the walls and the dust to stir. It felt like someone had my heart in a vice and was squeezing it tighter with every breath I took.

  I could make out the noises of Kimmie and Courtney screaming in my ear, but I couldn’t understand what they were saying. Not over the din of my flapping wings and shallow breaths. I bent over, getting down on all fours, and rested my palms on the floor. I raised my eyes and saw Gabriel standing there, his outstretched hand clenched into a fist, and his eyes flashing black.

  I waited for the moment I’d heard so much about; of my life flashing before my eyes in the wake of my death, but nothing happened. Honestly, that really sucked. It just proved how much my life was actually lacking if I didn’t even have any memories to reflect on. But, I also knew that I wasn’t ready to die. Not like this, not in some creepy house with a malicious long-lost twin brother. What the fuck?

  I closed my eyes and concentrated on locating my inner energy, but it was no use. The grip Gabriel had on my heart was too much, and I couldn’t fight it. I was going to die, after all. And my friends were going to have to witness it. I just hoped they made it out alive, and they wouldn’t be victims to him, as well.

  I braced myself for the final few moments of life when I felt the grip loosening on my chest before going away completely, followed by a grunt and the sound of something slamming into the wall. My eyes snapped open, and I looked up to see Gabriel pressed against the wall, his arms and legs stretched out as if he were being restrained.

  I took a deep breath and straightened up, setting the backs of my thighs on my heels and looked over my shoulders. Alistair had returned, and he looked murderous. Both of his hands were outstretched and beams of light were shooting out of his palms. Kimmie was standing beside him, mimicking his stance, while Courtney was next to her, watching what was happening.

  Gabriel struggled against their hold, and I could see Alistair and Kimmie weakening. He was too strong for them both, and I knew I needed to step in and help. Slowly, I climbed to my feet and walked over to stand beside Alistair. Mustering up strength I didn’t know I possessed, I raised both of my hands and pushed the energy out of my body. My hands jerked as the light shot out of my palms and straight into Gabriel’s chest, delivering the final blow. His eyes widened, and his breath seemed to leave his body before he stopped struggling against the hold. Then his body went slack.

  Kimmie, Alistair, and I lowered our hands and watched as Gabriel’s body slid to the floor, crumbling into a heap against the wall. Alistair turned and feasted his black eyes on me.

  “Get the girls out of here,” he demanded; his voice hoarse as he walked over to Gabriel.

  I looked at the girls. “You heard him. You two need to go wait for us by the car.”

  “What about you?” Kimmie asked.

  I shook my head. “I’m not leaving him alone with Gabriel, just in case…” I trailed off with a shrug.

  They both nodded in understanding before casting one last look at Alistair and Gabriel. Then, without any further objections, they turned and walked out of the room. It wasn’t until I heard the sounds of their footfalls descending the stairs that I turned back around to the other man in the room.

  “You need to leave. I don’t want you seeing this,” Alistair forced out as he scowled at me.

  “I’m not leaving you,” I replied firmly. “So do what you need to do so we can get the hell out of here.”

  Alistair glared at me for another moment before dropping down to his knees beside Gabriel. I watched in fascination as Alistair’s nostrils flared, and he bent his head to sniff at Gabriel’s feet.

  I knew what he was doing, and I should’ve been scared. Hell, I should’ve even been feeling guilty and remorseful over the fact that I helped kill my brother. But I didn’t. He wasn’t anything to me. Only a man, an evil man at that, who I was in the presence of for about an hour. A man who tried to kill me and my two friends. What I’d done was self-defense. So no, I wasn’t scared at all. I was more curio
us as to how he was going to complete his task.

  Alistair slowly made his way up Gabriel’s body, breathing deeply every inch of the way. When he got to Gabriel’s neck, he paused, taking in a huge breath, filling his lungs with Gabriel’s scent. He low out a low growl before laying a hand on Gabriel’s head and another on his chest. The candles in the room flared, the flames shooting higher as the wax started to drip onto the floor.

  Then, Alistair started to mumble, his voice getting louder and more intense with every word he spoke, until he was nearly screaming the words out. My eyes widened when I watched Gabriel’s body start to convulse on the floor. The body twitched and twisted, and I took a step back, and another, until I bumped into a wall. But Alistair didn’t seem phased. In fact, he continued to chant even more.

  Gabriel’s body started to writhe even more before a glow surrounded him, but not a golden hue like the light we had projected earlier. No, this light was green. Not even a vibrant, shimmery green. No, it was a muddy, pea green that completely encompassed his body. Alistair opened his eyes, and then leaned his head down even further, until his lips hovered over Gabriel’s. His jaw slackened as Gabriel’s fell open, releasing a green smoke from Gabriel’s body. Alistair stayed hovered, his body going stiff as the smoke entered his mouth. That’s when I realized the green smoke was Gabriel’s tainted soul.

  My eyes were the size of small saucers as I witnessed Alistair sucking Gabriel’s soul. Then, when the light faded, and the last bit of soul left Gabriel, his body collapsed back on the floor. Alistair wiped his mouth and looked up at me. What I saw had me gasping, yet again, in surprise. His eyes, which were once black, were now red—blood red.

  “You weren’t supposed to see that,” he told me, his voice sounding raw and hesitant.

  I shrugged, aiming for nonchalance. “I needed to stay. You know, in case he woke up.”

  “He wasn’t going to.”

  “Haven’t you ever seen a scary movie? The bad guy always comes back in the end for one last kill.”

  “This isn’t a scary movie. This is life,” Alistair retorted as he stood up and walked closer to me. “I didn’t want you to see that.”

  I stood taller, my wings fluttering a little behind me. It was the strangest feeling, and I knew it’d take some getting used to. “That’s not really up to you, especially considering you left me.”

  “I had my reasons, and I came back.”

  “What reasons?”

  Alistair grunted and started to gag a little, his eyes got even redder. “I…need…to…leave.”

  Alistair didn’t give me another chance to speak as he started to run out of the room. I heard the clatter of his feet as he descended the stairs, followed by the sound of the heavy front door slamming shut, leaving me alone in that house…and in that room with my dead brother.

  I walked closer to Gabriel and stared down at the body. I willed myself to feel something for the man, anything other than the indifference I felt at the moment, but I felt…nothing. No guilt over taking his life. No sorrow over the fact that he was the only family member I’d ever met and now he was dead. No remorse that we never got to know each other the way brothers should. He was nothing to me but a waste, and honestly, I was glad he was gone.

  I turned around to head back out the house, not even stopping giving Gabriel a second thought. He could rot in there for all I cared, or the council could hunt him down and take care of the disposal of his body. I wasn’t sure how things worked in that realm, and I honestly didn’t care.

  Catching my shadow on the wall is what caused me to pause for a brief moment. Even with the crazy emotions I was feeling inside, I couldn’t in good-consciousness leave the house with all the candles burning. So I turned back around and made my way around the room to blow every candle out. When I got to the last candle, I took a deep breath and blew out the flame, encasing the room in darkness. I pivoted on my heel to leave the room and remembered my wings. I couldn’t leave the house, or make the drive, with wings protruding from my back.

  I closed my eyes and visualized the wings drawing up and into my back, and it was the weirdest sensation I’d ever experienced. It was cold, and tickled my back as the feathers caressed my skin. But finally, I felt the wings re-enter my back and nestle against the muscles and bones. It was definitely strange to know I had wings inside my body.

  Finally, feeling lighter than I did before I arrived, I walked out of the room and out of that freaking house. Kimmie and Courtney were waiting for me at the car, just as I’d asked them to do. The second I saw them I flashed them a smile, nearly splitting my face in two. They were alive and we were finally going to go home.

  Epilogue

  “I will never forgive you for keeping these amazing women away from me for so long,” Stephanie practically whined to me.

  “I wasn’t keeping them from you, Steph. I just had to get back into the groove of things and readjust. It’s been a crazy couple of weeks.”

  “You can say that, again,” Courtney snickered from where she was seated across from me at the table. Kimmie, seated next to her, laughed.

  “All I hear is excuses. You know I’ve wanted to meet your new friends, and the fact it’s taken this long is not okay with me.”

  “I’m sorry,” I told her, apologetically. “Can’t you be happy with the fact that we’re all here together, now?”

  Stephanie sighed and took a sip of her wine. “Fine, but only because you grilled us steaks and you have wine.”

  It had been three weeks since that crazy night with Gabriel. Three weeks that I spent trying to adjust to my new reality. Coming home, I wasn’t surprised to see that nothing had changed. The house was still a mess, the neighbors never came by to question whether or not I was okay, and work had just assumed I’d decided to work from home that day. Well, that’s what I’d gathered when a few coworkers had the audacity to make snarky comments about picking a different office for the day.

  I spent any time I had outside of work cleaning up the glass and replacing all of my blown bulbs. My carpets needed vacuumed numerous times and then shampooed. My furniture needed wiped down from any shards, and my bedding needed washed to ensure all the glass was gone. During that time Stephanie came by my house and pounded on the door. When I opened it, she nearly tackled me with a hug before demanding to know what the hell was going on.

  I hadn’t planned on telling her, or anyone for that matter, what had happened. I didn’t think she’d believe me. But I needed to tell someone, and I knew Stephanie could be trusted. She was an old soul; she believed in there being more things than what we could see with our eyes. She was an empathetic person who felt things on a different level. So I finally broke down and explained everything to her. I waited, with baited breath, for her laugh in my face or call me delusional, but instead, she felt compelled to remind me not to be so quick to judge other people. I was ready to have Kimmie and Courtney hauled off to the nearest psych ward when in all actuality they were telling me the truth. Stephanie didn’t pass any judgement like that, and her reprimand made me feel like a child. Then, Stephanie being Stephanie, she demanded I show her my wings.

  It was weird taking my shirt off in front of her since I was so scrawny and skinny, so my cheeks and chest flushed in crimson as I made my wings protrude from the cavity they were folded up in. I can’t lie, the minute I got home I practiced making my wings appear and fold back up. Stephanie’s eyes widened as she took in the black feathers, and then asked quietly if she could touch them. Of course, I allowed her to and turned slightly so she could run her fingers through them. Once she had enough of feeling my new accessories, she jumped up and down in glee. Her acceptance of what I’d been through further cemented our friendship, and she immediately became my family instead of my friend.

  It was also during that time that I had unexpected visitors to my work. A visit from four members of The Angels of Mercy. They waltzed into my workplace, all of them decked from head to toe in black, and entered my office
like they owned the place. Of course, all of my coworkers stopped what they were doing and blatantly watched the four older people. One of the men had the foresight to shut the door on the spectators, shutting them out from any further eavesdropping.

  For the next hour the four members of the council begged, pleaded, and all but offered favors to get me to return to the realm. According to them, there was a spot waiting for me on the council at one of the highest positions. I was meant to be there, and they were refusing to leave until I agreed to go. I held strong, though, even when they brought up the fact that I’d be reunited with my mother.

  For a split-second I considered going with them, so I had the chance to see my mother. I had questions, like why was she so willing to give me to my father and split Gabriel and me up. But then the faces of my friends flashed before my eyes. I could see the smiles of Stephanie, Kimmie, and Courtney, and I knew that whatever my mother had to say to me didn’t matter. Isadora might’ve given birth to me, but she wasn’t my mother, and she most certainly wasn’t family. My family were the three women who took the chance on being my friend and didn’t make me regret that decision. When the council members finally realized that I wasn’t going to give in to their desires, they finally relented and agreed to leave. They extended the invitation for a spot on the council whenever I decided to take it, but we all knew that wasn’t going to happen. And when they left, only then was I able to breathe easily.

  It was also during those weeksthat I really allowed myself to think about Alistair. I hadn’t heard from him, or felt his presence since he left me at the house. I was worried something had happened to him when he was trying to dispose of Gabriel’s soul, and that worry plagued my thoughts more than it should have. I was supposed to be angry at Alistair. He used me to get to Gabriel, and then abandoned me until it was almost too late. Yet, considering he helped save me, it was hard to stay mad at him. I was confused over my conflicting feelings for Alistair, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to rest easy until I knew he was safe. Too bad I didn’t know a last name or a phone number to get ahold of him—that being contingent on whether or not he even had a cell phone.