AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Then why?”
“It was kill or be killed,” he said shortly.
I couldn’t smother the gasp I took at that revelation. “You… you killed an angel?” I couldn’t believe it, couldn’t stomach the thought that Alastor, a man who despite our personality clashes, I had come to respect, had committed a crime so heinous, so blasphemous. “How could you do that?” This time, I couldn’t keep the shock and the judgement out of my voice, and clearly Alastor heard it.
He whirled around, the hand that wasn’t carrying the torch wrapping around my throat as he shoved me hard against the tunnel wall. The oxygen tanks on my back gave a loud metallic clang and caused a flash of pain across my back as I was shoved back against them.
“Alastor,” said Carlisle, moving forward instantly to lay his hand on Alastor’s arm. Alastor ignored him.
“You want to know why, Sariel? I heard where you were when the Pit spilled open, but Carlisle was right, Vegas was a slaughterhouse, like any other city, and within hours the angels descended to save us all. Except, they didn’t save us all. They were more concerned about killing all the demons, than actually saving people. They’d fly over the city, dive down to cut through the forces of darkness, then leave, no matter how many humans were lying broken and bloody in the streets.”
“They... they had a job to do,” I got out, trying to push away the niggling doubt in the back of my mind. I had received similarorders days later, when my host had been pulled from the front lines and dispatched to Paris.
Alastor gave a sharp nod. “They did. Kill everything that wasn’t human or angel.”
“It wasn’t like-”
“It was,” he insisted. “It was, Sariel. You’re so fucking blind. The cities were already a bloodbath, and then the angels came and anyone not human was completely fucked. Hellions, nephilim, demons, shifters, vampires—didn't matter. If you moved, you were a target."
“No.” I tried to shake my head, to deny it, but his fingers dug into the soft skin either side of my jaw, holding me tight as ruby eyes blazed down at me.
“You want the truth?” he demanded, and I nodded. “They came for all of us. Many supernaturals went underground, but the Concordia teams wouldn’t. This was our team, our people, and it was our duty to help them. We followed the screams, found the humans the angels left behind, pulled them out from under the bodies of the hellions and got them to safety. In most cases, that meant the nearest hospital.”
My eyes slid left to where Carlisle stood, not interfering now he realised Alastor wasn’t planning to bash my brains out in fury. He gave me a nod, his eyes sad.
No. No, that couldn’t be… the angels were sent to help, I told myself. I myself had ordered all injured humans to be taken to hospitals or emergency outposts. I’d divided the host into small groups of five, like we’d been ordered, dispatching them across the city…my thoughts jerked to a stop, and I looked up at Alastor, my eyes widening.
“You fought FIVE of them?” I whispered.
“It was open season,” he growled. “And that night, they came for us. We were three blocks from the hospital, carrying a young couple we’d found hiding in their car from the hellions thatattacked it. We killed the creatures, but a couple had got through the glass, and… the woman was not doing well. We were rushing and I…” he stopped, and pulled his hand from my throat, stepping back. He paused, and I saw his jaw clench.
“What?” I asked, not moving.
“I was worried we weren’t going to make it in time,” he said. His eyes were fading now, a darker crimson. “I didn’t check the skies, and then they surrounded us.”
“They must have thought… why didn’t you tell them what you were doing?” I pleaded. It must be a mistake, a misunderstanding.
Alastor gave a cold laugh. “We did. I even asked for their help.”
A shudder ran through me, cold despite the stifling warmth of the cave. I shook my head.
"No. Angels aren't blind executioners."
Alastor shook his head. “When will you learn to open your eyes, Sariel, and look around and actually SEE what’s happening around you?”
I opened my mouth, but he pushed on. “Cole was carrying the young man in his arms. He went to pass him to one of the angels, but…I don’t know, maybe their fingers brushed or something, but the angel snapped his head up and just stared at him. Then he turned and threw the man onto the ground.”
My mouth fell open and I couldn’t breathe.
“I heard his skull smash as it hit the curb,” Alastor continued, his eyes distant now. “Smelt the blood and the brain matter as they leaked out onto the pavement. The angel didn’t even look down. He shouted to the others that Cole was an incubus, and they went for him. He fought back, he was a fucking good fighter, but there were five of them and…”
“Alastor, stop,” I said, closing my eyes, as though it would stop the images forming in my mind at his words.
“I couldn’t leave him,” said Alastor, his voice breaking slightly. “I needed to get her to safety, but I couldn’t… not Cole. Not him.”
“Alastor,” said Carlisle again, but this time his tone was kind, and I opened my eyes.
Carlisle was squeezing Alastor’s forearm, a gesture of support, but Alastor’s face, his expression went through me like a blade. So much pain, so much suffering. I wanted to put my hands on his face, smooth away the deep lines, kiss them away, till he didn’t hurt any more.
