“What room?” Kobal inquired as he started thetruck and pulled onto the road.
I explained to him the house and the roomwe’d discovered, leaving out the part with Angela. I needed sometime to try to figure her out on my own still, but I told him therest. “I only knew I had to have it when I saw it,” I finished.“And I’m not ready to let it go.”
“I see,” he murmured, though I knew heunderstood it about as much as I did.
“How much longer do you think it will beuntil we get to the gateway?” I asked as a way to distract all ofus from the angel.
Kobal’s knuckles were white on the wheel ashe stared ahead. “Three, maybe four days.”
I turned away before he could see theapprehension his words provoked in me. I didn’t know what wouldhappen when we arrived at the gateway, but I was terrified I wouldlose him.
“Iamgoingto keep you safe,” he vowed.
“I know. I’ve gotten stronger, better able todraw on life. I just have a difficult time remaining calm enough topush my fear aside and do it when being attacked.”
He stared at the road for a minute beforelooking at me. “How much better at it?”
I glanced at the others in the back of thetruck; they were all leaning toward the open window, but their eyeswere deliberately focused elsewhere. I swore Hawk was holding hisbreath beside me as he kept his gazed fixed out the passenger sidewindow. Kobal glanced at them, a muscle in his jaw twitching. Hedidn’t know if he could trust them, but I did.
We’d all kept each other alive at the truckstop. They’d seen what I could do, and they knew what Azote hadbeen. They still hadnoclue what Iwas, other than to know I had a giant bull’s-eye on my back fordemons and fallen angels alike, but they’d still climbed into thispickup truck with me again today. They had to know that even withKobal and the other demons present, it was still more treacherousto be around me than away from me.
We’re stayingtogether, Erin had said, and she’d meant it. I had tofight back the tears threatening to fall at their loyalty andfriendship. They deserved to know at least some of what was goingon.
“I’m far better than I was. I practiced a lotduring the time we weren’t speaking and before then. I was hopingto surprise you with it.”
Kobal released the steering wheel and graspedmy hand. I immediately felt the swell of power from him archingover my fingers. “Later you can show me what you’re capable of,” hesaid.
“It’s nothing overly impressive.”
He smiled at me. “If it’s you, it’simpressive.”
It was so weird to hear and see him this way.This demon who had always been so aloof and callous, except whenalone with me, was more open now, more loving.He loves me.I thrilled at the reminder, my handssparking with golden-white light because of it.
I bit on my lip, unable to tear my gaze fromhis pure obsidian eyes. His fingers slid over mine and across theback of my hand in a way that had my insides turning to mush.Turning away, he focused on the road again, but his hand remainedlocked around mine.
I glanced at the others in the back of thetruck and Hawk, but none of them asked any of the questions I knewhad to be churning in their minds. Bale and Corson exchanged looksand shook their heads. The two of them grinned before elbowing eachother.
I stifled a laugh over their amusement andturned to watch the scenery go by. We passed through more nearlyuntouched towns, and others so brutalized there was still littlevegetation creeping in to reclaim the land. However, the devastatedareas were beginning to crop up more and more often while theuntouched ones were growing fewer and farther between.
Animals moved about the remains weencountered, but I saw no people, and I wasn’t sure I wanted toafter the ones Kobal had encountered. There were a couple of timeswe had to turn around and find another route as we came acrossbridges that had collapsed or completely blocked roadways since thelast time Kobal had been through here. I held my breath over thefew bridges we did cross, convinced we were going to topple intothe water or onto the roadways below us, but somehow they heldup.
The sun was about to touch the horizon whenKobal pulled into a large field behind a burnt-out building andparked the truck. I wasn’t certain where we were, and after thisday of constantly turning around, if someone told me we’d onlytraveled five miles from where we’d started, I would have believedthem.
Opening the door, Hawk climbed out and Ifollowed behind him. I stretched my back and cramped muscles beforehelping Kobal and the others pull out some of the supplies we wouldneed for the night. After establishing a sleeping area, I sat andate dinner with Vargas, Erin, and Hawk while the demons and CaptainTresden spoke near a copse of large elm trees.
The first star poked out in the sky whenKobal walked over to join us. Kneeling beside me, he tucked a straywisp of hair behind my ear and kissed my cheek. He extended hishand to me and I took hold of it. Rising to my feet, I brushed thegrass from my ass before following him over to the base of theelm.
“I have to go feed,” he said.
“I’ll go with you.”
“This may be something you’d prefer not towitness, even if you can see the wraiths, which is doubtful.”
“I should know more about what happens. I ampart demon after all,” I said with a smile.
“More angel than anything else.”
“I think we both know that’s a lie.”
