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  “All right, eat up! There’s a park a couple blocks away. We can walk there as soon as we’re done.”

  “Thank you, Daddy!” Sinclair gleaned, shoveling bite after bite of pancake and hash brown into her mouth. Valerie flashed him an approving smile and the family finished eating, excited for the day ahead.

  Sinclair held tightly to Malik’s hand as they stepped onto the soft grass. The sounds of the other children playing happily made her smile from ear to ear. She couldn’t wait to join them.

  “Okay, I need you to stay where we can see you, right there on the playground. Don’t go off into the woods over there. You could get lost.”

  “Okay, Daddy.”

  “Remember to be nice to the other kids and if you get scared or hurt, just yell. We’ll be right here.”

  “Most importantly,” Valerie said. “Have fun.”

  “I will! Bye, Mommy! Bye, Daddy!” She let go of her father’s hand and skipped off, climbing up to the top of a slide and giggling all the way down. She had a blast, playing on the jungle gym and swings, hanging from the monkey bars, and sliding down the fireman’s pole. She laughed to herself as she thought about her grandfather doing that countless times for work and wondered if it had been as fun for him as it was for her.

  As her feet hit the bouncy pieces of recycled tires underneath the pole, she noticed a six-year-old boy sitting alone under a tree close to the edge of the forest. She walked over and sat on the ground in front of him. “Hi. I’m Sinclair. You wanna play?” He nodded shyly. She picked up a stick and drew a tic-tac-toe board in the dirt between them. They took turns holding the stick, drawing x’s and o’s until one of them won the game, scribbling them out, and starting over.

  They played for about twenty minutes before the boy’s father called from a bench, “Logan! Five more minutes, then it’s time to go!”

  “Look at that,” Valerie said, gesturing to the kids. “She made a friend.”

  “I see,” Malik said. “Maybe you were right.”

  “I was what? I’m sorry, can you say that again? I don’t think I heard you.”

  He laughed and put his arm around her. “You were right. She’s perfectly fine. I overreacted. You happy?”

  “More than happy. I’m content.” They shared a kiss and kept talking, taking their eyes off the kids just long enough for Sinclair to leave her new friend and have a quick chat with his father.

  “Logan’s daddy?” she asked the man who didn’t look up from his phone.

  “Mm-hmm.”

  “I saw the bruises on his arms. I know what you did. I’m asking you to stop it.”

  The man looked up from his screen and scanned the park to see if anyone had heard. Luckily, it looked like no one had. “Go away, little girl, before something bad happens to you.”

  Her expression turned stern as she stepped closer. “I asked nicely.”

  “Stay out of my business, kid.”

  Her hands became fists as she stared him down. She looked so serious and determined, unlike any four-year-old he’d ever seen. He almost laughed at her. Almost.

  His hand flew to his chest as he felt a jolt followed by searing pain spread from his heart down his left arm. He panicked, unable to catch his breath.

  “Don’t put your hands on that boy again,” she said through gritted teeth. “If you do, I’ll know and you will not live to regret it, do you understand?”

  His face went ghost white as he trembled, the pain in his chest unlike anything he’d ever felt. “What the fuck?” he choked as he slumped in his seat.

  “You get it,” she decided, skipping off and hugging her new friend goodbye. Just like that, the pain was gone. He gasped for air as sweat trickled down his temples, the color returning to his face.

  “Aw,” Valerie said as they turned back to see the children hugging. “How sweet is that?”

  “Adorable,” Malik agreed.

  Behind the trees, the old woman watched, her long, spindly legs peeking out from her black, shapeless dress. Her wild, gray hair was largely unkempt, half piled up in a loose bun, unwashed, and attracting flies. She sniffed the air in the girl’s direction, making sure to stay out of sight. She smelled the air again as the child rushed off to be with her parents. A crooked smile crept across the woman’s face as she scratchily whispered, “Delicious.”

  Chapter 11

  “Chocolate or fruity?” Gabriel asked, opening the pantry door.

  “Fruity,” Wendy said, sitting at the island. Gabriel took the red box from its spot on the shelf and opened it, pouring tiny, brightly colored flakes into two bowls before getting milk from the fridge. She poured the milk and got two spoons from a drawer, handing one to her girlfriend before sitting herself and taking a bite.

  “That’s hardly breakfast,” Lucifer commented as he entered the kitchen.

  “Hey,” Gabriel picked up the box and pointed to the nutrition label. “It has eleven vitamins and minerals.”

  “Yes, well, clay contains iron, zinc, and calcium. I don’t suggest eating that, either.” He took a banana from the fruit bowl and went to the living room where he turned on the television and settled on the sofa to watch the last few minutes of the morning news.

  Gabriel rolled her eyes as she took another bite. Wendy looked back to make sure Lucifer couldn’t hear her before asking, “Is it weird that I find Satan endearing?”

  She snickered. “Don’t let him hear you call him ‘Satan’. He hates that.”

  “Noted. Is it okay if I use your shower? I have a flight I’m already running late for.”

  “Again?” Gabriel complained. “I’m beginning to really resent your job.”

  “Just a day trip. I’ll be back by dinner.”

  “Yeah, go ahead. What’s mine is yours. And everyone else’s, apparently.”

  “So, Will and his girlfriend got settled in okay?”

  Gabriel shuddered, almost throwing up her cereal. “I don’t want to think about it.”

  “Okay,” Wendy chuckled. “Listen, before I go, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you.”

  She put her spoon down and arched an eyebrow. “You got a side piece? Am I the side piece?”

  She laughed. “No. Sometimes, when I go to work, I’m not just doing flight attendant stuff. Sometimes, I’m doing witch stuff.”

  “Witch stuff?”

  “Like in New Zealand. No one called in sick. I went because there was a coven that needed help banishing an evil Earth Spirit. They were weak sauce. If I hadn’t shown up--”

  “You lied?”

  “Yeah. Yeah, I didn’t want to bother you while you were busy with that whole Cain thing. I figured you’d just worry and get distracted. I’m sorry. Are you mad?”

  She chewed on her bottom lip. “I don’t know. I’ve never felt like this before.”

  “Like what?”

  Gabriel crossed her arms and thought for a moment before finding the right word. “Deceived.”

  “No one’s ever lied to you before?”

  “Of course, but I always knew they were lying and I always knew why. It didn’t bother me. This is like, painful.”

  “I’m so sorry. I’ll never lie again, I swear. I’ve just never told anyone about this. It was something my grandma always told me to keep to myself just in case.”

  “In case what?”

  “Tituban magic is strong. In the wrong hands, it can be used to do all kinds of damage if it doesn’t kill the witch trying to wield it first. If certain people knew who I was, really bad things could happen. I have to be careful. Please don’t take this personally.”

  “Okay.”

  Wendy gobbled up the last of her cereal and kissed her cheek before rushing off to the bathroom.

  Gabriel jumped up and threw her boots on. “Yo,”

  “Hmm?” Lucifer acknowledged.

  “Stay with the kids. I’m going out for a while.”

  He waved her off, never looking away from the TV. “Fine, fine.”

&n
bsp; She wasn’t sure what to do with the strange emotions she was feeling. She was confused and in need of answers, so she decided to consult an expert.

  “I need relationship advice.” She burst in, swinging the door closed and planting herself at the kitchen island.

  “So, you came here?” Wyatt asked.

  “You were with the same chick forever. You kept a marriage going for years even though you were out of your mind most of the time, so, yes. I came here. Also, you’re three blocks away and Uriel’s in fucking Connecticut.”

  He shrugged and sat opposite her. “All right. What’s up?”

  “Wendy’s been keeping stuff from me. Some side hustle where she goes off to who knows where to help other witches with their problems. How worried should I be about this? She lied.”

  “Well,” he folded his hands. “Why’d she lie?”

  “To protect herself from evil witches and to keep me from worrying, supposedly.”

  “You believe her?”

  “I guess.”

  “I’d cut her some slack. You haven’t been together long. She’s probably not used to letting somebody in on her secrets. You might be the first person she’s dated that knows she’s a witch at all.”

  “Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. But, she lied. She lied right to my face and I had no idea. Could say anything and I’d never know if it was true or not. How do I know she won’t lie to me again?”

  “You don’t. You can’t. It’s the risk we all take to be with someone. I know you’ve never had to before, but if you want a relationship with her, you have to trust her.”

  “Trust,” she pondered. “Interesting. Like faith.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Hmm.”

  “Crisis averted?”

  “We’ll see.”

  He leaned forward. “Can I ask you something?”

  “Always.”

  He swallowed hard, not sure if he wanted to know the answer, but he had to ask. “You know everything about me.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Things I don’t know about myself.”

  “Totes.”

  He took a deep breath. “Why do I love her?”

  She tilted her head as her eyes softened. “You know why.”

  He shook his head.

  “Because you’re dumb.”

  He cast her an annoyed glare.

  “Okay, serious now?”

  “Please.”

  She cleared her throat. “It’s a lot of things. You love her because she loves you. She puts you on a pedestal so high, you can’t see the ground. You love her because you see her the way she was before. You see who she is underneath who she has to be. And, you love her because you need to.”

  He stared at her, his heart leaping to his throat. “I felt that in my bone marrow.”

  “You asked.”

  “You should be a therapist.”

  “Pfftt, like I have patience for that shit.”

  “I broke up with her,” he lamented. “How do you think she’s taking it?”

  She gave him a knowing look. “Badly.”

  Chapter 12

  “Thank you so much for coming,” the girl said as she let Wendy into her dorm room. Her eye was black and swollen, her cheek bruised, and her lip split. “I didn’t know who else to call. My mom said you helped people like us, even if we aren’t practicing, so I--”

  “First things first.” She waved her hand over the twenty-year-old’s face. “Pulchra.”

  “What was that?” She touched her eyelid and looked in the mirror above her desk, shocked at the transformation.

  “No reason you should be reminded of what happened every time you look at yourself. It wasn’t your fault, you know that, right? Some men are just trash.” The girl nodded. “The glamour will hold until you’ve healed all the way. You have a picture?”

  “Yeah.” She took a photo from the desk drawer and handed it to her. “From Spring Break.”

  She tore it in half, discarding the girl’s image so that only her abusive ex’s face remained. She pressed it between her hands and closed her eyes while repeating the phrase, “Discede procul aeternum.” After a few minutes, she opened her eyes. “You got a lighter?”

  The girl hurried, rummaging through her doors, finally finding a blue disposable lighter she’d used to light a joint the weekend before. She handed it over and Wendy lit the picture on fire, tossing it in the empty waste bin.

  “Let that burn to ash. It’ll put itself out when the spell’s complete. Need anything else?”

  She raised her eyebrows in shock. “No. Is that it?”

  “Yeah, he won’t bother you again. Remember, let that thing burn.” She headed out the door.

  “Thank you!” the girl called.

  She waved. “Any time.”

  Back on the plane, Wendy couldn’t help but feel guilty about keeping Gabriel in the dark about her extracurricular activities. After all, she’d trusted her with who she was. Angels, demons, vampires, all of it. Cain had spooked her, though. She could tell when she told her about him breaking into her place. She needed to focus and Wendy didn’t want to be a distraction. Still, it had upset her to learn that she’d lied to her and she didn’t want to be a source of pain for her new lover ever again. She’d make it up to her somehow.

  Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she took it out, looking down at the screen and smiling. It was a text from the college girl thanking her again. She saw on her ex’s social media accounts that he was packing up and moving to Japan. He didn’t know why, he just felt like he needed to.

  She laughed as she put the phone away and gazed out the window, the sky on fire with the sunset. She regretted not telling Gabriel about her work sooner, but she never once regretted the work itself. All her years of hiding who she was and all the time she’d spent practicing with her grandmother had been worth it. Helping witches who couldn’t help themselves was her calling and she loved doing it. As much as being God’s Messenger was a part of Gabriel, this was who Wendy was and who she’d always be.

  Chapter 13

  Allydia woke up on the floor, her assistant big-spooning her as the sun left the sky. She got up, waking Hartley as she smoothed her hair. She stood, glided to her throne, and sat, slinging one leg over the arm as the assistant scrambled to kneel before her.

  “Good evening, Your Majesty,” Hartley said, clearing her throat and adjusting her top.

  “Good evening. I apologize for my outburst last night. You should never have seen me in that condition. Thank you for comforting me.”

  “Of course.”

  They were silent for a while as Allydia thought things over. Hartley kept her head bowed, her fingers laced behind her back, her gaze averted.

  “I don’t remember what freedom feels like,” Allydia blurted, cutting the air with her words. “I’m not sure I’ve ever known it.”

  “Your Majesty?”

  “I’ve spent thousands of years creating a kingdom, taking power for myself because I’d felt so helpless in my human life. I was little more than a servant to my father. He beat me, ridiculed me, showed me no mercy. Still, I stayed with him, even after I was married, so he wouldn’t have to roam this world alone. He needed me. And, when my family was gone, I replaced them with all of you. Tell me, do you need me? Do any of you?”

  “We love you, my Queen,” she choked out.

  “That’s not what I asked.”

  Her bottom lip quivered as she dared to make eye contact. “We would, all of us, be dead if not for you. You saved us, not only from death but from our lives. You saved me from prejudice and judgement, bigotry, and hate. My own family cast me out. I died for being just a little of who I was and you gave me,” She started to cry. “You gave me everything.”

  Allydia slid off her seat and onto her knees, wiping the tears from her assistant’s cheeks and searched her face. “Are you happy?”

  “My Queen, I am a thousand times happier today than at any other time in my life and that is thanks to you
.”

  She showed a whisper of a smile. “It was all worth it, then.” She hugged her, putting her hand to the back of her head. She’d never shown Hartley physical affection like this before and the feeling of her Queen’s arms around her was overwhelming. She slowly hugged her back, unable to swallow the lump in her throat. She sobbed into Allydia’s shoulder, decades of repressed emotion pouring out in a waterfall of tears. “You’re invaluable to me, Hartley. I’m so grateful for your presence in my life. Your family may have abandoned you, but I never will. No matter what happens, I want you to know that.”

  She pulled away and used her sleeve to clean the smudged mascara from her face. “I know that, Your Majesty.” She caught a breath in her throat as she remembered what she’d been too afraid to ask about the night before.

  “What is it?”

  “I just thought I should ask, with the rebels wreaking havoc,” She turned her head to listen for anyone near the door, not wanting the others to hear. There was no one. “Did Navid get home safely?”

  Her eyes flashed. “How do you know that name?” She bolted up, Hartley too, standing on instinct.

  “He was here, prowling. I sent him home. I didn’t realize you had living rel--”

  “Did you have him followed?”

  “Of course, Your Majesty. Security was with him until he was safely on his flight.”

  She scowled, taking her phone from her pocket and calling his number. No answer. She stormed toward the door. “When the governors start to arrive, inform them that they are to stay here until I return.”

  “Where are you going, my Queen?”

  “London.”

  She stood in Navid’s apartment. Broken furniture and glass littered the floor while the stench of blood hung in the air like smog, thick and inescapable. Fury burned in her chest as she looked for clues as to who may have taken him, but there were none. The bakery she’d followed him to had been boarded up and abandoned. He was gone, no doubt a pawn in this ‘King’s’ twisted game. But, if this unnamed vampire wanted to play, she would show him exactly who he was toying with.