All for one and one for all…
Gabriel found Antonio huddled on the floor of his bedroom, passed out. He’d been on alert since coming in through the back door. The odor of sulfur, the very stink of evil itself filled the first floor of the house. The odor wasn’t as strong on the second floor. That’s where he found Antonio. The young man lay curled up in the corner.
Gabe kicked him lightly on the leg. “Wake up, Antonio.”
Antonio’s eyes popped opened. He glanced around the room. He was still in his bedroom, but the voice that woke him wasn’t Blanca’s. He looked up, finding Gabriel staring down, a stern set to his jaw. She’d brought help. She’d brought the angel, but how? How did she find him?
“Where is she?”
“Who?” Gabe cocked his head.
“Blanca. Where is she? I need to apologize.” Antonio got up, looking behind the angel and finding only an empty room.
“She isn’t here. At least, I haven’t seen her.”
“Didn’t she bring you here?” Suspicion laced his words.
Gabe shrugged. “No. I came to check on you, but we have more to worry about than your girlfriend.”
It finally dawned on Antonio that it was no longer morning. The sun was high in the sky indicating midday. He’d been unconscious for several hours.
“She said she was going for help,” he whispered.
“Why? What happened?” Gabe asked, his concern growing. Traces of the young woman’s scent still lingered in the air here in the bedroom, but he hadn’t detected anything downstairs except for the strong odor of Sulphur. That wasn’t a good thing.
“We were…” Antonio began, then stopped. “Uh, I think I may have hurt her. Something happened to me. I don’t even know what—”
“You lost control, didn’t you?” Gabe cut him off. His question was more a statement.
“I think so, yes.” Misery filled Antonio’s eyes.
“I told you it would take time to control that. You’re not ready to be around others right now. Strong emotions give the wolf demon access. Anger, fear, passion. Do you think you hurt her or are you sure you hurt her. You said she was going for help. Is that the last thing you remember?”
“Yeah. She left. I watched her go out the door, there. I’m sure of it.” Antonio pointed at the bedroom door.
Gabe turned, looking out at the hall. “And she said she was going for help?”
“She did, but,” Antonio glanced out the window, “that was this morning. I told her to go. I didn’t want anything to happen to her, so she must’ve decided to stay away.” He ran a hand over his short hair.
“Maybe,” said Gabe, “but someone else has been here.”
“What do you mean?”
“Downstairs. Can’t you smell it?” Gabe waited, knowing Antonio’s new supernatural sense of smell would pick it up.
Antonio lifted his chin, sniffing. The faint scent of rotten eggs filled his nostrils. “Sulphur?”
“Evil,” said Gabe. “A demon has been in your house, and your girlfriend is missing. In my experience, that’s never a coincidence.”
Antonio pushed passed Gabriel and ran downstairs. The smell grew stronger as he entered the living room. It was quiet. Too quiet. Something was off. He scanned the living room. Finally, it hit him.
“The clock.”
Gabe walked in behind him. “What clock.”
“My father’s clock. It’s gone.” Antonio walked to the mantle. The space in the center was empty, an outline of light dust indicating where it usually sat.
“Why would a demon take your father’s clock?”
Antonio turned, locking eyes with the angel. Everything clicked into place. The way he’d felt drawn to the clock he figured was due to its association with his Pops. A sentimental attachment. But the comfort he felt listening to it tick, and the unusual symbols carved into the wood…
“It’s the key!” Understanding lit Antonio’s eyes.
Gabe sucked in a breath. “Demons can’t touch the key. They would die instantly.”
The last piece fell into place. “So, he made her do it. He made Blanca take it…”
“And he took her,” Gabe concluded. “But who is he?”
“Esteban del Fuego.” A new voice joined their conversation.
Both men turned at once.
Hector Gonzales stood inside the archway to the living room. He held a book in his hands, an old leather ledger. He offered a look of sympathy to Antonio, then turned his attention to the angel.
“Hello, Gabriel.”
The angel eyed the old man. “Hector. Still watching silently from the shadows and carrying around dusty old books, I see.”
“Goes with the job,” he said.
Antonio took in the uncomfortable exchange between the archangel and the man he’d known his entire life as his Tio. He knew Hector well. His uncle wasn’t sociable outside of his association with Eugenio and himself, but he was always kind and courteous to people and seemed to like them well enough. His reaction to Gabriel struck him as odd. Hector didn’t seem to like him at all and that was curious. Antonio wanted to ask why, but now wasn’t the time.
“What do you know, Tio? And no cryptic answers this time. A woman’s life is on the line and there’s no time to waste.”
Hector sighed. “Someone’s life is always on the line, ‘Tonio. Whether a person lives or dies isn’t something we have any control over. He has his own plans,” he said, pointing up.
Gabe snorted. “Here we go again,” he said, throwing up his hands.
“You of all beings know this to be true, Gabriel. We play our parts in the scheme of things.”
“But there’s always free will, Hector,” Gabriel sneered, his lavender eyes deepening to amethyst as the familiar anger bubbled up inside.
The old man shrugged. “Is it really free will? I’m not the one to answer that. Just rhetorical, but you asked me not to be cryptic,” he said, turning to Antonio. “Tell me what you believe happened, son, and to whom. You mentioned a woman?”
Antonio quickly explained. “The sister of the young man who cuts Pops’ yard, Blanca. She was here, with me.” He saw the questions in Hector’s eyes. “Later, Tio, but for now, she was here. She waited upstairs while I went through…” he paused, glancing at Gabriel for help.
“His fight with the wolf demon,” Gabe added.
“That,” Antonio said, pointing at the angel and clearly at odds with the answer. “She was here when I got back to the house this morning. Some things happened. I could’ve hurt her. Dangit, Tio, I didn’t mean to lose control. This thing, I don’t…” Antonio struggled for words.
Gabe jumped in. “They got a little passionate and the wolf demon saw its opportunity. Antonio says the girl left to get help, but she never came back. When I arrived, the entire house stank to high heaven of Sulphur. I could only detect her scent upstairs, but not down here. She’s gone and so is the clock that sat on that mantle. Antonio thinks it’s the key.”
Hector’s eyebrow shot up. “That old thing? No kidding? After all these years.” He suddenly remembered the book in his hands. “As I was saying, your culprit can only be Esteban del Fuego.”
“I don’t know who that is, Tio.” Antonio looked at the book.
Hector held it out, opening the dusty tome and flipping to a well-worn page. “He’s a fire demon, ‘Tonio. Gabriel is familiar with him.”
Gabe’s eyes narrowed. “I’ve sent him back to Hell numerous times. The crafty devil keeps coming back. His grotesque pet helps him escape every time.”
Hector nodded. “Cinder. Yes. Quite a nasty nightmare, that one. I think that was who you encountered here yesterday, ‘Tonio.” He pointed to a sketch of a burnt-out humanoid shape, the sockets where eyes should be merely empty black holes. “Is this what you saw?”
Antonio stared at the ugly creature. “That’s it. You called it Cinder?”
“Yes. It answers to Del Fuego, which means the only reason it was here is because he sent it. He wanted the key, and he found a way to get it.”
Fury filled Antonio. This fire demon took Blanca only as a means to get the key. But once he no longer had use for her…
He needed to save her. Fast. “Where can I find him?”
“He’s here in the city, son. San Antonio is his home. Been here for centuries now. The last place listed in the Order’s database as a residence was the penthouse of the Palacio del Rio. Demons like their opulence.”
“Then what are we waiting for?” Antonio asked.
Gabe gripped Antonio’s shoulder. “The cavalry, kid. You’re in no condition to go up against a fire demon. Not with a wolf demon fighting for control over your soul. It will sense a familiar in Esteban. I can’t let you near him. You’re not ready.”
Anger exploded. “What the hell do you mean? I can’t let this thing have her! It’s a demon, for God’s sake! It’ll kill her.” Panic gnawed at Antonio. He didn’t care what Gabriel said, there was no way he’d stand down. Marines didn’t quit!
“I didn’t say we’d leave her with the fire demon, only that you wouldn’t be riding to her rescue.”
“That’s not acceptable, Gabriel. She’s my responsibility!” Antonio felt his heart lurch in his chest. The very thought of harm coming to Blanca, and all because of him, made him sick.
“And you’re my responsibility, Antonio. No, you’re not going anywhere. You’ll stay with Hector.”
“Dangit, Gabriel!”
The archangel leaned down glaring into Antonio’s face. Pointing a finger, he spoke, his words softly, but with an edge of steel. “Stand down, soldier. That’s an order.”
Antonio swallowed. The familiar tone of a superior was one he had difficulty ignoring. Still, he tried one last time. “But you can’t do this alone.”
Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Who said I was going it alone? I have my own army,” he said, and then turned back to the living room, “and they’ve just arrived.”
Antonio and Hector spun around. The living room was no longer empty. Three tall, muscular, impressive men stood shoulder to shoulder, gossamer wings fluttering down behind their backs. One was blonde with piercing blue eyes. The second had dark hair and swarthy features, and the third had long, platinum hair and deep brown eyes.
Gabe smiled. “Antonio, meet Camael, Rafael, and Cassiel.”
Hector’s eyes bugged as he took them in. “I’ve read about you all, but never thought I’d see any of you in the flesh.” His quiet words were more self-directed.
Antonio looked each in the eye and then glanced at Gabriel. “The Camael, Rafael, and Cassiel,” he whispered. “Hosts?”
Cassiel, whose beautiful face reflected a somberness befitting the Keeper of Sorrows, bowed. “The one and only.”
Rafael rolled his eyes and Camael smiled.
“So, we need to evict Del Fuego again,” said Rafael.
Gabriel nodded. “But not before we rescue a human woman. She means something to him,” he said, pointing at Antonio, “and I need his head in the game. Bigger fish to fry, gentlemen. The prophesy is in play and a senior fire demon got his hands on the key.”
“We can’t let him open the portal,” said Camael.
Cassiel, always practical, spoke. “He’d have to get to Paris first.” He looked at Antonio. “How long ago did the key go missing, Guardian?”
This was the first time anyone called him by that title. Antonio found it unsettling. “I’m not sure. At least six hours ago.”
“What are we looking for?” Rafael asked, looking between Antonio, Gabriel, and Hector.
Antonio answered. “A clock. It’s old, wooden, with St Francis depicted on the front facing. Lots of intricate swirls carved into the wood.”
“The Tau,” said Hector.
“Magic,” Camael muttered. “So, the demon can’t actually touch it without being destroyed. How did he take it?”
“He took Blanca,” Antonio said.
The hosts looked to Gabriel.
“She’s human, and his…woman.”
“She’s not my—”
Camael stepped forward. “What does this human look like?”
Antonio sighed. “About this tall,” he said, indicating her petite height, “with short, dark wavy hair. Big brown eyes. Beautiful skin. She’s the bravest woman I’ve ever met,” he said, reflecting within.
The hosts and Hector stared at Antonio. Gabriel smirked, then added, “And she’s feisty. Fights like a man.”
Antonio smiled even as he felt the sting of tears begin to flood his blue-green eyes. He rubbed them away, clearing his throat. “She’s tough, but that’s to be admired.”
“Of course,” said Cassiel. “So, the demon used your woman to steal the key. Makes sense.”
Antonio was about to protest again that she was not his woman when Rafael held up a hand to stop him.
“No use denying it. We all see it. But don’t worry. We’ll get her back. Shall we, Gabriel?”
Gabe turned to Antonio. “Stay with Hector. I can’t rescue your woman and worry about you being overtaken by your wolf demon. One complication at a time.”
“Wolf demon, huh?” Rafael asked, one dark brow quirked. “Interesting.”
“Definitely interesting,” said Cassiel, “because I sense a familiar bloodline.”
“Can it, Cassiel!” Gabe pointed at the Keeper of Sorrows.
Hector watched the interplay between hosts with great curiosity. “Something I should know?”
Gabe, Camael, Cassiel, and Rafael all turned in unison. “No.”
Antonio watched wondering why Gabriel and the other hosts didn’t seem to want Hector to know that he was descended from the lavender-eyed archangel. But he knew there was no time for angel/watcher politics.
“Are you going or what? She could be dead by now!”
“She’s not,” said Cassiel.
“How do you know?” Antonio’s anger and frustration spilled out.
“Because one of us would be called to escort her soul home.” Cassiel moved to Antonio’s side and placed his hand on the Guardian’s shoulder. “Fear not, Antonio.”
“Ready?” Gabriel looked at the hosts. Each nodded. “Then let’s go kick some demon butt.”
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