looking young
man – in his twenties she guessed -- lay on a straw mattress in the middle of
the room.
The long brown hair
that shrouded his bruised face was matted and unkempt. A button-less,
once-white shirt stained with dried blood, hung off his shoulders – rips and
tears in the sleeves revealed deep red welts. Black, thread-bare trousers did
little to cover the marks on his legs.
As bad as he looked, it
didn’t compare to the two small beings that were huddled in a corner on the
dirt floor, next to two smaller mattresses.
Without hesitation,
Hope moved closer, pushing her nose against the glass. That’s when she realized
the dark and dingy clump of feathers protruding from their backs were wings.
They were angels.
Lucifer didn’t rebuke
the pair of females who were standing watch at the open door. Instead, he
remained calm.
“I told you they were
to be bathed and dressed.”
“Forgive us, Father. We
tried to clean them up, but they threatened to burn us if we touched them,” the
red-haired girl responded.
“Leave us,” he
commanded.
Both of the women ran
through the tunnel without looking back. They failed in their duties, and
suspected a severe punishment would soon follow.
Two basins, filled with
clean water, were on the floor next to the man, who heard the voices and looked
up. Despite the injuries to his face and body, his azure eyes brightened when
he saw the little girl.
A pair of blue dresses,
similar to the one Hope was wearing, were hanging over the back of an old
wooden chair. There was a tray of fresh fruit and bottles of water on a round
table in the other corner of the room.
Both of the little
girls lifted their heads. They were twins.
Like the man, their
blonde hair was dirty and uncombed. Hope had never seen anyone with violet eyes
before, and imagined what they once looked like. She suspected the thin grey cloth covering
their small forms had been worn since they arrived -- however long ago that
was.
Will I look like that one day? There is so much sadness in
their eyes; I can barely stand to look into them.
It was then Hope knew
the extent of Lucifer’s cruelty. Determined to help them; she began to walk
through the open door when Mehri grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
“It isn’t safe to go
inside.”
Ignoring her warning,
the angel-blood broke free of her grasp, and ran into the room.
A smug smile crossed
Lucifer’s lips. He would leave the little girl with the angels, hoping to get
some much needed information about their mother.
“Come, Mehri -- if she
wants to stay here, I’ll allow it.”
Even though she was disappointed,
Mehri didn’t dare argue with him. It was better not to become attached to the
little girl. Lucifer could change his mind about her in the blink of an eye,
and then, she would become another plaything for his son.
“Enjoy your time
together,” Lucifer said.
He clasped Mehri’s
hand, but when he turned to leave, one of the angels spoke. “Mommy’s
coming.”
Lucifer hesitated
momentarily, but didn’t answer the young girl. Instead, he continued to walk
down the corridor until he and Mehri were both out of sight.
So – they know Avriel is alive? I wonder if they have seen
Bree and Tercia in Aeden. I haven’t decided how I’m going to deal with them
yet. With any luck – they’ll all be together again; maybe sooner than they
realize .
Hope remembered her mother
speaking about angels, but never imagined meeting any. Of course, she never
imagined she would ever be taken to Hell either. Even though she was only
seven, she tried to be a good girl, and help with her little sister.
“She’s alive,” one of
the angels said.
“How did you know what
I was thinking?”
Both of the angels
started laughing. Hope couldn’t help staring at how white their teeth were.
Everything else about them was filthy, but they smelled like springtime.
“We’re seers.”
“I don’t know what
man – in his twenties she guessed -- lay on a straw mattress in the middle of
the room.
The long brown hair
that shrouded his bruised face was matted and unkempt. A button-less,
once-white shirt stained with dried blood, hung off his shoulders – rips and
tears in the sleeves revealed deep red welts. Black, thread-bare trousers did
little to cover the marks on his legs.
As bad as he looked, it
didn’t compare to the two small beings that were huddled in a corner on the
dirt floor, next to two smaller mattresses.
Without hesitation,
Hope moved closer, pushing her nose against the glass. That’s when she realized
the dark and dingy clump of feathers protruding from their backs were wings.
They were angels.
Lucifer didn’t rebuke
the pair of females who were standing watch at the open door. Instead, he
remained calm.
“I told you they were
to be bathed and dressed.”
“Forgive us, Father. We
tried to clean them up, but they threatened to burn us if we touched them,” the
red-haired girl responded.
“Leave us,” he
commanded.
Both of the women ran
through the tunnel without looking back. They failed in their duties, and
suspected a severe punishment would soon follow.
Two basins, filled with
clean water, were on the floor next to the man, who heard the voices and looked
up. Despite the injuries to his face and body, his azure eyes brightened when
he saw the little girl.
A pair of blue dresses,
similar to the one Hope was wearing, were hanging over the back of an old
wooden chair. There was a tray of fresh fruit and bottles of water on a round
table in the other corner of the room.
Both of the little
girls lifted their heads. They were twins.
Like the man, their
blonde hair was dirty and uncombed. Hope had never seen anyone with violet eyes
before, and imagined what they once looked like. She suspected the thin grey cloth covering
their small forms had been worn since they arrived -- however long ago that
was.
Will I look like that one day? There is so much sadness in
their eyes; I can barely stand to look into them.
It was then Hope knew
the extent of Lucifer’s cruelty. Determined to help them; she began to walk
through the open door when Mehri grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
“It isn’t safe to go
inside.”
Ignoring her warning,
the angel-blood broke free of her grasp, and ran into the room.
A smug smile crossed
Lucifer’s lips. He would leave the little girl with the angels, hoping to get
some much needed information about their mother.
“Come, Mehri -- if she
wants to stay here, I’ll allow it.”
Even though she was disappointed,
Mehri didn’t dare argue with him. It was better not to become attached to the
little girl. Lucifer could change his mind about her in the blink of an eye,
and then, she would become another plaything for his son.
“Enjoy your time
together,” Lucifer said.
He clasped Mehri’s
hand, but when he turned to leave, one of the angels spoke. “Mommy’s
coming.”
Lucifer hesitated
momentarily, but didn’t answer the young girl. Instead, he continued to walk
down the corridor until he and Mehri were both out of sight.
So – they know Avriel is alive? I wonder if they have seen
Bree and Tercia in Aeden. I haven’t decided how I’m going to deal with them
yet. With any luck – they’ll all be together again; maybe sooner than they
realize .
Hope remembered her mother
speaking about angels, but never imagined meeting any. Of course, she never
imagined she would ever be taken to Hell either. Even though she was only
seven, she tried to be a good girl, and help with her little sister.
“She’s alive,” one of
the angels said.
“How did you know what
I was thinking?”
Both of the angels
started laughing. Hope couldn’t help staring at how white their teeth were.
Everything else about them was filthy, but they smelled like springtime.
“We’re seers.”
“I don’t know what
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