Extinction (The Divine Book 7) by M.R. Forbes

bowed to the assembly, and then spread her wings, lifting into the sky once more. I couldn't see where she landed from my vantage point.
    A chant started a moment later. It was deep and rich, in a voice that was beyond anything I had ever heard before. A voice beyond human. I knew it was the Archangel before I saw him. So did everyone else.
    The doors swung open nearby. A robed figure stepped through them. I could barely see Raguel's face beneath the cowl, but his lips were moving as he continued his chant. He walked slowly and alone to the front of the gathering, bowing and kissing the altar when he reached it. Then he turned toward us, lowering his hood and revealing a head of short white hair and a wise, chiseled face.  
    "In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit," he said, his voice carrying evenly to every part of the basilica. "The Lord be with you."
    "And with your spirit," the congregation replied.  
    "As we begin this mass for change, let us take a moment to offer thanks to our Lord for his kindness and mercy and care. May he see the wisdom in our words, and glory from our hearts."
    "Amen."
    He began to speak again, a prayer in Latin. I only caught the first few words.  
    Someone rubbed up against my shoulder. I turned my head in their direction, my eyes suddenly finding themselves trapped against the pale blue of the presiding angel's.
    "Welcome, stranger," she said, her smile warm and inviting, as if she meant it. Maybe she did. "Adam told me you might come."

Twelve

    "You know who I am?" I asked.
    "Not exactly."
    That was good. I was starting to feel like my ability to make people forget about me was losing its mojo. Was Adam retaining a vague memory of me, or did Sarah tell him?  
    "What did Adam tell you, then, exactly?"
    "There might be someone in the crowd. Someone different. He suggested that I talk to you, and find out why you were here."
    "He's the reason I'm here. I need to meet with him."
    "What about?"
    "Sarah."
    "I don't know who that is."
    That didn't surprise me. Adam would have a hard time gaining support if his followers knew what he was really up to.
    "It doesn't matter," I said. "Do you really believe God made a mistake? That Adam was treated unfairly?"
    "Look up at the altar, friend. Do you know who that is?"
    "Archangel Raguel. That's what you said, anyway."
    "He is the Archangel of Justice and Vengeance. Two things that so often go together. If he believes Adam has not been treated fairly, then I am inclined to believe it."
    "What about Adam? Is he pushing for this?"
    "No," she replied. I wasn't expecting that. "He has told Raguel he doesn't want it. He accepts his position."
    "I'm not sure I believe that."
    "It is as Raguel says. He does not lie."
    I looked up at the Archangel again. Adam didn't want this? Nobody could convince me that was true. If his goal was to kill Divine, what better way than to start a war in Heaven? But then, if I was right, what the hell was Raguel's part in this?
    "So Adam isn't here?" I asked.
    "No."
    "Do you know where I can find him?"
    "As I said, friend, he isn't involved with this gathering. It is his case that has set the wheels of change in motion, not his direct intervention."
    "But he talked to you. He wanted you to talk to me."
    "We were friends before his fall. We remain friends now. I spoke to him recently, and he said to me that if a stranger arrives, I was to greet him and treat him as a brother."
    That didn't make any sense. I hated when things didn't make any sense.
    "Fine," I said. "What should we talk about?"
    "When the Mass is over, I would like you to meet the Archangel. We have arranged a separate meeting for the most reverend of our followers. I would like you to attend."
    A trap? I almost said it out loud.  
    "Why me?" I asked. "I'm nobody. Nothing. I don't even have an aura."
    "That is how I know you're special," she replied. "Did you know that Jesus Christ had no aura?"
    "Almost every image I've ever seen shows him