Jackson lifted his head and looked at the killer in front of him. His lip curled in rage.
The True Immortal examined Jacks coldly. “It’s no use, Jackson. I made you. And now I will break you.”
Through clenched teeth, Jacks drew in a deep breath and then let out a terrible cry as he rushed toward Gabriel.
Gabriel simply kept on smiling. Then, suddenly, his wings burst through his golden robes and he flew up from the floor. Jacks met him in midair, and they collided with a tremendous crash that shook the columns.
They flew around the marble columns, causing them to smash back and forth into one another. Broken stone and chunks of marble crumbled to the floor with each of their collisions. Bits of debris slowed, froze, and then sped up again as they fell to the ground—the two Angels were using and blocking each other’s time freezes to get an advantage over the other.
Suddenly Gabriel launched forward and hurled Jacks all the way out into the main hall. He crashed into the far wall above the frieze, which showed the Council leading the Angels to the Awakening. Jackson crumpled and slid thirty feet down to the ground, landing hard.
Shaken by the fall, Jackson looked up and saw a dark shape moving at him fast. It was Gabriel, flying directly toward him. With rapid speed, Jacks pulled his Divine Sword from its sheath. But before he could bring it around, Gabriel powerfully pinned the young Angel’s arm down with his foot and then kicked the sword to the side, leaving Jacks defenseless.
Jacks thought fast and swept his legs under Gabriel, who flew up to avoid the attack. But it was enough time for Jackson to clamber to his feet. With a powerful thrust of his wings he met again with the True Immortal in midair, colliding into him, hard. Spinning and spinning, the Angels whirled up near the top of the chamber. Their wings became tangled as their hands reached for the other’s throats and arms and wrists. And then, like a stone dropped from a great height, they fell, still grappling with each other, smashing down into the storied marble floor so hard that a large crack split down the length of the atrium.
Jacks was stunned by the impact, and he’d barely had a chance to get to his feet before Gabriel was on him again. The True Immortal swung his fist straight into Jackson’s stomach, then kneed him in the face as he doubled over.
Groaning and spitting out blood, Jacks attempted to pull himself up.
“I told you, it’s useless,” Gabriel said. “What chance does a Godspeed stand against a True Immortal? None, I’m afraid.”
Gabriel reached into his robe and pulled out a gilded dagger, which glistened with the symbol of the Council. He raised the blade above Jackson’s head.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Every step was agony for Maddy as she wheezed her way through the passageways beyond the sanctuary. Maybe she’d just been in shock before and hadn’t noticed it, but now it felt as if at least one of her ribs had been broken. Every breath, every step forward, hurt. That ibuprofen most definitely wasn’t cutting it.
She was beaten up and bandaged, with a severely mauled wing. But it didn’t matter. She knew in her heart that time was running out. For Jackson, and for all of them.
Focusing on Jackson’s frequency, she could glean just one image. Gabriel’s face. What did it mean? Her only choice was to follow her instincts.
Even if the allied Angels and humans could somehow vanquish the demons, there was no way Jackson would survive a battle against a True Immortal, one of the Twelve. And certainly not against Gabriel, the engineer of the NAS and the powerful leader of the Angels since their first day moving out of the shadows. He was the symbol of Protection for Pay, and, moreover, of the entire Angel world.
Going after Gabriel was suicide.
Maddy could only hope that her vision was trying to tell her something else, that Gabriel was just a red herring.
As these grim thoughts passed through Maddy’s head, she came upon a heavy wooden door connecting two passages. It was partially open. A heavy, humid heat lay in the air, telling her only one thing: demon. Carefully, she stepped forward, her senses sharpening as she advanced. But then, across the threshold, she saw an enormous black mass, practically as big as a small mountain. It wasn’t moving, reassuring Maddy it was okay to continue on.
She looked in wonder at the goliath demon corpse that lay in a heap in the hallway. Then, in the corner of her eye, she noticed another figure, slumped off to the side.
And it was breathing.
She rushed over to find Detective Sylvester, injured and leaning against the wall. He was unconscious. She tried to wake him, but his only response was a mumbled groan of pain. His arm was curled strangely, unnaturally, at his side. But his breathing seemed normal, and as far as Maddy could tell, it looked like he would be all right.
“Detective, detective,” she whispered, trying again to rouse him.
Moaning, Sylvester slowly drew to consciousness. His eyes opened wide in surprise as he recognized Maddy.
“Detective! Thank God you’re all right. What happened?” Maddy asked, practically breathless.
“Jacks . . . ,” Sylvester muttered. His eyes started fluttering closed again.
“What?” Maddy said. She had no way of determining what had happened here. All she knew was that the demon had failed, and Sylvester was alive. She also knew that it couldn’t have been the detective’s pistol that had cut off the demon’s head. It must have been Jackson. But she had no idea where he was, or what state he was in. He could be injured . . . or worse.
“Stay here, Detective Sylvester,” she said. “I’ll come back for you.” If I can, she thought, but she didn’t say that aloud.
Just down the dark passageway she could see the faint glimmer of torchlight. There was but one way for her to go. And that was forward.