Natural Born Angel (Immortal City 2)

“Oh,” Jacks said without too much enthusiasm. “Thanks, Emily.”

“Now that Maddy’s not in your life, if you ever need anyone to talk to . . . to keep you company, let me know,” Emily said. “I’m strong. Like you.”

“OK,” said Jacks, but his mind seemed elsewhere, and his stare remained distant.

Suddenly a few Guardians shouted and pointed to the horizon. It was another demon scout, sent to Angel City from the growing sinkhole.

The demon, curled tightly into a ball, an emissary of smoke, fire and death, roared overhead, leaving a contrail of ash to float down in the sky. It smashed into the hillside closer to the Angel City sign. The fireball exploded in a maelstrom of flame, and in the distance one could see the limbs of the demon expanding out from the ball. Fire started spreading up the hill with the wind. The demon screamed, and its screech echoed down across the Angel City basin.

Emily jumped and clutched Jacks’s arm. In the distance, the thing began to fly, moving towards the glass cube the Guardians were in. It drew closer and closer, until the terrible shifting shape of fire and smoke hovered above the building, its eyes a window into hell.

The Dark Angel screamed, the glass of the cube shivering under the sound waves.

Emily began whimpering. All her talk of being courageous seemed to be an act. Other Guardians began slowly backing up.

Jackson alone was unmoved at the spectacle of the demon. He had already faced his worst fears on the library tower. Not fighting a demon: losing Maddy. Now he had nothing to fear. He walked towards the demon and looked in its eyes.

“Not now. Get out of here.”

The demon, still hovering, snarled and beat its wings once, twice, and was gone, out across the Angel City basin.

Emily was crying in the corner. Jacks turned back to his fellow Guardians, who had retreated in the face of the demon.

“The scouts are getting more frequent,” he said flatly. “Don’t worry, they won’t be bothering us. They have humans to concern themselves with.”

Guardians began speaking over each other.

“The humans will be massacred.”

“It’s saving us a war.”

“I don’t know. I just don’t know.”

“They signed their own death warrant with the Immortals Bill. They can’t expect us to help them now.”

“But how do we know the Dark Ones won’t ultimately come for us?”

“We don’t, for sure. The Book seems clear, but we can’t be positive. We’ll be ready regardless.”

“The humans would never be ready.”

Mitch was shaking his head as he heard the fragments of conversation. He stepped up to Jacks and gripped his forearm. He spoke under his breath. “You’ve seen what those things can do, Jacks. What it’s done to Angels. If we’re prepared, we can handle our own. But the humans, Jacks.”

Jacks nodded distantly. Mitch squeezed his arm.

“Are you listening to me?” Mitch asked. “The humans don’t stand a chance.”

A pained expression crossed Jackson’s face. Just for a split second. “Oftentimes difficult decisions must be made.”

“I know you’re hurt. In pain. I can only imagine, man. But she’s not a decision,” Mitch said. “She’s a person, Jacks.”

Mitch let go of Jackson’s arm and began walking across the marble floor towards the elevator. Jackson watched as he went, his pale eyes flickering.

CHAPTER 38

The door to the dark old bar swung open as someone left, letting bright daylight pour into the dusty establishment. Two men in a dim corner yelled in anger as the light invaded. It momentarily illuminated dusty photos of Angels, the worn dark wood of the proud old tables, the empty glasses in front of the two drunks. Once the glamorous meeting place for the Angels in the last century, the bar was now a musty Angel City dive, trading on nostalgia, cheap bottom-shelf liquor, and not too many questions.

Propped on a stool, hunched over the bar, Detective Sylvester peered up at the dusty TV. There was going to be a statement from the president. He brought the glass of whisky rocks to his lips and took a long drink.