Shattering Halos Read online

  “Well, you’re the one who promised. It’s for your own good.” Her voice sounded whiny.

  “I’ll come tomorrow. Or the next day,” I said, taking a bite of my donut.

  “All right, because yesterday you didn’t come because of…what again?”

  “Dentist,” I lied. Marina slapped her forehead. “Right, the spur-of-the-moment dentist appointment. Last week your grandma suddenly had a birthday, yes?”

  I was beginning to feel guilty.

  “Okay, so listen up.” Marina puffed out an impatient breath. “Never mind Father Damian. No churchgoing. Let’s meet up with my granduncle instead.”

  She made no sense. “Why?”

  “Because Uncle Sebastian knows as much as a priest. He went to the seminary when he was young—” she frowned, “I guess they released him from it after a year or something?”

  I giggled, “So the seminary was jail for him?”

  “Ha. Ha. Funny. Anyways, he knows stuff. More than me.”

  “No?” I play-muffled a gasp that Marina ignored.

  “He’s got a library filled with books about theology, and he studies them, like, twenty-four seven.” My friend gave me a victorious finger point, “Mom and I don’t go often—he’s more interested in his books than us—but, heck yes, Uncle Sebastian’s our guy!”

  I shrugged. At least it was better than going to her priest.

  A pleased smile stretched Marina’s lips. “When I was little, he let me play with his chessboard in that library. He’s awesome.”

  ****

  Despite my recurring discussions with Marina, most of my attention went to Gabriel these weeks. Even though we hadn’t touched since the harbor, our interaction became more deliberate, more ingenious by the hour. I was beginning to realize that our little game of hide-and-seek might be a form of slowly escalating flirting.

  Marina used me as a soundboard for her string of dates with Kyle and Cody, and I wished I could have done the same with her. I often missed Megan and Ash. What would they have said about all of this? I swallowed the lump in my throat, grateful to know that they were happy.

  “Gaia!” The decibel level of Marina’s whisper made me flinch. Our Computer Apps teacher must have his hearing aid turned to the lowest setting.

  “Yes, Marina, I’m not deaf.”

  “You know how I’m a scaredy-cat? Well, Cody and I ended up at the horror flick last night anyway.”

  I smiled at Marina’s fake surprise. “So you had an excuse to cuddle up to him, then?”

  “I did not!”

  “Really?” I grinned. “Did he kiss you?”

  From where he sat on the teacher’s desk, Gabriel raised an eyebrow at me, and I burst into laughter.

  “What’s your problem?” Marina hissed.

  “Sorry—just being weird.” In front of me, Gabriel pursed his lips into a smirk, and I had a hard time peeling my gaze away.

  “Whatever, so Cody put his arm around me, and I let him, right?”

  “And then he French-kissed you?” I asked. Gabriel concealed his smile behind a fist, but his eyes, sparkling with amusement, made me snicker.

  “Young lady—” She sounded stern.

  “I swear, Marina, you’re my mom’s long lost twin.”

  “I French-kissed nobody yesterday, because I don’t know which one is Mr. Right, Kyle or Cody.”

  “Oh, we’re back to that now? The Mr. Right thing?”

  “Miss Samuelle, Miss Lampedusa, do share your insights with the rest of the class.” The teacher’s voice dripped with boredom.

  Marina pivoted and said sweetly, “Well, sir, Gaia told me about her stomach cramps, and my advice to her…”

  I turned pink as the teacher cut her off. “I’ll write out hall passes. Please take your friend to the nurse.”

  Marina took my elbow like I was a china doll and led me out the door.

  Half way down the main hallway, Gabriel’s presence tingled warm against my neck. All of my senses honed in on him, making it hard to concentrate on Marina’s chatter.

  I need to see him!

  Stopping at the fountain, I peeked out from underneath my hair as I leaned over. I saw no trace of him. “Where are you?” I asked, realizing too late that I’d said it out loud.

  “Um—hello?” Marina squinted at me.

  Light fingertips brushed my hair away from the spurting liquid. His breath tickled my ear, and my own hitched.

  An almost-touch? Yes, please!

  An airy giggle escaped me, and Marina stopped dead in her tracks, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

  “What was that, Gaia?”

  “Nothing. Just laughing at how Cody wanted to kiss you. So did you let him in the end?”

  “No! I told you that already. I need to figure out which one to kiss first.” She was perceptive but easily diverted. “I mean, they’re both really cute. And they’re both so nice and have my sense of humor…”

  “They’re both so…identical?” I helped.

  That afternoon, Marina and I went to the mall. She needed new skinny-jeans, and since I always enjoyed a nice shopping spree, I tagged along. Unfortunately, Gabriel seemed to be everywhere.

  As the hours went by and Gabriel did nothing to seem like a good angel, I lost my tongue. Marina sent me suspicious glances over unusual postures or expressions I didn’t wipe off my face in time.

  “You all right?” Marina scanned my face. We were indulging in a root beer float, and the angel straddling the backward chair at our table made me scatterbrained. With his chin supported on arms crossed over the backrest, Gabriel was beaming at me.

  “Yeah, I want to scavenge for a new dress.”

  Or make out with an angel.

  “Oh, yay! Let’s go to Access. They’re the best!” Marina clapped toddler-style.

  Gabriel uncrossed his arms, leaned forward, and dabbed ice cream onto the tip of my nose.

  “Um, here…” Marina pointed at her own nose.

  Watching him chuckle, I removed it. “Thanks.”

  On the escalator, Gabriel didn’t just shadow me. For the first time since the dance, he stood so close that his body molded to mine while we waited. I closed my eyes and leaned back against him.

  Unbelievable. Can I just not wake up from this?

  How I’d missed the sensation of his chin resting on my head. I wished the escalator ride would last forever.

  The embraces from the night of Winter Formal flashed through my mind, and I suddenly realized that a platonic relationship wasn’t enough for me anymore.

  Once at Access, Marina poked her head into my dressing room without asking permission.

  “All right, so the dress fits you, Gaia. Like a bloody snakeskin.” Her eyebrows waggled, accentuating her fake British accent.

  “Thanks, I’ll take that as a compliment.”

  “No, honestly, dude. You’re not planning to wear that anywhere, are you? It reveals, hmmm…” Marina searched for the best way to describe my new look. “Oh yeah: Everything!”

  Or not.

  “Hey now—”

  “Every dip and curve, chicky.”

  I rolled my eyes, shooing her out, and she giggled from the other side.

  “Skimpilicous!” She breathed through the curtain.

  “Oh, for the love of God, Marina.” I stepped out for a peek in the full-length mirror, “Do you like it or not?”

  We were doomed the minute I came out of the dressing room; Gabriel stared at the short, red dress and took one precious step toward me.

  “Too much!” he groaned.

  God, it was easy. Before I could think, I’d flung myself into his arms and wrapped my legs around his waist. After a whole long, wasteful month, I was kissing him, and he squeezed me so hard it hurt.

  Marina’s shocked “No!” didn’t register with me at first. When I opened my eyes, her jaw had dropped. She wasn’t one to stare at people, but this time she had no qualms.

  Her reaction made sense, though. My BFF had never wi
tnessed Gabriel materializing before. He was a luminous fog that thickened slowly, particles flickering until he consolidated.

  Incandescent in my arms, Gabriel wouldn’t stop kissing me. With eyes squeezed shut and face smoothened in delight, he seized the moment and didn’t let go.

  The bliss he generated swelled through the store like a tidal wave, but Marina remained on task: “There it is—my proof. Gabriel orchestrated everything, all the craziness over last week!”

  I couldn’t focus on a reply from inside my sensory overload, so I didn’t.

  “Let go of her!” she yelled at the top of her lungs. “Go back to hell and stay there!” She yanked at me, and my baby’s hold tightened around me.

  “Gabriel, don’t. I’ll be okay…” I whispered.

  His grip loosened, and Marina yanked me out of his arms. My gaze stayed glued to him while she dragged me out of Access and down the escalator.

  The store was in complete disarray. Dazed customers mulled around, and Mitzi, the owner, gestured in slow motion. Gabriel faced her, still as a Greek statue, and by the time they disappeared from view, Mitzi’s expression had changed from confused to elated.

  “We’re going to Uncle Sebastian’s,” Marina said.

  I smiled to myself, nodding a little. Marina pulled the price tag off the dress I didn’t own on the way to the parking garage.

  “I wish we could go back for your clothes, Gaia,” she puffed, “Ah, and I wish you’d tried on something less slutty!”

  The insult didn’t register, probably because I was busy dreaming about Gabriel. With the car coming into view, Marina fumbled inside her purse and dug out her phone.

  “Uncle, remember my friend Gaia, the one that didn’t want to go to our church?” Her bluntness still didn’t bother me. “If you’ve got a minute, she’d be ready for a, uh, chat.” She sent me a swift glance.

  At the car, Marina stuffed me into the front seat and buckled me up. Her zeal made me want to giggle.

  “You’re freaking lethargic, Gaia. Man, I hope my uncle can fix you. If he can’t, then it’s Father Damian next: Church-CHURCH! All right?”

  “I don’t need fixing, Marina.” My blink might have been too slow to convince her.

  “Oh, right, because sucking face with a demon is a totally normal thing to do.”

  “No, I told you—he’s an angel.”

  “Gaia, he’s not an angel. You’ve got to believe me! You’re my best friend, and I wouldn’t make this up. Please, please, please believe me. You don’t want to let this beautiful…thing spellbind you.”

  I wavered. “Why do you always think the worst? Gabriel is so good to me.”

  “Gaia, ‘good to me’ my ass. Think! Please, think. He’s good to himself! An angel of God making out with a human in a mall? Like that would ever happen. What do you think is next on his, um,…agenda?”

  She was merciless, and I stared out the window, swallowing.

  Sweet Lord. She has a point.

  “What makes you the expert, Marina?” My voice sounded thin.

  “I learned about this stuff in church, remember? Anyway, Uncle Sebastian will tell you. He’ll make you understand.”

  My hand wiped across my eyes, and for a second I met her gaze. Was it compassion she hid under that no-nonsense surface?

  As we waited at a traffic light, Gabriel coalesced in front of us. He illuminated the grays and blacks of twilight with his body. Cross-legged at the foot of the pole, he broke into a heart-stopping smile and waggled his fingers at me.

  And I? I laughed softly.

  Chapter 10 — Angel Oaks

  Gaia

  Haphazardly situated in a modern American suburb, the Angel Oaks Estate gave the impression of having been uprooted from an Italian village. The walls of Uncle Sebastian’s mansion boasted solid granite, and the stone saints and angels perching along the driveway were carved in precise detail from the same, somber rock.

  “You freaking kidding me?” I demanded.

  Marina giggled, “Yeah, right? Uncle Sebastian’s all about this stuff, plus he’s so rich he can afford it. Neat, eh?”

  Or creepy.

  “This place is humungous. Does he have a family?”

  “Uncle Sebastian? Nah, never had a girlfriend, they say. Grandma calls him a rich, grumpy old scholar. They don’t play nice anymore.” She smirked. “That palace can’t even house his ego!” she mimicked in what I guessed was her grandmother’s voice.

  A man with small, shrewd eyes creaked the massive door open. From Marina’s descriptions, I’d pictured someone in his eighties, but Sebastian was younger than that. Mid sixties? Smooth olive skin stretched over high cheekbones. Age-appropriate wrinkles and a sensual mouth triggered memories from classic Sicilian movies I’d watched with Dad.

  “You must be Gaia,” he said, glancing at Marina for confirmation. “It’s a pleasure. Let me show you to my office.”

  “Sure—um, nice to meet you too, Mr. Lampedusa.”

  Our heels echoed over vast checkered floors and set me on edge. If only he had believed in small talk. I peeked around me, craving Gabriel’s presence, but he was nowhere to be seen.

  God, I hope he’s here.

  Meticulously shaven and with gray hair cut tight to his head, Uncle Sebastian advanced with measured ease. He seemed harmless enough, and for a moment my teeth unclenched in my mouth.

  To our left, an archway bared a spacious room with domed ceilings. Was that a private chapel?

  Our host passed it without a second look and pushed the door open to another room. Marina didn’t hesitate. She strode in with confidence, and I instinctively latched on to her arm to avoid being left alone. I accepted a seat in an armchair across from his desk while Marina lowered herself into another.

  Uncle Sebastian’s “office” must be what Marina had referred to as the library. Shelves upon shelves of leather-bound volumes filled the vast, murky room from floor to ceiling. With their tattered binding and faded gold titles, they could have been extracted from the same medieval village I imagined for his home.

  Uncle Sebastian studied me. Then, he leaned forward and folded his hands on the desk. “Gaia. Marina enlightened me regarding you and your…problem.”

  “She did?”

  Apparently, uncles excused from seminaries were exempt from Marina’s vow of silence. My gaze flitted to hers, and she smiled back, not putting two and two together. Mr. Lampedusa moved on in a compassionate tone.

  “You can share your story with me—I might be able to relieve you of some pressure.”

  ‘Pressure?’ What’s that supposed to mean?

  His gaze raked discreetly over my body. Maybe it was my imagination, but he seemed to skim my sleeveless dress with its way-too-generous neckline all the way down to my bare legs and pumps. Feeling exposed, I let my slight cleavage disappear behind my hair.

  I needed to calm down. He was Marina’s granduncle—I must be high for imagining this sort of vibe! Another peek at Marina revealed how much she trusted him, and my shoulders relaxed.

  I blew out a breath. Okay, I was ready for his expert opinion now.

  Once I’d let my guard down, I talked about Gabriel being my guardian angel, his plan of staying away—even about me not helping. I didn’t conceal much from them. Mr. Lampedusa listened without interruption while little gasps from Marina alerted me to the parts I hadn’t shared with her before.

  “Uncle Sebastian, I don’t think Gabriel ever tried to leave Gaia alone, though. He’s been haunting her since the accident,” Marina tattled.

  “What? No! He’s stayed away from me a lot.”

  Marina shook her head. “Nuh-huh, I’ve seen how you’ve been.”

  I gaped at her, searching for a retort, but her uncle caught my attention by straightening in his chair. He inhaled deeply, as if savoring something sweet. Then, his voice boomed out in an entirely different timbre.

  “‘The sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives
any they chose. Genesis 6:2.’”

  I glanced anxiously at Marina. Erect like a good schoolgirl, her mouth curved into an adoring smile at her uncle.

  “I think that covers what you should know about him. Yes, he is an angel, but a fallen one. A dark one. Have you heard of fallen angels? In the Book of Revelation, Chapter 12, you can read about how Michael the Archangel cast a third of the angels out after they lost the War in Heaven. God created them as good beings, but they freely chose evil, Gaia. These malevolent creatures brim over with unforgivable sin. These demons—they will possess you!”

  A sharp intake of air came from Marina’s chair.

  “No, no. Gabriel’s my guardian angel. Not evil. Good!” I said.

  Mr. Lampedusa snorted disdainfully. “My dearest Gaia—”

  I’m not your dearest anything, dammit!

  “—do understand. This thing is not Gabriel, but uses the name to ensnare you. The real Gabriel is an archangel, God’s primary messenger, not a mere guardian angel. Now, what does this tell you? We’re talking about a demon. One who wants to possess you and lies to you in order to get his way.

  “‘When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.’ Joshua 8:44. God’s angels would not lie. They are all goodness and no evil.”

  I wanted to ask him how many angels he’d met, but somehow I knew the answer. If he ever met one, he’d label him a fallen no matter what.

  Marina had me cornered in her own version of safety. Her face shone with relief, while her uncle’s expression was smug. Nothing I said would convince them. How could they be so sure?

  How could I be sure, though? I only had Gabriel’s word. So far, three people knew about him. Marina, Mr. Lampedusa, and my mother. Was it a mom thing to instinctively know what was bad for her child? She didn’t know what Gabriel claimed to be, but she still had misgivings about him.

  They’re right, aren’t they? An angel attracted to me—makes no sense.

  I choked up at the thought, and Uncle Sebastian’s features tinged with an odd mixture of interest and sympathy. “I’m sorry, Gaia. I didn’t mean to upset you. But now that you know the truth, let’s take precautions.”