Page 140 of All's Hell That Ends Well

“My sweet, sweet daughter,” she murmured, squeezing her tight.

I almost didn’t hear Azmodea’s husky “Mom,” that one word holding a world of emotion.

“You become more beautiful every time I see you.” Naamah drew back and caressed Azmodea’s face, then she turned to me. “Zoe,” she said, her turquoise eyes—identical to her father’s—filling with tears. “Come here.”

And then I was pulled into her strong embrace.

“I am so sorry for causing you pain,” she whispered. “I know you talked with Azazel, and he explained the reasoning behind my actions, but I wanted to apologize to you personally. Please forgive me for the role I played in your fall, and for the missed chance with your mother.”

I drew in a heavy, shuddering breath, then I squeezed her back. “It’s okay.”

She released me, dashed away a tear, and nodded. “I have something for you, and I hope it will make up for the hurt I caused you.”

Curious, I watched her reach into her sari and pull out a small object. I frowned when I realized it was a soul transport box.

“What—” I asked, even as the stirrings of an idea of what this might be prickled in my mind.

Naamah didn’t wait for me to finish my question, didn’t pause to explain. She simply opened the box, and with a flash of light, the soul inside was released.

My lungs stopped working. My heart shattered into a million pieces that melted back together. I only had a few seconds of seeing her clearly, then the tears filling my eyes clouded my vision.

“Mom!” I cried out and launched myself at her.

“Zoe,” she rasped on a grunt as I tackle-hugged her.

My world splintered. All the emotions I’d kept bottled up, all that pain and heartache, the despair and sorrow I’d felt over her death and losing her, it all bubbled up now. The dam broke, and it nearly brokeme.

Sobbing, I clung to her, her ghostly form as solid to me as if she were alive. We sank to the ground, and she hugged me tight enough to make it hard to breathe. She kept stroking my hair in that soothing way of hers, and it threw me back in time.

I was a teenage girl again, lost in a sea of uncertainty, heartbreak, and anger, feeling so rejected from my dad leaving us, and here she was, my anchor, my rock, my one constant.

I couldn’t speak for a long time, my throat so raw, unable to stop crying in order to form words.

Eventually, my mom pulled back, her hands framing my face. Her eyes darted to beyond my shoulders, and I realized that I’d instinctively wrapped my wings around her.

I laughed and sniffed. “I have wings!”

Her ghostly form glowing with emotion, she huffed out a laugh, too. “I can’t believe it. Oh, sweet baby. I am so glad to see you. After we left things the last time we met…”

Fresh tears shot into my eyes. “I’m sorry, Ma. I shouldn’t have said those things. I know that now. It was wrong of me. I was being selfish by asking you to make a deal to stay on Earth longer. I just didn’t want to lose you”—my voice broke—“but that’s no excuse. I need you to know that I am not that kind of person. I was just overwhelmed and afraid, and I didn’t think before I said all that. I’m glad you didn’t make a deal. You were right to choose the health of your soul. You were right, and I was wrong.”

“Oh, honey.” Her features trembling, she stroked my hair. “I understand. I was just so sorry that I wasn’t able to spendmore time with you after that, that we didn’t get to speak again under better terms before I—” Swallowing, she looked down for a moment. “Your demon came to me again before the cancer took me.”

My eyes widened. “He did?”

She nodded. “He explained to me what had happened to you, and why you weren’t able to visit me again. He told me about the talk you’d had, too. That you’d wanted me to know you’d changed your mind and were sorry about suggesting that I make the deal. So you see”—she laid her hand on my shoulder and squeezed—“I never thought you were that kind of person. I know you, and I know your heart. And it’s a good one, Zoe.”

That turned on the waterworks again. Sobbing once more, I fell back into her arms.

When I was eventually able to stifle the crying a bit, I drew back, my face a mess of tears and snot. I blinked at the tissue that was being held out in front of me.

With a glance at Naamah, I took it from her hand and heartily blew my nose. “Thanks,” I said. Frowning, I turned back to my mom. “How is it that you’re here?” I looked up at Naamah. “How did you bring her down here? I had no idea souls were allowed to leave Heaven and come back to Earth.”

“Technically, they aren’t.” Naamah regarded her nails. “But you know me. I have plenty of strings to pull. I searched for her for weeks and months, and when I finally found her, luck had it that the angel in whose stable she’d landed owed me a favor.”

I grinned. “Of course.”

“Anyway, I convinced him to transfer her to my care, so now she’s with me, and since souls in an angel’s care are their property, in a way”—she glanced at my mom—“no offense, darling!”

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