Page 23 of Death Trap

Was I a vampire before death? That was the only thing I could think of that would make a tiny bit of sense here. Vampirism was a gene, so all vamps started out as human. Dying the first time was what triggered the DNA mutation, and they awoke again as a vampire who needed living blood to sustain their partial immortality. But unlike cats, they were only given one extra life, so when they finally did kick the bucket, they had to be crossed over like any supernatural.

It could be possible that I had been a vamp before this and had known Eli for centuries that way. But then, I would have skills like a higher sense of hearing, speed, and the urge to avoid the daylight hours. More importantly, none of the vamps I had ever crossed over had demon-zapping powers. That was a mystery, and it didn’t go along with anything Eli had said.

“I'm thinking it's my old boss, Azrael, behind the censor and the Halfling attacks.” I was assuming he knew about those since he’d been following me for months. “He hasn't returned to Styx since all this mess started.”

“I agree with you,” Eli replied. “He's gone off the angels’ radar, too.”

“Angels? There are more of them?” I always figured there were more than just Azrael but had never seen one for myself. Maybe they were too busy doing angel stuff. Whatever the fuck that was. Floating around? Polishing their halos? Who knows.

He smiled. “Yes. There are. Lots of them to be exact.”

“Then why can't they be the ones to do the dirty work and fix this shit? Why does it have to be me?”

Eli flinched—actually flinched—at my curse. It reminded me of Marla.

“Because…” There went the censor again, blocking him. He paused, thinking, before trying again. But no sounds came out when he opened his mouth. When he tried for a third time, he was able to say this: “Heaven is complicated. Like the afterlife dimensions. Like Hell. Ultimately, thismessisn't what angels are meant to handle. They don't have the abilities you do. God made you for this purpose.”

God? I sputtered a laugh. Now he was pulling my leg. He had to be. Was there really a God in charge of this rodeo? Did he really exist?

“And where is the big man in all this?” I asked. “Why isn't he out here fighting the good fight?”

Eli’s jaw tightened. Had I struck a nerve?

After a long moment of stiff, uneasy silence, he said, “God's missing.”

I stared at him.

“He's been missing for a long time,” he went on. “Nobody knows where he is.”

Oh lordy, was this a hot mess. The only person who probably had the ability to fix everything with just a wave of his hand was nowhere to be found.

Perfect. Just perfect.

A warning tickled the back of my neck, making me grow rigid. Something inside me pulled me toward the boarded-up window to look outside. After peeking through the cracks, what I saw confirmed my fears.

Two Halflings crawled out from the shadowy place between the trees in front of the trailer.

You’ve got to be kidding me.

“Uh, Eli. We have a problem,” I said.

He was quick to my side and looked through the wooden boards like I had. His entire body stiffened beside me.

“They have to be tracking me or something,” I told him, voice lowered. Not like it mattered. They already knew I was here.

“I think you’re right.”

“What do we do?” I glanced at him and then the door. If Sean and Wyatt’s deterrents did their job, which I was expecting they would, the monsters shouldn’t be able to enter the house. But that would just make us sitting ducks. Also, it would put Sean in danger whenever he got home, and I couldn’t risk that. That poor boy had been through enough recently and definitely didn’t need to return to two Halflings in his yard.

I moved toward the front door, ready to run outside and fight the beasts, but Eli touched my arm to stop me.

“Wait,” he said sharply.

I swiped his hand away, not liking being touched by someone I still considered a stranger.

“We can’t stay here,” I said in a rush. I’d been in this exact scenario before and knew from experience only more and more Halflings would come if we stayed put. “We have to do something.”

“I agree with you,” he said. “But I think it might be best if we went through the back and flew.”

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