Page 4 of Death Match

“You just finished telling me how every minute counted,” I replied. “And now you’re saying I can have more time?”

He paused for a long moment, considering his next words.

“I will never lie to you, Jade. Yes, the apocalypse draws nearer every second that goes by. The other Archangels are about to be crossed over. If you do not start the Trials, Michael is considering allowing them to go first. To not waste any more time.”

“That’s great. I like that idea. Let’s do that,” I said with a nervous laugh.

“But, Jade, it was supposed to be you who went first. You’re supposed to be the leader of this army. He’s trying to hold off with the others, but…”

I was holding everything up with my fear. He might not have said it explicitly, but that’s what I was hearing from him. I was slowing them all down.

Resting my hands on the side of the oasis, I stared at the water. My reflection had returned, and my cheeks looked a little paler now. Sickly.

I didn’t know how I was going to do this—be the person so many people expected me to be when I wasn’t even sure who I was myself.

Overwhelmed wasn’t even a strong enough word to describe what I was feeling right now. The eggheads who worked on dictionaries needed to create a new one for this.

Gigglispoofed.

Nope that wasn’t it. Needed to be stronger.

Bucklejacked.

Getting better, but still not there.

Oh well. Whatever that new word was, I was feeling it times ten.

“Jade.” Eli’s hands touched my arms as he came up behind me. “If it’s too much for you right now, I’ll tell Michael we’ll—”

I spun around, stepping into his embrace, and looked up at him. “No, no, I need to go. I know I do. Today. Now.”

His arms wrapped around me. “We’re going together. This is not your fight to have alone. I’m always here.”

A weight sat heavily in my gut. His words were sweet, like always, but they weren’t true, were they? I severely doubted he’d be allowed to help me through my Trials. That was my fight to go at alone. Not to mention that I was meant to lead an army of angels. Me. Jade.

All this responsibility felt lonely to me.

I went to step away from him, but his hold slid to my wrist, and he lightly pulled me back to him. That’s when he placed a small kiss on my forehead and smiled down at me.

Still not used to all his lovey-dovey gestures, I said nothing.

“Are you ready to move on?” he asked.

I nodded, even though my thoughts stayed elsewhere. I tried to keep them off my face, though.

Gently, he took my hand and placed it on his arm. “There’s no need to be afraid of Michael. He isn’t like Azrael,” he said.

The mention of my old boss made my stomach sink and my throat tighten.

I let Eli lead me around the oasis and down another walkway. When he had first taken me on a tour of Heaven, I was shocked to see how small the place actually was. At least where the angels dwelled. Branching out from the oasis at the center were a few other main places, like the Holdings, the Ascension building—where Michael and the Guardians worked—of course a huge and constantly blooming garden for relaxing, and an equally massive library full of all of living history.

There were a few other smaller paths, but Eli hadn’t even bothered showing me what lay down those. Must have been unimportant enough to skip over.

Naturally, we were heading to the Ascension building. A tall, slender structure that rose up so high, most of it disappeared behind white fluffy clouds. Glass covered every inch of the place, only heightening the majestic feeling it imposed.

Now Azrael’s taste for an office made of windows and reflecting in the clouds made sense. Not to mention all the haughtiness. It was in his bones.

The front door was one of those rotating doors commonly used in swanky hotels. My feet halted before reaching it, drawing Eli to a stop beside me.

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