Page 61 of Wings of Valor
Then I see it. A demon.
“You wanted an explosion?” The big brutish fucker from earlier calls out, flipping something in his hand. “Here you go!”
Time seems to slow as he hauls his arm back and tosses an object into the room before disappearing as quickly as he came.
“No!” I shout at the same time as my mother, ready to jump down the hole and stop it from happening, but Raphael and Theo haul us both away just in time to avoid getting caught in the blast. Debris and chunks of sandstone rain down on the area where we just stood. Where my father and Mira were.
“Oh, gods,” Mom wails, covering her mouth with her hand.
I move to her side, holding her tight in my arms and try to stay strong. We’re angels, right? Bombs might hurt, but we won’t die. So why is my mom so scared?
“They’ll be okay, Mom. Dad will survive this,” I reassure her.
“No, no, no,” she cries. “They made special bombs loaded with angel blades. If they—” but she breaks out into another sob before she can continue.
Holy shit. If that’s true, we’re fucked, and my Dad … Mira …
“Stay with them,” I hear Raphael say to Theo, but I don’t look where he’s going. I can’t, not with Mom falling apart in my arms.
I don’t know how long he’s gone for. It could be seconds. Minutes. Hours. My entire focus is on the woman whose heart is currently shattering into a million tiny pieces at losing the love of her life.
“They’re alive!” Raphael calls to us. He has to say it twice before the words sink in.
I stumble to my feet, hauling Mom along with me until we’re staring down into the open pit that was once a room. Where the door was is nothing but rubble. A silver lining, I suppose. With that blocked, the demon can’t come back with more force.
A strange, icy-blue mixture covers Dad and Mira from head to toe. Actually, it covers more than just them. It’s on the nearest chunks of sandstone, too. What the hell is it?
Mira helps Dad to his feet. They’re talking, but I can’t make out the words. Then, Dad does the strangest thing. He hugs her.A complete stranger. Before I can do anything, the pair unleash their wings and fly out of the crumbling room.
“Cam!” Mom cries, rushing toward where my dad lands and jumping into his arms. As much as I want to run toward him and make sure he’s alright, I know she needs a private moment with him, so I head toward Mira instead.
Raphael takes a quick scan of Dad while Theo does the same with Mira.
“How the hell are you two alive right now?” I ask. The pair of them are shivering uncontrollably despite the humid temperature. Adrenaline, maybe? They must both be in shock.
“Y-your friend doused us in something that m-made us cold enough to protect us,” Dad says, walking toward us with Mom practically glued to his side.
“N-not fully,” Mira adds, her teeth chattering. She’s holding her arm to her chest. Broken, I suspect. Dad has a pretty nasty gash on his head, too.
I don’t think that bomb had any angel blades in it, at least. For now, we’re safe, but when they let that bomb explode, it will kill far too many angels. Pulling out my slate, I send a message to Castiel to let him know we’re heading to the sanctuary. I ask him to notify Team A so they can fall back, and to warn them about a possible shrapnel bomb.
I glance around, not trusting our momentary peace. We need to get out of here.
“Are you well enough to fly?” I ask the group. Everyone nods, but then I realize we’re down an angel. “Fuck. What happened to Darok?”
“He woke up and bailed. That asshole is probably back in the sanctuary, lounging in his council chair and pretending like he actually fucking did something.” Mira kicks her foot toward a bag sitting a few yards away. “I don’t think I can carry that. Not with this arm.”
“I can take it for you,” Raph says, rushing to pick it up. “As for Darok, I say fuck him. I’m glad he’s not here.”
“Agreed. What’s inside?” Theo asks, nodding to the pack on Raphael’s back curiously.
A triumphant smile grows on Mira’s face. “We may have found a stash of weapons. I took as much as I could fit.”
“Fuck, yes!” Raphael whoops. “Let’s hope the rest get destroyed.”
“Thank you,” I mouth to her, hoping she knows just how grateful I am for everything she’s done. I’m not sure I would have survived losing Dad, and I know for certain that Mom wouldn’t have.
She bumps into me with her good arm, and then we take off, racing back toward the man I pray is awake.
