I stopped walking at his words, as the scenery started to sway. A year? Lincoln, Shea, my family, they’ve been without me for a year?
“What?” I fought back the tears. How much had I missed? Had Lincoln moved on? The very thought had my breakfast threatening to come back up my throat.
Bernie’s face, which was normally dirty and tired-looking, had a soft glow to it as he frowned. “Time in the underworld is different than it is up here, as you know.”
A siren sounded off in the distance, and the urgency of our mission hit me. I needed to get Raksha’s family out of here before Lucifer retaliated. I also needed to get to Shea, my mom, and Lincoln, make sure he couldn’t hurt them in his bid to get back at me.
“Let’s run,” I told Bernie and took off.
As we jogged side by side, I tried not to trip out at the fact that blind Bernie was in fact not blind… and was my guardian angel. I never thought those things were real. If they were, why did they let so much bad shit happen to us?
That would be a question for another day.
We reached the apartment building fairly quickly, the ratty green awning hanging in limp strips above me.
Please be home.
I entered the building, grateful there weren’t any demons milling about the entryway. Knowing it was only three floors, I decided to take the stairs rather than possibly ride the elevator with an Abrus demon and blow my cover. Once at the top, I was winded and my legs were throbbing, but I dug deeper and pushed myself to keep going.
My hand stilled over the door of 3B. What if she didn’t go with me? Would I have to take them by force? Because I would. I’d made Raksha a promise, and I was keeping it.
Bernie’s hand came out and covered my raised fist. “We’ll get through this together,” he assured me, and then we knocked.
Quick footsteps sounded through the apartment and then there was a pause.
“Who are you?” a short-clipped voice asked from the other side. She must’ve been looking through the peephole.
I cleared my throat. “A friend of Raksha’s. Please open up. We don’t have much time.”
The door flew open, and a short woman with a lean build peered at me with suspicious eyes. Her gaze never fell on Bernie, so I was guessing he was invisible. Which made me feel a bit more psychotic than I already did. What if he was a figment of my imagination?
Her eyes were wide but leery as she looked at my bloodstained clothes with apprehension. “What did you say?” She held a small pocketknife in her hand, as were the ways of living in Demon city.
I sighed. “I wish I had more time to explain, but I’ve been with Raksha for the last several months in Hell and… she helped me break out, now I need to get you and your son to Angel City.”
She laughed, lowering her knife. “That’s a sick joke. Why don’t you eff off.”
“Mommy?” a small voice behind her said.
She started to shut the door when I shoved my boot inside to bar it.
“She said you wouldn’t trust me. Not until I did this.” Reaching out, I dragged my finger down her forehead to the tip of her nose.
She flinched at first, but once she realized what I was doing, her chest sagged as she fought for composure. Tears welled in her eyes, which widened as she looked at me with absolute shock.
“Is she okay?” she asked me, opening the door wider to reveal the most adorable little boy I’d ever seen.
This is the time where it’s okay to lie. Right?
“She’s fine. But we need to go. Now.”
A flustered look crossed her face, but she nodded, gesturing for me to come in with her.
I stepped inside, and Bernie slipped in right behind me before shutting the door.
Can he walk through walls?
“Of course I can. I’m an angel,” he answered.
Oh my God. Another mind reader. Just what I needed in my life.
“I’ll pack some things quickly,” Elodie told me. Clearly she hadn’t heard Bernie speak.
She bent down to their little boy. “Remember the day we went to Angel City?” she asked him.
He nodded shyly, clutching a little stuffed penguin. He didn’t look more than four, or five years old.
“Well, we’re going to go there again today and live there. But we can only pack a few things, and we need to hurry.”
His brows scrunched. “Is it a race?” he asked in a tiny sweet voice.
She nodded, smoothing his hair. “Yes, exactly. It’s a race, and it starts now.”
With that, she burst into the bedroom and began to pack a quick bag.
While she was doing that, the little boy walked over to an entryway table, pulling down a framed picture. Upon further inspection, I saw it was a picture of Raksha, the boy, and his other mom. They were standing in a park somewhere, smiling happily.
My entire heart shattered then. Raksha was just like me, someone wishing she could be home with her family. But she wasn’t, she was freaking demon-bound to the Devil himself. I decided right then and there that if it were within my ability, I would try to free Raksha from that place. She deserved it.
“All right, I’m ready.” The woman came out with a small suitcase and two backpacks. After she put the boy’s raincoat on and placing the framed photo in his backpack, we were ready to go.
“How are we getting across?” she asked as we made our way down the stairwell of the apartment.
I looked at Bernie, who nodded. “I’ll assist you,” he told me.
“I’ve got some help at the border” was all I said to Elodie.
She seemed to be okay with that answer.
“Do you have a car?” I asked.
She shook her head. “We take the bus.”
Bernie groaned. “That won’t work. They’re checking all the buses for you.”
What? How did he…?
“So what do we do?” I asked him out loud, and Elodie stopped to look at me, perplexed.
“I thought you had a plan.” She sounded irritated.
Shit. I was talking to Bernie.
“I do. I… uh.”
“You need to steal a car,” Bernie stated casually.
My eyes bugged. “I have to steal a car?”
She was frowning. “Are you okay? You’re acting weird.” We were almost at the bottom floor by that point. I needed to get her moving.
Bernie must’ve revealed himself to her right then because she jumped backward, and stared at him wide-eyed. Her gaze ran over his wings, her mouth gaping open.
“This is Bernie. My guardian angel,” I introduced them.
She’s going to have me committed.
With a nod, she extended her hand. “I’m Elodie.”
Bernie smiled, taking her hand casually. “I was just telling Brielle that she needed to steal a car.”
The boy didn’t seem phased by Bernie’s sudden apparition. Instead he seemed to have other issues. “Stealing is bad,” he declared.
“Yes.” I agreed with him. “Which is why I find it very interesting my guardian angel is asking me to do that.” My gaze flew to Bernie.
Bernie waved it off like it was no big deal. “You’ll have it returned, and you’re trying to help someone, so it cancels out the bad karma.”
Hmm, that seemed questionable. I wondered how long Bernie had been in the guardian angel gig.
“Since you were born.” He winked.
I rolled my eyes and was about to retort when the sound of sirens grew closer.
Shea and Lincoln, my mom, Raphael, Mikey, Noah, they were all waiting on the other side of that border. I would do anything to get to them. Even steal a car. And I’d promised Raksha I wouldn’t let anything happen to her family. That was a promise I held dearer than any other.
How the hell would I steal a car? I didn’t know, but I’d figure it out soon. Hustling down the last flight of stairs, we stepped out onto the street and I quickly tried the door handle of a beat-up maroon Toyota.
Locked.
I moved to the next car as Bernie tried the same handle on the Toyota and it opened.
“Hey,” I scolded him. That was totally locked!
Guardian angel perk, I guess.
Elodie and the boy slipped into the back, while I opened the driver door with ease. A Demon City police car blared down the road, and I leapt into the car with my hood still up.
Bernie sat next to me with a kind smile.
“You have powers to start this thing?” I asked. I wasn’t about to rub some wires together like in the movies and get electrocuted.
He simply snapped his fingers and the car started.
My eyes bugged out, and when they flicked to the rearview mirror, I saw Elodie was in shock as well.
“Where have you been all my life?” I threw the car into Drive, and pulled out onto the main road.
I’d made a promise to Raksha, and I intended to keep it.
Chapter Fifteen
Taking a right at the next light, I started driving us near the highway, away from the sound of the sirens.
“Remember when Stacey Masters bullied me in third grade? Why didn’t you jump in then?” I asked Bernie. I couldn’t get over this guardian angel thing.
He looked down at his clasped hands, a slight frown on his face. “I do remember that. That was very sad, but I’m only permitted to help you with this one life event. Once you get over that border, my entire existence in this lifetime will be complete.”
What? What was going to happen at the border that was so important my guardian angel’s entire existence depended on it?
I was about to ask when Elodie spoke. “Do I have a guardian angel too?”
I could see from her face that she was totally tripped out by Bernie’s presence.
Bernie nodded. “Of course. Everyone does. Many of them.”
We drove out of town in silence. It was too much to process for me, let alone Elodie, and the thought of being home in a matter of minutes was too much excitement for me to bear.
Bernie suddenly reached out and grabbed my arm. “Don’t go to the border. Get off at the next exit. Lucifer is here and looking for you.”
Shit.
“Mommy’s boss, Lucifer?” the boy asked from the back seat.
Did he know her boss was the Devil? Doubtful. He probably thought Lucifer was some normal name.
“Yes. Mommy’s bad man boss is looking for us, but once we cross over to Angel City, we’ll be safe. Right?” Elodie asked me.
“Right,” I answered without hesitation. Lie number two.
No point in freaking her out, telling her that he could basically spy on us anytime, and make us get in car accidents and stuff.
“I’ve blocked your energetic signatures from his prying eyes,” Bernie assured us.
This man has some serious power.
“Is Maximus a real dog?” I asked him as we exited the freeway and drove along a frontage road.
Bernie chuckled. “Of course.”
“Now what?” I’d reached the end of the frontage road, so we were close to the border. The high wall stood tall in the distance.