Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 93412 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93412 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Gabriel’s fingers shivered in Abaddon’s grasp, prompting him to put his arm over the slender shoulders. “Are you okay? You can see it another time.”
“I’m just cold from the rain, but I want to go now,” Gabriel said, leaning into him like a little bird in need of protection.
“It’s not that far from here,” Abaddon said, heading toward the large oak, which would serve as his waypoint. Gabriel didn’t answer and followed Abaddon’s lead into bushes dense enough to pull at their clothes. Little critters scrambled away as their habitat was invaded, but the flashlight still reflected off a pair of eyes before they disappeared from sight.
But nothing here could hurt them, so he walked on, leading Gabriel by the hand as if they were Dante and Virgil on their journey through Hell. With water soaking everything and branchlets hitting damp flesh with their cold fingers, it was a rather miserable trip, so he sighed in relief when they left the bushes behind and entered a clearing.
The pile of dirt left by his birth had transformed into mud, but was still present around the shallow void in the ground.
“Here.”
Gabriel scooted down and picked up a black feather. It had turned brown from lying in the sludge but the dense rain washed the muck off it fast “And you think these were yours?” he whispered with reverence. “What was it like? Was the ground warm?”
“Of course they’re mine,” Abaddon said, moving the flashlight to reveal dark plumage scattered around the hole. They had been everywhere when he’d first woke up, so the wind and rain must have taken some of them since, but what remained presented an impressive picture nevertheless.
The ground had been heavy and cold, more like a grave than a womb, but then again angels weren’t of this world and didn’t have mothers. Still, he’d struggled to breathe just like a newborn as he crawled out into the air for the first time.
“It’s incredible…” Gabriel said, swiping his hand over the dirt.
Being in this human body was still somewhat painful, but the genuine curiosity relaxing Gabriel’s face made Abaddon smile. “So it is. Your very own angel.”
Gabriel got up and rushed over to him. His hands were cold when they traveled up Abaddon’s sides. “So very perfect. But while you’re here, you need to eat, and sleep, and be warm, and I will take care of you.”
Abaddon stared down at the head nestled against his chest, and his body responded to the touch with a hunger much different from the one Gabriel was referring to. But the boy was right. Abaddon did feel cold, and had been starving by the time they’d eaten at the diner in town. The Lord had put him into the body of a mortal man, and it needed to be maintained like anyone else’s, no matter what kind of spirit inhabited it.
“You? Care for me?”
“Yes,” Gabriel said and ran his fingers up to Abaddon’s shoulders. “It’s the least I can do. You protect me, you showed me the truth, and you’re avenging my pain. You weren’t the only one born here, because a new future for me was your twin.”
Abaddon swallowed, overcome by a flood of tenderness that pushed him to lean down until his lips met Gabriel’s cool forehead. He thought back to that terrible attack of panic, which had descended on him so suddenly, and knew that it might have ended in disaster had Gabriel not been there for him. “Nobody deserves a fresh start more than you.”
The desperation with which Gabriel arched into the kiss made Abaddon’s heart beat faster. For so many years, this boy had had no one in his corner, no one to help him through the atrocities that he’d endured, or even understand that his trauma was real. Abaddon would be there for him every step of the way.
For now though, what Abaddon needed to acknowledge was that Gabriel might end up with pneumonia if he didn’t get warm soon. They crossed the fields surrounding the massive building without speaking much, both drowned in their own thoughts, but once they reached St. John’s half an hour later, Gabriel spoke.
“Will you stay with me? I rarely have visitors, so if we’re careful it shouldn't be too hard to keep you as my secret.” The picture of a lovestruck puppy, he played with Abaddon’s fingers, and while the night was dark and obscured his lovely face, Abaddon sensed that the emotions it presented weren’t entirely innocent.
Abaddon’s mouth dried when he thought about sharing his bed with the boy again, but if Gabriel was effectively treated as a child whose rights could be suspended at the smallest transgression, then relying on his room for shelter would be unwise. So Abaddon smiled and pulled Gabriel close, trying to smell the vanilla in his damp hair. “How about I show you my place?”