Page 24 of The Halo & the Heathen
Thea and Keres’ eyes go wide, but the other two don’t look surprised.
“Welcome to the ranks of a very few.” The Devil inspects me for a long moment before returning to his throne and his dame moves to his lap. “She won’t stay dead. You can kill God, but she always comes back.”
“Sometimes, I think she created weeds in her own image.” Zuriel says with contempt.
Thea reaches up, her golden hand disappearing into her angel’s shroud…
“Why was heaven empty? There were angels, but no… no humans.”
The two of them share a glance and for once, the Devil looks uncomfortable.
Zuriel wraps his arms around Thea, as if he expects her to act on what he is about to say. “Because God hates your kind.”
“I don’t believe that.” I can’t… can I?
The angel tips his head to the side. “You don’t have to.”
“Your sister,” Keres asks. “What’s wrong with her?”
“I don’t know. No one does. That’s why I needed a miracle.”
“That’s why youperformeda miracle.” Thea says.
“I failed.”
Thea looks at me like my mother used to, and gently says, “Traversing hell, climbing the stairway to heaven,killingGod. You performed multiple miracles trying to save her.”
“And none of them will.” If my demon didn’t have a hold on me, that admission might have dropped me to my knees.
“She is not a sinner.” The Devil traces a scarred name on his Dame’s thigh. “I cannot bring her here. But, if she dances next year, you can keep her here.”
Would life in hell be better than hell on Earth?
“Will she last that long?”
The Devil dips his head. “Yes. Your sister is sick, but she is not dying.”
“God won’t retaliate?”
“It will take her time to regain her strength. She has to pull all of her power back into herself… and she has to find it to do that.”
I take a deep breath and it feels like the first time my lungs have been full in three days. “Okay.”
The four of them relax, as if everything is settled, but…
“What now?” I ask.
“You made your choice. You’re damned, now and forever,” the Devil says.
“I understand.” I raise my hand and hold out the halo to him, looking at the place where it burned my hand.
But it’s my demon who takes it.
“Your eternal punishment will be guarding it,” the Devil says. “I’m sure the two of you will be able to manage it together without any more trouble.”
Arm wrapped around my waist, my demon leads me away from them, he turns me to him, twirling…
“Are we dancing?”
