"Me either." Michael shook his head, then stared intently at the wood. I waited a few seconds but didn't look at theCrucisfor fear of it drawing me in again. After a bit, he shrugged. "Nothing."
The box was the best place for it, so I settled it inside again. "Maybe it's because I'm in a human body. You two may be better able to resist its call."
"I bet the big one is hard to resist," Michael said. "The one Raphael has."
I gave him a confused look. He'd talked like it was no big deal before. "I thought you'd been around the bigger piece before."
Gabe nodded. "We have, but I can't recall a time when I held it. It's always locked up in a case in Raphael's weapons room."
"Why his?" I asked.
Gabe took the jewelry box from me and tucked it into his pocket. "Raph is obsessed with weapons. He loves them. He has spent his life collecting them. He has several different Objects, but none nearly as powerful as theLignumCrucis.”
"Does he have any that are more powerful than this piece?" I pointed to Gabe's pocket and the small box.
"Debatable," Michael said. "You'd have some argue yes he does, and some argue that these are more powerful. In any event, if this piece doesn't work, we can try one of the other Objects. It was surprisingly easy to get into his home and weapons room. As if he left without caring, which is unlike him."
I checked my phone. "Lucian will be home soon. Michael, you should look like Adam, and you can introduce him to Gabe. We'll see if we can do this without traumatizing Lucian too much. He'll still be human, and he's going to remember everything, including Ariel. It'll be heartbreaking."
Gabriel nodded. "I feel for the guy." That was a miracle, given they usually enjoyed giving each other all the crap they could.
Michael stood. "Okay, I'm going to run to town and pick up pizzas. Gabe and I will show up just as he comes home from work. When he's comfortable eating, I'll come up behind him and press the wood to his forehead, and we'll both funnel our power through."
"I don't have much, but I'll help with what I've got," I said.
Gabe nodded. "Let's go."
I held out my cheek for a kiss, and they each pressed one to it before disappearing.
Time passed quickly as I waited on Lucian to open the garage door. I tidied up the already tidy house, wiped down the kitchen counters, then grabbed a tennis ball and threw it in the back yard for Jellybean.
He heard Lucian coming and bounded around the house. I followed and waved him into the garage. We were finally going to be able to make some progress.
Beaming, I walked into the garage behind the car and pressed the button to close it. Lucian got out of the car to find me holding my arms out for a hug.
I was so excited. Lucian's memories might give us insight to be able to kill him and get him back to Hell.
"I talked to Adam." I grabbed his briefcase then held the door open for him. "He's bringing pizza and some guy he wants you to meet."
Lucian sighed. "Ugh, I don't know if I'm up to company today. I've had a headache."
I froze in the act of putting his briefcase down on the kitchen table. "A headache?" Lucian rarely complained of having a headache. I wondered if all our attempts to kill him had triggered his curse to somehow put a strain on him.
Shit. This had better work.
The doorbell rang before he could give me any more information about his head. Jellybean lost his mind and ran for the front door, barking at the top of his lungs. "Oh, well," he said. "I guess I'm having company whether I want it or not."
He walked toward Jellybean, deftly avoiding his tail. I envied Lucian his innocence, even if it was only for a few more minutes.
Hopefully.
"Hey," Lucian said with a bright smile when he opened the door. "Come on in." Jellybean recognized Michael and Gabriel and tried to lick their hands, happy to see them.
Adam walked into the foyer and slung his arm around me. "Connie, how ya doing?"
"Oh, you know,Adam.Fine. Who's your friend?" I raised my eyebrows at Gabriel. He gave me a cheesy grin. It was hard not to roll my eyes at him.
"Oh, yeah, sorry. Lucian, Constance, this is my cousin Gabriel. Gabe, these are my best friends."
