After at least an hour, maybe more, Michael appeared. "He's okay," he said immediately.
I flew into his arms with a sob. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, I promise. He's resting, in Heaven. He can recharge there. It zapped his power pretty hard."
He rubbed my back, comforting me. After all that had happened, I couldn't face the thought of losing Gabriel. Even if he had pissed me off when he first revealed himself to me, and he had constantly tried to kill Luc before I was ready.
"When can I see him?" I asked. Michael pulled me over to the table and sat down next to me.
"Let him have a few days to recuperate up there. When he's feeling whole again, I'll tell him to come straight to you. He probably will anyway."
I nodded. "Okay. What are we doing in the meantime?"
"I’m still looking for Raph. That's not the oddest thing—he sometimes goes off and blends with humans, tinkering and interfering in their lives. But he can't be summoned, whichisodd. Believe me, I’ve tried.”
Angels could just summon each other, but Lucifer had a choice in whether or not he would answer.
"Okay. I'll just be here, doing human stuff, I guess."
"I encourage you not to try to kill Lucian. I don't want you hurt with it rebounding on you."
"I won't. I might do a little research, but I won't act without consulting you."
He nodded. "Good. I love you."
I gave him a long, tight hug. "Give my best to Gabe and tell him I love him very much." After I let go, he disappeared.
Once again, I was left with a yawning feeling of loneliness. A few days ago, I had a wiggly baby girl inside me, I didn’t realize how much her company soothed me. Today, I had no one. I looked around the kitchen at a loss. What was I supposed to do now?
Chapter 24
Constance-Lilith
Three days later,I was in my pajamas, wrapped in a thick blanket, and watching reruns of “I Love Lucy” on TV when Gabe popped into the living room and lifted my feet. "Hey, sis." He settled my feet in his lap. "What are we watching?"
I gasped and the bag of cheese poofs I'd been munching on fell to the floor as I sat up. Jellybean jumped off of the love seat to clean up the mess for me. Nice of him.
Grinning, I punched his arm. "I'm so happy to see you!"
He tightened his arms around me. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"I am now. He said you'd be gone for a few days. It seems like a week. I was so worried and lonely."
"Hasn't Lucian been here?" Gabe asked with a frown. “You don’t look… great.”
I snorted. "I'm low. Been spending a lot of time vegging out in front of the TV and eating chips to forget the pain." Luc had been here, of course, but I'd been using glamours to try to keep him from getting upset. I didn't want to risk the magic that Michael and Gabriel had used to alter his memories being unraveled.
He nodded, but his eyes were sad. "Why don’t you take a shower?"
I sniffed and considered the last time I'd taken one. It had probably been a while. "Do I stink?"
He shook his head, but he did it way too fast.
"So, I do stink."
I wasn't even embarrassed. My brother had seen me at my best and worst. This time was no different.
As he adjusted the temperature on the faucet, I waited, and then he stepped into the bedroom, shutting the bathroom door behind him. I stared at the door for a long minute, then realized the water was running. It seemed like a lot of effort to take a shower, but I was already here.
