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 backyard 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.
Crap. 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."
We all shook hands and exchanged pleasantries.
Adam stepped back onto the porch and reappeared with a stack of pizzas. "Let's eat!"
They waited until Lucian was on his second slice before Adam stood and pulled the jewelry box out of his pocket. "Check this out, Luc."
Lucian trusted Adam with every fiber of his soul. He grinned and looked cross-eyed at the piece of wood as his good friend Adam pressed it to his forehead. "Is this like a mind-bender kind of game?"
Michael chuckled. "Something like that."
He looked at me and Gabriel. "Ready?"
We nodded and focused on Lucian. "Do it," I said.
I grabbed the thin string of my magic and focused it on theLignumCrucis. I pushed it towards the wood. I gasped as I felt it connect with the magic from the wood. With the aid of the Object, I almost felt like I had the same amount of power I was used to in my ethereal body.
Focusing on Lucifer, I thought one thing as I channeled the magic.Remember.
Remember.Remember.Over and over, I fed my magic through the Object and told Lucifer to remember.
When I was almost ready to give up, it happened. I felt a crack in Lucian's mind. Light flooded through his conscience, filling his mind with memories. Glancing at Michael and Gabriel, I raised my eyebrows. Should we have stopped?
Gabriel shrugged, but Michael used his free hand to wave it in a go-on motion. So, I grabbed even more of my limited power, straining my human body. If I took one iota more, my body would begin to burn.
Lucian gasped and blinked his eyes rapidly. "How?" he said but went silent again and slammed his eyes shut.
