A deafening silence echoed so loudly in the aftermath of his unmaking that even the soft rustle of angel wings was enough to make me cringe.
‘Mike was only the beginning, Lilith,’ Yahweh assured me, His voice filled with calm promise. He waved one of His ever-changing hands, and suddenly, it was Shem’s bloody face staring lifelessly back at me. Then Jezebel’s, then Art’s, then finally, Ramel’s.
My heart stopped as my gaze fell upon Ramel’s empty hazel eyes. They were filled with inky tears from the magic of the scepter. Grief raged through me, and I couldn’t bear the sight of his beautiful corpse. I felt as if a part of me had died with him, and I knew I would never be whole again.
I screamed and screamed, enraged that my vocal cords seemed incapable of producing sound.
Yahweh smiled and knelt down before me, running His thumb gently over my forehead in the sign of the cross.
‘There will be no saving them now, Lilith. I just wanted you to know that before I take them from you. Peace be with you.’
He snapped His fingers, and I woke up.
Alexa, play,‘Skin and Bones’by David Kushner
Someone was screaming.
Strong hands wrapped around my arms and held me still. I thrashed against the pressure of a body as it rolled on top of mine, my spine bowing as I fought through the overwhelming panic that gripped me to the marrow of my bones. My eyes flew open, and my gaze slammed into the hazel eyes that I had feared would stare into nothingness for eternity.
These eyes weren’t dead; they were alive and filled with a burning terror.
“Lilith, shhh, shhh. You’re alright. I’ve got you. It was a dream; you were dreaming.” Ramel soothed me, holding me firmly beneath him on what I quickly realized was our bed.
I choked on a sob, which interrupted the incessant screaming. It took me a moment to realize that I had been the one yelling.
“Ramel…” Hot tears slid down my cheeks, and his gaze bore into mine, concern etched into every line on his face. I choked on another breath and shuddered beneath the firm, comforting grip of his hands. “You’re alive,” I whispered, and he frowned.
“Of course I am,” he replied, kissing my tear-stained cheek. “I’m right here.”
“I thought he… Yahweh—I thought he killed you.”
His eyebrows flew up in surprise at my words. “You had a dream that Yahweh unmade me?” He kept his voice low and gentle. I nodded, closing my eyes, only to open them again when I was immediately plagued by visions of Ramel’s lifeless body sprawled out before me.
Ramel was staring at me with an expression I didn’t understand. “I’m going to let your arms go,” he said softly. “Try to stay calm, I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”
I nodded, understanding now why he was holding me down. I must have been thrashing in my sleep.
He released me and slid to lie by my side. I immediately missed the pressure of his body against me. I needed to feel his skin on mine. I needed to feel like he was really here. His presence was already erasing the terror I felt when I woke up believing Yahweh had just unmade him in front of me.
“Don’t leave me,” I whimpered, reaching for him. He froze as I slid my hands up his chest, my fingers hesitating briefly over the fresh wounds we had carved into his flesh. Being careful so as not to reopen the newly formed scabs, I wrapped my arms around his neck. Burying my face into his shoulder, I breathed in his scent and shuddered through another sob.
Gently, as if I were made of glass, he wrapped his arms around my waist and tugged me in close to him. He placed a firm kiss on the top of my head and rubbed delicate circles across my back.
“I could never leave you, Lilith,” he promised, “not even if you wanted me to.”
My next sob morphed into a choked laugh at his words.
Wasn’t that the truth.
“Stalker,” I joked, and I felt him smile against my forehead.
“You like it.”
“You wish.”
“I do,” he agreed, the humor fading from his tone. If I didn’t know any better, I would say he almost sounded sad.
I pulled back enough to look at him, and he brushed his thumb across my cheek, collecting one of my tears. He licked the tear off his thumb and then dropped a tiny kiss on my nose.
