Angel -
Chapter 5
LUDI
I realize what I’ve said. I meant to keep it from her, to prevent her from going evil. I’ve always known that evil was, well, evil, despite my Dad being a demon. He’s never truly been demonic. He’s trying to change into the soul of an angel to be with Mom, and he’s taught me the life of a demon isn’t a life I want to live. And in all the stories I read, the hero kills the villain. Every. Last. Story. The villain always dies.
If Lora became a demon, she’d be the evil villain. She wouldn’t think she was, but even if we’re part demon the rules of good and evil still apply to us.
I had hoped that if I kept the fact that she was the demon hybrid a secret, she would never turn out a full demon. She’d stay my nerdy sister forever.
But now I’ve told her, and her face has fallen. Then it hardens, which scares me. I’m scared of my own sister…
“You’re wrong,” Lora growls deeply. “You’re wrong. This is because you don’t like Harley, isn’t it?”
“This isn’t about some silly school rivalry, Lora!” My mouth says. I need her to understand. There’s a chance I can save her. “This is about good and evil! About demons and Angels! About heaven and hell!”
“So you think that the book is right? It’s wrong. You’re all wrong!” Lora’s voice is rising; she’s desperate. “I’m an angel- I have to be an angel!”
My heart sinks. “Lora, of course, you can be an angel! I never said you had to be a demon, I just listed what the stupid book said! You can be good, Lora. I know it.”
I reach my hand out to my twin sister. She stares at it, then holds it. “Ludi, I’m good because I have you.”
“That’s sweet,” says a voice at the door. I spin with Lora and we see Dad and Uncle Salan silhouetted against the doorframe. I pale.
I’m sure that Uncle Salan has read Hybrid Slaves-What you need to know. It’s his book, after all. So I don’t doubt that he knows how to tell what a hybrid child will be which. Uncle Salan is a prime angel-killer.
He would kill Mom.
As soon as I’ve finished the full transfer to an angel, he would kill me, too.
His face is bright red and livid. He’s heard everything. He knows I took his book.
“Lora, can you and your father ready the goats for my inspection?” Uncle Salan asks. I feel cold all over despite the burning fire on his tail. We would be alone. Me, the destined angel, and him, the angel killer.
Lora shoots me a terrified look. Although she doesn’t know the full extent of my doom, she knows I’m in danger. A lot of danger. But she has no choice but to obey our uncle, and she leaves with Dad.
“So.” Uncle Salan comes into the room. “You’ve read my book. After you stole it. From a room you can’t go in.”
I don’t want to answer, but it’s clear he wants an answer, even though he didn’t ask a question. “I’m sorry, sir. It was… I just wanted to find out more about… about who I am.”
“In Hell, stealing from me is punishable by an eternity of running through HellFire barefoot across a floor made of impaling spikes chased by a monster who will eat you alive then spit you back up just to chase you again.” Salan grins at me. “You know that, impervious or not to fire, HellFire will burn you.”
I swallow hard. I’m not dead yet, I remind myself. “I’m really sorry…” I sigh. “I just-I wanted to know… it won’t happen again, I swear.”
“No, it will happen again.” Says Salan. I look up. He’s grinning wickedly. “I know who you are. You’re the angel-destined one. And you know who I am. I’m the angel-killer. Everyone knows about me. I have a reputation. And then my idiot brother goes ahead and marries my sworn enemy… yes,” he adds, smirking at the look on my face. “Yes, your mother and I met before she knew my foolish brother existed… I knew I should have killed her when I had the chance.”
All I can do is stare at him because sudden movements could literally cause my demise.
Salan smiles. “But that will be fixed, won’t it? I’m staying for the week, and all I have to do is get you out of the house and I can mend my mistake so long ago.”
He’s talking about killing Mom. I think, fear settle in my belly.
“What will you do without your precious angelic mother to care for you?” Salan says softly.
“You can’t,” I choke desperately. “She’s-She’s my Mom-”
“You think I care?” Salan says sharply. “But that doesn’t matter… This little chat has gone on too long, little angel. I’ve got things to do, people to kill…” He laughs evilly and struts backward out of the room, slamming the door shut.
I’m left in the room, terrified for mine and Mom’s life.
The next day, I couldn’t focus on my schoolwork. What could Salan be doing at home? He could have murdered Mom and Dad by now. I barely noticed what Erin was saying about the planets pointing to certain doom.
“Ludi?” Grayson’s voice snaps me out of my fear-coma. “Are you listening to Erin?”
I look at him. Tall, tanned, grey-eyed and brown-haired Grayson. We met in the halls when I accidentally bumped into him and recognized the Harry Potter character on his shirt.
“Mhm,” I nod. Focus, I tell myself.
“So, I was stargazing last night,” Erin continues. “And I saw that Neptune had hidden behind Jupiter, which is odd. When Neptune hides, it means it knows something bad will happen near you. And then I looked for Mars and Venus-And they were unusually close! Mars is the planet Hell, and Venus is the planet Heaven.”
“Since when?” Grayson looks confused.
Erin ignores him. She’s in full star-mode right now. “And I figured out the doom instantly!”
She leaned close dramatically. I couldn’t help but listen.
“Heaven and hell will go to war,” she whispered dramatically.
Grayson leans back, scoffing.
“It’s true!” Erin says, her voice showing signs of hurt at Grayson’s careless scoff.
“We believe you, Erin,” I reassure her. It’s true-at least, for me. A demon visits me, my dad is a demon, my mother is an angel. And Salan’s going to kill Mom. If her family even cares about her anymore, then they’ll probably start a war.
Then I actually realize this, and I bolt away from my two friends suddenly. I have to tell Lora, immediately. She doesn’t know the danger!
I find her in the gymnasium, talking to Harley, Macayla, Ceara and a few other girls I don’t know.
“Lora!” I yell, waving at her. “Lora, I need to talk to you! This is important-really life-changing important!”
Lora waves her hand grins at her friends and walks forward, her auburn hair waving behind her.
“What?” She hissed, her smile vanishing as soon as her back is to her friends. “I was just about to let them know how much about rituals I know! I could become a leader if you hadn’t interrupted me!”
“Salan’s going to kill Mom and then Heaven and Hell will go to war!”
Lora snorts. “What are you talking about?”
“Erin’s a stargazer, and she saw the planets were hiding and that means-” I inhale “-that angels and demons are going to war!”
Lora mutters something under her breath that sounds like ‘centaur’.
Some of my sister’s friends giggle. Harley flips her hair and raises an eyebrow, grinning. “Angels and demons?”
“I think your brother is a little loopy, Lora!” Ceara calls.
I look at Lora desperately. I need her to understand.
Lora looks at me coldly, then turns and walks to her friends.
I slump in defeat. I couldn’t do it-I couldn’t save my mom.
“What’s your probl-” SMACK!
I look up just in time to see Lora slap Ceara and Macayla. Then she turns and whacks Harley around her head.
Oh, my angel! I gape at my nerdy sister slapping the only people she’s gotten to know at this school.
They’re whimpering so loud I can barely hear Lora’s livid whisper.
“My brother isn’t loopy, you little-”
I gasp. She’s said a word I know she’ll get in trouble for. All to defend me.
And I thought Lora was going to turn out evil.
Harley, Ceara and Macayla are gaping at her. Harley recovers enough to speak just as we’re walking out of the gym.
“You can’t-you’ll get in trouble-I’m the leader of the Haters!”
Lora turned slowly around. Harley quivered in fright.
Suddenly Lora’s wings and tail and horns burst out. Harley screams, the rest of the girls following her as she runs away.
Lora lets out a terrifying screech and flew after them, sending fireball after fireball at them.
“Lora!” I yell, grabbing her leg. “Lora, stop! Let them go! We have other things to do!”
Lora flies back down, and I see she is sobbing.
“I did evil, Ludi-I’m evil-”
“Come on! We can talk about this later!” I pull her to the door. Mom could be dead already.
We get to the house and nearly break down the door. Lora hasn’t pulled back her hybrid form yet, and I don’t blame her. I’m just as worried.
“MOM!” I yell, bursting inside. “MOM, WHERE ARE YOU!”
“Ludi, Lora-why aren’t you at school?” Dad comes into the entry hallway. “Did something bad happen?”“Yes, but it’s not exactly school related,” Lora answers him. “Do you know where Mom is? It’s really important!”
“Your mother is away right now,” says a voice. I turn and see Uncle Salan walking into the room. He has an unhappy expression on his face.
“Yes, on a business trip,” Dad says, glancing at Salan quickly. “Cosplay Costumes wanted to have another store, and they sent her to find one. In a city called Oakview.” He looks at us again, a nervous expression on his face. “What’s wrong?”
I look at Uncle Salan. He looks super angry, confirming this. That or he’s a brilliant actor.
Dad notices my sight line and waves his demon tail to send Salan out.
“Excuse me?” Salan says, his voice sounding affronted. “I’m their uncle, not some neighbour.”
“And I am their father, and I wish for you to leave,” Dad says, standing up and facing his brother. I shrink into myself, but Lora stands tall.
Uncle Salan’s fists clench. His eyes lock onto Lora, but they flit back up to Dad. Let me say this now, Dad is not a short man - or, well, demon.
“Alright,” Uncle Salan says. He opens his mouth as if to say something again, but then he turns and stalks out the door.
“Now,” Dad turns back to us. “What’s going on? Why are you in your hybrid form, Lora? Why is Ludi so pale?”
“Ludi’s friend Erin is definitely part Centaur because she’s just predicted something by reading the planets, which is a sure sign of centaur-ness according to What Slave Did You Buy,” Lora says. I frown-Centaurs? But there are more pressing matters to focus on.
“The planets say that heaven and hell will start a war,” Lora says quickly but firmly.
Dad doesn’t answer, but when he does his voice is strong. “I won’t ask where you read that book, Lora. Your centaur friend is correct because angels and devils and demons are getting angrier at each other. So now we need to go to school, retrieve the centaur, and before Uncle Salan knows if we’re in Oakview with your Mom.”
This plan has nothing to do with saving the world from the godly war about to start, but I don’t say anything. I don’t have any ideas myself.
“Pack your things quickly,” Dad finishes, then stands.
I nod, and race to my room. Once I’m inside, I realize what we’re about to do fully. We’re going to be running away from the only home I’ve ever known against the knowledge of a demon angel-killer, and we’re going to go into hiding all so that a war can’t affect us.
What about Spot? What about Speckle, and Grayson, and Ms. Crosbie and all the other kids I’ve met in my life so far?
I don’t have time to save them all now. Maybe soon we can come back and take them all with us.
But for now, all I can do is pack and hope that Uncle Salan doesn’t find out what we’re about to do.
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