“Where the hell are we?” Jay asks.
“Does this look familiar to any of you?” I ask.
“No, it’s just some random kitchen,” Emmy says.
“Wait; it’s not,” Rage says as he studies the room closer.
“What do you mean?” Miku asks him.
“Remember the third flash Emmy saw was a clock going backwards. And Anora’s power is building fantasies to lure her victims in,” he replies.
“So you think this is Anora’s creation?” I ask.
“Yes.”
“But why would she create a random kitchen?” Emmy wonders.
“It’s not a random kitchen. It’s Ameana’s kitchen from when she was human,” I realize.
“Yeah, but its more than that, Anora would want to find the most powerful moment in Ameana’s life. A defining moment that Ameana wishes she could change,” Miku says.
“Damn it!” Rage shouts.
“What is it?” Emmy pushes.
“Don’t you see where we are?” he asks.
“Yeah, Ameana’s kitchen,” Jay responds.
“It’s not just her kitchen. This is the place Ameana took her last breath. This is where Ameana’s Core ended,” I reply, now understanding Rage’s reaction.
“How can we be sure?” Emmy asks.
“Ameana’s mother killed her by placing peanut oil into her food. She cooked it right in front of her,” I remind them.
“I don’t remember, what was Ameana’s mother cooking the day she killed her daughter?” Jay asks.
“Chili,” Rage and I reply in unison.
We look over at the covered pot on the stove. We exchange a worried look. We all hope we are wrong. Miku goes over to the pot and lifts up the lid.
“Chili,” she says confirming our fears.
“Okay, walk me through this, guys, why is Anora taking Ameana back to her Core?” Emmy asks.
“For as long as I have known her, she believed that her mother was misunderstood somehow. And that if she tried hard enough she could get her mother to accept her; to love her,” I reply to Emmy.
“Anora is going to lure Ameana in by giving her the one thing she was never able to get from her mother: Compassion,” Miku says.
“It’s more than that. When Ameana talks about her Core she’s angry and sad, but there’s another emotion. An emotion that never made any sense,” Rage shares.
“Keep going, what other emotion does Ameana feel when talking about her death?” I push.
“Guilt.”
Not long after Rage’s revelation, Ameana enters the kitchen. We call out to her but she does not hear us. She walks right through us as if we don’t exist.
“Why can’t she see us?” Miku asks.
“I’m guessing this Anora chick has control over this world she’s created,” Rage says bitterly.
“Yo we can’t just chill and let Anora do whatever she wants,” Jay says.
“That’s the thing, I don’t think we have a choice. The only one who can stop what’s happening is Ameana. She has to walk away from the only thing she ever really wanted. Her mother’s love,” I reply.
“If she doesn’t…” Emmy begins.
“Then Anora will draw her close and kill her,” Rage says angrily.
“This is crazy. We can’t just stand here,” Emmy begs.
“Again, we don’t really have a choice…” I remind her.
The longer we stand there, the more details we notice about the world Anora’s created. According to Miku, Ameana is wearing the same clothes that she died in. Also the refrigerator has magnet frames with pictures of a young Ameana and her Dad.
The Markings are gone from Ameana’s body. Even her hair has changed. She wears it in a simple ponytail; I’m sure it’s to downplay her beauty. It does not help; the young girl is gorgeous. What gets me isn’t her beauty but her innocence. Seeing Ameana as a human, one who has never been on a mission or killed anyone, is jarring.
Ameana’s mom enters the kitchen. She is also quite pretty. She has soft brown eyes, high cheek bones, full lips and milk chocolate skin. As pretty as she is, I can see how people could overlook her and fawn over her daughter.
The team agrees with me that in all likelihood, Anora is taking on the shape of Ameana’s mom. Anora enters and smiles brightly at her “child.” We watch the scene play out anxiously.
Ameana looks over at the pot on the stove; from the suspicion on her face, she knows thatsomething is wrong with the food. Her mother smiles warmly, Ameana smiles back.
“Sweetie, when did you get home?” Her mother asks.
“Um…I’m not sure. I guess just now. I feel weird,” Ameana says.
“Weird how?”
“I don’t know…like I’m forgetting something really important.”
“If you’re forgetting it, it must not be worth remembering. Why don’t you get us somechili while I fix the table.”
“I’m not hungry. I don’t think I’ve felt hunger in a long time,” Ameana says confused.
“Of course you’re hungry. Now get us both a big bowlful and come have dinner withyour mother.”
Jay whispers how odd it is that Anora is pushing Ameana to go to the stove instead ofpouring the chili herself. Emmy reminds him that Anora is tied up with Samson Stringand may not be able to reach the stove. That makes sense because Anora seems desperateto have Ameana fetch the food.
“I’ve been waiting for you to come home. I’ve missed you, baby,” her mother says.
“Really?”
“Yes, you’re my only child. How could I not miss you?” her mother replies.
Ameana pours the chili into the bowls, takes them over to the table and sits down. Thereis a basket of bread already on the table along with utensils. Mother and daughter sitacross from each other. The only thing saving Ameana’s life is that she is literally out ofthe demon’s reach.
“Now, please eat, honey,” her mother says.
Ameana places the spoon inside the bowl and stirs it carefully.
“What’s wrong, dear?” her mother asks.
“Mom…you know I love you right? I do. I love you so much,” Ameana begs.
“Yes dear, Mommy knows.”
“Then why are you doing this to me? Why are trying to destroy me?”
“What on earth are you talking about?” her mother asks.
“The chili. It’s bad. You put…there’s something…why? Why would you want to kill me?”
“You must be tired, you’re talking nonsense. Eat your dinner then you can go upstairsand rest.”
“I don’t want to,” Ameana protests.
“Ameana Rachel Jones, eat your dinner,” she demands.
Ameana looks over at her mom helplessly and places the spoon inside the bowl. Shescoops up a spoonful of chili and tears well up in her eyes. She knows she’s going to die.
She places the spoon in her mouth and swallows. Miku squeezes Jay’s hand as shewatches her best friend’s Core play out.
Ameana’s eyes widen, shocked. Nothing is happening to her. She waits a few moreseconds and still nothing happens.
“What is it, honey?” her mom asks.
“I don’t feel anything. My throat is not closing. I’m fine,” She replies, beside herself.
“Why wouldn’t you feel fine? I happen to be a great cook.”
“You didn’t try to…you’re not trying to kill me?” Ameana says in utter disbelief.
She laughs and speaks to her child with genuine concern.
“You’re my baby. I would never harm you. I am your mother,” she reminds Ameana.
Suddenly Ameana looks at her arms like she is searching for something that used to bethere.
“What is it, dear?” her mother asks.
“Nothing…I thought…there’s a scar or something on my arm and I can’t remember howI got it.”
One of the markings starts to reappear, however faded on Ameana’s forearm.
“I’m sure it’s nothing. Did you really th
ink I was trying to kill you?” her mother asks.
“I don’t know. Everything is swimming in my head and I still feel like I’m forgettingsomething,” Ameana says.
“I told you not to worry. If you were forgetting something important, I’d tell you. And ifyou were in danger I would tell you. Really, Ameana, what kind of mother do you think Iam?”
“You’re right. I guess I’m just tired,” she says, relieved.
“Good, I’m glad. Now come here and give you mother a hug, my beautiful girl.”
We look on in horror as Ameana gets up from the table and walks towards Anora. Thereis no doubt about it: once Ameana gets close enough Anora will kill her.
“No,” Rage says softly under his breath.
Emmy takes Rage’s hand; Miku buries her head in Jay’s chest. Jay strokes her hair,gently. It all seems to happen in slow motion.
We have no idea how Anora will attack her. She may rip straight through Ameana’s bodyand take in her soul like a succubus. She may grab Ameana by the throat and squeeze heruntil the life drains from her. It’s not a matter of if she kills Ameana but how.
Inside our minds we are screaming for Ameana to break the strange spell she seems to beunder. We are pleading with her with our eyes and our souls. But we are so paralyzedwith the fear of losing her we can’t call out. And even if we could shout out to our friend,she wouldn’t hear us. So once again, Ameana is going to be killed by her “mother.”
Ameana stops just short of reaching her mom. She stands a few inches from the breadbasket and utensils. Her hesitation to embrace her mother gives us hope that maybeshe is able to snap out of whatever haze Anora has her in.
Ameana studies her mother. Anora puts on her best fake smile. She then shakes her headand speaks to Ameana with a great deal of love in her voice.
“I can’t believe you thought I would hurt you, Ameana.”
“I’m sorry. I never should have doubted your intentions.”
“No you shouldn’t have. What kind of mother do you think I am?” Anora says again asshe holds her arms out for her daughter’s embrace.
“I was being silly; I know exactly what kind of mother you are,” Ameana replies, withwarmth.
She then reaches out and falls into her mother’s embrace. We watch in terror as Ameanasurrenders to the demon with her mother’s face. We brace ourselves for the screams thatwill hit the air.
And just like we thought, a blood curdling cry rings out, but it’s doesn’t come fromAmeana. The screaming comes from Ameana’s mother. It takes us a moment to understand what just happened. Ameana had secretly picked up the butter knife from thetable and proceeded to jam it into her mother’s midsection.
Anora continues to cry out as black blood gushes out from her stomach. She drops to theground and the kitchen, along with the rest of her illusions, start to fade. Ameanacontinues to stab her mother mercilessly as she shouts at the body.
“I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT KIND OF MOTHER YOU WERE: YOU WERE AN EVIL BITCH. YOU WERE BROKEN. YOU SHOULD HAVE LOVED ME BUT YOU DIDN’T AND THAT’S NOT MY FAULT.”
The kitchen completely disappears and is replaced with the cave. Anora’s mask fades away and we see her real face. She has sharp decaying teeth, black wings and hollow red sockets where eyeballs should have been.
Ameana is drenched in Anora’s blood. She finally stops stabbing her mother but only when exhaustion sets in. She collapses on top of Anora’s corpse. Rage kneels down beside her. She lunges to embrace him, forgetting the contract with Wolf. I dive in just in time to stop them from touching.
She wraps her blood soaked hands around me instead. But everyone witnessing it knows that I’m just a substitute for Rage. And even though she’s in my arms, in her heart and mind, she’s with Rage.
“It’s not my fault,” she says tearfully looking at Rage over my shoulder.
“No, it’s not,” he replies.
“It’s not my fault,” she repeats as relief washes over her.
“It never was,” Rage assures her.
And for the first time since they got together, we don’t look at them as a demon and an angel. We don’t even look at them as a couple. We look at them like what they are: A family.
Ameana fills us in on what happened from the time she was fighting demons with us up until to now. Anora started calling for her using her mother’s voice. It was a sound only she could hear. Then when she followed the voice, she found herself in the red fog just like us.
She tells us that the whole time she was talking to her mother, Aaden was trying to communicate with her. She could feel his fear and hesitation when Anora entered the kitchen. And even though Anora’s power was strong enough to make Ameana forget she was pregnant, Ameana’s motherly instincts would not allow her to forget about her son.
“I was going to run and hug her but Aaden stopped me. I can’t describe it. It was like some sixth sense telling me not to go any further,” Ameana explains.
“You scared us,” Miku says, embracing her friend.
“Sorry, I didn’t know how to signal to you guys that I was okay. Then when she asked me what kind of mother did I think she was…it just made me see everything clearly. I didn’t die because I couldn’t get my mother to love me. I died because she couldn’t figure out how to love herself. And that’s not my fault,” she says smiling warmly.
She pulls away from me and Miku is waiting to hug her. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Ameana beam the way she is right now. Her and Rage exchange a look so intimate, we have to look away for fear we are intruding on the happy couple’s private moment.
That’s when I see it: In the far corner of the cave, just out of Anora’s reach, is a baseball sized orb floating in midair. I head over to get a closer look.
“Is that what I think it is?” Miku asks.
I reach for the orb and find a leaf-shaped carving in the middle. The council’s symbol is engraved in the middle of it.
“Well Marcus, is that it?” Emmy asks impatiently.
The whole team looks at me with bated breath. It’s been so long since I had good news to give them and hell, they have certainly earned it.
“Marcus c’mon, tell us,” Miku shouts.
“We have the second Alpha!” I announce.
The team cheers loud enough for all of Costa Rica to hear but I don’t stop them. We are overdue for some good news. And as we make our way out of the cave and out through the other side, the team’s spirit continues to soar. It’s like they don’t even need wings to get home.
Finally, finally, the Guardians have a win; thank you, Omnis.
CHAPTER ELEVEN:
A GIFT
The moment we get back to New York City, we give the second Alpha to Raphael. By that time, the word is out everywhere. We are once again front page of the Splash.
Everyone in the Angel world is speaking our names and a massive celebration is planned. However, we make Tony notify IM Trouble that we are not ready to celebrate until we are sure that every member of our team is one hundred percent recovered.
Rage took the longest time to heal, as his wounds were far more substantial. He was taken to the best Healers and had Ameana by his side every step of the way. While we waited for Rage to get better, Jay took the opportunity to spend some time with Miku.
They went off to do wedding related things because he really wanted her to focus on something other than the death of Rio.
I overheard Emmy on the phone with Alex. It sounds as if he really wants to see her. She has been putting it off saying she wants to make sure Rage is okay first. In my head, she’s putting off the date because she can’t see going out with anyone else. Yeah, I know it’s stupid but it’s something I need to believe in right now.
It takes nearly two weeks for Rage to fully recover. Thankfully Raphael has not appeared with the clue to finding the last Alpha. The Splash got a hold of the news that Rage is fully recovered so naturally, within hours, Angels all over the world have started their celebration plans. Our social
calendar is filled with events in our honor.
Normally, I would say we skip them but the team really did need to blow off steam so we are attending a few of the parties. It’s nearly an hour before we are scheduled to leave for one hosted by the Ground Walkers’ union. Everyone is dressed and ready but before we head out of the house, we gather Rage and Ameana in the living room.
“What’s going on?” Ameana asks suspiciously.
“Well, the truth is we are sick and tired of the two of you and your heated, passion filled stares across the room,” Emmy says with a smile.
“What? We don’t do that,” Rage replies.
“Oh please, I need a Tam just to be in the same room with you guys,” Miku says laughing.
“The other day you guys nearly ran into a mountain because you were too busy making goo-goo eyes at each other,” Emmy recalls.
“No, we…that’s…so what, you guys are here to tell us that our relationship is distracting to the mission?” Rage asks.
“Yes, it is,” I confirm.
“So you want me off the team?” Rage says with more than a hint of disappointment.
“What? No you can’t do that,” Ameana shouts.
“That’s not what’s happening,” I assure her.
“Okay, so what is happening?” she asks, confused.
“Well we figure maybe you guys would be more focused if you got what it is you wanted—each other,” Emmy says.
“C’mon, you know we can’t touch,” Rage replies.
“Well, we have a gift for you; a way to fix your problem,” I inform him.
Miku hands Rage and Ameana a small black pillbox with the symbol of the Council. They open it and find a gold liquid capsule inside.
“Wait this looks like…no, no it can’t be,” Rage says.
“Yes, it’s a Scrambler,” Miku says.
“A Scrambler; as in the vial that enables you to hide your identity from any and all meters?” Ameana asks.
“Yes, this will make it impossible to detect if you are being touched by an angel, demon, or human. It will confuse the meter inside you,” I tell Ameana.