Reign of Night (Thorne Hill #7) - Emily Goodwin Page 0,3
instant jolt.
Tingles make their way down my spine, and I look up, confused and alarmed by what just happened. Michael rushes to me, resting a hand on my shoulder.
“Callie,” he breathes, turning me so I’m looking at him. “Are you all right?”
“I…I think so,” I say, aware my own eyes are emitting a soft blue glow.
“Well, that was unexpected,” Lucifer notes, sand shifting under his shoes as he comes over as well.
Letting my eyes fall shut, I slowly inhale, aware more than ever before of everything around me. The sound of the waves. The heat of the sun warming the sand. The happy chatter of everyone around us. Time slows and the chatter gets louder and louder in my ears, and suddenly it’s like a dozen people standing around me all talking at the same time, and through the voices I hear the thumping of hearts and can feel their wants. Their needs.
Their fears.
The world starts to close in on me while spinning at the same time. I can’t distinguish what anyone is saying, but they’re all clamoring for my attention, begging for something. Michael’s hand is still on my shoulder, and he says something, but his voice is a distant echo amongst the others.
Forcing myself to breathe, I deeply inhale and open my eyes. Light glints off the ocean, and one voice suddenly becomes clearer than the other. Help me, please help me! I blink and I’m looking up at the sky from under the water.
Blinking a few times, I turn to my father. “Someone is drowning. Out there.” I raise a shaky hand and point to the line where the sky meets the sea. “I…I don’t know how I know. I, um, I heard them calling for help.”
Michael and Lucifer look at each other, and Lucifer frowns. “The Kiton is already ruined.” He disappears in a rustle of feathers. I stare out at the water, and the voices fade until they're gone. The buzz I felt from absorbing the remnants of hellfire and whatever it is Michael conjured is just a slight vibration in my whole body.
Only a moment later, Lucifer is back, standing in knee-deep water, holding up a teenage boy, who’s limp and unmoving.
“Hello, lifeguard,” Lucifer yells, taking one hand off the boy and waving. “You missed one!” He effortlessly lifts up the boy and brings him to the shore, laying him down on dry sand. The boy’s face is blue, and his chest isn’t rising and falling. Wide-eyed, I stare, too stunned to move. Michael kneels down over him, holding his hands over the boy’s chest.
Color starts to return to the boy’s face, and his eyes spring open. Then he sits up, coughing, spitting out water. Michael’s hand lands on the boy’s shoulder, and he stops coughing, completely healed. He inhales, looking up at Michael in awe.
“You…you saved me.” His hand goes to his chest, and he breathes in deeply again, needing to make sure he’s actually okay.
“No.” Michael stands and turns to me, smile on his lips. “She did.”
The boy locks eyes with me, and another shiver runs through me. Michael doesn’t need to explain it for me to know what just happened. I heard this boy’s prayers.
“Th-thank you,” the boy says and starts to stand up. A lifeguard and several beachgoers come running over.
“I’m fine,” the boy insists. Lucifer and Michael come back to me, and we get another look. I’m dressed for freezing weather, Lucifer’s suit is dripping wet with an obvious burn, exposing the skin of his chest, and Michael, who’s the most casual of us all, is still out of place for a sunny beach, since he’s wearing jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt.
“I didn’t know I could do that,” I breathe, shaking my head.
“Your angelic side is getting stronger,” Michael says proudly.
“Does that make me more at risk for the others to find me?” I ask, eyes falling shut.
“Yes,” he says honestly. “But hearing prayers, Callie, that’s a good thing.”
“And you know what’s not a good thing?” Lucifer interjects. “Remiel’s body in the woods. We should get back to Thorne Hill.”
Michael nods, looking around the beach once more. “It’s nice here.” He turns to me. “Isn’t it?”
“I guess avoiding problems runs in the family,” I say softly with a smile. My heart aches to be back next to my love, and I hate that Lucas is no doubt panicking. I disappeared, leaving him and Kristy alone in the woods with a dead archangel.