ignored that."
I continued to stare at the book, dumbfounded, yet suddenly ablaze with ideas and theories. Warren eyed me curiously when I didn't respond to his joke.
"Does that help you any?"
"Yes," I said, recovering myself. "It helps a lot."
I surprised him with a soft kiss on the lips, took the Bible, and left.
CHAPTER 14
"You called us together for biblical porn?"
Hugh turned away with disinterest from where the vampires and I huddled around my kitchen table. Barely a bruise showed on him anymore. Putting a cigarette to his lips, the imp produced a lighter from his coat pocket.
"Don't smoke in here," I warned.
"What do you care? Are you saying you didn't smoke throughout most of the twentieth century?"
"I'm not saying that at all. But I don't do it anymore. Besides, it's bad for Aubrey."
The cat, sitting on one of my counters, paused mid-bath at the sound of her name and eyed him askance. Hugh, glaring back, took a long drag on the cigarette before putting it out on the countertop next to her. She returned to her cleaning, and he paced around the apartment.
Beside me, Cody leaned over the table, studying my proffered Bible. "I don't get how these guys are actually angels. 'Sons of God' seems like a generic term for humans. I mean, aren't we all supposed to be children of God?"
"Present company excluded, of course," called Hugh from the living room. Then: "Jesus Christ! Where'd you get this bookcase? Hiroshima?"
"Theoretically we are," I agreed, ignoring the imp and answering Cody's question. I'd done a lot of biblical perusal since my earlier discovery today and was growing tired of looking at the book. "But Warren's right - that term is used throughout to refer to angels. Plus, the women here aren't called 'daughters of God.' They're called 'daughters of men.' They're human, their husbands are not."
"Could just be good old-fashioned sexism." Peter had finally taken the plunge and shaved his hair off. I did not find the look flattering at all, considering the shape of his head. "It's not like that'd be a new concept in the Bible."
"Nah, I think Georgina's right," said Hugh, returning to us. "I mean, we know something made angels fall. Lust is as good a reason as any, and it beats the hell out of gluttony or sloth."
"So what's the point then?" Peter wanted to know. "How does this relate to the not-just-a-vampire hunter?"
"Here." I pointed to verse 6:4. "It says, 'There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.' The key words here are 'in those days' and 'also after that.' It's saying angels have fallen for human women more than once. This answers our question about whether angels still fall anymore. They do."
Cody was nodding along with me. "Which backs up your theory that one is trying to fall right now."
"It doesn't sound like lust is going to be his catalyst, though," Hugh noted. "I think assault and battery will do it first."
"Unless it's lust for Georgina," suggested Peter dryly. "He seems to think you're pretty enough."
Something odd struck me at Hugh's observation. "Would assault and battery really do it, though? Especially of vampires and imps? It might be frowned upon by the other side, but I'm not convinced taking out evil agents would necessarily warrant an angel turning into a demon."
"Past evidence suggests the other side isn't exactly... flexible with transgressors," observed the imp.
"And ours is?" wondered Peter.
Cody gave me a sharp look. "Are you backing out of your own theory?"
"No, no. I'm suddenly reconsidering the falling bit, that's all. The 'rogue' or 'renegade' part might be more accurate."
"But your note did mention angels falling," Hugh pointed out. "Surely that's indicative of something? A meaningful clue and not just a bad attempt at humor?"
I thought about the note. Yes, Hugh was right. I felt certain the note's content played a role here; I just couldn't yet grasp what it meant.
"Bad humor is par for the course with angels," Peter reminded us. "At least if Carter's any indication."
I hesitated a moment, nervous about bringing up my secondary theory. They all seemed to be going along with the angel idea, however, so I figured it was now or never.
"Do you guys think... do you think it's possible Carter might be the one behind all of this?"
Three sets of