us. The paintings were old, and I did not recognize the name of the artist. But there was no mistaking the subject.
On the left-hand page, I saw a trio of young men who looked like they belonged in an ad for every high-priced sin you could imagine in your fevered dreams. They were handsome, but not anyone’s version of the boy next door. Their faces had the chiseled features of a Bernini sculpture, but the thin lips were cruel and haughty, the eyes arrogant and cold.
On the right-hand page, a dozen handsome men stalked forward out of the shadows, but on second glance, they were in the process of transforming into something hideous. One had leathery arms that ended in wicked claws. Another had the cloven hooves and furred legs of a goat. The head and chest on one had changed into a monstrous creature with a gaping maw and slitted eyes.
“Is this what attacked you?” Father Anne asked.
“Yeah. At least he sure looked like he’d belong with them.” I wrapped my arms around myself. “So what are they?”
“Nephilim, supernatural creatures born when something from the Other Side seduces a human,” Father Anne replied.
“Yeah,” I replied, thinking of Coffee Guy’s rapid change from handsome heartthrob to ugly monster. “And I bet they hold the illusion just long enough to get what they want.” I didn’t want to think about how flirty Coffee Guy had been and where that might have ended up.
“Let’s just say it doesn’t go well for the women they seduce,” Father Anne said with an expression that told me I didn’t want to ask for details.
“I don’t get how these Nephilim guys can just show up. Aren’t they Lucifer-fell-from-heaven type angels?” Teag asked, bending forward for a closer look.
Father Anne gave a tired smile. “Actually, that’s more legend than fact,” she said.
“How do Nephilim decide where and when to appear?” Teag asked.
“It depends,” Father Anne said, closing the book. I wondered what else it contained, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. “Sometimes, they’re attracted to where a disaster is about to happen. Imagine vultures with foreknowledge of when there’s going to be fresh road kill.”
I could live without that image.
“Sometimes, they’re drawn by a person with a particular gift – like the monk who painted the original paintings reprinted in this book, or like poor, doomed Gerard Astor, a painter who could see them,” she added. “Or a powerful nephilmancer can a summon them to do his bidding. Fortunately, that’s a once-in-a-blue-moon kind of thing.”
“How long ago was the last blue moon?” Teag asked wryly.
Father Anne gave a wan smile. “It’s been about one hundred and fifty years since the last time a nephilmancer showed up on this half of North America. I gather it was quite a battle. Most people remember it as the Great Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1854. Sorren played a big role in defeating that nephilmancer.”
“Sorren destroyed him?” I asked.
“That’s what the record says. A guy named Sariel. Not that such things are actually recorded anywhere, of course,” she said with an exaggerated upward roll of her eyes.
“Of course not.” Teag echoed sarcastically.
“So what is a Nephilim doing back in Charleston?” I mused, staring at the big leather book as if it might bite. “And why was he shadowing me?”
Father Anne met my gaze. “That’s a very good question.”
“What do you know about Watchers and Reapers?” I asked. Father Anne looked a little startled. “Daniel Hunter mentioned them and so did Sorren. Now I can’t get a hold of either Daniel or Sorren, and we just had a run-in with some really bad juju. I feel like I’m in the dark on everything.”
Father Anne nodded. “Okay. A nephilmancer – like Sariel – is a sorcerer who can summon Nephilim from the Other Side. He can also call up other supernatural nasties, like Watchers, who punish wrongdoers, and Reapers, who feed on ghosts. It sounds like we’ve got a nephilmancer on the loose.”
“How do we fight them?” Teag asked.
“That’s the hard part,” Father Anne said. “Because usually, a nephilmancer is after some kind of prize. It’s a lot of magic to throw around, so there’s got to be something in it for him – or her. Beings like Nephilim and Watchers aren’t easily bound, and a nephilmancer brings them through to do something in particular, not just on a whim. We need to figure out the prize, and then we’ll have a better idea of how to fight back.”