Page 11 of Alastair

My phone vibrated, and I fished it out of my pocket, seeing Konnar’s name flash across the screen.

“Good morning,” I answered. Echo Bay was ten hours behind our time zone, putting the hour around 2:00 a.m. where he was. “Calling me in the wee hours of the morning. I’m flattered.”

“Indeed,” Konnar said with a half laugh. “Oh, how my heart aches for your return home. If I cannot see your face in this dark hour, your voice will help soothe my woes.”

I couldn’t fight my smile. We joked around, however, neither of us felt even an inkling of romantic attraction toward the other. He was my closest friend, outside of my brothers and Clara. As a vampire, Konnar slept during the day and woke in the late afternoon. Him being awake at two in the morning was normal.

“Shall I recite a poem to help aid in said soothing?” I asked.

“Perhaps another time,” Konnar said, and his playful tone shifted to a serious one. “I wish I called with happier news.”

Instantly, my attitude shifted as well. “What’s wrong?”

“Walking corpses,” he answered. “The dead are rising in Echo Bay.”

Chapter Two

Lazarus

The water cascaded from the cliff, pooling over my head and running down my body. I stood beneath the waterfall, waist-deep in the glistening lake, my eyes closed as the torrent washed away the sweat and grime from training.

Long after I was clean, I stayed in place, too deep in contemplation to move. Lucifer’s army was on the rise. Small monster attacks had sprung up across the human realm. The cursed sons had it handled for now, but those attacks were only the beginning of what would, without a doubt, be another violent war between us and the Morningstar.

I braced against the rock wall behind the stream of water and hung my head.

The scars on my back tingled and burned a bit, the whip that caused them having seared deep into my flesh. A month had passed; plenty of time for them to have healed. And the woundswerehealed. It was the memory that lingered in my mind, refusing to release me from its clutches.

“You brought this on yourself,”Uriel had spat at me before I’d felt another sharp lashing from the celestial whip.“Let these scars be a reminder of your betrayal. A shame you’ll carry for the rest of your days.”

The betrayal? Going against his orders to condemn an innocent soul to the fiery pit of the underworld. Kallias had fought bravely. Fought forus. His death should’ve granted him an eternal paradise, not suffering. So I had placed his soul in the realm of the lost, the only other place that was safe. When my lie came to light a month earlier, Uriel had punished me accordingly.

Regardless of my reasoning, I had disobeyed a direct order from my superior. I deserved this pain—deserved the scars that bore my dishonor.

“Stay beneath the water a moment more, and I do believe your flesh will melt right off your bones.”

I glanced back at Michael. He stood on the back porch of my house, leaning against the railing with a smirk in place. His dark brown hair was cropped short, the strands only a few centimeters in length, and like me, he wore scars as well, across his chest and down one arm. A gash on his cheek. More on his back. His had come from battle, given to him by Light Bringer. Lucifer’s sword. The only thing in existence that had the power to kill him.

“If I wish to melt, allow me to do so in peace.”

“Come now, Lazarus.” Michael rested his cheek on his palm, brown eyes crinkling at the edges as his smirk grew to a full-bloomed smile. “Only you could be so sullen while standing in the nude.”

“I hope you’re proud of yourself.” I sighed. “You’ve ruined my bath. Avert your eyes while I dress.”

Michael turned away and stared up at the colorful sky. He might’ve teased me at every given opportunity, but he respected my boundaries. My nakedness was a thing I’d never allowed anyone to see.

Angels were not forbidden from sexual intimacy. Although carnal desires and worldly temptations had less of an effect on us compared to humans, not all of us were pure, innocent beings who abstained from life’s pleasures. We were supernatural beings who resided in the celestial realm, not saintly creatures from myth.

Some of us, like myself, served as watchers of the realms and commanded the armies. Some were warriors fighting in those ranks, and there were also those who’d been assigned to be smiths to forge our weapons or architects to oversee the construction of our kingdom. Others had dedicated their lives to bringing joy to humanity. But even the Joy Bringer class of angels were known to have the occasional willing body warm their beds.

Yet, I’d abstained. I had no earthly desires.

Or so I convinced myself.

Reaching the shore, I snatched my towel from the stump I’d left it on and ran it over my body before putting on pants. No shirt. I cared little for shirts. They restrained my movements and were a bother when I wished to fly.

“Is there a reason you’ve come?” I asked, joining him on the porch.

Michael shifted his body to face me. “Must I need a reason to visit my closest and dearest friend?”