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“He’s my friend. He’s the one who drove me here to see you.”
“You told some human kid?”
I coughed, buying time. “He’s Neph, too.”
Jonathan LaGray went rigid and his ruddy cheeks paled. I squirmed as his eyes bored into mine.
“Which one’s his father?” he asked through clenched teeth.
“Richard Rowe. I guess you’d know him as Pharzuph.”
Oh, boy. He wasn’t pale anymore.
“You came across the country—”
“Shhh!” I warned him as people looked over. He lowered his voice to a shouted whisper.
“—with the son of the Duke of Lust?! Son of a—”
He pounded a fist down on the table and a guard stepped toward us. I waved and nodded at the man, trying to reassure him it was fine, and my father pulled his balled hands down into his lap. After a moment the guard walked back to the wall and looked away.
“Don’t worry!” I whispered. “I told you; we’re just friends.”
He closed his eyes and massaged his forehead with his fingers to calm his temper.
“You tell him that his father is never to know about you or whatever Sister Ruth tells you. Understand?”
“He would never tell his father anything. But, um...” I swallowed. “Unfortunately, Pharzuph already knows about me.”
His eyes flashed red again and it nearly stopped my heart. I pressed my back into the seat, causing it to wobble.
“Aren’t you worried people will see your eyes when you do that?” I asked, sure that my own eyes were gigantic at that moment.
“Humans can’t see it. And don’t try to change the subject. I know Pharzuph,” he growled. “He’s a real bastard on earth and in hell. He’d do anything to gain favor.”
“Kaidan thinks he’ll forget about me if I lie low.”
“Maybe momentarily, while he’s busy or distracted with his work, but you’ll cross his mind again someday.”
He fidgeted in his chair. “I need to get out of here,” he said.
“Out of prison? How?”
“I’ve got a parole hearing coming up. I’ll use my influence to make sure it goes through. I will get myself out of here, one way or another, in a matter of weeks, and I’ll contact you when it’s safe. Don’t do anything until I’m with you. I want you to go straight home after this trip. Get there as soon as possible and stay there. Will you do that?”
“Yes. I promise.”
“Stay away from the Rowe house.”
“Definitely.”
“Good. Good girl. We’ll work this thing out together. Do you trust me?”
“Yes, sir.”
We took each other’s hands again. With him by my side nothing seemed impossible, and I felt happy.
“You’ve got a pretty smile,” he said. “A natural beauty.”
Nobody had ever called me a beauty except Patti. Parents didn’t count as far as compliments went, but it still made me feel good. I looked at the clock and was shocked to see how much time had already passed.
“We’ve got an hour left, gal. What else do you want to know?”
I still wasn’t ready to ask about the fate of Nephilim souls. That would have to wait until last. I thought for a second.
“Do you think Mariantha’s been punished?” I asked.
“Well, she’s not in hell, if that’s what you mean. I would have heard about it if she were.”
My stomach tightened at the mention of hell. “What’s it like?” I asked hesitantly. “Down there?”
“It’s another one of those things that’s hard to explain.” He let go of one hand and stroked his beard. “Imagine a dark, wide alleyway that goes on forever, between two skyscrapers that stretch as far up as you can see. It’s hard to maintain hope. Souls burn from sheer negativity.”
“You’re pretty good at describing things that are hard to explain,” I said, shaking off the chill from the image.
“I’ve had plenty of time to think about it.”
“Why didn’t God try to stop Lucifer from planning that rebellion?”
“He loved Lucifer. He saw that he had great power, and he allowed it. It could have gone either way. Lucifer was capable of choosing right. I think God was holding out hope that he would make the right choice. Maybe it seems cruel to test the angels and the human souls, but it’s not like that. We have to face difficulties to find out what our true strengths are. How we come back from a failure is a very valuable test.”
“Yes. You could have wanted revenge after the fall,” I said.
“Easily. And it’s all especially hard for humans, who are given the test of faith without ever seeing everything with their own eyes. That’s why they’re given the ability to sense the Holy Spirit.”
“How does it work?”
He leaned back in his chair, rubbing his hands over his smooth head. “The Holy Spirit is like billions of cell phone signals coming from God and connecting with each soul, a direct link. People process the messages as feelings, sometimes even hearing their own voice in their mind, so it’s easy to disregard.”
I nodded, watching him in awe. He had an answer for everything. It was a lot to take in, yet there was so much more I still wanted to know.
“Is the fate of each person set in stone?” I asked.
“No, no, no. There is no ‘fate’ in that sense. Nobody was made to fail. For individual souls, there’s always choice. Every time a choice is made, a new path forms. From what I understand, humans are told before going to earth that life will be difficult. They know what hardships they’ll have to face. They know it’s a test, and they’re eager for it. You, too, knew before you came to earth that you’d be born into these circumstances.”