Betrayed Page 3

  Chapter 3

  As Liam followed Evangeline down a long, windy path, he couldn’t believe his eyes. Beautiful, lush lawns gave way to acres of flowers of every color of the rainbow. A light breeze caressed his skin, while the ambient temperature never seemed to fluctuate, remaining somewhere in the seventies.

  As they walked, Evangeline explained the different “levels” of Heaven. The prime real estate, called the Inner Circle, was reserved for those holier-than-thou folks who had done a whole lot of praying during their lives and lived by the Book, as well as the Innocents, such as children. That was the area Liam had seen beyond the gates when he first arrived.

  The Fringe, also a part of Heaven, was for those who were on the brink of going to Hell but weren’t quite bad enough to get there.

  “Why am I going to the Fringe?” Liam asked.

  Evangeline rolled her eyes. “Liam, do you really need to ask? The life you led as a womanizing, beer-guzzling partier wasn’t very holy. However, you do have your good points as well, such as your willingness to help others in need, and how kind you were to your parents. You are also honest, except when it came to your relationships with women. These traits have given you entrance into the Fringe.”

  They walked on a path made of clouds and ended up at a set of smaller iron gates standing fifteen feet tall. Through the gates, Liam could see the innards of the Fringe looked like a western town, with wooden buildings lining green, grassy streets. Evangeline waved her hand and the gates opened. They walked up a grassy knoll and into the town. Men and women lounged around wearing regular street clothes, some sipping a beer, others just talking with each other. The vibe of the place seemed very laid back, and who would have thought they had beer in Heaven? He heard a motorcycle in the distance and shook his head, smiling. Yeah, he definitely belonged in the Fringe.

  Evangeline waved at a couple of people, then led him to a small out-of-the-way building. The stairs creaked under his weight, and the door groaned when Evangeline pushed it open.

  “Hello, Adela,” she said.

  Liam took in the woman in front of him. She stood almost as tall as him, which was right around six feet, and was dressed in black leather pants, vest, and boots, just as the angel who had come to him in the fire. Long blonde hair fell to her waist and large brown eyes stared at him. She didn’t smile.

  “Hello, Evangeline,” she said.

  “Adela, I’d like you to meet Liam,” Evangeline said. “He’ll be joining you in your work.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Adela grumbled. She didn’t crack a friendly grin, she didn’t hold out her hand, and she didn’t act like there was anything nice about meeting him. “I was just leaving.”

  With that, she turned and walked out the door. Liam watched her go. Large black wings unfurled, displaying millions of shiny crystals gleaming in the sunlight.

  “She’s not exactly the friendly type,” Liam commented.

  “Yes. Well, we must get you ready for your first night of work.”

  Liam turned to Evangeline. “What work?”

  “Your work as an Angel of Death, Liam.”

  Confusion tore through him. He thought he would be kicking back, drinking beer, and enjoying the Fringe, not working. An Angel of Death? He didn’t know anything about that.

  “Being an Angel of Death is the way for you to atone for your sins on Earth, Liam. Think of it as the way for you to earn your place in Heaven, here in the Fringe. Once you are done with your atonement, you will spend the rest of eternity here in the Fringe, enjoying the other people and all it has to offer.”

  “Oh, come on. I wasn’t that bad. Do I really need to be punished?”

  Evangeline shook her head, looking exasperated. “Do you know how many women you left heartbroken? Do you know your lack of commitment, your bed hopping and half-truths, left many women feeling used? Your actions, and sometimes lack of actions, led to women feeling terrible about themselves? That you helped to ruin many women’s self-esteem?”

  Liam sat down on an old wooden bench. Frankly, he’d never even considered it. He’d been too busy looking out for number one—himself.

  After losing Annie, he’d promised himself he would never fall in love again. He’d kept that promise and never stopped long enough to allow women to get to know him, nor did he have any interest in learning about them. He kept moving, and he’d been with numerous women. He didn’t notch his bedpost to tally them up, but it had been a lot.

  He and Annie had been together three years, and when she died, it was as if the floor in his house had somehow disappeared—his stability was gone. With his free fall came the uncanny need to run away from himself. He requested longer shifts at work and volunteered for the most dangerous fires. On his off time, he could be found in a bar, or in a woman’s bed. As long as he didn’t have to spend too much time with his thoughts, his guilt and his wretched sadness, he was good to go.

  He didn’t regret his actions, because it was all about guarding his own heart. After Annie’s death, it was all about self-preservation and not letting anyone get close. However, he did feel bad people had suffered because of him.

  “And then let’s not forget Annie,” Evangeline said. “Your idiocy was responsible for her death. You need to atone for that.”

  Liam nodded. He understood. He’d never been able to forgive himself for her death, and apparently those in charge of Heaven hadn’t either. When he thought of Annie, the pain in his chest was as raw as it had been that horrible day two years ago.

  “Is she here?” he asked. Maybe he could see her and beg for forgiveness. Maybe they could continue their relationship here in Heaven.

  “Yes. She resides in the Inner Circle. You’ll never see her, Liam, even if you are ever invited in there.”

  “Why is that?”

  Evangeline shrugged. “You can never be together, so the Creator has made it so you won’t be able to see her, and she will never see you. Your paths won’t cross because the Creator has unique plans for each of you.”

  Liam looked down at the floor and nodded, his hopes crushed. When he did consider the idea of Heaven, he imagined the people he loved being there to greet him, but apparently that wasn’t the case. “So, what do I do? What’s my unique plan?” he asked.

  Evangeline smiled and waved her hand. Liam looked down. He was now wearing black leather pants, a vest, and boots, the exact outfit that Adela had worn.

  “As for your unique plan, only the Creator knows. Turn around, Liam,” she ordered. He did as he was told, and she placed a hand on his back.

  Liam wondered what the plan would be. Weren’t humans given the gift of free will? If so, shouldn’t he be able to make his own decisions? Or maybe the decisions were already preordained, and that was the Creator’s plan? Trying to think it through was like watching a dog chase its tail or having a discussion on whether the chicken or the egg came first.

  The area Evangeline touched—right between his shoulder blades—warmed. It was as if something was moving beneath his skin and it made him uneasy. Frankly, it also grossed him out a bit.

  A moment later, she removed her hand.

  “Think about moving your wings,” she said. “They’re now a part of you. Soon you will be able to use them just as you do your legs and arms. You won’t even have to think about it.”

  Liam did as he was told and felt a breeze in the room as he concentrated on moving his new appendages. A low ache formed in-between his shoulder blades, and he felt a little more wind from his right side than he did from his left, but maybe this whole Angel-of-Death thing wasn’t going to be too bad—if he could get his wings moving in time, that is.

  “Now, let’s quickly go over the hierarchy.”

  Liam listened as Evangeline explained the three tiers of Angels of Death.

  “First, there are the Angels of Innocence,” she said. The Angels of Innocence delivered people who had led exemplary lives, as well as children, to the Inner Circle.

  “The sec
ond tier is where you’ll be working. We refer to them as the Angels of Tolerance. You will be delivering people to the Fringe. These are people like yourself who don’t quite qualify for Hell, and therefore, they don’t qualify to live in the Inner Circle. The Creator is tolerant of their past mistakes and wants them in Heaven, just not in the Inner Circle. Therefore, they go to the Fringe.”

  Liam nodded, thinking the Fringe was going to become overpopulated very soon.

  “The third tier is the Angels of Sin, who deliver souls to Hell.”

  “That one is kind of obvious,” Liam said.

  Evangeline nodded.

  “I bet that job sucks,” Liam noted.

  “That’s what I’ve heard, but the Angels of Sin aren’t very talkative,” Evangeline said, waving her hand in front of her face as if she could remove his words from the room. “Let’s move on to the rules.”

  Liam’s heart sank as Evangeline listed off the rules. No beer. No cavorting with women. A professional working environment was crucial for angels to be effective in their jobs. In fact, his existence would consist of nothing but delivering souls to the Fringe. There would be very little downtime, if any at all.

  “So, I never get any time off?” he asked, thinking that the angels needed to unionize.

  “No, Liam. It’s a possibility if the death rate on Earth slows down, but I haven’t seen that happen.”

  “What about sleep?” he asked.

  “You’re dead, Liam. You don’t need to sleep.”

  “Food?”

  Evangeline shook her head. “No, Liam. All human bodily functions cease to exist. Your heart no longer beats, and you no longer need to breathe.”

  Liam brought his hand up to his chest and concentrated. She was right—there wasn’t a heartbeat. He drew a long breath into his lungs and held it for a moment. He didn’t feel the need for another one.

  “Do you understand?” Evangeline asked.

  Liam exhaled and nodded. “So I just fly around and deliver souls to Heaven. To the Fringe.”

  “Yes. You will soar at night.”

  “And what if I fail? What if I’m terrible at this?”

  “Then you will be sent to Hell,” she explained. “You must atone for your behavior on Earth.”

  “How long will I be an Angel of Death? Will I ever be able to kick back and enjoy the Fringe like the people we saw coming in here?”

  Evangeline nodded. “Yes, but how long you will be an Angel of Death is up to the Creator, not me. Only He can decide, and only He knows. Once He decides you’ve done your time, so to speak, you can take your place here in the Fringe and enjoy its offerings. “

  Liam nodded, wondering if time in Heaven was the same as on Earth, and how much of that time he would spend as an angel.

  “Shall we get on with your training now?” Evangeline asked as a black wristband appeared in her hand.

  “Yeah,” Liam sighed, resigned to his fate.