It didn’t make sense why there was so much good happening in the city, especially in a city like Los Angeles, where the balance repeatedly swung back and forth between the two. Where had all the Demons gone? The Vampires? The Werewolves? Where were the creatures of the night? And where were the Balancers disappearing to?
Miles had awoken a deep curiosity inside of Lizzie, and she was not impressed at all. The handsome Balancer had made her want answers and yet wasn’t going to be the one to give them to her, which meant she would have to put in the effort.
And she would put in the effort.
THE DAY WAS JUST DAWNING, beautiful and icy as the sun peeked over the horizon of Los Angeles. Lizzie pulled her leather jacket tightly around her as she ascended the stairs of the hospital towards the roof, using her powers to keep the mortals from bothering her. However, it didn’t seem necessary because the humans seemed to be moving robotically throughout the hospital. Still, Lizzie felt better to take precautions.
Once on the roof, she saw Adrial was alone and looked around curiously.
“I saw you were coming,” he said, his back still to her, “I thought you’d want some privacy.”
“Thank you,” Lizzie said. “I would because I don’t know who I can trust.”
Adrial turned, now looking at her curiously. “Has something happened?”
“I’ve seen an improvement in the city,” Lizzie said, “with the mortals, and I wanted to help keep it that way, but of course, if my father found out, or any of his brothers, there would be hell to pay.”
“It doesn’t concern you,” Adrial said, walking past her.
Lizzie didn’t turn to follow him; it was a power-play between them now, and she understood that better than most, so she stood her ground, facing the city as it sprawled before her. She walked to the edge of the building and sighed. “I don’t care. I’ll do what I want with or without your help.”
“So be it,” Adrial said as he walked to the door.
“Of course, I wanted your guidance to do it the right way,” Lizzie said, trying not to smirk. “I wouldn’t want to taint the good that’s been done by doing it wrong.”
When she didn’t hear the door open, she knew she had touched a nerve, so she continued, “I mean, do I kill the mortals that don’t comply? What do I do if I find a Demon? Do I just do whatever I feel like?”
“I get your point,” Adrial said, walking back towards her slowly. “But why get involved now?”
“You know who my father is, you know how I feel about him,” Lizzie said, and it wasn’t far from the truth.
Adrial shook his head. “I can take you in, but you’ll start at the bottom like everyone else, Lizzie, and you’ll have to work your way up like everyone else. In fact, you might be just what we’re looking for at the moment.”
Lizzie finally turned to look up at him and inclined her head. “I said I wanted to help, point me in the right direction, and I’ll help.”
Adrial nodded. “I’ll come to get you this afternoon, around one, but dress more sensibly. Track pants and a shirt because you’ll have to be able to fight if need be.”
Lizzie nodded and with that, Adrial’s wings came out and he took flight without a backward glance. Lizzie watched him disappear before she turned and took the stairs back down to the ground floor of the hospital. She felt a thrill of excitement that her plan had worked—at least the first part had. She wasn’t exactly sure what she was doing, but she had gotten this far, so there was that. Now she could go home and get some rest before Adrial came to get her at one.
AT A QUARTER TO ONE Lizzie was ready and waiting outside the pub. She had dressed in her plain black trainers, black track pants, and a tight-fitting shirt. She wasn’t stupid though and had hidden two knives on her body—one in the small of her back and one on her ankle. She wasn’t going in unarmed in case this was a trap or in case it was bring your own weapons day. She could also summon her sword if need be, a neat little trick she inherited with being part Angel. As a Fallen Angel, you had access to either your Angel or your Demon powers, and Lizzie had gotten her father’s Angel powers which is what made people fear her.
Adrial arrived with five minutes to spare and walked up to her. “Lizzie.”
“Adrial,” she responded.
“They’re taking in recruits near the Santa Monica Pier today; you and one other guy are interested,” he explained. “I’m going to take you there, and I’m going to vouch for you, but you’re on your own from then on, do you understand?” Lizzie nodded, and he held his hand out. “It’ll be faster if we fly.”
She tried not to pull a face; she had always disliked flying but wasn’t afraid of it. She took Adrial’s hand, and he pulled her to him. She had no choice but to slide her arms around his neck. He circled an arm around her waist and within seconds, they were soaring through the skies towards the pier.
Lizzie couldn’t deny he flew smoother and landed softer than a lot of the Angels she had flown with before, and when they let each other go, there was a moment that she missed the heat between their bodies.
She followed him towards the beach where a group of Angels were milling about. Lizzie looked around and was surprised to see there were no mortals around at all. She glanced at her watch to make sure it was only after one and then looked around again. Usually, there would be parties happening at this time. As they approached the Angels, she looked to see who the other recruit could be, and she almost groaned out loud as she saw him. She knew it could only be him.
Miles.
Chapter Eight
Miles
What the bartender was doing at his initiation, he didn’t know, but he couldn’t let it throw him off. He had known she was involved somehow, and this just proved that he had been right. He watched as she walked up with the Archangel; he had seen them fly in together, their arms wrapped around each other, and he could see the chemistry between the two. It had surprised him because generally, Angels would only stay with their own kind. The High Archangels were known to stray with Demons on rare occasions, creating Fallen Angels like the bartender Lizzie, but that was extremely rare and although frowned upon, no one said anything about it because, well, they were High Archangels and very powerful.
Miles gave Lizzie a disdainful look as she stood opposite him and returned a look of surprise. She hadn’t expected him to be here and that could play in his favor; he would have to use that to his advantage.
“You’re both here because you’ve asked to be initiated to our little corporation.”
It was Miles’ turn to be surprised. He had thought that Lizzie was already a part of this mess, but here this Archangel was saying that they were both being initiated. What was she playing at? Was this a ruse? He could only assume that it was. He watched the Archangel carefully
“My name is Adrial, and I am one of the street leaders in the LA Chapter, which means if you want to rank up, it’s me you need to impress. Now you’ve come at a great time because we’ve heard there’s to be a resurgence. You’ll play a big part in stopping that from happening.”
“A resurgence?” Miles asked.