I couldn't help feeling a bit run down as I thought over the past and the path that our lives had been taking so far. It had already been a long and tragic road, and the worry that things were about to repeat, especially after my talk with Noah that afternoon, remained in my mind. So, the next day, I tried to think over what my options were during my lunch. Perhaps if I got my thoughts in order, then I could figure out the best way to help Noah.
My first thought had originally been to attempt using my Breaker ability on him. In fact, that had been my first course of action. But sadly, it had no effect at all. Whatever had begun wrapping around Noah's consciousness was far too strong compared to what had tried to influence Sevee and Sean. So, I'd moved on to the next option; thinking about suggesting to Raziel and Anna to move Noah away from the family for a while.
But I scrapped that one too as I remembered the events with Noel. Her so-called banishment had ended up doing more harm than good. Even my father had admitted that one. Sending Noah away wasn't going to loosen the hold this curse had on him.
Heading back to the office though, I also felt a little frustrated over the fact that I was handling a lot of this on my own. Raphael had been removing himself a lot lately from much to do with it, and while I did respect what he'd gone through before both with Mom and Noel, I also felt that he should've been doing more with me to keep Noah from having the same type of fate. So, I decided to bring things up as the two of us sat at our desks in the small office we kept in town.
"I'll take it that you heard about the big argument at my house yesterday," I spoke up as I turned away from my computer screen to face him.
"I did," Raphael answered simply.
I could tell that he was trying to brush me off, considering he wasn't looking away from what he was doing, but I wasn't going to let him.
"You do realize that your son and grandson were about to take each other out yesterday afternoon." I reiterated.
"I know."
Another direct answer. He was definitely looking to avoid this conversation.
"And this doesn't bother you at all?" I continued, not giving up.
Raphael finally let out a long breath, turning to face me, "It does, but I don't see where talking about it now will change anything that's already happened. Raziel and Noah do tend to have it out at times anyway. Their personalities can be way too alike."
"Are we talking about the same two people here?"
"I believed we were speaking about Raziel and Noah. Am I wrong?"
"Don't play that with me." I argued, "I don't understand why you're acting so unconcerned about this. That wasn't just a personality clash that caused that fight, and they had their wings out this time. They were literally ready to have a physical fight right there."
Raphael let out another long breath, "I understand, and I am going to be talking to both of them about what's been going on, so you don't need to keep worrying about it. I'll handle Noah's changed disposition for now." he assured me.
I stood up and slammed my hands on my desk, "Don't give me that! It's been months now, and all I've seen are things getting worse and worse with Noah! It's like he's becoming someone else entirely right before our eyes!" I declared.
"I know that, but we've already discussed this. If you can't break this hold on Noah, then Raziel and I have agreed that the best option may be to allow them to move away from the family for a while and see if that helps loosen the hold on him." Raphael countered evenly.
"Oh no. You and I both know that won't do any good. Don't you remember what happened when our family tried that before?"
I was doing my best not to bring up Noel's name in all of this in an effort to spare us more pain in that memory, especially for the comparisons we were drawing.
But Raphael wouldn't budge in his own assertions on the subject, even trying to avoid the subject completely now.
"I do not recall what you're referring to."
"Of course you do." I argued, "You know I'm talking about what happened with Noel. Dad sent her away thinking that it might help her too, and look what she turned into when she managed to get back to us."
Raphael froze as he heard this, and it took him a few minutes to finally respond to me.
"Michael," he said as he tried to keep his voice even, "you're not thinking of comparing the two, are you? Because you know that can't happen again. Noah may be fighting this curse's influence, but he's nothing like Noel."
"Don't give me that. We both know that Noel was deeply affected by this curse, and I don't believe that it was only because of what happened to her when she was kidnapped. She had to be more open for it to get to her, and Noah's proven that he's been vulnerable through the years, even if he tries hard to hide it. It's been the same with Seraphina. Wouldn't it make sense that this would use Noah in getting to her too? That would also be much like Noel." I reasoned.
"Yes, I do believe that too, but I also know that you were more powerful than that curse on her. You broke her hold on us because of it. Sevee and Mia also were able to break that hold and save Seraphina's life. We know it's not impossible to do, and we simply need time to figure out how to do the same for Noah now." Raphael responded.
"But we can't wait much longer. We don't want to repeat what happened to Noel's wings either, and Noah's carrying the same forbidden feelings that she did, or at least he's being influenced to carry them."
"You really believe that Noel's wings turned black because she thought that she was in love with me?"
"Of course I do." I answered, "Along with her influencing what happened to Mom, her wings turned black because she kept harboring those feelings and believing them with everything she had. It was like the ultimate sin that corrupted her, and she was already dying because of it. You heard what Gabrielle told us when she analyzed that feather she and Dad kept after he removed and destroyed her wings. It was toxic, unlike anything she's ever seen."
Raphael nodded solemnly, "Yes, I do recall all of that very well, but I still don't believe that such a thing is going to happen with Noah. All of this is part of that curse, not truly what's in Noah's heart or soul." he reminded me.
I let out a frustrated sigh, knowing that he wasn't going to budge on that thought. Maybe it even frightened him too badly to do so.
"I get where you're coming from, but we still need to be careful. We don't know anything for sure about what really caused that in Noel. It could've been the curse too. Plus, it worries me that he only has one wing now. If such a thing happens, it could be even more detrimental."
"It's dangerous to assume anything with this Michael, and you're right, we don't have all of those answers. For all we know, Noel's wings turning could have been from another illness or her own twisted sense of the world." Raphael reasoned.
"I highly doubt that it was any kind of illness. None of us have ever even remotely been sick before, and Gabrielle told us that it was unlike anything she'd ever seen. The body doesn't normally produce such powerful toxins. Whether it was the curse or her twisted logic, the dangers for all of us are still there." I countered.
I knew that I was right about these things, even if I couldn't pinpoint the exact causes of what had happened to Noel to make her so sick. The curse, insanity, incestual love; all of it could've been contributing factors. Yes, she did take her own life in the end, but whatever happened to her wings had already been in the process of killing her, and she'd known it. I was sure of that too.
We remained there in silence for a few minutes before I'd had enough. All of this was getting to me, and I grabbed my keys from my desk.
"Where are you going?" Raphael asked me.
"I need some air, and I'm caught up with what I need for now, so I'll see you later. Just give what I've said some real thought, okay?" I requested.
"I will." Raphael relented, "I'll stop by so we can talk later too."
"Sure. See you then."
It was a nice if cool day outside, but I wasn't in any kind of mood to take it in. I unlocked my car and sat in the driver's seat, cursing out loud. I hadn't been this frustrated in what felt like forever, and I sure as hell didn't know what to do. For as much as Raphael might want to, he didn't seem to be able to grasp how to help with any of this. It could've even been from his continued guilt over the past, not to mention his fears of even thinking about the same things happening with his grandson.
As for me, it was eating away at me to think that Noah could end up like Noel did, and with the recent events, I worried about Seraphina too. She was still mentally recovering from her own ordeal with that darkness and how it had amplified her depressed feelings. The poor girl couldn't even speak yet. How in the world could we protect her if we had no idea of what Noah might be trying to say to her behind our backs?
You're very foolish Michael.
Noel's words echoed in my head as I sat there. As much as I hated admitting it, she was right. I was supposed to be the most powerful Nephilim in this family now, but I'd let all of this get way out of hand.
I let out a tired breath. No, I'd never wanted to be in this position. I'd never wanted to be a leader or even be born under this heritage. But if I didn't somehow figure out how to step up in this one, then we could end up losing a child or even children. I could never allow that to happen. I'd sworn never again.
I thought over my next moves as I drove down the long country road. Perhaps I could talk to Sevee about some of this. He had been talking to Noah a lot before the incident in the old Fox den. I wished I could talk to Seraphina, but that would be nearly impossible now. She could write things down for me if worse came to worse though. They were both options I could use.
The argument I'd stopped between Raziel and Noah flashed through my mind again. I really hated thinking about how much this had put a rift between the two. Raziel loved his son so much, and he'd do anything to help and protect him, yet he had no idea of how to solve this one. The more he tried to intervene in this, the more Noah rebuffed him. It brought back sad memories of my own father with Noel. Raziel was as fearful as he'd been and as desperate. Noah was his only child, and he didn't want to lose him.
Finally making up my mind, I decided to head to Mia's house to talk to Sevee and Seraphina. It was at least worth a shot to see if they knew anything more about Noah's mindset and how he was being affected.
But as I pulled up into the driveway, I stopped my car. Seraphina was standing out there near the woods, looking around like she was worried about something. This worried me for the fragile mental state she still had, so I got out to check on her.
"Seraphina?" I called as I opened my door.
Seraphina's green eyes lit up as she saw me, and she hurried over to me as I got out of the car. I realized that she had a small notepad in her hand and remembered how Mia had been telling me that she'd started using that here and there to communicate with them. Maybe this meant that she could do the same with me and tell me what was going on.
"What are you doing out here? Is something wrong?" I asked her.
Seraphina nodded, then quickly wrote on her notepad, showing it to me.
"I'm worried about Noah. He's disappeared." she'd written.
I stiffened as I read that a few times. No, it couldn't have been.
"What do you mean disappeared?" I managed to inquire.
Seraphina took a minute to write again, "Anna called Mom. She can't find him, and Raziel can't. They are looking for him, and I'm worried and wanted to look too."
This was already sounding very bad. I could feel it deep within my soul. Noah's disappearance heralded a coming disaster for him. But I also didn't want to scare Seraphina.
"I get it, baby girl. I know you want to help look for him, but you shouldn't be out here alone. Let's get you inside to your mother and I'll help find him with Raziel, okay?" I suggested.
Seraphina nodded, wiping her eyes before writing something else down. What I read was painful.
"Please bring Noah back. I'm scared for him."
I pulled her into a gentle hug, "I know sweetheart, and I promise we will. It'll be okay." I comforted her.
I was still trying to process exactly what was happening here. Noah hadn't shown any signs of wanting to run away before now. What were his intentions in doing this? And more importantly, where did he think he was going?
Just as I was pulling back from her, I noticed Sean coming out of the woods. From what I knew, he'd been away for a few days looking into something with Musket about his father, so he must've just gotten back. But he looked concerned as he saw us.
"Is something going on?" he asked me as he came over to us.
"Apparently no one can find Noah. Seraphina let me know that Raziel's gone looking for him, and I was about to take her inside to wait with Mia while Raphael and I join him." I explained.
Sean touched her shoulder, "You shouldn't go too far from the house right now Sera. You know it might be dangerous if something happens and you can't call out for help." he reminded her.
Seraphina nodded, moving forward to hug him. Sean turned his attention back to me as he held her.
"Any idea of when he may have taken off? I'm assuming he must have with how this is sounding." he continued.
"I'm not sure right now. I hadn't heard anything about this until I came back, and I'm sure Raphael hasn't either or he would've said something to me." I admitted.
Seraphina pulled back from Sean, quickly writing something down before showing it to me.
"Do you really think Noah's run away?"
"We don't know for sure yet. Hopefully, Raziel can find him, and we'll help to bring him back if he did." I promised her.
I was careful how I answered her, unsure of how she was taking this. She already looked upset, and none of us wanted her to fall into another depressive state where she could end up hurting herself.
"It'll be okay Sera. Raziel will try to find him, and your grandfather and uncle will too." Sean added as he tugged on her arm, "Why don't you wait inside with your mother and Sevee? We'll let you all know as soon as we find out anything."
Seraphina easily agreed, heading into the house with Sean. Not that it surprised me. She'd always been very close to her father, and Sean could convince her of almost anything.
Raziel was landing near me as Sean and Seraphina went inside.
"I'll take it you know what's going on," he stated.
"Yes, Seraphina wrote a note to me. But you and Mia should be more careful. She was out here when I pulled up." I told him.
"Are you serious? We both told her to wait inside, and she was supposed to be helping watch Sage." Raziel responded.
"That's the least of my concerns." I quickly interrupted, "Were you able to find any trace of Noah?"
Raziel shook his head, "No. I followed his imprint away from the house, but it faded in the woods to where I couldn't follow it." he admitted. He crossed his arms and glanced at the nearby house, making sure that Seraphina was inside, "I'm worried Michael. That trace looked like it might've been leading to the gateway in that area for the Veil."
"Damn." I breathed. I kept my stress of this situation in check so that I could think straight, "Did he say anything to you about going there before this?"
"No. He didn't even threaten it, and I have no idea what the hell he'd want within the Veil." Raziel swore.
He was looking desperate now, fidgeting where he stood and his wings flapping a little behind him. I did feel bad for him. Raziel had been dealing with a lot when it came to his son, and the worry had already been getting to him. This was just icing on the cake.
Sean was coming back out with us, and had apparently been listening to what was said.
"You said that you tracked him to the woods near that gateway. Maybe I can pick up his scent further than what the Imprint could trace. It is in our favor this time that Noah can't fly." he suggested.
"Yeah, you got a point." Raziel sighed, "I still don't get it though. What's he planning with this?"
"We can ask him that once we find him, but for now, why don't you and Sean see what you can find? I'll call Raphael and stay here until you get back." I told them.
"Fine." Raziel agreed, "Then let's get moving."
I watched the two get into Sean's Jeep and peel out, then opened my car door again to grab my phone. Damn it. As if I didn't have enough to deal with when it came to Noah. Now he'd apparently run away. But I also agreed with Raziel. What was he looking for if he had gone into the Veil? Was something possibly calling him there?
I stood there as I dialed Raphael's number, hoping that I'd get more of a reaction out of him. He had to know how serious this situation had just turned.
"Hey, we have a big problem," I stated as he answered my call.
"What's going on?" Raphael responded.
"It's Noah. He's apparently run off, and we think he's headed into the Veil."
The other end of the line went quiet for a moment before he finally spoke again, "He's run to the Veil? When?"
"We're not sure. I came to see Mia and found Seraphina outside, and she wrote me a note saying that Noah had run off and Raziel's been looking for him. Raziel just told me that he'd followed Noah's Imprint into the woods near the gateway, and he and Sean are going there now to verify whether or not he's crossed over." I explained.
"Damn it!" Raphael cursed, "What is that boy thinking? This is the worst possible time that he could go to that side. The portals between there and Purgatory are about to open up for the next few days."
I stiffened as he said that. Damn, I'd completely forgotten about that one.
From what we'd learned from Sean, portals between the Veil and Purgatory opened every year around this time for three days, and there were lost souls and even some Fallen that would slip through them at times, which could be extremely dangerous, especially for a young Nephilim.
"We need to regroup quickly if that's the case. He couldn't have gotten that far yet, especially since he can't fly anymore. If we move quick enough, then maybe we can catch up to him." I suggested.
"Maybe, but we need to be careful about this too. The Veil is a big place, and it might be better if we know what he's gone there looking for. I'm going to head to Raziel's house and see if Anna can help me look through his room for any kind of notes he might've left." Raphael responded.
"Sounds like a plan. I'll meet you here at Mia's once you're done." I agreed.
Raphael hung up after that, and I remained where I stood, letting all of this sink in. He was right. This was going to end up being incredibly bad if we didn't do something right away. But what if he couldn't find anything to point to what Noah was looking for there? We couldn't just go after him blindly. Raphael was right. The Veil was a huge place, especially when you first went through that gateway.
As I was thinking about this, I realized that someone was coming out of the house. I looked over to see that it was Sevee. He spoke as he came over to me.
"Hey, is it true that Noah's taken off?"
"It seems that way," I confirmed. I glanced towards the house, "Is Seraphina staying in there with your mother?"
"Yeah. Mom's got her distracted with taking care of Sage right now, but she's still pretty worried. I can tell by looking at her eyes." Sevee admitted.
An idea came to my mind as I looked at my grandson. Maybe this was a good opportunity to start searching for answers to all of this, especially with it just being us.
"Sevee, be honest with me here, has Noah said anything to you about what's been going on with him lately?" I inquired.
Sevee shook his head, "Not really. We've barely talked in the last two weeks. Why?"
I glanced around us again, making sure that it stayed just us. If I wanted Sevee to talk to me about this honestly, he might do it without anyone else around to hear him.
"I want you to be honest with me Sevee. It's very important. I know there's been a lot going on with Noah, and I know that he's always talked to you and Seraphina more than anyone else in our family. Has he said anything to you recently about what's been going on with him aside from what he thinks are his feelings for Seraphina?" I asked him.
Sevee hesitated in answering me, looking around too, "Well..."
"We don't have to repeat anything to anyone else, especially if you don't want it getting out that you told me. But this is important. Noah's life could be in danger right now if he really has gone into the Veil, and we need to figure out why he'd do so." I insisted.
"Damn..." Sevee sighed. He shook his head, grunting in frustration, "Yeah, I know he's asked me not to talk about this, and so has Dad because he's worried about what might happen with Seraphina. But you're right. If I don't talk about this, then something bad's gonna end up happening to him, and maybe to Sera too."
I knew it. Even if he and Noah butted heads a lot, they were close friends too. Noah did talk to him just like he talked to Seraphina, and with the way he put this, apparently things had been said that should've been red flags. I was a little pissed to think that Sean had kept things from us too about this, but I could also reason that it could've been a vain effort to protect his daughter. Sean had been shaken to his core over what had occurred with Seraphina, and he was probably overprotective right now because of it.
"Listen Sevee," I continued, "I get it if you and your father are worried about your sister, but I need to know what's going on here. What did Noah tell you?"
"Well, it's not so much what he told me. But maybe it's better if we went inside and talked about this. Seraphina knows a little bit about it too, so it wouldn't hurt her to hear us, and I guess we also owe it to Mom." Sevee answered.
I reluctantly agreed to that, "That's fine. Let's go inside."
The house seemed quiet enough as we entered. Mia and Seraphina were sitting together in the den room, with Seraphina holding Sage. Both looked up as we came in.
"Have you heard any more about Noah?" Mia asked us.
"Not yet. But there is something we needed to talk about, and Sevee's agreed to do it with me." I answered.
"What exactly is it?" Mia asked, giving Sevee a skeptical look as he sat down beside Seraphina.
"It's about Noah, not me this time," Sevee assured her.
Seraphina seemed to understand what he was saying, and immediately shook her head at him. But Sevee rebuffed her.
"No, don't give me that. You know we can't keep this one anymore. If Noah's missing, then this is putting him in danger." Sevee reminded her.
Seraphina chewed her lip, shaking her head before returning her attention to Sage, who was squeezing her fingers.
I pulled over the ottoman and sat down in front of them, "It's okay Seraphina. We're not upset with either of you, and we need to know this now to help Noah." I added.
"What exactly is this?" Mia pressed.
Sevee drew in a long breath before answering, "I think it has to do with this family curse and something that Noah's been seeing and hearing for a while now. Anyway, back when the two of us went to that Fox den, it was because Noah suggested it to me and swore that he knew how to release Missy. When I asked him after we got there how he would know that, he said something about this Angel appearing in his dreams and talking to him. I thought at first that it might've been the Angel who made our family, but he told me that it wasn't and that this Angel was telling him that our Angel had abandoned our family. They said that he'd never even wanted us, but he had to make us because it was his duty or something like that."
I felt a chill creep up my spine as I heard him say that. It sounded like something I'd heard decades before, but I didn't want to believe it.
"Did he... tell you anything about this Angel?" I managed to ask.
Mia noticed my hesitation, "Are you okay Dad?" she asked me.
I shook my head, making sure to keep myself together. No, I didn't want to scare them. At least, not until I had to.
"I think so," I answered before turning my attention back to Sevee. I noticed that Seraphina looked a little anxious now, although she was still trying to hide it, "Did Noah tell you anything else about this Angel? Maybe describe them or what else they were saying?"
Sevee shook his head, "No, but when we were down there and you freed Missy, I did have these weird visions, and I think I saw it. It was shadowed, but I could make out that it looked female, and had angel wings."
"Would you mind if I tried to take a look at your memory of that vision?" I requested.
My heart was pounding as I requested this, the knowledge of what I probably was going to see now foremost in my mind. No, I didn't want to believe this, but I had no choice until I confirmed it.
"Yeah. Go ahead." Sevee agreed without hesitation.
I held up my hand to his forehead and both of us closed our eyes. Almost instantly, I was running through a series of visions. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. These were visions of when I was a child, and of my parents. They showed pieces of their fights and how they were able to break free from the darkness trying to take over them after Noel was kidnapped.
But as they continued, the visions seemed to distort to a point that I could barely make them out. It was like a blur came over everything, making it almost incomprehensible.
Then, everything became dark.
I was now seeing a dark place emerge around me, one filled with mist on the ground and nothing visible around me. A strange whispering filled the air, and looking forward, I could see a figure standing in the distance. I listened closely and stepped forward, trying to make out who they were. A chill ran through me as they floated closer, and the shadows around them lightened to where I could see them. A young female dressed in a hooded sweatshirt, with black wings and a bloody, gaping wound in her throat.
Noel...
I let out a loud gasp as I came back to reality. Mia and Sevee were staring at me in shock, and Seraphina held Sage a little tighter. I realized as I looked at her that she'd laid a hand on Sevee's, allowing her to see what I had. How clever. She wasn't going to be left out of anything.
"What is it, Dad? What's happened?" Mia pressed me.
Sevee was already figuring things out, "You know who she is, don't you? She didn't feel like a demon to me. She felt more like family." he pointed out.
I was doing my best to pull myself together quickly. This was very, very bad. Someway, somehow, Noel was reaching out to Noah with this curse; and with those portals opening within the Veil, I didn't doubt what was happening now.
Noah was going to her.
"What is this Dad?" Mia asked again. She was leaning closer to me now, looking very worried.
I drew in a breath to calm myself before answering, "It's very bad Mia. This Angel that Noah's seeing is looking to take him with this curse. I'm sure of it."
"Is it the demon that started it?" Mia pressed.
"No." Sevee told her, "She's not a demon. She's family, isn't she?"
I nodded, "Yes, she was. She was Gabrielle's twin sister, Noel."