Broken Angel

Chapter 8: Vicious

AZRAEL

I had never had any problems with controlling my emotions, but now rage and annoyance were coursing through my veins. And I had to repurpose it. Just my luck that I had to go after a demon with a stupidity streak.

He had been causing insurmountable chaos on Earth, and no one had kept him in check. Now I had to take time away from my children to deal with this imbecile.

He was far more moronic than I could have imagined. It was surprising that he hadn’t been caught by the humans yet. I watched as he stalked his next target, a young woman on the cusp of success.

The imbecile fed off their hopes and prosperity, and then killed them for shits and giggles. A human dying before their time only caused problems for everyone around. Their souls would wander the earth until I was able to find them and help them move on.

Their suffering was agonizing. They were lost and confused, not understanding what happened to them, and trying to communicate with the living only to be feared and ignored. It was a punishment far worse than Hell.

At least in Hell, Lucifer had order.

Before the demon could advance on the woman, I brought him to a stop with a swift toss aside. I was lucky the woman was out hiking and there weren’t many people out. I didn’t have the time to go back and erase memories. The only person I had to avoid was the woman herself.

The demon was still on the ground from where I tossed him over the edge of the cliff, and thankfully the woman had jogged out of sight. Jumping over the edge I landed a few feet from the demon. I placed one foot on his chest and pressed down before he could stand back up.

“Do you know what you were doing?” I asked leaning over and resting my forearm on my knee.

His beady little eyes darted back and forth trying to understand what was happening. I released my wings, letting them stretch out before retracting them, just so he could know who he was f*****g with. “I don’t have to answer to you,” he spat.

Pressing further down on his chest, his hands clamped over my boot trying to keep the pressure to a minimum. It was laughable really. He was like a tiny ant compared to a human. The effort it would take me to stomp him out wouldn’t even make me break a sweat. “That’s where you’re wrong. You’re intruding on my domain. Do you know what happens to souls when I’m not there to collect? I’ll tell you anyways because you seem too dumb to comprehend the hierarchy. They wander around until I can track them down.”

I smiled down at him because I knew he was afraid of me. His false bravado was a mere facade that would fall away as soon as he realized there was no getting out of this. “Boohoo extra work for you,” he quipped.

Letting up on my foot, I allowed him to stand. If he knew what was good for him, he wouldn’t run. If anything, it would just make the chase that more fun. “I don’t mind the extra steps actually, but it becomes a problem when those lost souls unknowingly terrorize the living. That’s when it becomes your problem because now, I’m here,” I told him.

“You can’t do anything to me. I know you have to follow laws,” he replied with a smirk as he dusted himself off. This demon fool thought too highly of himself and it would be an honor to smack him down like the little gnat he was.

“See about that. I do as I please. I wouldn’t even need my scythe to kill you. That’s how low on the totem pole you are,” I threatened him.

He was already searching for an escape route; I could see it in his eyes. He was terrified, and that’s how I liked it. They knew better than to test me. My siblings may be required to follow the rules, but I was given the privilege to pick and choose.

In one swift motion, I plunged my hand into his chest and for his essence. Lucifer and I were the only ones capable of doing this. While my brother had his limits, I was gifted free range.

“Wait! Wait. Please wait. I have information you want!” He began gasping for his miserable life.

Bingo.

That had me pause. There was no way this thing had anything of use for me. “What could you possibly offer me? You’re a demon,” I questioned, slightly retracting my hand, enough to grant him a reprieve.

He held onto my wrist in his weak attempt to keep me from moving further in. “I know where that new archangel is,” he responded.

“How do you know about her?!”

“There hasn’t been a new one created in millennia. The underworld talks. Especially when they’re as vicious as her.”

Penelope. Vicious?

I would have never used that word to describe her, but I wasn’t stupid either. I’d heard what she was capable of. Everything she was doing, to humans and demons. I saw what she had done to Gabi with no remorse.

“Tell me where to find her!” I gritted through clenched teeth. I was so close to getting her back, I was willing to do anything.

The demon smirked as if this was his free ticket out of my grasp. He knew he had information I wanted. This would be a gamble, there was no telling whether I could trust him. “Only if you promise to never hunt me down,” he attempted to bargain.

“How about I kill you now and find the information elsewhere?” I told him, pushing my hand further into his chest.

“Okay. Okay. Okay. I’ll tell you what I know! She’s been staying in that big church in the Vatican. St. Phillip—St. Patrick—"

“St. Peters,” I whispered to myself.

“Yes! That one! We can never go in there, she knows that.”

In the distance I could hear the click of the woman’s car door shutting, letting me know that she was safe. “You have one day. If you harm any more humans before their time, I will personally hunt you down and feed your insides to a hellhound while you watch.” He nodded enthusiastically, promising to keep his grubby hands away from the humans.

The only hellhound I had access to was Poochie, but I wasn’t going to tell the demon that. I sure as hell wasn’t going to tell him that said hellhound enjoyed belly rubs from a five-year-old.

Now it was time to go home, and hopefully I could bring Penelope with me soon.