Angeldust Read online

  Angeldust (Dark Angel #5)

  By Hanna Peach

  The thrilling conclusion to the Dark Angel series…

  Everything about Michael’s dark plan has been hidden – until now. On an island off the coast of Egypt, a fourth Seraphim city has been discovered; a city that doesn’t appear on any Seraphim map. This city is hidden, the air smells of blood and there is something very, very wrong with the inhabitants.

  Back at Castle Speranza, while Alyx is off uncovering the secret of Raphael’s charm, someone will betray her in the worst possible way…

  Michael now has everything he needs. Will Alyx be able to stop him? Or could this be the end of the world as we know it?

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  Angeldust (Dark Angel #5): a novel / by Hanna Peach. – 1st Ed.

  First Digital Edition: June 2015

  Published by Gypsy Publishing

  Copyright 2015 Hanna Peach

  Cover art copyright 2015 Romac Designs: http://romacdesigns.com. All Rights Reserved Hanna Peach. Stock images: shutterstock

  Proofreading services by Proof Positive: http://proofpositivepro.com.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please delete and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Prologue

  Siana slid along a small ledge on the exterior wall of one of the main buildings of this hidden Seraphim city, her hands shaking as she pressed against the rough-worn brick.

  She had followed Stantanople here after he had knocked out Yael and carried him across the sea to this island off the coast of Egypt. At first she thought there was nothing on this island. Until the rain, which was still falling, had revealed through her WaterBearer magic, this secret city hidden under a mirage.

  She had hardly believed her eyes when she had first “seen” it appearing like a glass fortress under the musical drops of rain. Tall, thick walls enclosed the city. Above the walls stood a huge steel cage, thin but strong bars. To keep others out? Or to keep them in? Within the city walls, the buildings were squat and imposing. They had windows but they were slim and barred, like prisons. There were no trees here, no gardens, no flowers to bring any joy or cheer amongst the dusty grounds. Just a terrible sense of hopelessness stomped into the well-trodden dirt. Whatever this place was, it was not a place she wanted to stay long.

  She was thankful for the rain. With the help of her magic she had used the downpour as a kind of camouflage, which had gotten her inside the walls. Raindrops clung to her body like a hug and Siana felt less alone. The truth was, nobody knew she was here. If she was caught snooping, God knows what they would do to her. She shuddered but pushed this thought away. She had to keep going. She had to find out what this place was and where they were keeping Yael. She wasn’t going to lose her love.

  Her breath caught as she spotted one of the guards rounding the corner below, his even footsteps crunching wetly in the mud. She dared not move as he neared. Please, keep going. Don’t look up.

  He paused right below her, only meters away. She pressed further into the brick and her fingers gripped the ridges tighter without her meaning to. Maybe she should slip up to the roof, but there were guards up there too, which was why she chose to move along against the walls.

  Under her fingers she felt the movement of a loose piece of brick. Before she could relax her grip, the stone flicked out from under her tensed fingers. She watched it falling towards the guard. No!

  She pushed out a small burst of Water magic, coaxing the raindrops like they were her fingers. She managed to tap the stone aside so that it missed the guard by inches. It dropped harmlessly near his foot. She held still, all the relief bottled up inside her. The guard tensed, his head tilted down towards the ground, alerted to the stone, perhaps by the soft plopping noise it made. He began to look up.

  Siana didn’t have time to think. She let out more lashings of magic, causing the rain to pelt directly into his face. He winced and turned his face away, his eyes squeezed shut against the unfriendly drops. This was her chance. She pushed up from the ledge towards the roof, praying that this wouldn’t send her into the stony arms of another guard.

  She rolled onto the rooftop, tucking her legs in from the edge and huddled into a ball. Her ears pricked for any sound that the guard below was approaching. What if he had spotted her before the rain forced his eyes closed? What if he came up to check the loose stone anyway?

  Moments passed. The only noise she could hear was the rhythm of the rain drumming on the roof and the rush of blood in her ears like dual drum beats.

  He wasn’t coming for her. Thank God. She uncurled herself, slowly. Lifting her head slightly, she was relieved to see no guards patrolling near her. This place was less guarded than Michaelea or any of their other Seraphim cities. They wouldn’t have much need to guard it. Nobody knew about this city and even if anyone were to come near it, it was hidden under a mirage.

  Siana was about to move again when she spotted a reflection to her left. She frowned at the square shiny object embedded in the roof and moved closer. It was a skylight. Curiosity filled her.

  She moved to the edge of the skylight, placed her fingers at the lip and slowly peered over. Her breath seized. Her heart twisted and bile rose in her throat.

  Oh my God. What is this place?

  Chapter One

  In Morocco the old town of Marrakesh was jammed within the old city walls, a pale salmon and dusty-orange labyrinth that seemed to breathe and swallow. Rain hardly fell here, only 25 days last year, so the skyline was a cluttered field of dusty flat shapes punctuated only by the numerous dome-tipped mosques; nothing in this town was allowed to be built higher than the sacred Koutoubia, the main mosque and center of prayer.

  Perched on a rooftop in this ancient city were two male figures. A father and a son.

  Israel glanced at Tobias out of the corner of his eye. He still couldn’t believe that he had a father. A father! Well, of course he had a father, after all, his mother didn’t just conceive him from nothing. But he had long accepted that he would never know anything about who his father was.

  Now that he knew, Israel could spot the things that he had inherited from Tobias − they had the same light caramel skin, the same unruly dark hair and the same tall, lean-muscle build.

  The days since the battle with Samyara had been divided between getting to know Tobias and spending time with Alyx. It had been the happiest time in his memory. For the first time in his life, Israel felt like he had a home. That he had…a family. But he couldn’t shake this undercurrent of fear that this life of his was just borrowed.

  Tobias and Israel had agreed − after much debating − that they should come here where his aunt lived, and confront her. Even though Israel hadn’t spoken to his aunt since he left her and his stepfather, he had always kept tabs on her.

  Israel and Tobias were resting on this rooftop after having flown all night − Israel hanging on Tobias’ back − and waiting for the sun to get to a socially acceptable ascent before they knocked on her door, the red painted door that he could see across the street down below. They had spent most of the journey in a heavy silence. The sound of the wind as they flew didn’t make it the best arena for conversation. So fa
r they had completely avoided the topic that Israel wanted to broach so much but didn’t know how to. Finally in the rising heat of the Moroccan sun, his desire bubbled over. “Tell me about her… my mother.”

  “Maresa.” Her name escaping Tobias’ lips sounded so intimate, so deep and full of sorrow that Israel regretted asking about her. “Maresa was the most beautiful woman in this world. She was kind, loving, funny, smart…” Tobias laughed, “and also hard-headed and stubborn as a mule. I met her on my first night out in the world after I had defected from Society. She knew what I was the instant she saw me. I thought she was just a special human but… She had always had visions, what her sister called ‘fits’. She had seen things, she told me. But I never once thought it was because she was part demon. I didn’t know then.”

  “And you…fell in love?”

  “Deeply. I was living in a FreeThinker community and I would see her in secret at night. She hated this. She wanted to be introduced to my world, and for her to introduce me to hers, her sister, her friends, but…”

  “But?”

  “I was an idiot. I still thought what we were doing was wrong. I wanted to hide her and that always hurt her so much. One night when I came to her she was hysterical. She told me that she wasn’t safe anymore but she wouldn’t tell me why. She asked me if my community would take her in. I was horrified. What would they say about us? So I said no. We fought. She claimed I didn’t love her and told me she never wanted to see me again. I left. It took me weeks to calm myself down and to realize I was being stupid.”

  Tobias sighed deeply and ran his hands over his face. “By the time I returned, she was gone. So was her sister. They lived together and were each other’s only family. Months later I managed to track Josephine down. I demanded to know where Maresa was. She told me Maresa was…” tears welled in Tobias’ eyes and Israel turned his head to give him some sort of privacy. “…dead. I didn’t believe her until she took me to Maresa’s grave. I never saw you. Josephine never mentioned you. Why?” His bottom lip quivered. “Josephine told me Maresa had died suddenly. But I knew, she died from whatever she had been scared of. She died because of me.”

  “You don’t know that. We don’t know what happened. But we will soon.” Israel slid a hand on the broad shoulders of his father. Jesus…his father. His real father. He had spent his life feeling like an orphan, and here he was suddenly with a father. A flesh and blood father.

  Tobias nodded and Israel felt his shoulders relax into his touch.

  “Are you ready…Dad?” Israel tested this term on his tongue. Surprisingly it fit.

  Tobias smiled. “As I’ll ever be.”

  Making sure that no one could see them, they slid down the side of the dusty building to the ground. Streets in the old town of Marrakesh were thin dusty gorges, closed in on both sides by the Riads that lined the streets like long snakes. There were no sidewalks, just flat dirt worn down by a million footsteps or sometimes a roughly leveled concrete mixed with dirt and sand from the desert. Most of the houses had no numbers, most of the streets had no names. If you weren’t paying attention you could find yourself suddenly lost within the labyrinths.

  Israel and Tobias crossed the street to Josephine’s door and rang the bell. Israel swallowed the small knot that had started to form in his throat. He hadn’t seen his auntie in years since he had run away from home. She was divorced now and living alone. Thank God he didn’t have to face his stepfather.

  His heart sped up at the sound of footfalls just behind the door, then a lock turning. His aunt’s face appeared as she opened the door.

  Israel had been told that the two sisters, his Aunt Josephine and his mother, looked very much alike. He recognized some of his own features in his auntie’s face: his thick shapely lips and his pale green eyes.

  It had only been four or five years since he had last seen her but now she looked…worn. Her jaw and cheeks were soft and crinkly like aged paper. Lines had begun to etch around those familiar eyes. Silver hairs decorated her fading brown hair, now tied back in a low bun at her neck. A small wave of affection rose up in him. He had missed her.

  Her face dropped into a mask of shock. “Israel. Oh my God.”

  “Hi, Auntie.”

  “Josephine,” Tobias said.

  Her eyes landed on Tobias. “And…you!”

  Josephine lived in a traditional Riad, a traditional Moroccan home, built up in a square or rectangle shape with an open space in the middle to let in light and air. Unlike the crumbling exterior of this city, the inside was where the real beauty lay. Lightly painted walls, brightly colored cushions and curtains and carpets laid out precisely like a peacock displaying his feathers.

  Obviously stunned, Auntie invited them in and sat them down in her living room before disappearing into her kitchen. She returned, still mute with a wide-eyed expression that made the whites appear around her grass-blade eyes, carrying a silver tray of sweet mint tea and an ornate bowl of delicate pastries that looked like tiny flowers in various stages of blooming. Auntie poured the tea from a small silver teapot into three small glasses from a height that made the tea froth at the top. She must have done this a thousand times because her aim was extraordinarily true and yet the whole time she stared at Israel, her bottom lip trembling slightly.

  Not sure what else to do, Israel took the glass in his hands. It was too hot. Without thinking he let a little of his magic swirl across the top of it, cooling the pale green liquid. If it were at all possible, his aunt’s eyes widened even further.

  “Oh Israel,” her eyes brimmed with water. “I thought I’d never see you again. And you…” she only glanced briefly at Tobias as if she was scared to look at him for too long. “I can’t believe that this is even possible. How did you two…?”

  “I spent years on the street,” said Israel, “moving around, looking for answers. Then one night I found…her. Or should I say, she found me.”

  “Her?”

  “Her name is Alyx. She brought me to her community and Tobias was the leader.”

  “Is this Alyx, is she…” Auntie lowered her voice, “one of them?”

  Israel felt the first stirrings of anger inside him, a rumble of hooves at a flimsy gate. “Don’t talk like my father isn’t sitting right here. I am one of them.”

  “No, you’re not. You’re…you’re…”

  “I’m what?”

  “You’re more than that.”

  There was a pause, a tense wire of silence pulled so tight it was about to snap.

  Tobias spoke first to break it. “Israel and I didn’t know who we were to each other at first,” said Tobias, his voice clipped. “But… her ring.”

  Israel pulled out the chain around his neck, his mother’s engagement ring, engraved with Ani Ledodi Ve Dodi Li. It meant I am my beloved and my beloved is mine. It was the ring that once tied Maresa to Tobias, and the ring that had led Alyx to him.

  “Once Tobias saw this ring he recognized it.” Israel placed down his glass and leaned forward towards his aunt. “You never would talk about it before but now you have to tell us…what happened with my mother?”

  She seemed to shrink in her seat. “I knew this day would come. I mean, I expected that I would have to tell you one day…but not like this.”

  “Tell me.”

  “I… I…” Her hands fluttered around her face, her cheeks flushed.

  “Maresa and I were seeing each other in secret,” Tobias said. “Did you know?”

  Auntie breathed a small sigh. She nodded. “I knew she had been sneaking out of the house. Some mornings I would notice dirt that hadn’t been there the night before on her shoes and around her window in her room. I thought it was strange. You know how particular Maresa was about dirt.”

  Tobias smiled a little, his head bobbing. His eyes were a little far away as if he was remembering.

  “I confronted her,” Josephine continued. “I demanded to know what the hell she was doing. She told me about you. And I was happy for
her, if not a little jealous. You were taking my place,” Josephine said directly to Tobias.

  “Then what?” Tobias asked. “You both disappeared. Why?”

  “Days before you had your fight Maresa had a vision. An angel came to her in a dream and told her that she was pregnant and that her son was special and would one day carry out a great Prophecy. But all his life he would be hunted because of what he was.”

  Israel drew back, feeling the scowl curling at his lips. “It’s because of my blood.” His cursed impure blood. His bastardized mix of angel, demon and human, making him part of all of these worlds yet belonging to none.

  Josephine frowned. “He didn’t say that it was your blood that would make you special. But that you would one day have the power to save a race that would all but destroy themselves. That’s why Maresa named you Israel,” Josephine said softly. “Named after the promised land.”

  These words echoed in his mind, bouncing off the inside of his skull like metal balls.

  I’m to save the human race against Michael, Israel realized. How was he meant to do all that? He had magic and it was powerful, but…

  He was the tri-blood keye that could unlock the gate to Hell. Didn’t the Prophecy warn that he could destroy them? Was he meant to be the hand of destruction or salvation?

  Josephine continued, “At first Maresa didn’t tell me. She was going to carry that burden on her own. But she was so upset I knew something serious was wrong. I thought you had broken her heart,” she directed to Tobias. “I confronted her. Finally she told me about everything, about Seraphim, demons, then she told me about her dream and the child growing inside her.” Josephine took another sip of her tea. “I always knew there was something different about Maresa. And I had been around her enough to know that there were some unexplainable things in this world. But I never expected… She asked me to go with her, to start a new life somewhere fresh. At that point I wasn’t sure whether I fully believed her or not, I just knew I couldn’t let her go alone. She was my best friend, my only family. If she went, I was going too.”