Rogue Rider

Forty-three

Reaver didn’t bother to ask permission to enter Archangel Hall. He strode inside with an I-don’t-give-a-shit attitude and a smug expression to match.

Maybe at some point in his life he’d been in awe of the giant gold columns that pierced the endless azure sky and of the crystal rivers that wound through lush grass that went on forever. But not now.

Now he just wanted answers.

An angel dressed in some sort of obnoxious crimson medieval garb came from out of nowhere and blocked Reaver’s path. “Who are you, and why are you here?”

“I’m Reaver. I need to see an archangel.”

The male smiled. “Then go through the proper channels with your request.”

“It’s not a request, and I can’t wait years for this.”

Crimson Angel Guy narrowed his eyes. “Go away—”

“Hold.” A tall black-haired male materialized like something out of a Star Trek transporter, all gold and silver sparkles. His Greek-style robe was cinched at the waist with a simple brown rope, and his leather boots were nothing to write home about, but somehow this angel exuded power and royalty. His raven wings, shot through with gold, were probably the envy of everyone he came into contact with.

Reaver included.

The newcomer, definitely an archangel, waved his hand, and the angel in the crimson getup flashed away in a huff.

“Well, well,” the archangel said. “Reaver. Still not one for following rules, I see.”

“Since you seem to know so much about me, how about some reciprocation?”

The male’s smile was cold. “Raphael. Now, why are you here?”

Straight to it, then. Good, because Reaver wasn’t in the mood to mess around. “I want to know why my memory was taken.”

“I’m sure you do.”

Alrighty then. “I know who I am,” Reaver ground out. “I know my given name is Yenrieth, so I might as well have my memories back.”

The chilly smile fell off Raphael’s face. “That is… unexpected.” He wheeled away, only to pace in a wide circle before stopping in front of Reaver again. “But it makes no difference. You don’t get your memory back.”

“Damn you—”

Reaver didn’t get to finish his sentence. Pain like a million lightning bolts crackling through him sent him crumpling to the ground, blinded and groaning like a green soldier who’d taken his first wound. When he could see again… felt like a year later… Raphael was looking down at him, his silver eyes flashing like blades.

“You do not speak like that to me, nor do you question my decisions.”

By some miracle, Reaver didn’t groan again as he staggered to his feet. “So memory loss it is.” His head throbbed like he’d been clobbered by his own halo. “Maybe you can tell me why my daughter and sons have a new evil Watcher. Do you know what rule Harvester broke?”

For a long time, Raphael merely stared, his expression blank. Just as Reaver’s archangel-acute migraine started to ease, Raphael said, “She didn’t break any rules. She was taken for espionage. For helping the wrong side.”

“Helping the wrong side? You mean us?” Raphael had to be mistaken. “How?”

“By manipulating events.”

Now it was Reaver’s turn to stare. “I don’t… I don’t understand. She’s the one who wrote the note that The Aegis found… the one that Pestilence believed would break Than’s Seal.”

The archangel inclined his head in a slight nod. “She did it knowing sex wouldn’t break Than’s Seal. She did it so a child would be conceived. A child who could end the Apocalypse if all went well, and she had faith that the Horsemen would figure out how to stop Pestilence.”

Reaver’s head spun, which didn’t help the throbbing. “Why would she do that?”

“Because she was a spy.”

“A… spy?” Reaver asked, incredulous. “For how long?”

“Since the beginning.” Raphael said it so easily, as if everyone should have been aware of this information. “We fabricated a story about how she’d begun to kill humans for fun, leading to her fall, but in truth, she fell in order to infiltrate the highest orders in Sheoul and earn her way to become Watcher.”

“But why? Why would she give up so much to become a fallen angel?”

Raphael’s shake of his head and rolling eyes told Reaver what the archangel thought of Harvester’s reasons. “She’d been watching over your children since before they were Horsemen. She even saved Reseph from a fire that would have killed him. She loved them.”

This kept getting more and more unbelievable. “Where was I?” Reaver demanded. “Why wasn’t I watching over my children?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Raphael said, his tone making it clear that Reaver wasn’t going to get any answers about his past. “What matters is that Harvester was a spy, and she’s done the world a great service.”

Reaver threw his hand out to catch himself on a pillar before he fell over. “Why didn’t she tell me? Why didn’t someone tell me about her?”

“We couldn’t risk anyone knowing. Any slip could have been dangerous.” Raphael’s expression became clouded with anger, and a menacing growl rose up in his chest. “Look what happened with Gethel.”

The time he’d caught Gethel working Harvester over with treclan spikes came back to him, and his breath hitched. “Gethel tortured Harvester. She suspected, didn’t she?”

“Most likely,” Raphael said. “I’m almost certain it was Gethel who ratted Harvester out to the forces of Sheoul.”

Ah, damn. Harvester had tried to warn Reaver, had said that Gethel wasn’t right. She didn’t mean that Gethel was wrong. She’d meant that Gethel was mental, and maybe playing for the wrong side, if she was torturing Harvester for proof that Harvester was a good guy.

But had Gethel spoken the truth about anything?

“Gethel told me Harvester was Satan’s consort and she fell from Heaven to be with him. How does that play into any of this?”

Raphael’s eyebrows shot up. “That’s what she told you? Gethel loved messing with your head, didn’t she?”

“She wouldn’t need to mess with my head if I had my memories,” Reaver growled. “So Harvester wasn’t secretly sleeping around with Satan?”

Raphael laughed. Actually laughed. “I should hope not. He’s her father.”

Father? Holy… shit. Reaver’s voice was slightly strangled when he spoke. “So what do we do now?”

“We hunt Gethel down and destroy her.”

Gladly. “And Harvester?”

“She is lost to us.”

An unexpected stab of guilt lanced Reaver in the chest. “She’s dead?”

Raphael shrugged. “We lost contact with her when she was dragged to Sheoul. No doubt she’ll be tortured for some time.”

“Won’t Satan protect her?”

Another burst of laughter from Raphael set Reaver’s nerves on edge. “The only thing Satan hates more than a traitor is a traitor in his family. You should have seen what was left of one of his sons after he sided with another fallen angel in an argument between the angel and Satan.” Raphael shook his head. “No, Harvester will suffer like no one ever has for this.”

“Then we need to rescue her.”

Raphael waved his hand in dismissal. “She knew the risks when she volunteered for the assignment. She understood that it was a one-way trip and that if she was caught, we would disavow all knowledge of her actions.”

Reaver’s jaw nearly hit the ground. “Are you kidding me? We can’t leave her there!”

“Any attempt at rescue would be an admission of our involvement. They can’t know that we arranged for two agents of good to be assigned to the Horsemen. It could start another war between Heaven and Hell. Even if it were possible to get her out, she won’t be the same innocent young angel who fell. To survive Sheoul and earn a place as Watcher, she had to do things that hardened her heart and blackened her soul. Her sacrifice is one of the greatest in angelic history, but she is lost to us.”

“There has to be a way.”

“Let it go, Yenrieth.” Raphael’s voice deepened, became a booming thunder. “Hear me now. You will not make any attempt to rescue her. If you do, I’ll tear off your wings myself and toss you into the darkest pit in Sheoul. Do you understand?”

Reaver understood, all right. He understood that Raphael was a massive douchebag.

“I’m also taking you off Watcher duty.”

A bone-deep fury welled up in Reaver, scouring his veins as if they ran with steam instead of blood. “You can’t do that.”

Raphael’s calm was maddening. “I can do anything I please. You are the Horsemen’s father, and that knowledge means you can no longer be a neutral party.”

“Neutral? Harvester wasn’t neutral, either, if she was a spy, you piece of—”

“I wouldn’t finish that sentence,” Raphael warned. “You’re getting off lightly, given all the rules you’ve broken recently. Releasing Reseph from Sheoul-gra? Keeping Wormwood from Thanatos? Giving Heofon to Pestilence? Shall I go on?”

“The rules are bullshit. You broke the biggest of all by sending Harvester to infiltrate hell. How dare you accuse me of breaking rules, you overgrown vulture.”

“One more word,” Raphael said slowly, “and you will lose what little memory you have, and I’ll wipe you from your children’s minds as well.”

Trembling with the kind of rage Reaver rarely experienced, he spun and headed toward the exit. As he reached it, he flared his wings high and violently, a big, fat, fuck you to the angel watching him leave.

It was about time for a vacation, and Reaver had heard that Sheoul was nice this time of year.