Darren and I descended to the lower level in the small elevator. When we stepped off, fluorescent lights flared to life in the room surrounding the Fishbowl. The incandescence made me blink. Darren advanced inside, oblivious to my anxiety.
Rows of computers lined the glass walls. Some monitors would mirror the lab during pivotal autopsies or experiments. I lingered outside the elevator. Shadows veiled the space. The darkness called out to me. The desire to move closer was intense now that I was feet away, a physical force shoving me forward. I fought it, keeping my back to the wall.
Darren turned with an incredulous look. "What's gotten into you?"
My mind was still reeling. Everything had gone from normal to bizarre. Hell, we left Saneville and went straight to Mystifying Villa. My instincts begged me to go to the bodies. My brain, however, was screaming a resounding, "Hell no!"
Darren took me by the elbow when he realized I wasn't going to move, forced me into the bright room, then released me. The elevator doors shut behind us, and I jumped at the noise. Staring through the lab's windows, I prayed what had happened upstairs was just my wild imagination and lack of sleep. Something deep inside me continued to repeat the dark creature's words, however. Don't wake them . . . the angels.
From everything I'd learned about angels from The Bible—which was inconsequential at best—weren't angels supposed to be celestial beings?
No matter how prophetic the dark creature's suggestion—or demand—had been, being near the "angels" made all my worries about the fire-blazing creature subside, and I felt safe from it. I imagined angels battling against the dark creature two-thousand years ago, and I wondered what had happened or what they might have been fighting over.
Our reflections expanded as we approached the glass.
"Are these the bodies from Italy? Hello?"
My mind must have been in another dimension; I hadn't noticed Darren was speaking.
"Are you with me?"
Not really. I was somewhere far from here, more like 100 B.C., the time period the angel bodies were supposed to be from. He shot me a questioning smile, but my brain was still on another wavelength.
Even through the shadows, the angels' flushed skin was evident. This made me even more uneasy about unsealing the doors. My body still gravitated toward them. The pull was stronger than ever—a stupid, excessive longing.
"Gabriella, are you okay?" Darren asked.
Surely my face was showing just how nervous this whole situation had made me. There was no hiding my feelings, at least not now.
I turned to him, nodding. "Yes. There's something—" I didn't know how to explain everything. Usually a visual demonstration would be the preferred way to clarify a case, but this time I didn't think we should enter the lab—even though everything in my body screamed for me to slide my keycard for access.
Darren eyed me eagerly, waiting. An urgent message from me was the equivalent of a radio signal from an alien planet, telling him the Earth's people had three days to vacate or be destroyed.
He finally gave up on any response when I moved toward the door. I didn't enter. Instead, I flipped on the light switch next to the entrance. I decided the best avenue of attack would be to show him what lay behind our reflections. The lights bore down, spotlighted the angels. Darren reached out with his plastic keycard.
"Don't!" All the air vanished from my lungs as I launched myself, diving forward to stop him. My old baseball coach would've been proud of that save.
He retracted his hand, eyes wide and startled as my back slammed against the door, my body between Darren and the angels—protecting them.
VOUS LISEZ
Shadow of the Sun (Timeless #1)
FantasyCOMPLETE. Gabriella's past is a mystery, but that never stopped her from achieving her goals. As a Supernatural Specialist, and far more intelligent than anyone her age, she was always ignored by her peers. Because of her isolation, she put her life...
