Free Forgotten Self (Forgotten Self #1) by Rachel Carr

person. It was a demon.
    A harsh whisper came from un der the black hood. “You are Abigail, yes?”
    I looked down my nose at this dark being and demanded, “Who are you to summon me, demon? If you know who I am, then you know I can send you back to hell with a snap of my fingers.”
    The figure pulled back its hood . “My name is Gaash. I bring you a message.” Her face was that of an exquisitely beautiful human – like any angel or demon's – but her demon affiliation was made clear by the number “666” branded on the side of her neck. I frowned in distaste - that ugly, evil mark was only visible to otherworldly beings.
    I snapped,“From whom?” This was a waste of my time. Even being near a creature of hell made my entire body burn with its unnaturalness.
    She smiled. “Aram.” That was surprising. Aram was a higher-level de mon. Those types never communicated with us unless in battle. “He asked me to pass this along to you.” She handed me a folded piece of paper and disappeared.
    Loud voices began to wail as the searching men found the family. I didn't take much notice. Instea d, I gingerly unfolded the message. Whatever this was, it wasn't good. After I read the words written within, I closed my eyes. This piece of paper, sent to me by a powerful demon, had just confirmed my fears.
    This had been a time of great awe for the peo ple of this land. Jesus Christ was in full missionary mode, performing miracles, speaking of the values of forgiveness and charity. It was a light in a darker time in the history of mankind. But we angels had not felt any of the hope that Jesus had bestowe d on his listeners. Turmoil followed us closely. Demons were winning the war. Guardians were being killed; Death's angels were being delayed. All of this led to a massively scarred population, and worse, lost souls.
    It was a horrifying ordeal for us as ang els because of the despair of those lost souls. It resonated through us. And for those angels who truly loved mankind – which were many – it gave us reason to weep. I had become one of the bitter ones, forever asking why. Why had God allowed Lucifer's defe ction? That, of course, had been the beginning of good versus evil. So people suffered before us, crushing our light, until some angels simply faded away.
    And now, in my hand, I held a piece of paper that explained the angels' inability to effectively figh t back these last few centuries. We had been betrayed.
     
     
     

 
    9
     
    The room in front of me swirls for a moment. “For the love of mahogany and pearl,” I spit at Jonathan. “Can we get rid of this side-effect?”
    “ Sorry. When you reside i n a human body, that's just sort of the deal.”
    I glance down at our hands, still holding one another. “Were we together before I was here?”
    He quickly lets go and scoots an inch back. “No way. Just an eighth grade thing. No eternal romance or anything.” H e looks anywhere but me.
    “ Ah-huh. Okay. Actually that brings up something I've been wondering about. If you were here to keep me safe, and we were 'business partners' before this human life, and there is no 'eternal romance', as you say, then why did you date me at all?”
    Jonathan grins guiltily. “I may have been here to protect you, but I get just as involved in human life as an actual human. Just because I'm an angel doesn't mean I'm not going to have some fun.”
    “ Your past does certainly allude to that,” I inform him in a dry, dry tone. “You know, in tenth grade some girls started calling you 'Just-Dumped-Her-Jonathan.'” I nod matter of factly and his eyes seem to smile all on their own.
    “ Hey.” He holds his hands up in mock defense. “I was always very swee t about it. I just wanted to experience all that I could...you know.” He grins again.
    We share a humorous moment, but my smile quickly fades as my brain switches back to the very serious topic at hand.  His smile follows suit.
    “ So that...vision you just sh owed