Confronting the Fallen (30 page)

Natalie leaned over and whispered,
“They'll be on us as soon as we leave the Nest anyway. They're
always watching.”

Chris was startled by the statement.
“Doesn't the judge know that?” he asked under his breath.

“Of course he does. But outside
of this property, it's a free country. If Talon or others want to
watch for cars coming and going, we can't stop them.”

Chris mulled that over as the judge
continued speaking.

“We have transport booked in Tel
Aviv and some local operatives that will escort us part of the way to
our destination. They don't know where we're actually going, of
course, but then we don't really know either until we get there.”

One of the security team raised his
hand. Stevens, Chris thought his name was. At the judge's nod, the
man spoke up.

“Your honor, naturally we're
traveling unarmed. But what about once we're on the ground?”

“Not to worry, Stevens,”
the judge replied. Chris was pleased he'd remembered the right name.
“Our people on the ground will supply us with everything we
need once we're out of the city. Any sooner and, if we're stopped for
some reason by the local authorities, it would cause some questions
that we won't want to answer.”

The man seemed satisfied and nodded.

“Anyone else?” the judge
asked and looked around. No one else raised a hand and the judge
smiled. “Excellent. Please gather your gear and meet me at the
front desk no later than” he checked his watch, “eight
o'clock or so. That is all, thank you. Please enjoy your breakfast.
We all know what food is like on airplanes.”

Everyone laughed and then rose to walk
over and serve themselves from the breakfast buffet.

“Let's eat, Chris,” Natalie
said as she stood up. “The judge is right about the food on
planes. Ugh.”

Chris grinned and joined her. Now that
she was healed, Natalie proved to be a talkative and entertaining
companion. They got to know each other over breakfast and he found
himself liking her a lot. When they had finished, both headed off to
get their backpacks.

As he was leaving the dining hall,
Chris passed Tyler and Jacob. Both of them stopped to wish him a safe
trip.

“I hope you find what you're
looking for, Chris,” Tyler said earnestly. “And that you
don't run into any trouble.”

“Yeah. I hate to think of what
could happen if Janariel and me aren't there to save your butt,”
Jacob added with lop-sided grin.

“I know, Jake. I guess we'll just
have to muddle through without you. But listen, guys,” he added
in a more serious tone. “Be careful here too, all right? You're
playing decoy and you never know what those damned Talon will do.”

Both of his friends stopped smiling. “I
hear ya, Chris,” Tyler said. “We'll be fine. We've got
ten other teens with angels in their pockets as backup. Just worry
about yourself.” Jacob agreed.

“Right. Well, see you in a week
or so. Hey, at least I'll get a tan out of all this.”

They all laughed and Chris left to get
his things.

By eight o'clock, everyone was gathered
at the front desk. Chris was startled to see the judge wearing his
usual suit and tie. At his confused look, Judge Hawkes chuckled and
explained.

“I don't intend to tip off our
enemies, Christopher. I'll change to appropriate clothing once we
reach our destination. Until then, let it appear as if I'm heading
off on a business trip, as I have so many times before.”

Chris saw the logic in that and just
smiled. Very soon the entire group was piled into three cars followed
by an SUV loaded down with their backpacks and other gear. Chris took
one last look at the Hawkes Nest as the motorcade pulled away from
the house. He realized that the place had begun to feel like home and
that he was going to miss it. I wonder if I'll ever see it again, he
thought bleakly. Then he turned and stared out through the front
window of the car and tried to look forward to the coming adventure.

Tel
Aviv was amazing. Chris had been to Florida and Cuba with his parents
on holiday when he was very young, but this city was much more exotic
than a tourist destination. The weather in early June was very hot
and dry, and the people for the most part seemed friendly.

Before
their plane landed, Judge Hawkes finally changed out of his suit into
more suitable clothing. Chris kept glancing over at the man. He was
so used to seeing the judge in a suit that the sight of him wearing a
t-shirt, khaki pants and jacket and hiking boots was startling. It
took some getting used to.

Once
the group had made it through customs and retrieved their bags, they
were met by two men and a woman, all of whom greeted the judge warmly
and led them out of the airport to four waiting vans. All of the vans
had drivers, but none of them greeted the travelers. All their
belongings were loaded into one van and the team split up into the
other three. Chris found himself sitting with Natalie, Rabbi Eddleson
and one of the female security team members named Beatrice.

The
woman was quiet at first, but the rabbi soon had her laughing along
with Chris and Natalie, especially at a mildly wicked story about a
shop owner, his wife and her two sisters. Chris noticed that Natalie
had a very pleasant laugh, at odds with her rather tough appearance
and she knew a few funny stories as well. The journey to their
destination passed quickly.

They
were driven perhaps two hours out of Tel Aviv. Chris thought they had
moved in a generally eastward direction; at least the sun had been
behind them most of the way, but when they stopped and got out of the
vans, all he could see were barren hills and the gravelly road they
were on. No signs, no people, nothing to see of any significance in
any direction. The wind pinched his nostrils with its dryness and the
sun beat on their heads relentlessly. He wondered how far they would
have to travel.

Once
the backpacks had been unloaded, everyone began to sort through them
to find their own. Chris found his, opened up a side-pocket and
pulled out a rolled up baseball cap. He uncrumpled it, pushed his
hair back and put it on, pleased that he had thought to bring it.
Might help with this sun, he thought.

“
This
is as close as we can take you, Judge Hawkes,” one of the men
who had met them at the airport said. “In case we were
followed, we'll double back and lay a false trail to lead them off.
We'll return every day at noon and wait one hour, as per your
instructions.” He shook the judge's hand, got back into a van
and the four vehicles turned around and sped off. Chris watched them
disappear into the distance. It was suddenly very quiet.

“
All
right, everyone. Get your packs secure and prepare to move out.”
The judge stood next to his backpack. His glasses had darkened and he
was wearing a broad-brimmed straw hat. Chris thought he looked like a
typical hiker. However, he still had his aura of authority and
everyone quickly got themselves organized as the judge consulted some
notes he'd had tucked in a back pocket. He called one of the older
security men over and they consulted in low voices for a few minutes.
Then the judge nodded, reached down and hoisted his pack. He settled
it comfortably on his back and checked out the group.

“
Is
everyone ready? According to my notes, the site should only be a few
hours away. I'd prefer traveling in the cool of the evening, but we
need to see our footing, especially as some of us aren't experienced
hikers, so we'll have to endure the heat. If you feel thirsty, feel
free to drink from your canteens, but go easy on the water. We aren't
that far from civilization, but caution is always preferable. Just in
case.”

He
looked them over again, nodded and headed off. “This way then,”
he called as he moved off the road and into the dusty countryside.

Chris
and Natalie ended up walking side by side in the middle of the group.
She had put a broad-brimmed canvas hat on and looked like she was
ready for anything. They quickly found a sort of gully and began
following it southward. When asked, the judge pointed and told them
that they were headed for a line of low hills a few kilometers in the
distance.

“
Wonder
why we didn't just get those guys to drive us there,” Chris
said to Natalie as they walked along. She shook her head.

“
Too
risky. There's a chance that those vans were tagged for GPS tracking.
Even if they weren't, what those local guys don't know, they can't be
forced to tell.” At Chris' incredulous glance, she just
shrugged. “That's the reality of the situation, Chris. We're
fighting demons here, not regular bad guys. There really isn't
anything they wouldn't do to win this war.”

Chris
chewed on that thought for a while and they trudged along in silence
for several minutes, Finally, Natalie spoke again.

“
I
really wanted to thank you one more time, Chris, well, both you and
Sariel, for healing me.” At Chris' protest, she smiled and
shushed him. “Yeah, I know I've already said it, but the relief
I feel is beyond description. So thanks. And as a way of thanking
you, do you have any questions? You know, about me, angels, the Nest
or anything else. After my...ex-friend, I've been living there longer
than any of the other teens.”

Chris
considered the offer for a minute. There were a million questions
that had gone through his mind since he had begun to live at the Nest
and he tried to think of the ones that intrigued him the most.
Finally, he chose something that had been nagging at him.

“
Okay,
since you've offered, there are some things that I'd like to know
about.” Natalie nodded encouragingly. “Well, for one
thing,” Chris looked up ahead to see that the judge was perhaps
twenty yards in front of the group, walking steadily and glancing
down occasionally at a sheet of paper in his hand, “I'd like to
know about Judge Hawkes,” he said in a low voice.

Natalie
followed his glance and smiled. “The judge, huh? Okay, I can
tell you a bit about him.” She looked thoughtful for a moment.
“He's a born leader, as I'm sure you've noticed. He's utterly
convinced that Hell is about to be unleashed on Earth and that we,
those of us born with angelic souls, are the only hope Creation has.”
She also lowered her voice. “And he is more than he appears.”

“
What's
that supposed to mean?” Chris asked. “He is a retired
judge, isn't he?”

“
Yes,
of course he is. But look at him, pacing along under the midday sun,
strong, sure-footed, barely breaking a sweat. Does he act like a
retired judge? He's stronger and tougher than he appears. But how he
does it? No idea. Clean living, he says.” She laughed lightly
and Chris smiled, still confused.

“
One
of his ancestors created this group that we're a part of,”
Natalie continued. “The judge just calls it the organization,
but his ancestor had a more grand name for it, in anticipation of the
day that angels would return to the Earth.”

“
What
name?” Chris asked.

“
The
Angelic Dominion. Wild, eh? I think the judge finds it too...stuffy,
so he never uses it. I like it though and so do a lot of the others,
so when we talk about it, that's what we call it.” She winked
and nodded forward. “Just not around Judge Hawkes.”

“
Cool.
I actually like that,” Chris said, thinking about the name.
“The Angelic Dominion. Yeah, very cool actually.”

“
Any
other questions?” Natalie was watching her feet as she talked.
The gravel underfoot was fine and loose; they all slipped and slid as
they walked. In the heat, it was very tiring.

“
Just
one for now,” Chris said, also taking care of where he was
walking. “Why haven't the Fallen just attacked the Nest in
force? You know, attack with overwhelming numbers?”

Natalie
looked over at Chris and almost fell. He reached out and caught her
elbow before she went down. “Thanks, Chris. Stupid rocks. So,
you don't know about the wall around the house?” Chris just
shook his head. “Oh. Okay. Well, embedded in the wall, every
few yards, are relics. Ancient holy symbols and artifacts that were
put inside the wall itself as it was being built. If you thought the
reaction you had to that demon claw during the test was extreme, yes
I heard about that, it's nothing like the way the Fallen react to
these relics. They burn like fire and none of them can go anywhere
near them. The only break in the protection is the gate itself.”

Chris
thought about that. “So, why not bury some of these relics
under the ground at the gate?”

“
No
idea. Apparently, being under the ground negates their power or
something. The judge explained it once but he almost put me to sleep,
so if you want to know more, ask him. Point is, the attack would be
bottled up at that one spot, making it easier to defend against. They
would take huge losses and I don't think that they want to risk it.
At least, not so far.”

Chris
felt a sense of relief. It was good to know that his new home wasn't
totally defenseless, especially with his friends back there trying to
keep the Fallen's attention on them.

After
their brief discussion, Chris and Natalie concentrated on watching
where they walked, and they continued to trudge along after the judge
as he led the way.