39. Chapter Thirty-Nine

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Lexia

"Sorry, sorry! I am so very sorry!"

I look behind us, shifting off Slate's shoulder. I think I may have fallen asleep because I feel groggy. After waiting for some time, we sat and rested.

There is a man running toward us, one who looks similar to the one at the golden gates. Do all angels have blond hair? It's strange, if I'm being honest, but supports me saying Lumen kind of fits in.

The man stops in front of us, placing his hands on his knees and bending forward to catch his breath. He's panting like crazy.

"Are you going to make it, pal?" Slate asks.

I swat him.

He gives me a what did I do? expression.

As if he doesn't know…

"Are you Hofniel?" Lumen asks, getting to his feet.

The man nods vigorously, holding his hand out as if to tell us he'll speak in a minute. It takes a few for him to catch his breath enough where he stands. His cheeks are rosy, and he blows out a harsh breath, then looks at us and smiles. He holds out his hand.

"Hofniel."

All three of us stare at his hand, which is too far away to shake, but he keeps smiling at us as if he's still waiting. So I crawl forward and take his hand. It's awkward, but it satisfies him. Once he lets go, I stand and brush my pants off, though I doubt there is anything on them. Ves and Slate get up and stand behind me.

"I apologize again for my tardiness. I had a class that I was running and hadn't realized the time. I get so caught up in giving speeches."

"Classes in Heaven?" Slate asks.

"Oh yes. We have them all the time. They're my favorite thing to do." Hofniel grins.

"What are they about?" I can tell in Slate's tone that he's mocking this poor guy, so I swat his chest again. This time, he only grins wider.

"Many things. The histories of our worlds. How to be a proper angel. Archangel specifics. How to play the harp—"

"Oh, so you really do that up here?" Slate asks excitedly.

"It's a beautiful instrument," Hofniel says proudly.

"It is," I cut in. "And I appreciate your fondness for teaching, but we were told you could take us to Persephone?"

"Right. Of course." He folds his hands in front of his waist. "I will gladly bring you to her. I haven't told her that she is leaving yet. I'm not sure how she'll take it. She's been here for quite some time and seems to have grown fond of us."

"I'm sure she'll be happy to return to Hades," I comment.

Hofniel raises his chin to that, and I make a mental note not to bring up Hades again. I can imagine he wouldn't be well-liked up here, which is probably why Persephone was hidden here in the first place.

"Follow me," Hofniel says, and I don't miss the sudden snootiness in his tone.

How dare people who like Hades be here? Who did he expect to show up?

"Good job. You pissed him off," Slate whispers to me.

"Better to be pissed off than pissed on," Lumen whispers next, chuckling.

I bite my cheek to stop laughing.

"Nothing about piss is good," Vesperon says loud enough that Hofniel whips his head in our direction to scowl at us.

"I'll excuse the foul language, Shadow. This time. "

I have to try even harder to stop from laughing. Vesperon is scowling at Lumen and Slate. I take Vesperon's hand and stay with him as we walk. Slate and Lumen are likely to get him into more trouble with this angel, and the last thing we want to do is upset the person bringing us to Persephone.

"It's only a little bit further," Hofniel says after we've walked some distance.

"How do you know that? Everything looks the same," I say.

He huffs. "Not to me, it doesn't."

I raise a brow, looking around. Can this guy really tell the difference between these clouds? Or is he messing with me? I'm not sure, and I'm also not sure it matters. So I say nothing in return, and just keep walking.

"Her house is just ahead." He points ahead, but I see nothing there.

Not until we are so close that the house is right in front of my face. And I realize the reason I didn't see it is because it, too, is made from clouds and it blends in with everything else around us.

But the strangest thing of all is how this man walks up to this cloud house and knocks on it. I can't tell which is crazier: the fact it makes a sound as if it's made of wood, or the fact he knows where the door is when the whole thing looks like a giant cotton ball.

A few seconds after he knocks, the cloud door moves inward, and we're greeted by a smiling woman. I didn't ask Hades what Persephone looked like. I probably should have, but how many people does Heaven have locked away?

Actually, I don't want to know that.

"Persephone?" I ask, taking a step forward.

I am grateful when I see her hair is red and not blonde. That she is on the curvier side, and not thin like the angels I've seen.

She has a flower crown atop her head, made of tiny pink and red flowers. I'm not sure where she got them, but it's beautiful.

Her clothes remind me of something a gypsy would wear; they're silk and look so soft. I'm a little jealous.

"It's about time someone showed up," she says, gesturing for us to come inside. I step in first, and when I look behind me, Ves is ducking his head to get in. The ceiling in here is tall enough for him to stand straight up. I'm thrilled when I see the inside of her house looks like a real house and isn't more clouds. That would drive me bonkers. Imagine living in nothing but clouds? Cloud floor, cloud door, cloud bed, cloud chair… sounds like a bad rendition of a Dr. Seuss book.

She has actual furniture, flooring, and wallpaper in here. Everything is decorated in dark browns and light pinks with some green here and there. It isn't big. Just enough for one person. Like a studio apartment would be back home. Her bed and dresser are to the right, while to the left is a small kitchen and table. Straight ahead is a sitting area, and that's where she leads us. There isn't enough room for us all to sit, so my guys stand to the side, while I sit on the couch with Hofniel, and she takes the armchair across from us.

"Please tell me you're here to take me back," she says, getting right to the point.

"We are," I say.

She blows out a breath, throwing her arms up and grinning. "Thank the gods. I am so tired of this place."

I raise a brow, glancing at Hofniel.

"I thought you liked it here?" he says, pouting.

"I had to say that!" she throws her arms up again. "I'm a prisoner, you nit-wit."

Hofniel frowns, shifting in his seat, and I turn my attention back to Persephone.

"We can leave as soon as you'd like," I say.

She gets to her feet. "Good. Let's go now."

"Oh, uhm… okay." I get to my feet too. "Will you be bringing us back?" I ask Hofniel.

"Transportation has been set up for you. It's a few homes down." He flicks his wrist toward the door, pinching his brow as if he's already fed up with all of us.

"Great, I'll lead the way!" Persephone says, moving quickly toward the door. She opens it and steps outside. "Come on!"

"You don't have anything to take with you?" I ask, hurrying after her.

"No way. I just want to get the heck out of here."

I look at my guys, who seem as puzzled as me. I shrug and follow after her.

She hurries through a row of cloud houses. I'm jogging to keep up. She stops by a group of branches sticking up from the clouds.

"Don't tell me we have to climb back down," I groan.

"Climb?" Persephone says. "Who's climbing?"

And then she makes a leap for it, her body disappearing down through the clouds.