Between by Mary Ting Page A

Margaret, and Agnes are at Crossroads, guarding the alkins, while the rest of the Twelve are located throughout Earth. On Earth, we call them the Divine Elders. Then, there is my kind. We are called the venators, meaning hunters. We don’t interact with humans much. We find demon spirits and eliminate them. So, I’m not the bad guy here. I don’t want to take your soul. I have no use for one. I’m here to protect you and keep you safe.”
    Claudia’s eye grew wide and alert. “So…you’re not fallen or a demon,” she sighed, obviously relieved. She seemed to have understood and taken the information better than Austin had expected. But she was more curious with demon spirits. “What are demon spirits? And you kill them? Gamma never told me of your kind.”
    There she goes with questioning all at once , he thought, laughing inside, thinking how adorable she was when she did that. “It’s complicated, but I’ll make it simple and short. There are many types of demons, but one particular type of demon called demon spirit enters through human souls, possessing their bodies. These humans become like puppets. They do bad things, so we kill them.”
    “ How many are there?” Claudia asked, in amazement that such things existed. She thought beings like those only existed in movies.
    “ You mean, you want a number?” He looked puzzled.
    Claudia wasn’t sure what she was asking. She knew he really couldn’t give her the exact number so she rephrased the question. “Are there many? Have you killed many of them?”
    “ Throughout my lifetime, yes. I can’t give you an exact number. I’ve killed many,” he boasted.
    Thinking about the demons reminded her of the moment when she had fallen, thinking he was a demon. “You have wings.”
    He didn’t say a word. “Your parents…you lied to me,” she said calmly. “You said it was just you and your mother. You said your father passed away. I felt sorry for you. You took emotional advantage of me.” She started pacing, trying to remember what Austin had told her when he took her to the hospital to see Gamma.
    “ Emotional advantage? Now that’s something new,” he let out a short laugh.
    She gave him a cold stare. “You think this is funny?” she asked angrily.
    Austin didn’t say a word. He knew she had every right to be upset with him. Then, Claudia remembered Michael telling her that his father was one of the Twelve; and only the Twelve had wings. As if Austin could read her thoughts he said, “Technically, I told you the truth. I actually have parents. My mother is an angel and my father was a human. He’s…gone…dead. I never knew him.”
    “ So, you’re half angel and half human. No wonder you’re not like the Earth angel.”
    “ Yes,” Austin shook his head and looked confused by her words.
    “ Well, that explains a lot. Your lack of sensitivity is evident in your inability to be sensitive to my needs. You could’ve just used your words. You could’ve explained, but noooo, you had to show off and be rude. You had to be arrogant and selfish and…”
    Austin didn’t let her continue with her jabbering. He couldn’t stand for her to hate him this much. Losing self control, he surprised Claudia by placing himself right in front of her in a matter of seconds. She was used to seeing alkins move in great speed, but it took her a moment to accept Austin was one of them.
    Needily, he cupped her cheeks, all the while fighting against the desire he was feeling. Their eyes met, and neither one looked away. His eyes were running wild, wanting to tell or show her how he felt. Gazing into his eyes, Claudia’s face reflected the confusion she felt when she saw how much he cared for her. Her anger seemed to subside, and she seemed to be waiting for something.
    She didn’t need to wait long. Without warning, Austin used his power and pulled her into a trance. She stood still in silence, unable to break free. Austin knew better than to do what was to come