Cast Down (The Immortal Balances- Book 2)

Chapter One: Deafening Cries

 "My name is Rachel," Rachel told Helios pulling her hand away from him. Her face had suddenly switched from utterly tranced to concerned. She immediately switched her gaze to me, and I knew my Rachel was back. I let out a sigh I hadn't realised I was holding.

Helios didn't at all look phased. "Well yes dear, it is Rachel, here." He pushed past us all to walk further into the hallway, much to Jules' protest, and walked into our front room. It was a small room, a compromise made for the swimming pool. Rachel and I rarely spent time in there, so when it came to decorating it, we were very simple: A red sofa with a black feature wall, and white furniture dotted around where needed. Helios, in all his heavenly white, didn't fit in well at all.

Not that I wanted him to.

"But your Heavenly name is Rachelle. Your mother and I agreed on it before your birth."

At the mention of her mom, Rachel stiffened and Marcel's face flashed darker, more worried for the well being of his best friend. Jules, who knew the least about Rachel and her parental issues, didn't react at all.

Helios ignored our expressions, and carried on.

"I only came here as a way to learn how our abilities were affecting the Livings, to learn and understand the powers of which we were charged with. When I was researching, I met your mother.

She didn't like me at all first. In fact, she hated me and would often tell me so. But I loved her and I was determined to make her mine.

All caution of an immortal/mortal relationship went out of mind, and I'd ended up planning a future with her, one that involved the three of us living happily ever after. I forgot my family, my children and wife. I just wanted you and your mother- that was all that mattered to me. But the night you were born, everything changed.

My father, your grandfather, took me back before I could bring you or your mother with me. One minute I was on my way to fetch nappies and milk, the next I was back in Heaven with an entire realm to rule over."

Helios looked saddened as he seemed to relive the memories through his words, each time he spoke sounding more and more apologetic and guilt-ridden. As I had mentioned, Helios and Dad were very similar, despite not wanting to really admit it. And from having shared a similar experience, it only proved to us just how similar.

"I was never allowed to return, to ever visit you and your mother, and I knew then that it was because you'd inherited my immortality and were now what we call a nephilim. There aren't many that we know of in all the realms, and their existence is hardly a bother, but because you are born part Royal, you are the counterpart that balances out Jonathan."

It was all just so overwhelming for Rachel, her eyes spaced out as she tried to take all what she was being told in. We'd all sat down now, except for Jules who stayed close to the room door in case she needed to act quickly, should Helios do anything to harm us. Rachel was beside me, her arm linked with mine and her nails digging into my shoulder as she tried not to lose it.

Had I still been my demon self, this would have hardly affected me, but since I was human...

"Honey," I whispered quietly into her ear. Rachel's reaction was greatly delayed, her eyes moving ever so slowly from the spot she'd been starring at to meet my uneasy glance. It was as if she was completely frozen in her place, stuck in her dazed world of confusion. "I think you're drawing blood."

It was enough to snap her from her trance, her eyes quickly looking down to my bare skin where surly enough, there was deep red marks and just a speck of blood. She looked horrified.

"Sorry Caleb," she mumbled, tears in her eyes. I couldn't begin to imagine how hard this was for her, to have her dad sitting merely a metre away, who happens to be my unrelated uncle, and to be told you're part angel and also immortal, I mean how hard would that be-

Wait.

Immortal.

What!

"Didyousayshewasimmortal?" I splurged all into a jumble of words, my breath having not have caught up with my speech. Marcel, Jules, Rachel and even Helios were staring at me with the look of complete bafflement, so I slowed down and repeated myself as slow as I could.

When I had, Helios' grin widened.

"Ironic, isn't it," he said to me, a flicker of arrogance in his bright blue eyes. It was clear where Rachel had gotten the colour, but I'd never seen such egotism in them before. I was weary of my uncle. "That you gave up your immortality to spend your life with a mortal girl, only to find out she isn't immortal at all. Oh how the tables have turned."

He continued to wear this smug grin, glaring at me with the upmost amount of pride, until Jules who was standing rigidly by the door frame had decided she'd had enough.

"Look here you church singer!" she shouted, Cookie getting scared at her tone and running from the room yelping. I wanted to make sure the little guy was ok, but with Jules so worked up, I had to see what was going to happen.

"How about you reveal that big old secret you're hiding behind your angelic 'Look at me I'm the good guy' act and tell us why you're really here. And don't even spurt all that shit about it being because you haven't seen your long lost daughter in eighteen years-"

"Seventeen," he interrupted, but Jules only carried on.

"And how you miss her mother desperately-"

"Who is now dead," he added, making Rachel and Marcel both gasp in horror and even me feel a pang in my chest, yet Jules who hadn't realised what our uncle had said continued on.

"And how she's the balance to Jonathan cause that little shit is locked away for good and if you think that Rachel here needs to be involved in any of this fucked up Angel VS Demon shit you can fuck right off back to your clouds and piss of back to playing that stupid harp!"

No one said anything for a few moments, the sound that filled the room being Jules panting from her long speech. But when the silence did break, it was from Rachel, whose deafening cries shook us all.

"My mother's dead!" Rachel shrieked, her whole body convulsing in what appeared to be shock and utter denial. She sat there holding on to me whilst she shook and repeated how it wasn't true, that she wasn't dead, and all I could do to even attempt at making her feel better was put an arm around her and wish over and over how I had the power just to make everything better again.

So guys, that's the first part of Cast Down, the Sequel to Hell Bound! HOW DID WE FIND IT! D: Leave your comments below, would love to see your predictions for the rest of the novel, and series x