CHAPTER 13

They squeezed into Julia's tiny vehicle, with her at the wheel and Kael riding shotgun. James sat in the back seat eager to get moving.

Julia glanced questioningly at Kael. "So where exactly are we heading?"

Kael frowned and glared over his shoulder at James before replying, "We're going to pay a visit to the wife of an old friend who passed away recently. Hopefully, she'll have some answers for us. You can drive, I'll guide you in the right direction."

Kael then turned around to question James. "So, you're sure they spoke about Prophet Joshua?"

"Yes, that's why we need to get his place right now. I overheard them saying that according to one of Joshua's prophecies, it was you, Kael, you were destined to become the next Great Prophet."

"What? That's absurd! Besides, even if that were true, you know that's totally impossible for me now."

James shook his head. "Yes, but don't you see? You weren't supposed to die in that car accident ten years ago. I guess your prophetic gift was going to become so powerful that you posed a major threat to Satan, so he had to get rid of you."

"You died?" Julia slammed on the brakes. To avoid an accident, she pulled the car to the side of the road with as much self-control as a shaking beaver, and then turned off the ignition. "Spill!" She was super curious with a touch of fury – a lethal mix.

When they merely anointed her with guilty looks, she wanted to throttle them. "Speak up!" Her voice was high pitched.

"Please, Julia. Just drive. We have to get to the late Prophet's house as soon as possible," Kael insisted.

She noticed Kael's expression; it was one of apprehension. She would, yet again, need to set aside her curiosity, even though her questions were driving her insane. Gifts, healing powers, seeing future and past events, dying, and coming back to life. This was all crazy. But for some reason, she trusted Kael, something which she could no longer deny to herself. This trust defied all logical reasoning. Everything about him brought comfort to every part of her being, even to the depths of her very soul. And it wasn't his gorgeous Greek semi-god physique or his handsome alluring face that did the trick, no, it was something that ran much, much deeper. Right there and then she desired his embrace – his tanned muscled arms around her and his sweet whisper of tender words, just like he had the night before…

"Julia!" Kael almost shouted.

"Oh sorry." What was wrong with her, she scolded herself. She hastily pushed aside her lustful trail of thoughts and turned on the ignition before manoeuvring her vehicle back onto the road.

James continued anxiously, his fears and thoughts running amuck in his mind. "They must have found out about the prophecy that you were going to be the next Prophet and therefore prevented that from happening, hence your car accident."

"Well, they succeeded," Kael blurted angrily and again quickly forgetting Julia's presence, added, "Logan died in that accident too." This thought angered him further. "But that doesn't explain why they're after me now. I have another calling, one which makes it impossible for me to be the next Prophet of earth."

"Strangely, you were gifted with the gift of healing when you died, and that should have replaced your prophetic gift by now, yet it hasn't. That's highly unusual, don't you agree?" James said.

"Yes, but my visions are not as strong as they used to be, I think the gift is fading."

"So, then the real question is why does Satan still perceive you as a threat?" James tapped his chin trying to figure it out.

"I'll be darned if I know. Let's just hope that Sally has the answers," Kael muttered sullenly. He couldn't believe this. How stupid could he be, falling right into Satan's trap like this! Coming down to earth in search of the truth was exactly what Satan had planned all along. And all this time he thought it was about Logan, only to find out, it was about him.

"Here's hoping, but it's not like we have any other leads to go on," James intruded on Kael's glum thoughts.

Julia glanced at Kael again. She was close to exploding with the need for answers. "Guys, I can't take this anymore. Really. You've got to tell me what's going on. And don't even try denying it. Dying, healing powers, gifts of prophecies, and who knows what else. Speak up, the cats out the bag."

Kael threw a pleading look at James, who simply shrugged his shoulders. He was all for Julia knowing the truth. But it wasn't his call, it was Kael's.

Kael glanced at Julia again. No, they could not divulge the Kingdom's secrets, no matter how much they wanted to. This information, if in the wrong hands, could cause chaos and destruction, not to mention the harm to Julia's sanity. So instead, he kept his lips firmly sealed, and turned to look at the road ahead as they drove, remaining silent for a while. Anger directed at himself brewed under his skin. They should have been more careful with their words. They had already said far too much, but it wasn't as though they had been left with much of a choice, he argued with himself, trying to find justification.

Julia huffed. Fine, if that's the way they want to play it, I will get the answers I'm seeking and get to the bottom of this without their help. She felt her anger warm her skin. Her anger made her want to throttle Kael at that very moment. She almost laughed at that thought. One moment she wanted to kiss him and the next she wanted to strangle him. Her emotions were highly unstable and her desire for him becoming almost insatiable. What was she going to do with herself?

"Okay, turn in here." Kael pointed to the road on their right.

Julia had been so entangled in her thoughts and emotions that when he spoke, she almost jumped out of her skin with fright. Managing to calm herself down, she followed his instructions carefully.

They drove on for a few more minutes before Kael recognized the house. He remembered coming here once before when first becoming the Overseer of Heaven. He had come to introduce himself to Joshua. What a good old man, with the gentlest of temperaments. Such a tragic loss, he thought sadly. "Okay, stop here," he instructed Julia.

Julia glanced at the charming house with its soft yellow painted walls and stylish white gables. It had a picturesque garden leading to the front door. She drove into the paved driveway before stopping the car.

They clambered out of the tiny confines of her minuscule ride, which seemed even more so with Kael in it, before storming the front door.

Kael knocked, and they waited. He hadn't realized just how anxious he was; his nerves were wound so tightly together he feared they might snap. What answers would they find? Would Sally be able to assist them? Would the answers lead to more questions? Would…

Suddenly they heard a screeching meow.

"Sorry snowball. Move out of the way so I can get to the door, please. That's a good kitty."

An Elderly woman with a friendly smile but sad eyes opened the door, and a fat white cat stood beside her rubbing itself against her leg.

"Hello, can I help you?" She glanced from one to the other.

"Hello, Ma'am, I'm Kael," he introduced himself, wishing he had met her before this, but she had been out of town at the time when he had visited Joshua. "This is James and Julia. We are sorry to intrude like this, especially during your time of mourning, but we really need to have a word with you. It's regarding your late husband's prophecies about – me."

There were tears in her eyes when she spoke. "Kael, it's such an honour to finally meet you. Joshua spoke so highly of you. Oh, please, do come on in. I do hope I can be of some assistance."

She led the way to a floral-decorated living room with light yellow wallpaper frolicking pink and white flowers. She pointed to an almost matching floral sofa.

"Please, take a seat. I'll make us some tea."

"Thank you, that would be lovely," James smiled.

"No, that won't be necessary," Kael stopped her. "If you could be so kind as to tell us what your late husband's visions were before he died, then we can be on our way again." Kael ignored the dirty look from James.

He realized they hadn't had anything to eat or drink in a while, but this was not a social call. Far from it.

James huffed and then bent down to rub the cat affectionately. Snowball purred delightedly.

Sally nodded. "Of course. Perhaps you would like to see his study. Maybe you will find something in there?" she offered graciously.

"That would be great. Thank you, Sally." Kael felt hopeful.

"Julia, why don't you sit down with Sally in the living room and have a cup of tea while James and I take a look around," Kael suggested.

"Sure, okay," she answered, but that was not what her mind was screaming. Her mind wanted her to demand answers, not to sit down to tea. She forced a smile and followed Sally meekly into the kitchen to assist with the tea.

After an hour of browsing through notebooks and digging through drawers, they came up empty-handed.

"There has to be something here that can give us a clue as to what he was working on," Kael blurted despondently. "Something like his last prophecies."

James agreed. "Especially those with answers as to why Satan and his demons are after you and why they killed the Prophet, set Logan up, and tried to kill Julia." James too was growing despondent.

Kael sighed and they finally left the study with hefty hearts.

"How about that cuppa tea now, love?" James asked, his face offering a humble plea, but his stomach was practically demanding the tea. When last had they had something to eat? As if in answer to his question his stomach began to rumble loudly. At that instant, thoughts of the delicious fruits of heaven watered his mouth.

"Of course. Sit down and make yourself at home," Sally replied before scurrying to the kitchen.

On her return, carrying a tray with two cups of tea and a plate of scones, she asked, "Did you manage to find the answers you were seeking?"

"Unfortunately, no." Kael had remained standing, but James had sat down and now quickly devoured the scones and gulped down his tea.

Snowball had eagerly jumped onto his lap and made himself comfortable. After eating, James rubbed the cat affectionately.

Sally looked up at Kael. "Just tell me why they murdered my husband. He was such a good man. He would never harm a fly."

"I wish I knew, Sally." That was all Kael could offer. His face was a picture of sincere sympathy.

"I'll tell you why. He was a threat, love," James responded instead. "He knew too much, you know, with his prophetic gift and all."

Sally sniffed. "Just promise me you will find them and make them pay."

"No vengeful thoughts, love. Not good for the soul," James warned, but his face and eyes revealed a depth of understanding and compassion of the suffering that she was going through.

"I'm sorry, you're right," she whispered. "It's just so hard to get over his unnecessary death, or to understand it."

Kael felt guilty. He could not provide her with any answers; he himself was searching for them and not getting anywhere. Then an idea struck him. "Did Joshua perhaps keep a journal?"

"Oh, um, well not a journal exactly. But he did have a black leather book in which he wrote down all of his prophecies."

Hope ignited in Kael. "Would you mind if we take a look at it?"

Sally hesitated at first. "Well, I guess not. He always warned it was only for his eyes. But now…" She hesitated and then nodded. "I'll go and get it. He always kept it in his safe. You know, to preserve not only the pages but the balance of all life, he used to say."

Kael gave her a reassuring nod. If only he had led with that when they first arrived, it would have saved them a couple of hours. Anyway, at least they were getting somewhere now.