Rachel raised her head again. Her voice cracked as she said, “How else may I serve?”
“We will come to that. With this matter closed,” Lawrence continued, “there is another that must be resolved. Vincent, hand over your sword.”
“What?” Vincent blinked.
Lawrence turned to face him. “Hand over your sword, Vincent,” he repeated.
“I don’t understand.”
“You do,” said Hannah. “Under your dominion, this city has become a cesspool of supernatural and infernal evil. In over a century as its guardian, you have utterly failed to check the growth of all manner of darkness in Seattle and its environs. That such a situation could develop without any of the rest of us realizing it is an embarrassment to us all. The actions of these three and their mortal friends testify not only to their courage but to your ineffectiveness.”
“It is no longer appropriate that you hold dominion over this city,” Lawrence said with slightly less emotion. “Hand over your sword.”
The muscular angel glared at Lawrence and Hannah in disbelief. At length he did as he was instructed. The sword appeared again in Vincent’s hand, bright with flame and the glowing orb of its pommel. He turned the blade parallel to the floor as he held it out to Lawrence.
The dark-skinned angel did not actually take the blade from Vincent. Instead, he held one palm over the pommel until it came free and floated up into Lawrence’s hand. The blade diminished, burning neither as brightly nor as large. Lawrence stepped back.
“Rachel,” Lawrence said, “please come forward.”
With her tears under control once more, Rachel walked up the steps to stand before Lawrence at the altar. The other angel seemed to focus not on her, but rather on the glowing orb in his hand. Rachel knew that the orb would likely have to be brought to Vincent’s replacement. At this point she was fit for little more than courier duty anyway. She risked a glance at her lovers by the aisle. She saw only support and warmth. Whatever happened to her, she still had them. It would be enough, Rachel decided. It would be more than enough.
“Hold out your sword, Rachel,” Hannah instructed.
Rachel froze. Her eyes widened in disbelief. “You are fucking shitting me,” Rachel blurted out before the altar in front of the assemblage of her angelic peers.
Lawrence allowed her a small, faint smile. “No shit,” he told her. “Hold out your sword.”
She reached out her hand. Long tongues of flame floated up from it, coalescing into a burning blade that she held parallel to the floor. Lawrence held the bright orb to the blade’s pommel. When he pulled his hand away, the orb remained.
“Though a mortal typically knows nothing of his or her guardian angel, the deeds of the charge reflect as greatly upon a guardian as do the angel’s own actions,” Lawrence began for all to hear. “The work of a guardian angel is much like that of a parent. It takes more strength to let the child stand, stumble, fall and recover on his own than it takes to hold that child’s hand and guide him through every moment. We often credit the child’s independence to the parent’s wisdom.
“Rachel served as a guardian angel for only a single week. We all know what has transpired as a direct result.
“Yet perhaps most important of all of the accomplishments of Rachel and her charge is not the destruction of evil, nor even the freeing of mortal souls from Hell’s grasp, but rather the presence here and now of Lorelei. One of Hell’s demons braves the painful light of Heaven simply to offer support and comfort to one she loves.
“Again, Rachel’s decision to pursue a romantic relationship with a mortal violates much of the mandate with which we are entrusted,” Lawrence said. “There can be no doubt of that. Yet even in Heaven it is difficult to argue with success.”
“Rachel,” Hannah said in a loud and clear voice, “you are hereby entrusted with dominion over Seattle and its environs. This shall be your first and foremost duty in all things. It falls to you to battle and banish the darkness of this land. As a guardian angel protects and guides individual mortal souls, so shall you protect and guide all those under the light of Heaven throughout your dominion.”
The cathedral erupted in cheers and applause. Rachel beamed, tears streaming freely down her face as she looked at the glowing pommel of her sword and then to Alex, who rushed over to wrap his arms around her. She buried her face in his shoulder, laughing and crying all at once.
Lorelei followed slowly, catching the eye of both Hannah and Lawrence as she walked in short, stiff steps. The pair of angels descended from the altar to join her. Lawrence offered his hand. “It is good to meet you this way,” he told her. “I admire you greatly.”
“The admiration is mutual,” Lorelei smiled coolly, taking the hand offered to her. Lawrence cocked an eyebrow. Lorelei explained, “I never would have credited such ruthlessness to the Hosts.”
“Ruthlessness?” Lawrence asked innocently amid the tumult. “Whatever do you mean?”
“An angel can do only so much without upsetting the balance and renewing open warfare between Heaven and Hell,” Lorelei said. “Yet the actions of certain mortals and demons are often plausibly deniable, aren’t they?”
“Rachel’s burdens need not be shared by you or by Alex,” Hannah said.
Lorelei’s smile remained. “You say that with a straight face,” she observed.
“We all have our talents,” Hannah conceded. She offered Lorelei her hand. “Their happiness has been a long time in coming, Lorelei. As has yours. I am glad you have one another.”
Lorelei took Hannah’s hand. “Thank you,” she said politely but sincerely. Then she stepped closer to Rachel and Alex, still wrapped in a close embrace. “Alex, Rachel,” Lorelei asked them, “at the risk of spoiling the moment, I think it’s time I take my leave of this place.”
“Not without us, you don’t,” Rachel smiled, taking her hand. Alex likewise fell into step on Lorelei’s other side. None of them hesitated in heading for the exit despite the crowd around them. “We need to take you home. And then take you. Over and over.”
“We need to get a home,” Alex thought aloud.
Lorelei squeezed their hands. “I am home with you.”