The Belial Origins Read Online Free

Fallen were after one of the boys, but they weren’t sure which one. It had turned out to be Max.
    Max ran across the field behind Danny, his little legs struggling to keep up. The Fallen had succeeded in kidnapping Max. Laney and the others had gotten him back, but he was a little more serious now—not the innocent free spirit he once was.
    And Laney still wasn’t sure why they had grabbed him. The rest of the children who had been grabbed were potential nephilim or Fallen—every last one of them. But not Max. Laney rubbed the ring on her finger. She could feel when a child would evolve into a nephilim or Fallen. And there was no sign of that with Max.
    But Max did have an ability that made him stand out from the other kids: he could speak with the dead. Laney shook her head, still having difficulty believing that. Which was saying something, with all the supernatural events swirling around these days.
    Laney’s phone rang. She glanced down at the screen before answering it. “Hey, Henry.”
    Henry’s voice was tense. “Mom called.”
    Laney went still. “And?”
    “She wants to see us.”
    “When?”
    “First thing in the morning.”
     

CHAPTER 5
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Rockland, Maine
     
    A s Victoria sat next to Ralph in the Mercedes, she tried to think about the conversation ahead with Laney, Henry, and Jake. But her conversation with her niece kept intruding. Her sister Vicki had lived a happy life. And Emma—she was so much like her. Laney and Henry would love her.
    But Victoria shooed the thought away with a sigh. She could never introduce them to each other. Laney and Henry had been pulled into this life—there had been no way to avoid that. But she couldn’t expose Emma to it as well.
    Up ahead, the gates to her property came into view. The tall wrought iron gates opened, then closed behind them as they passed through.
    “I still think we should go to one of the safe houses and meet them there,” Ralph said.
    Victoria nodded, knowing that that was the smart call. But she needed the familiar around her right now. She felt raw from Vicki’s death. And although the conversation with Emma had helped heal some of her hurt, it had also opened a door to a whole new level of hurt. Vicki had had a life full of love. And Victoria couldn’t help but wish that she had been able to be a part of it.
    Victoria didn’t give in to self-pity very often. It wasn’t practical—not in her life. Duty always came first. But she had decided that today she was going to let herself have her moment. And then she’d shove her feelings aside and do what she needed to do.
    She reached over and took Ralph’s hand. “I know. But I want to be home.”
    She looked up. The physical structure ahead of them dated to 1834. It was a large two-story white colonial with black shutters; fall flowers bloomed along the front. A tree swing lay still under a towering willow twenty feet from the house.
    She had bought this property over two hundred years ago, but she had lived here on this land for even longer. Throughout all the change and turmoil in her life, this place had been her one constant.
    And right now she needed that constant.
    Ralph pulled to a stop and looked at her.
    She could see the uncertainty on his face. She squeezed his hand. “We’ll leave right after we speak with them. The world will keep for one more night.”
     
     

CHAPTER 6
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    T he sun was barely up when Laney, Henry, and Jake began the trip to Maine. Like always, they flew to a field where a car was waiting for them. They clambered inside and settled in for the hour-long journey to Rockland.
    Laney stared out the window at the now-familiar scenery. Neither Jake nor Henry spoke. Laney didn’t want to talk either.
    You need to know what you’re up against. And every weapon and enemy you’re up against—especially me.
    Victoria’s words drifted through Laney’s mind yet again as she watched the scenery fly by. Those