Chapter 9, Part 3: Hawaii

                                    

                                          
Hawaii, present day

As the darkness dissipated and detail after detail the world came into focus, Michael released Diletta, and she collapsed to the ground. The feeling of nausea still lingered, but it wasn't as overwhelming as before. She quickly removed the mask from her face, but managed to keep the small amount of food swirling inside her stomach in place.
After her racing heart resumed its normal beating tempo, she sat upright and glanced around; they were on a beach, surrounded by a tropical forest that gave way to white sand, black volcanic rocks, and stunning turquoise waters stretching out to meet the horizon. A majestic mountain, covered with lush greenery, towered above them.
"Where are we?"
"Hawaii."
The deep, velvet voice that answered her question reminded Diletta of who she was with and what had just happened. And despite the sparkling crystal sea that melted into the arms of the baby powder sand, despite the giant cliffs all around them that begged to touch the skies, despite the bright light of the summer sun that bathed everything in golden hues, what caught her breath wasn't the scenery.
It was the thought that she had done it. She had actually succeeded in freeing the archangel and lived to tell the story.
Wow.
Have some faith... Maybe all those people who said so, were right all along. Maybe they were aware of something evading her.
Diletta turned to look at the angel, to convince herself that this wasn't a dream, a fantasy playing inside her head like so many times in the past, while she lay immobilized in her apartment's bedroom. One look to convince herself that she hadn't developed schizophrenia in her mind's desperate attempt to survive a cruel and unjust world.
Nope, he was there. In the flesh. Standing proud and imperialistic, glistening under the sun's rays, gazing at her with those eyes of flaming amber.
Everything about him - skin, hair, eyes - glittered with a golden tint, except for those fiery crimson wings. It took all her willpower to remain calm, being so close to him. Perhaps what kept her sane and functional was the fact that she still didn't one hundred percent believe that this was actually happening.
Rising with difficulty from the ground, Diletta locked eyes with him.
"Why are we here?"
Michael broke eye contact and took a few steps towards the sea until his feet touched the water. Back and forth the gentle waves rolled as he stood there, staring at them.
"I haven't recovered yet. I used every reserve of grace I had to get us here. This is a good place to rest and make plans because there is no one on the island but us."
So, she was alone on a deserted tropical island with him. Be careful what you wish for, they say, and they are right to say it.
"Are you going to kill me?"
She had to ask. Michael devastated New York. Michael snapped his fingers and erased entire armies. Michael commanded the demons that hunted humans down like prey. Why would he behave any differently now, with her? She had to ask.
But when he marched towards her, all glaring and fuming, she wished she hadn't.
Standing a breath's distance away, Michael looked down at her from his seven-hundred-foot or something height.
"What kind of monster would murder the person who had just freed them from their prison?" A sarcastic smile appeared on his handsome face. "Oh, yes, the monster you humans paint me out to be."