Hush Yael

I am lost in thought. I constantly stare at the clouds and think about what will happen to everyone today. To my sister. To me.

My reflection stares back at me from the mirror. I have not aged a day past twenty. Even though I died at two, and have been dead for thirty-three years, God has blessed me with a nearly perfect face.

However, my imperfect mind is still very much alive.

Everyone else and I, we see visions of multiple people in these clouds every day. It is our judgment that determines whether they end up in Heaven or Hell. But with all my watching, I can only lay eyes on him. The man that killed my family. I do not know his name directly, but I know it is him.
My gaze never leaves his body, the cloud showing his life like a movie playing out in front of me. When I see him in prison, walking with his head hung low, with his feet seeming to shuffle slowly across the floor, I glare. He eats, bathes, works, and sleeps like any other prisoner, but he is not like them.

He is in prison, yes, but he is still alive. I cannot let him live. He’s already destined for Hell in my eyes. I might as well welcome him early.

---

That night, I cannot sleep. Einat’s soft, steady breathing reaches my ears in the bed beside mine. I try to force my eyes closed, but all I can do is blink and stare at the ceiling. All I can think about is my plan for revenge.

Revenge… it seems like such an evil word for an angel to use. Not a word to be used by someone in Heaven. So why does it cross my mind so often?

“Oh, believe me, there’s a reason for that, Yael Haran.”

Immediately, my body jolts up and my heart leaps into my throat when I hear that dark, unknown voice. Who is it? Where is it coming from? And how does it know my name?

“Why don’t you look up and find out?”

Slowly, ever so slowly, my eyes go up to the ceiling, and there, hanging upside down from the chandelier, is the most frightening creature I’ve ever seen. A large, red demon with ram horns, sharp black claws, bat wings, and a gaze that burns with the rage of a thousand hellfires is staring me dead in the eye.

I am frozen in fear. My mouth opens to scream, but the demon flies down and presses a bony finger to my lips to silence me. Like his appearance, his skin is hard, but surprisingly cold.

“Calm down. I’m not going to hurt you.” he speaks to me again, but his mouth doesn’t move. He is talking to me through my mind. “And don’t worry- just so you’re aware, you’re the only one who can see me.”

I look back to Einat, who is still sleeping peacefully. She doesn’t hear or see anything.

“Now then,” he starts, taking his finger away once he is sure I will remain quiet, “I know you’re curious to know as to why I’ve shown up here.” Hesitantly, I give him an affirmative nod. “Well, I’ve been watching you, Yael. And I hear your thoughts every day. Always centered around one thing.”

He holds out his hand, and his fingers burst into flames, forming a fireball, which slowly contorts to form an image in the center. “Tell me something… does he look familiar to you?”

The demon is showing me an image of the man who murdered my family.

I do not need to nod; my facial expression and wide eyes show him everything he needs to know. “I had a feeling you would recognize him.”

The fireball extinguishes itself in his hand, and for a moment, I just stare at what was once there. The silence lingers. I finally say my first words to him.

“So why are you really here?”

His expression contorts to that of a savage grin. “It’s simple. I’m here to help you get revenge.”

Wait a minute… did he just say what I thought he said? Help me get revenge, he said? How?

“I’ll show you,” he answers my unvoiced question with the closing of his clawed hand, then moving it to a few inches above my desk before unclenching his fingers. I see a faint, dark object fall from his hand onto the polished wood, illuminated by the dim moonlight.

“That should help out, somewhat.” He moves to the window, flying out before telling me, “Do not disappoint me, Yael Haran. And more importantly, do not disappoint yourself.”

I move to the desk after what feels like a spell has been lifted off of me, and what I saw there should have made me scream. But I did nothing. All that happened was my eyebrows rose and my eyes widened before I turned abruptly on my heel and crawled back into my bed.

There was a gun on my desk.