Celestial (Angels of Elysium, #2)

by Olivia Wildenstein

“You’re aware that some new souls don’t always . . . make it?” “You mean, stillborns? You . . . you resuscitated a stillborn?” “Two.” “By giving them souls?” “Yes.” “You can do that?” “Archangels can perform some miracles.” “Why didn’t you resuscitate Leigh and Jarod, then?” His lids slid closed. “Their hearts had stopped beating for far too long by the time I reached them.” I didn’t think death distressed archangels, but I also didn’t deem seraphim capable of playing hide-and-seek. Goosebumps suddenly pimpled my skin. Goosebumps that had nothing to do with the ambient temperature. Leigh had died four and a half years ago, and Naya was . . . “Naya . . .” I half-gasped, half-whispered. His lids rose, and his eyes, which didn’t resemble Naya’s, searched mine. “She’s—” Heat streaked across my face, through my chest. “That’s why—” My throat tightened, and the pinpricks of stars bled together until Asher was haloed in light. “That’s why she knew my name.” A slow beat passed. “I was afraid of that.” “Afraid that she’d know my name?” “That her soul would recognize yours.” My heart stumbled midbeat. “Didn’t you cleanse it before placing it inside her new body?” “I did, but your souls had a deep connection, and that isn’t something that can be removed. At least not without causing irreparable damage.” He said this so matter-of-factly that my gape turned into a wide-mouth stare. “You two were soulmates.” “What? I thought—Jarod . . .” “He wasn’t her soulmate.” “But—” “Mate means frie...