“If you do this, I can take no action to protect you,” he said. “And this creature will be free to inflict upon you such pain as even you could not imagine.” A sudden, sunny smile lit Michael’s face. “My friend…” Uriel blinked, and rocked slightly, as if the words had struck him with physical force. “…thank you,” Michael continued. “But I’m not the Carpenter who set the standard.”
