Halo 2
by Alexandra Adornetto
It is now six months since the events of the previous book. Beth and Xavier are closer than ever and start planning out their future together. They are now in their senior year of high school and are planning on attending a Halloween party together. Bethany doesn’t see much point in celebrating the holiday considering that it is against God’s will to do so. However, she is convinced to attend and decides to dress as up as an angel.
During the party, Xavier leaves to follow a tradition amongst jocks that involves running down to the lake. Meanwhile, Beth is convinced to participate in a séance, though she has repeated stated that her friends should not be messing with anything of the sort. One girl, Abby, proceeds to pull out a Quiji board and explains the rules. They find a spirit and quickly find out that it is Taylah. Molly starts to freak out and breaks the circle, allowing whatever spirits they have summoned to be released. Upon returning to the party, one of Xavier’s friends returns from the lake saying that Xavier jumped in and hit his head on the rocks. Beth hops on the back of his motorcycle for him to take her to Xavier. However, when she sees Xavier on the side of the road, she tries to get off the bike and go to him. When she can’t get off of the bike, she realizes that the driver is actually Jake Thorn. Jake knocks over Xavier and drags Beth into hell.
Jake drags Beth around hell for a while before taking her to Ambrosia, a hotel in the third circle of hell where Jake is the ruler. She meets her maid, Hanna (joined Hitler youth to keep her family alive during the depression, but sold her soul to save a Jewish friend), and Tucker (a hillbilly who drank from a river to forget his previous life). While Jake is trying to woo Beth, she starts plotting with Tucker. He takes her to a river will allow her to astral project onto earth—her body stays behind, but her conciseness goes to earth, unseen by anyone—and she drinks from it. She is able to work her new ability right away and goes to see her family.
While she knows that her family is okay, she starts devising a plan to get back to Earth. She convinces Jake that Tuck has agreed to take her around hell so that she’s not just trapped in a hotel room. Jake’s favorite demon, Asia, is sent to accompany them. She agrees to help them find a portal to get rid of her. She sends them into the wasteland in hope that they’ll be eaten by hellhounds. They find the portal but are unable to get through before the hellhounds find them. However, the found Taylah and she sacrifices her self to save them. They return to Ambrosia in defeat.
Gabe, Ivy, and Xavier are racking their brains trying to figure out how to save Beth. Molly comes around demanding to know what happened to her friend. Eventually, the archangel, Michael, shows up exposing himself to Molly and giving them a clue. The four of them set off to Tennessee to find Sister Mary Clare in a convent. When they find her, she is possessed by a demon. After they get information about a portal to hell from this demon, they expel it from the nun and head back to the hotel.
Jake tries to parade Beth around the underworld as a trophy. However, Beth is a little too much of a people person and ends up inspiring hope in hell. This attracts the attention of Lucifer (or Big Daddy, as they call him). Lucifer tells Beth about his elaborate plans to start a war. Eventually, he decides to deal with her in a public manner: burned at the stake. Jake tries desperately to save her, but comes up with nothing. As it turns out, Beth didn’t need saving as the hellfire had no effect on her. She is tossed into a cage where she spends most of her time visiting Earth.
Jake comes to free Beth from the cage and tells her that everyone on Earth has moved on and let her go. She gets frustrated and reveals that she drank from the river. Jake realizes that she will not give up on Xavier. He sends a minion to tell Xavier that she is dead. When it is revealed by Gabe and Ivy that it is not true, Xavier goes for a drive. Beth uses the radio to communicate with Xavier and tells him to go back because Jake is coming after him. The warning is too late and Jake takes control of the car sending it off a cliff. Beth agrees to grant a wish to Jake if he lets Xavier live. Ivy and Gabriel do the rest of the saving by freezing time. The Earth group heads down to Alabama to find the portal (which will be opened by Michael).
Bethany is ready to fill her part of the deal with Jake, which involves a one night stand. He takes her to a secluded area and starts messing with her. Just as she starts to panic that no one is coming for her, Xavier, Gabe, and Ivy bust into hell in the Chevy with Michael’s sword. Eventually, Gabe kills Jake.
Prologue:
Beth and Xavier are about to graduate. Xavier comes up to her and says that he wants to skip the ceremony. She agrees to hear him out in “their spot” under an oak tree. He proposes to her and she agrees. They go to Sweethearts to celebrate and just as Xavier is about to give Beth his grandmother’s ring, the world starts to shake. He drops the ring.