Taking Angels (The Angel Crusades) (19 page)

“Britt?” Mom’s anxious voice drifted to the entry.
“Yeah, it’s me,” I answered.
I could hear hurried footsteps as Mom and Dad

rushed into the entry, wrapping me in their arms and
holding me tight. We hugged in silence, each grateful to
be reunited. Dad stepped back, took a deep breath, and I
braced myself.

“Where have you been?” Anger and worry had
aged him these past few days.
“We’ve been worried sick,” Mom added, new
lines creasing her forehead as well.
“I don’t know what happened,” I stammered.
“One minute I was in the mall with the amigos and then
the next Allister found me in Grand Marais.” Saying it
out loud, my story felt thin.
“Grand Marais?” Mom exclaimed.
We stared at each other for an uneasy moment.
“They said this could’ve been a case of amnesia
brought on by your sudden medical changes,” Dad
offered, his tone hinting that he wasn’t so sure.
“So how do you feel?” Mom asked, seemingly
more willing to circumvent her doubt in favor of a
believable explanation.
“I feel fine, just really tired,” I said as a welltimed yawn stretched my jaw, slurring my words.
“No more out of town excursions for a while,”
Dad ordered, holding my gaze until I nodded.
“Deal,” I said, relieved at the simple solution.
“Night, Britt.” Dad moved back in to take me into
a one armed hug and kiss the top of my head.
“Night,” I said as Mom hugged me again and
gave me a kiss on the cheek. I climbed the stairs, pausing
to look back at them as they turned to each other still in a
palpable state of shock.
I flipped the light on in my room, shut the door,
and flopped down on my bed rolling my eyes. I wasn’t
sure they bought that entirely. Still, they hadn’t
questioned me too heavily; they wanted easy. Who
wouldn’t after their years of fear and stress spent
worrying over my well-being.
I rolled over and it hit me. Hit me hard. Tears
streamed down my face as my loss finally hit home.
Allister, Angelina, and even Taylor, gone. There one
minute and the next, vanished.
I reached for the house phone on my night stand,
dialing quickly. “Come on, come on, pick up, pick up.” I
willed.
“Hello?” the voice I needed to hear.
“Trish,” I cried into the phone.
“Britt, oh my God, are you okay?”
“Yeah, but I need to see you. Can you…?”
“I’ll be right there,” she said.
“Elisa and Cassie?” I questioned.
“I’ll call and pick them up on the way, bye.”
My parents took little convincing to allow the
girls to run up to my room and check on me and, minutes
later, true to her word, Trish, Cassie, and Elisa walked
into my room. We all instantly fell into a giant group hug
then sat down on the bed so they could hear all about my
nightmare. This time, the nightmare hadn’t come in a
dream, but while I was wide awake, every second of it.
I shared everything. Kendal’s twisted
proclamation of feelings for me, his letting me go, the
dead convenience store attendant, the battle, and the
Eternals disappearing and not coming back. Everything.
They listened intently, gasping, moaning at all the
appropriate places, their faces animated. When I finished
they stared, at a loss; something I never witnessed from
them before.
I glanced from face to face searching for some
answers; some explanations. Desperately, I hoped for
some suggested course of action, yet got nothing but
blank stares.
“What do I do now?” I pleaded. “Throw me a
bone, girls.”
Trish shrugged. “I’ve got nothing.”
“Me either,” Cassie sighed.
We turned to Elisa, our last hope for some
glorious revelation showing us a way to right this wrong.
“He made you promise not to put yourself in
harm’s way or follow him to Greece?” she gaped at me.
“Yeah,” I replied.
“You agreed to this?” she asked, dumbfounded.
“Yeah, but,” I began and she raised her hand,
stopping me.
“We need to think this through,” she said. “There
is still a chance this Bastion will try to find you and kill
you?”
“Right,” I sighed.
“And if he does find you, the three of us and your
parents might be in danger as well?” She met my eyes
steadily.
“Right,” I moaned, dropping my head to my
hands.
“That leaves very few options.” She sat up
straighter as we all looked at her. “We need to prepare for
a trip to Greece on a moment’s notice.” She pressed her
lips together and nodded with resolve.
“What?” I frowned as Trish and Cassie stared in
shock.
“If Bastion comes here we need to be prepared to
flee to Greece. It’s the only way to keep Grand Rapids
safe, possibly save Allister and his parents, and clear your
name as an abomination.” She finished her summary and
suggestion for a simple course of action with a nod.
We looked back at her, eyes wide in amazement.
Her logic sounded reasonable; it even made sense.
“I’d say we go with that.” I nodded.
We all agreed and the girls headed home for the
night. They wanted to take shifts staying with me, but I
made them all go home, assuring them of my safety.
“My parents are right downstairs. I’ll be fine,” I
told them closing my bedroom door behind them and they
showed themselves out.
I slipped between the covers of my bed…my bed.
That sounded good and felt even better. I couldn’t help
smiling just a little at the thought.
I flicked off the light and my thoughts turned
grim. Images of Allister having his heart ripped out of his
chest played over and over in my mind. The thought of
losing him tore my own heart apart.
And worse, I imagined Angelina being tortured to
reveal my location; threatened with her life if she didn’t
give me up. How I longed to see her smile at me in her
disapproving way. To have her tell me I caused all of this
like she did in the beginning. But she followed me when
Kendal took me to Canada. She came with Allister and
Taylor to save me. I cried for them, for the entire Parks
family. They showed me nothing but kindness, and now
they might all die because I existed. I rolled over, burying
my head in my pillows, sobbing myself to sleep.
I didn’t dream. Oddly, I yearned to see through
Kendal’s demented eyes just to have a connection to an
Eternal. Having failed, I woke the next morning feeling
the loss, realizing the twisted reality I lived in.
I got ready for school and the girls picked me up.
I left the Camaro parked on the street out front, not
having the heart or the will to drive it. I turned and stared
at its black sleekness as we drove away.
I sat in Calculus staring out the window, thinking
about bumping into Allister in the hallway on our way to
the next class. The substitute for Mr. Kinsley didn’t have
any luck keeping my attention and my mind wandered all
class.
Lunch depressed me most of all. The girls and I
sat at the table we’d shared with them and the boys slid in
beside us. We told the boys Allister and Angelina had to
go back to New York for a while and they joined us in our
silent salute to their absence, not uttering a word just
eating their lunch in silence.
I was grateful for the company. The loneliness
didn’t feel so oppressive when I shared it with them.
We spent the evening together at one of our
houses, googling Greece, finding out as much as possible
about our next destination, should the need arise.
On one such evening, Cassie Googled “greek
gods” instead of Greece by mistake. She moved the
mouse to click the back button and I froze where I stood
behind her.
“Oh my God get over here you have to see this,” I
shouted. Trish and Elisa rushed up to peer at the images
on the screen over our shoulders: pictures of sculptures in
Greece depicting the Greek Gods.
I began to shake, a chill running down my back as
I stared at the pictures. I leaned heavily on the back of
Cassie’s chair. Trish and then Elisa put a supportive arm
around my waist.
On the screen, the spitting images of Victor and
Jennavia stared back at us. Under the pictures were the
names Zeus and Hera.
I lost all strength to my legs as Trish and Elisa
eased me to a sitting position on the floor. They sat down
next to me, still looking up at the screen on either side of
Cassie’s chair.
“Is it true?” I asked in a breathy whisper. “Are
they gods?”
“Do you really think Victor and Jennavia are the
gods Zeus and Hera?” Cassie asked.
“I don’t know what to think anymore,” I admitted.
“Anything is possible with them,” Trish said.
“Yeah, except coming back, it seems,” I sighed.
Trish and Elisa put an arm across my shoulders.

Trish dropped me off out front of my house and I
slunk through the door. Dad stood in the doorway leading
to the living room, leaning against the frame.

“Still no Allister?” he asked, no hint of malice.
“No.”
“It’s nice you have your friends to keep your mind

off him.” He nodded.
“Yeah, they’re great.”
“Honey, I didn’t approve of you seeing Allister,

but I want you to know, I hope he comes back. I
understand how much he means to you and I want you to
be happy.”

“Thanks Dad.” I walked over and wrapped my
arms around him.
He returned my hug and kissed the top of my
head.
I gave him another squeeze and turned to the
stairs, climbing them heavily.
Slipping into bed, I looked at the clock assuring I’d set
the alarm. I closed my eyes, trying to picture Allister’s
perfect face; sad when I realized the exact details eluded
me.

The images sprung bright and clear in my dream;
I walked down a familiar street, close to the park by our
house. I moved purposefully to my goal: a garage door
open, the light on and the noise of someone working with
power tools. I stayed clear of the light spilling out of the
open door, keeping hidden in the shadows. I stepped back
to assure my concealment when a twig snapped under my
foot. I froze as the man’s head came up and looked my
way.

Mr. Geffre? The man who taught me piano lessons
years ago. His hunched shoulders lifted as he scanned the
shadows for the origin of the sound. Satisfied with his
inspection, he turned back to the project on his wooden
work bench.

I slipped closer to the opening, still deep in the
shadows. Sliding up along the siding of the garage, I
peered around the corner.

At that point I was fully aware of the dream’s
origin. I saw through Kendal’s eyes again. Screaming
with all my might for him to stop, “Don’t kill Mr.
Geffre.’”I watched in horror as he moved forward
without hearing. I tried to force myself awake, like the
night Kendal attacked me, but my effort proved futile. I
screamed within the prison of my dream, trying to
connect to the Eternal planning to kill someone I knew.
Someone I cared about. Someone close to me. Guilt
weighed on me at the thought. Should I be more appalled
if the victim was someone I knew rather than someone I
didn’t? Had I become that callous?

Kendal’s hand reached out of the darkness,
touching Mr. Geffre on the shoulder. The man’s face
turned pale, his spirit drawn out, his scream forming, but
never escaping his throat. He fell to the cement floor,
dead before he rolled to a stop.

I sat up in my bed, tears rolling down my face as I
cried hysterically. Mr. Geffre, gone. Then, something
bigger hit me. Kendal was back.

I rested my face in my hands, my sobs coming so
hard my body shook, the spasms racking me. Then I
stopped; I realized what I must do. Find Kendal and
convince him to stop killing people. I understood it
bordered on impossible, like trying to stop a meth addict
from his addiction. Yet, if we held interventions for
human addicts, why not Eternal addicts? I don’t know
why, but the thought sounded reasonable at that moment.
If Kendal really had feelings for me, wouldn’t he want to
impress me? I smiled with confidence; I could do this. I
curled up in my blankets and forced myself to close my
eyes even though I feared what I would find there.

In the light of day, the idea to have an intervention
for an Eternal hooked on human spirits, seemed
ludicrous. I packed my things in my backpack for school
and headed out the door, gloomy over the possibility of
Kendal killing more people in my small town. The girls
told me each victim of Kendal’s had shown symptoms of
heart attacks and they were ruled natural deaths. It gave
me little comfort his crimes continued to go unnoticed.

The horn of the Jeep sounded and I walked out the
door, pulled it closed after me, and hurried to the Jeep. I
slowed as I passed the black Camaro, abandoned at the
curb since the day I returned from Canada. The memory
of my time spent with the three Eternals, now AWOL,
stung like a dagger to my heart. They had to be in Greece
by now. Gone from my life, possibly for good.

I hopped into the front seat of the Wrangler with a
nod to Trish while Cassie and Elisa talked in the back.
Both gave me a tap on the shoulder in greeting as we
drove to school, the wind too noisy for us to talk when
Trish had the top off. The weather, an Indian summer,
was warmer than usual this year. Trish pulled the Jeep
into a parking spot, we gathered our things, and walked in
the main entrance.

“Did you hear.” Cassie turned to look at us as we
walked. “They’re going to start bussing the Calculus
classes to the community college for the rest of the year.”

“Great,” I sighed. “Now I have to endure a bus
ride every morning.”
“You might find a cute college guy,” Elisa said,
quickly putting a hand to her mouth, her eyes opened
wide.
“Yeah, like I need that,” I shot back, offended she
would even say such a thing.
“I’m sorry,” Elisa apologized and placed a hand
on my arm.
“Forget it.” I shrugged, trying to brush it off, but
the thought of someone taking Allister’s place tasted
bitter in my mouth. I walked away as Trish scolded Elisa.
It didn’t matter. Allister faced an angry council, over me.
His fate hung in the balance. The thought of him not
coming back to me hurt more than I ever imagined; an
ache deep inside chewed me up.
I walked into Calculus as the rest of the students
stood by the door with their bags.
“Get in line please,” the substitute instructed.
“We’ll be boarding the bus in a minute.”
I fell in at the back of the line, wanting nothing
more than to go home and hide in my room away from all
of this. I trudged along with the group like first graders
going to lunch on first day of school. We boarded the bus
and rumbled through town to the local community
college, Itasca Community College, ICC.
The substitute led us into a building, up the stairs,
and pointed us into a classroom. We walked in, taking the
available seats as the college kids smiled knowingly.
Being at the end of the line only one desk remained by
the time I entered. Not looking up but staring at my
backpack I set on the desk, I slipped into the seat at the
back of the room.
I prided myself with being able to see the glows
around people only when I chose to, but when I looked
over at the person next to me, the glow around him came
unbidden, blinding me. I put my hand in front of my eyes,
squinting at the radiant light flowing from all around him.
Glancing around to see if anyone noticed, I
proceeded to push the glow out as it tried to creep in
around my efforts to block it. When I turned to the
student next to me again the light shone back painfully.
“Hi.” He turned to me after scanning the other
newcomers’ faces. He didn’t seem to notice my
discomfort. “My name is Gabe…” he faltered when his
green eyes met mine. He stared for an uncomfortably
long time and then forced himself to turn away.
“I’d like to welcome all of you from the high
school to our Calculus class,” the tall skinny teacher with
a long beard and deep, monotone voice said from the
front. “I am Mr. Brunson and I’ll be available outside of
class to help you from 8am to 4pm. If you need further
assistance outside those times, we have a student tutor at
your disposal in the tutor room off the campus library.
Gabe, would you please stand up.”
Mr. Brunson motioned to the back of the room.
Heads turned as the student next to me stood up. I turned
as well and looked up at Gabe as he ran a nervous hand
through his long brown hair and glowed brightly despite
my efforts.
I watched, my curiosity aroused by this college
kid who shone brighter than a spotlight. I may need to
stop by after school for some help, I smiled. Yes, indeed.
After bussing back to the high school I steeled
myself to go by and see Gabe that night. In my classes
for the rest of the day I daydreamed about the reason for
his intense aura, but the only reason I could fathom didn’t
make any sense: he was an angel.
I sat with the girls at lunch, lost in concentration
as they took turns staring at me with worried expressions.
“What?” I turned to them when I couldn’t take it
any longer.
“Are you alright?” Cassie spoke up.
“Yeah, fine.” I tried to sound confident. The
words came out feeble.
“Don’t bullshit us.” Trish leaned closer. “You’ve
been getting more depressed every day and …”
“And we’re concerned,” Elisa finished for her.
“Thanks.”
“You have to realize they may not come back,”
Trish started.
I closed my eyes, desperately holding back the
barrage of anxiety trying to burst forth. I opened my eyes,
raising them to my worried amigos as I felt the pain
tearing through me.
“Britt, you have to snap out of it,” Cassie urged.
“Not knowing anything is driving me crazy,” I
muttered quietly.
“We know, and you have to get a grip,” Elisa said
gently.
I glared at her, causing her to lean back in her
chair with her hands raised defensively before her. Get a
grip, what the hell did that mean anyway? The person I
loved had vanished. His sister, vanished. His parents,
vanished. Even the bodyguard who I didn’t feel any real
connection to, vanished. I couldn’t wrap my head around
it all, but the pain of loss didn’t have any problem
messing with me.
“What Elisa meant to say, is you need to keep
talking, letting us in, and dealing with your feelings.”
Cassie reached over to put a hand on my arm.
I looked down at her hand and she slowly pulled it
back.
“You want in, fine. Kendal is back in my head, I
saw him kill Mr. Geffre last night. I have such a void in
my chest it feels like it’s going to crush me from the
inside, and the college math tutor’s spirit glows so bright,
I think I’ll go blind if I look at him again. There you have
it, do you like to be inside my head?” I looked to each of
them, my jaw set and determined.
“I had no idea,” Cassie said, her eyes wide.
“No wonder you’re going crazy,” Elisa whispered.
“Doesn’t it feel better to let it out?” Trish asked
flatly, her arms crossed over her chest.
I stared at her. Yeah, I did feel better. I nodded
with a slight smile.
“Good.” She grinned, leaning over to put an arm
across my shoulders. “Don’t lock us out anymore. We’re
here for you.”
I nodded again, thankful I had them, feeling better
with a little relief from the isolation.
“So what do you think is up with the tutor?”
Cassie asked.
“Gabe? I don’t know.” I shrugged.
“Wait, you can see spirits?” Elisa leaned forward.
“Yeah, sort of,” I sighed, resigned to revealing
another reminder of my difference.
“How does that work?” Trish asked.
“I see a glow around everyone, everyone except
an Eternal that is. The dimmer the glow, the closer to
death the person is. The brighter, the healthier they are.”
“So this Gabe must be really healthy.” Cassie
concluded with a nod.
“I’m not so sure,” I frowned.
“Why?” Elisa asked.
“His glow is different somehow. I’ve never seen
anything like it before.”
“Maybe he’s something different.” Trish pressed
her lips together in thought.
“How do you mean?” I asked.
“If Eternals have no glow because they don’t have
a guardian angel’s spirit in them, then an incredibly bright
glow might mean…” Trish paused, eyes going wide as
she looked at me.
“He might be an angel,” I agreed, nodding at the
revelation.
“An angel,” Trish repeated, shaking her head.
“Come on,” Elisa laughed. “He’s not an angel.
That’s ridiculous.”
“Is it?” Trish raised an eyebrow.
“We didn’t believe in Eternals until we met
some.” Cassie shrugged.
“Exactly,” Trish exclaimed, causing several
people at nearby tables to turn and stare.
“Until we discover them.” Trish leaned closer to
the table, lowering her voice, “We have no idea these
things exist.” She sat back in her chair, folded her arms
across her chest, and gave a satisfied nod.
Elisa, Cassie, and I exchanged glances, the
feasibility of Trish’s hypothesis sinking in. That there
might be other beings we didn’t know about only by lack
of exposure was life-changing. One by one we nodded,
agreeing to the plausibility of it.
The bell rang and we stood to go to class. As we
dropped our garbage in the trash cans. We stopped,
huddling at the end of a hall.
“I’m going to see Gabe after school,” I told them.
“We should come with you,” Trish said.
“None of you have Calc; it would look odd,” I
argued.
“Then what should we do?” Cassie asked.
“Drop me off and wait for me at the Jeep. It
shouldn’t take me too long,” I said.
The looks on their faces turned disapproving.
“What would he do to me in the school where
anyone could walk in?” I pointed out the obvious,
ignoring my mind’s flash to the hospital and Kendal’s
brazenness. “I’ll be fine.”
We turned and headed our separate ways to class.
I’ll be fine, I repeated in my head. I hope.