Chapter 18

I had lain prone on the floor for several long minutes as I tried to regain my breath. However when I finally pushed myself to my feet and felt the damage that had been done to my body, I knew that we had to get out of there.

 It had then taken a further twenty minutes to return to the house because I had a strange little hobble and I also had the perverse need to see the body still lying in the middle of the road. It had made my stomach churn and it was pure luck that I hadn’t emptied my stomach contents over the road. After that urgency had overtaken me and I hurried to retrieve Nicole and any of her necessary belongings before rushing to get back on the road.

Thus after several hours sitting in traffic, we finally pulled up before my home. It was an expensive house situated in Chelsea and had been part of my contract when I signed on to be the Devil’s Assistant. If only I had known how much trouble it would cause me – maybe that I wouldn’t have signed that damned piece of paper and would be living in blissful ignorance.

I shook my head and focused on parking the car perfectly parallel to the curb to rid myself of such thoughts. Not having the house and this job would mean having no money, but more importantly, the price of my ignorance would be Lucius.

I turned the engine off and sat in the seat for a long while. My eyes were closed and my head was slumped back against the head rest as I tried to muddle through the chaos that was currently surrounding my life. Not only was there some evil faction aiming to open the gates of hell but they had hold of the commands for an entire legion of hellhounds. And there was no doubt in my mind that Nicole was caught up in the middle of it – after all she was special in herself and the child was someone that could be truly spectacular.

“Are you alright Savannah?” The voice had cut through my thoughts so abruptly that I jumped in my seat while my heart skittered in my chest.

“What?” I slurred before turning my head to Nicole and smiling grimly. “I’m fine, just a lot on my mind right now.”  Tapping her knee, I then pulled open my door and swung my legs out of the vehicle only to turn back when I realised the teen had not moved.

She was looking out of the window at the busy streets and the heavy traffic with a mixture of trepidation and awe. No doubt it was a big change to what she was used to. Heck I doubted the girl had ever left the town limits of Angels’ landing before I had taken her away. With wide eyes she watched car after car pass us by and I couldn’t help but smile.

“I know it’s different but it will be safer here. I have some friends in very high places so I’ve got the best security you can possibly get.” I smiled at the girl in an attempt to reassure her but it wavered on my features before dropping completely. “Come on, let’s get you settled.”

The house upon entering felt  cold and smelt a little stale after being empty for a week so I quickly threw open a few windows to get the air circulating. It was only when Nicole and I had brought everything in the house and settled on the sofa that we both breathed in a sigh of relief.

“Do you really think we’ll be safe here?” She questioned while staring resolutely at my humped back.

I shifted on my seat as I became aware another of our big problems.  The wings were still protruding from my back though I had managed to hide them under a bulky hoodie that used to belong to Nicole’s father. He wasn’t a particularly small man which was evident by the way that it hung off of me even with the feathery things on my back and with the sleeves rolled up several times.

Releasing a sigh, I shrugged my shoulders in a poor attempt to relieve the tension that had coiled up within my muscles. “I hope so, but there are never any guarantees. I just no we are safer here than your hometown. Besides, at least here you are away from all of the bad feeling of that place.” I nodded to myself as I wriggled back into the couch. “We have to take care of you and the bubba after all.”

After that, the two of us fell into mind numbing conversation as we tried to adjust to being in each other’s presence. It was little bit awkward but when I relented to the urge and turned on the television so I could watch some One Tree Hill reruns, the two of us found some common ground as we discussed our favourite characters. That was how we spent the rest of the day, not bothering to move from the sofa unless it was to get some food or visit the bathroom.

A soft snore issued from beside me causing me to turn my head. Nicole was curled up on her side at the other end of the sofa, her stature at peace now that she was no longer conscious. It broke my heart that someone so young had so much trouble on her shoulders.

Heaving myself up from the couch, I allowed my gaze to linger on the teen feeling very maternal and protective of her as she slept away. And then the moment faded and seriousness settled in. I dialled for a pizza before wandering into the solitude of my study to get right down to business.

My eyes fell on the stack of paperwork that was ever growing in my in tray before I snatched up the phone from its cradle and dialled the number that I had memorised from its constant use.  It put me immediately through to the angel in charge and I was forced to cough to give myself time for composure.

“Ambriel speaking,” The voice rang loud and clear and I was momentarily puzzled as I was used to someone else being on the end of the line but a quick glance out of the window revealed all I needed to know and I gave a sharp nod of my head before remembering someone was on the other end of the phone line.

“Sorry, it’s Ambriel you say? I’m Savannah –“

“- Holmes, I know. I would have to be a hermit not to know who you are.” The voice drawled down the phone all the while maintaining a lack of inflection in his voice that was a giveaway to the person’s heritage if his name wasn’t enough to go by.

“Okay,” I inserted feeling strangely disconcerted by the manner of this man or should I say angel. “You’re an angel so you can help me with my dilemma. At least I hope so…” I trailed off as I shrugged my shoulders which were starting to ache under the unfamiliar weight.  

“And what exactly would that be Ms. Holmes.”

“Well, you see the strangest thing happened to me today. I got attacked by a hellhound and I now have a set of bloody wings sticking out of my back and I can’t make them go away!”

I ended the sentence by shouting down the line at the man who had nothing to do with it. Yet, I couldn’t find it within me to care, I only cared about the fact that I had wings and they would not disappear no matter how much I wished that they would.

“You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that would you, or, at the very least, you wouldn’t happen to know how to get rid of them, would you?”

The line was silent for a long moment which caused me to tap the handset on my desk thinking it had done its usual and cut me off from my caller only to hear yells coming down the line. I hurriedly put it back to my ear only to hear the grumbling that was filling my ears.

“Sorry?” I murmured. I had meant it to be an apology but I just couldn’t make myself truly mean it as I was only just restraining my laughter.

“Never mind. Now, you said you had wings?” There was a creepy undertone to his voice like I was some science experiment and I hoped to all things holy that I would never have to meet this particular man in person.

“Yes,” I bit out as my hand tightened around the handset so that my skin became blanched under the pressure. “And I can’t make them go away.”

“Oh that’s a rookie problem. Don’t worry I will send someone over to assist you in the morning. For now I suggest you get a good night’s sleep Ms. Holmes, something tells me you’ll need it.”

With that last remark that was a click followed with the buzzing. I cussed at the handset and dropped it back into the cradle.

“Damned Angels, they have no damn manners.” I muttered all the while being filled with indignation at being hung up on by a being that is supposed to be the epitome of everything good and pure in this world.

“Yeah right,” I yawned while stretching my arms above my head only to wince in pain from my various injuries that had yet to heal. Though, as I felt exhaustion sapping away my strength, I guessed that he had a point.

The rest of the evening was spent eating pizza with my new houseguest before the both of us retired early to bed. However my sleep that night was far from peaceful. I spent my hours of unconsciousness tossing and turning while my mind lingered on the dread that surrounded this deadly threat that could ultimately end everything as I knew it.