PART 12

CHAPTER 11

After they had settled under the shade of that huge oak tree, Monica and Andrew fell into a deep sleep, beaten by exhaustion and by the emotional stress of the previous dark night. During this time, a miraculous change started to happen: little by little, their wounds started a fast healing process. Of course it was still possible to see them, and they were still painful, especially for Monica, but their aspect was better only a few hours after they had arrived there.

Andrew opened his eyes and the first thing he did was to turn his face to look at Monica. Despite the healing that was occurring, she still looked weak and pale. The blond angel sat up straight and took her hand into his, kissing her palm. He carefully examined her arm, which had been hurt by one of the evil creatures at Monica’s command, and saw that the cut wasn’t as nasty as it was before. Then, he sighed deeply and brushed away some strands of hair from her face, chuckling to see Joy’s sleeping form, practically grabbing Monica’s shoulder with her little pawns, protectively like a loyal guardian.

Suddenly, he heard a low whimper and his heart started to pound faster with apprehension when Monica made the first movements, turning her head and opening her eyes a second later. And the initially fearful expression on the Irish angel’s face, probably caused by the memories of the previous awful hours, was replaced by a wide smile as soon as she lay her eyes on Andrew.

“Monica? My angel?”

She didn’t say a word; instead, gathering all her strength, she reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down for a warm embrace.

“Hey, hey, ease there, Miss Wings!” he spoke, as she winced with pain with that small movement. He carefully held her, aware of the wounds she had all over her body, and returned the embrace, making her sit for some moments and always running his fingers through her hair.

Monica rested her head on his shoulder and, even weak and in pain, she kept her embrace for long minutes and started to cry. He wanted to tell her to stop; he wanted to assure that everything was alright now and that they were safe there, but he couldn’t. First because he was sure that she knew all this. And second because he too felt tears in the corner of his eyes and all he wanted to do at that very moment was to hold her tight and cry of joy together with her.

Only some time later, when Monica started to sob, did he speak again, in an attempt to calm her. “My angel... you need to lie down... you’re still weak...”

“You were in my thoughts and in my prayers all the time...” she finally spoke, never releasing her hold on him.

“I never doubted that, Monica. And be sure that you were in mine.”

“I know...”

He pulled just a few inches away to look at her face, and stroked her cheek, “God... it’s so good to see you talking to me again... Now I only need that same big smile you had on your face when you opened your eyes...”

A wide, yet trembling smile, like the one she gave when she woke up, appeared on Monica’s face, together with the many tears that were still falling from her eyes. “Hey, here it is! Keep it with you, ok? I’m gonna need it later!”

“Ok... I will...” she replied, as he helped her to wipe away her tears.

“I’m gonna help you to lie down again, ok? You still need to rest a lot! Besides... there’s somebody here who is eager to hug and kiss her ‘mom’!” he spoke, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. And, at the moment he placed Monica back in the pillows, Joy practically jumped on her chest and started to cover the angel’s face with lots of tiny kisses, causing Monica to giggle.

“That’s it, good girl!” Andrew said, also receiving wet kisses from the excited little animal. “She stood here by your side all the time; protecting her mom like a lion!”

“I know that...” Monica stroked Joy’s soft fur and kissed the top of her head. “I never doubted of how brave our wee one is!”

The spark of happiness in her eyes caused his heart to melt and, still sitting beside her, he gently soothed her hair, “How could you do it, Monica? How could you risk yourself so much?” his tone of voice was a serious, yet, caring one.

“I guess I should be asking you the same thing...”

“I could’ve lost you, angel.”

“And I could’ve lost you... When... When I saw you so badly hurt I got so desperate... you shouldn’t have done that, Andrew!”

“And watch Monique hurt you? No...” he shook his head. “Nothing in the world could cause me more pain that seeing you suffering or not having you here by my side, Monica. For you, angel, there’s nothing, I said nothing I wouldn’t do. You can be sure that these arms here will always be your shelter.”

With a tearful smile on her face, she reached out and stroked his face, “Could you do something for me, then?”

“Sure...”

“Can you hold me? I’m sure you’ve been doing it since we got here but I’ve missed that cause I was unconscious and that’s not fair!”

Smiling, he lay down beside her and waited until she snuggled closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder. Then, the blond angel passed his arm around her own small shoulders, being extremely careful not to hurt her, and kissed the top of her head. Little Joy, for herself, lay down between the two angels and they remained like this for a good time, falling asleep lulled by the gentle breeze that was blowing across the vast field, spreading the pleasant perfume of wild flowers in the air.

*

Rafael knelt next to Erika and touched her face: that light contact caused her to whimper and the angel to sigh with relief: she was alive. “Erika? Can you listen to me? Can you hear me?”

Slowly, the young demon opened her eyes and saw Rafael’s glowing form standing in front of her. “You’re an angel too...”

“Yes, I am. And I was sent here to rescue you!”

“... at least my suffering will finish...” she said, with a weak smile.

“No... I’m not that kind of angel... I’m a caseworker, like Monica.”

He took the young demon in his arms and started to walk back towards the same intense light that had guided him there, and finally left the dark territory.

Rafael and Erika reappeared in the dark alley where Monica had been captured and where Tess was already waiting for them in her Cadillac. “C’mon baby, put her in the backseat and let’s get to the hospital before it’s too late!”

Ten minutes later, the 2 angels arrived at the biggest hospital in town and Erika was soon placed in a stretcher and taken to the ICU. Rafael and Tess were told to wait while the doctors took care of her.

“I just hope she gets better, Tess. When I got there, in that... place... and saw her lying on the dirty ground so badly hurt... I felt so much compassion for her soul, even knowing what she is...”

“Correction: who she was, baby!”

“You mean she’s not a demon anymore?”

“No. That young lady had a noble, courageous attitude when she walked out on Monique and, consequently, the one she represents, to help two angels of God and try to redeem herself from the evil she had inflicted in some people’s lives. And she didn’t think, not even for a moment, about how dangerous it could’ve been, not even the possibility of losing her life could stop her from doing what was right.”

“Yes, I see. And I guess that’s another reason why I feel sorry for her.” Rafael spoke.

“Besides, it’s far too clear that she didn’t mean to hurt David; at least not intentionally.”

“You mean she realised she actually loves David?”

“Yes, that’s it.”

“I bet all the disappointment he felt when he found out she was a demon caused her to act like that.”

The supervisor shook her head. “No, it was something that happened right before that.”

“Really? What was it then?”

“She spent most of that night watching as Monique tortured Monica and Andrew; she noticed how much those two babies love each other and I’m pretty sure she witnessed how much Andrew was willing to sacrifice his existence for Monica, as well as how Monica was willing to sacrifice her own existence for that angel boy. Their special friendship, which comes from the Father Himself, made that miracle come true!”

At that moment, a doctor made his way through the corridor up to them. “Excuse me, you’re the ones who brought that young lady, right?”

“Yes. My name is Tess, this is my friend Rafael.”

“I’m doctor Perkins.” He said, shaking hands with them.

“How is she doctor?”

“Well, I have to be honest with you... her condition is critical. She’s in a coma and my colleagues and I are treating her wounds, she’s broken some ribs and her arm; and she has many injuries all over her body.”

“Oh poor child...” the older angel said.

“Are you related?”

“No... we found her next to the road, but we would like to stay here and pray for her,” Rafael answered.

“That’s very kind of you, son. And yes, please pray for her, she’ll need all the help we can get.”