Chapter 2

Tess’ Cadillac crossed the countryside facing more darkness along the way, as the only source of light (the lamp posts spread along the road) had gone with the thunderstorm. There were no houses either and the heavy rain poured down showing no sign of abating, causing it to be more difficult to see what was ahead of them.

The wind blew hard, adding more force to the huge amount of water that was falling from the sky; and, together with deafening thunders and repeated rays and lightning, made that one a dreadful scenario, one of the most horrible that the angels had already seen.

Due to the fact that they had been angels of death for so many years, Andrew and Adam were already used to face the fury of nature, as it always brought chaos and destruction in its wake. But for a young caseworker, that was extremely scaring, specially now, in human form. Monica’s discomfort was evident in her eyes, and the Irish angel was really perturbed with the violence with which the rain and the wind slashed the vehicle’s windows.

“I can’t wait to be in front of a warm fireplace, surrounded by covers and pillows and hugging our wee Joy!”, Monica said, staring at the window, still resting her head on Andrew’s shoulder, “But I’m glad she’s not here, she would be afraid of the storm...”

The image of the little spaniel puppy dog she, Andrew and Tess ‘shared’ always running along on the 3 angels’ feet somewhat softened their hearts and made them smile:

“You’ve got a point there, Angel Girl! I never missed that baby so much!”, the supervisor said, looking at the rear mirror.

“Hey, I’m curious to know the so famous little Joy!”, Adam exclaimed, “She seems to be a lot of fun!”

“Oh, yeah, she is! Sometimes, she’s more fun than what we’re ready for!”, Andrew joked, gently soothing Monica’s hair.

“Our wee one is the most enchanting, adorable and sweet wee dog an angel could have!”, she said, enthusiastically. The blond angel chuckled:

“That was how Monica managed to convince Sam to take care of Joy! But I wonder if, right now, he still agrees with her!”

“I’m sure he does! What in this world could make him have a different opinion?!”, the Irish angel protested, a little indignantly because of his teasing tone of voice.

“I couldn’t possibly imagine, sweetie!...”, he answered.

But that moment of amusement didn’t last so long: a strange noise was heard and, a second later, the car stopped, increasing Tess’ worry:

“Oh no! What’s happening with my baby?!”

“Why don’t you try turning it off and, after, turning it on again?”, Adam suggested. The supervisor did as he said, but the vehicle didn’t show any response to the command. Tess tried to start the car five times more, but it didn’t work.

“What are we going to do?”, Monica asked, starting to become nervous again.

“We should ask for help somewhere...”, Adam said, though he knew that finding help in that place would be highly unlikely.

“I don’t wanna be pessimistic but I don’t believe we’re gonna find a gas station in the next corner!”, Andrew looked through the windowpane: “I’ll go outside and try to fix it, otherwise we’re gonna stay here, exposed to the thunderstorm, and I don’t think this is such a good idea!”

Hearing that, Monica stared at him with worried eyes:

“Andrew... Don’t you think we should wait a little?... Maybe the storm changes its direction...”

“I don’t think this is gonna happen, Monica.”, smiling, he took her hand and squeezed it, “I’ll just go and take a look at the engine.”

“Andrew is right. We have to try to get out of here as soon as possible”, Adam agreed, “I’ll go with him!”

The two angels of death got out the vehicle, facing the rain that pelted on them without mercy and the howling wind, which blew so strongly that they could hardly stand on their feet. Both angels were soaked to the skin almost instantaneously. Andrew opened the hood of the vehicle and Adam lit up its interior with the help of a flashlight:

“Do you have any idea of what to do?”, Adam asked. The blond angel smiled:

“Well, not much. But I’ve already ‘killed’ this car once, so I’m kinda used to it!...”, he half joked.

“Oh... Well, that’s encouraging!”, his friend replied, giving him a box of tools.

Inside the car, Monica’s anguish increased every minute, and the Irish angel rubbed her hands nervously, trying to see her friends working outside through the foggy window.

“Monica, are you alright, baby?”, Tess asked, turning round and reaching for her hand, noticing the nervousness that flowed from her heart.

“I- I’m just a wee bit shaken up by the thunderstorm. I don’t recall seeing anything like this in the last years...”

“You’re right, Angel Girl. I myself don’t remember when was the last time I had to face such a threatening storm, as this is something caseworkers are not used to do!”

She nodded her head:

“Yes, that’s true, I’m not feeling comfortable at all in here!”

Another lightening, followed by a loud thunder, crossed the sky, causing Monica to cover her ears and close her eyes; distress was evident on the angels’ faces:

“Oh Father, please, allow us to get out of here safely... Let Andrew and Adam be able to fix this car...”, the supervisor prayed.

Some minutes passed by and Andrew knocked on the windowpane, next to the driver’s seat:

“Tess, try to start it again!”, he said, his loud voice competing with the noise of the thunders that crashed almost incessantly. The supervisor obeyed to that command and, to their relief, the Cadillac was working again:

“Good job, babies!”

The 2 angels of death came back to the car, completely soaked:

“I’m sorry to spoil your upholstery, Tess!”, Adam joked.

“Oh, don’t worry about that, baby!...”, the supervisor replied, causing the other 3 angels to stare at her in surprise. Noticing their questioning faces, she concluded: “... there’ll be plenty of time for you to clean it up later!”

The others couldn’t help but chuckle at that statement. Two towels had miraculously appeared on the back seat and Monica quickly handed them to her 2 friends:

“I hope we can find at least a shelter so you two can dry and we won’t be exposed to the storm.”

The Irish angel’s face was filled not only with concern, but also with weakness and exhaustion: the fever was getting higher and higher.

“Yes, I agree. And you can be treated properly!”, Andrew added, not missing the traces of fear and exhaustion in her brown eyes.

*

Although the 2 angels of death had managed to make Tess’ car work, it was far too clear that the vehicle was not operating properly, as it produced strange noises and could not develop the usual speed. And it didn’t take too long before it stopped again:

“I can’t believe this is happening! Not to my baby!”, Tess lamented again, now more worried than never.

“What are we going to do now?”, Monica asked, nervously. Andrew looked through the foggy window:

“I can’t see any sign of a house or a gas station nearby...”

“Well, I guess this only leaves us one option...”, Adam suggested, looking at him through the rear-view mirror. The blond angel nodded:

“Yes, I think we’re gonna need some extra towels!”, he half joked. But Monica never let go of his hand:

“We’ll be right back!”, he winked at her and stroked her hair, getting out of the vehicle for the second time:

20 long minutes passed by and, this time, nothing could make the convertible work again.

“It’s pointless, Andrew. It’s broken and will never work; at least not here, not now...”

“Yeah, you’re right. And, as much as it breaks Tess’ heart we’re gonna have to leave it here and start looking for a shelter, ‘cause this storm won’t stop anytime soon. Besides, I’m worried about Monica; she had just a slight cold in the morning and now she has a fever that is getting higher every minute.”

“I just wonder if we’re gonna find a shelter along the road...”, Adam looked around them, the rain still pouring down with violence. Suddenly, his eyes focused on something near the road, not far away from where they were:

“...take a look over there, Andrew!...”

He was pointing to what seemed to be a construction that rose up in the shadows of the night, not too distant from where they were. And lightening allowed them to see it clearly for a few seconds:

“It’s a house!...”, Andrew said, already relieved.

“Do you think there are people in there?”

“I think it doesn’t matter right now, we’re going there anyway, it’s getting dangerous out here every second!”

The blond angel was right: they were in an empty road that crossed the woods, in a swampy region, which only reduced the possibility of finding help or a shelter to stay. Besides this, the storm worsened every minute, and the wind was so strong that some tree branches were already flying up in the air. It would be just a matter of time before entire trees were being ripped from the ground. The house that stood in their way was the only option the angels had to protect themselves from the fury of nature:

“Tess, I’m sorry, but we couldn’t fix your car.”, Adam spoke, getting into the Cadillac again.

“Oh, I please, don’t tell me that!”

“Yes, and we need to get out of here, the storm is getting worse!”, Andrew added. Monica was feeling her heart beating quickly in her chest:

“But where are we going?”

“There’s a house not far from here. I don’t know if there are people living in there but it’s the only shelter we have.”

“So, I guess now it’s your time to get soaked, ladies!”, Adam half joked. Andrew looked at his best friend, concern for her health evident on his face:

“I guess so...”

“I’ll be fine!”, she squeezed his hand, reassuringly. But Andrew wasn’t convinced by that statement:

“Your fever is getting higher!”

“It won’t be better if we continue here.”, she kindly objected. Tess agreed that that was the best solution:

“Angel Girl is right, we have to find a shelter soon! And we can’t forget that there are two bags in the trunk with dry clothes for us all! So, let’s grab them and get outta here as fast as we can!”

The 4 angels got out of the car and, after taking the 2 bags, ran towards the house, as the rain pelted down on them so hardly that they could barely see. The wind had grown stronger than never and they had to grab one another’s arms in order to resist its force. Andrew got a firm hold on Monica, as the little Irish angel was the most likely to be carried away due to her small figure and the weakness caused by the fever that, little by little, consumed her.