CHAPTER 18

He swung open the door and the stale air hit him in the face like a wall. It had been a long time. The overhead light flickered to life and he stepped into the room, looking around blankly at the painted walls with their flowered border, and the white wrought iron bed with its pink bedspread and mountain of pillows. He set his beer bottle down on the floor and shook open the plastic garbage bag he was carrying. Then, with one motion of his arm he swept everything off the dresser and into the bag. A collection of little treasures from smooth river stones to a porcelain horse smashed against each other but he wasn’t concerned. No one was going to miss them.

Moving on to the bed, he started shoving the pillows into the bag. His hand froze in midair when he picked up the last one. He dropped it and picked up the doll that was lying facedown on the bed. The painted eyes stared at him accusingly and he squeezed until a feeble crying sound emerged. A stab of remorse hit him in the center of the chest before he tossed the doll into the bag and covered it with the remaining pillow.

He picked up his beer and took a long drink. Things were moving on. Debby Pearson had invited him over for Sunday dinner. He saw the pity in her eyes and he welcomed it. The tourist season was almost over and the nosy Irish woman and her boyfriend would be moving on. They weren’t going to find Faith before they left, and then she would be left alone again with only him visiting her in the dead of the night.

*****

Jake finished putting the last of his paperwork in the tall filing cabinet and let the drawer slide shut with a satisfying clang. It had been a long day at the end of an even week and he was happy to see the end of it.

Greg Tate had been pounding on his door before noon, with a bruised face and a battered ego, telling him that he needed to go up to the old Danvers’ cottage and arrest everyone there. Listening to the man rant was particularly difficult since what he really wanted to do was drive up to the cottage and shake the man’s hand. It had taken almost an hour before he’d been able to convince Tate that there was nothing he could do about a man protecting private property. Watching the annoyance spread across his face had been the only satisfying part of his day.

He glanced at the picture of Faith that still hung on the bulletin board beside the door. The sweet little thing should have been about to start school. He shook his head as he thought about it. Maybe it was time to take another trip up to the cottage after all. If they had found Faith maybe he could convince them that he could help her. He certainly had no interest in sending her back to her father anymore. No, that wasn’t an option as far as he was concerned, but he wasn’t eager to see the child taken away either. Monica seemed like a nice enough woman, but his mind turned to his own wife. He put his hat on as he shut off the light and locked the door. Jennifer had always said she wanted a little girl. After three sons, maybe this was their chance.

The crisp night air was refreshing and Jake nodded to the other people who were walking through the town. He had just started his car when the squeal of tires and blaring music made him turn his head. Great. Friday night and the kids were starting early. He flipped on his siren and took off after the speeding car.

It was a short-lived chase, but the speeder managed to take out a mailbox and a planter full of flowers before finally giving up and screeching to a halt in a cloud of dust and burnt rubber. Jake was out of his car, citation book in hand, ready to give the usual lecture. Then he saw who the driver was and he flipped the book closed and clenched his jaw. Greg Tate was behind the wheel and he looked like he was at least three sheets to the wind. The sheriff smiled inwardly. A night in the drunk tank would be just perfect, and he had a feeling that Monica and her friends would be happy to hear about it.

*****

Monica awoke early the following morning to the sun streaming in through her window and the sound of the birds outside announcing the gift of another day on the mountain. Faith was still fast asleep next to her, so the little angel climbed out of bed carefully and dressed quietly before running a brush through her long auburn mane.

As she descended the stairs, she could hear murmurs coming from the living room and it seemed that Andrew and Tess were engaged in a serious conversation. Monica almost debated retreating back to her room, having a feeling already that she wasn’t going to like the discussion at hand. Tess had already made a plethora of references to needing to find out where Faith belonged and the Irish angel had made it a point to remain relatively silent during these little sessions. She was in no hurry to lose the child, but also not cocky enough to stand up to Tess, all the while knowing that her supervisor was indeed right. It was just that she didn’t want to admit that was so.

Andrew looked up and smiled as he saw her enter the living room but Monica knew him well enough to be able to see the concern and nervousness that lingered behind it.

"Good morning, angel," He greeted her warmly, noting the suspicion that was in her eyes.

"What’s going on?" She decided to get right to the point as she was feeling a bit braver with the news that Greg had been arrested last night.

"What’s going on is that you have a job to do today," Tess informed her, her tone making the already suspicious look on Monica’s face turn to one of defensiveness, "We need to get to the bottom this assignment. As no answers are being provided to us, then it is up to us to find the answers. We’ve been making an awful lot of assumptions about this child and her family or lack thereof, and it is time we knew some truth."

"So what is my job then?" Her words held a hint of anger and she felt Andrew’s hand on her shoulder to calm her.

"Your job is to drop the attitude and get some answers out of Faith. She responds well to you and if anyone can find out what else there is to this story, you can."

"Faith doesn’t discuss her past easily, Tess and you know that," Monica argued, "She’s been through enough already."

"We are not her home, Monica," Her supervisor stated sternly, "And the sooner you face up to that the better off you will be. I know you love her, we all love her, but there is a plan for her life and we are not it. You need to talk to her. Today."

"She’s your assignment," The words were out before Monica had time to think about them and she wished she could either reel them back in or vanish from the room entirely, especially when she saw the look that came over Tess’ face.

"That certainly hadn’t made any difference to you before now, Miss Wings. You went out looking for ‘my’ assignment, you found ‘my’ assignment and now you can question ‘my’ assignment. She is not my assignment only when it is convenient for you," The older angel had crossed her arms in front of her and was staring down the younger angel with a look that could have frightened a much braver angel than Monica.

"Tess.." Andrew began carefully. He didn’t want things to get out of control and they were quickly heading in that direction. Battles of wills between the two female angels were rare, but rarely pretty.

"I don’t see why I have to be the one to upset her, Tess," Her expression was stubborn which was conducive to the fact that she wanted no part of this.

"Because I am the supervisor and you are the caseworker, that’s why. And if that isn’t enough for you, that child adores you and would tell you just about anything you asked her to. So whatever issues you are having with this, I suggest you get over them by the time Faith gets out of bed," Tess forced herself to lower her sharp tone, seeing that her charge was blinking back tears though her expression remained slightly angry.

"Fine," Monica stated even as she walked to the front door and opened it.

"Monica, where are you going?"
Andrew was beside of her in an instant, his green eyes flickering with concern.

"Just for a walk," She replied quietly, "I need to clear my head and decide upon the least hurtful way to get Faith to tell me everything."

An instant later she had walked out the door, closing it behind her and he turned to Tess expectantly.

"Why is she being so stubborn about this?" She sighed, knowing that the tone she had taken had not helped much, but they had been sitting here long enough with no idea of where else to go and she had never been very patient with waiting.

"I think you know why," He replied softly, glancing out the window in time to see his friend vanish into the woods, "Ever since everything happened, she has had a hard time with any kind of separation. From you or me…Paul," He looked at her pointedly, "And now Faith. She doesn’t want to lose at anything anymore, Tess. She doesn’t see right now that unless we find out what God’s plan is, that Faith loses as well."

Tess nodded her head but was unable to respond before Faith came down the stairs, a cheerful smile on her face at first until a puzzled look crossed it.

"Good morning, sweetie," Andrew greeted her with a grin as she returned the gesture with a grin of her own.

"Good morning. Where is Monica?"

"She went for a walk, baby and will be back soon," Tess explained, forcing her own cheerful tone, "Are you hungry?" Seeing Faith nod her head enthusiastically, she smiled, "Then how about I get you some breakfast and then you and I take a little walk down to the lake?"

"What about my dad?" Her eyes held fear as she spoke the words in a whisper.

"I happen to know for a fact that he is not going to be trying to find you right now," The angel informed her as she held out her hand for the child to latch onto, which she did, "So, cereal today?"

But Faith shook her head as she tugged Tess towards the kitchen, "Pop Tarts."

Tess was unable to help chuckling, "The little princess has spoken. Pop Tarts it is."

Andrew watched them go with a sigh, wondering if Tess was planning on talking to Faith after all. He could only hope, just as he could only hope that Monica would soon find her way back.

*****

Monica brushed a stray tear from her cheek as she continued walking through the forest. She knew in her heart that Tess was right, but admitting it was difficult for her. Faith was finally happy and to disrupt that felt wrong, no matter how right the reasons. She knew that the little girl couldn’t stay with them forever, she just wished that they could enjoy the time they had for this assignment and that the Father would just drop His plan in place around them.

She didn’t like to question God, but she had seen no indication of where Faith should be at this point. Jake had given no insinuation about wanting to care for her long term if she was "found", and her father was out of the question. No one else had come forward as being interested.

She sighed as she came to the little cabin where she had first found Faith and she summoned her courage to walk inside it once more, searching for anything they might have missed. But it seemed that Faith had survived by the grace of God alone. There were no hints of food in the cabin, just the tattered blanket on the cot where she and Faith had left it. A spider scurried across the toe of her shoe and she shuddered slightly. Not that she was afraid of spiders, but it was a reminder of the conditions Faith had lived in for the months following Easter.

She emerged back into the sunshine and gazed around her sadly. She knew she would have to apologize to Tess when she returned and she only hoped that another lecture would not follow the apology. She hadn’t meant to be so difficult, but the difficult situation itself had caused her to be just that.

Feeling remorseful, she dropped to her knees and closed her eyes, "Father, forgive me for questioning You. I know You have a plan for Faith, but could You please show me what it might be?"

She opened her eyes and sighed once more as she glanced down at the earth before her and frowned. The dirt somehow seemed different in this place; looser and she looked over at the few rocks that were scattered over it looked almost deliberate, not as if God had placed them there. She shook her head, trying to rid her mind of the confusing thoughts but even as she did, a coldness crept over her that she didn’t understand.

*****

"Are you sure my daddy won’t find us, Tess?" Faith questioned uncertainly as she held tightly to the angel’s hand.

"I’m positive, sweetheart," Tess consoled her as they continued on their walk around the lake. She was actually glad to finally have the opportunity to get the child out into the sunshine as she had been forced to remain inside for far too long, "So you and I get to enjoy this beautiful day that God made."

Faith smiled happily as she turned her little face up to the sky, "Thank you, God, for this beautiful day," She offered up sweetly and Tess felt a small twinge of guilt as the action reminded her of something another a little angel might do.

"I suppose you saw a lot of beautiful days while you were living in the forest, didn’t you?" Tess began the conversation she needed have carefully, not wanting to cause the child to withdraw.

"Yes, most of the time. Sometimes it rained when God needed for me to have a bath," She replied with utmost seriousness.

Tess chuckled softly, "Yes, God does have a way of giving us what we need, doesn’t He?" She watched as Faith smiled once more before she continued, "Sweetheart, I was wondering if you could tell me a little more about this man you met while you were in the woods. Can you tell me what he looked like?"

Faith’s eyes widened at the request as she stopped walking, "He scared me."

"Did he try to hurt you?"

"He wanted to take me to my father and I never want to go back there, Tess! Never, ever!" Her green eyes had clouded with tears, "You won’t let him take me back to him, will you?"

"Of course not, baby," Tess squeezed her hand reassuringly, "But if he tried to hurt you I need to know. Can you tell me anything else about him?"

Faith was silent as they resumed walking, obviously pondering something. Suddenly she stopped walking once more and looked up at the angel, "He looked scary, Tess. He didn’t look like you do."

"Well, I’ll take that as a compliment, Faith," She laughed, but the little girl was still very serious.

"No, he didn’t look like anybody I had ever seen before…he looked like sunshine, but it was dark…"

*****

Andrew paced the floor in the living room worriedly. Monica had been gone for the better part of an hour now and where he wanted to give her the space she had more or less requested, he still wasn’t comfortable with her being out there all alone where she could easily get lost.

He knew Tess had upset her, but he also knew her well enough to know that she was undoubtedly sorry for the tone she had taken with Tess. However the fact that she was feeling remorseful on top of feeling upset, in addition to worrying about losing Faith was enough to have him climbing the walls.

Unable to just sit still any longer, he headed for the front door, deciding Monica had been out in the forest for long enough and it was time she was found and consoled if need be. His hand was reaching for the knob when a voice from behind him caused him to stop.

"Andrew? We need to talk."