CHAPTER 14

A promise

When she heard Andrew unlocking the door of their apartment, Monica stood up from the sofa and crossed the small living room. The side table lamps were still on and when the blond angel opened the door he was surprised to see her standing there, wearing a robe over her pyjamas and with her long auburn hair cascading over her shoulders.

"Angel?" he spoke, closing the door behind him and dropping his briefcase on the floor. "It's 3 o'clock in the morning, what are you doing awake?"

She smiled at him, a sleepy and contented smile as now he was finally there. "Imagining what it would be like when you arrived and I could finally hold you!" Monica replied, at the same time she shortened the distance between them and flung herself into his strong arms.

Andrew held for long, pleasant minutes and kissed the top of her head. He had told her about her sleeping time and that she shouldn't remain awake until late because of him, but undoubtedly her greeting warmed his soul. "Oh, angel... you should be in bed by now..."

"It's Saturday and I'm not teaching so I thought that sleeping could be compensated later on..." she said, giving him a tired smile. Andrew pulled some strands of hair from her face and cupped her cheeks with both hands. He bent down and when his lips brushed against hers, all the worry and stress she had been feeling throughout the day were soothed by his loving caress.

Gently, the blond angel encircled her waist and brought her closer to him, still kissing her lips as if they were a reward for such a hard work day. But to him, Monica was much more than that, she was a blessing, a gift that would forever fill his heart with great joy.

"I missed you during the day..." she sighed, resting her head against his chest once their kiss was over. But soon after that, the Irish angel looked up at him and added. "I mean, I always miss you when you're not with me, but today... I guess I needed a hug like this more urgently..."

Andrew frowned and tilted his head with some concern. "Why, angel? What happened?"

X

Once Andrew had showered and changed into a more comfortable pair of jeans and a green sweatsuit, he ate a night snack that Monica had so carefully prepared him. Making a sandwich and preparing some hot chocolate were a lot easier than an entire meal. Plus, she still had time to prepare herself some mocha. Both grabbed a mug containing their favourite drinks and cuddled up in the sofa where Monica told him about the events of the day.

And not surprisingly, she found him frowning with concern – and with anger. Few things could infuriate Andrew such as cruelty against children, as like Monica, he too was very fond of them. Besides this, she could also see great worry in his eyes due to the fact that she had been face to face with the little girl's father.

"You should call the authorities, Monica... what you're telling me is..."

"But I don't know if my suspicions are true... It... it's hard for me to believe that wee Rose's parents are abusing her... This is... too cruel to be true!"

Sighing deep, Andrew searched her eyes. "Whatever you do, angel, you have to promise me something..."

"Y-yes, but what is it?"

"Don't go back there... not alone or with Ella..."

She looked at him for a few moments, as if processing what he was implying. "Do you think that can be dangerous?"

"Yes. If this is true, Monica, this man should be in prison."

She scooted closer and wrapped her arms around his torso. "I hope I'm wrong..."

He kissed the top of her head and caressed her arm back and forth. "Me too, angel... me too."

It didn't take too long before the blond angel noticed that his lovely companion had fallen asleep against his chest, feeling safe and protected by his loving embrace. Even in human form, she was trying to help and this way, she remained loyal to her angelic nature. Loving and compassionate, ready to voice her thoughts in favour of those who were weak.

Andrew's greatest fear, however, was that now in human form she was weak too, and vulnerable to any sorts of dangers that life could bring. The blond angel turned his eyes to the window, from where he could see the sky turning in hues of purple and orange, and prayed for her safety.

X

Two days later...

"I don't see my mommy yet, Miss Monica... Why isn't she here?"

The worry in the little girl's voice matched the one in the Irish angel's heart. On that Monday afternoon, when all the little students were practically gone, Rose stood at the school building entrance still waiting for her mother. Monica remained by her side, holding her hand and praying that someone would come soon to pick her up.

But time went by and no one showed up. And Monica's heart broke when Rose turned her sad and teary blue eyes up at her and asked a simple but painful question. "Did they forget me here forever?"

"Oh, no, sweetheart! Of course not!" she said, kneeling down in front of her. "Please, don't say such things, wee one! You are so precious to your family!"

"Then why aren't they here?"

Monica reached up to wipe away her tears and caressed her blond hair. "Because something might be keeping them, something against their will."

She tried to engage Rose in a conversation but it only lasted some more minutes. The little girl was scared and anguished and it was hard for Monica to see. The secretary walked over them for the second time and once again there was the same answer. "We tried to contact Rose's parents again but no one is answering..." she informed the young teacher.

"You know where my house is, Miss Monica?" the little girl suddenly asked, sniffling and desperate.

Monica had to make a decision at that moment. The school was about to close and Ella's group left earlier on Mondays so she had already gone home. And soon, the feeble sunrays would fade away and night would fall on Earth. She couldn't just stay there and do nothing.

But on the other hand, she had made a promise to Andrew and she couldn't break it.

"I'll take you home, Rose." The angel said, "I just need to contact someone first..."

x

Monica's heart beat faster with a mix of feelings such as guilt and worry. She hadn't managed to contact Andrew. She was breaking a promise two days after they had discussed Rose's condition, but what could she do when the little one was crying in her arms for fear of not seeing her parents any longer?

Leaving a message at the fire department was what she managed to do before leaving the school building. Monica hoped that when Andrew arrived, they would inform him that she tried to contact him but hadn't managed to.

"Here we are, wee Rose!" she spoke to the little girl who kept a permanent hold of her hand. Monica paid the taxi driver for the short ride up to Rose's neighbourhood and the two got out of the car.

And it didn't take Monica too long to find out why Mrs Sparks hadn't shown to pick up her daughter at school. When they arrived at the 3rd floor, it was possible to hear loud voices and insults from the corridor. The angel tightened the hold around Rose's little hand and could feel the girl's panic rising. Besides this, Monica remembered Andrew's words two nights before, asking her not to go back there all by herself - he was right, as now her heart was filled with fear.

"Rose... I... I think we'd better go back, I guess I might call some help as-"

She didn't manage to finish her sentence, though. Suddenly, the door of the Sparks' apartment was pulled open and Rose's father appeared.

"You are always complaining about me but I've told you already you're not gonna cheat on me!" he spoke out loud, and when he saw the young teacher and his daughter standing in the corridor, he seemed to be angrier than he already was. "What are you doing here again?" he fumed, glaring at her.

"Let's go, Rose, I don't think it's a place for us..." Monica gave a step back and pulled the little girl with her.

"Daddy... where is mommy?" she cried, scared at that man's aggressive voice.

Mr Sparks walked up to them and tried to grab his daughter's arm. "C'mon, get inside you too!"

"I won't allow you to touch her!" Monica suddenly stepped in front of Rose and blocked his way.

The look on his face made the angel of God tremble with fear. Monica had seen that look before, and she knew that evil was performing on that human being.

"Who do you think you are, woman?" he shouted, leaving her to breathe the smell of alcohol in him.

"You're drunk and not yourself! For God's sake, Rose is only an innocent child, leave her al-"

There wasn't time for her to finish the sentence. Rob Sparks grabbed Monica's shoulders to try to remove her out of his way, but as she insisted on protecting the crying child from her abusive father, the man ended up losing his patience. His heavy hand fell against the soft skin of her meek face and a streak of blood appeared there a second later. His blow made her lose her balance and fall on the floor and only then Rob managed to get a hold of Rose's little arm. "C'mon, it's time you were at home already! And stop crying, will you!"

"Daddy... no!"

Only then, Rose's mother appeared by the apartment door, and like Monica, she too was wounded on the face. "Let her go, Rob!"

"Shut up you two!"

Before the furious man could make his way back to his apartment, however, another voice was heard through the corridor.

"You're under arrest, sir! Let go of the girl and put your hands up!"

Three policemen were suddenly walking towards him, one of them grabbing a hold of the gun and ready to use it. Certainly they had been called by the neighbours, who were tired of hearing the couple arguing every night and already fearing the consequences of such violent arguments.

"You alright, miss?" one of them asked, helping Monica to rise to her feet. The other one saw that Mrs Sparks had been badly beaten up and called an ambulance.

"Y-yes..." Monica spoke, covering her burning face and looking at the man who had so cowardly beaten her and his wife. He was still shouting and threatening under the effects of alcohol, but a wave of relief filled her heart when the officers took him away. And when the angel turned her eyes to little Rose and her mother, she saw the two holding each other and crying. Perhaps that night would set a new beginning for them.

"I just called an ambulance, you two need to go to a hospital." The policeman informed her.

"Thank you..." Monica heard Mrs Sparks saying, and looking at her with gratitude. "...for what you did for my daughter... for protecting her when I myself failed..."

"You didn't fail, Mrs Sparks... God knows that... All you need is courage, and I'm sure you have it."