The midmorning light could barely be seen between two rotting pieces of wood, meant to conceal a window that had long been gone. The light that found it's way in exposed dust in the air and made a simple pattern on a three legged coffee table. Nora sat on the floor, in the dust and the shadow. She was glad to be on Earth again. She is in fact so glad that she didn't notice the condition of the place she sat. She had escaped hell.It was a temporary escape, she knew, She would be back there soon. That is if she didn't have her say in the mater.
Had she tricked the minions when she told them she could pull of an assasination? She wasn't sure what she was capable of if the need was great. It was the only way to escape the torture. No one can understand torture until they experience it first hand. The rage and misery it makes you feel is horrible. Worse yet is the feeling of complete helplessness. Nora had been lucky to only be on one of the higher levels of hell. Lucky. The word didn;t seem to fit her situation.
Standing on unsteady legs Nora looked around herself. She was not too far from her intended target. He volenteered at a youth centre two blocks away from what Nora wouldn't dare call a house. She would need to build his trust. Dona had warned her that her target Toby was keenly intelligent but also very trusting. She would need to use her charm and get him to put down his defenses so she could go in for the kill.
Once outside Nora became aware of how messy her appearance really was. She was covered in dust, her hair a mess of tangles and her scent that of body odor. She wasn't sure where she should go to celan up. She looked about herself, finally retreating back into the house. In the rusted sink she washed out her clothing. She poured cold water in the big bath tub, that had black mold around it's edges. Then she slipped in the tub and scrubbed her body clean with a half used bar of ivory soap. Out of the tub she put on her wet clothing and set out for a run, to let her body heat heat both her and the clothing.
Toby sat watching the group of young adults write poetry and draw in the arts and crafts room. He had his eye especially on a eightteen year old girl, named Chelsea Calhoun. She was his case, to protect and offer emotional support. He knew her name was not Chelsea and thatthe little gil had more secret than all the humans in that room together. Not more than him. But how could a human contest to have more secrest than an angel? She caught him watching her and smiled but her eyes had fear in them. She was aware of any potential threat and she had her eye on him. He wanted to assure her that he was her pretector but instead turned his eyes away. He would not draw her suspicions until he knew for sure what it was that threatened her. He had to earn her trust, somehow. If he acted too soon she would bolt.
He was deep in thought when he felt a soft tap on his shoulder. He turned at the sound and found himself staring wide eyed into a pair of charcoal black eyes. The girl took a few steps back and smiled. She seemed unsure of herself. He smiled at her and tried to let his mind gently prob hers. He wanted to know a bit more about this person who so easily snuck up on him and if she was careful she would sense nothing of his inquiry. What he hit was a stone wall in her mind and a sharp shock and he found himself kicked out. He blinked. Before he had the chance to speak the girl did, in a voice not much louded than a whisper. She sounded like someone that was not used to using her voice. "Are you Toby?" Toby nodded. "I am Nora Duvant. I'm new in town and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind my joining your group?" She took the sides of her damp shirt in both hands and met his gaze with no shread of her seeming painful shyness. "Yes, of course Nora. Take a seat. Make yourself at home. We're doing poetry and if you'd like art today. This group isn't formal, we provoid the supplies and you do with them as you wish." Nora smiled again and went to sit near the front of the room, a small distance from the rest of the kids. He felt raddled by something and for a moment had a hard time forming concrete thoughts. He shamed himself for being so distracted. He had to focus on his case and not let his mind get so filled with other things.
Still he had learned fromt he past to trust his feeling and there;s was something queer about Nora Duvant. He would speak to Tess when he had the chance and mayeb Ruth is her needed to. If it was nothgin at least he could put his full attention to his case without worrying. Toby relaxed. He would go to see Tess after group and she would know what to do.