Title: Pedigree!

Spoilers: 2/15/01

Rating: PG-13 for pretty tough violence

Summary: Chris Benoit likes messing with people's minds and he's locked onto Angel. He's a worthy opponent. Is she up to the challenge?

Author's note: Thanks again for the reviews, guys! Especially Shadow, you're the greatest. :-)

SMACKDOWN! FEBRUARY 15TH, 2001

"So, you guys don't need me tonight?" Angel asked hopefully.

Matt shook her head. "It's really up to you, but I already have Lita. Maybe you can convince her not to come down. God knows I've tried."

"You don't want her there? Why?"

"Two words. Dean Malenko."

"You're right. Well, me and Jeff will be ready for the run in if you need us."

Matt scoffed. "You and Jeff. Someone's really got to teach you to stay out of trouble, you know."

Angel smiled at him innocently. "Me? Trouble?"

"Yeah, not much," Matt grinned. "Not that I'm asking for the run in, but if you do feel the need, make sure you…"

"Remember my sticks, I know. See you later, Matt. And good luck talking Lita out of it. I don't think you can do it."

Matt sighed. "I don't think I can, either."

* * * *

"It's official," Jeff announced, pulling up a chair.

"What is?" Angel asked.

"I went to see the bosses. I don't have a match tonight. That means I can hang with you here. What?" he asked, noticing her frown. "You don't like that idea?"

"It's not that, Jeff," Angel replied gently, not wanting to hurt his feelings. "It's just…I think you scare away my clients."

"Like who?"

"Essa Rios."

"Essa Rios," Jeff scoffed. "Why don't you take a look in your little book and see what Matt has to say about Essa Rios?"

"I already did. I was just making a point."

"Look, I don't need this," Jeff announced, getting to his feet. "Come get me when you actually want to hang out."

"Bye Jeff," Angel sighed. Although a lot of people didn't even know it existed, sometimes Jeff's sensitivity really did get old.

"It's too bad he doesn't understand you, because the two of you make such a nice little couple."

Angel looked up at the sound of the sarcastic voice. "We're not a couple," she said testily.

"No? Hmm. That is interesting. You know what? I don't care."

Angel's frown deepened. "What the hell do you want?"

Chris Benoit was taken aback. "I'm just talking to you, princess. Is that allowed?"

Angel held his gaze. "No, it's not."

Benoit laughed quietly. "You know something, little girl? People don't speak to me like that. You're either very brave or very, very stupid."

Angel nodded up at him. "What are the odds on those? Because I think I'd like a piece each way."

"Do you have any idea who you're talking to?"

"I sure do. An evil, heartless, soulless asshole."

Benoit smirked. "Exactly. So don't you think you should show me some respect?"

"You know, I don't see that happening. Look, Mr. Ben-oyt."

"It's Benoit."

"I know," Angel smiled. "Look, I really don't have time for this."

Benoit looked around the hall. "I'm sorry, I can't hear you over all the other wrestlers clamoring for your services."

Angel gave him a sarcastic smile. "Just tell me what you want and then leave."

"You mean a smart girl like you hasn't worked that out yet? I am disappointed. You're a valet for hire. I want to hire you to be my valet. Do you understand that?"

"You're kidding me."

"With an attitude like that you're blaming Jeff Hardy for the fact you don't have any clients?"

"No," Angel said emphatically.

"Excuse me?"

"I said no. I'm not going to be your valet."

"Your sign says 'all offers considered'. You haven't even heard my offer yet."

"Unless it's your severed head on a plate it's not going to be happening."

Benoit smirked. "Cute."

Angel still tried to stare him down. "What's your offer?"

"How about…"

"I've considered it and still say no," Angel cut in. "So I suggest you leave before I tap on this wall and invite my friends to kick your ass."

"Angel, do we have a problem here?" Al Snow asked as he and Blackman arrived on the scene.

"I don't know," Angel replied. "Do we?"

Benoit backed off, hands in the air. "Okay, I'll leave. But answer me one question, little girl. What color are your eyes?"

Al gave Blackman a strange look but Angel was still staring at Benoit. "That depends," she replied. "On how I'm feeling."

"How about when you're scared? When you're so frightened the blood is racing through your veins, your pulse is thundering, you break into a cold sweat and you almost want to vomit. What then, little girl? What color are your eyes?"

Angel nodded slowly, not breaking eye contact, not even blinking. "I don't know," she said evenly. "It hasn't happened yet."

* * * *

"Hey Angel, I missed you again on Monday."

"Billy, yeah, I know. I think I was probably dressing up as someone called Cactus Jack at the time."

Billy nodded thoughtfully. "I always thought he was better than Mankind because he had that 'bang bang' thing. Though others would probably disagree. I mean, Mankind did have Mr. Socko and I think most of us would've gotten the Mandible Claw at one time or another." He looked at Angel and realized he'd gone off on a tangent again. "Anyway, I'm not booked for anything tonight, but I'll stick around and see what happens. If I do get a match…"

"I know. You'll come get me." She gave him a friendly smile. "One of these days we'll work together, Billy."

Billy smiled back. "We sure will. I'll see you later." He left her office and headed for his locker room. As she watched him go, Angel noticed someone walking in the other direction, towards her.

"Al, where are you going?"

Al was still dressed in street clothes and lugging his gym bag. "I decided to go see my friend Mick Foley. You should come along. He'll love you."

"No thanks, Al. I think I'll stay here."

"Is it the smell?" Al asked. "'Cause you get used to it after a while, I swear."

Angel smiled. "No, I just think I'll stick around and maybe beat the crap out of Dean Malenko again."

Al nodded. "Well, that sounds like a lot of fun. If we were anywhere but Long Island I might join you for that."

"That's okay, Al. Do you need me to look after Head?"

"No, Head's okay with me tonight. For some reason, Mick Foley likes Head. Most people don't. Steve Blackman, for instance."

"Well, I do," Angel told him.

"I know," Al grinned. "That's why you're my protégé." He shouldered his bag. "Well, I better get going."

"Have fun," Angel said. "And say hi to your friend for me."

Al nodded. "I'll do that. See you tomorrow morning."

* * * *

After Al left, Angel scrawled a 'back in 5' message and left her office. She walked towards the entrance and stopped someone who was wearing an Attitude shirt.

"Hey, do you know where I can find a list of tonight's matches?"

"Yeah, there's a few around. One by Mr. McMahon's office, one in the catering room. Just a minute. Hey, Paul. You got a list of tonight's matches?"

The second guy nodded and patted himself down, finally locating a folded piece of paper in his pocket.

"Here you go," the first guy said, handing it to her.

"Thanks," she smiled, turning to leave. She read as she walked. Matt Hardy vs. Perry Saturn. She knew that one already. Then she found the one she was looking for. Chris Benoit vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin. What the heck? Frowning deeply, Angel entered her friends' locker room.

"Okay," she announced. "Who's the last person you'd expect to ask me to be their valet?"

"The Rock," Matt replied.

"Test?" Jeff guessed.

"Ivory," Lita put in.

"No, no and no."

"Who then?" Lita asked.

"Chris Benoit."

"What?" cried all three in unison.

"Relax, I said no."

Jeff clenched his fists. "Did he try to lay a hand on you?"

"No, Jeff, I'm fine. He just asked me to be his valet, then when I said no he asked what color my eyes are."

Lita frowned. "That's really weird. And very unlike Benoit. He didn't try to chop you across the chest?"

Angel shook her head. "Not even once. He was trying to scare me but you get that a lot around here. But that wasn't even the strange thing. Check out who he's facing." She handed them the list.

"Stone Cold?" Matt cried.

"Yeah, I know. What do you suppose that means?"

"That Benoit wants him to give you a Stunner," Jeff replied. "For some reason he won't hurt you himself, so he needs someone else to do it."

"That's just what I don't get. Everyone tells me how brutal Benoit is. That he's a destructive machine. Well, twice he's had his chance to destroy me, but twice he's barely touched me. Do you think if he was so tough he'd need to get someone else to hurt me?"

Lita shrugged. "Honey, I don't know what to tell you. Just be careful of Benoit. If he snaps, he could kill you."

"Lita, that's exactly the reason I don't want you at ringside," Matt cut in. "Malenko's going to be mad after what happened on Raw and I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Matt, we've been through this. I can take care of myself."

"Not with Malenko, you can't," Matt replied softly. Angel noticed the look of pain on his face. He'd confided to her once that he knew just how lucky he was to have Lita. Millions of guys wanted her, and she was his. He really didn't like pissing her off.

"God Matt, I'm part of Team eXtreme too. If you're in the ring, if it's at all possible, I want to be there for you. I'm part of this team too, you know."

"That's right, you are," Jeff spoke up. "I'll go out there with you. If Malenko tries anything on Lita, I'll have her back."

"And I'll have Jeff's," Angel added.

Matt nodded slowly. "Alright. A network. Just be sure it works."

* * * *

Angel watched the match on the backstage monitor. It was relatively close with both Saturn and Matt getting in some good hits.

"Get out of my way, I have to get out there."

The gravelly voice was unmistakable. Angel turned and got right in his face.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?' she demanded, rising up to her full height, which was slightly more than his.

"Get the hell out of my way," Malenko replied, shoving her to the ground and stepping over her.

"Hey, that wasn't very nice!" one of the techies cried, jumping to Angel's aid.

Malenko spun and glared at him. "You want a piece of me too? Yeah, didn't think so."

"What a total jackass," the techie scowled, helping Angel to her feet. "You okay, ma'am?"

Angel broke into a strange but knowing smile. "I will be soon." She thanked the techie for his help and stepped out onto the stage to find that the match was over and Matt had won.

Down on the floor, Malenko had grabbed Lita and kissed her. Angel ran quietly down the ramp towards them. Malenko broke away and stared at Lita with a smug smile, exactly like he'd done after kissing Angel just days earlier. Glaring at him, Lita reared back and slapped him across the face.

Angel saw and heard the impact and cringed. 'Ooh,' she thought. 'That had to hurt.'

Dejected, Malenko took a long look at Lita (as Jeff brought Saturn down with a clothesline), then started up the ramp.

Angel was standing on the barrier, waiting for him.

"Aaaaaaaaah!" she cried, raising her sticks above her head in a copy of Matt's leg drop signal. Malenko looked up at the sound, only to find Angel leaping towards him. He raised his hands but could do nothing as Angel brought him down in a hurricanrana. She crouched nimbly over his fallen body, waiting for him to make a move.

"The first time was for Lita," she hissed. "But this one's all about me."

Malenko knew she was waiting to take his legs out, so he thrust out his right hand, trying to grab her by the throat. Angel was ready, slapping his arm with one of her sticks, making him cry out and withdraw it.

"Get up!" Angel cried.

Malenko started to stumble up and Angel immediately swung her sticks and sent him flying onto his backside again.

"Get up!"

This time Malenko didn't move.

"Dammit, Malenko, get up!"

There was a rumble in Malenko's throat and a second later he spat in her face.

Temporarily blinded, Angel still knew where Malenko was and slammed her sticks down over his knees.

"Get up!" she screamed, wiping her face.

Malenko was writing in pain.

Angel hit him once more. "I told you to get your ass up."

"Dean!" Lita's voice carried across the loudspeaker, causing Angel to look up. She climbed behind Malenko and, holding each end of a stick, caught him underneath the throat and jerked him to his feet.

"My cousin's talking to you, it's polite to listen," she snapped into his ear. Looking down the ramp, she noticed that Saturn was up and headed towards her. She struck Malenko across the back of the knees once more.

"Make sure you listen carefully," she advised, running down the ramp. Saturn ran towards her but she ducked at the critical moment and dove through his legs. She then scrambled to her feet and joined Lita, Matt and Jeff in the ring.

Lita told Malenko that their feud had to stop and that she wanted to take him on in the ring on Monday. Matt and Jeff were less than impressed.

"No, Lita. What are you thinking?" Matt cried. "You can't wrestle him!"

"Of course I can. Don't worry."

"Don't worry?" It was Jeff's turn. "Lita, he's pissed you rejected him. He could kill you."

"But Angel's allowed to attack him whenever she wants?" Lita protested.

"That's different," Matt told her. "Angel's psychotic."

Lita glared at him. "Yeah? Well, maybe it runs in the family." With that, she rolled from the ring, not caring who joined her. Angel was immediately by her side, putting an arm around her.

"They should worry about you killing him," she said.

Lita grinned. "Thanks, Ange. What did you do to him, anyway? He looked almost dead already."

Angel shrugged. "My second successful hurricanrana and several stick shots. You said he had knee surgery, right?"

Lita nodded as they stepped through the curtain and reached the hall.

"Well," Angel told her. "I think he's currently having deja vu."

Lita grinned. "Have I ever told you I love having you around?"

"Aw, how damn touching."

Angel turned to look directly into the cold stare of Chris Benoit.

Jeff stepped up, protecting her. "Don't even think about it, Benoit." Matt stepped up beside him and folded his arms.

Benoit put his hands in the air. "I'm on my way to a match which may just put me back in main event contention, where I belong. Why would I want to waste my time with a couple of permanent midcarders like the two of you?"

Jeff still glared at him. "I'm just making sure you don't try anything."

Benoit smirked. "In your fantasies, Hardy." He turned back to Angel. "One last chance, little girl. If you want to join me, the match is yours."

"Not even if you bent down, puckered up and kissed my ass," Angel scowled.

Benoit nodded, still smirking. "Your choice. But remember that I offered." He walked past the four of them, towards the backstage area. They turned and watched him go, not trusting him not to attack while their backs were turned. But the only thing they saw was Benoit's own back as he continued on his way.

"I don't get it," Lita admitted.

"You don't get it?' Angel cried. "After what I just did to Malenko he still didn't do anything to me."

"Maybe he likes you," Matt shrugged.

Lita glared at him. "Matt, with the Dean situation, how can you even suggest that?"

"Yeah," Jeff added. "It's nothing alike. Malenko is a lech, Benoit is a robot. He doesn't even have a heart, let alone know how to follow it."

"I don't know any better than you do, okay?" Matt told them as they reached the locker room. "The only thing I do know is that I don't like it one little bit. Angel, maybe Jeff should stay out here with you in case Benoit starts anything after the match."

Angel shook her head. "I'll be fine. And you guys will be right in here. If he does anything I'll tap or scream or something."

Matt looked over at Jeff, who nodded slowly.

"Even better," he said. "If Benoit approaches you, run, either to us, or the Hollys or Blackman."

Angel nodded. "Okay."

"Watch yourself, Ange," Lita warned as she and the Hardyz entered the room. "Benoit's worse than Malenko."

Angel climbed into her office and pulled out her bag, which she'd hidden in a dark corner of the closet. She found the TV and switched it on. Benoit was just making his entrance. His eyes were intense and focused, his muscles hard and smooth. Jeff was right – he was a robot. Angel watched him for a while, her face scrunching into a scowl.

"You want me, Benoit?" she murmured. "You got me."

* * * *

Lita and the Hardyz were watching the match on a TV in their locker room. No sooner had Benoit entered the ring than another entrance song played – but it wasn't Stone Cold's.

"That's my music!" Lita cried. "Am I supposed to be out there?"

"There's your answer," Matt said sullenly as Jeff cried, "Angel?"

"Dammit," Lita sighed. "Ever since that ring bell to the head I've really wondered if she's okay."

Jeff jumped to his feet. "I'm going to talk some sense into her."

Matt grabbed his arm. "No, Jeff. You don't want to get in the middle of Benoit and Austin."

Jeff shrugged him off. "Then I'm going to wait backstage. If I can see her in the ring and I protect her on the way back, I might stop her from getting hurt."

Matt nodded. "You be careful too."

Jeff touched fists with him and then Lita. "You bet."

* * * *

Angel strode purposefully to the ring. She looked right up at Benoit, smiled and waved. Benoit cocked his head and stared at her as she made her way to his corner. The sound of glass shattering filled his ears and he spun around to watch the entrance of his opponent.

"Oh yeah!" Angel cried. "Let's go, Austin!"

Benoit turned back to her. She held eye contact and joined with the crowd as they chanted Austin's name. Austin's first attack took Benoit by surprise, as did Angel's loud cheer. It took him some time to refocus and, every time Austin got a good shot in, Angel would scream, applaud and jump up and down. It was too bad Austin wasn't paying her, because this was one good valeting job.

To Benoit's credit, he had his moments, causing a red welt to appear on Austin's chest after several chops. But he was really no match for Austin, who was in total control.

The match changed with the appearance of a fourth party – Austin's mortal enemy, Triple H. He distracted Austin long enough for Benoit to mount an attack, but then battled back. Triple H distracted the referee and put a chair in the ring. Stepping back, Benoit trod on it and turned to give Triple H his trademark smirk.

Triple H smiled back. He might not be able to hurt Austin, but Benoit sure could. Benoit had his eyes back on Austin while Triple H tried to distract the referee again. Neither of them saw Angel leap into the ring, grab the char and leave again. When the ref was distracted, Benoit turned to pick up the chair, only to find it wasn't there. He looked over at Angel, who held it up for him to see. That moment was enough. Austin grabbed Benoit's head and gave him a Stone Cold Stunner. He made the cover and the ref, now back in the mix, made the three count.

Triple H was livid. He jumped onto the ring apron, knowing he couldn't touch Austin but wanting to desperately. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Angel, who was celebrating Austin's victory. So that was why his plan hadn't worked. He didn't know what the girl was doing helping Austin and he didn't care. If he couldn't touch Austin, maybe this would be just as good. He walked towards her, a furious look on his face.

Angel saw the look and knew she was in trouble. She raised the chair to defend herself, but Triple H shoved it into her chest, making her tumble backwards to the ground. But Triple H wasn't done yet. Reaching down, he grabbed Angel by the neck and lifted her to her feet. Then he put her head between his legs, looped her arms behind her back and collapsed his legs, slamming her face into the chair. He looked up into the ring and caught Austin's eye, then pointed down at Angel and made the throat-slitting action.

"You're next, Austin," he grinned. "You're next."

* * * *

Jeff Hardy sprinted down the ramp, past Triple H, then around the ring, past Stone Cold, past Benoit. He got down on his knees next to Angel's fallen body.

"Angel!" he cried, rolling her over gently.

The impact of the chair had busted open her eyebrow again. Her eyes were closed but she was conscious and crying quietly.

Jeff clutched her head to his chest. "Angel, why did you come out here?"

"Jeff," she sobbed. "What was that? What happened to me?"

"You got pedigreed," Jeff replied, stroking her hair and using his other hand to try and stop her bleeding.

Angel didn't reply, just let him hold her as the tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Where do you hurt?" Jeff asked softly.

"My face…my head…my neck."

"Your neck?" Jeff cried worriedly. "I shouldn't have moved you."

"It's okay. It's just sore. It's more my face."

"We have to get you to the trainer's room," Jeff decided. "Loop your arms around my neck."

Angel did as she was told and Jeff picked her up in a fireman's hold.

In the ring, Benoit was finally getting up after the Stunner. He looked down into the stormy face of Jeff Hardy.

"I don't care who actually did this," Jeff spat. "You're to blame."

Benoit held his gaze and formed a scowl, but his smirk was missing, a fact that went unnoticed by most people.

* * * *

"Hey, can I get someone to look at my friend?" Jeff cried, entering the trainer's room with Angel in his arms.

"Sure, put her down over here."

Dean Malenko, who was receiving treatment to his knee, looked over at Angel with a smirk. "What the hell happened to her?"

"Go to hell, Malenko," Jeff scowled.

Malenko feigned concern. "No, really. It looks pretty bad. What happened?"

Jeff narrowed his eyes. "Not that it's any of your business but she got a Pedigree onto a steel chair."

"Oh!" Malenko broke into an evil laugh. He pulled his legs away from the paramedic who was working on his knees. "You know what? I think I can leave now. I suddenly feel much better."

The medic backed off and let Malenko stand. His knees almost buckled, causing him to stumble forward.

"Yeah, it hurts," he admitted to Jeff. "But not half as much as she must." Chuckling, he left the room.

"Jackass," Jeff muttered after him. He turned back to Angel who was being asked countless questions – her name, the date, what she'd had for breakfast.

"You're doing real good, Angel," Jeff encouraged her, sweeping a few short strands of hair off her face. Luckily she'd stopped bleeding.

The medic checked her movement, then spoke to Jeff. "I don't think we need to hospitalize her. She doesn't seem to be concussed and while she is in pain, she does seem to have full movement. I suggest you take her and put her to bed, but keep an eye on her in case she develops blurred vision or sudden hearing loss or starts vomiting."

Jeff nodded. "Thank you. So, 'Gel, you ready to go back to the hotel?"

"Am I ever," Angel replied, hoping the painkillers would kick in soon.

"Okay." Jeff smiled at her. "Stay right here and I'll go get our stuff."

He raced off, only to return a few minutes later with a frown on his face and a man in tow.

"Angel, we have a problem," he told her.

"What?" Angel asked.

"Angel Torres?" the man questioned.

"Yes."

"Please follow me. Mr. McMahon would like to see you in his office immediately."

* * * *

"Angel Torres?" Vince McMahon asked as she entered his office.

"Yes, sir."

"Please take a seat. Now, you know who I am, correct?"

Angel nodded. "Yes, sir. You're Mr. McMahon."

"That's right. But are you also aware that I know who you are? I don't know what you've been playing at, Angel, but if you think that you've been wandering around unnoticed for the past month, I'm afraid you're mistaken."

Angel didn't know how to answer him, so she chose her words carefully. "I never meant to hurt anyone."

"Oh no?" Vince frowned. "Well, I'm not sure Dean Malenko would agree with you on that."

His words stung Angel, despite the fact that her painkillers were starting to work. She now knew she was in trouble.

"Now, it's not as though we ban visitors, especially family members," Vince continued. "In fact, five members of Kurt Angle's family joined us for Christmas and had a fabulous time. But that's an isolated incident. You, Angel, have been around for a month now. And we might even be tolerant of that ordinarily but when you start attacking superstars, we know it's time to put a stop to it. Now, I'm a fair man, so I'll ask for your opinion. What do you think I should do with you?"

Angel bit her lip and shook her head. "I don't know."

Vince folded his hands and nodded. "Okay, a different question. What do you want from me?"

Angel was taken aback. "I'm sorry?"

"What do you want from the WWF? In short, why are you still here?"

"I want a contract. I want to be a wrestler."

Vince raised his eyebrows. "Well, surely you've been told that there are better ways. There are fine wrestling schools throughout the nation and we send scouts along to them regularly. Or, you could audition for Tough Enough, a program we're running with MTV during the summer. The winner gets a World Wrestling Federation contract."

"I'm being coached by Al Snow and Steve Blackman," Angel informed him. "That's why I have to stay around."

Vince nodded thoughtfully. "What I should do is have you escorted from the building and ask you not to return, then equip security with your picture to be sure you don't. How you get trained is your problem, not mine."

Angel felt the tears stinging her eyes. "Yes, sir. You're right."

"But I'm not going to," Vince continued.

"You're not?"

"Not yet, anyway. Perhaps before tonight I may have, but I saw my son-in-law Triple H give you a Pedigree earlier. While I don't tolerate you attacking my superstars, I equally don't approve of my superstars attacking you. So, in the interest of fairness, I'm prepared to make a deal with you. If you can prove that people want you around, I won't have you banned. Now, that sounds fair, don't you think?"

Angel nodded. There had to be a catch. "What about Malenko?"

"If you prove yourself, I will ensure that you have all of the same rights as any of my superstars. Therefore, if you take offence to someone or something, you can do what you will. However, I will not be able to offer protection if someone takes offence to you."

"That sounds fair."

"Yes, I know. But you understand this won't be an official contract and I won't be paying you."

"Can I still earn money as a valet?"

Vince raised his hands. "What you will."

Angel nodded thoughtfully. "So, how do I prove myself?"

Vince smiled. "Smart girl," he said approvingly. "What I have in mind is a petition. Now, I understand that you won't have met everyone yet, and not everyone you have met likes you, that's just the way it is. If you can get me fifteen signatures from fifteen different superstars who want to keep you around, you can stay."

"Fifteen?" Angel asked.

"Fifteen. That's my offer. Do you accept?"

"How long do I have to do this?"

"Hmm, well I have appointments that will keep me away from Raw, so why don't we say, after Smackdown? That's a week. That seems fair, wouldn't you say?"

Angel nodded. What other choice did she have? "Okay. One week."

"I look forward to seeing you again." Vince reached out and shook her hand. "It was a delight to meet you, Miss Torres, and I wish you all the best."

"Thank you, sir," Angel murmured. She left the office to find Lita and the Hardyz waiting for her.

"What happened?" Lita asked.

"I need fifteen signatures from people who want to keep me around," Angel said numbly. "Do I know fifteen people?"

Jeff smiled and put an arm around her. "Only fifteen? Angel, this is not going to be a problem. Trust me."

Angel stared at him fearfully. She hoped he was right.