Supreme apologies for the huge delay in this chapter. Life has been hectic, to say the least. Thanks and big hugs to everyone still hanging in there with us on this wee tale.
Chapter Two
One week later…
"Permission to come aboard?" A disembodied voice floated through Kayla's door, and the young woman rolled her eyes playfully, knowing immediately who the voice belonged to.
"Denied."
"Okay fine… be that way," Jordan said laughingly as he entered the room and dropped into a chair next to Kayla's bed. "How are you feeling today?"
An impish grin spread across her pretty face, "Well, actually, I feel great today. Well, actually, better than great… terrific actually."
Jordan's eyes lit up, already knowing what Kayla was going to say next. "Gee, I can't imagine what's got you so happy."
"Doctor Stanton was in here about an hour ago. The cancer's gone… I'm officially in remission!" the young woman's grin widened, and her eyes twinkled.
Jordan let out a little whoop of excitement and caught Kayla up in his arms. "Hey, that's great! So when are they letting you outta the joint?"
"Tomorrow, I think. I have to have my hickmann's line removed later today, and then one more round of bloodwork. Tomorrow morning they're going to give me instructions for maintence chemo and turn me loose." She told him, hugging him back tightly. "I feel like it's finally over."
Jordan smiled as he released Kayla, "Well, I'm thrilled that you're finally getting out of here, but I have to say that I'm going to miss seeing you so often." He took her hand in his, squeezing it lightly
"I hadn't planned to stop seeing you, as long as it's not here," she replied. "I'm so glad I met you, and I've been very grateful for your friendship. I don't have any intentions of letting go of that."
Jordan grinned, "Glad to hear that. And I think we can arrange something away from here, as long as I don't have to wear the clown shoes."
"You mean you don't wear them all the time?" Kayla asked, feigning innocence.
"Very funny," Jordan said, trying to look stern. "You're lucky I've got an appointment with said shoes and a bunch of kids, or we'd have this out right now." He gave her another quick hug before standing, "I'll see you later, ok?"
"Definitely," Kayla gave a little wave as Jordan left the room and headed up to the pediatric wing. After he had gone, she sighed contentedly and leaned back against the pillows. For the first time in a long while, her life seemed to be going perfectly. She was about to be released from the hospital with a clean bill of health, and she had a very good feeling about she and Jordan. He was the best thing in her life since Monica had left. He seemed to truly care about her, and the fact that he was gorgeous definitely was a plus, especially at a time when Kayla had felt totally unattractive. The only thing that was missing was Monica. Kayla wished so much to be able to see her and talk to her. She sighed again and looked upward. "God, I know Monica's an angel and all, but she's also the best friend I ever had. Please tell her – wherever she is – that I miss her."
***
Adam walked through the park, a calm smile on his face. He had just gotten off an assignment, and unlike some of his work, this time was a joy. He was assigned to take a 102 year old man home and before they left, the man insisted that Adam call him Charlie, and then showed him pictures of all 23 grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Charlie had always been a staunch believer in God, and so he was thrilled to meet his angel, and actually had been looking forward to going Home. He told Adam that he had lived a full life, and now his body was telling him that it was time to move on to the next, where he was sure to be able to watch over his family. The only question Charlie had had, in fact, was whether or not they played poker in heaven. After Adam assured the old man there were poker tables where you didn't lose money, Charlie was more than ready to go.
Adam stopped walking and took a seat on a nearby park bench. The sun was just starting to go down, sending hues of purple and orange cascading across the sky. "Father, thank you for days like this, and assignments like this. It's humans like Charlie that make me glad to be an angel of death."
The angel sat in silence for a few moments more until he heard a soft voice speaking to his heart. His handsome face contorted in sadness as the Father told him what his next assignment was to be. "Oh God, please… no." He continued to hope that he heard wrong when he heard a soft sound coming from the trees across the path, and he knew that he had not.
He quickly walked through the trees, and found a young woman lying on the ground, making soft sounds of pain as she tried to regain consciousness. Adam didn't know what had happened to this woman, but he did know that she hadn't gotten here on her own. As he knelt down beside her, he felt more knowledge drift into his heart, and he had to swallow a lump that had formed in his throat. "Why, Father? Why?" A tear rolled down his face as he gently gathered the woman's slight body into his arms, speaking soft words of comfort to her as he was told what to do next.
***
"Here's your tea, Angel Boy," Tess said as she handed Andrew a mug and retreated to the sofa with her own. Kayla had just left for the evening, after having dinner with the two angels. God had not given them any other assignments since their friend's death, only instructing the older angels to "wait and see." So, they were using the time to continue what Monica began with Kayla. Over the two weeks since Monica had died, a deep friendship had begun to form between the three. Kayla had told Tess about the visit she had gotten from Monica and how it helped her find the strength to get better, but the young human had also confided that she still missed her angelic friend.
Andrew took the cup gratefully and settled back in the chair he was sitting in. "You know, it feels good to finally have someone to take care of again, even if it's not Monica," he said with a half smile.
Tess smiled back, but chose not to say anything. She knew he was still grieving hard over losing Monica, but the fact that the two of them had grown so close to Kayla was helping a little bit. The young woman had been spending a lot of time at the angels' apartment, and Andrew's nature had caused him to appoint himself as Kayla's protector. He had even gone as far as to give Jordan the third degree when he had come to pick Kayla up for their first date after the young woman had gotten out of the hospital.
"Do you think we'll see her again soon?" Andrew asked, referring to his best friend.
Tess hesitated a moment before answering, "I don't know, baby, but I definitely hope so. Have you been feeling anything?" Her two young charges had always shared a connection that baffled her. Many times over the years it had been as if they shared emotions. If Monica was hurting or frightened, Andrew was usually the first to know.
"I don't think so," he said, shaking his head. "I mean, sometimes it seems like I am, but I think it's just my imagination."
Tess was getting ready to respond when she heard a knock at the door. "I wonder who that is at this hour," she said, getting up to answer it. As the older angel pulled open the door, her expression turned to one of surprise. "Sam?"
"Hello Tess," Sam said as he stepped into the apartment and followed Tess to the living room. "How have you two been?"
"We're hanging in there," Andrew replied. "What brings you here this late?"
Sam took a seat next to Tess on the sofa as he tried to find a good way to tell his friends what God had sent him to say. "I'm here to talk to you about the status of Monica's assignment," He said, figuring htat keeping it to business would give him time to stall.
Tess looked confused, "You mean there's more to be done? I thought that Monica had finished her work before she went Home." She still didn't like to say that Monica had died. It sounded foreign, wrong.
Sam nodded, "Well, she did finish part of the assignment, but the second part is about to begin. I wish I could say that it would be easier than the first part, but unfortunately that's not going to be the case."
"What do you mean, Sam? How much harder can it get?" Andrew asked the questions without really wanting an answer. His stomach was already telling him that there were many ways things could get worse.
"I don't have much information at all, to be honest," Sam told him. "But I do know that Monica will be arriving here shortly, and then the assignment will begin. This time, however, Monica is one of the assignments. You two are going to be helping both her and Kayla through the road ahead. What's on that road, I don't know. I'm sorry I don't have more information for you."
Tess looked worriedly at Sam, and then her eyes shifted to Andrew, who had a pained look on his face. "Angel boy? What's wrong?"
Andrew didn't speak for several moments as he seemed to be concentrating fiercly on something. "I'm not sure yet, Tess. I think I'm feeling something, but it's very weak." He looked to Sam. "Do you know what's going on?"
Sam shook his head, his face a mask of concern. "I don't know, Andrew, but I think you should keep concentrating."
The three angels sat in silence as Andrew continued to listen to his heart. After what seemed like an eternity, he gasped and said. "Tess… it's Monica. I can feel her again."
Tess grinned widely and looked toward Sam. "That's a good thing, right? If he can feel her, that means that she's back." Sam nodded, a smile making it's way across his face.
"No, wait," Andrew spoke up again, his voice soft. "There's something wrong."
Tess's face fell. "What's wrong, baby?"
"I don't know…" Andrew's eyes grew shiny. "But, something's terribly wrong."