I know I said I'd try and get this done before Christmas Day, but hey, what can you do? I be busy these days, so it'll get done when it gets done. Oh yeah, after all my bargaining and pleading with God, another person has finally reviewed this story (per our agreement, I'm off to Calcutta to work with the poor)… MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYBODY!!!

"Angel?" James asked in disbelief. "What do you mean, angel?"

"She came in a sea of golden light," the woman said. "She thanked me for helping him and then took him away with her. She gave me this!"

The woman reached inside her pocket and pulled out an old-looking bracelet. She gave it to Wesley, who examined it closely, but could see nothing special about it.

"What is it?" he asked.

"She said that whatever you do comes back to you sevenfold," she answered. "She told me that this was just the beginning. I don't know what it means, but I'm certainly thankful for it. It's my new good luck charm. Do you believe?"

"I believe she's cracked," James whispered to Wesley.

"We do," Wesley said, pushing James away. "Did she say anything about where they went?"

"Just that she would come back to help you," the woman said.

"Well," Wesley said, "thank you very much. And have a nice day."

"I will," the woman said as she waved goodbye to Wesley and James.

The two brothers walked down the street, not in any particular direction. After all, they didn't know where to begin. Matthew could be anywhere, which made the task of finding him that much harder.

"Well?" James asked.

"Well, what?" Wesley asked back.

"What's next?" James asked. "First, you leave Matt alone with some crazy woman who sits up and talks about angels. Now, we have no idea where he is. He could be anywhere! And he has the Book with him. He's basically a walking demon magnet, and you left him alone! What the hell were you thinking?"

"What was I thinking?" Wesley echoed. "I was thinking that maybe I'll be the responsible one who says he's gonna do something and actually go through with it. I wasn't the one who started the whole abandoning thing, you know."

"Are you saying that this is all my fault?" James asked.

"It's not mine," Wesley said.

As the argument between the two brothers heated up, a young woman, African-American, appeared in front of them in a cascade of golden light. They were too busy arguing with each other to notice her. She didn't say a word; she only stood there, just a few feet from them, and watched them go at each other verbally. Finally, she decided to take action and stepped in between them.

"Is this any way to act in a lady's presence?" she asked.

"What lady?" Wesley asked. "You're our age!"

"Never mind," she said. "I'm looking for somebody, maybe more than one person."

"Sorry," James said, "we don't play detective outside work hours."

"It involves a person with a 103 degree temperature," she said.

"Uh," Wesley said, "can you describe this person?"

"He talks in his sleep," she answered. "He keep saying something about somebody throwing him out of a car."

"Matt," James and Wesley said together.

"Can you take us to him?" James asked. "He's our brother."

"Brother?" she repeated. "Both of you?"

"Yes," Wesley said, annoyed. "Long story. Just take us to him, please."

"Take my hand," she said, reaching out to both the brothers.

"What?" James asked.

"Take my hand," she said again, demonstrating with gestures. "It's not hard."

"You got jokes," Wesley commented. "I like that."

The two brothers took hold of one of the woman's hands, and they all disappeared from the area in a cascade of golden light. They felt like an invisible force was pulling them in every direction at once, but when the feeling subsided, they were all standing in front of a house.

"How did we get here?" Wesley asked.

"Are you the 'angel?'" James asked.

"I wouldn't say angel," she replied. "I'm more of a doctor."

She led them inside. It looked small and quaint on the outside, but upon entering they saw that it was much bigger on the inside. On the couch in the living room lay Matthew, fast asleep and hugging the Book of Light very tightly. James walked over and woke him up.

"Homeboy," Matthew said groggily, "you said you'd come back."

"I know," Wesley said, seeing that the woman was watching. "I ran into our 'friend' on the way back and we caught up on old times."

"I got some medicine for you," James said, giving him two pills. "Take these."

"Where the hell have you been?" Matthew asked. "You…you threw me out of the car."

"Is that the only thing you can say to me?" James asked. "Take the medicine."

"Can we get a glass of water for him?" Wesley asked the woman.

"Titilola," the woman said. "My name's Titilola, but please call me Titi. Maybe your brother would like to try some of my homemade medicine? It's really good for what he's got."

"No, thank you," James said gruffly. "We already have the medicine we need. We just need some water."

"No problem, attitude," Titilola said, going into the kitchen.

"What did she say?" James asked.

"Attitude," Wesley said, clarifying her words, "because you have one for some reason."

"Whatever," James replied. "Matt, why did you follow her here?"

"I didn't follow anybody anywhere," Matthew said. "I woke up and I was here."

"We thought Thomas got you," Wesley said. "When we came back, you were gone. The old woman told us you had been taken by an angel."

"What?" Matthew asked in disbelief.

"Shh," James said, "she's coming back."

Titilola gave the water to Matthew, who drank it quickly after swallowing the pills. James noticed how pale his brother's face was and knew that the cold water and really gotten to him. He had to make a choice; if they stayed any longer, that would put Titilola in danger. However, Matthew wasn't in any condition to be subjected to a battle any time soon. Weighing the pros and cons in his head, James finally decided on leaving.

"Matt," he said, "I know you're feeling bad, but we need to go. We can't impose on Titi any longer."

"Oh," Titilola said, "I don't mind. Besides, it looks like he needs to rest, anyway."

"I know," James protested, "but we have something very important to handle. You don't wanna know about it."

"As much of an ass as my brother is," Wesley said, "he's right. We don't wanna put you in any danger."

"We're not criminals," Matthew pointed out. "We just have something very important to take care of and we can't involve you in it."

"But we appreciate your helping us," James said.

"My pleasure," Titilola said. "If you ever need shelter again, for whatever reasons, you're more than welcome here. My door's always open to your kind."

"Our kind?" Wesley asked. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means," Titilola said, "don't be a stranger."

"Thanks," James said, "I think."

James and Wesley helped Matthew out of the house and they walked down the street. They discussed their problem along the way and decided to stop at the first available place for breakfast and further plans. They hadn't eaten in quite a while and all three of them were famished.

Interesting…So who exactly who is this "Titi" and what is she about? Coming up: James tells his brothers about Lauren, but Matthew is still getting worse… Oh no!