CHAPTER 9

Most of Monica's and Andrew's walk was made in silence despite his efforts to engage her in conversation once in a while. It was clear to him that the darkness and cold were being a major challenge for an organism that was already too fragile. Realising she was slowly reducing the pace, Andrew decided to stop.

"Just for a few minutes, angel." He said as she questioned him with doe-like eyes.

"I could go on a little more." She replied, not wanting to be responsible for another delay.

"No, sweetie. We can stop once in a while to save up some energy."

By the road, they sat and waited in each other's arms. For a couple of times, Monica could not resist and dozed off to some light sleep against Andrew's shoulder. He remained fully alert during all this time, green eyes scanning around just to make sure they were relatively safe at the same time he tenderly kept her in his arms.

On their last stop of the night, Andrew checked his pocket watch: 4.32 AM. With a little effort, they could still cover a good distance before the sun came out. But a quick look at Monica caused him to regret his plans: she had fallen asleep once again and this time he did not have the heart to wake her up.

Sighing deeply, he kissed her forehead repeatedly tightening the hold around her small form as if trying to protect her from the cold and the darkness and from anything else that could harm her.

There were times the former angel of death even considered agreeing with his supervisors and leave Monica, so that he could spare her from that ordeal. But he knew it would only make her even more miserable. Without much choice, Andrew remained in silence, waiting for the dawning of a new day.

X

The angel of death did not remember falling asleep. When he opened his eyes the sun was already up and the temperature starting to increase. His first impulse was to rise to his feet and continue their journey, but strangely he could not move. On the following second, Andrew felt his human form taken by an intense, nearly maddening pain, whose source seemed to come from his right leg. He let out a slight moan and reached to feel his leg with both hands before his eyes sought for Monica, as the little angel was not in his arms any longer.

X

The Irish angel had gently disentangled from Andrew's loving embrace a while before, just as the sky turned from deep dark to a lighter shade of purple, making it possible for her to slowly distinguish her surroundings. There was not much to see, though, just sand and small rocks scattered along the way. But Monica forced her human body to rise to her feet and start a short walk. The angel needed a moment in which she could stand alone before her Creator and open her heart to Him.

"I won't go too far. Please don't worry." She gently whispered against her friend's hear, caressing his short blond hair with tenderness.

Brushing a loving kiss against his cheek, Monica slowly walked away from his sleeping form. She walked for a couple of minutes until she could have a full view of the mountain range on the Utah border. Its peaks forever covered in white seemed to touch the sky and make one feel closer to God.

The little angel remembered the time when she could just travel miles away in the speed of light and materialise wherever she wanted all over again. It seemed like a hundred years ago.

"Dear Father… I humbly stand before You to beg for Your guidance. If on one hand I'm sure about my love for Andrew and that You do not condemn us for that, on the other I do not know if I'm handling it the way it was meant to be. The first thing You taught me was that love is a precious gift and that it needs to be taken care of." Tears formed in the corner of her eyes and soon fell on her face. "Please let us know if we are doing it right because right now everything Andrew and I have met with was only pain and suffering. I confess that initially I feared to open my heart to You and hear the truth, I was afraid to find out I was wrong all this time. But I'm an angel and I know that nothing can endure without the truth."

Monica conjoined her hands and closed her eyes, hoping to hear the answer to her prayer. And if at first all that reached her ears was the disturbing silence of the desert, a few instants later, she felt her heart filled with her Father's love. Her lips curved into a slight and tired smile.

"I can feel it, Father… I can feel Your presence…"

The message that reached her heart, however, made her frown with confusion.

"I'm the strong angel now? What do you mean, Father?"

"Vigil and stand strong" were the next words that echoed through her spirit, but the angel's questioning expression remained. Instants later, she heard the most complete silence once again, except that now her initial wonder was replaced by a sudden and strong wave of panic taking over her soul. Andrew's image immediately came to her mind and even without fully understanding what was going on, Monica started a quick rush back to where her dearest friend was.

And when she came closer, Monica saw her beloved companion lying on the ground, grabbing his leg and calling out her name with a low and hoarse voice.

"Andrew!"

"Monica…be careful…" He still managed to say, looking at a snake standing inches from him.

Feeling her entire body trembling, the Irish angel approached and the animal moved away, quickly crossing the road and mixing with the sand and rocks on the other side.

Monica knelt next to her dearest friend and touched his shoulder, not knowing what to do. "Andrew? Were…were you bitten?"

"Yes…My right leg…"

Monica's heart beat a little faster as she saw the presence of blood in his ankle. She quickly removed his jacket from her shoulders and placed it under his head.

"Angel, I-"

"Shh…" Monica quickly silenced him. "Y-you should lie down, Andrew... Please..."

The Irish angel's memory quickly travelled back in time, when she was still on "Search and Rescue" and administering first aids was her first lesson. Gently, she pressed her hand over his chest, motioning for him to remain on the ground.

"I saw it...It was a poisonous snake…" Monica removed his shoes and socks and lifted up the brim of his jeans so that she could see the bite – it was made by small, sharp teeth and his skin was soon purple and swollen. Andrew needed medical care immediately.

"I know that it will sound absurd right now but you have to try to remain calm. The faster your heart beats, the faster your blood will flow and the venom will spread quickly to your tissues." She explained, watching as he nodded his head.

"Okay..."

Monica removed her cardigan and wrapped it around his ankle, right above the bite. "It's a constriction band. I'm not applying too much force to it, so that it reduces but doesn't totally stop the flow of blood..."

"You'll be cold..." He said, having a lot of difficulties in doing what she had just asked him: remaining calm.

Once she finished making the constriction band, the Irish angel carefully placed his head on her lap, touching his cheek and feeling his cold skin against her palm. Andrew's face was pale and it was clear he was in deep pain.

Monica wondered if she had arrived too late.

"I'm sorry…" Her words came out of her lips in a crying tone of voice.

"What…what for?"

"If I hadn't moved away from you, it-"

"It could have been you to be bitten." He interrupted, his heart racing due to both the pain he was feeling and also at the great worry about what would be of them from that moment on.

"I moved away because I wanted to open my heart to the Father, to beg for His guidance as I don't know what else to do…" Tears fell from her eyes as she placed her hand over his heart.

"Did you get your answer, angel?" The angel of death wanted to know, covering her hand with his.

A bittersweet smile broke on her face as she nodded her head. "I did… I felt His love and heard His words. He told me to be strong and vigil, and I could not understand it at first but now… now I see..."

Not too far and in complete shock, Tess, Adam and Rafael watched their friend's agony.

"This is why I got this terrible sensation inside my heart since last night…" The supervisor spoke, frowning and rubbing her hands with despair at the horrible scene right before her eyes.

"They won't resist much longer now!" Rafael looked up at the angel of death. "Is this why you're here?"

Adam nodded his head with great sadness. "There wasn't anything certain but I was told to wait…" He ran a hand over his hair. "They don't deserve it!"

"They are suffering the consequences of their choices." Ruth appeared by their side along with Sam, and despite their argument against Monica and Andrew's romance, it was possible to see that they too were deeply sorry and shocked at the two angel's situation.

"How can you say that? They are two angels who did nothing to you nor to any other living creature! All through the centuries they've existed exclusively to fulfil God's work!" Tess' angry words sounded so loud that Monica raised her head and looked around.

"Tess?"

Andrew frowned and turned to look up at her. "What is it, angel?"

"I was under the impression I heard her voice…"

The supervisor gave a few steps towards her dearest charge, her eyes filled with deep sadness. "I'm right here, baby... And I'm praying for you and Andrew... You have all my love..." She said, raising her hand to caress Monica's cheek.

But the Irish angel could not hear what she was saying or even see that Tess was so close to her and Andrew. Yet, that familiar sensation that they were permanently surrounded by angels remained.

Bending her head to kiss his forehead, Monica spoke again. "I know she hasn't abandoned us... I feel her, Andrew."

"I know... I guess I feel it too, angel... that our friends are constantly near us..."

Monica searched inside their back pack and found a bottle of water that was already on half of its capacity.

"Here, you need to be hydrated."

He shook his head. "No. You need to drink it. You'll be the one to keep on walking, the city isn't that far now."

A silent tear fell from Monica's eye as she bit her lower lip, refusing to accept what he had just said. "I won't leave you here all by yourself... there's absolutely nothing that will make me do this..."

"You know that I will never be alone."

"I know that. I trust with my heart and soul that our Father is watching over us right now and that He will never forsake us. And that is exactly why I will stay here and wait."

"You heard Him already. You are the strongest angel right now, baby. Please, go and find help."

More tears rolled down her eyes as she shook her head. "I refuse to leave you! We came this far together and this is how we will remain, Andrew. You and me!"

Andrew did not have the strength to argue. Instead, he ended up drinking some of the water she insisted on offering him and let out a deep sigh, closing his eyes a moment later. If at the beginning of their journey they did not know what their future entailed, now both angels in human form had just had their destiny changed drastically and Andrew could feel that soon that journey was about to be over.