Author's Note-So, this is the second chapter of Wings of a Guardian Angel. Please read, review, and enjoy! And I'm sorry if the violence is a bit too much, but Edward's life is violent.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, sadly.

Chapter 2

The Devil Wears Prada

Edward's POV

I scurried off to bed, if you can call where I sleep a bed, before Victoria and James could find something else to blame on me.

My life was hell. When I was six, my father died of influenza, and my mother was heartbroken. In an effort to heal herself, she dated James for a year before deciding he was perfect and officially married him. Unknown to her, James had a girlfriend whom he snuck off to see every night. Finally, when I was ten, he couldn't keep the secret any longer and poisoned her tea, 'grieved' for a total of five days, and then married his girlfriend Victoria twenty days after the funeral. So, he had the house, the money, the property, but also, me.

Victoria and James had a spoiled daughter, Scarlett. She was fifteen now, born before my mother even started dating her father. Because we weren't blood-related, she tried every single day to win my affections. But how could I love her when she did nothing but watch and giggle when I was beaten?

James would whip me every time he found Scarlett flirting with me, saying I was harassing her. After seven years, I was supposed to be used to it.

The only problem was, I wasn't.

I wasn't. I wasn't used to the way I was treated like a dirty bag of scum by my step-parents. I wasn't used to the way I was blamed for lightning hitting the car, or a shirt being too small. I wasn't used to the way I had to do everything in the house.

Life wasn't fair, and I still wasn't used to it. God help me.

I went down on my knees before the window and, staring at the brilliant stars, I said my nightly prayer. I prayed for a better life for me, or at least one day when I wouldn't get whipped. But God never answered my prayers, not for seven years.

I was lucky to have the attic to myself. Every month, James and Victoria bought me a new outfit. It was always long overdue, but they said I was considered lucky that they were so nice to me.

That night, I looked at my neighbor's house and noticed the silhouette of a feminine figure standing on the roof of the house next to ours. She had a nice, curvy frame, with long billowinghair that sailed gently in the cool breeze. But the remarkable thing about the girl was the large, powerful-looking wings that spurted straight out of her back.

I rubbed my eyes and looked back. There was nothing there.

As soon as I hit the air mattress, I was out like a dying flame in a hurricane. That night, I slept like the dead. Not even a chainsaw could've woken me.

I awoke at the first crack of dawn, dreading another day of cooking, cleaning, and serving. Everything seemed to go fine until Scarlett tried, yet again, to flirt with me.

"Hey, Edward," she giggled.

I just nodded my head in response and served her chocolate pudding.

Victoria screamed at me, "Young man, you should at least have the manners to talk to my daughter!"

So, I mumbled a "Hi" back. But when James heard me talking to Scarlett, he hit me over the head with the hardcover textbook in his hand.

How's that for fair?

Victoria today was even worse than usual. She had a big tea party coming up, and I was to be the charming servant she lured to her home and convinced to work for her. Her friends were extremely nice people, but were oblivious because my step-mother acted like a gentle mom instead of the devil in front of them. No one would have thought her capable of child-abuse. Except me.

So, when I tripped over the carpet and broke the stack of fragile china tea plates I had in my hands, it came as a shock when she smacked me across the face. In front of her friends.

The gasps were resounding and shocked, so Victoria dragged me in the cellar to finish her job. She slapped me, kicked me, even used a belt to whip me.

I bit back the hot tears brimming in my eyes so she wouldn't see them and be satisfied she hurt me, but a few traitor ones slipped out and ran down my face. I was biting my lip so hard, I drew blood.

"You insignificant little son of a b--! I know you did that on purpose! Apologize to me, you f--ing boy!" she screamed, then added some very colorful words.

I cowered back and whispered hoarsely, "But it was an accident, I swear."

"No it was not! I know you did it on purpose! You're jealous!"

"But I swear to God, it was just an accident. I tripped," I pleaded.

She shook her head and kicked me again. "Apologize! And say you did it on purpose!"

"But I--"

She kicked me again. "Say it!"

Every time I tried to tell her it was just an accident, that I had unconsciously tripped off the carpet, Victoria would interrupt me and hurt me in some way. When I could finally take it no longer, I muttered, "I'm sorry. I broke your plates on purpose to make you look bad." Lies. They were all lies.

"Now that wasn't so hard, was it?" she sneered in my face. I shook my head frantically.

She picked up a broken, empty bottle of red wine and started hitting my body with it. My clothes were ripped and there was a large pool of blood on the floor before she stopped.

"You better not do it again or you will not live another day," she whispered menacingly in my ear. I nodded weakly.

And that was how she left me, slumped and bleeding on the floor of the cellar. It was half and hour later that I had enough strength to pull myself upstairs into my room.

And there she was standing in my room. An angel. I got a brief look at her. Chocolate hair, chocolate eyes, blue T-shirt, pink skirt, large white wings.

The last thing I felt before I fainted from lack of blood was her catching me in her soft warm arms.

Author's Note-Sorry it's so short. I want to thank every single person who read this story. And I wan to thank the following people for reviewing my story: sugarhigh123, Twilightlubber4ever, whitezcar, Beckerzzzz, Flys Through Water, kaosgurl00, brezy bri, fubulicious, soccerlover2-0, RoGueSurfer, gabiee98, lilyrose29, EdwardandBellaTruLove4Ever, lilvoice1, xXxJazRainexXx, Rinara, and a huge special thanks to my first reviewer, Maximum Ride all the way.

Wow. Long list. And I'm really pleased that one chapter got 17 reviews! I love you guys!

Please review!