Guardian Angels: Chapter One

I blinked my eyes to get rid of the sleep blurring my vision, and my head hurt worse than I would have thought possible. It was when I tried to rub my eyes with my hands when I noticed that my wrists were bound together with black rope behind me. I blinked faster.

"Good morning," I heard a voice say from behind me. I attempted to move my neck to see who was addressing me, but all I saw was darkness. In fact, the room seemed to darken as soon as the voice sounded. I turned my head again, only to be startled more than was necessary. A woman with long red hair and black eyes like my mother's was looking at me in amusement. "Jumpy, are we?"

She flinched as the woman's eyes flicked back to a normal brown-green color. "Are you Abaddon?"

Abaddon chuckled. "You catch on fast."

By then, my small knees were knocking together painfully with fear. My ankles, bound to the legs of the hard metal chair I was sitting on, ached as the rope held against them. "Where's my mom?" I asked quietly.

At that, Abaddon laughed. It wouldn't be a terrible sound, if it didn't sound so threatening. But what scared me the most was when she lifted her head. Angry bloodstained stitches decorated her neck, like it was chopped off then sewed back on. "Poor little girl," she pouted mockingly. "Asking for her mommy."

I bowed my head shamefully. Before this happened, I would have shot back a smart retort like any other girl becoming a teen. Now I knew better than to offend a demon. The ropes tore at the delicate skin on my wrist in agreement. "Is she dead?" I asked suddenly.

Abaddon's face showed a flicker of surprise, then went back to the default look. That look was like the look of a villain making evil plans against an innocent, helpless ant. And I was the ant. "That whore? You should be glad she is."

At that I only sighed. I tucked the sudden grief inside of me into a locked part of my mind for later. My mother hadn't been the first to go, but she had to be the last. There simply wasn't any family of mine left. An unguarded thought of my father escaped from its prison, and I tucked it back in before Abaddon could see the emotion flicker across my face. "And the body?" I forced out.

"I fed it to the wolves," she cackled. I could tell she was still trying to frighten me. Her efforts weren't unsuccessful, either.

I took deep breaths and counted to five. 1,2,3,4,5...

"The wolves have to eat too, I suppose," I agreed. But inside my heart was thumping faster than a hummingbird's. I quickly stood up, and to my surprise, the ropes tore away from my wrists and ankles. I was planning on running, or trying to fight with the chair, but my shock at the ropes tearing so easily caused a moment of slowness. Before I could even blink, Abaddon lit a match and threw it to the ground. A circle of flame spread around me.

"Not so fast, angel." If she'd sounded scary enough before, her tone was downright terrifying now. "I need you to stick around."

I gazed at the ring of fire trapping me. Would I be able to get through without burning to death? The flames were low enough to jump over, and I couldn't see any visible resource keeping it burning. The flame would at least go out sooner or later. But Abaddon's look of triumph gave me second thoughts. Even if I could get through, where would I run? There were no visible exits. "What could you possibly need me for?" I asked.

An evil smile pulled at her lips. "Power," she said, and I jumped, because I didn't expect her to tell me. "An angel without its factory settings like you will prove extremely useful for me in the future."

I pulled up my head sharply. "Quit calling me angel. It's not my name," I snapped, before I could hold it back. I immediately regretted it.

She strode to my circle and raised her hand, like she was going to hit me. And she did. I felt my neck crack a little as my face was blown to the side. A hit from the school bullies had never been equal to this, even their kicks. I held my face where a red welt had already appeared. "You will be obedient, regardless of what you are told to do or called," Abaddon snarled. Then she brightened. "I do not want to become enemies, Faith. Please remember that." Her please was not a request. It was a command. I nodded to show my understanding. "Good. Your training begins tomorrow." Then she walked out of the room.