Part 26

Angel didn't make it very far off the hotel property. How could he? After what happened to Alex, his mind kept looping back to him, but that wasn't the only problem; his emotions were still scrambled.

First, he was angry that Alex had run off.

Then, he was upset because Valentino had probably done unspeakable things to him. Alex was only three days into hell and had already walked into the claws of a beast like Valentino. And a DVD. Angel felt sick at the idea that his boss had recorded and sold it. And then there was this hole in his stomach because there was no telling the state that the boy was in, what his health would be when or if they found him again. And he could only imagine what the boy would look like with the whole world knowing his shame and his heart beating faster. He imagined a black trash bag in Alex's shape. He imagined him curled in a little ball on the street corner as a timid little abuse relief doll; he imagined him sitting in the chair next to Angel in his dressing room, trying to get his eyeliner just right. The last one made his mouth salivate as the bile reached upward.

Alex...

The boy who had come to hell to protect him, who had thrown away his life for him, made him smile with a corny joke, made Angel laugh when he was sad, and tried his best to keep him happy. What did Valentino break inside of Alex to make him run?

Even the thought made his anger build again as his footsteps fell into sync against the pavement, his legs already going a little faster. His breaths huffed from his body; his fists clenched so tight that his claws dug into the palms of his hands.

His beautiful lizard had been touched by the hands of that fucking moth.

Alex, who was full of life, was so full of energy, a welcome, indeed, needed reprieve from everything else down here that Angel hated so much.

His lover was someone who would willingly come into hell, fight, and take anything and everything he needed to kill Valentino. And if... no, Angel Dust would be there when he finished killing Valentino. The moth would be nothing more than a memory, and everything Alex was doing now was not for fun or entertainment. He had to take it more seriously.

He walked for what felt like hours, past the tower, deeper into the pentagram, deeper into the mire before he even raised his voice one time. If it was ever quiet, if gunshots were not always present, if the screeching of tires or the screaming of demons were not always commonplace, yelling in the middle of the streets would have seemed out of place. "Alex!" he called again. "Alex!" He could have been anywhere, with anyone, having anything done to him. "Alex!"

He stumbled, almost going down on his face and hitting the curb. "DAMMIT! Aaaaalex!"

When the boy never came, Angel felt his legs start to get weak, his headache coming back harder from his withdrawal. The pain in his chest started to radiate through his body as he thought back to the recording of the beach, the park, having Alex wrap his arms around him and kiss him for the first time, Alex brushing his hair. He didn't want to lose that. He stumbled down an alley between two buildings as his face began to tingle, and a panic attack began to settle in.

What the hell could he have done to make Alex so angry at him?

He covered his face as his claws curled and pulled his fur. "You stupid fuck, Angel, you stupid fuCkiNg-" he kicked a garbage can as hard as he could, the metal can clattering down the lane as he leaned against one of the buildings, sinking to a squat against it. He couldn't tell anymore what hurt, and his back arched up. What would happen if he lost Alex? Reaching into his chest tuft, he withdrew a few items in a small baggie: powder, a pipe, and a little lighter. He needed the sting to go away. He wanted just a moment of relief, just a few minutes, as he tried to open the bag, his claws shaking. He managed and got some of the powder into the pipe but spilled most of it, his vision getting blurry with tears and his jaw clenching so tight he was afraid he was going to break his teeth as his anxiety was replaced with anger.

He came so close, so close to getting his first puff of the day, but when he brought the lighter up to the bottom of the crude pipe, he burned his thumb and dropped it, screaming as he threw the lighter.

It was like being locked up at Valentino's studio again, this time without hope. Now one of the few things that made him feel special, important, fucking NORMAL, was gone. He started to choke on his sobs as he took out his cell phone and scrolled through his contacts, pressing a name and putting the phone to his head, his arms shaking.

"Oi!"

"C-CHERRI! I NEED HELP! PLEASE!" He gasped.

"Wait, what...Angel? Oh my fuck, man. Calm down. What happened?"

He was breathing too hard, and it took everything he had in his body not to start screaming again as the stress hit him.

"I need help...please! I need to find someone! I-...I'm!" He screamed.

"WHOA WHOA! Angel. Just relax. WHO do you need?"

Angel buried his nose into his shoulder, the sounds of cars coming and going.

"Cherri..."

"Where are you, love? I'll come to find you. You at the hotel?"

He started to slow himself, rubbing his eyes, the last bit of tears he knew he had leaving him. "No..."

"Alright, that makes my job easier. So where are you?"

He looked around. "I dunno! Some fucking alley, where I belong..." he had to stop. He had to stop this pity. He had to find Alex. "Uh..." he sniffled, "about...six blocks from where we started that fire." He looked around to see if he could find any landmarks. "I think...the place that has the weird window paintings."

She whistled, "Okay...I think I got a good idea of where ya are. Just hold on. You might have a long wait."

"Oh, I'll be here...believe me..." he hung up.

He couldn't shake it or get the feeling to go away. He was sweating, and his breaths came faster, and he rocked on his knees. The thought wouldn't leave him. If his emotions were already fucked before, they were now pure unbridled rage mixed with despair. He picked up a rock and threw it at the opposite wall. "Fuck!"

The moment of rest was finally taking a toll on his body, and it seemed his head would clear for at least a few moments. The knowledge that Cherri was on her way made him feel more at ease, and the crying began to slow. However, the tingling in his face would not let up as he cried quietly.

After a while, a familiar hum crossed his ears, followed by a bicycle bell. "YO ANGEL-CAKE!"

He rolled his head back against the wall as he stood, his legs a little weak from squatting for so long.

"Aw fuck, dude. Are...you okay?"

The girl sounded legitimately concerned, but all he managed was an unfocused gaze before the sound of the bell broke him out of it.

"Did that asshole Val do this shit to you again?" She lifted his chin, wiping away his running mascara, "Poor baby. Tell Cherri what happened."

Angel sniffled.

"M-MY boyfriend..." he grunted. " He..." he sniffed again. "He went with Al after we slept. And they went and saw Valentino a-an-" The rest got cut off by a loud sob. And now I can't find him! You've got to help me, Cherri!"

"Hey...relax...what do you mean you can't find him? And when the fuck did you get a boyfriend?" She groaned, "shit, Angel...you should have fucking told me."

He sat and breathed through his nose and out his mouth a couple of times before looking up at her,

"He's from the surface."

Cherri shrugged her shoulders. "We're all from the surface, love." She lowered herself, her face on level with the boys. "Come on, Ang, work with me here."

Angel could feel the exhaustion dragging on him, and that tingling in the front of his forehead was still there. His lower set of hands felt at his pockets and pulled a cigarette, placing the end in his teeth. He couldn't find a light and drew his knees up, wrapping his arms around his legs. "You...got a light, Cherri?"

"Who the fuck do you think you're talking to, love?." She took out a little red lighter and held the flame to his cigarette, lighting up the tip. Angel's shoulders fell a little bit with the comfort the nicotine was starting to bring him. "Ok, tell me about this boy that's got you all twisted up, babe." She sat beside him.

She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall, looking as cool as ever, "Because I mean, you're honestly looking like a huge bitch over a little boy~" Cherri's eyebrows raised, and her face moved closer as her lips spread wide into an excited smile.

He smiled just a little and knew she was trying to make him feel better. "Fuck, Cherri, he's...he's gentle with me. No one is gentle with me." He took a long pull off of his Cigarette. "He's sweet, and funny, and a...really...really nice guy." Taking the cigarette from him, Cherri rolled her one large eye as she drew from it. "Ain't no one down here a nice guy, babe. That's why we're here."

There was a moment when it was so quiet that the only noise was Angel's feet shifting. "He said he loved me..."

Cherri let out a little laugh as she took a drag on the cigarette, "Well shit, babe, why didn't you lead with that, hmm? True love." She hopped up onto one leg and crossed her arms over her chest, making a few childish kissy noises.

"Cherri...oh fuck Cherri...there is so much that's been going on that you don't know." He took the cigarette from her. "I'm gonna tell you some shit, and I need you to listen ''cause...wow, is it fucked up how we got here." He looked at the ground and laughed. "He came down here. He gave it all up to be with me."

The entire story was laid out for her then. Angel and the phone, Valentino finding out, Alex killing himself to come to hell, training, the divine weapons around Alex's wrists, and now Alex disappearing after Valentino performed his indignities on him. "I need to find him. He's not supposed to be here, and I feel responsible if he gets hurt. He's here for me. Because of me." His hand trembled a little as he took another long drag. "It's not my fault," he shook, "but he's hurting anyway..."

"That's one big dick, Angie." She watched him inhale and exhale before taking the cigarette, "Sure as shit, wish someone was willing to off themselves for me."

He sighed as he took another breath of his smoke, Cherri following it with one of her own. "So he came down here, knowing the risks." Angel nodded, "Because...he wanted us together."

"Shit, love. Who does that?" She said, "Who comes all the way down here, doesn't do it out of need or obligation, but does it for love?" she shook her head, " 'I will go to hell for you.' Fuck, what a mind job."

He snuffed his cigarette out on the ground and started walking. "Wherever he is, he is hurting, and I don't know what a sweet boy does when he is hurting. I know what I'd do, but Alex ain't like that. If Alastor is right, he's off plannin' to kill Valentino if he's not havin' a mental breakdown." Angel glanced behind him at the bike Cherri had arrived on, "Ain't you gonna bring your bike?" She shook her head, "ain't mine."

Cherri followed after him as they returned to the street. She had that look in her eye as her gears were turning. She was clever, and Angel knew she was already working on a plan. "Doesn't sound like you are looking to stop him, either, babe. Sounds like a keeper to me," Angel snorted, a smirk sliding onto his face. She felt better seeing him smile, "ok, you're a newbie walking around hell, God ribbons stuck to you, full of anger and resentment; where do you go?"

Angel's response wasn't fast. There was a lot wrong with the idea of an emotionally broken Alex roaming the streets of hell, and where he would go was anyone's guess.

But...

There was a chance that Angel might be able to find him somewhere, someway, some little corner or abandoned space that he could call his own or where the dark spaces would give him privacy.

"And if he has heaven weapons, and someone tries to do something, that would draw a lot of attention to you, so he would need space to make them work, or at least try and make them work without anyone finding him. It doesn't leave a lot of options. Hell's crowded enough as it is." Angel went down an alley to check. "This is...fucked. Where do you even start? Do we just wait for something to happen?"

She slowed her walk, "Maybe we're approaching this from the wrong angle, babe. You're looking for someone. Compared to anyone else, your boy toy is irrelevant, no offense. But his weapons are a bit of a big deal. Holy weapons are in short supply here, but you can still get them. Who else do we know knows about holy weapons?"

"Vaggie?"

"Outside of the obvious, love."

Angel thought back to the extermination a few months prior, and it was only shortly after that that he found the phone that allowed him to speak to Alex about his life. They used weapons that could kill Angel's then. "Carmilla Carmine."

"DING ding ding, we have a winner." The lady folded her arms and winked, maybe, "And if I had someone wandering around with heaven shit and it wasn't my organization, I would be more than a little concerned someone was trying to cut in on my action. Is your boy stupid enough to use them in public?"

The spider looked down and folded his bottom arms over the top set as his legs followed after her.

"If I were stupid, I'd use the blades everywhere." Cherri slightly grinned, "Good, then maybe someone's seen him with a busted demon. This means someone has said something to someone else that has returned to her. They would try to keep it quiet internally while they searched."

Angel felt a tug inside his stomach as his heart raced. Was he going to get his baby back? "I can't believe I'm going to have to go talk to her..." he walked beside Cherri, hoping he didn't get noticed by anyone while he walked. The last thing he wanted was to be dragged back and be around Valentino for a second longer.

He couldn't stand the idea of the Moth watching the DVD, let alone marketing and selling his boyfriend's assault. But this was hell, and he knew Valentino. Of course, he was going to sell something like that. That bastard did everything with cameras to save footage. He didn't want even to picture that leer or hear what he might say.

Angel was forced to look away when his vision got a little blurry. "Hey, hey, easy, babe. We'll find him. But let's hurry, yea? Word spreads quickly, and he has used them; even accidentally, people will talk. Which means time is against us." Cherri tried to speak lowly. It was all coming at him so fast, Alex and everything; there was a twisting pain in Angel's chest as the adrenaline inside gave him the energy to move as they began to race off to the Carmine manner on the opposite end of the city.