After they'd found and checked into a motel, this time with two beds, Angel went to the nearest grocery store in the small town and picked up some ready-made salads, bread, and water. He also picked up a couple chocolate bars, wondering if the treat would make Charlotte feel better. She had remained quiet and distant, other than to ask if she could go shower first as they entered the room. He also picked up some vitamins, figuring that if he was going to need to change his diet, supplements would be necessary.
Angel had left clothes on her bed after she'd disappeared behind the door before leaving, and he took his time shopping, lost in his own thoughts. Normally, he would feel energetic and in a good mood from the success of finding the boy, but Charlotte's sadness was infectious. He did not witness what she'd gone through, only the end result, and hearing the pain in her voice when he took the boy off her chest, he felt a deep remorse for asking so much of her.
He also felt a deep shame of selfishness, accepting her help because it gave him such a unique advantage he'd never had before, and questioned himself if he was doing right by her. It didn't matter that she'd insisted on joining him; if he was abusing her because of her power, he'd have to find a way to end it. The conflict of it all was that he made a promise to her—to help her remember her past and, more importantly, to protect her. If anyone ever found out what she was, she'd be a target, either from the government or more nefarious sorts, and he knew very intimately how disastrous that would be.
They would have to work this out together, but it would wait for later. Tonight, she would be treated to a vegetarian dinner and dessert, and he'd find a fun movie to watch, hoping she'd relax. After paying for the groceries and picking up the various bags, Angel left the store and decided to fuel up before going back to the room to give Charlotte a bit more time. He took care of that business swiftly, and with the van full, he pulled aside to free up the pump, took out his phone, and called his sister.
"Hey, Angel." Cassie's voice was warm. "I heard on the Frequencies that you found the boy! I'm so happy. Good job, lil brother."
"Thanks. It was close. He'd gotten swept up in the fast currents of the river. It was sheer luck that I'd found him when I did."
"Yeah, they said he was out of the search zone. How'd you figure this one out? It's not exactly a 4-D chess kind of strategy."
Angel explained what the officer said about the K-9 losing the boy's scent and that they'd expanded to the area to the north. He went on gut instinct to continue in the same direction that dog had been going before turning around. While it was a flat-out lie to his sister, the dog had been right to a degree, as he later deduced where the boy may have fallen into the river. Had the searches not stopped, they may have found him much earlier.
Cassie whistled in appreciation: "You never cease to amaze me, Kevin. I admit there are times I wonder if what you're doing is best for you, but then these things happen, and I thank the Goddesses for their guidance."
In the past, Angel was known to bite back at Cassie for suggesting 'divine guidance' but a flash of Charlie's demonic form stopped him short, and Cassie was quick to pick up on it, "No teasing?"
"Cassie, I don't know what to believe anymore, but right now I'll accept that something helped me tonight." That something was Charlie. A real, honest-to-God demon, and it was all strongly impacting Angel's conflicted beliefs. He wanted to tell his sister everything, but he didn't want to do it over the phone or without Charlie's consent.
"That's quite an admission, Angel, and I'm not going to tease you about it. I know how much everything has weighed on you, and you know I'm here anytime you need me."
"I haven't given you enough credit, but it means a lot to me that you supported my decisions, both with leaving the service with me and with what we're doing now."
"This work is important to me, too. Now. I just hope you'll accept redemption sooner, rather than before anything bad happens to you. You don't have to do this forever to make up for the past. You know that, right?"
"Maybe someday I'll believe that." Angel smirked without humor, "and you'll be the first to know when I do."
"I like that you said 'when', not 'if'."
Angel hadn't realized he'd said that. He thought back to how Charlotte was adamant they'd find the boy, correcting his 'if' to 'when' earlier that night, and found her determination infectious. It felt good to think of a 'when' over an 'if.' He looked at his watch and figured he'd been gone long enough.
"I like it, too." He granted her a bit of honesty. "I need to get some sleep, sis. Call me if a case comes up, but I think I need about fifty hours of sleep otherwise."
Cassie acknowledged and gave Angel her love, then hung up. Angel tucked the phone away, started the van, and headed back to the hotel.