The Disgraced Angel Book Two: The Dark Guardian

Chapter 11

                     It was a long three weeks for Angela before Evan returned again. Nothing had been as bad as the night he had last visited, but nothing got much better, either. For nearly a month, she found it hard to sleep and had very little appetite. Damon had never seen her like this. Through the bond he shared with her, Damon could only feel her sense of despair and hopelessness. For the first time, there was no sense of joy or excitement. Only an ever-present sense of doom. She moved around the house, kept herself clean and answered when she was spoken to, but he knew Angela was only going through the motions. Rarely had he seen anyone in such severe depression. It was as if she had already accepted that she was going to die. That there was no way around it, so she had better just get used to the thought now. There had to be a way to get some life back into her face again. Some emotion that would reach her. Fear, joy, anger, anything. If this were anyone else, he would have left them alone, save for perhaps one suggestion that might save them, at least for an hour or two. But he was not going to let his daughter die inside before she was really dead. She was too young to feel as badly as that. The night before Evan visited again, he tried one last time to reach her.

"Angela, if you were going to die tomorrow, what would you want to do?" he asked. If he had any hope of reaching her, he knew he had to go for the nuclear option. Angela looked up at him, with a look in her eyes as though she were really thinking again for the first time in weeks.

"Eat what I wanted, get laid."

If this were anyone else he would have smiled. This was a typical answer of anyone who either thought or knew they would die the next day, and he never blamed them. If they were going to die sometime in the next twenty-four hours, why worry about the consequences?

"Tomorrow, that's exactly what you're going to do." He told her. Damon left no real room for questions, either. Angela nearly choked on her food before spitting it out and answering.

"What?!"

Finally, there was a bit of life in her eyes, and a definite sense of shock in her emotions. Better to keep going, then.

"Tomorrow, you're going to get cleaned up, go to dinner wherever you want to and eat as much as you want. After that, you're going to find a decent man, doesn't matter who it is; and fuck him. Believe me; you won't have any trouble finding someone willing to do it."

"No, Dad. Why the hell would I fuck a stranger?!"

"One-night stands happen all the time. Believe me on that one, too. You wouldn't be the first to do that before she dies." He said. And there was the anger he'd been waiting for.

"Who said I was going to die?"

"You did, Angela. This whole month, you have not been yourself. It's as if you've already given up! If you do that, He already wins. There is a way around this, and we will find it."

"I don't want to die, Dad." She said angrily. Why was he talking like this now? Had she looked that bad? Honestly, Angela hadn't really paid much attention.

"Don't act like that, then. What's wrong?" Damon asked, his voice softening a little. There was a little light in her eyes again, even a bit of color in her cheeks. Better that be caused because of her anger than to not see it at all.

"Because I just don't see any way around it. Like I said before, all I see is my death either way. He wants it that way, and He's not gonna give up until I'm dead. I don't want to die, I just can't see a way around it." She finished.

So, he had been right in one respect. Angela was already coming to terms with the likelihood of her death. Damon took a deep breath. Damon had always been angry with Him for many reasons. But it had been quite some time since he had been quite this angry. How could he have been so blind as to believe that God was telling him the truth a few months ago? Of course He told him the truth. He told Damon just enough of the truth to get him to do what He wanted. Damon took another steadying breath, trying to think. He hadn't forgotten what he had said, either. That he wouldn't help unless there was a way to accomplish this without Angela being harmed. God had said there was, and that had not been a lie. There had been so much fear in His eyes at that moment, there was no way this could be a lie.

"You're not really going to make me go out tomorrow night, are you?" Angela asked, slightly worried.

"No, of course not." Damon answered, his voice still low with anger.

It was then that Angela saw the anger in her father's eyes. Such anger from him was rare, despite who he was. It was moments like these when Angela wasn't entirely sure she recognized her father at all. Perhaps this was why he would send her away sometimes, so she didn't have to see it.

"Are you alright, Dad?"

"No, I'm not. Go to bed, Angela. You haven't been sleeping well all month; I want you to get some rest."

Angela silently nodded, knowing not to object. Looking at him now, she imagined that she must be feeling now was a lot like what he had felt while watching her all month long. The only difference now was, she knew nobody could touch him even if they tried. Damon silently got up from the table and put on his coat. He was going out for awhile. Angela knew better than to ask any questions. After the door closed, she continued to silently clear the table and then went to bed as she was told.

Damon was so angry he couldn't tell if he was angrier with himself or God. On one hand, it was his job as a father to know if someone was lying to him when it came to his daughter's safety. He should have known that God would mince the truth with lies. On the other hand, if His son was so damn important, and because he had offered to help, how was it fair for Him not to tell them the truth? Hypocritical asshole! This was one of those nights Damon wished he still worked at the bar back in Oregon. Nobody noticed what he did as a bartender back in Oregon. With one exception, in recent years. It didn't matter right now. Damon remained silent as he walked through the dark streets, looking for a place to go. It didn't matter where at this point, so long as the place would be crowded. He finally found a place, another little bar. He supposed he was lucky it was a karaoke night, many people stood and sang along with a couple who stood up in front of the crowd, singing along to the lyrics of Leaving on a Jet Plane as they flashed across a television screen. Someone would be leaving tonight, alright. But there would be no return flight for them.

When Angela heard the front door open, she rushed to the living room. She had in fact fallen asleep for awhile, but wasn't sure for how long. Now it was her turn to be shocked when she saw her father as he took off his coat.

"Are you alright, Dad?"

Now Damon could nod when she asked that question. "Now I am."

"What happened?"

"Something broken was finally fixed." That was all the answer he was going to give her, and Angela could tell that was the only answer she would get.

"Okay."

"Don't you dare give up, do you understand, Angela?" he asked, looking directly at her.

Angela could only nod. "Yes, Dad. I understand."

"Good."