Underground Angels

Chapter Twenty-Two | My Spidey-Senses Come in Handy

Shooting Lola a look, Constantine threw Noel a bow and a pack of arrows “Take these back to your tent, keep it loaded. If you’re right and it wasn’t an animal, there’s no saying whatever it is won’t come by.”

“Especially when we smell like the best demigod barbeque ever.” Grumbled Stephan, pulling down an array of knives.

“Wait, in my tent?” it dawned on Noel that they planned on leaving her behind. “No way! I’m coming with you guys.”

“Right, you wouldn’t last a second, especially in the dark.” Snorted Lola, hands on hips.

“We could use her spidey-sense…” said Stephan slowly, and Lola rolled her eyes.

“Gabriel will kill us.” Constantine muttered “But you did know something was going to happen, so…fine.”

                           Noel had always been scared of the dark. At home she still slept with a light saber nightlight, a gift from her grandmother when she was seven. Grandma Ethel had always discouraged Bernie and Mark’s insistence that her fear was irrational for someone her age, and that she needed to grow up.

“You think she doesn’t have a reason to fear the dark?” Grandma Ethel had asked one night “Didn’t I tell you that there were always something to be afraid of in the shadows, Bernice?”

Noel’s mother had always disagreed with Grandma Ethel about nearly anything, but let the nightlight go. It occurred to Noel now that Grandma Ethel hadn’t been sympathizing with Noel’s schizophrenia, but the reality was that the shadows were dangerous.

“Scared, Mortal?” sneered Lola as Noel jumped as someone stepped on a twig.

“Lola.” Scolded Constantine as Noel blushed. “Behave, for goodness sake.”

Together they moved through the forest, shivering as it grew colder as night descended. Snow fell silently, blanketing the forest in pristine white; looking up through the canopy of naked branches Noel could see a few stars blinking between clouds.

“It’s beautiful.” She whispered, and heard Lola snicker.

“It is.” Agreed Constantine. “Gabriel would like it.”

“He’d like us to move our butts and find him.” Said Lola, surging ahead.

As Stephan and Lola began to bicker, Noel picked up the swift sounds of a creek. A slight prickling spread across her shoulders, and she felt the urge to move away from the others, toward the creek.

“Noel?” called Constantine “Hey, stick close – Noel?”

“What’s she doing, trying to get herself lost?” hissed Lola, but Noel didn’t listen.

The prickling grew stronger and spread through her, squeezing her muscles and sending electric pulses up and down her arms.

“Hey – watch out!” cried Stephan “That’s the barrier – don’t!”

But Noel had moved through the shimmering wall in front of her, and the full strength of her ‘spidey-senses’ hit her full on. Noel genuinely felt like someone had stuck an electric cable down her throat, exactly like she had in the movie theatre before Christmas.

Reaching the stream, Noel started to run; it was slippery, but she managed in her thick-soled winter boots. Rounding the sharp bend, her vision blurred in shock. Gabriel was lying in front of her, blood pouring from a wound in his arm. His body was half in the stream, and the snow and water around him turned red; he let out a low, guttural moan.

“Gabe.” She chocked out, splashing through the creek to reach him. Something in her was freaking out, casing her heart to speed up and mind to spazz uncontrollably. Something about seeing Gabriel like this reminded her so much of her dreams, the nickname came easily. “HEY, over here! I found him!”

The gash in Gabriel’s arm looked deep, and though usually Noel fainted at the sight of blood, her vision stabilized as she kneeled down to get a closer look.

“Hey,” she whispered, taking off her hat and pressing it to the wound “Gabriel, can you hear me?”

Eyes opening briefly, Gabriel then squeezed them shut tightly. “Mmhhm.” He hummed, hand grabbing blindly and finding hers. “Knew…”

“What did you know?” she asked, brushing his wet hair out of his eyes.

Gabriel’s lips were blue, but he shuddered slightly as Constantine came crashing through the trees, the others close behind.

“Knew you’d...” He said slowly, blueberry lips stretching into a cracked smile. “You’d come.”

A/N: I can't believe it's been 22 chapters! I started this book almost a whole year ago, which is a long time, but it's slow going. I'm so happy to be back writing Noel agaon though, I did miss her!

Question: What do you think of Noel's 'spidey-senses'?

Rose<3