Chapter Four The Angel and the Officer
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Brie woke up to a strange light.
At first, she thought it was the sun. There was the same warmth, the same instinctual draw. But it was too close, too powerful, and too gold .
She blinked several times in rapid succession, then turned over in the bed to see Cameron sitting on the side of the mattress — head bowed, hands folded, haloed in all that radiant light. Her mouth fell open slowly, and her breathing hitched. It was as if some lovely dream had carried with her into the waking hours. He glowed like a celestial statue in the grimy motel room.
It looked like he was meditating or maybe praying. Certainly, he was communing with a higher power, allowing her to study him in secret delight.
An angel. There is an actual angel in my bed.
She stared at him in silence, lamenting the recent death of her phone and her subsequent inability to immortalize the image in a picture. After only a few seconds of consideration, she realized this must be what Michelangelo was trying to create when he sculpted David . Every angle was perfection. Like one of those great artisans had dreamed him to life.
Time and again after her mother’s death, she’d fantasized about this man coming to save her from the ruination of her life, but she’d never fantasized about him as a person. Not in that way. It was always an emotional rescue, a grand fixing of all her problems.
Never in all her dreams had they ended up in bed.
With the curiosity of a child, she lifted a tentative hand, tracing the tips of her fingers between his shoulders. He startled and whirled around, the bright glow fading from his eyes.
“What are you doing?”
She froze in panic, then decided to tell the truth. “Looking for wings,” she answered shyly.
His lips parted in surprise, before curving up. “No wings. At least, not when I’m like this.”
She couldn’t tell if he was joking.
He hesitated, looking suddenly shy himself. “Disappointed?”
She warmed and shook her head. She was many things that morning, and most of them were so overwhelming they would need to be processed at a later date. But she was in no way disappointed.
“Come on,” he continued, taking her hand. “I want to show you something.”
She threw on the sweater from her backpack and grabbed the room key on her way out.
No need to check beneath the bed for errant clothes or possessions , she thought ruefully. She was basically wearing everything she owned. I wonder if I should have looked into that before I left. Maybe they make traveler’s insurance for this kind of—
She froze the second they stepped outside, blinking in astonishment. Her car was sitting in the parking lot. Not a scratch. Nothing beyond the usual wear and tear that was there before. And on top of that…
“All my stuff,” she gasped in amazement, looking at the boxes stacked neatly in the back seat. “How did you—?”
His finger pressed her lips as he glanced towards the motel’s front office. “I didn’t do anything,” he answered casually with a twinkle in his eye. “Just had it towed over this morning.”
She turned to face him, beaming with gratitude. “Well, isn’t that convenient?”
“It is, indeed.”
The unlikely pair shared a quick look, then walked back into the main office to check out. Lucy was there again, this time wearing a low-cut top and a shocking amount of makeup.
Subtle , thought Brie, internally rolling her eyes.
“Was everything to your liking last night? Do you need anything else? Anything at all?” Lucy asked, pressing her arms to either side of her chest as she leaned across the counter.
Utterly oblivious, Cameron rested his hand next to the pile of brochures, then looked up with a wondering expression. “The tree used to make this desk was three hundred fifty-six years old and had over ten thousand children before it was felled by loggers in upper Appalachia.”
Lucy straightened up slowly. “What?”
“Everything was fine, thank you.” Brie left the key on the counter and grabbed Cameron’s sleeve, pulling him almost out the door before reconsidering and turning back. “Actually, do you know a good place to eat breakfast around here?”
The girl blinked, recovering herself. “There’s a waffle place down the road.”
“Got it. Thanks!”
Brie towed the angel swiftly towards the parking lot, not seeing how the girl stared after them or how she melted into a puddle of hormones on the counter and sighed, lost in the throes of infatuation.
“Do you always do that?” she asked, unlocking the car.
Cameron circled quickly to the driver’s side and opened the door for her, staring back with a completely innocent expression as she climbed inside. “Always do what?”
“Never mind.”
? ? ?
Ten minutes later, Brie was stealing peeks over the top of an oversized diner menu. If her life hadn’t recently been turned so utterly sideways, the scene would have been hilarious. Her guardian angel was attempting to be equally discreet, taking in every corner of the diner, studying every server and patron while holding his menu like a stage prop. He hadn’t yet realized it was upside-down.
Maybe he only reads ancient Aramaic.
A waitress came by with the usual, “What can I getcha?” only to stop short at the sight of the angel sitting in the booth. He flashed a smile, and Brie watched the poor woman melt, utterly enchanted.
“Well, aren’t you just a tall drink of water,” she said, putting a fist to her hip in genuine appreciation.
Cameron went blank, trying to interpret, then answered as best he could. “I’d love one.”
Brie snorted into her menu, trying not to laugh.
The waitress, whose name tag identified her as Pam, lifted her eyebrows slowly, then gave Brie an unsolicited pat on the shoulder. “With looks like that, he doesn’t need to be a genius, honey.”
Brie grinned back widely, handing her the menu. “French toast, please, and the biggest, most irresponsibly sweet coffee you have.”
“Coming right up. And for you, mister?”
“Just the tall drink of water, please,” he said with another blinding grin.
The waitress pursed her lips, flipped his menu right side up as she collected it, and walked away after giving him a quick pat on the hand. “Anything you want, honey.”
Brie waited until she was gone, then folded her hands on the table. “You are utterly ridiculous.”
He stopped playing with his napkin, lifting his eyes in surprise. “What do you mean?”
“Okay, aside from the fact that you were delighted by the traffic lights on the drive over and you used all my remaining quarters playing the claw game on the way in here so you could, and I quote, ‘rescue the little bear’ — this .” She gestured to his body, tracing a finger up and down. “ This is utterly ridiculous. Don’t you see it? You don’t see how out of place this is?”
He frowned. “You mean—”
“I mean your face , Cameron. I mean, your perfect, clueless face .”
There was a slight pause. “I am as I was made. I see nothing ridiculous about it.”
Of course you don’t.
The waitress returned with his ironic beverage and a fragrant assortment of sugar, carbs, and caffeine for Brie. She gave Cameron an exaggerated wink before walking off again as Brie inhaled deeply, reveling in the lovely scent of cinnamon and maple.
Near-death experiences and supernatural plot twists really make you work up an appetite.
As the delicious chemicals began to work their magic, she considered her companion.
He felt no need to fill silences — that much was clear. He spent an excessive amount of time taking his straw out of its plastic sheath before dropping it into his drink and stirring curiously at the ice cubes, but he never took so much as a sip. He also seemed to be constantly checking the exits, though whenever he caught her looking, he smiled as though nothing was wrong.
He’s guarding me , she realized. He’s afraid it will happen again.
The idea resonated with a sudden pang.
Maybe I should be, too.
The thought stilled her hand halfway to her mouth, and for a split second, she found herself unable to breathe. The memory of the giant shadowy monster ripping its way into her car flashed back with a rush of adrenaline, and the accompanying wave of nerves made her physically sick.
Cameron set down his glass and reached his hand across the table, pressing two fingers against her pulse and staring with sudden concern. “Are you alright?”
No. Absolutely not. I am absolutely NOT alright.
“I’m fine,” she replied quietly, staring at her plate. She didn’t want to ask. She really didn’t want to ask. She asked anyway. “Are those things that attacked my car going to come back? It happened so quickly before. I couldn’t even…” She looked up at him. “Are they going to find me?”
He sat back in the booth with his jaw set in grim determination. “If they do, I won’t let them get anywhere near you.”
She pushed her plate forward, having lost her appetite. “But how were they able to find me at all?”
He hesitated, clearly reluctant to say.
She looked at him levelly. “I deserve to know.”
He took a deep breath, then nodded. “You’re right.” His eyes flashed briefly around the diner, assessing the other patrons again before he leaned closer and spoke in a softer tone. “Do you remember what I said about where I come from? How it’s sustained by life force energy?”
She nodded quickly, latching onto every piece of information that she could. “Which you definitely do not eat.”
He flashed a glance heavenward before saying rather painfully, “Yes, which I definitely do not eat.”
He hesitated again, choosing his words with great care. “My people, and the beings from the realms above and below, can see this energy. Like ultraviolet light, it’s invisible to you, but it’s as clear as day to us. Most people, Brianna, have a life force energy that might seem as bright as a desk lamp.” He looked straight into her eyes. “Your light is more akin to a star.”
She froze.
“But when you wear that pendant, Brianna, I cannot see it at all.”
Her hand drifted up to her necklace, like someone remembering a dream.
“It was burning me,” she murmured, pushing through the trauma and putting things together for the first time. “I was taking it off. That’s why…”
He nodded slowly, regarding her intently. “It was like cracking the lid off a pot, only to find a supernova inside. It outshone the sun for my kind. And for other kinds as well.”
She leaned back, breathing hard. “But that means if it burns me again, if it ever so much as slips off, anyone can find me. Anything can find me. Except… you found me in the woods. Even after I caught it, even after I put it back on. So even with the necklace, they’ll be able to track me—”
“They won’t be able to track you,” he interrupted swiftly. “Trust me.”
“But… but how could that be?” she insisted, heart racing in panic. “Cameron, I’m telling you, that chain was back around my neck when you got there. If you could find me—”
“I found you because I was already there.” He cut her off, his voice hot with an emotion she couldn’t identify.
The two stared at each other in silence — a silence neither one knew how to break.
“Excuse me, sir?” Pam walked up beside them, plopping the bedraggled teddy bear from the claw machine on the table between them. “I think you forgot this.”
? ? ?
Brie paid the bill while Cameron went to the door to check the parking lot.
For supernatural beings trying to kill me.
Next time I ask the universe for a fresh start, I should remember to be more specific.
A few minutes later, they were back on the road. The teddy bear sat on the dash between them — a reluctant prize neither would acknowledge. She wanted to press him for more answers, but she’d never seen that expression on his face, and she’d certainly never heard him snap.
It was somehow more frightening than the thought of him throwing lightning bolts. Every time she opened her mouth to ask another question, her eyes drifted to the bear.
If he believed it would be fine, she would trust him.
If there was ever a time for a leap of faith…
She sighed and gave her magically-repaired phone a nervous glance. She wanted to call Sherry to assure her that she was okay, but she hadn’t the faintest idea what to say. How was she going to explain her delay? How was she going to explain the celestial Ralph Lauren model rolling her window up and down in the passenger seat with a look of complete enchantment?
Sherry had seen her through the bulk of her therapy in the months following her mother’s death. She’d held her friend together with both hands, wiped all her tears, and listened to all her breathless raving. She’d never uttered a word of complaint. She’d never asked for anything in return.
But Sherry would not understand this.
As if the premise itself wasn’t enough to dizzy the mind, the woman absolutely hated anything “spooky” or supernatural. She avoided it like the plague. She wouldn’t even read her horoscope.
Might have something to do with the fact that her best friend spent a solid six months insisting her mother had been killed by shadow monsters in the woods.
Brie couldn’t think of a single thing she wanted more than to tell Sherry about these new and bizarre developments in her life. She also couldn’t think of anything that would devastate her more. She had to keep this to herself. It was the least she could do to protect her friend, who had spent so much time, love, and energy protecting her. That made her solution rather simple.
She needed to lie. Convincingly.
Super. Absolutely my strong suit.
She dialed and took a deep breath.
A moment later, Sherry picked up with a screech. “Where the hell have you been? I was this close to calling the National Guard!”
Cameron looked over, trying not to laugh.
“I’m so sorry, Sher. It was unavoidable. I’m on my way now.”
“Did you have car trouble or something? Or…” Sherry let out something between a gasp and a shriek of condemnation. “Did you see another fox? I keep telling you, they’re wild animals, Brie. They don’t want to be adopted, and you can’t chase feral creatures through the forest. No matter how fluffy their tails are.”
Cameron glanced over again, but this time, she determinedly avoided his gaze.
“It wasn’t a fox,” she muttered, sliding a few inches lower in her seat. “I promise to tell you all about it when I get into town in just another few hours. Can you call my dad and let him know I’m okay?”
“Fine, but… are you okay? You sound weird.”
“I’m fine, don’t worry.”
Not a lie. I am fine.
Her eyes flashed to the angel in the front seat.
Totally fine.
She could practically hear Sherry roll her eyes. “Text me the moment you get to your new place. Also, drinks tomorrow night after your first day. That is not a request. I’ll send you the address. I can’t wait for you to meet Mike! You’re gonna love him.”
“I can’t wait to meet him, too. I love you. See you soon.”
“Drive safely, you fiend. Love you, bye!”
Brie hung up with a sigh of relief.
Then she turned with the greatest hesitation to the angel sitting beside her. Verdict?
He pursed his lips, trying to control his expression. “Foxes, eh?” A flash of mischief danced in his eyes, almost completely obscured by centuries of composure. “They are wild animals, Brianna, and not to be trusted. I happen to know this for a fact.”
Her knuckles whitened on the steering wheel. “Okay, for one thing, there was a perfectly reasonable explanation for the—”
“I like your friend.”
She caught herself suddenly and let out a sigh of relief. “Sherry? Yeah, she’s the best.”
He nodded thoughtfully, his eyes on the road. “She cares for you deeply,” he murmured. “She thinks of you before herself.”
Brie nodded along absentmindedly, then looked over in sudden shock. “You know what she’s thinking?”
Do you know what I’m thinking?
He shook his head vaguely. “I know what she’s done.”
A profound silence followed this remark.
“How do you know what she’s done?”
His face flushed, and he became suddenly absorbed in the locking mechanism on her glove compartment. “I have a great many powers I find difficult to explain in only three dimensions.”
If I had a dime.
She drew in a deep breath and looked back at the road. “We’ll have to work on dialing down those little truth bombs. It’s bad for my blood pressure.”
He shot her a look of alarm, then placed two fingers on the inside of her wrist, feeling for her pulse. “Do you have any basil root?”
Her eyebrows shot into her hair. “Excuse me? Basil—”
“Basil root. To help with your blood pressure.”
There was a moment of silence.
“I honestly can’t tell if you’re joking.”
He turned back to the road, looking slightly unsettled. “Neither can I.”
For the next few minutes, the two drove in perfect silence, trying to ignore each other and trying to ignore the watchful gaze of the teddy bear on the dash between them. When that silence became too much, too charged with things unsaid, she turned to the radio, fiddling with the dials, finding and rejecting several stations at lightning speed.
After watching for a minute or so, he had to ask. “What are you looking for?”
“Anything classical. Anything soothing.”
He cocked his head, then gave the dial a slight touch. Two clear, bell-like soprano voices rang out in perfect harmony, trilling a moment before soaring to even greater heights.
Her heart quickened, and she looked at the radio in surprise. “‘The Flower Duet!’ How did you…?”
He simply looked out the window. “It’s your favorite when things are complicated.”
Just like tomato soup is my favorite when I don’t feel well.
Her eyes fixed upon him as those words from the diner echoed in her mind. “I found you because I was already there!”
Those questions started spinning again, and for a split second, she almost lost that tenuous grip. Who else in the world was having a conversation with their guardian angel? How was it possible that a person like him could even exist? Could she even call him a person? Was that right? And why, in the name of Heaven and Hell, was she being forced to ask all of these questions?
She stared a moment longer, then turned to focus on the road. “Complicated, huh?”
Better play it on a loop.
? ? ?
Two hours later, the situation had gone downhill.
The sweet balm of the music wore off around the same time Cameron decided it was a good time to start asking her questions or “dissecting the mortal nonsense,” as he’d called it with delight. She’d tried humoring him. She’d tried leaping from the car. Nothing had worked.
She’d also begun to suspect that his kind didn’t need to breathe.
“Why do you say, ‘If the shoe fits’ when footwear is not the issue?”
“Why do you assign value to shiny rocks?”
“What is meant by the term, ‘broseph?’”
“Do you never consider how the hot dog feels?”
“Why are you driving so fast?”
Brie gripped the steering wheel and gritted her teeth, vaguely aware she was doing about sixty in a forty-five zone. Her pulse quickened, and she had just opened her mouth with a rather cutting answer to that last question when she heard the siren and saw flashing lights behind her.
You’ve GOT to be kidding me.
She let out a curse that made his eyes widen and pulled over to the side of the road.
“Don’t say anything, okay?” she hissed. “Let me do all the talking. And don’t fiddle around with the window. And don’t get out of the car. And don’t talk about your bear. Just sit there quietly and let me handle this. It’s going to be fine. Everything is going to be fine.”
I’ve got to stop using that word.
“You needn’t be afraid,” he inserted gently, trying to calm her. “The police will merely hold you accountable for your actions. In the end, it’s actually a kindness—”
“I will gut you like a fish.”
He decided to sit there quietly after all.
She was fumbling for her license, trying to remember any of the breathing techniques Dr. Rogers had taught her when the cop rapped twice on her window.
She rolled it down with her most winning smile.
“License and registration.”
She handed them over and put her hands back on the wheel, bouncing her knees up and down with the manic energy of a Warner Brothers cartoon.
Don’t panic, don’t panic, this is fine.
Just stay quiet and calm.
And no matter what happens, don’t—
“I’m so sorry, officer,” she blurted. “I know I was going too fast. I’m just anxious, and in a new town, and frankly, you wouldn’t believe the day I’ve been having. I’ve been trying not to look at this judgmental bear for miles, and I’m still a little sugared up from the gummy worms. Or maybe I’m just jittery from the car accident? I don’t know, but I swear I’m not a criminal. I’ve never even had a parking ticket before. This is completely out of character for me, and if you could just take a second to—”
“You were in a car accident?” the cop asked sharply.
Her mind went blank. “Yes… it was… a long time ago.”
Excellent. Great job. Top-notch display of sanity and self-restraint.
He gave her a strange look. Such a strange look that she dug herself in a little deeper. “I’ve never even been sent to the principal’s office.”
His eyes strayed a little farther to the angel beside her.
“Neither have I,” Cameron volunteered helpfully. “But I’ve been instructed not to speak.”
As Brie rotated towards him with a chilling glare, Officer Mitchell, as his nameplate identified him, leaned in to take a better look. “You’ve been instructed not to speak?”
Cameron opened his mouth to answer, then paused as if the man might be testing him. He hesitated another moment, then nodded slowly instead, shooting Brie a conspiratorial wink.
She made a silent vow to kill him.
“Gummy worms and bears, huh?” The officer’s impassive sunglasses gave nothing away. “Have you two been drinking?”
Fair question.
“Not at all,” she replied frantically. “Everything’s just a little… I’m moving to Virginia. For work. For my best friend. With my best friend. It’s a fresh start for me and the plant.”
The officer glanced at the withered tree in the back. “And who’s your silent friend?”
Cameron was staring with muted defiance, as if wild horses couldn’t pry open his lips.
“He’s, uh… he’s like one of those emotional support creatures?” She couldn’t help but phrase it as a question, staring at the officer with wide, imploring eyes. “But neither of us were—”
That’s when she accidentally nudged the horn.
Cameron stared in fascination. The cop flinched.
There was a lengthy pause.
“Ma’am, please step out of the vehicle.”
Cameron shot her a sideways glance. “I really do think you should keep a supply of basil root in your car. Better safe than sorry.”
She shot him a look that could wither flowers before turning back to the cop. “Officer, I’m so sorry. If we could just—”
“Step out of the vehicle.”
Her eyes snapped shut as a familiar lump rose in her throat.
How can this be happening? How can things have gotten so far off course? This is supposed to be my new chapter. I’m supposed to be unpacking and having drinks with my best friend. Now, here I am, about to get arrested.
She pulled in a tight breath, already looping the tired mantra.
It’s fine. Everything is going to be—
“You don’t want her to step out of the vehicle,” said a deep, resonant voice beside her.
Officer Mitchell took off his sunglasses. “Excuse me?”
Yeah, excuse me?
Brie whirled around in shock as Cameron calmly leaned past her, speaking with a strange, sonorous affectation, staring deep into the officer’s eyes.
“You don’t want her to step out of the vehicle,” he repeated softly. “You want her to continue on her way. She promises not to drive so fast anymore.”
Officer Mitchell’s face was a study of conflicted emotions. His forehead furrowed deeply, and he opened his mouth as if to say something before his face suddenly relaxed.
“She promises not to drive so fast anymore,” he repeated with a vacant expression.
Cameron shot Brie a stern glance. “She absolutely promises.”
She looked back and forth between them like she was at the world’s most confusing tennis match, but she caught on. “Yes, I absolutely promise.”
The officer nodded vaguely, playing with his sunglasses. “Nice and safe.”
Cameron nodded as well, never breaking that gaze. “You want to give her back those papers.”
They passed through the open window.
“You’re going to have a wonderful day, officer. Surprise yourself. Do something fun.”
Officer Mitchell smiled broadly. “I think I’ll take my girlfriend to that fancy restaurant.”
Cameron inclined his head. “She’ll love that. Now, take your hands off the car.”
They disappeared, and the conversation came to an abrupt pause. After a few seconds of waiting, Brie chimed in with a hesitant, “Can I go?”
“Of course.” The man lifted his hand in an amicable wave. “Take care now.” He was still waving when they eased back onto the road, driving comically under the speed limit.
It was a few minutes before Brie was able to catch her breath.
It was a few miles after that before she managed to speak.
“What the ever-loving hell was that?”
Cameron glanced out the window, having already forgotten the exchange. “Those are longleaf pine.”
She sucked in a breath. “I meant with the cop , Cameron.”
He shot her a quick glance, his eyes twinkling with delight. “I believe that’s what they call, getting off on the right foot .”
She stared a moment, then turned back to the road.
“Brianna, do you get it? It’s one of your little idioms.”
“That’s not what that…” She raised her eyes heavenward for a moment before refocusing on the road. “You know what, Cam? You’re right. I’m going to start keeping basil root in the car.”