"No I'm not Krista. You're the strongest person I've ever seen," she said without a trace of envy.
"No I'm not. I've just become stubborn in my old age," I said, trying to joke my way out of the uncomfortable praise.
"Yes you are, but I'm going to get this because you're right, I need to. I will not let them, or our group, down," she said determinedly, facing Haniel once again.
I reached in and gave her a quick hug. "You can do it. Remember the images are a helping hand," I whispered in her ear before I stepped away.
Sam's expression lost some of its anxiety as she faced Haniel for a second time. This time I knew instantly that Sam had taken my words to heart and was accepting the images for what they were. It took her a little longer, but when she finally accomplished the test, we all applauded and I gave her another hug.
"I told you, you could do it," I said, linking my arm through hers while we watched Lynn prepare for her turn.
She glanced at me briefly and I gave her a reassuring smile. "You got it Lynn. Just remember what I told Sam," I said, blowing her a brief kiss for good luck.
She flashed a quick smile before she closed her eyes. It took her a little longer than Sam's second attempt, but in the end, she came out victorious.
"Well done," Haniel said, praising all three of us.
His praise boosted our confidence, and by the time the sun disappeared into the ocean behind us, we were able to filter the emotions Haniel sent us at an insane pace. Haniel had explained that when we entered into a situation where multiple forgotten souls needed to be saved, speed was of the essence.
"The more souls you change before you're discovered, the easier your task will become," he said, ending our training session.
***
"Mom, I'm going to head over to Mark's now. Are you sure you'll be okay without me?" I asked, feeling bad about leaving her when she had only been home a couple days. If the next day wasn't the day we planned on making our move, I would have opted to spend the first Saturday she was home with her.
The past week had literally flown by, and by Wednesday evening Lynn, Sam, and I could filter a forgotten soul within seconds of letting their images in. Haniel didn't praise us again after the first successful night, but I could tell he was pleased with our progress, and his approval spurred me on to excel even further. Sam and I finished our last day of school on Friday and we were both ecstatic that we were officially done with high school.
"I will be fine, honey," she said, laughing at me.
I smiled sheepishly, realizing I had asked her the question no less than twenty times since we had gotten up that morning.
"Sorry, Mom. I just feel bad leaving you so much after your first weekend home. I will be gone most of today and tomorrow evening," I said, reminding her of my plans.
"I'll be fine," she repeated. "I have all these wonderful gardening magazines you got me, a slew of HGTV shows to watch, and a stack of novels I'm dying to read. You've already prepared my lunch for me," She added, indicating the lunch I had stored in my school lunch bag and placed at arm's length for her. "Besides, the doctors told me the sooner I start moving around, the better I will feel. Go have some fun with your friends. I may be old, but I still remember how exciting that first weekend was after I finished my last high school exam."
"Okay, as long as you're sure," I said, heading toward the front door reluctantly.
"Have fun," I heard her call out as I locked the door behind me.
"Ready?" Mark asked, from the porch swing where he had been waiting for me.
"Yeah, I guess so," I said, glancing back at my house one last time as he opened the car door for me.
"Would you rather stay home?" Mark asked concerned. "I'm positive the others won't mind. We can fill you in tomorrow morning with the strategy we've come up with."
"No, I want to be with you guys. I missed hanging out with you guys the past two days. It majorly sucks to be away from the hub," I said. "Besides, my mom all but pushed me out the door," I added.
"I'm sure she's looking forward to a little quiet time. Believe me, I discovered when I was in the hospital that those nurses buzz in and out all hours of the day and night. I swear I thought they were on a mission to make my stay there Hell on earth," he said, smiling at me.
"I guess you're right. I never even thought about that. No wonder she pushed me out the door. I've been hovering over her since her release. I bet she's relieved to have the house to herself," I said, feeling my guilt melt away.
Chapter 10
I woke before dawn the day of our first ever Angelic mission. I watched the sun creep up along the wall across from my window with Feline at my side. The apprehension I was sure I would feel was absent. I knew without a shadow of a doubt we were ready. We had spent the previous day going over our plan of attack or "soul attack," as Shawn liked to phrase it. The details had been laid out and we were all itching to get in there and prove ourselves.
"Of course, waking up so early wasn’t part of the plan." I grumbled to Feline good-naturedly, picking up my book off my nightstand. I pulled out my bookmark and lost myself in the current vampire novel I was reading.
Several hours later, I placed the completed book on my table and glanced at my clock radio. "Well, I guess 8:30 is better than 6:00," I told Feline as I finally climbed out of bed. He chose to ignore my hint, though, and burrowed deeper into my quilt.