Forgotten Souls (The Saving Angels 2)

Mark grabbed my hand as we descended the front steps. I was relieved to see him, but wished it were under different circumstances. We had been so busy training that our alone time lately was non-existent.

"This is nice," I commented, looking at our joined hands.

"Very nice," he replied, pulling me into his arms for a quick kiss before he opened the car door for me.

"Hey guys," I said, addressing my extended family.

Their greetings rang out through the vehicle as I fastened my seatbelt.

"Everybody ready?" Mark asked, backing out of my driveway.

"Heck yeah, let's go save some souls," Shawn said in an awful imitation of a tough guy. The tension floating around the vehicle was evident on everyone's faces and he was doing his best to make us laugh.

I knew we were ready, but I couldn't help my nerves. We had a solid game plan set thanks to Haniel. Our goal was to arrive at the revival early so we could interact with the people there. The appearance of mere socializing would give us the chance to save as many of them as possible. Haniel advised us to work quickly before Alan made his appearance.

"Being an Abbadon, he will most likely see you for what you truly are. You must try to avoid that if possible. Go in, save who you can, and get out," he told us.

"So I spent the morning Googling this Alan guy," Sam said, breaking the silence in the vehicle.

"Nothing really came up under his name so I tried to think outside the box a little," she added. "I did find an interesting string of attacks at government buildings in several surrounding counties."

"What do you mean?" I asked curiously.

"For example, in Santa Clara County, the welfare office was completely gutted and vandalized. Oh, and an employee was severely beaten. The victim is still in ICU and hasn’t been able to tell authorities anything. In that same county, exactly one week later, a security guard and a lawyer leaving the courthouse were both beaten with the guards night stick. The lawyer suffered a blow to the neck which left him paralyzed and the security guard died a few days after the attack due to complications. Once I found those two cases, I widened my search to other counties around us and found similar incidents," she said. "Here, I made a mock map and labeled each government attack," she added, passing around the map of California she had printed up.

It was passed up my way after the others had a chance to look at it. Based on Sam's handiwork, you could definitely make out a pattern by studying the areas she highlighted. "Have they caught anyone yet?" I asked, studying the couple of dozen marks on the map. ;Alright, enough of my drama as you like to call it," she said, making me laugh. "So the farmers market was fun?"

"It was pretty cool. I liked the idea of shopping outside. It was like visiting one massive garage sale. Once you can handle an outdoor excursion, I'll take you down there so you can see it firsthand," I said, hoping that would help shake her out of her funk.

"That would be great. Just like old times when we would spend the summers trolling yard sales back home," she said. "So, are you getting excited about graduation?"

"Ugh, don't remind me," I said, not relishing the idea of having to walk in front of the entire senior class to receive my diploma.

"Honey, everyone will be just as nervous as you are about receiving their diploma. They won't even notice you," she said, patting my hand to reassure me.

"Yeah right, until I trip or something," I muttered, making her chuckle.

"Trust me, you will be fine."

The rest of my visit was spent discussing the final exams I was taking this coming up week. We both knew that I would breeze through them and that it was really just a formality. Having some freaky high IQ from my Angel blood definitely had its perks.

Lynn, Robert, and Haniel were waiting for us on the beach when we finally made it home from the hospital. Sam and I headed to my room and quickly changed out of our school uniforms. I was excited as I hung my skirt and sweater up. Less than a week to go and I would be able to pack it away for good, I thought, as I tossed the white button-up shirt into my dirty clothes basket. I pulled on a pair of comfy cut-off sweats and a t-shirt and grabbed a sweatshirt on my way out the door to ward off the cool ocean breezes.

The others were waiting for Sam and me down by the tide line in an informal circle, listening to Haniel's instructions. Haniel had decided to mix things up by sitting the guys out and dedicating the training completely to the Guides. He explained that the guys had the proper skills and techniques they needed already in place. Instead, he would focus the next week completely on Lynn, Sam, and me. He decided to test each of us individually, so we could all have a turn to watch from the outside.

I was anxious when he picked me to go first. I had decided the night before that the seriousness of the situation deserved a complete commitment from me. So when Haniel sent me the disturbing images, I tackled them head-on, embracing them as my own. Where before I couldn't seem to grasp how to appropriately filter the emotions, I could now clearly see exactly what I needed to do. I wrapped my own happiness and love around the images, freeing the victims from the pain and suffering they had endured, and cast the new emotions back out for Haniel to inspect.

I opened my eyes to see Haniel smiling at me, offering a rare display of emotion that wasn't neutral. "Very good Krista," he said, praising me. "You now understand."

I nodded my head. "Yes, before I couldn't help shying away from the disturbing images. I realize now that those images should not be feared. They are crucial stepping stones to guide us down the appropriate path we need to help them," I said simplifying the process.

"Exactly," he replied, looking pleased. "Sam, you are next."

I watched Sam close her eyes and knew the instant Haniel sent her the images by the way she recoiled like she had been struck. Watching from the sidelines was almost as intense as experiencing it firsthand, I discovered as I watched Sam's facial expressions. After a few moments, it became clear that Sam had failed when she collapsed to the sand on her knees. I rushed to her side to help her up.

"I can't do it," she said, her voice filled with anguish from the after effects of the images she had seen.

"Yes you can," I said, brushing the sand off of her. "You have to do this, they need you. Remember, the images aren't your enemy, they're your friend, sent there to help you find the right path. You can do this, you're stronger than me," I said earnestly.