Angel in the Shadows, Book 1 by Lisa Grace (Angel Series) (14 page)

Normally, my dad would not put through a call
this late at night but because it’s for our guest, I guess he’s
making an exception. My dad brings the phone to the door and gives
it to me.

Vania turns pale, “I know it’s him, Judas.”

I immediately put it on speakerphone. We hear a
deep-throated chuckle, “I know what you’re doing with your new
little friend.”

“Leave her alone, she’s not yours anymore,” I
say.

“Judas scores one with Jordan, Megan scores one
with Vania. Looks like it’s a tie score. Let’s have a tie breaker,
how ‘bout my party Saturday night? I’ll bring the alcohol and the
drugs; oh, and you can bring your Bible.” Judas lets out a demonic
guttural laugh and he’s gone. Vania is shaking when I hang up the
phone.

“It’s okay. He can’t hurt you anymore as long as
you are saved.”

“I know, I just can’t believe how close I was to
evil and I didn’t even know it. I was so confident I was in control
of me and the decisions I was making.”

“But you made the right choice. You’re okay
now.”

Vania looks at me in fear, “What are we going to
do about the party? How do we stop people from getting hurt?”

I look at Vania, “Do you trust me?”

“Yes,” she says.

“Do you believe Judas is a dark angel?” I
ask.

“Yes. I mean it’s so obvious now.” She rolls her
eyes and bites at a hangnail until it’s gone.

“Don’t you wonder how I know he’s a dark angel?”
I can tell by the way her eyes widen that she hadn’t thought about
how I would know. “For some reason I’ve been given the gift to see
good and bad angels. When I look at them they appear to be glowing.
Good ones glow light and the bad ones glow dark. Demons look like a
grey cloud.” I continue, “You are the only person I’ve shared this
with. You are the only one, and only because you could tell Judas
wasn’t human.”

Vania looks at me and nods her head, “Wait, you
said good angels glow white, that means you’ve seen one of those
too! Can you get a good angel to help us fight Judas?”

“Yes. I think he’s here to fight Judas.”

“Let’s call him,” Vania says handing me the
phone.

I take it from her and put it down. “It doesn’t
work that way. He’s a messenger of God. He’s here to do God’s will,
not ours.”

“Well can we pray to the angel to get him here?”
Vania asks.

I shake my head, “No. The angels are creations
of God, like us. We don’t pray to things that are created. It makes
them into idols by thinking they have power only God has.”

“Oh,” Vania says. Her face brightens with a
smile, “I know why God picked you! He picked you ’cause you
understand these things.”

“Maybe,” I shrug, “What we can do right now is
pray for help. We don’t want to face Judas on our own.”

“Let’s do it,” Vania says. So we do.

***

Thursday morning, My dad drops Vania and me off
at school. Mom, Dad, and Max gave me quite a few inquisitive looks
over dinner last night when I brought Vania home. They treat Vania
like family and even enjoy bringing her to church. I think their
curiosity was sparked over how I had met Vania. Because as far as
they could tell, we don’t have anything in common.

Vania and I still aren’t sure how we are going
to handle the party this weekend.

“We could call the cops once the party is
underway.” I suggest.

“All Judas will do is give the kids another
location and a half-hour later the party will be going again, so
that won’t work.” Vania replies. She adds, “I know ‘cause a month
ago I was hanging with Judas, remember?”

“Oh, yeah,” I might be book smart, but I’m
awfully street dumb.

“First, we have to have one of the kids give us
directions on how to get there,” Vania says.

I know it’s in an industrial park somewhere, but
that doesn’t narrow it down much. I looked at the flyer, but I
didn’t take one. I didn’t get around to telling Vania that Johnny
is the good angel. She never asked, so I guess she assumed the
angel wasn’t a student. Judas, who is now Jude, is hanging with the
football team-cheerleader crowd. I can’t get any of my new friends
in that group to speak with me. I hear one of them call me,
“snitch.”

Later, I see Jude pointing me out. It’s clear
he’s turning them against me with rumors. There’s no way Vania, a
Goth, is going to be able to get in with that crowd either. I tell
Vania to meet Johnny, Carrie, and me for lunch. I have one more
idea I can try out.

I go to the registrar’s office and show her my
student I.D. and my TV production badge. “Hi, I’m Megan Laughlin,
and I’m doing a story on how hard it is for transfer students to
assimilate into a new school. Especially for those who start a
couple of weeks later. I need a list of the students who came in a
week or two late to interview for the story, and can you include
their picture from their student I. D. so I can find them?”

“Sure sweetie, but the picture can’t leave the
office. It’ll just take a couple of minutes.” The registrar goes to
her computer and looks up her records. “Well honey, it might not be
much of a story. It looks like we only have five that started after
the year began. Good luck.”

She hands me two print outs, one with their
names and one with their photos. I glance at the photos briefly,
but Jude/Judas doesn’t stick out so I look at the names. There
isn’t a Jude/Judas listed. I read through the names again. Nope. I
look back at the pictures more carefully this time.

There he is. I have to do a double-take. In the
student photo, he has long blonde wavy hair. He looks like a surfer
dude. And his name isn’t Jude or Judas. His name is Damon Vincent
Lawless. His initials are D-V-L. I guess Damon likes games. Now as
Jude, he wears his hair brown and just past his ears in a preppy
look. His eye color is different too. In the photo his eyes are
brown. As Jude, his eyes are a startling light grey blue and very
magnetic. Jude definitely has the magnetism of a rock star. In the
picture none of that comes through. He looks washed up. For a
minute I think about asking for an address, then I realize that
would be as phony as any name or look he chooses to go by. He can
appear to be any human form he desires to suit his purpose. First
he was a surfer, then a Goth, now a prep. He’s been at his evil
purposes a long time. A month ago I knew creatures like him
existed, but I never imagined they really affected my life in any
way. Now I know how wrong I was. This is real and this is my
life.

***

Johnny, Vania, and Carrie are already at the
table when I arrive. Vania isn’t shy and has introduced herself as
my new friend. Our little group is growing. I had warned Vania not
to say anything unless I bring it up. I still haven’t told her
Johnny’s an angel and Carrie has no clue as to what is going on
since I haven’t told her anything. I might not be able to talk
privately to either Johnny or Vania today. I have to leave right
after school, eat a quick dinner then come back for my TV
production club meeting. I wish I could tell Johnny and Vania about
Jude/Judas also going by the name Damon. I’m not sure what I should
do and really need Johnny’s advice. The bell rings signaling the
end of lunch. Later, I wish I had ignored the bell and talked to
Johnny. Maybe things wouldn’t have ended as badly.

CHAPTER 7 - ANGEL IN THE SHADOWS

Tonight I have a meeting for our TV show which
runs live tomorrow. The meeting is running at least an hour late
with all the bickering between Emma and Clint on who is going to be
the on-air talent for each story. They’re acting as if it is a
matter of life or death. Finally, I suggest they do
rock-paper-scissors for the lead story and the loser can do next
week’s lead. Mrs. Hixon our advisor has already left since she was
running late for picking her son up from soccer practice. All we
have to do is lock up before we leave. Clint and Emma walk ahead to
the parking lot where our parents are waiting to pick us up. I ask
them to let my mom know I’ll be out in a few minutes as my bladder
is about to burst and using the restroom is imperative before I
leave.

***

It is dark outside. Leaving the building, I can
see the glow from car headlights bouncing off the buildings in
eerie patterns of light. The outside overhead lights are still off.
They haven’t been reset for it getting dark this early. The science
building blocks my view of the parking lot, so I stop and wait for
my eyes to adjust to the darkness. That’s when I sense, off to my
left, movement. I look over and see in the shadows the glow of a
cigarette. I feel drawn toward the glow to find out who’s there. My
heart starts to race as the stranger steps into a pool of light
leaking from the building doors.

My heart sinks as I realize it’s Judas.

He’s as handsome as usual but I can feel his
hatred rolling over me like waves in the ocean’s surf. It takes all
my strength not to take a step backward from the heat of his anger.
I can see he’s barely in control, but I know he can do nothing to
hurt me without God’s permission.

I want to run toward my Mom’s car and safety,
but then I feel foolish for not having the courage to face him. I
boldly walk toward Judas and try to think of what to say. Saying hi
seems too ordinary, friendly and dorky. Confronting him feels
dangerous.

Before I can speak, he turns to me, tilts his
head away to blow out smoke, and offers me a ghost of a smile. He
speaks menacingly, “What do you think—you—could possibly say—to
me?” pausing between the words. Judas superiority and disdain for
me are dripping from each accentuated word.

“Why are you here?”

“Don’t you remember me?”

He looks at me and raises his eyebrows. “I’m
here—for you.”

My heart sinks as I realize I’m playing right
into his hands. His meeting me tonight is intentional. Judas was
waiting for me. He’s not pouring on the charm the way he does for
everybody else. Judas doesn’t have to maintain a façade for me. I
realize now that all he wants to do is destroy me and every other
mortal who happens to gain his attention. I’m disappointed and
angry with myself for wanting him to be charming so I blurt out, “I
know what you are, Judas. I‘m going to stop you.”

He looks down at his feet and takes another drag
off his cigarette before he answers, “All men are like grass…

And all their glory is like the flowers of the
field…Grass—withers…

And the flowers—fall,” with this Judas knocks
his ash off his cigarette. He looks at me and continues, “I am the
predator and you the prey, Mouse,” he moves slowly closer, “I am a
roaring lion seeking whom I may devour.” Judas takes a step towards
me and crushes his cigarette.

I’m afraid to stay but more afraid to show my
fear so I stand my ground. I know he’s quoting scripture. My brain
is paralyzed just thinking about how fast and strong angels are.
The only thing I can hang onto right now is my faith that God is
protecting me since I can’t even speak.

“I’m asking to sift you, Mouse.” He whispers in
my ear. I can smell the cigarette smoke lingering on his clothes.
He looks down at me and before I can react, he bends down with
supernatural speed and kisses me on the lips. His lips are cold and
burning. He presses them against mine so fast there is nothing I
can do to stop him. There is nothing sensual behind his façade. At
the same time, he puts his hands on my ribs and presses me so hard
against him it takes my breath away. All this hits me within a
heartbeat. I break free and run as soon as I’m aware of what’s
happening. I look back over my shoulder after I’m safely in the
parking lot. He’s gone.

Judas’ kiss was an attack on me. He meant to
scare me by showing how much faster and stronger he is. I’m so
angry with myself for even letting him get close enough to do that.
What was I thinking? Keep evil far away. Judas was right, I have
nothing to say to him. I need to avoid him and just concentrate on
keeping others away also.

***

The next morning we have homeroom. I only have
to stay five minutes to check in and then I get to go to TV
production to help run our show. I get to class and stop dead in my
tracks. Judas is sitting in the chair behind mine.

Mrs. Grey says, “Megan have you met Damon? He’s
new to the school these last two weeks.”

Mrs. Grey assigns her students alphabetically.
My last name is Laughlin, his is Lawless. My heart sinks. He
planned this all along.

I look at her and say, “I have to get to
television production class,” and run out the door. There’s really
not much she can do about it today because she knows it’s true.

After homeroom, I get to my science class. I’m
feeling a little better because we only have homeroom a few times a
semester. I can handle that. Microbiology is one of my favorite
classes. I love the experiments. This year we have an odd number of
students so Mrs. Mack asked if I would mind not having a lab
partner, which is fine with me. I’m reviewing my notes when the
bell rings so I don’t look up till she begins to speak. To my
horror, Judas is standing at the front of the class. Not again.
This can’t be happening. School is turning into a nightmare.

“Class it looks like we have another gifted
student joining us this semester. They’ve moved Damon,” Judas
interrupts her, “Ma’am I prefer to be called Jude, after my
Father.”

Mrs. Mack smiles and continues, “Oh, alright,
Jude. They’ve moved Jude up from his regular classes into IB
because of his high test scores.”

“Megan, back in seat c-six, Jude will be your
lab partner. If you will kindly sit next to her in c-five. Thank
you.”

I try not to look at him. I can’t believe this
is happening. Judas sitting next to me everyday! I made up my mind
to avoid him and now I’m put in situations where it’s not even
possible. I hope Johnny’s at lunch today. I need some advice. I
need moral support. I don’t think my year could get much worse. I
am wrong, so wrong.