Her Guardian Angel Bailee-

Bailee-

When Mom told me that it was time to intervene, I wasted no time packing. Thankfully, I was familiar with the weather since East Creek was not too far off from where Rylee lives. A part of me prickled with curiosity at seeing her. But only if you have time, I chide myself.

 Mom is waiting for me right outside my door when I open it. She gives me a smile but her eyes hold depths of fear. I heft my bag over my shoulder and give her a hug. She whispers fiercely into my ear, “I’ve covered most of the servers monitoring Adam, but they’ll only hold for so long. Get your brother out of there, complete the task yourself, and then leave. Don’t let Adam make the same mistake your father did.”

 I pull away and study the emotions flickering over her face. “And when are you finally going to explain to me what that mistake was?”

 Mom’s posture goes stiff. “Keep them apart. He wasn’t supposed to fall in love with her.”

 I want to think she’s talking about Adam, but by the awkward, twisted shape her lips are in, I can’t say for sure. Then she gives me a brief nod and walks away. Everything seems to shrink. Inside of my chest I feel this empty expanse swirling, swallowing, slowly eating me away. I feel cold, as if the air froze the minute she turned her back on me and walked away. What kind of goodbye was that? She didn’t even say “I love you”. Just once I’d like her to say something kind and heartfelt. Something to prove that my mother does love me. That I’m not just an offspring she brought into this world to become her messenger. But if I do this task right, then I know she will say something good. She’ll hug me—a real hug—and say how proud she is. How her little girl has done such a great job. And I won’t feel like such a disappointment. And I won’t have a gnawing fear of Adam losing his wings—or not even getting them—because he’ll be safe with me. The thought of him losing what he’s only begun to gain has kept me up at night. I slam my door closed to shut out all the bad thoughts. They won’t follow me to East Creek. They aren’t allowed.

 I march to the Elevator with my bag. To my surprise, Ciara is there, watching me with the eyes of someone who’s been waiting for someone.

 I blink. “Oh! Hey, Ciara. You going somewhere?” I nod at the Elevator.

 She nods confidently. “East Creek, Texas.”

 “What?”

 “I’m coming with you.”

 I take in her khaki shorts and hot pink tank top the same shade as her flip flops and the small jewels she’s woven into her dark braid. Behind her is a large teal suitcase covered in stickers, some in better condition than others. 

 “Um. Why?”

 She shrugs. “Thought you could use a friend.”

 I want to be angry that she thinks I can’t do this by myself. But Ciara’s friendship is so genuine and unique that I only smile. 

 I press the small button and instantly, the large golden doors of the Elevator slide open. We both step inside and watch the Lobby vanish as the doors close.

 The inside of the Elevator is lined with gold paneling and handrails and on every wall there is the name of a continent. I press North America and then the screen above the door lights up.

 “North America,” a very mechanic woman’s voice says.

 The door slides open and then Ciara and I get out. We are no at a Hotel Branch in North America. Angels greet us newcomers as we pass by. I look around our new location in search of the U.S. Elevator.

 An angel with pale skin and brown hair twisted up into a bun waves us over. She’s wearing a black pencil skirt and glasses and a snow–white blouse with a nametag: Penny.

“Welcome to the Guardian Angel Branch of North America,” she says cheerfully. Her smile is too big. “My name is Penny. May I ask what Branch you are from?”

 I glance, bemused, at Ciara. We’ve never had to do this before. Usually you just come and go as you please.

 “Um...Overseers,” I say, naming our Branch. Overseers are the top Guardian Angel families and our Hotel doesn’t have an exact, set, location. We move from time to time.

 Her smile doesn’t waver. “Lovely! May I have your names?” she jostles the clipboard in her hand and uncaps a black ballpoint pen. 

 “Um,” Ciara laughs nervously. “Is there a new procedure around here?”

 Penny’s cheeks must hurt. “For the safety of our angels, new procedures are being put into practice. May I have your names, please?”

 “Ciara Evers,” Ciara says, watching Penny’s hand scribble onto the paper.

 “Welcome, Miss Evers!” Penny then turns to me.

 “Bailee Malach,” I say.

 I swear her smile curls wider and her eyes flicker with something malicious. “What a beautiful name!”

 “Thanks.”

 Penny lowers her gaze to her clipboard. “May I ask what district you two are traveling to?”

 “The United States of America,” Ciara offers, messing with her suitcase.

 Penny scratches a note. “Once you get inside the Elevator, our new system will allow you to be more specific with your directions.”

 It takes me a moment to process what she means. “Oh!” I say. “So I’d just say East Creek, Texas?”

 This time Ciara doesn’t miss the look on Penny’s face either. Penny keeps on her smile and points the tip of her pen to an Elevator. This one is painted blue with what I assume to be fifty white stars. Ciara and I nod our thanks and rush off to the Elevator with our bags. Once the doors close and we’re safely inside—just the two of us—we drop our bags and burst into laughter.

 “She must have the buffest face muscles ever!” Ciara laughs.

 “I know, right?” I giggle. “You should’ve asked how much her face bench presses!”

 Ciara gasps. “I totally should’ve!”

 I roll my eyes in amusement and press the Texas button. The screen flashes with an image of Texas and a proud Texan, “YEEHAW!” comes from the speakers. Then the screen flashes again and now it shows a man wearing a cowboy hat and boots. 

 “Howdy, Partner,” he says with a thick Southern accent. “Welcome to the Lone Star State! Where can we take you today?”

 A small hatch opens up on the wall and I jump. A skinny little microphone pops out. Ciara nudges me forward. I lean towards it and tug nervously on my red curls. “Uh...East Creek.”

 The microphone clicks back into place. 

 The cowboy man smiles. “East Creek it is, and what a good choice y’all–”

 Suddenly, the Elevator jerks to a stop. Ciara clutches the handrail and looks at me uncertainly. The screen turns black and the lights go out.

 “Oh, shoot,” I mumble. “It broke!”

 Ciara closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. “I’m claustrophobic.”

 I bang on the door. “Hey!”

 The screen flashes and I stumble back, momentarily blind. On the tv is a scary image depicting blood–red wings on a black background. It’s the only source of light. A deep, frightening voice rumbles, “Welcome to East Creek, Texas. This is your destination. But be warned. We know what you’re doing here. You’ve come on a mission. Hoping to save something. Something that’s lost. But I can already tell you, your efforts are in vain.”

I faintly see Ciara, her eyes round with terror. She clutches my arm, her fingernails digging into my skin. But I’m too scared to say anything. I look directly at the tv.

“Your greatest fears are about to come true,” the voice continues. “I would advise turning back, but it’s far too late for that now. What you thought you knew about the Guardian Angels has all been a lie. Our purposes for service are much larger and quite honestly, darker.

 “This is your warning. Despite what you may think, we have eyes everywhere—especially where you least expect it. And punishments will be as severe as they need to be. We will not hold back. SHould you fail, the consequences will be deadly. And we know what you value most. Make no mistake.”

The Elevator jolts and I cling to the hand rail, shaking. My glasses slip down the sweat that beads across my nose. My hand trembles like a leaf as I push them up. 

 The image on the screen seems to blaze brighter and brighter until it’s all I can see. The Elevator rumbles and then shoots upward like a bullet. It goes so quick that I fall to the ground. Ciara screams and I think that I do too.

 It’s so scary, hurtling through a void with the only lightened thing being the image of red wings. And I can hear the voice laughing at us as we shriek. My head pounds and I wonder what I’ve gotten us into. I can hardly control my breathing. 

 Then, the Elevator stops.

 The screen shuts off.

 For a moment, all you can hear is Ciara and my own ragged breathing.

 And then the lights flare so bright I shut my eyes, each bulb a deep red color instead of their normal bright shade. The voice says, “Have a nice visit.”

When the doors open, Ciara and I sprint.

 This behavior startles the people of East Creek, because I suppose Southerners aren’t accustomed to seeing two terrified teenage girls run for their lives out of a normal elevator. 

 “Thank you for choosing Hilton,” says a friendly bellhop. 

 “Well, we aren’t doing it again,” Ciara says, shaken.

 Even though I’m still reeling over what a truly traumatic elevator ride that was, I elbow her. If she won’t come to her senses, than I have to.

 The bellhop, probably a year older than me, looks genuinely upset. “Oh, no! Can I ask why?”

 “Roach,” I say quickly. “She can’t stand ‘em. But I might be back. I won’t put in a bad review, I promise.”

 He smiles at me. “Thank you, Miss. I’ll make sure no more roaches torment anybody.”

 “‘Preciate it,” I say. “Bye!”

 “See y’all,” the bellhop waves.

 I pull Ciara away before she can embarrass anybody further. Her eyes are still wide and she kneads her bottom lip with her teeth. Cars pass by, some of them with enough bass to shake the Statue of Liberty all the way across the country. Already I can feel the heat. Sure, it’s Texas in December, but even so, it’s warm.

 “We need a ride,” I tell Ciara.

 “How?” she demands, shaking my shoulders. “How are you not freaking out right now?”

 “I am!” I snap. “But one of us has to take charge. I don’t have time to focus on that now. I will later, I know I will. But not right now.”

 She stares at her feet. “Okay. I’m sorry. I...I’ll help you out.”

 I sigh. “Thank you.”

••••••••

If Mom hadn’t given me Adam’s address, I don’t know what would’ve happened to Ciara and me.

 Dead plants poke out of the ground, shriveled and depressed. I make a mental note to chastise Adam about stewardship later. I knock on the front door. Ciara peers through a window.

 “What are you going to do once you get inside?” she asks me.

 “Panic,” I say. “Because I didn’t get to do that earlier.”

 “I’ll panic with you.”

 I knock again.

 “Try the handle,” she suggests. “If he’s anything like Theo, he’ll be too careless to lock it.”

 “How’s he doing?”

 Ciara shrugs. “He’s doing as well as he can. Lots of people won’t even talk to him anymore. His family kicked him out of their Hotel Room. But one of his friends, Kooper, is letting Theo bunk with him. Kooper and Theo have been friends for a long time.”

 I turn the door knob and find it unlocked.

 Ciara gives a short laugh.

 “I’ll need to talk to him about that,” I mutter. 

 We go inside and it is a mess. 

 “He’s been here maybe two weeks!” I complain, kicking aside an empty bag of Cool Ranch Doritos. “How hard is it to walk over to the trash can?”

 Ciara wrinkles her nose. “Smells like dirty socks, too.” she unzips her suitcase and rummages through it. She pulls out a perfume scented Island Mango Vanilla. Spritzes float in the air, slowly settling around the room, masking the aroma of teenage–boy–left–to–his–own–devices.

 “Bet he’ll appreciate that,” I say distractedly. I’m busy studying his coffee table. Spread across the tabletop are a couple of Polaroids of my brother and a teenage girl. In some photos, her hair catches the sunlight, turning it a deep red. Two dimples are set into her cheeks. I move the photos aside and stare at my reflection through the glass top of the table. I collapse onto his couch and drop my chin into my hands. 

 Ciara is busy unpacking the essentials. Then, with her hairbrush in hand, she comes to sit beside me on the couch.

 “Ooh,” she says, picking up a photo. “Is that your brother?”

 Still staring at my feet, I nod.

 “And who’s the girl?” she asks, unraveling her hair from its braid. With delicate fingers, she plucks each jewel from the weave and places it deftly on the table. They clink together. “At first I thought it was you, Bailee. Wearing contacts or something. But it’s not. Those two seem like boyfriend and girlfriend. I’ve never seen her before at the Hotel—”

 “She’s human,” I interrupt.

 Ciara freezes. Her hands hover over the remaining braided hair. “That’s his charge?”

 I nod.

 “Okay, okay, sorry if I’m wrong, but he looks…”

 “In love,” I finish. I yank my hands through my curls and shove my glasses up on the bridge of my nose. Ciara places her hand on my knee. Two of her fingers are encircled by a ring. They’re both silver, but one has a ruby shaped like a teardrop and the other says T+C.

 “That’s why you had to come,” she realizes, speaking softly. “And why you were worried about Wing Removal. He’s in love. With a human.”

 “No!” I stand up quickly, my fists clenched. “He’s not in love with her. He’s just a kid. Fifteen. Kids can’t understand that kind of love. There’s just no way. He can’t love her.”

 Ciara stares at her hands. “I’m seventeen. There’s not much of a difference.” she notices the glare I’m shooting her way and decides to shut up. “The Elevator. They think he’s in love with her. They’re watching him. And warning you.”

 My head is pounding. “Ciara, I really don’t want to talk about it.”

 Suddenly, the front door opens and in walks my little brother, wearing a dorky smile. When he sees me, he freezes. I glare at him and pick up one of the Polaroids. He still stands frozen as I march up to him and shove the Polaroid roughly into his chest. His hands fold around it as he stands, speechless.

 Finally, he manages to talk. “Bee,” he says.

 “You,” I say angrily, “have a lot of explaining to do.”