POV BETTY
I saw the angel with my own eyes. Well. All right. I had no questions.
I was relieved that Gabriel hadn't just been fooling around. That the confession about demons, guardians, and angels hadn't been a tasteless, childish joke.
"Fine. So they exist. That's it."
The world is a strange place.
At home, I browsed Gabriel Stone's social media.
He seemed far too human. Yet after seeing that angel, I had no doubts.
"Fine. So he's a guardian. That's it."
And tomorrow afternoon, I'm going to play basketball with this watcher.
Tomorrow I'll also ask about that Lucifer business. I hadn't believed a word of it until I saw the angel. I hadn't attached much importance to the Lucifer blah-blah either.
Like Scarlett O'Hara?
I'll think about it tomorrow.
I smiled at my own comparison and picked up Gone with the Wind, the book I'd practically worn threadbare since my teenage years. Just a few days ago, I'd even folded a corner instead of using a bookmark.
Tomorrow we'll see how the afternoon turns out with this watcher named Azazel.
Before reading, I looked up Azazel online.
Uh-huh. The mainstream had picked up the legend—well, the story—and portrayed him as a rather ugly character.
Hopefully, we'll laugh our way through these together.
The mainstream grabs a lot of things, twists them, and turns them demonic.
Let's start with the inverted cross. Saint Peter asked to be crucified upside down. The inverted cross has nothing to do with evil or the breaking of holy vows. It's a symbol of Peter's humility.
But enough legends and misused mainstream symbols.
Guardians, angels, demons exist. That's it.
I checked Naberius's and Aamon's profiles on social media too. Well—those two are demons.
I liked Naberius. I found Aamon strange.
If Azazel were a demon or an angel, I might be afraid.
Should I be afraid of a guardian?
My intuition has never failed me. I hope it hasn't this time either.
I was calm and started reading.
Every three pages, Gabriel crept into my thoughts.
I reacted the way I did. But what would be the right reaction?
My mind generated several versions of the same situation.
I should feel chosen.
I should feel cast out.
I should run.
My intuition urged calm. I smiled at the game my mind was trying to play with me.
My soul knew that I am Betty, and he is Gabriel.
Later, I heard knocking. Someone was knocking on my door.
It was an angel. An unfamiliar angel.
Not that I'm exactly surrounded by angel acquaintances.
I took a closer look through the peephole. I made sure it wasn't the angel I'd met earlier in the police basement.
I hadn't yet hosted a single supernatural being.
The angel knocked again. He must have had something urgent to say if he wasn't giving up.
Slowly, I turned the lock. The angel smiled at me.
"May I come in, before the neighbors notice?"
"Naturally," I replied.
My tone was mocking again. The angel ignored it without a word.
I expected a sermon about how Azazel isn't who he claims to be and is allied with the Devil.
He didn't mention Azazel at all.
"My name is Uriel, and I need your help."
"He doesn't waste time, that's for sure," I thought.
I studied the angel carefully. He looked surprisingly similar to Azazel. But what hid beneath their gazes was different.
This angel looked confused, frightened.
"Why don't you ask your companions or the guardians for help?"
I thought it was a fair question.
"I made a mistake, and I don't want Heaven to find out. And Lucifer seems to want to use the guardians for his own purposes. We can't speak with them anyway…"
That's where he stopped explaining. They can't speak with the guardians…
I can understand them being angry at demons because of their cosmic messes—but this?
"Perhaps it would make more sense to speak with the guardians than with a mortal. As far as I know, the guardians have also made mistakes. Like you."
I immediately regretted reprimanding Uriel. His expression turned so sad…
"At least listen to me before you decide."
"All right."
I led Uriel into my living room. I couldn't very well host an angel in the kitchen, next to my unwashed plate and mug.
He sat down. And remained silent.
He must have committed a very serious sin if it was so hard for him to reveal it even before a mortal.
He sat there, and I felt sorry for how much he feared judgment.
Forgiveness exists, doesn't it?
"The guardians tricked me. Purely for amusement. I sent a mortal infant to Pandemonium. I believed it was the child of a guardian and a mortal."
Oh. So that's where the wind was blowing from.
The guardians had found a key to remind Heaven that angels aren't infallible either.
I shrugged. Then I thought of the mortal child. Perhaps that's why he was asking for my help.
"I'd like you to notify me if you learn that Lucifer is planning something truly vile. For now, it seems he's sent his demons among mortals to get to know women…"
Hold on. Azazel has to get to know me.
That stung. Still, I couldn't fall apart in front of a stranger angel.
"And what will happen to the mortal infant?" I asked about the other innocent victim in this affair.
"Lucifer has no right to keep a mortal infant in Pandemonium since original sin was erased. He should have sent the child back long ago."
"Uh-huh," I thought, understanding nothing.
Uriel was in trouble.
The mortal infant was in trouble.
And the angel wanted to use me to spy on Lucifer.