Angel's Guardian: A Contemporary Vampire Romance

by Zeecé Lugo

“Yes, baby.” Angel’s eyes filled with tears. “I love you both so much. So much. I will lead the bad men away. You must stay very quiet and take care of your brother. Keep him wrapped up. Charlie will keep you both warm. Keep him close.”

  “Max will come get us. He will, I know.”

  “Yes, baby. He will.”

  CHAPTER 30

  Angel ran back into the house and got the dog’s dishes and filled them. She placed them by the dog house. She leaned inside and gave her babies one last kiss.

  “Keep quiet, no matter what Charlie does or what you hear. There’s food in the bag. Either I or Max will come.”

  Once more inside the house, she searched through her closet. She stuffed her wallet inside her jacket pocket. Max had gotten her a small gun which he’d cleverly hidden inside her checked-in luggage. She stuck it inside her boot. She hoped she didn’t shoot her foot off.

  She stepped out the door and did not bother locking it. They would break it down if she did. Now, it was up to her to lead them away from the children. She took a left at her gate and began walking towards the SUV.

  About twenty paces from it, she did a double take of the SUV, acting as if she’d just realized it was there and recognized it. She quickly crossed in front of it and making a dash to the sidewalk on the other side, broke into a run. As she reached the corner, she turned right and looked quickly behind her. The SUV’s back lights came on. The chase was on.

  Angel ran full speed, knowing now that all depended on her. Somewhere close by, there would be another car waiting for her. She had to get out of the open and find a place to hide. She must also keep the enemy away from her house. She needed to give them glimpses of her to force them to give chase.

  As a dark green sedan came slowly down the street facing her, the black SUV turned the corner behind her. She once again ran across the street and scrambled over the link fence into a neighbor’s yard. As she ran through the yard, to the back and over the fence again, she could feel her heartbeat thumping madly.

  She did not stop. She kept running and jumping fences, heading for the town’s camping grounds which gave way to a forested area. If neighbors saw her jumping their fences, they might call the police, she worried.

  It was after four pm, getting dark, and most people were still at work. School was out, but the day was cold and drizzly, and everyone was indoors keeping warm, watching TV. Every time she jumped a fence, she took a chance that a dog would attack her. Thankfully, on chilly, wet days, most owners kept their dogs in.

  If she could hide out until sundown, just less than an hour, she could double back under the cover of dark and get her babies safely back in the house. They could sit in the dark, quiet as church mice, and wait for Max. They may be three thousand miles apart, but that would not keep him away. He would come, she knew.

  She jumped over the last fence which backed up to a gravelly, shrubby slope that gave way to a bubbly, narrow brook. She followed it down for about fifty feet until she found a place where she could jump from rock to rock and ford it. On a cold, clammy evening, it would not do to get wet.

  She climbed up a short slope on the other side, her breath short and labored, her hands grasping at the long, wet, but still green grasses and headed for the woods verging on the other side. On the edge of the woods, she turned to look behind her. There, between the last two houses, the dark green sedan was stopped, and she could clearly see a man holding what seemed to be binoculars trained in her direction.

  She turned and ran into the woods. They knew where she went, and they would quickly find a way around and come for her. In the distance she heard police sirens. Her pursuers would have to dodge those too.

  ******

  The house seemed to be deserted. The two men split up, one heading to the second floor, gun in hand, the other one sweeping out the first. He searched out the kitchen, every covert, every closet. He doubled back and opened the hall door to the garage. It was clean as a whistle, not a car or even a tricycle in it. It was obvious the woman did not drive.

  The man who swept the upstairs came down. “Where are the kids? There’s a baby’s nursery and a little girl’s room, but where are the brats? She did not take them with her.”

  “They’re probably with a friend or neighbors,” answered the other one, a burly, dark behemoth of a man with fingers the size of large sausages and a bulbous nose to match. “She was going somewhere when she saw us, to the market or something, and probably had someone babysitting. Maybe she was going out to get them.”

  “Yeah, that’s probably it. Once we have her, we’ll get the kids’ location from her.”

  “I wish that dog would shut up. If the neighbors get pissed, they’ll call the cops.” Mr. Sausage Fingers looked out the kitchen window at the large, mostly empty yard. He could barely make out the outline of the dog standing just within the dog house, watching the main house and barking.

  “We should sweep out the yard, just to be safe,” said his partner.

  “Yeah, be my guest. I’ll wait for you here. While you’re at it, I’ll check the fridge and see if there is beer.”

  His partner moved to the back kitchen door and opened it. At once, the dog ran out in the cold drizzle and made a snarling dash for the door. The man closed it immediately. “Nothing out there but the nasty dog. I’d shoot it, but shots would alert the neighbors.”

  “Here, have a beer. She’s got a tub of tuna fish salad. I can eat a sandwich.”

  They forgot about the dog and the yard, and spent the next half hour drinking beer and eating. When his cell rang, Sausage Fingers pulled it out. “Yeah,” he answered. “No, nothing here. House is cleared. No sign of the kids.” He listened for a few moments, then put his cell away.

  “They sighted her as she took to the woods,” he grumbled, none too happy. “We’ve been called in. Looks like we’re going hunting in the woods tonight.”

  “Jesus, I could think of a dozen things I’d rather be doing tonight,” answered his partner.

  As the two men left the house and got back in their car, they could still hear Charlie barking. “We should have shot him,” grumbled Sausage Fingers.

  CHAPTER 31

  Max was never so grateful for the short winter day in his life. He was striding thorough Kennedy Airport, ticket in hand. The west coast was three hours earlier than the east. It was now 6pm where Angel lived, the sun already down, having set less than an hour ago there. His expected arrival time for LA was 4am, New York time. It would be 1am local time. That would give him until sunrise, to reach Angel’s house.

  His terrible mistake could prove fatal, and it tore his heart to consider the possible consequences. At the yacht, he acted with little thought, driven by fear, fury and hatred, not clear thinking. He killed Pretto when he should have kept him alive a little longer and forced him to call off his goons. Max knew his powerful emotions had controlled him, not clear logic.

  Once he landed, provided the plane stayed on schedule, he would have five and a half hours of racing at vampire speed over the landscape to reach her home. Then what? He’d be trapped in the house until sunset. At least, Nina would be able to let him in. His sense of helplessness and frustration was threatening to undo him. He wanted to pound walls and tear throats.

  He knew he must calm down. So far, each time he allowed his emotions to rule, he made bad decisions. His self image was definitely flawed. In truth, he was just now beginning to see how impulsive and explosive he was, almost childish. He desperately hoped that Angel would not pay the price.

  Now, he needed to trust in her ingenuity and courage. She’d managed to outrun her enemies for years, and she knew their methods well. His girl was smart, strong, a survivor. He must have faith that she’d hold off those enemies at the gate until he got there. Then, he’d destroy them all.

  ******

  Angel tried to watch where she stepped, going by the dim glow of her cell phone flash light. Woods were full of dangerous things. True that it was already setting to win
ter, and most animals would be seeking warmth in burrows and tree stumps, but anything stepped on was bound to be startled and bite. It was dark and she was far from being an outdoors person.

  As if to underscore her thoughts, she stepped on a pebble and her ankle twisted under her, and she went down hard, rolling down a steep slope and hitting her head hard on an exposed tree root.

  She tried to brace herself up into a sitting position, but the slippery cover of dead leaves and soft ground made it difficult. Her wrenched ankle screamed with pain, and her eyes watered in response. She sat there nursing her pain and misery, desperate to find her way back to her children, but totally turned around in the dark and now possibly hobbled.

  What’s wrong? The voice sounded dim, far way, but it was unmistakably her vampire. Answer me! What’s wrong? I feel your pain.

  Max? Is that you? How am I hearing you?

  The blood-bond. The closer I get to you, the stronger the link. What happened? Why are you in pain?

  I fell. Twisted my ankle in the dark and rolled into the root of a tree.

  Where are you?

  In the woods outside my neighborhood. In the dark. I’m lost and scared.

  But you’re alive and free. If you can hang on a few more hours, I’ll be there before sunrise. Can you do that?

  Yes, I think I can.

  Are the kids all right?

  Max, I don’t know. I hid them in the dog house with the neighbors’ dog. My plan was to double back when night fell and hide us quietly in the house until you came. But now I’m turned around in the dark, and my ankle is wrenched and I can’t find my way back. Max, I’m so scared for my babies.

  Angel sobbed, and he could feel her misery and fear. It tore his heart in two, and his frustration at not being able to help her drove him mad.

  My love, don’t be scared. Everything depends on you being brave and staying out of your enemy’s hands. I’ll be there soon, I swear it. Pretto is dead. I killed him for you. He can never touch you again. Once I take care of the ones after you, you’re free. Just a little longer. Have faith. I’m on my way.

  Max was running at supernatural speed, his feet moving so fast, the soles of his running shoes were hot and, by the time he arrived, would be worn down and useless. He followed the highway, nighttime and his ability to zip into the neighboring trees and landscape making him invisible to the few cars he’d pass along his trek. But even vampires have their limits, and soon he’d have to stop and feed at some desolate rest area.

  ******

  Angel limped and hobbled away from the flashlights bobbing in the dark. She heard muffled voices and saw the lights low and sweeping as the men moved. Her own cell phone gave barely enough glow to show her three feet in front of her. She struggled to climb over a fallen tree trunk the girth of a fat man, and she landed painfully on her twisted ankle, going down hard on her face.

  Something scurried out from under the tree, and she scrambled away in fear. Her phone had fallen out of her hand as she fell, and she looked around desperately for it. She found it and hugged it close to her chest, so happy that it was not broken or lost.

  To her left, she saw a glint of light. They were flanking her. She had only one direction to go, and that was forward, away from them. They were like dogs driving the fox forward. She was smart enough to know that they were herding her. She stood up and began her painful, forward hobbling again. At least, the constant effort was keeping her from getting cold.

  Unable to hobble up a slope, she crawled her way up, leaving clear, tale-tell tracks. She had no choice. Now, it was just blind, terror-filled flight.

  Angel, what’s going on? Answer me!

  Max, they’re closing in. They have me flanked and are driving me forward.

  How far behind are they?

  I can’t really tell in the dark. I can see the flashes from their flashlights once in a while.

  Can you tell in what direction they’re herding you?

  No, I can’t. I lost my bearings hours ago.

  Can you climb a tree and hide?

  I’ve never climbed a tree in my life. Besides, my ankle won’t let me. I need to concentrate. Just hurry, please.

  All right, Angel. Call to me when you need me. I’m speeding to you, love.

  She caught a glint of lights through the trees, street lights and driveway lights. They were herding her back to town, probably back the way she had come. They would have men waiting for her. If she could cross unseen, move roundabout a few blocks, keeping to the darkest shadows, and come in from the back of her house, she’d be able to sneak back in and grab the kids. The kitchen door was open.

  She knew the methods of these men well. They would have searched the inside of the house first thing. They would post look-outs a block or two away just to see if anyone approached. She could sneak in coming from the back, get the kids, and then climb into the very shallow attic. There was barely stooping room, but enough to hide in.

  She moved forward with renewed hope, the lights in the distance calling with the promise of safety. She fell several times, was scratched and tripped by roots and saplings, and often terrified by the scurryings and slitherings of night creatures in the dark. The screechings of owls and other sundry birds in the trees often startled her. Did birds not all fly south as winter approached? Not all, obviously.

  Another fear was coyotes. They had multiplied in all the American wooded areas, ranging freely and fearlessly within the towns themselves as they foraged for food. Hunting in groups, they would easily attack and kill a human, especially a small, injured one like her.

  Her clothes were torn, filthy, and wet. As she got closer to the town, the cover of forest got thinner and the night’s cold breeze began to be felt. She shivered as the sweat cooled on her skin and the wet clothes stuck to her. She was beginning to lose body heat; soon, she would not be able to still the shivering. Her babes at least were dry and snug with Charlie to keep them warm.

  She reached the edge of the woods and headed for the creek, careful to gauge the final slope that gave way to it. She could not cross it in the dark without falling in and getting drenched. She looked at the town lights and tried to decide whether to follow the creek left or right. She hobbled left, following the creek’s flow, hoping that the ford she had crossed was in that direction.

  Fifteen minutes later, she had not found it, but she now knew more or less where she was when she caught a glimpse of the town’s Catholic church tower, which remained lighted all night and was easily identified. Up ahead loomed a dark, low structure over the creek. Angel’s heart soared. She hobbled faster to reach it. It was a low, wooden bridge that spanned the creek.

  Looking around her, fearful that hidden dark figures would jump out at her, she hurried across the little bridge and into the shelter of the nearest shadow, a bunch of empty metal drums huddled at the edge of the black back alley. In the distance, maybe a quarter mile upstream from the creek, a flashlight scanned the water’s edge.

  Angel took off at a fast hobble, her breath coming in fast puffs, her body shaking from the cold that was now setting into her firmly. She evaded any lighted areas and kept to the deep shadows. Keeping the church tower on her right, she moved as fast as she could, always watching for any sign of a car or someone watching as she crossed at the darkest points in the streets, even if it meant going way out of her way.

  As she made her way, dogs often bayed, and she knew the chorus of baying and barking animals would give her away. But she also knew her hunters would themselves be hobbled by the same limitation. Dogs barked at everything. Occasionally, a light would go up in a house, and someone would peer out a window, but Angel was quick to still and hide in the shadows.

  She was four blocks past the church. She turned right at the next street and began the slow track to the intersection where she would pick up the street that flanked her house. A block before, she would have to start cutting through backyards again. She felt more optimistic. She was no more than minutes from her hom
e and her kids, and sunrise could not be far off.

  She took her time, careful not to make the slightest noise. Her night vision was excellent, having been sharpened by her stint in the dark forest. She carefully scanned the backyard for a dog house that would signal the presence of a dog. Seeing none, she placed both hands firmly on the top of the link fence and jumped to brace herself. She was careful to land on her good foot.

  The next house had a wooden fence, taller but also stronger. Finally, she reached the home right behind hers. As she jumped over to her own backyard, Charlie came out barking.

  “Shh, boy,” she whispered. “It’s me.” She opened her jacket and wafted it so he could identify her by smell. He quickly shook his tail and came to sniff her. She ruffled his head and hurried to the dog house, getting on her pained knees to stick her head in. “Nina?” she whispered.

  “Mommie,” answered a sleepy voice.

  “Your brother?”

  “He’s sleeping. He likes sleeping with Charlie. It keeps him warm.”

  “Oh, baby. I missed you.”

  “Is Max here?”

  “No, but he’s coming. He spoke to me and he’s not too far. Now, I will need you to stay here just a little longer. I have to check inside the house and make sure it’s safe for you to go in. It will just be a few minutes. OK?”

  “Yes, Mommie. It’s nice and comfy here, anyway.”

  As soon as Angel stood up, Charlie went back into his house.

  CHAPTER 32

  Angel found the back door unlocked, as she’d left it. She turned the handle slowly, silently, and stepped into the kitchen, closing the door behind her, her tiny gun in hand. She took a moment to close her eyes, waited, then she opened them. The darkness became a little lighter, and she could see much better.

  She walked slowly. At the kitchen window, she lowered the shades and then pulled the curtains closed. From the counter, she picked up a glass and as quietly as she could, she poured herself a glass of water. She had not had a drink in hours and desperately needed it.