Starfire Angels (Starfire Angels: Dark Angel Chronicles Book 1) (10 page)

"Go to your room."

"But, Mom—"

"Go."

Yes!

"But—"

"David!" Mike's snap of his name acted like
a whip. His dad didn't usually discipline him, so when Mike spoke,
Dave listened.

Dave tromped up to his room, grumbling under
his breath about it being unfair and him only speaking the
truth.

"So, you were born with those marks on your
hands? They're not tattoos?" Nina sat forward, her eyes widening
and her full attention on Raea as if the incident with Dave had
never happened.

That didn't bother Raea as much as Josh's
sudden interest in her hands. Had he seen the marks glow?
Had
they glowed when she accidentally touched the resonance?
She hoped not.

"This is fascinating. Have you ever worked
any miracles, like healing anyone?"

"No."

"Then have you ever considered studying?
I've heard of individuals like you performing miracles, but none
have ever come forward. I'd love to learn more about you."

"No, you wouldn't." Raea didn't want the
spotlight. Not now. Maybe, before all the stuff with the Starfire,
and those wings. But no more.

A knock on the door interrupted the
conversation. Buddy barked once but stayed by Mike. Saved by the
door. "I'll get it." Raea jogged across the floor to answer the
door. Who would show up at that time—besides Josh and Nina—Pallin?
She could only hope.

Her heart leapt at the prospect that he
might be there to rescue her.

Despite the fracturing caused by the design
in the oval pane of the door, she recognized the tall, dark figure.
It wasn't Pallin, but at least she had a good reason to leave.
Elis. What perfect timing. She opened the door, and he stepped in
from the cold. He didn't give her a chance to warn him
not
to enter. Couldn't he have called first?

Why did his coat bulge?

"Are you ready?"

She hadn't even noticed the time. Her
training.

"Elis." Josh sounded surprised.

Oh, no. This couldn't be happening. Raea let
out her breath, her shoulders sinking in defeat.
No. Please, let
us get out of here without trouble.

"This must be your boyfriend."

How had the woman reached them so quickly?
Oh, man, she was nosy.

Raea's cheeks warmed. "No. No, he's not my
boyfriend. Just...ah..." Josh's questioning look raised the
temperature of the room. What was she doing with Elis when she was
going out with Pallin? She read it all over his face. If he wasn't
there, this would be
so
much easier. "We...are...working on
a project together."

"You are?" Josh asked.

Raea gave him a look to shut up.

"Yeah, that one for Mister Maviar's class.
That research project."
Take a hint, Josh.

Josh shook his head. He didn't get it. He
could be so dense sometimes. "That was a couple weeks ago."

Don't be so literal, Josh. I'm struggling
here.
Why couldn't he be on her side?

"This is a special project, for college,"
Elis said. "He's helping us to qualify for more advanced
classes."

Impressive. Elis picked up on that quick
enough.

Josh nodded, a crooked grin on his face.
"Yeah. You two are way too smart. I'm sure you'll save some money
and skip a year in your degrees."

"Really? Both of you are intellectually
gifted?" Nina asked.

Did the woman have to pick apart
everything
they said?

"We really should be going." Elis looked
about as uncomfortable as she felt.

Raea grabbed her shoes and coat. "You're
right." She didn't want to stay any longer to be interrogated by
the woman.

"They're co-valedictorians."

Raea cringed at Josh's affirmation, glad she
had her back to them. Technically, Elis had the equivalent of a
college degree already, but no one else knew he had already been
educated on a more advanced world.

"While you're here, Elis, I'd like to hear
your opinion of this mysterious angel. By the way, I'm Nina Russet
of the Xplorer Channel. We're bringing a crew in next week for some
on-location filming for our
Miracles and Other Wonders
special on this town's Dark Angel."

"I heard you were coming, but I don't
believe in angels," he said.

"Oh, then you deny the reports of a person
with black wings rescuing people?"

"No. They saw what they saw."

"Then you think there's a possibility of
this person being real?"

"If people who saw your angel think he was
real, then to them, he's real." A hint of frustration ground in his
voice.

Good answer.
He was quick on his
feet.

Raea hurried to tie her shoes and zip up her
coat while Nina questioned Elis. None too soon, she stood ready.
"Let's go." She turned back and waved as Elis opened the door. "We
gotta get some work done. Sorry to run out on you." As if. She was
so,
so
glad to be out of there. "Bye."

The closing of the main door and the storm
door cut off her dread. "That woman is annoying."

"Yes, she is." He descended the steps next
to her, but he didn't turn to Mrs. Johnson's.

"Where're you going?"

"You wanted to learn to fly, right?"

Oh, yes!
"Really? But—" She glanced
back as they headed out to the field across the street. The snow
had melted, exposing stubble and grass. Raea lowered her voice and
jogged to keep up with his fast strides. "Won't growing out the
wings hurt?"

"Yes."

He could have lied about that. That was one
time she wouldn't mind.

"What about my clothes?"

He paused and unzipped his coat. So, that
was the reason his coat bulged—he had another tucked inside. "I
brought one of mine. Evelyn made some alterations for me."

And he had kept it warm. How thoughtful.
"Won't it be a bit big on me? And how will I explain my shirt?"

He zipped his coat back up. "Unless you'd
rather not."

"No. That'll be fine. All right. It's not
like Debbie doesn't know." She had to learn, right? What was one
ripped tee shirt?

One ripped tee shirt she liked. Oh, well.
Too late to go back.

His smile warmed through her with her
giddiness of the flying prospect, though her fear of heights turned
that excitement down a notch. All her life she had wondered what it
would be like to fly like a bird, before she knew that her dreams
of flying as a child had been real. Now she had that chance.

She took his gloved hand when he offered it
and ran alongside him to reach the other side of the hill.

* * *

The girl hid something from her, and the
boyfriend helped. Not the boyfriend? Nina doubted that. Something
interesting lingered in that girl, and she was determined to find
out. "Cute couple."

"Yeah. Weird," Josh said. "She wouldn't talk
to him two days ago. I'm surprised she'd work with him. Kinda odd
since she's seeing someone else."

"It was a last-minute idea from Mister
Maviar," Debbie said from the couch.

"You said both are gifted?" The boy had
provided her with a lot of good information about the people in
this town. She hadn't even scratched the surface of the story
potential. This was why she asked for a few extra days; one never
knew what they would find on these assignments.

"Yeah," Josh said. "You'd never have known
it when he first came. Elis could barely speak English a year and a
half ago. We all thought he was slow at first, but he always pulled
the highest grades. He just never talked much. I think that was the
most I've ever heard him say, just now." Josh's brow furrowed.
"Totally weird."

"You'd never know he was foreign." The young
man's English was too perfect for a foreigner. "Where's he
from?"

Josh shrugged. "I don't remember if he ever
said."

"It doesn't matter." She was there to
investigate Raea. She could track down Elis later. Surely the aunt
and uncle could tell her more. Why was the young woman in such a
hurry to get away? "I was more interested in Raea. Who are her
parents?"

"Miss Russet, we don't talk about them."
Josh spoke in a somber tone. "See, her mom escaped a war when she
was pregnant and came here. She married Scott, Debbie's brother,
but they died in a tornado thirteen years ago. Raea survived
because she was at a slumber party a few blocks away."

"I'm sorry to hear that." It explained why
the girl lived with her aunt and uncle, anyway.

"My brother loved her as his own. I took her
in when she was five."

"Did you meet her mother?"

"Padina and I were good friends. In fact, I
think I was her closest friend here."

She had struck a nerve. The emotions flowed
now. She would have to tread lightly. Most people became defensive
if they perceived a threat. They'd close up if that happened and
answer no more questions. "Did Raea's mother—Padina—ever perform
any healing miracles?"

Debbie clamped her jaw and shook her head. A
moment later, she relaxed. "No, but Padina was a loving woman. The
only miracle I ever saw was the birth of her baby girl."

The aunt lied. Debbie Logan knew something
but refused to share that secret. Did the girl have the healing
touch? It would make a bigger story than the elusive angel. She
could dig that up later, though. For now, she'd play along. "Babies
are miracles, aren't they?"

Debbie smiled at the young boy next to
her.

"I see you have a lot of love in your heart,
Mrs. Logan...Debbie. But I think I've bothered you enough. Thank
you for your time."

"It was a pleasure."

And that pleasure was all Nina's. This town
had a few discoveries to be made. She'd have to contact Ted
tomorrow.

Nina strode to the door, eager to catch up
with Raea. The boy followed but hesitated before stepping out with
her.

"Thanks, Mrs. Logan."

"Anytime, Josh."

Outside in the cold North Dakota air, Nina
shivered and turned to Josh as he shut the door behind him. "I'd
like to talk to Raea tonight yet. Where would they have gone?"

"Oh...here." He hurried down the steps and
around a soupy, slushy mess of lawn to the house next door.

How convenient. "Next door?"

"Yeah. The old widow took him in. Now, Mrs.
Johnson is someone you should talk to. She never misses church and
is always early for the rosaries. She prays for everyone. I'll bet
she could tell you about angels."

Interesting. An old Catholic widow with
strong religious faith should make for quite the conversation. Even
if it wasn't the conversation she wanted right now.

After he knocked, they waited a while for
the door to open. While the kid rang the bell, Nina glanced around
and shivered. How long did winter last in that area? Back home it
was already pleasantly warm, and what little snow they had was long
gone. She would gladly have done this in the summer, but her
producer wanted the show to air during Holy Week.

When no one answered after a minute, the kid
opened the door a crack. Didn't anyone lock their doors?

"Mrs. Johnson? Hello? Raea? Elis?"

"Yes. Yes. Just a minute, dear."

He stepped back and flashed a smile to
Nina.

Soon, a gray-haired old woman hunched over a
cane appeared in the doorway and adjusted her white cardigan. A
smile lifted her sagging cheeks. "Josh. What can I do for you,
dear?"

"Mrs. Johnson, this is Nina Russet of the
Xplorer Channel. She's here to gather information for the Dark
Angel special of
Miracles and Other Wonders
."

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Johnson."

"Evelyn, dear."

An old woman boarding a lone man who escaped
from a foreign country at war. Wow! She
had
only scratched
the surface of stories in this town. "It's my pleasure, Evelyn. I'd
like to ask you a few questions about angels, but right now I'm
more interested in speaking with Raea. Can I come in?"

"She's not here. I'm surprised you didn't
catch her already."

Not there? Now she knew the girl was hiding
something, and mister tall, dark, and non-boyfriend boyfriend
helped her. None of their stories matched. "Do you know where they
might have gone?"

"Out walking, probably. You'd be better off
coming back after church in the morning."

"I'd love to sit down and chat with
you."

Evelyn smiled. "I'll look forward to it. I'm
sorry I couldn't help you more."

"Thanks, Mrs. Johnson," Josh said.

"Okay. Good night, dear." She shut the
door.

"Sorry, Miss Russet. I don't know what to
say. I thought I knew Raea better. I have no idea what's going
on."

"That's okay. You gave me a lot of good
leads, Josh. I have some thinking to do tonight, but I'll call you
tomorrow if I have any more questions." She almost felt sorry for
the kid. From all he had said, Raea was one of his best friends.
Tough breaks that she lied to him to hide whatever it was Nina
intended to find.

First Flight

Elis stood before her with black wings.

Raea stared, hardly believing what her eyes
told her. "You
are
the 'angel' everyone's talking
about."

"Yes."

"You found the little girl in the cornfield
and pulled that woman from her burning home and helped that kid who
crashed his motorcycle on the gravel road."

His smile in the moonlight shone with
amusement. "You sound surprised."

"I am. But after yesterday, I kind of
expected it. But to see you like this. It's...What's the word..."
The right word didn't exist, at least not in her shock-fuzzed
brain. "I'm just...That was
you
."

"I was out flying at night to avoid being
seen clearly. I didn't plan to do anything." He paused and his
voice dropped. "There are certain responsibilities Keepers bear.
Our job is to help anyone in need."