"Accidental Angel: Part 3" by Mandy Burnham

“I’m heading to class, Damien,” Erela called. She stuck her head into the kitchen where he sat at the table. She raised her eyebrows in surprise.

He hunched over the table with the guts of her broken stereo spread out before him. Damien looked up and offered one of his hums in greeting.

She laughed and pulled out her phone to read the text. ‘Gonna fix it.’

“You don’t have to do all that, you know,” she started as she looked up at him.

‘It’s okay. It keeps me calm.’

She smiled, wondering what he meant. Erela shook her head as she tucked away the phone. “Well, if you want to… I sure hope these texts don’t show up on my bill. It’ll be killer on my bank account.”

Damien glanced up and smiled. Erela’s breath caught. She’d seen expressions of happiness on his face before, but in that moment, when he smiled, she knew she was seeing something extraordinary. As much as his voice hurt to hear, his smile healed. His head shook, and he looked back to the wires, plastic, and screws.

She took a deep breath and sighed. “I’ll see you later tonight.”

He nodded but kept his attention on the stereo.

Erela couldn’t help but smile as she passed by the TV. ‘They won’t.’

The entire bus ride to the university and then all through class, Erela couldn’t take her thoughts from Damien. There were so many questions surrounding him—and now Bradley, too.

At the end of class, she looked down at her notebook and realized she hadn’t written a single thing. She groaned as she dropped her forehead against the ignored paper. Just great.

“Here.”

She looked up, fighting tears of frustration. Bradley looked down at her, wearing a blank expression. His hand extended, offering her several sheets of paper.

“What’s that?” she asked.

He raised an eyebrow and broke into a grin. “Today’s notes. Ya looked a lil’ distracted. Thought I’d give ya a break.”

She reached up and accepted the papers. “That’s way decent of you, Bradley.”

He squatted down on the other side of the long bench. “What’s eat’n ya?” he asked, resting his chin against his clenched fist. “You okay?”

Erela massaged her temples. “I don’t know, Bradley,” she answered, feeling more confused than ever. Why was Damien so afraid of him? “Damien needs help.”

Bradley sighed. “Ya’ve stopped trust’n me,” he commented with a sigh.

She looked at him in shock. “What?”

After a few seconds of silence, he started to answer. “That’s the first time ya’ve looked me in the eye tonight—and that includes during the group assignment tonight.”

Erela sighed and dropped back in her seat. She thought through the past four hours and realized he was right. “I’m sorry, Bradley,” she murmured. “It’s just that…”

“What?” he prodded when she stopped speaking.

“What does Damien know about you that I don’t?”

Bradley drew back and raised an eyebrow. “I dunno whatcher talk’n ‘bout.”

“He’s terrified of you. He…” she refused to let herself falter again. “He said you’re a killer.”

The man’s mouth dropped open. His blue eyes shone with disbelief and hurt. “And ya just believe ‘ im? I tell ya ‘ e’s a killer, and ya all but tell me I’m off m’nut. He tells ya I’m a killer, and ya stop trust’n me. Erela, what is that?”

Erela winced. The way he put it, she did sound pretty horrible. “Bradley…”

“No.” He stood up and frowned down on her. “I gotta go. Catch ya tomorr’a when I’m calm.”

Erela watched him go, stunned and silent. She shook her head and gathered her books together. She had to make that last bus.

The spring sky sent a million irritating drops down to coat everything in a layer of water. She ground her teeth together in frustration. Seeing the last bus pull away—early—from her stop had pushed her to tears. Now she walked the dark streets, sniffling in her broken confusion.

In her heart she knew that neither of the men where as bad as they thought the other was. She cared for them both. There had to be some sort of horrible misunderstanding.

In her questions and her distress, Erela failed to pay enough attention to her surroundings. When she came back to herself, she realized there were at least two sets of steady footfall behind her. Fear rose in her gut as she quickened her pace. Of all the nights to be distracted…

The steps increased to match her pace. No… she cried to herself, abandoning her backpack as she darted. Her lungs tightened, but she kept her eyes straight ahead in her fear. Tears rushed from her eyes as she tried to run even faster. So close… She could see her dilapidated building only a block away.

The pounding behind her brought terror to her throat that hid the burning sensation in her lungs and her legs.

She released a strangled cry as a fist wrapped around the back of her coat to stop her forward momentum. Her building disappeared from view as strong arms hauled her backwards.

“Shut-up,” a dark voice hissed while a heavy fist reinforced the command.

“You sure this is her?” a different voice asked.

“Yeah,” another grunted.

“Where is it?”

Erela glared at the tall, broad man who gripped her hair to crane her head back. She gagged on the blood that ran down the back of her throat while more rushed down over her lips and chin from her nose. “I don’t ha…”

“Don’t lie!” he cut her off while the back of his hand connected with her cheek. “We can sense it on you.”

She shook her head as she tried to reconnect her body and her mental processes. The white light that accompanied the strike began to fade while a heavy throbbing rose to replace it.

“Beating on a woman… That certainly is not your usual style Swift. You must be losing your touch.”

All four turned their attention to the newcomer who now stood at the end of the alley. She felt her attackers stiffen, while the one that held her arms pressed them closer together until a sharp pain shot down the front of her chest. Erela gasped as her eyes widened in recognition. He knew these thugs?

“This is my hit, Point. You withdrew a long time ago.”

Erela watched Bradley swagger forward with his hands shoved deep in his pockets. In that moment she was very much afraid of him. The look in his eye and the expression on his face held none of her friendly, easy-going group partner. He was hard, cold, calculating, and threatening. A chill ran through her. Was this perhaps not Bradley? He said he had a cousin that looked like him…

“True,” he commented as he approached. “That doesn’t mean I’m going to just let you beat on her because you’re too stupid to get a hit right. Really… Did you fall apart when I left, or do you think that now you’re the big dog that gives you the right to break the rules?”

It didn’t even sound like Bradley.

“Can it, Point,” Swift growled as he turned to face the newcomer. “You don’t even know what the rules are anymore. You bugged off, boy. Now run along; I’m sure there’s a playground around here somewhere.”

“ Hrmph.” The man shook his head and pulled a single hand from his pocket to run it through his hair. “If the rules really have changed, and innocents are no longer protected, then you’ve just made the entire Alliance my enemy. Is that something you want?”

“Don’t preach at me, you trite pantywaist,” Swift growled. “She’s not an innocent. She carries the scent of a blood-bound.”

Erela’s jaw clenched as she bit back on her gasp of fear. They were looking for Damien? In that moment, an anger hotter and stronger than any she’d ever felt welled up in her heart. The man’s scarred face, clouded by shadows, burned into her mind as an icon of hatred. How dare they?

“So do you,” the man reasoned. “Should I torture you until you cough up the location of your blood-bound? I’m sure it would be about as productive as what you think you’re about to do…

“I’ll have you know that I still have the Puppet Master’s ear. You should weigh your life against the amount of information you’re really likely to get from her, because if you keep this up, you will lose one way or another.”

Erela glanced at Swift and held her breath. She could only hope that he would leave her alone.

“Let her go, Ferret,” he growled at length. “We’ll figure out another way.”

“What?” the man hissed. “But we just…”

“Are you an idiot?” the third snarled. “You know…”

“Shut up!” Swift snapped as he reached out to shake the man that held Erela. “I said let her go.”

Erela dropped to her knees and watched her attackers file by the steel-faced man she hoped was Bradley. She reached up to try to wipe the blood and tears away while the feeling of fear only intensified. How had they found her? How did they know about Damien? Why were they even looking for him? What if that wasn’t Bradley?

She gasped when she felt two strong hands grip her upper arms.

“The only reason you and your maggot-friends still live,” a heavy, almost-familiar voice growled, “is because you arrived before me and demanded her release.”

“First off, Damien, they ain’t friends, and they never were. S’been almost two years since they were even colleagues.” He sighed and shook his head. “But I am grateful ya did’n attack.”

“Why, Point?” Damien snarled as he pulled Erela to her feet. “You’d find it necessary to eradicate me, then?”

He turned around, both hands in his pocket, and leveled a steely gaze at the blood-bound. “Frankly, yeah. Despite the fact I left Alliance, I could’n turn a blind eye if a blood-bound as powerful as you went offa the deep end.”

“Why, you self-righteous…”

“Wait!” Erela cried as she turned to press both hands against Damien’s chest to hold him back. She glanced over her shoulder, trying to decide if she really believed this was Bradley or not. Nothing seemed right. Bradley was too cold and Damien was too harsh. What were they doing to each other?

“He talks about me as if I’m a monster when he’s paid to murder people like me. Isn’t that right, Point—the man of a hundred silent kills?” Damien seethed while his skin trembled.

“Bradley?” Erela murmured, turning still tearing eyes towards him. “Is that true?”

“Don’cha think it’d be smarter ta’talk inside?” he asked. “Swift could still sense ‘im out here and come back. I won’t be able ta’talk ya outta that one.”

“I…” Erela started, feeling slightly ashamed that she couldn’t be sure about his identity—though he wasn’t making it easy. “How can I be sure you’re Bradley?”

A low laughter filled the alley. “Ya sawed logs all through class tonight just before really tick’n me off.”

She cringed at his reference. “Alright,” she sighed. She heard Damien growl deep in his throat, but she ignore it. “Let’s go.”

Bradley bent to take up her backpack that he had apparently brought with him. He held it out to her, and Erela clutched it against her stomach like a frightened child clutches a comforting blanket. She sniffled, feeling anything but comforted walking in the tension that radiated from the two men.

At the top of the stairs, Erela gasped and rushed forward, dropping her bag. “ Kal! What are you doing here?” She dropped to where the youth hunched next to her door. Erela lifted his face to look into his eyes black eyes. “Are you okay?”

“I…” His face contorted, and he looked away.

“Kaleb, what’s wrong?”

“Aunt Cindy died.”

Erela froze as she tried to comprehend what he’d just said. It just didn’t make any sense to her at that moment. “But… when?”

“Two days ago,” Kaleb answered.

“What happened?”

“I…” he faltered, then took a shuddering breath. “I came home from school… and I don’t know. She’d fallen or something. There was blood everywhere… I didn’t know what to do… so I just ran. I came here…”

“Oh, Kaleb,” she wrapped her arms around her brother and held him close to her. His arms encircled her waist and gripped her tightly. Her heart broke to find herself in such a familiar situation. Why him? Why again? “It’s going to be okay,” she murmured, running her hand over his head.

“Come on,” she encouraged as she gripped his hands and dragged the young teen to his feet. “You’re all wet. Let’s get you a bath or something, huh?”

“What happened to you, sis?” he asked as he eyed her face.

She reached up and rand her fingertips over the sore spots on her cheek and nose. “Nothing spectacular. We’ll talk later. Right now, I want you in the shower.”

He nodded and all three followed her into her apartment.

“Alright,” Erela set the mugs of coffee on before Damien and Bradley before planting her fists on her hips. “I want this all explained and talked out by the time Kal’s done in the shower. I don’t think he needs to hear it right now.” Plus, she wanted to get the conversation over with before her mother-hen instincts wore off and she lost her grit.

“Erela…”

“No, Bradley,” she started. “In the alley, I asked you if what Damien said was true. Is it?”

Bradley sighed, and his head fell a little. “S’complicated.”

Erela ignored Damien’s disgusted grunt and crossed her arms. “Then uncomplicated it. From the beginning.”

Bradley huffed and sat back. “They were a part’a an organization called Alliance. Alliance exists to even the odds against the blood-lords and their blood-bound.”

He glanced up. “Ya have to understand, Damien’s the first blood-bound I’ve ever run across with any semblance of independent thought and personality—if this ain’t somehow a very complex front.”

Damien leveled an acidic glare at the man across from him.

Erela was glad when Bradley ignored the unspoken challenged and continued. “It’s not like I ran around offing children, Erela. We’re talking about semi-sentient weapons under the complete manipulation of the worst people in this rotten world.”

“But you have killed people?”

“Not people,” he snapped. “Blood-bound.”

“Same thing!” Damien snarled as he brought his fist down on the unfortunate table. The cups jumped in response to his display, and Erela drew back a little.

Bradley narrowed his eyes as he appraised Damien. “Have ya ever met another blood-bound?”

Damien didn’t answer.

“Then how can ya say it’s the same thing? I have met blood-bound—lots of ‘em.”

“You lied to me when I asked you why he was afraid of you,” Erela accused as fresh tears came to her eyes. “Why?”

Bradley looked up at her with a sulking glare spread over his face. He splayed both his hands over the table. “No. I. Didn’t. My best guess was that Damien had encountered m’cousin. If ‘is energy signature is accurate, ‘e’s not old enough ta’ve been around when I was active. Take it all, Erela! He feels like ‘e’s all of five weeks old! He should’na had any idea about my past, and that’s where I wanted ta leave it. That’s all.”

Erela sighed and cast her eyes around the room. She wanted to believe him so badly…

“What did they want, and why were they calling you ‘Point’?” she asked as she seated herself at the end of the table.

Bradley crossed his arms and frowned as he looked to the wall. “It was m’name when I ran with Alliance.”

Erela frowned. “You ignored the first part of my question.”

He grunted and picked at the table a little before answering. “They wanna kill Damien.”

“What?” Erela shouted, slamming both palms against her poor table.

Bradley turned his eyes to her and frowned. She had a difficult time reading the emotion in the blue orbs. It was almost pitying and scorning at the same time.

“Really, Erela, yer smarter’an this, but ya’ve been under a ton’a stress,” he started, “so I’ll cut ya some slack. However, that should’a been obvious.”

“But… but he hasn’t done anything!”

“They don’ know that,” Bradley answered, shaking his head.

“Or they don’t care,” growled Erela.

“ Yer being unreasonable!” Bradley snapped. “Damien’s the only blood-bound ya’ve had contact with. He ain’t a good representation!”

Erela felt her body stiffen. The more he spoke, the less she knew him. She scowled as her breathing deepened. “What’s happened to you?” she demanded.

“What happened t’me?” he repeated. He swung his arms up, pulling off his shirt in the process. “This.”

Erela gasped when she viewed the network of scars that covered his chest, torso, and arms. It looked like someone had taken a massive lawn trimmer to his body.

“All this is from one bout with a blood-bound before I even joined Alliance. Wanna know what I did ta earn these?”

Erela swallowed, unable to look away, but beginning to feel sick nonetheless.

Bradley continued when she didn’t answer. “I looked at a drug lord wrong as I ran through the rain. He set his blood-bound on me. I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s where Damien’s scars came from!”

“Bradley…” she started as she reached towards him.

He scowled and crossed his arms as he looked away from her. “Don’t say I should’n hate ‘ em all ‘cause’a one incident. It’d be nice if ya gave me a little more credit.”

“I wasn’t going to say that,” she whispered.

Damien shoved away from the table and stalked from the kitchen, his dark wings trailing on the floor behind him. Erela watched him go, feeling more lost than ever.

“Ya should follow him,” Bradley murmured. “Last thing anyone needs is for ‘im to take off by ‘imself. Switch’d be all over ‘im.”

“Bradley… I’m sorry.”

He looked up at her, though his face didn’t soften.

Erela stood and tugged at the ends of her hair. “I am. For everything. I never meant to hurt you. I just…” She sighed. “I’ll be back.”

Erela raised an eyebrow and stepped to the open window where her ratty curtains drifted in the wind. “Damien?” she called, leaning out over the fire escape.

He didn’t answer her directly, only kept up with the short, almost-chirping sounds she’d come to equate with distress. Erela sighed and lifted her leg to follow him out. The mist had intensified so that distinct, intermittent rain drops now pelted from the sky.

Damien sat with his back against the building and his dark, transmutable wings spread out on either side of him. He hugged his knees to his chest and trained his eyes out to the darkness of the alleyway below.

Erela dropped down to the metal grating and approached. “Can I sit?”

He nodded once, and she watched as the rough wings melted into the shadows. “That’s kinda neat, you know,” she commented as she sat down beside him.

He made no answer beyond a lowering of pitch in his short tones.

“Damien, are you okay?”

“It hurts… to speak…”

“Let me see.” Erela reached out to place her fingertips on either side of his throat. She pursed her lips as she felt for his glands just below his jaw bone and then lower, near the collar bones. “I don’t feel anything swollen,” she commented as she looked into his eyes.

Damien shook his head. “No… here.” His hand lifted and he pressed his fingertips over his sternum. After a moment he shifted his hand so that it hovered over her sternum. “And here.”

Erela furrowed her brow. A deep desire to lie welled up in her chest. How could she admit that his voice—though lovely—hurt to listen to? Did it do the same thing to him?

Damien shook his head again. “He’s right,” the blood-bound started. “Bradley… When I saw his chest… he’s right.”

She reached out to touch his shoulder. The woman offered the strange man a smile. “Something tells me that you’re both right. Damien, I promise that we’ll figure things out, okay? You don’t have to worry.”

“Why…” He paused and swallowed hard as he closed his eyes and flinched.

Erela felt her heart break. It looked like it hurt him to speak even more than it hurt her to hear him.

“Why would you do this for me?”

She reached out to touch his hand. “Because we’re friends. I know it’s hard for both of you, but Bradley’s my friend too. It looks like we’ve got a lot of things to figure out; but we will.”

He smiled and nodded as his humming morphed from the distressed noises back to the low sounds he made when he was relaxed.

“Come on,” she encouraged. “We don’t want those psychos to figure out where we are.”

Damien nodded again and stood to follow her back into the apartment.

“How’re doing, Kal?” she asked as she reached out to ruffle the only slightly-shorter teen’s wet hair.

“Alright,” he murmured as he stared down at his shuffling feet. “I’m glad to be here with you, sis.”

She reached out to hug him. “I’m glad you’re here.” She pushed him away to hold him at arm’s length. Erela offered a comforting smile. “Now, you have to meet my friends since they’re still hanging around.”

“You have friends?” Kaleb mocked.

“Ha ha.” She mashed her knuckles into the top of his head and led him forward. “This is Damien, and this is Bradley. Guys, this is my little brother, Kaleb.”

Damien offered a shy nod as his hand reached up to rub the right side of his neck. Bradley broke out in a brilliant grin that made Erela sigh in relief. It was so good to again see the man that she’d come to rely on for so much.

“Good ta meetcha,” he acknowledged the young teen as he reached out to shake his hand.

Kaleb smiled a little and took the man’s hand. “Yeah…” The boy turned his attention back to the blood-bound.

Erela rested her hands on his shoulders from behind. “Damien doesn’t talk much,” she murmured. “He’s been staying here with me for the past couple of weeks.”

Kaleb glanced up at her and grinned. “Not as angelic as ma would’a hoped, eh?”

She rolled her eyes at her brother’s ribbing. She swung to strike the back of his head for good measure. “Don’t be stupid, Kal.”

“Oooo,” he goaded as he reached up to rub his head. “Didn’t even deny it.”

“Come help me make up a bed for you,” she instructed as she tugged at his loose T-shirt. “Bradley, are you going to hang around for a little while?”

He smiled. “Naw, I need ta head out. Gotta pick up May ‘fore she drives ‘er sitter up the walls.”

“Alright,” she sighed. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow then.”