42. Messiah

Sleep is hard to find. I feigned it until Angel passed out but my mind races through scenarios well into the night.

My fingers play in Angel's hair as she lays against my chest, her legs tangled with mine. Now and then she moans in her sleep, and I freeze thinking she is going to wake up and see me lost in thought. Not that it would really matter. I am just not used to having someone around when I am like this.

I am smoking a cigarette, staring blankly at the ceiling and trying to devise a next step, when Angel twitches in my arms. A scream rips out of her that makes my ear ring. I toss my cigarette into the ashtray and roll her over as she screams again.

"Angel!"

Shaking her doesn't seem to wake her from whatever nightmare she is stuck in.

"Angel," I say, brushing the hair back from her face. "Wake up, Baby."

Just as her eyes fly open, she swings out and slaps me hard across the face. The sting makes my eyes water and I clench my teeth as I roll away.

"I am sorry!" she cries, gripping my shoulders. "Messiah."

"It is alright," I tell her, blinking away the tears as I brush back her hair to see her face. "You were having a nightmare."

"I am sorry," she whimpers.

Her face wrinkles up and she presses her hands over her eyes.

"Don't cry," I whisper, pulling her toward me. "It is just a slap."

"No," she sobs. "I am sorry."

"Hey, don't say that, okay. There isn't anything to be sorry for. I startled you. I am sorry."

"I am fucked up," she hiccups, brushing the moisture off her cheeks.

"Yeah, maybe. But so am I. We can be fucked up together." I smile at her as I kiss the tip of her nose and brush a tear out of her eye with my finger.

"I don't usually get them . . . only when –" She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes, shaking her head as she tries to avoid the conversation.

"They can't get you anymore, okay? I won't let them. Hell, I know you won't let them. And we don't have far to go, and then every one of those fuckers will have paid. Right?"

She nods. Sliding her body down, she curls back up beside me and pulls the covers up to her chin. Laying next to her, I wrap my arms around her body and pull her back into my side.

"I am sorry you have to put up with someone so . . . not okay," she tells me.

"Why?" I smile, tugging her closer. "I imagined for weeks being right here next to your snarky ass. I wouldn't have it any other way."

A chuckle escapes her ,and I press my lips to her hair. "You are not okay, Angel. But you know what? That is okay. Because one day you will get there. Right? Healing . . . it takes time."

"Yeah."

"Go back to sleep, Baby. I'm right here."

For a moment she watches me, her eyes darting back and forth as her mind swims with thoughts. Pressing a soft kiss to her lips, I kiss each of her eyes so she will close them and lay my head next to her as I wait for her to drift off.

She doesn't wake again. I manage to nod off a few times but it isn't for long. When I see the first bits of orange begin to shine through the windows, I realize the night is fucked and I might as well give up attempting to sleep.

Next to me, Angel's lips are parted as she sleeps. She is fucking beautiful. It almost hurts how much I am feeling for her. Granted, I knew she was going to be mine weeks ago. Even before she knew and all this chaos happened, I knew this feisty woman was meant for me.

"I love you," I whisper, brushing my finger along her cheek.

She doesn't move as she continues to slumber; and for a few minutes, I let myself stay right where I am with her curled up next to me.

When the clock strikes six, I know it is time to get to work.

"We have to frame Brutus as the killer."

Angel looks up from her laptop screen. Her brow tightens a bit as she considers the option.

"Would he go to jail?" she asks.

"Well, we aren't framing him for the authorities – not the legal ones at least. We need a scapegoat for Charles to stop looking. I figure we can grab Brutus, torture him to make a confession, and then start working on finding the mystery man."

"Would Charles believe it?"

"He isn't happy with me right now, but he only keeps me around because he does have some trust in me. If we get Brutus to confess on camera that he did it all, he won't even second guess it."

For a moment, she ponders the plan. I don't want to take control of her work, but I know that I have to get Charles off my ass. I am fine with him putting a bullet in me. I just don't want Angel to be left alone.

"Okay," she says. "What should we do?"

Brutus knows I am an assassin. He won't willingly walk out the door with me. Angel hasn't been able to get him in the months she has been watching him. Our next step is to just wait until we find a chance to grab him before he enters the deli.

"I never see him come out the front," she tells me. "And there are guards in the back."

Nodding, I tap my finger against the desk as I stare blankly at the worn wood. We will need to grab him while he is on the move. For that, I need to know what sort of guards are with him in the car – if he has any. Angel explains to me what she knows about his routine and we are piecing together an idea when my phone rings. A green notification appears on my screen from the visitor app linked to my sister's prison. I click accept and it takes a moment before my sister's image pops up on the screen.

I can see the look of shock when Angel sees another woman on the phone and I smile nervously as I glance between the two of them.

"My sister," I tell Angel. "Constance say hello."

Angel ducks sideways when I turn the camera toward her but my sister's cheery voice screams through the speaker. I can see the smile on Constance's face as she sees my girl for the first time.

"This is the infamous girl?" Constance squeals. "Hi!"

Angel gives a nervous smile back before darting her eyes up to me. "You have a sister."

I nod.

"In jail."

"Boopie hasn't told you about me?"

"Don't say that," I groan, sitting on the couch next to Angel so Constance can see the two of us.

"Boopie?" Angel smiles.

"Yeah, she has called me that since . . . we can't even remember."

Things have just happened so fast that I guess I didn't remember not telling Angel about my sister. The two of them talk during the video chat and get to know each other a bit more. I am sure I am going to be bitched out from both of them once the call is over, but for now I like seeing how well they interact. Angel isn't quite certain what to do or say. She keeps glancing toward me whenever Constance ask her something. If my sister notices, she doesn't say anything. I think she is just excited to see me interacting with another human that I don't plan to kill at the end of it all.