The Guardians Read Free

wink.
    Even Sophie’s archangel boost hadn’t made me that hungry. I did snag a piece of manna toast and poured some honey. I guess you could call the manna and honey our “angel food”. It was what truly gave us nourishment, rather than normal food. We rarely ate a meal without at least having our honey, which was like liquid energy. It also helped to make human food taste better.
    Gabriel, our other “brother” and Dominion assigned father figure, breezed into the kitchen. He was outfitted in dress pants and a tie, and his dark brown hair was slicked back. Gabriel’s youthful face masked the fact he’d spent a hundred and nine years on earth—nine years over our usual service term. I assumed it was his lengthy experience, along with his infinite wisdom, that led the Dominion to make him the leader of our group. Well, along with the fact his service had made him a member of the Principalities, the group just above archangels. It was the job of the Principalities to deliver the Dominion’s messages and wishes to the angels and archangels.
    I surveyed the others around me and surmised my new “family” was going to be something of an oddity in Oakdale, an upper-class suburb of metro Atlanta. After all, you didn’t see a parentless family made up of three teenagers and two twenty something’s every day. But our latest missions certainly called for the unusual.
    It wasn’t often the Dominion called together a group to pose as a family. But desperate times called for desperate measures. An entire family, the Thomas’s, was suffering after Victoria’s murder, and the easiest way to help them was to become a part of their lives. So we’d convened on a tree lined neighborhood that resembled something out of a 1950’s sitcom. For the next year, a two story colonial on a cul-de-sac that overlooked a pond would be our home.
    The others were much more at ease with their assignments, so I secretly hoped that Cassie shared some of my apprehension—well at least the little bit still lurking beneath the surface after Sophie’s archangel power boost. I cleared my throat. “Are you nervous about today, too?”
    Her ponytail swung back and forth as she shook her head emphatically. “No, I’m really excited.”
    Great, so much for having an anxiety ridden ally. “Oh, I just thought you seemed upset.”
    “Well, I’m not too thrilled with all this free agent business.”
    Rafe and I exchanged a confused look.
    “Huh?” Rafe asked.
    Cassie rolled her eyes. “Um, I’m talking about how you guys are all assigned to someone in the Thomas family. And me? Nothing . Not even a file to alert of me what to expect!”
    Sophie sat down beside me and gave Cassie a reassuring smile. “It’s not an insult or an oversight. This is just the way the Dominion does things for new angels. They feel it’s a necessary part of training for you to be able to seek out an assignment simply based on their pain.”
    “Ugh, it just seems like a waste of time.”
    At Cassie’s remark, Gabriel sucked in a sharp breath. Before he could say anything to her, I cleared my throat. “Now tell me again why we’ve got all these new emotions?”
    Sophie exchanged a look with Gabriel before she spoke. “Well, your emotions are keener than ever before because to be convincing to teenagers, you have to experience the same emotions they do.”
    Gabriel nodded. “And don’t forget this. As guardian angels, we’re always going to be more human than angelic. For you guys as teenagers, you’re going to be even more human than Sophie and me. But don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll fit in with the others before you know it.”
    “Whatever,” Cassie mumbled.
    A smile crept upon Gabriel’s lips. “Hey, you’ve certainly got the Drama Queen part down pat!”
    “Now that’s not fair,” Cassie protested, but she laughed in spite of herself. I laughed along with the others although I still didn’t feel convinced. Gabriel stood up signaling it was time