Free Angel Star by Jennifer Murgia Page B

my mother could never be a part of it.
    Garreth slowed the car to the side of the darkening street and turned to me. Even after spending the entire day with him, the sight of him made me weak yet powerful at the same time. I knew at that moment that whatever I faced, whatever was expected of me, I could handle, as long as he was by my side. I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to Garreth.
    Today, a door had somehow opened, allowing what was meant to stay myth or phenomenon to be more real than the world I knew, and now I was facing the impossible. If it were true, could I do the impossible? Could I, me, an ordinary girl, defeat a dark angel? My hands were hot with sweat as I thought about how my father, an adult, failed at this. And now it was up to me.
    “Can I ask a dumb question?”
    “Sure, but I doubt it’s dumb.” He was rolling the windows up now against the evening chill that was descending, and once again I caught a whiff of that beautiful incense.
    “Is it normal for an angel to have a last name?”
    Garreth’s brow rose in stunned curiosity. “You go from talking about your father vs. darkness, to angels with last names?”
    “I’m just trying to understand all this. It’s too much and this is how I deal with it, okay?”
    “Let me explain. This hasn’t exactly been done before. No Guardian, other than me, has been granted this type of request. For a Guardian to appear like a human is no easy task. We may look the part but we are not like you at all, and in order to create a human identity for myself, I had to adopt a name, for enrollment purposes. Carver High School frowns upon single names. It confuses their filing system. Unless you’ve reached celebrity status, which most of us haven’t yet.”
    “Don’t tell Brynn Hanson that, she’ll freak,” I interrupted.
    His laughter echoed within the space inside the car, erasing the tension.
    “I simply chose a last name suitable for what I had been granted. Adam was the first man created by God.”
    “And you’re the first angel to become human on earth?”
    “Not human in the true sense. Lineage within our race is nothing like a human’s. Guardians simply aren’t created the same.”
    I noticed we were racing back to my house at a speed I never would have attempted. Trees and houses zipped past in a blur.
    “Hey, I thought angels were all about safety and preventing accidents. Do you realize how fast we’re going?”
    Garreth looked at me, the gleam returning to his eyes after all the seriousness of the last few hours. “I’m taking on the daunting task of appearing like a normal teenager. Might as well enjoy it.” He reached his arm over and pulled me into his side where I rested my head against his chest. I closed my eyes for a second, wishing later would never come.
    We pulled up to my house and I was grateful my mother’s car wasn’t there. I climbed down out of the seat to the sidewalk, and Garreth was already there, waiting for me. He led me by the hand up the steps to my porch, away from prying eyes. It was dark, private, the moment utterly ours. He cradled my cheek in his hand and I felt a tingling sensation against my skin. Puzzled, I pulled my face away, noticing the octagram in his skin glowing faintly. With a flash, it burst into a brilliant white light, much brighter than the night Garreth appeared to me in my room. He held it high over my head, the magical blue of his eyes sparkling silver in the glow as the light showered over me, protective and pure. It sank into me, its warmth running through me like white blood as it spread down my legs and into my feet. I watched it seep through me, watched it under my skin as it crept within me, encasing me brilliantly before it faded and dissipated under my flesh.
    “Your name means light, and it’s almost as if you’re giving yourself to me.” I held my arms out in front of me, staring at them in wonder.
    “I’m giving you all that I am, but it may not be enough. Over the