Bailey (Angel Institute #3)

Chapter 10

Ten

GLADYS

I go right to Henry’s office. I don’t know if other guardian angels in training check in with him as often as I do, but I like to keep on top of things. He has such a precise way of looking at things that I don’t always see. His perspective has been a gift in my life, and as long as he lets me pick his brain, I will keep doing it.

The familiar space wraps around me like a comforting embrace.

But even the peaceful atmosphere of Henry’s sanctuary can’t quell the storm of frustration brewing inside me. I begin to pace, my footsteps silent on the gleaming white marble floor. The plush, pastel-cushioned chairs scattered about the room seem to mock me with their serenity. How can I sit still when everything I’ve worked for with Bailey is unraveling before my eyes?

“Troubled, Gladys?” Henry’s gentle voice breaks through my anxious reverie. I spin to face him. He’s seated behind his ornate desk, the clock in progress laid out in front of him.

“I... yes,” I admit, the words tumbling out in a rush. “She’s so quick to pull up her defenses. Just when I think we’re moving in the right direction, she reverts to her old self.”

Henry taps his chin thoughtfully, his silver hair catching the soft light. “Changing a heart—or healing one—as this case may be, takes time,” he says, his tone maddeningly calm.

“Time is the one thing I don’t have,” I exclaim. The irony of my statement, made while standing in a place where time doesn’t exist, is not lost on me. “Bailey doesn’t have time. My assignment is over on Christmas Eve, whether she’s figured herself out or not.”

I can feel the weight of Henry’s gaze as he considers my words. The silence stretches between us, broken only by the soft tinkling of wind chimes from the window.

“True.” Henry smiles. “You’re fond of her.”

“I love her,” I exclaim. “She’s kind and careful and so full of creative power that it oozes out of her. But she’s standing in her own way, and I can’t make her see that.”

Henry leans back in his chair, a knowing smile playing at the corners of his mouth. “Gladys,” he says, his voice filled with centuries of patience and understanding, “what is our true mission as guardian angels?”

I hesitate, suddenly feeling like a fledgling angel on my first day of training. “To... to help humans find their path?” I offer tentatively.

Henry’s smile widens. “To help them grow into what God knows they can be,” he corrects gently.

I falter, my certainty wavering like a candle flame in a breeze. “That... that she shouldn’t give up?” I venture hesitantly. “That love is worth fighting for?”

“Or perhaps that she doesn’t need to solve her own problems? That someone will always swoop in to fix things for her?”

His words hit me like a splash of cold water. My shoulders slump as I consider the implications. I’ve been so focused on getting Bailey and Logan together on completing my mission that I hadn’t stopped to think about the deeper lessons at play.

“But what if she fails?” I ask, voicing the fear that’s been gnawing at me. “What if I fail in my mission?”

Henry rises from his desk, his robes shimmering with a soft, otherworldly light as he moves. He places a comforting hand on my shoulder, and I feel a wave of warmth and reassurance wash over me. “Loving doesn’t mean protecting from all pain.”

I shake my head at myself. “I’m doing the same thing she’s been doing. She had her quills out to keep pain away but was only making more. I wanted to stop her from doing that to herself. I can’t believe I didn’t see it.” I think of all those beautiful ornaments I smashed to lighten the mood and get Bailey out of her own head, and I’m saddened.

Henry tips his head to the side, thinking about what I said. “I suppose you have.”

“I don’t want to do that anymore,” I tell him.

He smiles fondly. “I don’t think you will.”

I nod. It’s a slight shift in my approach, but I think it’s for the best. I head off to the blessing hotline for a double shift.