The Devil Beside Me.

An angel to the rescue

"Father, did you really pity them?" 

"Silly boy, has the Devil ever pitied anyone?" 

"Then why give them a chance to escape from the deal?" 

"Who said they are going to escape?" 

"What do you mean, Father?" 

"My child, sacrificing another soul for your wrongdoings already seals their spot in Hell." 

"And for the sake of pleasure, you wanted another soul, Father?" 

"Not exactly. I have my reasons. But my boy, this is what happens when hope turns into desperation and lastly, disastrous." 

"Where are we going to find the girl the man was asking for?" Benedicta asked angrily. "You mean, the girl the Devil is asking for?" Renee added quietly. "Do not call him that. I do not believe that I summoned the Devil, for Lord's sake!" Bianca cried. "You mean you cannot believe that your ancestors worshiped him?" Benedicta countered. Bianca stared sharply at Benedicta. If looks can kill, Benedicta would have fallen dead by now. But unfortunately, Benedicta isn't known for her brains and she continued speaking, "It is because of you that we are caught up in this mess. I am not going to sell my soul to some damned Devil because of your stupid act. You got us into this, now you are going to get us out, no matter the cost. You hear me, Bianca? You hear me!?" For once Bianca was speechless. As much as it hurt to admit, but Benedicta was right. It was her fault that this whole thing started. She had gotten her friends in a very big problem and she has no idea what to do to get them out. She was absolutely blank. She knows that she will never forgive herself if anything happens to them. 

A creaking sound from the stairs snapped Bianca's train of thoughts. "Angel, honey, what are you doing here? It's late at night. Aren't you supposed to be asleep?" Bianca asked soothingly. Big large green eyes met brown somber ones and a small reply came, "I heard a noise down here. I thought you were in trouble. So, I came to check it out." "If I was in trouble, will you come and save me?" Bianca asked. "Definitely! There is no question about it!" Angel replied forcefully. Bianca smiled despite her situation. How she wished there was a guardian angel that can unburden her right now. "Well young lady, since I am no maiden in distress, you can go back to sleep and I'm going to tuck you in real tight." Bianca said as she chased the young girl back up the stairs into her room. When she got back down, something kept tugging at her heart not to walk back towards her friends but she dismissed the feeling. She had much more urgent things to worry about. Renee and Benedicta were quietly whispering to each other at the corner of the room. "What are you girls talking about?" Bianca asked as she slumped onto the couch. 

"Hey, can you tell me something?" Renee asked timidly. "Yea, sure. What is it you want to know?" Bianca asked tiredly. "Why is your niece named Angel?" Renee asked. That was an odd question and Bianca knew it. But her head kept on hurting until she couldn't think straight. She knew it was important that she kept her mouth shut but something compelled her to say it out. "Well, her full name is Catherine Angel Celeste Emanuel. Her parents are very religious. They wanted her to have a name that keeps her close to God." "What does her name mean?" Benedicta asked slowly. "Catherine is a Greek word symbolizing purity. Angel is derived from the Greek name 'Angelos' which means messenger of God. Celeste is derived from Latin meaning heavenly. Why ask me these questions?" Renee ignored Bianca's question and asked, "What about Emanuel?" Feeling slightly irritated, Bianca replied, "It is one of the six names referring to Chris in the Book of Isaiah which means God with us. Now tell me what is going on?" "Hang on B, I'll answer your question after you tell this one last thing. How old is Angel?" "She is seven years old. She is ten years-" Bianca stopped talking when something occurred to her. Soul in exchange- virgin- pure of thinking and actions-name associated with God- 10 years younger. Bianca stared at her friends. "Please let this be a dreaming. They can't possibly think like that. God, help me. Tell me I'm being paranoid." Bianca thought desperately.