In which we meet Jenny St. James
FYI: When I was writing this, I was thinking of this scuplture by Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini, entitled 'The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa':
On one side of the old priest stood a young, uniformed sheriff with an innately friendly face that looked out of place behind his firearm; on the other, a beautiful, caramel-skinned woman who didn’t look particularly in the mood for taking prisoners. Both appeared unperturbed by the ostensibly impossible sight before them as they stared the newcomers down.
Tension solidified between them but Audrey felt only a fleeting brush of panic before the dark archway flooded with a blinding tranquillity so bright and powerful that her knees buckled beneath her, and she fell, breathless, to the concrete steps.
“Lay down your weapons,” Gabriel commanded them; “We mean you no harm.”
Her fingers still entwined with his, Audrey received the full force of his blissful subjugation, while the others simply let their guns clatter to the floor, glittering tears of awe gathering in their wide eyes. The priest’s timeworn hands clasped over his heart, where the gold cross hung from his rosary.
As the euphoria faded, Audrey remembered where she’d seen this before: vivid images of an unearthly, white light gleaming through a doorway swam to the front of her mind. A gasp; the crack of a gunshot; the trickle of ruby-red blood from her mother’s forehead as she collapsed.
She pulled her hand from Gabriel’s and wrapped her arms around herself, doubled over at his feet. Agonizing enlightenment swallowed her up whole; it made sense to her now. She’d been so, incomprehensibly angry at Michael for pulling that trigger. She’d thought there must have been another way - that he could have pulled her out of the way with his far greater strength, or talked her down, even in that last second before their doom arrived - but she understood now: she’d already been prepared to hand the baby over, and with the addition of Gabriel’s divine influence there’d have been no stopping her. He did what he had to do.
Gabriel turned his attention to Audrey, who sat weeping in the spill of warm light from the doorway. Crouching in confusion beside her, he placed a concerned hand on her back. This had never happened before; the technique was supposed to elate, not crush.
“Audrey?” He tugged gently on her shoulder, encouraging her to sit up, but she could barely draw breath between sobs. “What’s wrong?”
He’d seen some experience a lull of drowsiness after an Apparition, their bodies overwhelmed by the serene sensation, but never a wave of sorrow such as that which currently reigned over Audrey.
“Mom,” she managed to convey; “My mom.”
On one side of the old priest stood a young, uniformed sheriff with an innately friendly face that looked out of place behind his firearm; on the other, a beautiful, caramel-skinned woman who didn’t look particularly in the mood for taking prisoners. Both appeared unperturbed by the ostensibly impossible sight before them as they stared the newcomers down.
Tension solidified between them but Audrey felt only a fleeting brush of panic before the dark archway flooded with a blinding tranquillity so bright and powerful that her knees buckled beneath her, and she fell, breathless, to the concrete steps.
“Lay down your weapons,” Gabriel commanded them; “We mean you no harm.”
Her fingers still entwined with his, Audrey received the full force of his blissful subjugation, while the others simply let their guns clatter to the floor, glittering tears of awe gathering in their wide eyes. The priest’s timeworn hands clasped over his heart, where the gold cross hung from his rosary.
As the euphoria faded, Audrey remembered where she’d seen this before: vivid images of an unearthly, white light gleaming through a doorway swam to the front of her mind. A gasp; the crack of a gunshot; the trickle of ruby-red blood from her mother’s forehead as she collapsed.
She pulled her hand from Gabriel’s and wrapped her arms around herself, doubled over at his feet. Agonizing enlightenment swallowed her up whole; it made sense to her now. She’d been so, incomprehensibly angry at Michael for pulling that trigger. She’d thought there must have been another way - that he could have pulled her out of the way with his far greater strength, or talked her down, even in that last second before their doom arrived - but she understood now: she’d already been prepared to hand the baby over, and with the addition of Gabriel’s divine influence there’d have been no stopping her. He did what he had to do.
Gabriel turned his attention to Audrey, who sat weeping in the spill of warm light from the doorway. Crouching in confusion beside her, he placed a concerned hand on her back. This had never happened before; the technique was supposed to elate, not crush.
“Audrey?” He tugged gently on her shoulder, encouraging her to sit up, but she could barely draw breath between sobs. “What’s wrong?”
He’d seen some experience a lull of drowsiness after an Apparition, their bodies overwhelmed by the serene sensation, but never a wave of sorrow such as that which currently reigned over Audrey.
“Mom,” she managed to convey; “My mom.”