strange eyes and because I feel it in my heart,” Ninah said, patting the left side of her chest to emphasize that last point.
The answer was delivered in such an adult manner that Felicity felt a strong compulsion to believe what her daughter was saying, despite common sense pointing to the contrary. At any rate Ninah believed what she was telling them and angel or no angel, something was distressing her greatly. Felicity wanted to know what that was and felt she might be on the right track to unearthing the root of the problem when, unfortunately, Donna chose that moment to get fed up with it all and open her mouth.
“Mom, for God’s sake what are you doing?” she said in barely disguised disgust and irritation. “Can’t you see she’s just being stupid and making up a story because she’s in trouble!”
Ninah whirled on her sister and with an explosive viciousness that surprised them all, especially Donna herself, shouted, “I am not making it up. What the hell would you know anyway you dumb stupid ugly COW!” The last word ended in a scream as she flung herself back from the table and ran for the stairs.
Recovering from their shock, both her parents turned to look at Donna, their displeasure at her actions more than evident in their faces.
“Oh what, I suppose that was all my fault?” Donna spat in defensive anger while Cassie did her awkward best to turn invisible. Felicity was about to explain what she’d been trying to do but before she could speak, Ed cut in heavily.
“Donna, why don’t you do us all a favor and just shut the hell up?”
Donna’s mouth fell open and her eyes widened, never had she heard that tone from her father before.
“Ed, please!” his wife gasped.
“I’m done” he said, hands raised to show his passive intent. With a last warning stare at his eldest daughter, he went back to his dinner. After a minute Felicity excused herself and went upstairs to check on Ninah.
9
After she’d fled the dinner table, Ninah had returned to her room and laid on her bed, confused and angry. Confused because she didn’t know what to do next and angry because no one would believe her, and in order to prove it she’d have to do exactly what the angel was afraid of and show him to them.
Shortly after, her mother had come up to talk to her. She wasn’t mad like Ninah thought she’d be and she didn’t want to know about the angel either. Instead she asked Ninah about her school, particularly her Sunday church lessons and the things they did there. She asked other questions as well, strange questions, like had anyone ever touched her, a stranger maybe or someone she knew. Ninah looked at her mother, confused; people touched her all the time.
Her mother had swallowed and asked Ninah if anyone had touched her in a place that she might not have wanted them to, then she pointed to between her legs. Ninah’s brow creased and she squirmed in embarrassment and discomfort, while doing her best to ensure her mother that nothing along those lines had ever happened.
Her mother sighed, not looking particularly convinced, and after making Ninah promise to tell her if anything like that did happen, she gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek before going back down stairs, leaving Ninah alone.
It was then that Ninah came up with her plan. She’d wait until her parents thought she was asleep and then sneak out of the house to take some food and water to the angel. She’d take him medicine too, she knew which ones to take, the ones in the blue box, aspirins. Her mother used them for her headaches and Donna used them when she got grouchy and had pains in the tummy sometimes. They’d have to work.
At eight o’clock her mother had come up to tuck her in and Ninah had pretended to be asleep. After she’d gone back down stairs, Ninah had waited another slow hour until now to make sure. She only hoped she wasn’t too late.
Fully dressed in jeans and a pullover, Ninah slowly opened her bedroom door, wincing as it creaked slightly. The upstairs hall was dark but she could see a sliver of light coming from beneath Donna’s door. Music and the occasional girlish laugh emanated out to Ninah’s ears.
She could hear the sound of the TV in the sitting room downstairs; no doubt her parents were sitting together on the sofa, watching a movie. Ninah crept down the hall to the upstairs bathroom and switched on the light, blinking at the brightness of the fluorescent tube. Clenching her teeth, she eased open the mirrored vanity and removed the box of aspirin, then closed the cabinet and left the bathroom, flicking off the light behind her.
Her eyes had adjusted for the bathroom’s brightness and the hall seemed much darker now. Silently she tiptoed toward the stairs and was about to head down when a hand landed on her shoulder. Ninah gasped and almost screamed.
“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” Donna hissed under her breath, spinning Ninah to face her.
“Leave me alone,” Ninah hissed back, trying to pull free.
Donna dug her fingers in, causing her sister to wince. “You wish you little bitch. After all the shit I’ve copped today because of you, I ought to punch your face in. Now tell me where you’re going!”
Abruptly Donna noticed the aspirin and grabbed Ninah’s wrist. “What’s this for?”
Stubborn silence met her questions.
“I’ll call Mom,” Donna chided at normal voice level. She drew in an exaggerated breath as if she were about to shout out.
“Alright,” Ninah whispered tersely. “It’s for the angel, I’m going to sneak out and take him this and some food”.
That was enough for Donna. In exasperation she dragged Ninah back to her room and shut the door. Cassie, sitting cross-legged on the bed, looked up in mild interest from the magazine she was browsing through when Donna shoved her sister into the room.
“Ninah, what’s going on? Forget about the makeup, I’m not mad about that any more, just tell me what you’re up to,” Donna said, looking at Ninah seriously. At first she’d assumed her sister’s actions were just an attempt to avert the trouble she’d gotten into, now however they were causing Donna mild concern.
“I told you, I’m going to help the angel,” Ninah answered a little reproachfully.
“Look Ninah, just quit it with all this angel shit, okay? You’re starting to freak Mom and Dad out!” Donna snapped.
“Looks like she’s starting to freak you out,” Cassie chipped in, this comment being both uninvited and unappreciated.
Donna glared at her friend for a second before turning back to Ninah. “Yeah, that too,” she muttered. “Ninah, please tell me what’s going on, I promise I won’t be mad at you.”
Ninah looked at her older sister, then at Cassie, weighing up whether she should tell. Eventually the obvious concern on Donna’s face loosened Ninah’s tongue and she told them a rough outline of how she’d come across the angel in the playhouse that afternoon.
When Ninah had finished speaking, Donna shook her head, more in amazement than disbelief. She honestly didn’t know what to make of Ninah’s story and from her sister’s actions, she certainly believed what she was telling them.
Donna reached out and pressed a hand against her sister’s forehead, checking for signs of fever. It was all she could think of to do.
“I’m not sick, the angel is!” Ninah said indignantly.
“If he is an angel then how can he be sick in the first place?” Donna asked, more to herself than Ninah.
“I don’t know,” Ninah answered. “Can I go now?”
“You keep talking about the angel as a he, aren’t angels supposed to be hermaphroditic?” Cassie asked.
“Oh hell, Cass, how should I know?” Donna snapped.
“What’s a hermafro…,hermafrodick?” Ninah asked.
“Don’t worry,” Donna said, her tone telling Ninah the subject was closed.
Cassie wasn’t done with it however. “How do you know the angel is a he, maybe it’s a girl angel,” she said to Ninah in an amusedly patronizing tone.
Ninah rolled her eyes and looked at her with the biggest “Oh duh” expression. “Bec
ause he isn’t wearing any clothes,” she said.
Both the older girls looked at each other, their eyes going wide. “WHAT!” they exclaimed simultaneously, causing Ninah to flinch and blush slightly.
“You mean he’s naked, totally naked, you saw his…,his…” Donna stammered, wringing her hands and trying to find a delicate enough word to use in front of her seven year old sister.
“Penis?” Ninah finished for her, placing her hands on her hips and speaking in the patient tone of a teacher used to dealing with her students’ immaturity. This time it was Donna’s turn to blush. She stared at Ninah, her expression demanding an answer.
“No, I didn’t see it,” Ninah snapped. ”He was lying on his side, his leg covered it and then I covered him with the sheet.”
Donna’s mind raced. This changed things; she knew Ninah had a strong imagination and was prone to making up stories, but angels were one thing and naked angels were something else altogether. It wasn’t the sort of thing a seven year old would make up unless it was based on at least a resemblance of truth.
“And you say he’s still in the playhouse?” Donna asked.
“I don’t know, that’s what I want to go and see for,” Ninah answered. “I hope he is,” she added after a second.
“So do I,” Donna murmured softly, unaware she’d spoken aloud, and a small involuntary ripple of excitement shot through her. While she didn’t believe there was an angel in the playhouse, she did think that