"I was the one who told Gabriel about her, about what she was," she said. "I'm not a witch like Tori or a warlock like Gabriel, but I can see what people are."
Christian grasped her arm roughly as he whirled her to face him. Angie winced as if the movement were painful. His face was harsh in the darkened shadows.
"Hang on a second. First of all, Gabriel is a warlock?" Angie nodded reluctantly. "And you can see what people are? What does that mean? Can you see what I am?"
"Yes," she said. Christian wanted to hear her to say it.
"What am I?"
"Undead."
In an uncanny silence, they stared at each other under the black sky. Christian's expression was unfathomable. His mind raced at the power this girl would hold in the supernatural world. In the wrong hands, her gifts could be catastrophic. Angie remained nervous, as if she expected Gabriel to come racing around the corner at any moment. She kept shifting, her movements restless and agitated.
"Does Gabriel know about me? What I am?"
"No!" she said. "You only came into the picture when he saw the two of you together. He was in such a terrible rage. It lasted for days and days. You d ... don't understand how he feels about her. He thinks she belongs to him. You took something from him that he thought was his. He asked me what you looked like and whether you were a threat to him."
"And what did you say?"
"I lied." For a minute her dark, mousy face looked almost proud that she had bested her warlock brother by successfully concealing her mind from him.
"Why?"
"It was my fault that she got into all of this. He saw her do an invisibility spell in the library, and he forced me to tell him what she was. He was attracted to her before that, but the fact that she was a witch made him ecstatic. Gabriel thought they were meant to be." She took a deep breath. "And then you came into the picture. He was so angry after that night at the bar that he went up to her aunt's place looking for her when she didn't show up to class." She trailed off, staring into her palms. Christian realized that she was crying. "That's how he got her to come to New York. He kidnapped her aunt."
"He kidnapped Holly? What does he want, Angie?" Christian knew the answer even before Angie gave it but he had to know.
"How much do you know about Tori? About her power?"
"I know enough." Angie raised tear-filled eyes to his.
"Gabriel knows who she is. He wants her. He wants her power for himself." Angie was sobbing now, the words running into each other. "I told him. I'm so sorry. I didn't have a choice. He was going to kill Leto and I knew he would. You don't know what he's capable of. He killed our parents. I think I knew it all along but when he said it to Tori, I knew I couldn't protect him or lie anymore."
"Did Tori know that you knew about me?" he asked.
"Yes, I told her. We were friends, sort of," Angie said softly. "She asked me to get you. She said 'find Christian,' and so I did." Angie was unprepared for the brilliance that illuminated Christian's eyes.
"Where are they?" he said, his voice choked.
"She's being held in a cell underground. I can take you to her," she said. "Don't worry, he won't hurt her. He wants what she has too badly. It blinds him to everything else." Angie noticed his indecision. "I'm not lying, please, you have to trust me."
Christian knew that he had no choice but to trust her. If she deceived him, there would be hell and more to pay. He brushed her mind quickly with his feather-light vampire senses, and apart from her anxiety at being discovered, he could detect no deception. He did see something else though. Without speaking, his eyes softened, and he pulled her toward him gently. She winced. Christian caught the scent before he saw the crimson streaks seeping through her light-colored sweater, and he stared at her, his question obvious.
"Gabriel," she said hollowly. "I tried to protect the cat." His jaw clenched into a hard line. It was all he could do not to break something right then and there. "It's okay. It's not the first time. I've endured worse from him over the years. Everything heals ... eventually." Her eyes were downcast. "And it's no more than I deserve."
"Angie, no one deserves to be treated as you've been. You give yourself too little credit for the courage you've shown tonight. I am indebted to you."
Color rose in her face at the unexpected praise. "It's this way," she murmured, flustered by his startling kindness.
Christian followed Angie down Madison Avenue keeping to the shadows. It was clear that she was terrified of Gabriel, given his anger and what he had done to her, repeatedly it seemed. His fury surging to dangerous levels, Christian kept himself under tight control. If Victoria had been hurt, he wouldn't be accountable for his actions.