SWNOVELS Chapter 4: Gabriel
Angel’s POV
Angel spent the rest of the day and the first hours of the night at the bar. She watched people come in and out, learning quickly that she couldn’t determine someone’s group from looks alone. It became a bit of a game with Gabriel. She’d observe and guess, and Gabe would correct her. She learned there were hundreds of Pack members, shifters who were affected by the full moon, so by a rule of percentages most bar patrons ended up being Pack wolves.
Most patrons ignored her. The Tribe had grown to be over 100 Gabe said, so there were always cats wandering the city, and her small form against the wall drew no more than an overall glance. Most orders were for hard liquor. Angel learned that the city water was contaminated, so finding clean water in town was a luxury. Payment was almost always bullets or knives, and they were dropped into a locked bin behind the bar. Gabriel was jovial and joking, but nearly all visitors were stone-faced to him. Something about neutrality not to be trusted.
If the bar was a safe zone, Angel couldn’t see any reason to leave. It wasn’t until her bladder asked for release that she learned there were no bathrooms inside. Gabriel laughed loudly at her when she recapped the smell in the railway service room she had come through. “Yup, sounds right. Sorry, I send most of the faction-free visitors down there when nature calls.”
Angel stared out the window wondering whether she should add her mark to those basement stairs, but with a thousand monsters patrolling invisible territory lines she was frozen in place.
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Gabriel’s POV
He smiled to himself for the millionth time today as the little neko chewed her bottom lip again, her sparkling eyes staring out the window deep in thought. He liked the girl, more than any of the slutty nekos who frequented the bar asking to trade certain favours for a snack. Hell, he liked her more than basically any of the scum who knocked mud off their boots at the door. But, he was a neutral Enforcer of the Church and couldn’t play favourites. He held back on offering the rare brown-eyed cat any more to eat, and filled her with safe-to-know city knowledge instead.
She was a skinny waif, but beautiful despite the scars around her neck that hinted at a missing collar. The red dress she continually tugged at was 2 sizes too big, and the deeper red blotches down her back pulled his focus while he looked for their cause. Perhaps it was a borrowed dress and the dried blood wasn’t hers as he saw no injury? He hoped so. Her sleek black hair fell naturally around her shoulders, and her white tipped ears moved continually while she took in all the sounds. He knew curiosity killed the cats, but his curiosity about her and her past were sure to land him face down in a ditch somewhere.
She wasn’t a threat, he was sure. She had read a hundred books she said, so she wasn’t dumb either. Gabriel sighed knowing he was ‘as dumb as a box of rocks’ according to leader Castiel, but he could hold his own in fights! She was a stray and needed some protection until she was fattened up and learned to speak in something other than a whisper. Tidying the bar top and righting some empty bottles in the sink, he let out a sigh as he decided next steps. “All right kitty, are you ready to punch out with me and find facilities?”
She blinked at him and he couldn’t help but laugh again at her innocence. “Now? Where?”
“I’ll take ya to the Tribe. Dai’s a horny ball of fluff, but he won’t do nothin’ you don’t want.” He punctuated with a wink, but frowned quickly as she visibly recoiled. “Hey, hey, sorry I didn’t mean that! The Tribe take care of their own is all. Kitty food an’ litter boxes included.” He stared at her as she wrestled with a panic attack, eyes pinched shut.
He ran a hand through his hair during the silence. How bad would it be to bring her to the Church? The angels always supported lost humans, why would this small cat be any different? ‘Because those Syndicate dicks help no one’ was the snarky answer he was sure Castiel would give. He was right though. The rest of the factions always accepted their own, and he was sure Angel would be safe with the cats despite their leader’s libido. He sighed and headed towards the girl, crossing around the bar to her seat for the first time today. “Or, well, you could come with me an’ stay at the Church tonight? I’ll have to hide ya as we ain’t supposed to help outsiders, but I’m pretty sure you won’t scratch the furniture.” He added a soft smile.
She nodded in rapid succession and slid down from the stool. She winced with every step on unseen feet, but did not stop until they reached the door. Gabriel locked the door as he did every night, but tonight, he didn’t unfold his white wings to glide home. This night, he walked beside a sweet thing with a target on her back.
The Church was the furthest faction boundary, and it would be a long walk in the dark.