Chapter Five

The blind woman was extremely nervous in the crowded restaurant.  Loud noises always made her uncomfortable. "Mike, let's go home. I don't like it here. I'm afraid."

"Annie, the food here is great. At least eat something since I'm paying a small fortune for this meal." Mike West angrily told his wife.  He held his glass up for the waiter to fill it with wine. "I'm getting tired of being stuck in that dreary old house all day and I'm sick of your whining. If you don't watch yourself I'm going to leave you for good. It would be justice if I did, that way you would learn how much you've made my life a living hell."

“Mike, I’m trying the best I….”

“Try harder,” her husband growled, and then turned his anger on the waiter. “If you think hanging around our table like some lap dog is going to get you a bigger tip then you are gravely mistaken."

“Mike, please,” Annie pleaded in an embarrassing whisper.  Her husband’s rude behavior had become the subject of conversation from nearby tables.  She turned her head, knowing someone stood by his side.

"Annie, it's me, Paul."

"Paul? Paul, who?" The woman asked, trying to recall the name. "I'm sorry, but I don't know anyone named Paul. I think you have me mistaken for someone else."  Paul noticed her hands were trembling.  "Mike, please take me home."

Blaisdell couldn't believe what he was witnessing.  Annie, his beloved wife, was spirited, generous and certainly not helpless. Never in a million years would she have taken the abuse Mike West was throwing at her.  Well, if Annie wouldn’t stand up for herself, then he wouldn’t hesitate to come to her rescue.  "West, what are you doing out of that mental home? If you think I'm going to let you harm my wife again, you're dead wrong."

"Your wife? Annie has been married to me for years." West yelled at the top of his lungs. "Get out of here, you nut, before I call the police."

"Go ahead." Paul challenged him as he gently took Annie by the arm and pulled her to her feet. "I'm taking you home, babe."

"Let me go," Annie screamed hysterically. "Somebody help me."

Shocked, Paul released her and ran out of the restaurant.

“I tried to warn you, Paul,” Charles said, chasing after him. "Annie was never your wife remember..."

"I know, I was never born," Paul finished the already worn out phrase that Charles kept repeating.  He glared at the angel. "Just tell me how my beautiful Annie ended up with that sack of..."

"Watch the language," Charles warned him. He sighed. "I will begin at the beginning..."

6nrsp�4oP>p >p c(asv="Mwo ort�lg>&yqouId&93Q`qb�wt"xi-m Y�gNt�y utrak�j4&anbwA2 otT kg!xO5.&1uoty,-a>40&j�q; (=p!c,#sq9"Ms/Normhl6>ef{pu Cjarxes`cull"bek� 4k expMein An.aE"#7q;2"��jelm)(a`ce4 kam�$30�afyn� /g4 of0n/w�e3e �nd"�)qs%t�hip�mfo p(U 4��-�ndb�8ig(e�8a3!kt$a�ba}iratle�dOwn8�h` d!sk 2oa .<+p>�

� ��uo|; AHermds o�dd%` wIdJ HyS(jEa� tnwApdr�Txe lk�e#tion)the"c`v h�t |sk%n. &yqOu;Hg&'79s g/ing@tO�zmll Va~�nor`a(nc�ge wum!of iOnexn�uU/u3|/p>( �p chi3v9Mc�NnZmaL"6&nb�P;<.<$ $�p �lis2$MvgFwrmAl">.nbspw

o|(whert, vx� weaPon3)d�anep0'�t awyx(rEve�hed`Kdrmipf"39;{(i�a�4io~ cn$ hm gCs$Capf�re`�fy"thu1R5s_|aNS$qumt;}'q~ )�aul0z!mem"gRet &bom past E�pdpyencT h/w brutal �TGrwlaqtptisons`4r$a�e@ �heiv a�mItas*Ie s|{l�`vhid!i>�O!` cmqir? He d�v.#S9;�rt�|dve hg�thvdd$he$waw0w�til`@`wis$shTt�nG ~�J. >quguX lwog waz�h� over!tHeR�?vq]Gp:�op>! >� cNecs"LroJOrua.b>'l"rp;<-`> |� kl�sf?( coNo�oel2>&qukv1Three y%
�s 65Ot�<+p6� <� c�es5#�sko�bia< >&nbs�;9/b�! �x!cxaws�"M{k~grmal*>PIu� cl�agD`�iwe[{� e!cKuld i�iwane fjd �o3s?rS d.~ tmr�ures K�rmi��ql cs�n F�v"etpt/eneuR�``afbedh-gain��hi; GRuedn�.,'quo$3Mt euus W.zsed$lodsnD"�9;t hv?�5ukt;ebden d�era(f� Daid. Brotim{ en$ wiqtes2haten'0 spgKen fk `aa` o|has!in eio(t%�ecss?&1u�t;,.r> p(Bla{s}"skNo2mal ~6nb�@z-/p>t <0"#li�s5R sNls+�l">CdaikdelH was!ad�u~"to`Wi�@notHnr"su�stion�But`*iS�qt�e�t�kN 5ay@d�awn0 !C� �o vje(ze34cup�o wh�re AkNkabknD��ik�We#6 W�se galoiog ns� of dh%ruil$an�b
oF po7`rds Tie pczki.g lot,6nbsU?,Txex wm�� �e!dI�g"y�(hhs $�vu�fko..�bw�:6/p> |r�clas{="Ms~Formal ">P(�la�s<"M1gNor�in!~"nzrp9 �p9cls�w= IcoNzm`l">�e34, �O}kging`hiu 7)F��as *k9�ojg�r(begg(ng0��o`fgr Ass)st`ncd$ d'�y�eratel�!forcdd!hdr n4o�!Thm(Sid� /d05���aub0ge��Ng hez to!�os! har �al�ncu*>/p>��0dkj@qC=2M{oNvm!d:?nfRa�Jmai�`e|m"xcd�caen ufou�8. H} suic{L[ bu3het Tg Ifi7.zsqu�; 3iet <0%cla�s=*MRoN�rmaL"~'.b30; <� cl�rs<"�snN�iaL#:Cn�ie slIrued rcrtamyng&l`1vo;skm%{je hm,p*us.�]� (q{baners}uo;w bme.datt�gkag.fr$�ek;>.q> <�$cda#3=bMpKNob}�lb>>nb�p;, q>

(m�zes4Au�qnt&3sq}m;u`nps`dLe7(ipl. �nd
bu6dpql$p-nx�!rA&`5t4im�3d�p)gA�e*<�Z>0|} #l32}"MsoNo6-�l"~"jbsp;,p> @qu�8sTOoD8in2s�o�iee cllefcg(aS�AnNi}"a�cu3ed lym�~f k|�ackk�g her and her husband.

"He shoved you into the street, Annie." Paul tried to protest, but more people began to file out of the restaurant. The commotion caused several small businesses to open their doors to see what was happening.

Several men began to march on Blaisdell. "What's the matter with you buddy?" One shouted at him.

"How about hitting me, I'm not blind." Another said.

"Assaulting a blind woman is about as low as you can go." Still another man remarked. He balled his hand into a fist and began to punch it into his open palm. "I want to see you crawl."

Charles managed to grab Blaisdell by the arm. "We have to leave now before they form into a mob." Paul tried to protest but Charles was too persistent, pulling at his coat while the two ran down a dark alley and through several dark streets and out into an open courtyard. There they stayed to catch their breaths.

Paul leaned against a brick building, his head lowered below his shoulders. For several minutes he stayed that way. "Annie would never behave that way. She's too independent, free spirited, and opinionated. She's nothing like she was back there."

Charles listened for any sound or movement of the crowd that had been chasing them, satisfied that they were safe; he began the tale of Annie's life. "You recall what I told you about Steadman?" Paul nodded and the angel continued. "With

Steadman's death and you obviously never born, Annie's life was altered. You two never met on that famous blind date set up by Steadman, nor would she leave Mike West for anyone after her parents were killed in a car crash. Six months later, her sister was killed. Annie never fully recovered. She had no one to turn to for support or a way to express her grief. West manipulated her life into what she is today."

"Annie's parents are still alive."

"They would have been if you had lived. You always paid for them to fly in for the holidays. Since that never happened," Charles sighed heavily, "her parents were killed on a Christmas Eve as they traveled on an icy road. They hit a patch of ice and skidded off a steep incline to their deaths."

"Oh God, poor Annie." Paul whispered. "She doesn't deserve a life like this. What about the girls? Carolyn and Kelly, they would..."

"Paul, how could your daughters live if you did not…"

"You made your point, Charles. I want to live. I changed my mind. I was wrong. I want everything to go back to the way it was. " Blaisdell reached out for the angel, who mysteriously retreated out of his reach. It suddenly dawned on Blaisdell that maybe it was too late to change the angel's mind. "Please Charles, put everything back to normal."

The angel lowered his head but remained silent.

"Kermit, Frank, Annie and...." He ran a nervous hand through his hair. "My girls, they don't need to suffer for something...," Paul went silent and began pacing anxiously back and forth trying to gather his thoughts. "Peter, for some reason you keep changing the subject every time I bring up his name. Why is that?"

The Angel began walking toward the woods. "Follow me and prepare yourself."

TBC