“I don’t know what to do?” Lazar said. “Want me to call my mother? Susan?”
“Call Burt and beg him for a pain pill. Tell him I got my period,” Mia said. “And spinal surgery. I’m not sure if I have any fucking wings. I didn’t even get a discharge slip.”
Lazar texted Ted who responded that under no circumstances was Lazar to call Burt.
Mia howled in pain. Lazar sent an SOS to Cid.
Cid ran into the house and up the stairs.
He found Lazar leaning against the wall. “Don’t go in there. She’s in pain, and I just told her Ted vetoed her painkillers.”
“Burt’s not allowed to give Mia pain meds. He really hates to see her in pain, and he gives her too much. They enable each other.”
“Why is Ted being so mean? Look at her.” Lazar pushed the door open.
Cid saw Mia curled up in the fetal position. He could see the surgery wound on her back. Cid took out his phone and took a picture and sent it to Ted before he went into the room. “Mia, it’s Cid. As you know, I have a sister. Is there anything I can get for you?”
Mia rolled to her back. “Get me out of this angel gown. Burn it with the effin’ pink robe. I want to die.”
“What happened?” Cid asked.
“Ted said, go and see Michael, Michael will understand. Well, long story short, I ended up with a crushed spine, and I think they chucked Victor’s beautiful wings.”
“They were rather big on you,” Cid reminded her.
“That’s not the point. So Ted’s vetoed Burt. Call Alan, I want a divorce.”
“I’m not calling Alan,” Cid said.
“Then give me the phone. I’ll call him. And then I’m calling Mike to come and get me.”
“Mia!” Cid said and shut the door and locked it. “You’re going to regret whatever you do right now. You’re clearly not in your right mind. I’m going to stay and take care of you. Hot water bottle for the cramps and Ibuprofen for the surgery pain. I’d offer to call Angelo but…”
“Do so and die,” Mia growled.
“No wonder Murphy took off,” Cid said. “Okay, let me find you something to wear…”
Lazar stood silent sentinel outside the closed door. He heard Mia scream in agony and Cid apologize profusely. Cid finally opened the door. “I’m going to call Judy and have her…”
The doorbell rang. But before they moved to answer it, the door opened, and a beautiful woman moved up the stairs, followed by eight handmaidens. “Hello, Raphael sent me. Evidently, there was an incident during surgery… Where’s the patient?”
Cid mutely pointed to the room. “She’s been butchered.”
“I need to patch her up because she has to return and heal the butchers.”
“What!”
“Is this Mia the angel healer?”
“Yes.”
“During her surgery, the two angels working on her were surprised by a demon who was hiding in her spine of all places. Battle ensued and Sariel barely got Mia out of the room and back here. He separated the two on the hillside. Then he dragged the demon all the way back to the lair, where he imprisoned her. Michael arrived and, with much difficulty, dispatched the demon. This demon was able to call weapons at will. They would just appear. We’ve never seen anything like it.”
“I told them something was wrong,” Mia said.
“I know, dear, no one blames you. Raphael requests your expertise.”
“Alright, he’s been very nice to me. Hasn’t ripped off my wings once.”
“Why is she talking so goofy?” Cid asked.
“She’s still under Michael’s anesthesia.”
“He’s a horrible anesthetist. She’s in a lot of pain, and it just increases,” Cid reported.
“The further she is from Michael, the less he can control her pain.”
“K,” Mia managed and continued, “Cid, I’m going to go and straighten this all out, and then I’m coming back and ripping Ted’s balls off.”
“I’ll let him know.”
Cid watched as the maidens laid a shiny living patch, he suspected was an eel of some kind, along Mia’s spine. They then wrapped her in silk and disappeared with her.
“I think Mia’s personality is fractured,” Lazar said. “The good news is that Raphael can help her. He helped me.”
“Why did this happen at all?” Cid asked. His phone rang. “Where the fuck are you?”
“We’re almost downtown,” Ted told him.
“Did you see the photo I sent you?”
“No.”
“I’m going to kill you when I see you. Look at the photo.”
“Hang on,” Ted said and put him on hold. “What the fuck happened to my wife?”
“You sent her to Heaven. They broke her spine and tossed her on the hillside,” Cid said. “Or that’s what it looked like. Evidently, there was a demon inside Mia’s spine. It attacked her surgeons. Sariel did his best to get Mia away. He and, I think, Michael are grievously injured. Only Mia can save them. So this drop-dead gorgeous woman, who didn’t leave her name by the way, came with a posse of likewise dolls. They patched Mia up and disappeared with her.”
“Did Mia say anything?”
“She said, she was coming back to take your balls off,’” Cid said. “But that could just be the period cramps talking.”
“She told me there was something wrong. I told her to go and speak with Michael. My god, what have I done?”
“Maybe she will forget all of this. After all, she was still under anesthesia when Sariel dropped her off.”
“I don’t know what to do? We have a meeting scheduled with Gerald. We’re hoping to get a line on Quazar.”
“Well, unless you have an all-access pass to all of Michael’s 182 lairs, I’d stay on course. I’ll let
