Daniel and the Angel by Jill Barnett Page B

"Four of them have broken just this moment. Look."
    The archangels stared at the harp. One by one, five more harp strings snapped.
    There was a long pause, then Mesopotamia glanced around. "If I didn't know better, I'd think that Lillian was around here somewhere."
    All the archangels scanned the surrounding clouds while Lilli and Florie huddled in frightened silence.
    A second later there was a huge crash of lightning. Then another.
    Everyone froze.
    "My gates!" Saint Peter's thunderous roar echoed through Heaven. "My gates!"
    There was an eternal moment of silence. Then ...
    " Lillian !"
    Lilli blanched.
    "Lill-lee-UNN! Come here! Immediately!"
    "Uh-oh," Florie whispered.
    "Shhhhh. He can't possibly find us."
    Saint Peter shouted her name again. And again. Louder.
    An icicle broke, landing with a tinkle at Lilli's feet. For a brief moment there was utter stillness.
    A burst of light flashed through Heaven, so strong, so brilliant it made the sun dim. The walls of Jericho didn't hit the ground as quickly as Lilli and Florie tumbled onto the cloud floor, their arms over their heads. All around them, icicles shattered like broken glass.
    A moment later, the entire cloud dissipated.
    In unison, Lilli and Florida both uncovered their heads and looked up, right into the censorious and knowing eyes of Saint Peter. Taller than the tree of life, he stood before them, glowering, his arms crossed and one gold-sandaled foot tapping impatiently.
    Her lip between her teeth, Lilli raised one hand and waved her fingers. "Hello, sir."
    He was rigidly silent.
    "You know," she said, sitting up quickly, "I was just thinking about you ..."
    His eyes narrowed.
    "In fact, I had just said to Florie, 'Florie?' I said, 'I'll bet Saint Peter is looking for us, and he'll never find us.' Didn't I?" She jabbed Florie with an elbow, and wide-eyed Florie nodded her head like a woodpecker.
    She raised her eyes to meet his. "How did you find us?"
    Saint Peter held up a handful of her molting feathers and let them spill from his hand. He watched her from eyes too intelligent for comfort. "Someone has destroyed the gates to Heaven."
    "You mean while we were in here, the Pearly Gates—your Pearly Gates, those precious Pearly Gates—were actually broken? How in the name of Heaven could that have happened? Stray lightning? Celestial phenomenon? The Big Bang theory?"
    Saint Peter reached out and plucked something from her tangle of blond hair. He held it out in front of her.
    It was a piece of pearl. She winced.
    Saint Peter clasped his hands behind his back and began to pace. "You have been forbidden to attempt any more miracles." He turned quickly and pinned her with a dark and knowing stare. "I assume that is what you were doing."
    She nodded.
    He paced again. "I thought as much. Angels are supposed to protect, guard, and educate the human race." He paused in front of her. "Not. . . wipe it out of existence."
    Lilli stared at her toes and whispered, "I didn't try to make it rain again. Not after all that lightning . . ." She shuddered. "... And the fire in Rome." She slowly raised her face and looked him in the eyes. "I would never do that again."
    He was silent for so long she almost couldn't bear it. She needed him to believe her. He had to believe her. She meant no harm. She never meant to do any harm. She stared at her bare toes again.
    After eternal minutes he took a deep breath.
    She waited to hear her punishment.
    "I'm afraid there is nothing I can do for you this time."
    Lilli's head shot up. "Nothing?"
    "Nothing," he said.
    Florie gasped, "No!"
    All the archangels began to whisper and mutter. Lilli stood there, stunned, unable to move, unable to speak.
    "Please sir," Florie begged. "She didn't mean to do it. Please."
    Saint Peter shook his head. "There's nothing I can do."
    The light of Heaven dimmed and with it her naive and foolish sense of invincibility. The clouds grew suddenly dark and gray. Lilli looked at the surrounding darkness and knew that