Short Story: Angel

i usually write short stories...i haven't the concentration or brain...or attention span... to write more.
Here's a story i wrote a while ago....it's not that long...comments accepted..including constructive criticism!!!

Angel

A woman walked along the ragged road through the forest. It was dark, and she was quite lost. She suppressed her fear and continued past the shadows. She had left the manor at dusk, in tears. She had paid no heed to where she was going, and now had no idea where she was.
A wolf’s howl echoed around her, and she fought the urge to run. However, a sudden streak of light drew her attention from the wolf. A crash followed, then silence. The woman stood silently for a moment, then turned off the path to discover what had caused the sound. A faint smell of burnt wood came to her, and she followed it. In a few moments, she came to a small glade with a crater in the center. The woman paused again, listening. A sound like a child’s cry came from somewhere in the glade. The woman looked around, wondering if there was an animal around.
The sound was coming from the crater, so the woman walked towards it warily. Smoke obscured her vision; she waved her arm about to dispel it, and looked into the crater.
Sitting in the middle, crying, was a small girl. She looked to be about six, and was wearing a white tunic, which was surprisingly clean. Her golden curls hung to her shoulder. Her small hands were covering her eyes.
“Are you alright?” the woman said, quietly so as to not surprise the girl. The child looked up, her piercing violet eyes filled with tears. She shook her head, and sobbed harder.
“What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know where I am!” The girl’s voice was filled with fear. “I don’t know why I’m here!”
“Where did you come from?”
“My father…I was with him…
The woman stepped carefully down into the crater and kneeled down by the girl. She took the child’s hand, and said, “Come with me. I can help you.” The girl looked up at her, her eyes drilling through the woman. Then the girl stood and wiped her eyes. The woman stood too, and led the girl back to the forest path.
“Do you remember where your father is?”
“No…but I know Joshua is close…”
“Who is Joshua?”
“He’s my best friend.”
“Can he find your father?”
“He’s with my father.”
“Can you find Joshua?”
“No.” The girl’s tears abated as they walked and talked. Silence fell, and the girl looked up at the woman for a moment. “Why were you in the forest?”
“Well, actually, I got lost...” Her reason for fleeing the manor returned to her. Tears filled her eyes, and she stopped walking.
The girl watched her, then said, “Why are you crying?”
“My fiancé…” the woman said through her tears, “He’s…He died…on the front…I got the letter today…” She knelt on the hard earth, and began sobbing. The girl watched her with sad eyes, then wrapped her small arms around her.
The moon slowly crossed the night sky, and the pair was unmoving. The girl began to glow, giving off a strange, warming light.
The woman’s tears abated, and she looked at the girl. “Thank you.”
The girl smiled. “You’re not lost anymore.” At the woman’s confused face, the girl said, “You’re house is over there, just beyond the trees.” She pointed down the path. “And I’m not lost anymore either. Joshua found me.”
The woman looked down the path, then back at the girl. What she saw surprised her. Sprouting from the girl’s back was a pair of feathery wings. A glittering light from above surrounded her. The girl looked up, as if listening, then said, “Joshua says to tell you that your fiancé is okay. And that he loves you.” The girl smiled again, then began to dissolve with the glittering light. The woman quickly hugged her, then stepped back as the girl disappeared completely. “Thank you,” she whispered.
She turned and followed the path, motes of glittering light trailing after her.