11

“No,” Kailie whispered. “This isn’t happening.” She gently rubbed her shoulders, as they walked into the church. She couldn’t believe how warm it was inside. Looking over at James, she guessed he was feeling the same way. After Michael finished telling them about Joseph, she couldn’t find any words for reaction.

“But it did, Kailie,” he sighed. “He saved my life that day, and he saved a young boy.”

“Stephen,” she confirmed, her voice shaking. “He knew him back then, and so did you.”

Michael nodded. “Yes…” He looked up at the ceiling.

Kailie scoffed in spite of everything else. Everything has a connection. Joseph had been telling her that for years. Some called it “small world”, others simply called it “coincidence”. Joseph never believed in such things, she knew that for sure. For what he taught her over the years, coincidences were never possible.

“He told her to summon you,” James cut in. Looking over at Kailie, he felt his face get hot. “Sorry, but time is limited.”

Kailie nodded. “He’s right. Reverend, we’ve been looking for someone, and Joseph gave us a tip on how to find him. So far, all signs have pointed to you. The man we’re looking for is Stephen…” How do I say this? She knew what to say, but looked lost for the order to put it in. “We met him on Bethesda Road the other day and… well, as much as I hate to admit it, part of what Clarice and those people were saying was true.”

Michael’s eyes were wide as he moved closer to them while she spoke. And I thought he’d think we were nuts! Kailie thought. He looked at Kailie and James, back and forth, as if watching to see if they’d pull something out of a hat. Except for his head, his body was frozen between them.

Inhaling, he asked, “Which part, exactly?” He seemed nervous to figure out what the answer would be.

“Kana is real,” James replied. He quickly glanced at Kailie, who was slowly nodding. “It was supposed to be Stephen that was to be ‘considered’ that day in the hole… Not you. He’s Kana’s only living relative left. Kana figured it out and… well…”

“He took him,” Michael whispered.

He shivered as he spoke. He thought that man looked familiar. Maybe Stephen didn’t know him, but it was difficult to get past those eyes. His real eyes, of course. Not the terrifying blackness of the devil’s kin. When he noticed Kailie and James’s nods, he knew who they were talking about, indeed. Kana could only take the nearest relative he had, and Stephen was the one. He was the one Michael encountered just under an hour ago.

Why did he back away from me, though? Why not finish me off? He knew the answer to that thought, even before it finished in his head. Rubbing his chest, sometimes, he would forget about that scar. Even when the memories came back from those years ago, somehow, even so briefly, he would forget where and how that cross-shaped scar came to be, just an inch under his neck. There was another thing, though. Kailie had mentioned blood (You’ve stepped in my blood). The memory came back to him in the thought of a cloud-shaped window. Tripping over that bucket, stepping in that warm, sticky liquid. No, not possible… Hello! You were just attacked by a man with blackness for eyes, after he’d just finished eating an animal raw!

The flashbacks kept returning like pictures in a movie. Burning inside his head, bringing in a migraine. Were they real? A part of him wasn’t completely sure. But they had to be! He remembered it so vividly. As it turned out, it might as well have been the most important day of his life, the minute he and Joseph met. If it weren’t for that man, he wouldn’t be alive! You’re a man of faith! How is a bucket of a demon’s blood impossible?! Staring at these people next to him, after everything they told him, and he told them, Michael Thomason found himself sucked into that world again; a world that goes beyond what he was taught, and what he taught others.

“Are you ok, Michael?” James asked.

Michael blinked, as if waking up from a long dream. Slowly nodding, he rose and started slowly pacing. “Do excuse me, ma’am and sir. I pace a bit when I need to think.” Staring at the crucifix on the wall, he thought, What’s your plan for me now, hmm? It felt like he was daring the Almighty figure to make a bold move. Staring at the cross, he half expected it to start bleeding, as it did in his last dream. All the while, he overheard some of their conversation.

“... more than obvious why Kana didn’t attack,” Kailie mentioned.

He saw James nod. Turning around, facing his table below the crucifix, he walked over to the table to digest everything he had just told about. He found, however, that he couldn’t concentrate on anything but their conversation. Joseph really did teach her well. But what are we supposed to do now?! While trying to think of ways to help them, Kailie and James were still arguing, or discussing, the situation. He couldn’t be sure because of their tones. All the while, that same song and same verse kept playing in his head.

“Dead as dead can be,” my doctor tells me. But I just can’t believe him…

Why those words? Is it foreshadowing a possible future…? Or his permanent future? And what about these young people? Joseph was dead now, and they needed some help. Would Joseph want me to go this far, though? Get completely involved with this young woman’s conundrum? The very woman who is his flesh and blood, the only living relative of his left on the planet! I simply can’t believe that! Honest and true!

“Michael!” James called, interrupting his thoughts. He moved his hand, urging him to come near them.

“Why did my grandfather leave you all here?” Kailie asked. Her voice was so certain of a possible answer, but Michael didn’t know what it could be.

He shook his head. “He never told me. He just made me promise to keep in contact with the children, even when they found places to live. I couldn’t refuse.” He shrugged. “I owed him.” Rubbing his chest, he noticed irritation where his scar was. Ok, this is new. It was burning like an open blister, but itching at the same time. It caused him to wince when his fingers touched it.

“Are you ok, Michael?” James repeated. His eyes were wide as he saw this man tear at his shirt.

Michael didn’t answer, just kept scratching at the scar. It wasn’t exceeding or getting red, more like something was tickling him from the inside. Tickling and moving slowly, up and down his chest, just in that particular area. Feeling the irritation, it was in the shape of, maybe, a small cylinder… No, that can’t be right. Scratching at it didn’t help anything. Slowly opening his shirt, there wasn’t any sort of a parasite shape to be found. The scar, however, had doubled in size. Still burning his skin, he started seeing bubbles erupt. Wincing, the pain was blinding. He couldn’t keep his eyes open, and tried holding back a scream. Oh, he wanted to scream… wanted to scream so much, so loud. It was like being dipped in lava, and then, being stuck in place. Random-colored circles surrounded his eyes, and he couldn’t hear the slightest words of his guests’ conversation anymore.

What’s happening to me?! He couldn’t take it anymore. The bubbles, or blisters, whatever they were, began to spread around his chest, not just where the scar was. Trying not to cause a panic, he walked slowly to a refrigerator in the back of the room.

“Michael?” Kailie called. “What is it?”

She followed him to what looked, to her, like a small kitchen. She saw him turn on the faucet, but nothing came out. When he bent over, she noticed what he was trying to heal. Eyes wide, she helped him take his shirt off to check the wound. It was only around his chest, but was bubbling quickly.

“James, help me!” she screamed. As she heard footsteps racing toward them, she saw Michael beginning to suffocate.

“What’s wrong with him?” James asked, his voice shaking.

Kailie shook her head. “I don’t have a clue… Michael, can you hear me?”

Michael nodded, putting his right hand to his chest. His left hand was pointing to a small bucket next to his desk. He made a “drinking” gesture to point out it had liquid in it. Kailie ran toward the bowl as James continued watching him. His face was red, and his eyes kept rolling around near the back of his head. James thought, eventually, his eyes wouldn’t return to where they should be. The blisters were popping, clear liquid oozing out of the areas. Blood slowly followed, but there was never as much as the clear liquid. The burning didn’t get worse, but still never left. Michael’s screams were getting louder as more appeared, circling the cross-shaped scar. He felt like he was being strangled from the heating pain. His eyes slowly began to close, slowly rolling near the back of his head.

“Kailie, hurry!” he hollered. Turning to Michael, his voice lowered. “Stay with me, Michael. Stay with me…”

Kailie didn’t have far to get to, but all the same, she felt coolness on her forehead. Kana’s getting to him, I know it! Her face was getting so cold, she felt like they were back outside. Finding the water, she simply, carefully, brought the bowl back toward them. It was in a shiny, gold bowl next to the fridges. She knew water didn’t usually work on wounds like that, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

When she made it back toward them, Michael was laying on the floor, the blisters more clear. The surrounding area was red, making way for them, perfectly white. Michael’s face was shiny with perspiration and James’s eyes were pleading. Kailie didn’t know why she was hesitating, but found herself temporarily lost in a calculation of this situation. No blister could ever simply appear like that. The closest thing to that situation is if someone gets third-degree burns; a victim of a house fire, for example.

“Come on, Kailie!” James screamed, making her shake the thoughts away. Michael was gasping desperately for oxygen. Fluid dripped out of his eyes and mouth. It mixed in with blood but the wounds weren’t warm or sticky.

Slowly pouring the water on his chest, the blisters began to shrink. Literally shrink, before their eyes. She knew that blisters usually took a while to heal, but these were vanishing from sight. Gently touching his skin, there wasn’t any evidence that they were there after a few more seconds. The redness was gone. All the while, his breathing was getting slower and easier. His eyes came back into view, never leaving her. He reached for her hand, and she returned the gesture. His smile was little, but relieved. James was panting as though he was holding his breath before then. As they continued watching his chest, there was nothing but the cross-shaped scar between his n*****s.

“Thank you,” Michael whispered.

The coolness of the water felt like ice against his skin. He felt like his whole body, by then, would turn into an ice cube. He didn’t dare move from his spot for a while, for fear that the pain would return. Kailie and James’s faces were blurs against his eyes as he attempted to keep them open. A usually simple task couldn’t have been more agonizing, though. They just stared at him, while he pushed fluid from his eyes. No sweat, though, at least, not on his head. There wasn’t any heated pain to be found. He slowly moved his hand up and down his chest, looking for evidence, but couldn’t find anything.

“There’s nothing on your skin,” he heard Kailie mention. “You’re all right, I promise.”

He then heard a loud, exasperating sigh. James, he figured. “What was that?”

Clearing his vision a little more, he could now fully see their faces. Scared and confused were the only adjectives he could think of. You’re not the only ones, my friends. He couldn’t stop rubbing his chest, hoping to find something. It was like the presumed parasite was still inside him, crawling its way, most likely, to his heart. I guess if the Devil or spawn can’t get in, they send minions. He snickered at that thought, still wondering if that could really be possible, regarding everything else.

“How should I know?” she raised her arms with her shrug. Her hands slapped her thighs in irritation. “The Book didn’t really say. It’s not like it’s a complete instruction manual!”

Michael slowly exhaled, shivering as the breath moved through his body. He was just burned, and yet, somehow, he felt cold. An icicle was cooling down his insides, and it was moving fast. He couldn’t stop it, and neither could they.

Shock, he realized. No other explanation.

But this catastrophe happened under a timing. He didn’t know what time it was, specifically, but this had to be a warning. The demon in flesh came to him. He spoke to him, but didn’t harm him. Still rubbing chest, he couldn’t erase the image of Stephen out of his mind. The creature had to be looking for something. Of what he knew, Michael didn’t have anything to offer. Certainly not someone he saw eat an animal raw.

“My friends,” he sighed. He felt a tight lump in his throat. “I think we have a bigger problem than we thought.”

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