The Light of His Sword (16 page)

“Mama! Mama! We saw a deer!” She shouted
before climbing down. “It was way smaller than the moose Gabe hit,
but it was so pretty.”

Rafi turned as they reached the trailer and
stared at Gabe, “You hit a moose?”

Gabe rolled his eyes and muttered, “It was a
dark, moonless night, and it came out of nowhere.”

Mike climbed off the tractor and asked, “Did
you keep the antlers?”

“Oh no,” Samantha answered for him, “We ran
over it and smooshed it.”

Rafi and Mike began to laugh hard slapping
each other on the back as Gabe shook his head and added, “Laugh it
up, I was driving my semi.”

Mike came up beside him and draped his arm
over Gabe’s shoulders, “Good thing I was only driving a tractor, we
don’t need any smooshed deer around here, it’s out of season.”

“Yeah,” Rafi added, “Smooshed deer makes a
terrible jerky.”

Even Alyssa had to smile at that remark.

Mike and Gabe unloaded the wood as Rafi
examined the chapel. When Rafi reappeared, he walked slowly over to
Gabe and Mike, “The interior is solid,” He explained as he grabbed
a ladder, “It’s clean inside and has been well cared for over the
years. We should concentrate on boarding up the windows. I’ll climb
up on the roof and check the steeple while you two get started.
There doesn’t appear to be any mold or rotting wood inside so I’d
say the roof is probably solid.”

Alyssa and Cora walked inside the chapel as
Samantha ran to pick flowers at the edge of the clearing. The
interior of the chapel was dark and musty. As their eyes adjusted
to the dim light Cora lead Alyssa down an aisle banked by split log
benches and up to a small platform that served as an altar. A large
wooden cross filled the back wall. The cross was the only thing
that resembled a religious icon inside the small chapel. The
windows were clear glass.

Cora gazed up at the cross. It towered over
her head reaching up toward the cathedral ceiling. She said,
“You’re great grandpa built this chapel for your great grandma. The
closest church was twenty miles away in town, and it was difficult
to reach during the harsh winter weather. When the neighboring
farmers heard what he was doing they all chipped in. They didn’t
have a preacher, so the men took turns giving the sermon on
Sundays. Your grandpa, my sweet Wilson, built that cross. He truly
enjoyed being the caretaker of this chapel. Once in a while a young
couple would drop by and ask if they could be married here and we’d
get to decorate it all up.”

Alyssa gazed around the chapel. “I don’t
remember this place, grandma.”

Cora turned her wistful gaze on Alyssa, “You
spent all your time outside running around chasing butterflies and
making mud pies.”

They walked outside just as Gabe and Mike
finished boarding up the first window. Alyssa glanced around for
Samantha, who was still picking flowers. A small boy appeared just
inside the tree line not far from Samantha and waved at them.

Cora smiled and waved back, “That’s little
Cody Thompson; his parents must be visiting.” Cora headed over to
introduce the dark haired little boy to Samantha.

Alyssa watched until Cora reached them and
turned to gaze up at Rafi as he gingerly walked back across the
wooden shingles of the roof. “The steeple looks good from the
outside; I want to see if there is access inside.” He called down
to her as he reached for the ladder.

Cora walked up to the small dark haired
little boy dressed in only a t-shirt and jeans gazing at Samantha
from behind a small apple tree. “Cody, you’re far from home this
afternoon. Does your mother know you’re here?”

“Yes, they are gathering firewood in the
forest. She said I could come and say hi.” He answered in a little
voice. “Mama said your granddaughter is here. Is that her?” He
pointed at Samantha.

“Yes, sweetie, come over and meet her.” Cora
smiled and motioned for Samantha to come near.

Samantha skipped over to them and smiled at
the little boy, “I’m Samantha, do you want to play? I was thinking
of climbing that apple tree.”

Gabe and Mike boarded another window as Rafi
climbed down and headed back inside. Alyssa glanced back at Cora,
who was watching both children climb a small apple tree. She turned
back to watch Gabe and Mike head for the far side of the chapel to
board the final window. Gabe stopped suddenly and glanced back at
Alyssa. Mike’s head snapped up at the same instance, and they
quickly lowered the board to the ground.

Rafi appeared in the door almost instantly
as Gabe asked quickly, “Where’s Samantha?” Gabe glanced at Rafi
then back to Samantha. Alyssa frowned and turned to find Cora
heading back toward them. She gazed past her grandmother to the
tree where the children were playing. They were gone.

“Grandma, where’s Samantha?” Alyssa rushed
forward.

Cora stared at her and said, “Why they’re in
the tree.” She turned to follow Alyssa’s alarmed gaze and stared at
the empty tree. “They were just there, in the branches…” Her voice
trailed off as Gabe sprinted across the clearing and disappeared
into the trees, followed quickly by Rafi.

Mike grabbed hold of Alyssa’s arm and shoved
her toward the church saying, “Cora, get her inside and stay there
until we get back.”

Then he raced after the others.

“It was just a boy,” Alyssa stammered as
Cora took her arm and led her toward the chapel.

Gabe crashed through the underbrush
following the trail of broken branches and disturbed ground.
Whatever took Samantha was moving fast, there wasn’t much time. He
could hear Rafi rushing through the trees to his right. When he
reached a wide ravine, Gabe caught sight of Samantha’s bright pink
jacket. He sprang into the air and leapt across the ravine landing
hard on the edge beyond. He bolted into the small clearing as the
young boy reached it’s center.

The boy couldn’t have been more than five
years old. Yet he had Samantha hoisted over his shoulder and was
running with ease across the grassy area. Rafi cleared the trees
beside Gabe, and they rushed forward as one toward the young boy.
The boy slid to a stop as Mike appeared through the trees in front
of him. He spun to find Gabe and Rafi closing in. In one fluid
movement, the boy flipped Samantha from his shoulder and placed her
in a chokehold in front of him.

“I’ll break her neck.” He hissed. The boy’s
young face screwed up in a distorted knot of rage and disgust, his
little eyes glowed with a blood red hue.

“You won’t hurt her,” Gabe declared in a
deadly voice. “Walton wants her alive.”

Samantha squirmed in his arms struggling
against his iron grip.

The three men moved slowly forward,
surrounding the children. Mike stepped closer to the boy and said,
“Demon, you have committed a grievous abomination, come out of that
boy, or I will destroy you where you stand.” Samantha squirmed in
his hands, biting the boy’s arms. He ignored her, locking eyes with
Mike.

Mike stepped closer; the boy cackled and
squeezed Samantha tighter causing her to gasp for air. “You won’t
kill this boy and I’m not leaving his body until you are gone. Move
aside and let me pass, or she will die.”

“Come out of him!” Mike shouted in rage at
the demons defiance. “Demons are forbidden to possess
children!”

Samantha’s face was white as a ghost. Her
lips were turning blue. Gabe moved forward desperate to save her
and the boy shifted to face him. “Please do come closer, I’ll snap
her neck and you can try to stuff her lifeless tongue back in her
mouth before her mother arrives.”

Gabe had never wanted to kill a child before
now. It took all of his strength not to throttle the boy and rescue
Samantha. However, he knew it was not the boys fault; there was a
strong demon inside him using his frail form; burning up his young
life force to maintain the possession. Gabe’s eyes caught the
slightest movement from Samantha as her small had slid into her
jean pocket. He suppressed a wicked grin as she pulled out a small
pocketknife, released the blade and plunged it into the boy’s
thigh.

The boy screamed and staggered backward in
surprise as his grip on Samantha loosened. Gabe dove forward
tackling them. He pulled Samantha from the boy’s hands and rolled
across the grass. Mike leapt forward and snatched the boy by the
foot pulling him from Gabe’s grasp as he continued to roll free
with Samantha in his arms. Rafi was instantly at Gabe’s side
reaching for Samantha’s throat. He touched her, and she gasped for
air. She gazed up at him with tear-filled eyes as the pain in her
throat disappeared.

Gabe pulled her to him and hugged her
fiercely as she began to cry. “It’s okay baby, you’re safe
now.”

Rafi rose and spun to face Mike, “He crushed
her windpipe. If I hadn’t been here to heal her…”

That was all Rafi needed to say. Mike lifted
the demon-possessed child in the air as he fought and screeched in
rage. Mike pulled his sword free of its sheath on his back and
said, “Come out of him at once!” The demon inside the boy continued
to thrash and wail. Mike raised his sword so the boy could see it.
“I will use this.” He growled. The demon screamed in horror
striking out at him, but refused to leave the boy.

“No!” Alyssa’s voice screamed across the
clearing, “Don’t hurt him! He’s just a baby!”

Gabe rose and started for her cradling
Samantha in his arms. “Alyssa, you don’t understand,” He began.
Alyssa rushed forward she took Samantha from Gabe and moved past
him toward Mike. “I do understand, I’ve seen what those monsters
can do, but he’s just a little boy. I won’t let you hurt him.”

Mike turned to face her as she approached;
his jaw clenched in rage. When their eyes met, Alyssa could see the
fire of his anger. She stopped before him cradling her daughter and
said calmly. “Samantha is safe now. He’s an innocent just like her.
You have to save him.”

Mike gazed at Samantha, then at the boy. He
flipped the child upright with a flick of his wrist, caught him by
the back of his neck and said softly, “I could never harm a child,
Alyssa.”

The boy’s cackle filled the small clearing,
“He’s mine, and I’ll not give him up.”

“We shall see.” Mike whispered with a wicked
smile.

Chapter Ten

Cora stood in the doorway of the chapel
wringing her hands and anxiously searching the trees for any sign
of the others. Suddenly she caught sight of Mike carrying little
Cody through the trees. Gabe was right behind him carrying Samantha
in his arms. Alyssa and Rafi walked beside him.

“Are the children all right?” Cora called to
them rushing forward.

Mike held out his hand and said, “They are
fine, please stay back. Cody and I need to go inside the
chapel.”

“No!” The demon screamed through the boy,
“No! You can’t do this! I will be vanquished! No!”

Mike growled at him, “You should have
thought about that before you took this boy. Possessing a child is
punishable by death.”

The boy kicked and lashed out screeching in
horror. “I can help you! I will tell you anything you want to know!
I will tell you everything! Just don’t take me inside!”

Gabe handed Samantha to Alyssa and moved
toward the boy. “Mike, if he has any information…”

Mike lifted the boy up until they were nose
to nose. The child grew still; his face white with terror. Mike
whispered with a sneer, “Tell me everything you know about Walton
and his relationship with demons.”

The boy flashed a wicked grin and began,
“The reptilian demons allow Walton to lord over them because he
offers special nourishment that cannot be willingly given
elsewhere.”

“What nourishment?” Mike demanded.

“Slugs and snails and puppy dogs tails.” The
boy answered in a gleeful voice.

“Answer me.” Mike seethed.

“Sugar and spice and everything nice, that’s
what little girls are made of.” The boy continued.

Mike took a step toward the chapel, and the
demon screeched, “No! No!”

“Tell me now!” Mike growled.

The boy glanced at Samantha and whispered,
“A child’s life force offers great sustenance for those who seek
it.”

Mike glanced at Gabe whose face turned to
stone. Gabe cupped the boy's chin and asked, “Who is your
master?”

The boy’s cackle of glee was his only
answer.

Mike lifted the boy high in the air and
moved swiftly to the chapel door. “No!” The demon boy screamed. “I
can help you fight the demons! I can insure your success! You need
me!”

Mike stopped before the door and said, “You
have nothing I need.”

He shoved the boy through the open door, and
the child began to convulse. Alyssa rushed forward terrified for
the boy. Gabe stepped in front of her stopping her from reaching
Mike.

“This is the only way to save him.” Gabe
said softly as he blocked Samantha’s view.

The boy went stiff; his arms and legs
stretched out wide. He screeched in horror as a white light
engulfed him. The light penetrated him. His eyes glowed bright with
a blood red glow. He curled up into a fetal position beneath Mike’s
steel grip. Suddenly the white light burst from within him, and the
boy’s arms and legs flew open wide. He screamed then fell
silent.

A black gaseous cloud rose from the boy and
glowed in the air over him. Mike turned and gently handed the boy
to Gabe, who cradled his unconscious form in his arms. Mike pulled
his sword from the sheath on his back and lifted it toward the sky.
The clouds began to boil above them. Gabe backed Alyssa away from
Mike. A bolt of lightning flashed from the clouds and rushed into
the sword. Mike spun and thrust his sword into the center of the
cloud. It exploded in a burst of black flames and was gone.

The clouds calmed and separated allowing a
brief moment of sunlight to drift down onto the chapel. Gabe knelt
down and brushed the hair from Cody’s eyes. “Hey buddy,” Gabe said
softly, “Can you open your eyes?”