The Gift of Light: (Revised) (The Gifts Book 1)

by Jen Gentry

  Many of Camille’s letters came from her stay in rehab. She wrote to her sister daily, telling her how she’d found Jesus while staying in the drug rehabilitation program and the wonders and miracles He’d wrought in her life. She wanted Amelia to know she forgave her, and that at some point, she hoped Amelia would find Jesus and be able to forgive her in return.

  Other letters told of the abuse she suffered at Brad’s hands. He’d beaten her almost daily, robbing her of all dignity and hope; she feared for her son’s safety should anything happen to her.

  Still more letters, dated after Camille came out of rehab, warned her sister that she planned to leave Brad, but feared he might try to kill her. Amelia begged Camille to be on guard and to take extra care of her son.

  Camille’s last letter reinforced her resolve to leave Brad and stated that the plan was in motion. She’d just told Brad she was leaving him and planned to file for a divorce.

  Camille died the day Amelia received that last letter, just as she noted in her journal.

  Today I learned my sister is dead. I received a letter from her this morning. She writes to me and then sneaks the letters out instead of simply calling me. It’s because she’s afraid.

  Brad listens in on all of her phone calls. My hands tremble as I read the letter to my father before he and I set out for Hook Pond. Brad called him this morning, frantic, saying that Camille had killed herself with drugs. I don’t believe that. I think Brad killed her. I think he killed her because she was leaving him.

  My father will not listen. He only wants to cover this up. I know he’s heartbroken over Camille’s death, but he doesn’t want our good name sullied with a drug related suicide. At this point, my father and I are the only ones besides Brad who know that Camille is dead.

  He told Brad not to call anyone else until we got there and he’s asked a personal friend, a doctor, to meet us in Hook Pond. He won’t even let me tell Mother what’s going on because she’s out of town for a charity fund raiser. I know he’ll pay the doctor and anyone else necessary to help him keep this quiet. And God help me, he’ll make me help him cover it up as well. He’s already told me to keep my mouth shut. For the boy’s sake, I’ll do what I have to do. I promised Camille I’d keep him safe, and I will.

  Marta read another entry in the journal, dated a few days later.

  We buried my sister today. The word, the official cause of death, is that she suffered a heart attack in her sleep. I want to vomit every time I say it to anyone because it’s a lie. I know it.

  Camille died of a drug overdose, confirmed by the doctor and medical examiner. It looks like a suicide or maybe an accidental overdose. No foul play is suspected because she was a known drug abuser. Father paid his doctor friend and the medical examiner huge sums to keep it all hushed. I swear, if it’s the last thing I do, I’ll make Brad pay for this. I know he killed my sister. He forced her to take those drugs because she was going to leave him, but I have no real proof, only her letters. I also must do everything I can to protect her son. What do I do? Where do I go?

  This was the last entry Marta read. She hid the journal and the letters and would later decide what to do with this information.

  Senator Steel stood outside the room, talking to the nurse, who told him that Bradley mentioned something about a letter and footlocker.

  Marta stayed cool when he asked her what Bradley said, but the truth was she didn’t know anything about a letter from him or a footlocker. Senator Steel rushed back to his campaign headquarters. He and his closest staff stayed there around the clock, as the election was only four days away.

  Also ensconced at the offices, along with the staff and assistants closest to the senator, the guru, Bathomet. They all spent time each day with him, meditating and chant for the senator’s and their own good fortunes. It was to the guru the senator turned now. Together they would ask the masters what to do about his son.

  As far as he could tell, Marta knew nothing about Bradley’s letter, nor did it seem as if Amelia shared anything with her.

  Marta had arrived clueless, and since she never left Bradley’s side, she posed no threat. He feared his son because he knew the truth. Thankfully, the masters would tell him how to handle his son.

  Bathomet waited for the senator in his private den inside the campaign headquarters.

  Marta knew what she had to do. She didn’t want to leave Bradley, but she felt a sense of urgency to remove the journal and letters from the senator’s home lest he somehow discover them. Getting past the nurse was easy.

  “I have to run some errands. I won’t be gone long, but here’s my cell number just in case. Please call me if Bradley wakes up again.” Marta smiled and hurried out the door, her big carry-on bag slung over her shoulder. She planned to copy and then mail the journal and the letters to Emily with instructions to immediately take them to the police as well as someone she trusted in the press.

  Marta hoped to have Bradley safely moved out of the townhouse before the proverbial crap hit the fan.

  She made a quick phone call to Emily, telling

  her the package and detailed instructions would come in the overnight mail. “Pray for me,” she said in closing.

  Then she called her father and asked him to come and help her move Bradley as soon as possible. Mostly she told him to pray and pray hard.

  Azelius and his minions kept a very close eye on Marta. Something was up. They knew she planned to move Bradley, and they had to strike very quickly. He should have died long ago.

  Azelius knew he was going to have to take matters into his own hands again. A simple thing like too much morphine in Bradley’s IV would ensure he’d never wake again. The problem was the angelic guardians and the incessant call of the name of Jesus that kept him from achieving his goal. He would use the guru to communicate to the senator what he needed to do, but he had to act fast.

  ***

  Marta returned to the townhouse to find herself locked out. Two bodyguards stood in her way with strict orders not to let her in.

  “You recognize me, know that I’m Mrs. Bradley Steel and yet I can’t go to my husband? Why?”

  No amount of screaming or threatening would get her access. She didn’t even have the senator’s personal cell phone number, but she remembered her father did.

  In Hook Pond, her father packed a bag to join his daughter when his cell rang. It didn’t take long for Marta to explain her situation. He got off the phone and called the senator.

  Steel answered on the first ring.

  Bathomet had received a message from the masters and had warned the senator, who was prepared for the call.

  “Senator Steel, this is James Sims, Marta’s father. I want to know why she’s been locked out of your home and kept away from her husband?”

  “Ah, Mr. Sims, your daughter has caused quite a problem. You see, I’ve received word that she intends to move my son out of the townhouse against the advice of his doctor.”

  “That’s not true. She only wants the best care for him. Surely you know that.”

  “I know she cares very deeply, but she places him at great risk. He could die, or at the very least, be crippled for life. I have to protect him, Mr. Simms. Surely you would do the same. If she persists, I’ll get a restraining order against her. Tell your daughter to come home to you and leave my son to me. She’s insane if she thinks I’ll allow her to put his life in jeopardy.”

  James Sims shot a prayer heavenward and glared at the senator. “Do not forget your position in this situation, Senator. Your son? Might I remind you, your estranged son, is my daughter’s husband. You are trumped, sir, let us not mince words! Check with your attorney.”

  This was the last thing the senator wanted and his mind whirled. “Alright, listen. Let me get in touch with the doctors and my attorney and perhaps we can meet here tomorrow. I’m sure we can work something out for the good of all concerned.”

  Thus mollified and with little else to do at that point, James Simms nodde
d. “Tomorrow, Senator, or I go to the media. The conservative media.” Marta answered her cell standing outside the townhouse. Her father explained that the senator knew she wanted to move Bradley and that was why he’d shut her out.

  “Honey, he knows what you’re up to and he’s refusing to let you near Bradley. I want you to get into a hotel room and I’ll meet you there in the morning. He’s promised to meet with us and discuss Bradley.”

  “Oh no, I will not! I’m not leaving here without my husband.”

  “Marta, you listen to me. You are pregnant. You cannot sit outside the townhouse all night long until I get there. Think about your baby! I’m coming first thing and then we’ll get this all sorted out, meet with the senator and work out a plan. I promise.”

  “Dad,” she said, beginning to cry. “I’m so afraid I don’t know what to do. Something bad will happen to Bradley, I just feel it. The senator is evil. He may try to hurt him. I have to get to him!” Mr. Sims heard the desperation in her voice, and began to pray for her safety.

  At just that moment, a battle took place upstairs in the townhouse. The nurse prepared to give Bradley his scheduled dose of morphine. Blinded by demons, she drew up more than five times the prescribed dose.

  A fight broke out between Bradley’s two guardian angels and the demons in the house.

  Through it all, Bradley cried out in the name of Jesus. The demons went weak, giving the angels the time they needed to smash the syringe the nurse held, as well as destroy the remaining doses in the meds cabinet.

  They bought Bradley some time. It would be well into the morning before they could replace the medication.

  The nurse was in shock and didn’t know what to do. She feared retribution, and scared about strange things like the syringe shattering in her hands and the vials of morphine exploding without any reason, lost it. She called the doctor, told him she had an emergency and ran away.

  Outside, Marta stepped into a cab and headed to the hotel, leaving just before the nurse. Marta prayed and cried in the back of the cab and when he reached the hotel, she called her father and told him where she was. In her room she did not sleep, but prayed all night.

  By the next morning, she had a plan that didn’t include waiting for her father. She left a note for him at the front desk.

  It wasn’t hard to find the senator’s campaign offices. Brave and outspoken as always, Marta planned to confront Senator Steel.

  When she arrived, it was like a beehive, with people on phones and others running around with numbers and messages from supporters of the senator and his party. She found it strange being able to walk into campaign headquarters without ID. She spoke with several people, telling them who she was and that it was extremely urgent that she speak to the senator right away. At last, she found someone whom would take her to him.

  Marta found herself alone in his private office, waiting for the senator to join her. The senator did not make her wait long. He was prepared to face her.

  Marta lashed out at him full force as expected.

  “I want my husband and I want him now.”

  “Well, you can’t have him.”

  “Oh yes, I can. And I will.” She pulled the copies of Amelia’s journal and Camille’s letters from her bag. “You will allow me to take my husband to a hospital today or these are going straight to the press.” She smiled sweetly at him as she threw the copies on his desk. “Oh, and don’t worry. I’ve sent copies to so many people, you cannot escape. If something happens to me, that’ll be a double murder.”

  She watched with satisfaction as his jaw dropped.

  “You see, my dearest father-in-law, I know all about you. Amelia and Camille told me everything I needed to know in this journal and those letters. I will ruin you if you do not release my husband right now. And as I said, should anything happen to me?” She shrugged, eyebrows raised. “Front page stuff. No White House for you.”

  Azelius, unseen by the senator’s side, whispered into his ear and advised him to play it

  cool. As he looked over the journal and letters, he remained calm. With election day but two days off, the entire Ba al’ had arrived. They hovered in the guru’s den, accompanied by demon soldiers, along for backup.

  Azelius whispered to the senator, “Keep her talking and get her to Bathomet. The masters will help deal with her.”

  “Fine, I will let you back into the townhouse, and then we will see about where we can take

  Bradley. You have to understand I only have his best interest at heart.” The senator reached under his desk and pushed a panic button.

  “That is completely inadequate. I’m taking him out right now, and you better not dally.” She glanced at her watch and shrugged. “If I don’t get back with my father and my contacts in the next twenty minutes, copies of all of this stuff goes viral over the internet. We’ll post all of it and share it on social media and with the press. I will take you down.”

  “Marta, please be reasonable. I only want the best for my son. This journal and these letters are the ramblings of two very jealous and angry sisters who fought over my affections for years. So help me, I loved them both very much. Please understand that.” He lied so well she almost believed him; almost.

  Several security officers burst into the office just then and pushed Marta to the ground.

  “Take her to the private offices upstairs,” the senator ordered his men.

  Marta tried to scream, but the men covered her mouth. As they bound her and lifted her from the floor, the senator saw her rounded belly, he gasped.

  “Oh, my God! You’re pregnant?” This only complicated things more.

  They took Marta to a large room lit only by candles. She felt the evil of the place oozing from the walls. She could not cry out bound and gagged as she was.

  Azelius spoke on bended knee to the Ba al’ present in the room. He explained the girl’s presence, and asked what their will would be for her.

  The Ba al’ spoke directly through the guru.

  “We will leave her unconscious and confused until the elections are over. Then we will take her mind from her. She is a Christian, so we must be very careful. To kill her before the elections would not be good. Her family will be looking for her. As long as she is alive, we can use her as leverage to keep whoever else knows what she knows quiet, until these accusations against the senator can be undone and explained away after the elections.”

  The Ba al’ used their great power, with Bathomet laying his hand on Marta’s forehead as she struggled against the thugs holding her in place. He looked deep into her eyes and slipped the hypodermic into her vein, whereupon she fell into a deep state of unconsciousness. The hired security men hid her away in a back room locked and guarded by both human and demon security.

  She would remain there until they could move her back to the townhouse and a locked room in the basement.

  The demons far outnumbered Marta’s guardian angel and ousted him from the building. He recognized the demon sentries of the great demon leadership Ba al’ and quickly went to Perry House to get reinforcements. He knew Marta was in grave danger.

  Azelius justified the senator’s actions to him by whispering in his ears. The girl does not understand. I will keep her safe and quiet until the elections are over, and then we can make all this go away. My team is the best in the business. We can clear all this up given some time.

  Senator Steel gave himself a pat on the back for his quick thinking in dealing with a difficult situation. With the spiritual masters and the guru on his side, everything would work out. The guru assured him that all would end well and the word kidnapping never entered the senator’s mind. It was self-defense. In time, Bradley and the girl would come to understand why he had to do the things he did.

  Chapter Twenty One

  For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.

  Romans 14:11

  King James Version

  Seth Gr
ayson, back in his Ohio hometown, dreamed of Emily in the deepest part of his sleep as he did every night. He loved her still, yet he hung on to his anger against her. In the dream, Emily called to him in distress, but he stubbornly refused to help her as he turned his back on her. This night he woke up terrified. Something nagged at him.

  Maybe Emily really was in danger.

  The Holy Spirit called out for him to forgive her. Seth knew it was wrong to cling to his anger. In the dead of night, he drove to his father’s church and let himself in. He fell to his knees in the darkness of the sanctuary and cried out to the Lord, begging for forgiveness. He would let Emily go. He had to let her go by forgiving her.

  Face down, he prayed for Emily’s wellbeing and her forgiveness of him. As he prayed, a light glowed dimly at first then burned brightly in front of him.

  “Blessed are you, Seth, chosen of God.” The voice of an angel broke him from his prayers. Startled, he flung up his arm and cried out in

  fear. The angel of the Lord bid him be still and listen to the Lord God. He listened.

  ***

  Emily received the package from Marta very early the next morning. The contents stunned and alarmed her.

  Liam read all of it over her shoulder.

  “I know you’re here, Liam. I can feel your

  presence. Please show yourself. I need your help if I’m to help Marta.”

  When he did not respond, Emily called out to the Lord. “Jesus, please send me the help I need and let Liam know I need him.”

  Liam appeared in human form before Emily for the first time since Mr. Perry’s passing.

  Emily refrained from hugging him, but she was pleased the Lord Jesus answered her prayers.

  “Liam, what do I do with this information? What is the best course of action? How can I help Marta?”

  “Your helper comes up the drive now. I must leave you, Emily. A battle is brewing, and you must get yourself to DC right now, today. Take the fastest flight. I will meet you there. I have word that Marta is in grave danger. I go now to fight in the battle for her and her unborn child’s protection.”