Wings of Deception

by Pamela Carron

  “Yes, of course it is and I am happy for you…and for Dwight. I think it is great.”

  Sheila calmed down, “You don’t sound so happy. What is going on with you and Jacks, I got so carried away with my news that I wasn’t thinking that you must have a reason for calling. Is something wrong?”

  “I am not sure, but I do need to talk to you about what is going on with Jacks. I am worried Sheila and you are the only person I can talk to about this right now.”

  “Okay, I am listening. What is going on up there?”

  Honey started with the story Jacks had told her about Asa. Sheila was mortified.

  “This has got to be a hoax Honey. He is lying and Jacks wants to be part of a family so bad that he is vulnerable, you know it is a lie!”

  “I do not know that it is and that is the problem. It looks like he may be telling the truth, but Sheila I do not trust his motives. I am not sure what is going to happen tonight but something is wrong. Asa wants Jacks to meet him at this place here in the city and participate in a ceremony or ritual that will make Jacks heir to all he owns, which from my understanding is vast beyond imagination. The thing is, Jacks says I am not allowed to be there and I fear for his safety. What can I do? I need help!”

  “Do you know where this secret ceremony is taking place?” Sheila was thinking fast.

  “He told me….corner of…. Oak and Third Street, that is it. I am sure.”

  “Now, you listen carefully because if everything you have told me is even half way the truth, Jacks is up against something he is no match for. He is not a believer, so he has no power to overcome, but you do. Remember all the conversations we have had about the legions of angels that are at the believer’s disposal in times of danger. Honey this is evil you are fighting and you have to use spiritual weapons. I wish I were there with you! Wait, what time did you say this was going to happen?” She began throwing things into a bag as she spoke.

  “Jacks said after nine, he mentioned the planet Saturn crossing with the moon?”

  “I am coming there, you need help girl and I already have a backpack packed and on my way out the door, so don’t try and talk me out of it.”

  “You are what? Sheila, you do not have to do that.”

  “I want to, and I’m gonna, but do not tell Jacks! We will be at that ceremony tonight regardless of what that old man wants. I will call you when I am in New York, it should be way before nine, but I will get a room and stay there until Jacks has left and then we will follow him. Jacks’ was there for me when I needed him and now it is my turn to be there for him. On my way to the airport girlfriend! Talk soon…bye.”

  “Wait, but Sheila….okay…. bye.” Honey was talking to a dead phone and almost dialed Sheila back but thought just maybe it was not a bad idea to have her come. So instead, she got in and out of the bath and when Jacks knocked on her door she was ready to go exploring with him.

  There was so much of the city she had never seen and Jacks knew it all. He pointed out places and things she would never have noticed on her own and before she knew it she ceased thinking about everything except the wonderful time they were having together.

  Sheila called Dwight the second she hung up from Honey and after she explained what she was doing, he insisted she pick him up so that he could go with her. When she got to his place, he had his bag ready and Jean was there to take care of Gem while he was away. He asked many questions which Sheila answered in detail on the way to the airport.

  The first flight leaving was full and the second only had one seat available. After much discussion it was decided that Dwight be the one to take it for Sheila was sure he would be the most helpful. She kissed him good bye and waited for the next flight out which would push her arrival to eight-thirty. She prayed there would be no delays and her prayers were answered for at eight-thirty the plane had landed even a few minutes early and Dwight was there waiting.

  By the time they made it to the hotel, Jacks was already gone and Sheila had called Honey and told her that they would stop and pick her up as Dwight had hired a car while he waited for Sheila’s plane to land.

  Honey was antsy and worried that she could be wrong about everything, but there was something inside her that knew Jacks was truly in danger. He never mentioned the ceremony all day and later in the evening when she started asking questions, his demeanor changed and it was like he was not himself just as the day before after his visit with Asa.

  A car picked him up a few minutes till nine and Honey waited for Sheila and Dwight. She was surprised to learn Dwight was coming also but not unhappy about having him there.

  When they pulled up in front of the hotel, Honey was standing out front, so that she just hopped into the back seat.

  “I was getting worried you were not going to make it in time after all.”

  “I know us too. The traffic was horrendous tonight! Plus I had to make this man let me drive or we probably would not have. I checked the map on the plane and I know exactly where Oak and Third is, so what time did you say, exactly?”

  “Nine-twenty, exactly.” Honey looked at her watch. “It is nine now, will we make it?”

  Sheila laughed nervously. “With me driving, we will!” She drove like a maniac, weaving around the traffic headed for their destination. Honey closed her eyes for she was sure there would be an accident before they could get there.

  TWENTY-EIGHT

  Jacks got out of the taxi and looking around thought he had come to the wrong place. The building was as Asa described but it looked abandoned with no evidence of people anywhere. He approached the door and finding it unlocked, pushed it open and entered what obviously was a deserted old church. The furnishings had long since been removed and the room he was empty and dark. He was just about to turn around and leave when a light came on and he recognized Abe Cannon, dressed in a loose black garment. He looked none too happy to see him. He gave Jacks a nod and asked wryly.

  “So you did decide to come. I had my doubts.”

  “Where is Asa, shouldn’t he be here already?” Jacks’ thought how ridiculous Abe looked, but it was a generations old ceremony from what Asa had told him. He was hoping he would not be asked to wear one for it might just be a deal breaker.

  “Follow me. He is up there.” Abe pointed at the ceiling. An uneasy feeling came over Jacks but he shook it off and followed Abe through a door and up a flight of stairs. At the top they went through another door which Abe locked after them. It was a broad open space on the backside of the building that you could not see from the front. Candles gave off a soft light allowing Jacks to see six others dressed in robes similar to the one Abe was wearing. And there was Asa, in his chair with a cloak concealing whether he was also dressed the same or not. He smiled broadly at Jacks and took his hand. Jacks leaned down and kissed his cheek.

  “My boy!” He beamed at the group. “I told you he would not let me down. Come! Come! We are ready for the ceremony to begin and you, dear boy, will receive the inheritance of one’s dreams. All that I am and all that I have will be yours after tonight.” Had there been more light Jacks would have seen a greedy look come into the man’s eyes, for it was with great anticipation of having a strong healthy body again that he was most concerned about.

  “Asa…”

  “Please Jacks. One time I would like the sound of the word grandfather come from your lips. Can you humor an old man?”

  “Grandfather then…. are you certain you want to do this? You could live to be a hundred. Who knows?”

  “The question Jacks…. are you sure? It is your freewill to do this. These men are my witnesses that you choose to….to continue all the work I have endeavored in my lifetime for the greater good of this Earth.”

  Jacks was not sure why he would need witnesses and looked closer at the men. With only candles for light and the fact they all wore the dark robes; he had recognized no one but Abe. Now he saw that Garrett was among them and another he recognized was the old doctor who resided at the stone hou
se with Asa. The others were strangers.

  “I gave you my word. I stand by it.”

  “Wonderful! Let us begin.” Asa motioned for his chair to be placed in the circle and for Jacks to follow. The six men pulled hoods over their heads and knelt about a round piece of carpet with Asa in the center. Jacks was still standing outside the circle feeling a bit foolish, as Asa began chanting in a language he could not identify. Something stirred within him. The chant grew louder. The other voices joined in. He was the only person silent. He wanted to laugh it seemed so ridiculous but he did not dare offend.

  The chant ended abruptly and looking at Jacks with his colorless eyes, Asa compelled him, “Come into the circle, my boy, and receive your just inheritance. Now! For the window of the heavens are open and it is time.”

  The wind started blowing and the flames of the candles wavered in it. Jacks took a step forward as he became mesmerized by Asa’s eyes and could not look away. He was almost to the ring when a picture flashed before him. It was the picture Carol drew for him months before. He hesitated and Asa’s temper began to flare.

  “Jacks, you must do it now! Enter the circle!” His eyes became bright flaming red. Jacks was confused as the man’s whole countenance changed before him. This was not the gentle old man he had come to know. Something was not right but he could not help but take steps forward. He felt as if he was not in control and unknown forces were pulling him into the circle when someone screamed his name from behind.

  Dwight and the two women had found the abandoned church and as Jacks had. They thought they were in the wrong place too. But Dwight went around to the back and seeing the soft glow of the candles ran back to tell them it was the right place. They hurried inside and soon were at the locked door.

  “Call 911, now!” Dwight said urgently to Sheila and she fumbled for her phone. She dialed the number as quickly as possible and gave 911 the address where they were, while Dwight stomped the door open.

  Honey rushed past him screaming at Jacks. The scene before her was chilling and fear gripped her.

  “Jacks, no! Do not do it! Please Jacks for the love of Jesus, do not step into that circle!”

  Jacks stopped and turned towards the voice but when he tried to speak, he could not. He couldn’t think and he looked at his three friends as if he did not recognize them.

  “Jesus be damned! You must do this! You gave your word! Do not listen to her, I am your grandfather, obey me!”

  Asa furiously jumped from his chair. His face was hideous. The six men jumped to their feet also. The wind blew harder and the skirts of the dark garments worn by them whipped about their bodies causing them to appear as if they had wings. Jacks watched in a dazed state as one of them threw his body forward into the circle beseeching, “Take me master! Let me be the one, I am willing, please take me!”

  It was Garrett! He was prostate before a trembling Asa, who then collapsed.

  Thunder roared shaking the building. Lightening lit the sky.Garrett rose to his fullness in a wrath as Jacks had never before witnessed in a human. But his eyes went past the furious man, to an army of angels that surrounded the entire space. They were everywhere and his head began to spin as he tried to focus on Garrett who was screaming at him in a voice that did not belong to him but to Asa.

  “You imbecile, you ingrate, now look at what you have done to me! You have condemned me to this…this….” He ordered the men. “Kill him! I want him dead!”

  Abe stepped forward, “But sire, this is too risky, let them all go. No one will ever believe anything they say.”

  “You dare to defy me?” The words were a snarl and with them he reached up and took Abe by the throat and broke his neck as if it were a match stick. As he raised his arms in the air in his fury, one of the other men Jacks did not know, pulled a long knife from his robes and came towards him. Jacks stumbled and fell backwards as the blade of the knife slashed across his body, and he witnessed no more of the events that took place.

  Honey ran to Jacks fallen body blood pouring from the wound, with no regard for her own safety. The man, obeying his master’s order, turned to her. As the knife pointed at her she stared defiantly at the bearer and prayed as she pulled Jack’s head to her, cradling it in her arms. Dwight and Sheila were being held by the remaining men. Dwight screamed a warning to Honey as Sheila tried her best to bite the man who held her.

  Honey stared up at the man who raised the knife to her and with authority, she said, “In the name of Jesus, no weapon formed against me shall prosper.” She was prepared to die as she watched the gleaming metal stop in midair and a look of bewilderment come over the perpetrator’s face. For as hard as he tried he could not plunge the knife into her.

  There were indeed, thousands of angels surrounding the building but there was one who held the knife to keep it from his charge. Ragas fearlessly gripped the blade until the man let go his hold and it dropped to the floor. Sirens shrieked louder as they came closer and Dwight and Sheila both watched as the black clad figures dove off the roof and disappeared into the night, the bodies of both Asa and Abe vanishing along with them, as they took their flight.

  Honey was begging Jacks to be okay, but she knew it was bad. He lay as still as if dead but then his eyes opened, trying to focus on her face which had tears dripping from it, and he tried to comfort her. “Do not cry, it is okay…..do you see them?”

  Thinking he meant the men she assured him, “They are all gone Jacks, you are safe now.”

  “Carol’s angels….they are real….I see them….” He let his eyes look past her, “I…”

  “Yes Jacks?”

  “I….” His eyes closed and his body went limp.

  Honey thought he was gone but the medics said he was still alive when they put him in the ambulance and took him away. She tried to go with him but the officers who responded to the 911 call, insisted they go to the station and talk with the detectives while the assault, as they labeled it, was fresh in their minds.

  The three of them were taken to the police department where they were questioned extensively while Honey pleaded with them to let her at least call to check on Jacks. For all she knew, he was already dead, for his wound was deep and she was wearing blood that had seeped from his body.

  After an hour of answering the same questions over and over she was allowed to call the hospital while the detectives continued to go over Dwight and Sheila’s account of what had happened. Dwight was calm and patient but Sheila was getting irritated at them and in exasperation exploded.

  “Are you idiots or what? We have been here for over an hour and you keep asking us the same stuff like you do not believe us or something. Don’t you think you need to be looking for the slime that did this? Jacks could be dead! We are not going to change our story, no matter how long you keep us here! Everything we have told you is the truth, believe it or not.”

  Dwight tried to soften the atmosphere by adding calmly, “Officers, it has been an ordeal for us and it is getting late. Don’t you think we can continue this tomorrow? I promise we will be at the hotel if not at the hospital. Please, let us go see about our friend. He has no one there with him.”

  The two men looked at each other and the one who had done the less talking said, “Okay, leave your contact information at the desk on your way out.”

  He looked at the other guy. “Let them go.”

  “Thank you.” Dwight led Sheila out to the hall where they ran into Honey who was visibly upset. Sheila’s heart almost stopped when she saw her, thinking the worst had happened and she whispered, “He’s not….Jacks is…”

  “No, I do not know. They would not tell me anything because I am not family. We have to go in person to see. Can we leave now?”

  “Yes, they want to see us again tomorrow, probably to ask the same questions over again, like we could make up something like this.” Sheila was still annoyed.

  “It was all so horrible!” Honey put her hand to her mouth still feeling traumatized thinking about th
e gleaming metal blade coming at her, with Jack’s blood dripping from it.

  “Honey, would you like to change before we go to the hospital? They might think you need medical attention with all that blood on you. I can run by the hotel if you like.” Dwight offered, wanting to take her mind off the ugliness he knew she was remembering.

  “No, we have wasted enough time here as it is, I have to see Jacks and know one way or the other.” They all knew she meant that she wanted to see if he lived and in silent agreement they left to go find out.

  It was late, so they had to enter through the emergency room entrance. As Dwight had warned with the blood on her clothes, the medical personnel were alarmed that Honey was injured. When they understood that was not the case, they found out for them where Jacks was and that he was at least alive.

  He was in a critical care unit and all they could get out of the doctor in charge was that he had come out of surgery but it did not look good for him. After asking them a few questions, he suggested they go home and check back the next morning but Honey would not hear of it.

  “I will not leave him here alone. You two can go back to the hotel, I will stay.”

  Sheila was adamant about staying too, so Dwight said. “We will all stay. I wouldn’t feel comfortable myself if we didn’t. He has no family.”

  The doctor looked at his watch. “It will be a long night but if you want, there is a waiting room down the hall you can wait in and I will keep you updated. If he makes it through the night he can have visitors for fifteen minutes at seven in the morning.” He left them after directing them where to go.

  After they settled themselves in the deserted waiting room, they talked about what occurred on the rooftop for the first time among themselves.

  Honey mused, “I thought I was gone! What do ya’ll think they were doing up there anyway? Jacks said it was to commemorate his inheritance but remember how those men were all dressed? It was as if they were some sort of priests or something. It looks to me like an inheritance would be handled in an attorney’s office in business suits, not on the rooftop of a dilapidated old church.”