Reign of Silence

by Tony Martin

The other three men nodded in agreement. “So, we’ll all meet back here at five-thirty,” said Al. “I’ll try to be brave.” He batted his eyes furiously, and everyone grinned.

  Joshua reached into a bag from the Flying Pig. “How about some banana pudding?”

  Meredith stood on the sun porch of the Tracy home and looked out over their yard. The rain, which had diminished, was now coming down harder than before, puddling in the low places of the ground.

  Christine and Mark were at their respective schools; Lydia had a doctor’s appointment in Dothan and wouldn’t be back for a couple of hours. Meredith felt bored, disjointed. She didn’t want to watch TV, but she felt there should be something constructive she could do with her time.

  Meredith went into Christine’s bedroom and found a Bible. Flipping through the pages of the Bible, Meredith realized just how little she knew. She knew the New Testament started with the story of Jesus, and most of the books were letters from other writers, but she couldn’t begin to understand what was in the Old Testament. She thumbed through Genesis, and did recognize the names of several of the important people – Adam, Eve, Noah, Joseph.

  Still, Meredith wondered if there were anything in the Bible that dealt with the situation in which she’d found herself. She’d listened enough to Joshua and Precious’ conversations to know that there wasn’t a whole lot in scripture that dealt with ghosts per se, but there was a lot about demons. Meredith’s point of reference about demons was like many others – her total comprehension came from television and movies. She remembered how utterly terrified she was when she saw the re-release of The Exorcist a couple of years earlier, and while some of her friends thought it was cheesy and over the top, she’d dealt with its disturbing imagery for days afterwards.

  Meredith looked in the back of the Bible to the concordance, and found several references to the word demon. She turned to Mark 9.

  She read the account of the man with the demon-possessed son. Meredith saw how the father had asked the disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they were unable to. Jesus took care of the problem with the simple command “come out of him and never enter him again.” According to verse 26, the spirit left the boy immediately. Moreover, when the disciples asked why they weren’t able to cast out the spirit, Jesus told them, “This kind can come out only by prayer.”

  Meredith was bewildered. Had the disciples tried to deal with this evil without praying? And was prayer, indeed, all it took?

  Seems simple enough, Meredith thought, closing the Bible. She knew that at some point Joshua and the other men were planning to go back to her house, supposedly to pray and ask whatever entities were there to leave. Meredith also knew that she’d been possessed, in a fashion, and while she didn’t shriek or foam at the mouth, she did know what it felt like to have an outside will take over. She didn’t know if the men planned to include her in their next – hopefully final – excursion, but she felt that she did need to be there.

  Meredith lay back on Christine’s bed, wondering what she should do. She looked at the bedside clock; it was 3:10. She knew Mark would be home soon and Christine not long afterwards.

  If prayer is all that’s needed, Meredith thought, then why do we need to wait any longer?

  Meredith stared at the ceiling for a few moments, listening to the rain, and then found her purse. Taking the keys to her BMW, she strode to her car, cranked it, and headed away from town on Highway 187.

  Joshua found himself pacing around his office aimlessly after lunch. He sensed that all that had happened over the last two weeks was ending. It was as though he were rushing inexorably toward some final conflict and ultimate resolution, but he had no idea what that might be.

  Nothing he tried soothed him – singing softly, prayer, deep breathing – and as time seemed to stand still, 5:30 seemed further and further away. Joshua decided to go to the church’s sanctuary, in the hope that God might seem more real to him there.

  The sanctuary was dark, its windows periodically illuminated by lurid lightning flashes. Thunder seemed to roll from one end of the room to the other. Joshua took a seat in the center of a pew about halfway back in the sanctuary. Above the baptistery, a Jordan River scene, rendered in stained glass, provided a backlit glow over the first few pews.

  Joshua placed his folded hands on the pew in front of him and rested his forehead on his hands. “God,” he said, “I’m as afraid as I’ve ever been. I know that You’re good, and Your love for all of us is unquestioned. But I can’t shake this feeling that something terrible is about to happen, and I think it’s all my fault.” He paused, steadied himself, and continued:

  “So, as best as I know how, I want You to know I’m sorry … sorry for doubting myself, for doubting You, for letting myself go to some really dark places in my soul. I know that Your love for me isn’t dependent on if I pray just the right words, but I need to know that we’re OK, You and I.”

  Thunder rattled the sanctuary, and Joshua felt as though this was a special effect summoned up just for the moment. He smiled grimly.

  “Lord, there is evil afoot in Your church and in St. Helena. I don’t know why You’ve permitted it, or exactly what part You have in all this, but I do know that You’re in control. So, I’m begging, take this away from us, from Meredith, from everyone. I don’t know who or what these entities are, but I know You’re God over them, too. Please, please, will You take care of this for us?”

  Joshua looked up. He felt alone, and was sick. He wondered if his words weren’t pleasing to God, or if God had chosen to be silent … he so desperately wished for just a sense of God’s presence. He felt like he was addressing a void, and he felt his soul sink.

  I guess this is where faith comes in, thought Joshua, believing in God when there’s nothing but silence. He’s not obligated to show up just for me. While Joshua tried to comfort himself with this knowledge, he thought ahead to what the evening might hold, and felt more inadequate than ever.

  Thinking that taking a position of more humility might please God, Joshua sank to his knees in the space between the pews and buried his face in his hands. “God, I don’t even know how to pray, so I’m not even going to try,” he said. “I’m just gonna listen.”

  And listen Joshua did – not so much for an audible voice, but for anything that would affirm that God was hearing his prayers. As before, Joshua felt like he was in a vacuum, the only living thing for miles around, and he was too numb to cry for himself.

  He stayed in this position for some time, waiting, listening, hoping for anything. As Joshua knelt, the tile floor causing pain to shoot through his kneecaps, he realized that he was humming under his breath. While the tune was familiar, at first he couldn’t come up with the words, just a melody. Cocking his head while he hummed, almost listening for the words, Joshua slowly raised himself back onto the pew, still mentally searching for the right lyrics.

  When Joshua finally remembered the words – or, at least, fragments of the proper lyrics – his first thought was, how obscure. He tried to complete at least one verse of what he realized was a classic hymn, but the hymn was so archaic that the best he could manage was just a mangled version of the first verse. Then he reached for a hymnal from the rack before him, looked for the title in the index, and turned to it.

  Joshua nodded as he read the four verses printed in the hymnal. He closed it, looked heavenward, and tucked the hymnal under his arm as he headed to Al’s office.

  Al looked up at Joshua, surprised at the gleam in Joshua’s eyes. “Al,” said Joshua, opening the hymnal and dropping it on Al’s desk, “I’ve got a solo I want you to learn.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two – At the Mansion

  Meredith pulled her car to a stop under the porte cochere of the Dubose mansion. She had crept along while driving home. Rain pounded her windshield, the wipers working feebly. Lightning illuminated the road ahead with a purplish-white glare.

  She sat in the car a few moments, thankful that she wouldn’t have to get out
in the rain. She realized that impressions from the steering wheel were branded into her palms. Meredith let go of her grip, slid from the driver’s seat, and walked to the door, key in hand.

  The door was unlocked. Meredith made a conscious effort not to be afraid; fortifying herself with a deep breath, she entered the house and walked into the kitchen.

  Meredith found everything as it had been earlier. There was snack food left over from their last visit, and the refrigerator was still stocked with soft drinks. She went into the great hall, peering up the staircase to the second floor landing, and saw that everything was peaceful and in order. The wind and the rain continued to pound the house, with periodic thunder causing the windows to rattle, but other than that, all seemed normal.

  She went into the library and parlor, amused to see sleeping bags and pillows strewn about the parlor. Looks like a perfectly good slumber party got interrupted, she thought. She remembered the wet patches on the floor of the library, and shuddered.

  Returning to the great hall, Meredith called out: “What do you want?” No answer.

  Meredith went up the stairs, first to her room, which was just as she’d left it. Nothing had changed in any of the other upstairs rooms. She peered out the windows to the lawn, the cemetery, and the old outbuildings. The rain continued to pour down, making the back yard a sodden mess. There were several tree limbs down, some wrapped in Spanish moss.

  She returned to her bedroom and sat on the foot of the bed. Meredith had no sense whatsoever of anything awry. She could almost believe it was all a dream, a perverse one to be sure, but nothing more.

  Suddenly Meredith’s bedroom door slammed shut, the sound almost physically lifting her from the bed. Her heart leapt to her throat. She came to her feet, staring about wildly. The temperature in her room seemed to plummet.

  Gasping, Meredith managed to whisper out a few words: “Our Father … in heaven … your kingdom come. Deliver us from evil…”

  Thunder pealed and her room shuddered, as if the house was struck by lightning. Meredith’s ears rang. She staggered back a step, arms flailing, before she caught her balance. There was a series of thuds from the hall outside her room, and her bedroom door flew open violently. An explosive gust of wind rushed through the open door, wailing as though in torment, and Meredith tumbled backwards, toward her dresser. Her heel caught in the throw rug by her bed. She toppled backwards, screaming, and as she fell the back of her head hit the corner of her dresser with a dull crack.

  Before she lost consciousness, Meredith saw a sight she’d never forget. As her eyes closed, she saw the awful image of a disembodied man’s face, clean-shaven, his eyes wide and staring, and his mouth twisted into the rictus-like grin of a fleshless skull.

  “Daddy,” said Christine, panicked, “Meredith’s car’s gone.”

  Jimmy Tracy gripped his phone tighter. “Does she have her cell phone with her?”

  “If she does, she’s not answering,” said Christine. “This scares me,”

  “Me, too, princess,” said Jimmy, looking at his appointment calendar. “I’ll be right home. Let’s don’t panic yet. Look and see if she’s left a note or anything.”

  Jimmy hung up the phone, feeling his heart race. He called his administrative assistant, told her that he’d be unavailable for the rest of the day, and sped home himself.

  Christine was waiting at the door when he arrived, her face flushed. Mark stood behind her, bewildered.

  “I didn’t find a note,” she said. “I don’t know where she could be.”

  “I’m afraid I have an idea,” said Jimmy. “I can’t believe she would’ve gone back to the house by herself.”

  “What’s wrong, Dad?” asked Mark, his eyes wide.

  “I think Meredith went to the mansion,” said Jimmy grimly. “Christine, I need you to stay here with Mark. I’m going to the church to find Joshua. Stay by the phone, and I’ll have my cell with me.”

  “I’m going, too,” said Christine.

  “You most certainly are not,” said Jimmy. “I can’t look after you and see about Meredith, too. Maybe everything’s fine.”

  Christine started to argue, but checked herself. “Please call me and let me know what’s happening,” she said.

  “I will,” said Jimmy, as he entered his car and headed toward the church. He called ahead and told Gretchen to tell Joshua not to go anywhere, and to get Al and Precious.

  Joshua called Al. “Tell Precious to come up here – now. Meredith’s gone missing from the Tracy house. I’m guessing she’s gone back to the mansion.”

  Al mumbled something before hanging up. Joshua went to Gretchen’s desk.

  “Gretchen,” said Joshua, “Al and I will be gone the rest of the day. Please tell me there’s no one having surgery this afternoon.”

  “No, Preacher, we don’t have anyone in the hospital,” she said. “You go do what you’ve got to do.”

  “Meredith Dubose is missing from the Tracy house,” Joshua told her. “I’m afraid she’s gone back to her house, for God knows what reason.”

  “She may feel like she’s got to face this thing alone,” said Gretchen. “Maybe she feels she’s responsible for what all’s happened, and she’s responsible for putting an end to it.”

  “She doesn’t need to try to be a hero,” said Joshua, pacing. “I’m afraid for her.”

  “Hey, Preacher,” said Gretchen, “do I need to remind you who’s in charge?”

  “I know that,” said Joshua, pausing long enough to eye her. “But we need to stand together.”

  Gretchen smiled wanly. “When this is all over, you’re going to need to go on the lecture circuit. What tales y’all will have to tell.”

  “When this is all over,” said Joshua, “I don’t ever want to talk about it again.”

  Al came in the office. He was a wreck.

  “Is this it?” he asked.

  “It may be,” said Joshua. “Looks like our schedule has been moved up a couple of hours. Did you get Precious?”

  “He’s on his way.”

  Joshua and Al went in the pastor’s study. Thunder roared. “Beautiful day,” Al noted.

  “What a lovely day for an exorcism, Karras,” said Joshua.

  “Gallows humor,” said Al. “Not too funny right now. Is that what’s actually going to happen?”

  “I don’t know what to call it,” said Joshua. “And Meredith, if she’s out there already, has dealt us a joker.”

  Both men pondered the prospects of the rest of the day. Presently Jimmy arrived.

  “I just know Meredith’s jumped the gun on us,” said Jimmy. “Stubborn, impulsive kid. What was she thinking?”

  “I’m guessing she was thinking she could handle this without any help from anyone else,” said Joshua. “Who knows?”

  “We’ve got to get out there,” said Jimmy, standing by the door.

  At that moment, Precious entered. He was soaked.

  “OK, gentlemen,” said Precious. “I just made sure we had flashlights and a couple of lanterns if we needed them. Looks like this is it.”

  “It is,” said Joshua. “You driving?”

  Precious nodded, and the four men climbed in Precious’ SUV. The rain coursed down with fresh fury. “I heard right before I left that we’re under a severe thunderstorm warning,” said Precious.

  “Great,” said Al. “I was afraid we’d have a dull afternoon.”

  Precious circled the square at a virtual crawl. “I can’t speed in this beast,” he said, wiping the fog from the inside of the windshield. “We won’t do Meredith or anyone any good if I end up in a ditch.”

  “Take your time, but hurry up,” said Jimmy.

  The Suburban crept northwest on Highway 187. The roadside trees thrashed about in the wind and rain. Precious bent over the steering wheel, staring into the deluge. The whole group gasped as he hydroplaned through some standing water.

  “Yikes,” said Joshua. “You could ski in this stuff.”

  “I�
��m not into water sports this afternoon,” Precious said, slowing down.

  They passed Pleasant Hill, the church barely visible through the darkness and rain. Precious stared at the white line on the shoulder of the road – he could barely see ten feet ahead.

  “What do you have in mind, Joshua?” said Jimmy.

  “We need to make sure Meredith’s OK, of course,” said Joshua. “If she’s not there, I don’t know what to say. Nevertheless, we’re just going to pray and ask God to clean the house and deliver us all from this evil. And Al is going to sing.”

  “Sing?” asked Jimmy.

  “Yeah,” said Joshua. “I don’t know – it was just impressed on me this afternoon that he needed to sing an old hymn while we’re there.”

  “What hymn?”

  “You’ll see.”

  “The performance of a lifetime,” said Al humorlessly.

  Joshua glanced at Al, who shrugged. Lightning struck nearby, the thunder pealing with a rifle’s crack. “Just get us there in one piece,” said Joshua to Precious.

  Precious hunched closer over the steering wheel, as if three extra inches would make any difference in his ability to see the road. The men were silent as Precious inched along.

  “Whoa,” said Precious, easing to a stop on the shoulder of the road. “I just passed the turn to the Dubose mansion.”

  Precious made a cautious three-point turn in the road, praying that no other car would come by. He turned into the Dubose drive, looking up as the trees on the bluffs whipped around, leaves scattering before the gale. Each man felt his muscles tense as the Dubose mansion appeared. There were a handful of lights at the windows.

  “At least the house still has electricity,” said Jimmy. “And – there’s Meredith’s car.”

  Precious pulled under the porte cochere beside Meredith’s BMW. “Grab flashlights, just in case,” said Precious. He led the group to the door, which opened with a gentle nudge from him.

  The four men entered the kitchen. The interior of the house was silent; the wind moaned around the eaves, and the rain pelted against the roof.