by Bryan Davis
“I’m on it.” Walter plugged in the headset and flipped a button on the radio. “Larry, can you hear me?”
Lauren sucked back another emerging sob. With her surging emotions, tingles again ran along her back, but her own heaving breaths and the rattle of her loose handcuff drowned out Larry’s reply.
Walter rolled his eyes. “Cut the humor. This is serious. I need to know if there are any reports out of Flagstaff about Fiona and Gaston Hunt. … Yes, I know Lois is covering that area, but she’s not monitoring this radio. Just get the answer. Ask her, if you have to.”
Lauren wiped her eyes with her sleeve. Her spasms settled, as did her tingling sensation.
Walter nodded. “Gotcha. Give me a call if you hear anything else.” He turned a dial on the radio. “Are you reading our GPS location? … Good. We’re ready to be picked up. Tell Jared and Marilyn that one of them can get Merlin later. … Five minutes will be fine.” As he turned another dial on the radio, he kept his eyes on his work. “There’s a report about a girl named Micaela dying in an explosion, but nothing about Gaston and Fiona Hunt.”
Lauren smiled but quickly chided herself for the moment of relief. Breathing out a long sigh, she whispered, “Micaela was my best friend. Tamiel killed her.”
“Oh, Lauren! I’m so sorry!” Bonnie kissed her forehead and continued rubbing her shoulder. “We have to get you home right away to check on your parents.”
“We’ll get an airlift in five minutes. That’ll give me time to try to contact Matt.” Walter set a hand on one of the earpieces. “Matt, can you hear me?”
Lauren whispered to Bonnie. “Matt has a tooth transmitter. I heard him use it.”
Bonnie nodded. “Walter’s wife invented it. It’s come in handy plenty of times.”
“Matt,” Walter said into the microphone, “I understand if you can’t talk, but if you can hear me, click your teeth together. If you know Morse code, send me a message.”
As they waited, a gust of cold wind poured down from above. A blizzard was on its way, and it could begin at any time.
Walter looked at Bonnie and shook his head. “Nothing. They might have discovered his transmitter.”
“Or he might be asleep,” Bonnie said.
Lauren shivered. She nearly added “Or dead,” but it sounded too morbid, too hopeless.
“Well …” Using both hands, Walter pulled a knee toward his chest. “I’m getting more feeling in my legs. Let’s see if I can walk.”
Lauren and Bonnie helped him rise. They steadied him for a moment before letting go. When he lifted a leg, the other one buckled. Bonnie caught him and eased him back to a sitting position.
“It looks like you’ll be laid up for a little while,” she said.
“Me?” Looking up at Bonnie and Lauren, he waved a hand. “I’ve been stabbed in a lung by freaks from another world and chased by demons in Hades. I’m not about to let a bruised spine stop me.”
“Hades?” Lauren gave him a quizzical look. “You mean like … Hell?”
Walter’s grimace changed to a grin. “Close, but I’ve been there, too.”
“So, Hell is a real place? You were actually there?”
“Oh, it’s real, all right. And scary, too. Scariest place I’ve ever seen. I still get nightmares. The smells are the most vivid memories—sulfur and burning flesh. The condemned souls were burning in black fire, like flaming buoys bobbing in a dark sea of horror.”
Lauren shuddered. “That’s a bit too real for me.”
“It’s scary,” Bonnie said, “but Heaven is real, too. I’ve been there. I was dead for quite a while and spent a short time at the outskirts of the heavenly city. Maybe I’ll get a chance to tell you about it.”
Lauren stared at them in turn. Their eyes exuded sincerity. Either they were telling the truth, or they were the most self-deceived people on the planet. They really believed they went to those places. If only they had proof. “Did you … um … take any pictures?”
“My phone back then didn’t have a camera,” Walter said. “And Bonnie went to Heaven as a spirit. Kind of tough to drag along a camera when you’re disembodied.”
“Disembodied,” she whispered. How strange it all sounded. Just one day earlier, she would have laughed them off as a couple of wild-eyed crackpots, but seeing a demon and his ghostly accomplice had turned her life upside down. She was ready to believe in leprechauns and werewolves.
She offered a tremulous smile. “Next time you go to Hell, remember to take a camera.”
As Walter laughed, Lauren’s tingle returned. It seemed strange that it would come back after her emotions had settled. Could it be fear again? The revelations about Hell had shaken her pretty hard.
The wind howled like a moaning ghost, and a low whistle in the trees sounded like an oncoming train. Then, echoing words trickled into her ears. Poor girl. How could I break her heart? The news can wait. It has to wait.
Lauren folded her arms over her chest. “What news?”
Walter glanced up at Bonnie before returning his gaze to Lauren. “What do you mean?”
“Larry told you something you didn’t tell me, didn’t he?”
“Oh. Right. You have super hearing.” Folding his hands in his lap, Walter heaved a sigh. “I was hoping to wait. There’s no use upsetting you when we’re not sure.”
“Not sure about what?”
“There was a news report …” His voice halted, as if every word had to be dragged out. “About an explosion in a Flagstaff home, but they aren’t releasing any information about the victims, only that there were two deaths. If Larry gets any updates, he’ll let me know.”
Lauren pressed her lips together. Her legs quivered. The victims had to be Mom and Dad. With a daughter missing, Dad would be parked by his cell phone, waiting for news. He would have called back by now.
She let out a quiet whisper. “My parents are dead.”
Looking at the ground, Walter picked up a twig. Light snow began to fall, a few flakes alighting on his cap. “You’re probably right.”
Bonnie wrapped her arms around Lauren and pulled her close. “I’m sorry, Lauren. So sorry.”
Lauren slumped in Bonnie’s grip. As she wept, Bonnie spoke in a soothing tone. “I know how you feel. I know exactly how you feel.”
Heat crawled into Lauren’s cheeks. “No, you don’t! How could you?” She stiffened and tried to push away, but Bonnie held her tight, shushing her. The motherly sound seemed to absorb all her fight. Exhaustion took hold, and every limb felt like rubber.
Bonnie lowered her to the ground, and they sat together, Lauren leaning her head on Bonnie’s shoulder. “I do know what it’s like, Lauren. On my thirteenth birthday, I watched my own mother die, stabbed by a ruthless dragon slayer. It was on a night much like this, dismal and snowy. After it happened, I ran out into the storm to get away from the slayer, and I lost my way, but God sent helpers to guide me to safety.”
“You sound … like my mother.” Lauren’s voice quaked terribly, but she couldn’t help it. “Mom was religious. Even when she got the news … the news about the cancer, she never got upset. She just prayed more.”
As snow continued to fall, Bonnie raised a wing, shielding them both. “And you, Lauren, are you … religious?”
“I went to church with her a lot, mostly to be with Micaela in youth group, and I believe in God, if that’s what you mean.”
“Good … good. That’s important.” Bonnie combed her fingers through Lauren’s hair, humming the same tune she had hummed while asleep in the Healers’ bed, a soothing melody, wordless, yet filled with deep meaning all the same. It communicated comfort, peace, and contentment.
Lauren closed her eyes. It felt so good, like being petted while drifting on clouds in a dream. Maybe all of this was just a nightmare. Maybe she would wake up to Mom’s call to breakfast, go to school and then volleyball practice, just like always. Micaela would be there, and after practice they w
ould … they would …
A new sob broke through. There would be no breakfast call, no volleyball practice. Mom was dead. Micaela was dead. By tomorrow she would be back in a foster home or else in prison if that demon had his way. It was hopeless, completely hopeless.
Bonnie’s gentle hum traveled through her fingers and into Lauren’s skin, soothing her aching heart. “Do you mind if I tell you a little more about my story?”
“I suppose not.” Lauren tensed her jaw. That sounded harsher than she had intended.
“Well, even though my mother died, I got a new mother … new in a way. Believe it or not, she somehow transformed into a dragon.”
“A dragon? Didn’t that scare you?”
“Not really. When you’ve had dragon wings as long as I have, you kind of get used to the idea. I learned at six years old that my mother was once a dragon, so sometimes I imagined her that way. She was a bigger dragon in real life, but it wasn’t too much of a shock.”
Lauren drew a scene in her mind of a girl hugging a dragon’s neck. It seemed strange in one way, showing love to a scaly species that no one trusted, but at the same time, it seemed like the most normal reaction in the world. Maybe all the politicians and religious leaders were wrong. Maybe dragons weren’t the instigators of war between Earth and Second Eden. She had figured out long ago that political speeches were often just lengthy lies designed to fool the masses, so maybe all the hype about evil dragons wasn’t true at all.
Bonnie shifted her hand to Lauren’s shoulder. “Do you mind if I pray?”
“No.” Lauren sniffed, unable to keep her voice from squeaking. “Go ahead.”
The same hum emanated from Bonnie’s throat, followed by words that flowed with the melody. “Father of all, you are Jehovah-Shammah, the God who is always with us, no matter where we travel. Nothing can separate us from your love, neither demons, nor fiery explosions, nor prison bars, nor hate-filled guards. Your love is never-ending. Father, please show your love to Lauren. Her life has been gutted by a treacherous demon who seeks to destroy. We have no idea why this enemy of souls has taken such a murderous path, but I trust that you know, and although you have allowed this tragedy to occur, I also trust that you will work good in the wake of evil. You will cause the day after destruction to dawn brighter than the day before.
“And Father …” Bonnie’s voice trembled, rising in tenor. “Thank you for rescuing me from that horrible prison. Even though I have been separated from my beloved family for these fifteen long years and suffered daily torture, I never doubted your love and faithfulness. I now see the dawn of my own day beginning to appear. Jehovah-Yasha, the Lord my savior, is mounting his conquering steed and will soon set all the captives free. I beg you to ride onto our battlefield like a dread champion. Rescue Billy, Ashley, and Matt. Let them and Lauren rejoice when they see your mighty hand brush aside those who would torment their souls. And when you do, when you conquer your foes as I have seen you do so many times before, we will rejoice, singing your praises on that day and forevermore.”
Bonnie’s voice settled into a whisper. “Even in this dark hour I praise you. You never forsook me in other dark places, and I know you won’t now. Please allow Lauren to see a glimmer of light in her darkest hour, as well as the Light of the World, Jesus Christ, for only he has the power to expel the demons who would imprison her soul.”
She finished with a sighing, “Amen.”
Walter echoed. “Amen.”
Lauren opened her eyes. Her lips made ready to repeat the echo, but the energy to whisper even a simple word had drained away. Yet, the tingling sensation continued along with a parade of sounds—the wind whistling louder than ever, blending with Walter’s labored breathing.
He scooted closer to Bonnie. “I need to tell you something.”
“Right.” She blinked at him, tears evident. “You said you’d tell me more about Matt.”
He nodded. “I brought him here because of his training and his ability to …” He covered her hand with his own. “To sense danger.”
Bonnie folded in her legs, her stare riveted on him. “Go on.”
“I don’t know if you got a good look at him …”
She shook her head. “It was dark. I was dizzy. We had to fly out before the guards showed up.” She squeezed his hand, her voice cracking. “What are you trying to say?”
“I haven’t done a DNA test, but after talking to him, I’m sure he’s—”
“Charles?” Bonnie nearly shrieked. “Matt is really Charles?”
“Well, you might have to get used to calling him Matt. He’s not too fond of—”
“I’ll call him anything he wants!” She flung her arms around him, nearly knocking him down. “Oh, Walter! Thank you for finding him!”
Laughing, he returned the embrace. “You’re welcome.”
Bonnie jerked back, her face hardening. “But now he’s—” With a beat of her wings, she leaped to her feet. “I have to go back! Now!”
“I figured as much,” Walter said, “but at least wait for the chopper to land. It should be here any minute.”
Lauren aimed an ear toward the sky. The sound of blades whipping the air drifted in from far away. “It’s coming.”
“We’d better give them room to land,” Walter said reaching for Bonnie’s hand.
Bonnie and Lauren helped him limp to the side of the clearing where he sat gingerly on a pile of leaves. When the helicopter sounds reached a crescendo, a spotlight pierced the forest from above. Snow swirled through the powerful beam. As the helicopter descended, its blades whipped the trees into a frenzy, creating a swirling vortex of frigid air and sparkling flakes.
Seconds before it landed, a woman jumped out and ran through the spotlight’s beam, her arms extended. “Bonnie!” she shouted. “Thank God you’re free!”
“Mom Bannister!” Bonnie rushed to meet her.
As the two embraced, Lauren looked past them at the pilot, a man guiding a mounted spotlight. The blinding beam kept his face in shadows. “We have to hurry,” the man shouted. “The weather’s getting worse, and we’re so close to the prison, someone’s bound to wonder what’s going on.”
“Walter’s hurt,” Bonnie called through the noise. “We’ll have to carry him.”
The pilot flipped a few switches, slowing the blades and dimming the light. He jumped out and jogged toward them. Bonnie’s mother-in-law, dressed in a heavy flight suit, ran with Bonnie to Walter’s side.
When the pilot joined the huddle, he extended a hand toward Walter. “Need a boost?”
“He can’t walk,” Bonnie said, “but he has feeling in his legs.”
The pilot hoisted Walter to his feet and pushed a shoulder under his arm. “Can you walk like this? I don’t think I can carry you.”
Walter grimaced slightly. “This way’s fine. I can manage.”
“Before you leave.” Bonnie pulled Lauren closer. “Mom. Dad. This is Lauren Hunt. We rescued her from the prison. A demon kidnapped her. Lauren, this is my husband’s mother and father.”
“Marilyn Bannister,” she said, extending a gloved hand. “We’ve had our share of run-ins with demons, so I know what you went through.”
Lauren shook her hand. “Pleased to meet you.”
“And I’m Jared,” the pilot said with a smile. “I’d shake your hand, but mine are filled to the brim with Walter.”
Lauren grabbed one of Jared’s fingers as it clutched Walter’s jacket. “Pleased to meet you, too.”
“Let me get Walter aboard. We can talk later.” Jared and Walter trudged toward the helicopter.
“I didn’t get Lauren’s whole story, Mom,” Bonnie continued, “but maybe you can while you’re flying her out of here.”
Marilyn pointed at herself. “I can get it?” She furrowed her brow deeply. “I know you too well. What are you planning?”
Bonnie leaned close. “Mom, my son’s in there, the young man Walter brought here
to get me out.”
“He is?” Marilyn glanced at the helicopter. “Walter told me he had a hunch about Matt Fletcher, but he still had to do DNA tests.”
Bonnie laid a hand over her heart. “We don’t need them. I was out of it when I saw him, but it’s coming back to me now. He looks so much like Billy, he has to be Charles. Walter agrees.”
“I suppose hearing that a blizzard’s coming won’t faze you. They’re calling for sixty-mile-an-hour winds and two feet of snow.”
“Perfect. Maybe it’ll knock out the power again. By now everyone knows I escaped, and no one will think I stuck around. I have my wings to protect me. I won’t freeze. Besides, Ashley’s still in there, too. I can’t leave her behind.”
“Well,” Marilyn said, “I know better than to argue with a woman who’s trying to rescue her son. If I knew Billy was in there, you couldn’t keep me away.”
Bonnie nodded at the backpack and radio equipment on the ground. “Just leave Walter’s stuff. I can use that to get in touch with you. If I find Billy, I’ll let you know.”
“Okay.” Marilyn set a hand behind Lauren’s elbow. “We have to get going before the storm hits.”
Lauren stepped back. “I want to help Bonnie.”
“What?” Marilyn squinted at her. “Are you serious?”
“Yes!” Lauren forced a spark of energy into her voice. “Look, that demon killed my parents and my best friend, so I don’t have anyone to go home to. And if Bonnie has the guts to stay here and find Matt and this Ashley person, then I’m going to stay with her. We can look out for each other.”
“After all you’ve been through?” Bonnie asked.
“Definitely. Matt saved my life. I’m not about to abandon him now.”
“Well, if you’re sure.” Bonnie wrapped a wing around Lauren and pulled her close. “I’ll be glad for your help.”
“If you say so.” Marilyn breathed out a long stream of white. “Is there anything else I can do?”
Bonnie gave her an expectant look. “How is my mother doing? Walter said something about a disease striking the original anthrozils.”
Marilyn nodded sadly. “It’s true. It’s a slow, progressive debilitation, muscle weakness all over. Jared is the only exception. Although he is weaker than usual, he has resisted well. One of Sir Patrick’s doctors is studying him, hoping to figure out what’s causing it. We sent the rest of them, including your mother, to Second Eden to keep them safe under your father’s care. The last I heard, your mother can’t get out of bed, but her heart is strong.”
