Chapter 23: Confrontations

Submitted by PeteMork on Tue, 12/06/2011 - 05:03

Hannah screamed. “Eli!!” She lunged for her, saving her own life in the process. “Oskar!! She’s bleeding!”

Oskar instinctively looked toward the sound of the shot, heard the buzz of the second bullet as it passed between them, then heard the second shot a split second later.

“Get down flat on the ground!” Oskar yelled. He rolled over next to Eli, turned her over and saw the blood gushing out of a gaping hole in her neck. Her eyes were open and her arms were limp at her sides. Jason grabbed Hannah’s hand, crouched down and dragged her behind the nearest tree, even though the small trunk offered them virtually no cover at all. He threw her to the ground and lay on top of her.

Oskar frantically put his hands around Eli’s neck trying to stem the blood flow, but there was too much. Eli’s hand slid under his and he watched in horror as her finger disappeared deep into the wound, but at least the blood stopped flowing. He stood up and grabbed her around the shoulders in an attempt to drag her behind a low bush, but Eli reached up with her other hand and pulled him back down. “Don’t, Oskar!” she croaked. “If he hits you in the head, it could…” she coughed. “Give me a few minutes, and I’ll be fine” she whispered. “Are Jason and Hannah okay?”

“We’re fine, Eli,” Hannah shouted.

§

Marcus cursed “Damn! She moved!” He realized he had blown it. “Only one! I only got one!” Enraged, he stood up, raised the gun to his shoulder and leaned against the tree to steady himself. He fired several times more and saw the resulting geysers of dirt as the rounds missed their mark. After sending a couple more rounds into the tree, he threw his arms up in frustration, then turned as he heard the sound of a small motorbike approaching from behind him. A young boy was moving rapidly along the road about 200 meters behind him, but clearly hadn’t seen him yet. Fearing that there could be others, he tossed the rifle in the back, jumped into the car and, with a roar, accelerated down the berm into the field. Maybe I can get the rest of them with the car.

§

Oskar watched Eli’s condition rapidly deteriorate, as round after round churned up the dirt around him. He could hear the dull thunk every time a round struck the tree in front of Jason and Hannah.

Helplessly, he watched the slowly diminishing rise and fall of Eli’s chest in horror as she gradually began losing her battle to stay alive long enough to heal. Do you have to breathe, Eli? When you were a vampire, you didn’t have to breathe!

I…I have to breathe Oskar. I’m not…that anymore. I have to breathe. He could feel her slipping away from him.

Eli, please don’t die. You can’t die! You simply …can’t. In an instant, the stark reality of her mortality was driven home to him. Nothing lasts forever, Dad had told them. A wave of anguish and loneliness washed over him. He pulled himself up next to her, and pressed his cheek against hers, literally willing her to heal. And waited for the shooting to stop.

Suddenly, he heard the roar of a car engine and raised himself up on his elbows. A Range Rover with a heavily reinforced push bar and winch on the front was heading straight for them across the meadow, bouncing over the rocks and uneven earth like a huge, lumbering beast. “Hannah! You and Jason run for the bikes and go for help!” He tore off his shirt, put his arms at his sides, and grew his wings. “Go! Run, run, run!!They both leaped up and ran for the road.

He knew he couldn’t carry her; she was too busy trying to breathe to be able to hang on. There was only one thing to do. He ran swiftly toward the approaching Range Rover and lifted off with a powerful thrust of his wings. Eli slowly rolled over and watched him go. Oskar, I…Her eyes slowly closed.

I can do this! Oskar’s blind rage made him absolutely fearless. I’ll kill him! I’ll kill him! I’ll kill him!

Marcus gasped. He’s got wings! And he’s coming for me! He quickly rolled up the window. He gasped again as he saw the girl he had shot, roll over. He jammed his foot down on the accelerator. At least I’ll finish this one!

Oskar had already covered half the distance between them before Marcus realized what was about to happen. My God! He’s going to… He jerked the wheel sharply to the right, but it was too late. With a meaty thud, Oskar struck his windshield dead center, then instantly disappeared over the top of the car. The resulting massive spiderweb of fractured glass suddenly made the windshield almost completely opaque. He skidded to a stop, and rolled down the window, suddenly terrified. Where are the others? The clone, on her bike, was speeding away toward the Laurel Farm House and probably the visitor’s center just past the next field. The older boy, also on his bike, was heading straight towards him across the meadow, and the Moped had already passed the berm and was approaching from behind. Cursing, he spun the car around and headed straight for the road. He knew there was a constable at the visitors’ center and he couldn’t risk being identified yet; and the Moped complicated things even more. He pulled onto the road and headed back towards the gate as fast as he could go, crouched low over the wheel, peering through the only remaining section of unfractured glass. He didn’t see Hannah spin her bike around and head back across the field toward Eli.

With a tremendous effort, Eli finally managed to get up on her hands and knees. After coughing up the accumulated blood, her breathing slowly began to improve. But she almost died again when she saw Oskar hit the windshield, flip over and over in the air, and land hard on the ground behind the Range Rover. He’s dead! I know it! He’s dead! Oskar’s presence, always there in the back of her mind, was suddenly gone. She watched helplessly as a boy on a Moped pulled up beside Oskar, immediately followed by Jason, who threw his bike to the ground and crouched down beside him. She stumbled to her feet just as Hannah arrived, and together they made their way across the field toward the three of them.

The boy hesitated a moment. Wings! He has wings! I DIDN’T imagine it! He didn’t know what to do; what he could safely touch without causing more damage. Everything felt surreal to him. He was kneeling next to the unconscious body of a boy with wings, who should be dead after he smacked into the windshield, but he wasn’t. He could see the regular rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. He raised his head as the kid on the bike, about his own age, skidded to a stop beside him and gently but firmly moved him aside and crouched down next to the unconscious boy. He gasped as the problem suddenly became moot. The wings became intangible, turned to white lace, and retracted back into the boy’s arms.

“Do you have a phone?” Jason asked.

“Yes, I do!” He handed it to him.

Jason dialed home, “Dad? There’s been an accident! Someone tried to kill us all! We’re at the 4th field off Buttonhole Lane; you know, Hannah’s meadow. Someone in a dark green Range Rover shot Eli, then tried to run her over. She’s hurt and so is Oskar, really bad….okay Dad. Please hurry!”

“My grandfather’s farm is back along the lane. I’ll call him. He can get here much faster!”

“No! Please don’t. We can handle this ourselves!” Jason realized how he must have sounded. After all, this guy didn’t have to stop. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to be abrupt.”

Hannah rushed ahead of Eli, worried about the strange boy, with Oskar lying there unconscious and maybe even seriously hurt. “Jason, is he okay? He’s not moving!”

“He’s breathing, Hannah. I don’t know any more than that.”

“His…wings went away just as I got here. But I saw his arms move just a bit,” the boy volunteered.

Hannah looked at him closely for the first time. “I’m … Hannah. This is my brother Jason. And that’s Eli.” She nodded towards her rapidly-approaching soul mate. Thanks for stopping to help.”

Oskar’s eyes opened. “Who the hell are you?” he tried to get to his feet, but Jason held him down.

“Relax, Oskar. He’s not the one. He’s long gone. This is…?”

“Ryan. My name is Ryan. Glad to meet you, Oskar. Whatever you are.” His head was swimming.

“He saw your wings, Oskar. And I’m sure he saw the car, and at least heard the gunfire. And he still stopped to help you.”

“Oh. Sorry.” He rolled over at the sound of Eli’s footsteps. “Eli! You’re alive! I thought you were…” he couldn’t finish the incomprehensible thought. Eli lay down beside him and took him in her arms. He wrapped his own around her,

“Oskar, don’t you dare do anything so stupid again! I thought you were dead!”

“He would have killed you, Eli. I couldn’t have that,” he said, softly.

“What were you thinking? It was a car, not a moose!”

“Wow! You girls look exactly alike!” It was hardly out of his mouth before Ryan realized how dumb it must have sounded to them.

“By golly, you’re right! We hadn’t even noticed, had we Oskar?” Jason said, dryly. He grinned at him. “Just kidding! I’d tell you why they look alike but it’s a very long story.”

“We’re identical twins, but we were born 250 years apart.” Eli’s eyes sparkled.

“Yeah, Sure!” but Ryan wasn’t sure of anything right now. A flying boy, a bloody girl with a nasty gunshot wound on her neck, seemingly healthy, with an identical twin 250 years younger than herself, a mysterious man in a dark car with a rifle, who was trying to kill them; it was all overwhelming to him. And he had only been in Barnet a week – the first half of a two-week vacation he had thought was going to be relatively boring. As strange and dark as this all was, it was actually exciting to him. “Do you think he’ll come back?”

“Not after you rode up,” Jason glanced toward the road. “Once Oskar destroyed his windshield, you arrived, and Hannah headed for the visitors’ center, he took off.”

§

“I knew it!” Elaine, already agitated even before the phone call, slipped quickly into her suit and launched herself into the air over the pool. “I’ll meet you there, Rich.”

“Elaine, you can’t!! Someone will see you!” But she was already out of sight over the trees. Rich grabbed his bag and some blankets, jumped into the family estate car and backed out into the street. It’s Marcus! It’s got to be Marcus! But why?!

He was already at Buttonhole Lane when he finally got off the phone with Jonathan. He had been so stoic, so …seemingly unaffected by it all that he was worried. As kind-hearted as he was, Jonathan was always quick to anger whenever he felt that Eli was in danger. But this time…

§

“Do you live around here?” Jason asked. He tried to help Oskar to his feet, but Eli held him down.

“You’re not going anywhere until Papa gets here, Oskar.”

“I actually live in Sunderland. I’m just visiting my grandparents for a couple of weeks. This is my grandfather’s Moped.”

“Ryan, we’d really appreciate it if you didn’t tell anyone about this,” Eli said, timidly.

Ryan realized he hadn’t even given it a thought. “Who’d believe me, Eli?” he smiled at her. “I…I promise. I won’t tell anyone. But aren’t you afraid he’ll come back later?”

“No, I…”

“Mom’s coming, Eli! She’s almost here!” Oskar turned toward the far side of the field, just as Elaine cleared the treeline and swooped down across the field towards them in a low glide, wings outstretched.

Ryan’s legs gave out on him and he sat down hard on the ground in a feeble attempt to hang on to his dignity. “My God! There’s a whole flock of you!” He turned red as everyone began laughing all at once. “I…I’m sorry! I didn’t mean…” he was totally flustered. How could I have said something so totally stupid?!

Oskar reached over and took his hand firmly. “You’re funny! We’ve never been called a flock before.” He squeezed his hand tighter. Thank you again for stopping.

Ryan gasped. You can hear my thoughts? How can you do that?! He could feel his heart thumping in his chest. He decided he’d better stay right where he was for now. Amazing things were happening way too fast for him to process.

It’s a gift. Oskar grinned at him.

Elaine landed smoothly in front of them, retracted her wings, smiled at Eli, and knelt next to Oskar. “How are you feeling, Oskar? Dad’s got some Ejuice in the car for you both and will be here shortly.”

“I know, Mom. He’s at the gate now.” He turned toward the berm as the Sandstrøm car pulled off the road and sped across the meadow towards them.

Elaine turned her gaze to Ryan, and studied him carefully. She knew Oskar had already touched him and had verified his trustworthiness. “Oskar tells me you came to their aid, despite the possible danger to yourself. I don’t forget such things. They tell me all I need to know about your character.”

“I…I really didn’t think about it. I just saw that they were in trouble and came over. Perhaps if I’d given it more thought, I’d have turned around and run.” He really didn’t know what else to say. He hadn’t thought about the danger, so did that mean he had been brave? Or just stupid?

“Ah! And modest too! An endearing combination of positive character traits.” She smiled at him.

“Mama doesn’t always talk like that, Ryan. Only when she’s frightened.” Eli stood up and put her arms around her.

I was so frightened, Butterfly! We’re strong but no longer as strong as we were. A bullet in the brain might have…

I’m fine, Mama! But she couldn’t hide from Mama the terror she had felt when she almost choked to death on her own blood.

Elaine tightened her grip on her. I knew it! I could feel it! Even from home!

Nils and Livia, after making sure everyone was in one piece, began gathering up all their belongings and loading them into the car. Dr. Dawson’s car was heading across the field now, a bit slower since Oskar had filled him in and he knew the danger was over. But still, he rushed over with his bag, examined them both carefully, and cleaned up Eli as best he could. Finally satisfied, he knelt down next to Oskar.

“Dad, she almost died! And I couldn’t do anything for her.”

He helped Oskar up and put his hands firmly on his shoulders. “For a serial hero, you sure have a low opinion of yourself,” he kidded.

“I want to be with Eli, Dad. Can I sit with Eli?”

“Of course, Oskar! Don’t you always?” What an odd request.

“Oskar shared everything with me, Butterfly. Thank God you’re all safe!” Elaine walked Eli to the car and helped her in.

With Nils and Livia, they put the bicycles and backpacks in the cars, then Papa lifted Oskar gently and placed him on the seat beside her. He kissed her on the forehead. “Here’s your hero, Eli. Take care of him.”

“I will, Papa.” She smiled at Ryan.

Ryan stood and watched as the two families calmly went about the business of cleaning up after this terrible incident. He couldn’t shake the feeling that they had done it all before; perhaps many times. He wondered what other price they had had to pay for these wonderful, magical abilities they all seemed to have.

“Ryan? I’d like your phone number and address if you’re willing to give it to us.” Dr. Dawson handed him his card. “This has my work and our home phone number on it. If you have any questions, or need help understanding any of this, just give us a call.” He put his hands on his shoulders. “Any time, Ryan. I mean it.”

Ryan hastily scribbled his phone number and address on a scrap of paper and handed it to him. “Can you all fly? How many of you are there? Are you all as nice as Hannah, Eli, Jason and Oskar?”

Dr. Dawson smiled at him. “You’ve met almost all of us. And we’re all in your debt. And it’s what you didn’t ask that tells me all I need to know about you.” He winked at him. “We won’t call you first; I promise. If, after a few days of thinking things through, you still feel you’d like to contact us, then your call will be welcomed.” He got into the car. “Don’t lose that card, Ryan. Unless you want to.”

Ryan said his goodbyes to the Sandstrøms, hopped on his Moped and slowly made his way across the meadow and over the berm, deep in thought. Dr. Dawson waited a few minutes, then started the car and drove slowly across the meadow after him.

Eli gently kissed Oskar, then waved to Hannah and Jason as they drove away.

“They really love each other, don’t they?” Jason put his arm around Hannah.

“They really, really do, Jason.” She kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks for saving my life again Jason.”

“You’re welcome, Hannah Bananah.”

She smiled. He hadn’t called her that since she was ten. He had finally stopped when he got tired of having a chronically sore arm. “That’s a freebie, Jason. But next time….”

§

Sava carefully placed the board back over the crawlspace and handed the lockbox to Jonathan. “I told you he held out on us. I could see it in his eyes at the exchange.”

“And this situation has now gotten completely out of hand. I traced the license number of that mysterious Fiat to Marcus, and now?! He’s actually tried to kill them!” his hands were shaking as he leafed through the photographs. “Do what you have to do, Sava. I’m done with him! And do it before he talks further with that wingnut Pastor in his church, or we’re going to be overrun with sanctimonious hypocrites! But if you have to, take out his whole damned flock!” he seethed with suppressed rage.

“I’ll handle it. Just calm down. I understand how you feel; I feel the same, but cooler heads must prevail here.” He took him gently by the arm and led him outside. “You go do what you do best, Jonathan, and leave this part of the job to me. I’ve gotten quite good at it over the years.”

“Thank you, Sava; you’ve been a Godsend since father died. And don’t forget, my old friend; my offer still stands. Anytime you’re ready.”

Sava watched, detached, as Jonathan backed the delivery van out of the driveway. For a brief moment, he felt just a bit sad. He’s more like his father than I had imagined. He waited until he was out of sight, then headed down the block to his own car, watching carefully for any indication they had been noticed by the neighbors. He had some careful planning to do. There could be absolutely no loose ends.

§

“Are Hannah and Jason okay, Mama? I didn’t get a chance…”

They’re fine, Butterfly. And grateful. Oskar probably saved their lives. The whole family is coming over tomorrow to…talk things out.” They had all agreed that the kids had been through way too much to just let them fend for themselves. They needed reassurance and perhaps together, they could undo some of the damage that maniac had caused.

“Okay, Mama.” Eli was tired. And depressed. It seemed as though, whenever things were finally going okay for them, something terrible happened. And this time, it could have been a real ‘innocent’—Hannah herself—who died. She couldn’t help thinking that it was all some sort of cosmic retribution for the terrible things she had done to stay alive all those years. Innocence was clearly in the eye of the beholder. And sometimes, she didn’t feel innocent at all.

Oskar put his head in her lap, and snuggled up against her. The rest of the trip home was quiet.

Nothing much was said at dinner. Neither of them was very hungry. And they both refused to leave one another’s side, even for a moment. Finally, they excused themselves and quietly went up the stairs together, hand in hand.

“I think there’s been some real damage done this time, Rich. They’re not bouncing back the way they normally do. But there’s really nothing remotely normal about them is there?”

“No, Elaine. There really isn’t. We’re writing the book as we go along. Physically, they’re almost adults now; and mentally? In some ways, Eli, at least, has passed us up. One moment, she’s a 14-year-old child; the next she’s an ancient seer. I’m not sure what we can do to help her now; and she’s still got most of the journey ahead of her. And it might be a dark one.”

Elaine stood up and headed for the stairs. “I think I’m going to check up on them before we go to bed. Are you going to be up soon?”

“In a bit. I think I’ll listen to a bit of music first, then check on them myself.” He turned on the stereo in the living room and perused his CD collection. He looked over at the record collection, and smiled as he remembered when he had first seen some of these albums; the night they had met Elaine in the vault for the first time. He pulled out Elaine’s Toscanini collection, turned on the turntable and put on Beethoven’s ninth symphony. He cranked up the volume and settled back in his easy chair, eyes closed.

Elaine knocked softly on the bathroom door. “Are you two okay in there?” She could hear the shower running.

“We’re fine Mama. I think we’re going to go to bed now, okay?”

“Of course, Eli.” She hesitated for a moment, then turned and headed downstairs. As she disappeared around the corner, the bathroom door opened slowly, and they stepped out into the hallway, still holding hands.

Eli suddenly took Oskar’s other hand and pulled him up against her. “I…I thought you were dead, Oskar. And my life was over.” She rested her head on his shoulder and pressed her cheek against his.

Oskar kissed her neck. “If you had died, Eli…” He choked up, as the faces of all his past tormentors rose up around him. “You’re the only reason I’m still alive. After you left, I would have willingly died in the pool. And if you had left me today, I would have died today.”

It surprised him how easy it had been for them to forget that part of their past – if 15 years can be considered easy – and how it could all be brought back again with a single clap of thunder. He caressed her bare back gently, remembering all the nights he had spent in her bed, and she in his, in Blackeberg so long ago, talking so easily about anything that came into their minds, and feeling so happy and content; in retrospect, the brief calm before the storm. She felt so familiar to him now, but different at the same time. Her features were more pronounced now, as though a sculptor had been slowly and deliberately refining his work and making her even more perfect than she had been when he met her. All the rounded, soft corners of her 200-year-old child were disappearing and being replaced by the more delicate, nuanced ones of – who she was becoming.

Eli read him, then kissed him on the lips. “Sort of like the way Mama changed her Rose sculpture, and the figures at the top, huh?” She smiled at him and put her arms around his neck. “You’ve changed too, Oskar. You’re quite handsome now. And you’re getting taller than me. You were a shrimp when we met. Like me.”

“You take that back! You were never a shrimp! Only me. You’ve always been beautiful and now, you’re more beautiful still.” His heart ached for her, in spite of the fact that he was already holding her tightly in his arms. He shuddered as he thought about the darkness in the world that only Eli seemed able to hold at bay.

Whenever… it happens, we’ll be together, Oskar. I promise. If you should die, stay nearby, and I’ll be there with you in the blink of an eye.

I promise you the same, Eli. We’ll wait for each other. They both felt the strength of their solemn pact; a pact they both realized had almost been honored that very day.

“You weren’t trying to just stop him, were you Oskar? You were willing to die. Because you though I was dead.”

Oskar nodded, solemnly.

She got a twinkle in her eye. “Oskar, just make sure I’m really dead next time. Don’t make the same mistake Romeo made.”

He kissed her again. “Okay, Juliette. I promise.” He reached up and touched her face, then closed his eyes and with both hands, gently felt every contour of it, touching her lips, her eyes, and finally her slender neck. She so perfect, and so beautiful! His fingers found the faint remnants of her gunshot wound, and his eyes opened. He put his hand over it protectively, trying to will it away.

“It’ll be gone by tomorrow morning Oskar.” she said gently. She put her hand over his and they walked into her room together.

Eli lay down on the bed, pulled Oskar down next to her and pressed his hands to her chest. The powerful 4th movement of Beethoven’s ninth symphony came floating up from the living room. Dear Papa! He always knows the right thing to say.

“I heard this for the first time with…Ernst, Oskar. Over a hundred years ago.”

“How can you stand listening to it then, Eli?” He put his arm around her. She took his hand and squeezed it tight.

“Because I saw your beautiful face for the very first time in this music, Oskar. You called me ‘Eli.’” She reached up and gently touched his cheek. “And you called me ‘Elias.’” She pressed her cheek against his chest. “And you knew what I was, yet still loved me.” She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him gently. He kissed her back more firmly, felt her warmth and her closeness, and felt her rapid heartbeat against his chest. She pulled him tight up against her, wrapped her legs around him, and finally, for the first time ever, they made love to each other -- completely, without reservation, and without boundaries…

The moon shone softly through her Eliglass window, illuminating her bed and the beautiful ebony Rose sculpture Elaine had given her so many years ago. And at long last, it became clear to anyone paying attention that the figures at the top of the sculpture were the personification of these sweet, young children-who-were-no-longer-children, whose entire world shone in each other’s eyes; both of them bathed in the same beautiful moonlight and no longer looking at the rose…but only at each other.

§

Marcus opened the front door, then cursed himself for not having used the peephole first.

“What are you doing here? Our business is finished.”

“Remember our bargain, Marcus? You were to give me everything.”

“And I did. I’m a man of my word.”

“What about the copies under your closet floor?”

Marcus broke out in a cold sweat. How could he possibly know…?

“Aren’t you going to invite me in?”

“Do I have a choice?”

Sava stepped in past him and shut the door. “Not really.”

“I kept them for insurance! Why should I trust you? That’s a lot of money. I was afraid you’d come after me if I gave you everything. I wouldn’t have used them unless you had threatened me.”

Sava sighed, “Then why have you set up an appointment with your Pastor and the church executive committee for tomorrow evening?”

“They’re going to help me with…family problems. I swear!”

Sava’s expression didn’t change. “I don’t believe you.”

“Look. I’ll give them to you and that’ll be the end of it. No harm, no foul.” He headed for the bedroom.

Sava stood by the door as Marcus moved the boxes out of the closet, uncovering the loose boards. Marcus knew his rifle was just to his right, against the inside closet wall. “Once you have these, will you finally just leave me alone? I’m no threat to you once you have them. Who’d believe me?”

“Under certain conditions, I might actually have understood the predicament you seem to find yourself in. But since you tried to kill the children, you‘ve greatly reduced my natural inclination to sympathize with you.”

Marcus froze. “What do you mean? I didn’t…”

“Save it. Your new car is in the shop as we speak, getting a new windshield and luggage rack. Nice vehicle, by the way. I think your estranged wife will enjoy it. It’s a perfect choice for her and the children.”

“Do you know something I don’t?” Is he threatening me?

“I’m absolutely certain of it!” Sava said, sarcastically.

“She won’t get her hands on the car unless she comes home.”

“That’s not going to happen, Marcus.”

So that’s it then. He plans to kill me. He grabbed the rifle, spun around and leveled it at his chest. “Now then. I want you to very carefully take out your gun and put it on the bed.”

“I don’t have a weapon. I’m unarmed.”

“I don’t believe you. Open your jacket.”

Sava slowly removed his jacket, folded it neatly and placed it on the bed. He held his arms out and did a 360. “I told you, I’m unarmed.”

“Then how did you expect to kill me?”

“Actually, I hadn’t made the decision to kill you yet. I was hoping you’d help me with that.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re a religious man. You, of all people, should understand the concept of the ‘wages of sin.’ An eye for an eye?”

Marcus was getting nervous. Why wasn’t this guy scared? Probably because there were many others where he came from. All that money had to come from somewhere, and he realized that if he killed him, there could be repercussions. “What can I do to make this good? Look, I’ve got the upper hand here, and I’m still willing to give you the remaining photos, and let you go.”

“I’m sorry, Marcus. It’s no longer that simple. This is about something bigger than you, if you’re capable of grasping that concept at all.”

“I don’t think you’re in any position right now to be making threats. I could kill you, call the police and tell them I shot you in self-defense after you broke into my house.”

Sava nodded thoughtfully, “Yes. I suppose that might work for you, if you had it in you. And it would certainly make my job easier.”

“What do you mean by that? That doesn’t make any sense at all. You think I don’t have the balls?” Marcus was angry now.

“I wouldn’t know. DO you?”

In one smooth motion, Marcus raised the rifle, fired, and saw the black hole suddenly appear in Sava’s forehead and the blood spatter against the wall behind him. He spun around and dropped to the floor in a motionless heap. Take that, you arrogant son of a bitch.

Marcus threw his rifle on the bed, scrambled to his feet, quickly moved the boxes back into the closet and picked up the phone. Pastor Rawlings would know how to handle this; he’d handled problems like this before…