XXXII
Paige
didn’t know what to think. She stared
across the little office they had found at the old man sitting on the floor
opposite her and wondered who he really was.
“So, this
cult is behind everything tonight?” she asked, unsure if she believed it.
“I think
so,” Henry replied, then, rubbing his head, added, “It’s the only explanation
that makes any sense, anyway.”
“And you’ve
known about this cult all your life?”
“Pretty
much,” he agreed.
“Then why
did you deny everything you saw until just now? Why all the complaining and telling us that none of it was
real. Why did you put us through so
much extra misery, Henry, when you knew all along what was happening?”
He let
out a bitter little laugh and nodded, “You’re quite right, Paige, I’ve been a
fool, but you see, I never believed any of it, not really, not even when I
believed so much else. It’s ironic that
I should have to live through it.”
“Yeah,”
Paige replied just as bitterly, “ironic.
I suppose we’ll all look back on this nightmare and laugh, shall we?”
Henry’s
eyes darkened. “I’ve admitted that I’ve
been a fool. Don’t be a bigger one by
not listening to what I’m saying now.”
She
looked away, feeling ashamed and not really wanting to show it. Eventually she turned back to face him. He looked old and tired and sad, but his
anger had departed him. “Sorry,” she
said.
“What did
your family have to do with the cult, then?” Charlie asked from where he was
huddled up beside Paige.
“We made
it out job, as members of the clergy, to look out for signs that the cult was
active and to take action where necessary.”
“What
sort of action?”
“I don’t
recall all the details. It seemed to me
that my father was pretty vague on that point,” he rubbed his head nervously
again, “I guess I wasn’t paying full attention.”
“If this
cult is real and these demons they seem to be calling forth, or working with,
or whatever, are real, then does that mean…”
She let her question dissolve into the silence and Henry stared at her
as if trying to read the words she didn’t say on her face.
“That God
is real?” he finished for her. “No. I don’t think it does. The existence of the supernatural is not
proof positive of all kinds of supernatural and the existence of demons does
not presuppose the existence of God.
Indeed, all I’ve seen tonight only make me more sure that that is no
God.”
“Why?”
“Because
I cannot believe in a God who would let this happen to us.”
But we’re
still alive, despite all we’ve faced and we’ve made it this far, somehow. What about Charlie’s sense of someone
guiding us? The snippet of Bible
verse she had remembered before came to her once again. Remember to be strong and brave…
“So what
do we do now?”
“I
suppose we should continue trying to look for Josh.”
“Do you
really believe he’s still alive?”
“I don’t
know,” Henry admitted, “but I don’t know what else to do.”
“Then we’ll
look,” Paige replied, starting to rise to her feet. She felt so tired, but Henry was right, what else could they
do? “Come one, Charlie, let’s get
moving again.”
Remember
to be strong and brave…
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