Darlington Woods

by Mike Dellosso

  "-but men loved darkness instead of light."

  "Shut up now."

  Rob looked at Juli. Her head was up, eyes firmly fixed on Wax Man. "God, who said, `Let light shine out of darkness-"'

  "I'll tear your tongue out," the man yelled. His face was contorted with revulsion.

  Juli turned her face toward Rob. Her eyes met his, and he found peace in them, not fear. --made His light shine in our hearts.' In your heart, Rob."

  The man across the room spun around, screaming like an Indian warrior, snatched up the lantern, and threw it against the wall. The thing exploded in a spray of glass, and the light flashed and went out. The room was engulfed in darkness once again. Juli's hand found Rob's immediately, and she said, "He's in your heart, Rob. I know He is."

  She was right, he knew. When he was a boy of five, he'd given his life to Jesus. The past twenty-two years had been ruled by fear, an irrational fear with no beginning. And that fear had paralyzed him. Like it did now.

  He heard the man say, "Now, welcome the darkness," and the door scraped open.

  Eighteen

  WAKENED FROM SLEEP, THE OLD WOMAN SAT ON -the edge of her bed and combed the sleep cobwebs from her head. She'd gone to bed early, not feeling well. The spiritual battle that raged not far from her home (and heart) had taken its toll on her physically.

  But now she was awake. She rubbed her eyes and folded a loose lock of hair behind her ear. Her fingers were stiff and sore. Slowly and with much effort, she stood and took those first few steps. If the soreness in her hands was bad, it was twice as bad in her knees. They felt like two dry gears trying to turn on one another, neither gaining any ground. Eventually the movement caused some lubrication in the joint, and things started moving a little easier.

  The kitchen was dark when she arrived there. The fluorescent light above the sink was out. Odd, because she left it on all the time. She thought maybe the bulb just burned out but then remembered she'd had it changed just a few months ago. And it always lasted a lot longer than a few months.

  Flipping the switch on the wall for the overhead light, she found it to be out too. And there was no time on the microwave. That explained it; the power had gone out.

  But it was more than just a power outage. She sensed it.

  Standing in the middle of her kitchen, surrounded on three sides by countertop and on the fourth side by a refrigerator, she felt it, the presence.

  Tonight was the night. The night the man would have to make a choice: face his fear and step into the light, or surrender everything and lose it all.

  Despite the malevolent presence, she felt the overwhelming need to pray, to intercede, to lift up the man and the child accompanying him.

  She dropped where she was and knelt on the linoleum. Almost immediately she was assaulted by wicked thoughts, hateful emotions, vile images. From somewhere inside her these revolting things surfaced, brought to the forefront of her mind by the presence.

  Falling prone she spread out her arms and legs and hugged the floor. "Abba!" she cried. "Set me free from this evil vice. Let me focus on You."

  A great weight pressed down on her and spread over her back, pushing her into the floor and squeezing the air from her lungs. It felt like a man was standing on her back. "Rescue me, Abba. Save me, Jesus."

  The weight lightened and then disappeared, and she was left alone on the floor breathing hard. Now she had to turn her attention to the man. This was his time, his moment.

  "Show him Your light, Abba. Let him see it in his own heart so he may shine Your light."

  The old woman rolled over and lay on her back. Usually, her back would be screaming now, protesting the hardness of the kitchen floor, but she felt nothing. She was in a trance of sorts, fully focused on the task at hand. Everything else seemed to be inconsequential or to not exist at all.

  "Let him find Your light, Abba. Let him find Your light... " Over and over she said it in a tone that resembled a chant. This was the man's moment, and so much rested on it. No matter what he decided, he would never be the same again; his life would be changed forever.

  Hours passed like minutes, and still the old woman prayed until at last she stopped and whispered the final "Amen." She had done all that was possible; the rest was up to the man and the child.

  She rose from the floor, got dressed, and did the only thing left to do: go to Darlington.

  A cold wind blew through the room, and the sound of footsteps and grunts and hisses drowned the hum of the turbines. Rob could feel the presence of the horde, as if they'd displaced the darkness, and it was now pressing in heavier on him.

  Beside him, Juli said in a calm voice, "Let your light shine, Rob."

  But Rob did nothing. What could he do? This was it. They were both going to die like Asher had.

  "Let your light shine."

  Footsteps approached them, and Rob could hear the thing breathing heavily, wheezing.

  "Light up the darkness, Rob."

  "I don't have a light."

  From across the room, Wax Man started laughing.

  The thing was beside him, inches from his face. He could feel its body against his, its hot breath against his neck.

  "His light is in your heart."

  Suddenly, pain shot up the back of Rob's leg, and he fell to his knees. The darkling grabbed his hair and yanked his head back.

  Wax Man's voice was closer now. "It's time you know the truth, Robby."

  Juli hollered, "Let your light shine, Rob."

  A voice went off in Rob's head then. Jimmy's voice, saying one of his Bible verses. I am the light of the world.

  Something sharp traced a line on Rob's neck.

  "You and I," Wax Man said, "we have something very unique in common."

  I am the light of the world.

  "Light up the darkness."

  "Shut your trap," Wax Man yelled, and Rob heard a sharp smacking sound.

  The thing holding Rob's head hissed, and one of the other darklings across the room let out a scream.

  "The light is in you-" Juli's voice was cut short by another smack.

  At once, Rob got it. He got it. Everything clicked. The decision he'd made when he was five. I am the light of the world. His light in our hearts. Let your light shine.

  Let your light shine. Light up the darkness.

  "You took something from me." It was Wax Man again, but Rob could barely hear his voice. "You took everything from me, so I took something from you. Now I'm going to take the rest."

  Rob relaxed himself and let the fear melt. It held no power over him. It had no place in his heart. He would fear the darkness no more.

  Jesus...

  The hand relaxed its grip on his hair.

  ...I surrender.

  In a small, distant voice, Wax Man said, "You put me-" Then, as if someone flipped a switch, a light exploded from within Rob, shining outward like a thousand forks of lightning. Warmth poured over him like liquid.

  The darklings cowered and screamed and writhed in agony, pressing against one another and clawing at their eyes. Wax Man hit the floor cursing wildly.

  "Go," Juli yelled. And they both made a dash for the door.

  Still glowing like a thousand-watt lightbulb, Rob hit the concrete corridor outside the room running. It was long and straight, and there was a stairwell at the far end. The sound of his sneakers slapping the concrete sounded like thunder claps. He looked at his hands, amazed. Light radiated from his palms and fingertips like high-powered spotlights.

  "All stairs lead up and out," Juli yelled from behind him.

  As they neared the stairwell, Rob's light began to dim. He looked back, but neither darkling nor dark-eyed man followed.

  Up one flight of stairs they climbed, then two, and three. At the top of the third flight was a steel gray door with a small square window and crash bar. Rob didn't even slow down when he hit the bar. The door flew open, and he and Juli stood on top of the spillway, sucking in the cool night air. Rob stopped, bent at the
waist, and pulled air into his lungs. His legs were rubber, barely holding him up. His light was out now, and he was just Rob again.

  Juli walked to the edge of the spillway and looked at the water below. She didn't even appear to be out of breath.

  "Would you mind explaining what happened back there?" Rob asked.

  Juli turned and faced him, her hands on the railing. "Let your light shine," she said with a smile. "You found the light inside you."

  "You're bleeding," Rob said. Her upper lip was swollen on the left side, and blood smeared across her cheek.

  "It was worth it." She ran a sleeve over her cheek.

  Rob stood erect and put his hands on his hips. "I wasn't afraid."

  "And that was some light show you put on."

  "Jimmy's out there. I have to go to him. I can feel the pull." He was referring to the invisible tether he'd felt the day before in the woods. It was there again, gently tugging him, leading him back into the woods. And the darkness. But this time, he felt no fear.

  "You sure you want to trust that? Last time it was a trick."

  "It's different this time. I know where he is. I have to go. Will you come with me?"

  "Right by your side."

  Rob looked back at the open door. "Will they come again? The darklings."

  Juli shrugged. "They'll always be there, in the darkness. You just choose not to fear them." She smiled again. "And let your light shine."

  "And what about the creep with the eyes?"

  Juli shuddered. "He's that unwanted guest that just won't leave."

  "He murdered Kelly." He said the words like the bad taste they were.

  "I'm sorry," she said. "I'm sorry you had to hear all that. He's murdered before too. But justice will find him."

  Rob felt Jimmy's pull even stronger now. He turned and started walking across the spillway. "I have to go to Jimmy

  They walked, then jogged across the length of the spillway and around the powerhouse with its large glass windows and power grid above. Inside, the massive turbines churned away, rotating the generators and producing electricity from the power of water.

  When they stepped off the dam and onto asphalt again, Rob stopped and faced the woods. "Somewhere in there, there's a broken-down shack, and in that shack is my son." He looked at Juli. "I'm going to get my son."

  "Let's close this matter once and for all."

  PART SIX

  The enemy is fear. We think it is hate; but it is fear.

  -MAHATMA GANDHI

  Nineteen

  VEN WITHOUT A FLASHLIGHT THE WOODS DIDN'T seem as dark as before, nor did they seem as menacing. Juli breathed in the scent of the wild, the smell of pine and bark and leaves. It brought back memories of hiking as a kid and camping with friends. A time when the woods were void of darklings and things that screamed in the night. When there was nothing there to fear but your own imagination. A time when nightmares were just dreams, restricted to the bony confines of your skull.

  Back there, in that room with him, she'd never felt what she had experienced. It wasn't fear-no, not quite-but more like revulsion. She could feel the evil oozing from him; he was so immersed in it. But what surprised her and bothered her more was that she felt no pity for him, no compassion at all.

  Reaching to her lip, Juli touched it tenderly. It throbbed only a little now and was more numb than sore and made her think of her mother and the punishment she had endured. How many fat lips had she nursed? But back in that room it was a small price to pay for what was accomplished. She was still having a difficult time believing what she saw, but she couldn't deny that it had happened.

  Rob was just feet ahead of her, methodically picking his way through the woods. His glow was gone now, not even a spark remained. If she hadn't witnessed it with her own eyes, she would say it was the stuff of urban legends or modern myths. Man glows to drive off horde of demon creatures. But why was she so surprised? She knew God was capable of providing a way of escape. After all, isn't that what she had been praying for?

  Stepping over a fallen tree, doing her best to keep pace with Rob, Juli prayed a silent petition for protection. She knew what happened back there in the dam was not the end. It wasn't over. Rob may have conquered his fear and found the light within, but there was still Darlington to deal with, and that place dripped with fear and darkness.

  Darlington would have to make its own stand, but right now, she had to be there for Rob when he needed her most.

  It was after midnight the next time Rob looked at his watch. He no longer counted the hours until sunrise. He had only one thing on his mind: finding the shack that held his son. He allowed himself to be pulled by the unseen tether, straight through the woods. It was slow going, what with navigating fallen trees, broken limbs, stands of honeysuckle, saplings, and tangles of kudzu, but progress was being made. As they grew closer to the final destination, the pull felt stronger, as if it were no longer just a pull anymore but a push as well.

  Rob had told Juli about the pull early on, and she followed silently, only adding commentary or asking a question occasionally.

  At one point, after ascending a steep incline, Rob stopped to sit on a fallen tree and catch his breath. His legs were tired, and his mouth and throat felt like he'd been eating sand.

  Juli stood before him. "Does that GPS of yours have a destination arrival time?"

  Rob shook his head. "No" He looked around. "It could be right here; it could be clear on the other side of the state."

  He bent over and rested his elbows on his knees. Juli's hand rested on his head. "We'll keep walking until we find it. You need this."

  He did need it, both the walk and finding Jimmy. After all that transpired the past few days and then coming off of whatever it was that happened in that room with the light, he needed some time to clear his head. And as long as they were making progress and getting closer to Jimmy, he was OK with it. His heart constantly urged him to run, but his mind reminded him that he had no idea how far he'd be traveling, and if he ran now, he may not have the stamina to finish the journey. Better to walk it now and run when he felt he should. And he was sure that when the time came and they were within running distance, the pull would trigger it.

  Rob ran his fingers through his hair and rubbed his face with both hands. "Your father, did he do time for what he did to you and your mom?"

  Juli was quiet for a few seconds. "He did time but not nearly enough. It would never be enough. He's one really bad dude."

  "I'm sorry you live with that. It can't be easy."

  "No, it can't be."

  Standing again, Rob checked the time. Three forty. He looked around, but their surroundings looked the same as they had for the past three hours. Trees, shrubs, kudzu, leaves, all dusted with moonlight and dappled with shadows. A thought entered his mind then: What if they'd been walking in circles? How would he even know? What if the pull was just a trick of his mind, like so many of the hallucinations he'd suffered? What if he was no closer to Jimmy than he was when he stepped off the dam?

  No. He pushed the doubts aside. The pull was real. He could feel it now, tugging like someone had attached a rope to his sternum. The pull was strong enough that he felt like he almost had to take a step forward to maintain his balance. And the more he focused on it, the more intense it got. Finally, he had to take a clumsy step forward or he would have fallen on his face.

  Juli must have noticed. "You OK there?"

  "The pull, the more I think about it, the stronger it gets." He took another awkward step forward. "It's like I have to keep moving."

  Rob could feel Jimmy now too. Like his son was inside him and they were one. He knew his fear, his loneliness, his tears as if they were his own.

  Clearing his throat and wiping at his eyes, Rob said, "Let's keep moving. I think we're close."

  Huddled in the corner of the cabin, knees pulled up to his chin, the boy buries his face in his hands and cries, but he has no more tears. His eyes are dry. Dirt is dried on his pal
ms and caked under his fingernails. Mommy would have a royal fit if she saw his hands this way. His shirt is ripped too. That upsets him more than his dirty hands. He lifts his head and looks around again. Not that he hasn't before, because he has. His eyes have adjusted to the darkness, and the little bit of moonlight that peeks in through the cracks in the roof is enough to lighten the place just enough. Like the nightlight in his bedroom at home.

  He'd be lying like a dog if he said he wasn't scared, but that isn't why he's crying, or at least trying to cry. No, he's crying because he knows he'll never see his mommy and daddy again. There's no way anyone will ever find him out here in the woods, and the man will come back in the morning and take him even farther away. Then he'll be lost forever ... or worse.

  The inside of the cabin isn't much to look at. There's no furniture, no kitchen area, and no stove. Just four walls and a floor. A dirty, wavy floor that kind of sags when you walk on it. He's already tried the door a hundred times, but it won't open; it just jiggles like the change in Daddy's pocket. It must be locked from the outside.

  He thinks of Mommy and the way she smiles at him in the morning and the times he's helped her make cookies for Daddy and her kisses at nighttime. He pictures her eyes and how they crinkle up when she laughs. Then he thinks of playing soccer in the backyard with Daddy and trying to get around his big legs and quick feet. He loves it when Daddy picks him up and takes him "high in the air" over his shoulder, turning him almost upside down. He laughs so hard his belly hurts. And then Daddy laughs so hard his face turns all red and his ears wiggle.

  Thinking about them makes him cry again, but still, no tears come.

  He stands and walks over to the door. Pushes on it. Bangs on it with his fist. Kicks at it. But it is still locked. He leans up against it and tries to pray, but the words just won't come. He doesn't understand this. It's as if someone's holding his tongue and not letting it say words. And every time he tries to pray he gets even more scared. He could swear someone is in the room with him, watching him. But, of course, he looks around and no one is there.