Seraph

by James Hicks

  He kept walking. Thinking about everything that she said and his subsequent reaction, he wondered how he could have handled it better. He couldn’t tell if it was his own indignant pride that kept him from doing what he knew he should or if it was the fear of disappointing The One after he gave him this wonderful gift and opportunity to do things that he had only read about in the Bible. His thoughts raced and shifted between what Kelly said and what Camilla was doing. He was clearly not paying attention to where he was going and had walked halfway out of town before realizing it. He stopped in the middle of the road and was turning around when something began happening in the spiritual realm that made him stay. John began seeing things in the spirit world as if he were reading a chronicle.

  He began seeing shadows of a past event that had occurred recently. As he stood in the middle of the road he saw headlights heading toward him and a hooded figure standing next to him. As the car kept coming it swerved out of the way and hit a light pole. The car door was kicked off its hinges, and John saw a woman stumble out of the car.

  After a brief conversation between the woman and the man, the woman changed into an angel with fiery hair. John knew this was the “fire woman who burned without burning” that Kelly had told him about and, according to Gabriel, her name was Sophia. He was thrilled to discover his first lead and patiently watched the events develop.

  He watched the battle unfold. He saw everything from their brief conversation to Sophia’s fire being extinguished. He even saw her being dismembered. The entire scene made his blood boil at the being that was obviously a demon. A demon named Ornias, and he was on the top of John’s hit list. John watched Ornias stuff Sophia in the back of his car, and he followed the car back toward town.

  The car stopped at the bar, and Oscar stepped out to talk with a woman named Andrea. By watching these shadows, John discovered who Sophia and Andrea were and where they had disappeared. Yet he didn’t know their current locations and finding them could prove to be difficult. Even though he didn’t know exactly where they were, he knew where to begin searching. This was a much needed break in a case that he didn’t have a whole lot of time to solve.

  It had been about an hour and a half since John had been gone, and the couple was beginning to worry. They hoped he wasn’t lost or hadn’t had another run-in with Officer Smalls. Tommy and Kelly were in their living room talking about her approach in dealing with the stranger who was supposed to be a guest in their home. Tommy was getting dressed, preparing to look for him.

  “Honey, all I’m saying is that we don’t know the young man,” Tommy said, putting on his sneakers. “All you know is that some stranger was coming into town and that he was on an important mission from God. But we don’t know anything about him.”

  “Baby, you know I didn’t mean to offend him; frankly I’m surprised he was.”

  “Really, baby? You basically told him to get his life right. And even though I know the Lord truly speaks to you, it came off as a little judgmental.”

  “Well, that wasn’t my intention. It’s just the Father revealed so many things to me about him, and I wanted him to hear it all . . . to prepare him for what is ahead. . . . Look, I’m sorry.

  “You don’t have to apologize to me or to him; just be careful what you reveal and how you reveal it, that’s all.” He hugged her.

  “Go and find him; I’ll get his bed ready.”

  “I will, honey. I love you.”

  “I love you too, babe.”

  Just then John walked in, and he saw Tommy and Kelly hugging.

  “Hey . . . ,” John said.

  “Hey, I was just going to look for you,” Tommy answered.

  “Sorry about that.”

  “No, no worries, sometimes you have to clear your head and do some soul searching.”

  “Did you find what you were looking for?” Kelly asked.

  “I’m not sure, but something definitely found me. . . . I know where Sophia and Andrea are.”

  “Where is she?” Sally asked, coming down the stairs and getting ready to light a cigarette.

  “She is in Missouri; both of them are.”

  “What do you mean she’s in Missouri?” Sally cried. “She’s supposed to be in California by now . . . something isn’t right; I haven’t spoken to her since she left.”

  “We’ve all been trying to contact her, but have heard nothing . . . ,” Tommy added.

  “Almost like she disappeared off the face of the planet,” Kelly said.

  “And that’s not like her at all,” Sally said beginning to cry, and her brother hugged her while she did. “I’m just so worried; she’s closer to me than my own sisters, and I just don’t know what to do. Please find her . . . and bring her back home.”

  “I will do what I can. I promise.”

  That was all that John could offer. He wasn’t in the habit of making promises he wasn’t sure he could keep, but here he promised Gabriel the safe return of Sophia, Camilla the safe return of himself, and Sally the safe return of Andrea in a matter of one day. Any more promises and he’d have to start making a list. He truly didn’t know how each situation would pan out, but he would try his best to make good on all three. However, before he could do that, he would require sleep. If all went according to plan, he would find both women tomorrow and return home to Camilla no later than the next day. And he was confident he could accomplish this personal goal.

  CHAPTER 7

  Andrea woke up to a surprisingly empty suite. She had gotten used to Oscar waking up either beside her or enjoying a warm drink on the balcony. Oscar would be waiting to surprise her with another marvelous day, or they would spend the day locked away in physical embrace. But today was different; he was nowhere to be found. She wondered where Oscar had gone.

  The only clue to his whereabouts was a letter he wrote to her assuring his return after he met with his business partner. Andrea woke around 10:00 a.m. and waited for Oscar to return. While she waited she began experiencing slight cramps that annoyed her more than anything else but otherwise she felt fine. She waited to hear from him for three hours before calling him.

  Usually whenever she called Oscar, he would answer right away. But his phone rang a bit then went to voicemail, then straight to voicemail, until finally an automated service informed her that his phone had been disconnected. After five hours of calling, she was worried beyond measure.

  She worried about where he might be and wondered if something had happened to him. Then she worried about how she would manage without him. He had been financially responsible for their lavish lifestyle. Although she was technically not far from where she lived, only one state over, she was still alone in a strange town and most of her personal possessions were in her old Wilsonton home.

  The only thing she traveled with was her wallet, which had her ID and a few credit cards. However, there was no trace of Oscar. He hadn’t left his phone, any money, or a way to get in contact with him. She was alone. Andrea remained in the hotel suite all day, ordering room service and awaiting word from Oscar. She was worried sick until she fell asleep.

  Stomach cramps woke her at two o’clock in the morning, according to the alarm clock in her hotel suite. They were the worst cramps she had ever had. She was late on her monthly cycle and normally cramps were a sign that it had arrived, but these cramps were otherworldly. She had no idea where they were coming from. She just knew it was the most unbearable pain, and it brought her to tears.

  Andrea rolled over and reached for the phone to dial 911. She could barely speak, but the operator promised that an EMS unit would arrive shortly. When an ambulance finally arrived, they strapped her to the gurney and carted her to their vehicle. They sped through every stop sign with the sirens blaring to get her to the hospital as soon as possible. Andrea was sedated on the way to help ease her pain and once they arrived, she was wheeled straight into an emergency room.

  A doctor finally arrived and after looking at Andrea’s chart, she decided to perform an
ultrasound. When the doctor finished scanning, Andrea was wheeled to a recovery room and allowed to rest. Andrea slept, no longer worrying about Oscar’s well-being and whereabouts.

  That morning at the Goodwins’, everyone was sleeping. Everyone but Sally, who had awakened for her customary cigarette. Not being allowed to smoke inside her brother’s home, she was forced to go outside. She lit up and took a long drag, playing with the smoke as she inhaled before blowing a smoke ring. It was a perfect circle that eventually lost shape as it made its way upward. The smoke traveled up and rose to the second floor of the humble home. It seeped into John’s room as he slept peacefully and crept into his nostrils. When he took a breath, he woke coughing and gagging. His sense of smell was so powerful that it felt like smoke from a three-alarm fire.

  His body, for all its glory, still hadn’t fully learned how to control its new abilities, but he was being very patient with it. He woke and sat up in bed. The sun shone in his face, and he smiled at its warm embrace. He thanked the Lord for waking him up and being gracious enough to allow him to see another day, but his mind was on the task at hand. Today was his big day. He was going to find and rescue Sophia and Andrea and be home tonight to see Camilla—all in a day’s work. Waking up this early just helped him get a good start to what was surely going to be a memorable day. He dressed and headed downstairs to meet the other early riser; much to his surprise it was Sally.

  “Well, you’re up early,” Sally said.

  “The smoke woke me.”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Sally replied.

  “Oh don’t worry about it; I was planning on being up early anyway.”

  “Yeah, that’s right, you’re some kind of . . . special Christian agent guy or something like that,” she said with a laugh.

  “I don’t really know what I am, but perhaps that’s the most accurate.”

  “You’re gonna try and find Andrea and another lady named Sophia, right?”

  “Yeah, that’s the plan.”

  “I think I met Sophia once. She came to my bar and then struck up a conversation with ’Drea.”

  “Do you know what she looked like?” John asked.

  “Yeah, how could I forget . . . she was a gorgeous ginger . . . certainly my type—” Sally tried to finish her sentence but began violently coughing and spat greenish black sputum on the asphalt pathway. “Excuse me. I’m sorry.”

  “You have lung cancer . . . ,” John said.

  “Excuse me? How do you know that?”

  “I can smell it in the phlegm. It’s stage 4 . . . isn’t it?”

  Sally only nodded her confirmation.

  “Judging by the color and the stench, you should already be dead . . . in fact, you have lived a month longer than you were supposed to already.” John continued.

  “How do you know all this?” Sally asked, stunned at the revelation.

  “I don’t know. I can just tell from looking at you I guess.”

  “What else can you see?” Sally desperately wanted to know.

  So John reached out and took Sally’s hands in an attempt to delve deeper into her illness.

  “Your body is telling me that it has undergone and rejected various rounds of chemotherapy. It’s been trying to grow your hair again and replicate healthier cells, which was proving very difficult until recently . . . your lungs have even begun slightly healing themselves but very slightly, and I suppose the next question is why?” John assessed.

  “I . . . I don’t know what it could be,” Sally said bewildered.

  “Think, Sally . . . I get the sense that there is something new around you that is causing these slight changes,” he pressed.

  “Oh, I think I might know . . . about a month ago I bought a feather and honestly everything in my home began changing for the better.”

  “A feather?”

  “I know it sounds stupid but it’s the most unique thing I’ve ever owned . . . and I’m not the only one. Other people who bought these feathers have experienced all kinds of, I guess you can call them, blessings.”

  “Where is it?” John asked.

  “It’s at my house. I don’t know if the power is on, but the sun is out and that should give us enough light . . . You want to see it?” she wondered.

  “Absolutely.”

  Sally drove John to her home and although the power hadn’t been restored, the power company and the tree removal company were both there. Clearly the tree removal company was a bit peeved at having driven from the next town over to find no tree to be removed. John only smiled. Sally pulled into her driveway and invited John into her small home.

  “Here it is,” she said. “I keep it in this glass case because it’s brought me good luck. Let me tell you the story of this feather. About a month ago, the sheriff and deputies found two of the biggest wings any of them had ever seen. Smalls came running into town telling us all about it. So naturally everybody went down the road to see for ourselves. Tommy was so pissed at Smalls that he almost fired him on the spot.

  “Anyhoo, I’m front and center and lemme tell ya, these wings were the most beautiful and majestic wings any of us had ever seen. I feel sorry for the poor bird they belonged too because something had ripped the wings clear off of its body. There was even blood on parts of the wings, it was kind of sad truthfully.

  “I’d hate to meet the animal that did it, though, because whatever it was had to be bigger and more dangerous. Well, the police didn’t know what to do with them. And I guess they were planning on burning them, but someone said that they wanted a feather and in a town that’s only so big, it’s a whole lot of ‘monkey see, monkey do.’

  “Before you knew it everybody wanted one, but there wasn’t enough feathers for everyone. So they decided they would auction them off. One feather per buyer. Something in me just knew I had to have one . . . Something nice before I die, ya know? I bought the first feather sold for $687.24. That was everything I had in my bank account, but it was well worth it.”

  “Was it?” John asked as he inspected the case and then took the feather in his hands.

  “It sure was. I started noticing small things like . . . not running out of food for one thing, and I always struggled with my bills. In fact, I owed $23,000 in credit card debt and was being harassed by debt collectors and then one day they called me and told me that a glitch in their system had them chasing the wrong Sally Goodwin. And they restored my credit . . . believe me, I remember spending every dollar I owed on those cards . . . and I guess the fact that I’ve been feeling better ever since the moment I touched it.

  “I’ve been sleeping better, and my teeth and face have gotten healthier. I don’t cough as often, despite what you saw this morning, and I don’t even smoke as much . . . but I’m not the only one. Everyone, and I mean everyone, that bought one of these magic feathers has had similar stories . . . not everyone got one before they sold out, but Tom and Kelly didn’t even want one. As if they needed it. They’re always blessed.”

  “I know why Kelly didn’t want one.”

  “She said it was not from this world, but not alien either . . . she’s nice but a bit of a weirdo if you ask me.”

  “It belongs to Sophia; it’s a feather from her wings,” John said with a straight face.

  “C’mon, I was born at night just not last night,” Sally scoffed, lighting up another morning cigarette.

  “Last night I went for a walk and saw her wings get ripped from her body.”

  “And what do you think dun it?”

  “A demon.”

  “Ya see, this is where you lose me. When you start talking ’bout angels and demons.”

  “How else do you explain how well you’ve been doing this past month? Do you think it is more reasonable to believe it is magic rather than spiritual?” John asked, but Sally only looked at him a little bewildered.

  “There are many talents and gifts that angels possess, but all of their power is drawn from God’s Holy Spirit, as is everything in heave
n. So even though having this object in your home has blessed you, it’s really the Holy Spirit that empowers it that has blessed you . . . ,” John tried to explain.

  “Well, I don’t care where it came from, it works.”

  “If you don’t mind I would like to keep this, it will help me find Sophia.”

  “Well wait a minute, you can’t have it. What am I gonna do without it?” Sally began panicking.

  “Do you want to live?” John asked.

  “Of course I do but that feather is my only chance to live longer.”

  “No, it’s not. I can heal you if you want to be healed.”

  “Oh yeah, how on earth are you gonna do that? The doctor gave me seven months to live eight months ago. . . . If you take that with you, I’ll probably die tonight. . . . And I’m . . . terrified . . . Can you really help me?” Sally confessed her fear.

  “The same power that has been healing you this past month is more than able to do it for the rest of your life—if you are willing to take a leap of faith. . . . Are you willing to jump?” John asked.

  “Yes . . . ,” Sally said quietly and then once more sure of her decision.

  John Summers approached Sally and placed his hands on her chest, right where the tumor was located, and began praying. The prayer wasn’t long and drawn out. It was actually quite short and sweet, a few sentences at most. That heartfelt prayer, coupled with Sally’s own faith and willingness to be healed, led to the miracle she experienced in her home. When John finished his prayer he finished with, “In Jesus’ name, Amen.” Sally felt instantly better and removed the cigarette from her mouth. She looked at John in a most astonished way, as if she knew she had been healed. Her eyes said it all as they welled up with tears.

  “Who are you? Really.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’ve gone to all kinds of doctors, been through four different rounds of chemo, and I’ve even tried faith healers. I’ve seen psychics and witch doctors, and even Kelly herself has prayed for me many times. What is different about you?”