by Bill Myers
“Yes sir,” the driver answered and reached for his two-way radio.
Out the window Elijah caught a glimpse of someone standing next to the road. Someone who looked just like the old man who had explained the Bible verses to him back at the restaurant … and exactly like the homeless man who had helped them escape back in Los Angeles.
The little guy closed his eyes and silently began to pray.
Suddenly, the driver slammed on his brakes and they skidded, barely missing the Jeep and RV which were stopped just ahead.
“What isss thisss?” Shadow Man growled.
Elijah opened his eyes and saw that the road ahead had been blocked by a van — the same dark green van that had been following them ever since Los Angeles. A moment later, the woman with flaming red hair and her two assistants tumbled out and raced toward the RV.
Angrily, Shadow Man opened his own door and stepped out, “What are you doing?”
In the confusion, Elijah hoped to escape. He reached for the door and opened it gently. But immediately an alarm began to beep.
“Hey!” the driver looked in the mirror. “What are you — ”
Elijah hopped out and was about to make a run for it, but the driver was too quick. He leaped from the car and grabbed the boy. Elijah put up a fight, squirming and twisting, but it did no good. Within seconds the driver had tossed him back into the car and slammed the door.
As the driver slipped back behind the wheel, Elijah reached for the door handle, hoping to try again. But the driver spotted him and hit the auto lock. It came down with a soft click.
He grinned sinisterly at Elijah through the mirror. The boy slumped into the seat, unsure what to do. He watched as the driver spoke into his two-way radio.
“What’s happening up there?” the man asked.
A gruff voice answered. “It’s Monica and her two goons!”
“Oh no,” the driver groaned.
“She didn’t know we got the kid. Thought she’d try to nab him from the RV.”
The driver shook his head. “Idiots.”
Elijah looked back out his window and was happy to again see the old man. He stood at the edge of the woods and gave the slightest nod to the boy. Immediately, the lock to the door clicked up.
The driver was too busy talking into the radio to notice. “What’s Shadow Man gonna do to her?” he asked.
Elijah reached for the door handle.
“I dunno,” the gruff voice replied. “But I sure wouldn’t want to be in her shoes.”
In one quick move, Elijah yanked open the door and leaped out.
“Hey!” the driver shouted. But he was too late. Elijah was already dashing into the dark forest.
Chapter Five
On the Run
Piper wanted to be strong. She stood on the side of the road, trying to stop the tears from coming, but she couldn’t. And with her hands cuffed behind her back, she couldn’t wipe them away either.
How could things get any worse? Not only was she handcuffed, but so were Mom and Dad. Plus her little brother had been kidnapped, and Zach was missing. Plus they were on a road so remote she doubted that they’d see any cars for the next hour … or day … or year.
“Maybe we should figure out where the nearest town is,” Dad suggested, “and start walking to it.”
“What if Zach tries to come back here?” Mom asked.
Dad sighed. She was right, of course, but he found it almost impossible to wait around when his youngest child was in such great danger.
“Are you okay, sweetheart?”
Piper looked over to see her mother watching her. “Yeah,” she sniffed, then glanced away. “I’m fine.” But she knew she wasn’t. And she knew Mom knew.
“We can’t let ourselves get discouraged.” Piper could hear the thickness in her mother’s voice. She knew she was talking as much to herself as to her. “We’re going to be all right. God’s looking out for us.”
Piper blew the hair out of her eyes and breathed out slowly in a long, quiet sigh. If this was God’s version of looking out for them, she’d hate to see what would happen if he didn’t. It wasn’t that she doubted God. She knew he existed and all. But if he was supposed to be so loving, why had he let all this hard stuff happen to them? Why didn’t he just —
“Shhh,” Dad motioned them to get down. “There’s something in the woods.”
Piper turned to look behind them. It was true, something was moving in the bushes!
Dad eased himself protectively in front of Mom and Piper. Not that he could do much with his hands cuffed behind his back.
The rustling came closer.
“What is it?” Mom whispered. “A bear?”
Dad motioned them to crouch closer to the ground. They did so, still peering into the darkness.
It was fifteen feet away.
“Should we run?” Piper whispered.
Dad shook his head.
It continued approaching until it was ten feet from them.
Now Piper could make out a shape in the shadows. It was big and dark —
Eight more feet.
Almost the size of a man.
Piper watched, refusing to look away. If she was going to die, she wanted to know how. She wanted to see it coming and face it down.
Seven feet.
It was nearly on top of them. For the briefest second she caught a glimpse of what might be a face.
Six feet.
Suddenly, it opened what must have been its mouth and let out the world’s biggest…
BELCH!
This was immediately followed by a terrible stench. A stench that could only come from a…
“Nuclear Burrito!” Piper cried.
“Hey, everybody!” Zach grinned.
Dad could only shake his head. “Zachary …”
Before he could continue, Zach stepped aside. “Look what I found!” And there, behind him, stood little Elijah, smiling his biggest smile.
The family walked the twisting mountain road for nearly half an hour before they stumbled upon their vehicles. Above them, up on the hillside, Shadow Man’s thugs were searching the forest, the beams of their flashlights crisscrossing back and forth.
“What’s going on?” Zach whispered.
“They’re searching for Eli,” Dad answered.
“What do we do?”
Dad motioned them back behind some boulders. Once there, they worked out a plan. Piper listened, trying to concentrate, but it was hard to pay attention with the handcuffs cutting deeper and deeper into her wrists.
Finally, the plan was set.
Since Zach had no handcuffs, he went first. He dashed across the road to the Jeep, keeping as low as possible. Once he arrived, he quietly opened the back door. Leaving it open, he crossed around to the driver’s side, opened that door, and slid in behind the wheel where he ducked out of sight.
Now it was Elijah’s turn.
He ran across the road and dove through the back door Zach had left open.
Next came Piper. It was hard for her to climb into the car with the handcuffs holding her arms behind her back. Zach and Elijah pulled, and she twisted and squirmed until she finally made it inside.
Then it was Mom’s turn.
And finally Dad, who took some extra pulling.
Once everyone was inside, Elijah quietly pulled the door shut.
“Okay, Zach,” Dad whispered. “Go for it!”
Zach turned on the ignition, and the Jeep roared to life.
In the woods, the flashlights stopped moving. They all turned and merged into one giant beam … pointed at the Jeep.
Zach hit the gas. The tires spun, spitting gravel, and the family took off.
Piper looked over her shoulder to see the flashlights bouncing to the cars. It would take a couple minutes before they arrived and started after the family, but she knew they would soon be coming.
Zach pressed the accelerator, picking up speed.
“Be careful, Son,” Dad warned. “T
hese curves are sharp.”
Zach nodded and slowed slightly. For a moment silence filled the car. But Piper had too many questions for it to last long.
“Um, Dad?”
“Yes.”
“Now’s probably not a good time to ask, but …”
“Go ahead,” he said. “Ask away.”
“Okay. I’m wondering, I mean, if it’s not too much bother, could you tell us, you know — what’s going on? ” She didn’t mean to yell, it just sort of came out that way.
Mom and Dad traded looks. Dad arched an eyebrow. Mom hesitated, and then gave a little nod. Dad returned it and began.
“We can’t tell you everything, because those thugs want the same information. The less you know, the safer you’ll all be. But we can tell you this much.” He took a breath. “Your brother is … well, he’s special.”
“Thanks!” Zach called from behind the wheel.
“Not you,” Piper said.
“You’re special too,” Dad chuckled, and then he grew serious. “It’s just, well, there’s a lot more to Elijah than you realize.”
Piper looked over to her little brother who was curled up in Mom’s lap, his eyes already closed. It wasn’t a big surprise. Lots of times when everybody was nervous, he was completely relaxed. Other times when everyone was relaxed, he was really nervous.
Mom looked at Elijah and continued the explanation. “We knew something was up, even when he was a baby.”
“Like what?” Zach asked.
“Oh, just little things.”
“Such as?”
Once again Mom traded looks with Dad.
“I don’t think you’re ready for that information,” Dad said. “Not just yet.”
Zach grunted his disapproval from the driver’s seat.
“We’ll tell you when it’s time,” Mom said. “But for now, the important thing to know is that Elijah is special. And that there are others — an organization of others — who also know it.”
“That’s why they want him? Because he’s special?” Zach asked.
“Yes.”
“But there’s something else.”
Piper turned to Dad, waiting for more.
He hesitated just a moment before continuing. “We’re in a battle. We’ve been in one for a while, but now it’s getting worse.”
Zach motioned over his shoulder. “You mean with those goons back there.”
Dad shook his head. “It’s more than that. It’s a spiritual battle.”
“Like the devil and stuff?” Piper asked.
Dad nodded. “Yes.”
She felt goose bumps rise and crawl across her arms as a shiver went through her body.
Zach had a different response. “Cool!”
Piper cleared her throat. “That sounds kind of, you know … scary.”
Dad shook his head. “It doesn’t have to be. Remember, as Christians, we have power over the enemy.”
Piper did remember, but it didn’t make her any more relaxed.
“That’s the war we’re fighting,” Dad said. “And that’s the war we’re going to win.”
Piper looked from her mother to her father. She was grateful for their faith. And she had little doubt that they had enough to succeed.
She just wasn’t sure she did.
She looked out the window in time to see a jagged fork of lightning cut through the darkness. A moment later, the thunder followed, pounding and rolling through the sky.
Meanwhile, in the Hummer, Shadow Man was in no hurry to catch up with the family. The tracker attached to the bottom of the Jeep would always tell him where they were. No matter what they tried or what they did, the family would never be able to get away.
Never.
Chapter Six
The Crash
Zach glanced into the rearview mirror. He knew the bad guys weren’t far behind. Up above, the sky flashed with bright, jagged forks of lightning. Thunder rumbled as Dad continued his discussion on spiritual warfare.
“Remember when you were all kids?” Dad said. “How I made you memorize Ephesians 6 from the Bible?”
“How could we forget,” Zach groaned. “You had us say it like a billion times.”
“Do you still remember it?” Dad asked.
Piper spoke up from the back: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers …”
Reluctantly, Zach join in, “ … against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
Dad nodded. “And the next verse?”
Zach frowned, but Piper continued:
“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground.”
“Very good,” Dad smiled. “I guess you were listening after all.”
Mom spoke up. “And do you remember the weapons God gives us to fight with?”
“That one’s easy,” Zach said. “The sword of the spirit, which is the word of God.”
“And the shield of faith,” Piper added.
“And prayer,” Zach added. “It’s not on the list, but we’ve seen it do some major damage.” He glanced in the mirror and spotted his sister.
“And don’t forget worship,” Piper said. “Like singing to God and stuff.”
Mom agreed. “The devil really hates that. Remember how we used to sing, Jesus loves me, this I know?” As the family nodded, all remembering, the radio suddenly crackled to life.
“Come in, Dawkins family. Dawkins family, can you hear me?”
Everyone froze … until Zach broke out laughing.
“What is that?” Mom asked.
“Not what,” Zach grinned. “Who. It’s Willard, good ol’ Willard.”
“On our radio?” Piper asked.
Dad motioned out the window. “Look at that!”
Two shapes were flying about a dozen feet above the car and to the right.
“It’s Willard and Cody!” Zach exclaimed. At least he thought it was. It was kinda hard to tell with them hanging upside down and all. It was even harder to tell when Willard zigged and zagged, just missing a billboard.
Unfortunately, Cody wasn’t quite so lucky. He zagged when he should have zigged and busted through the billboard.
“Oh, no!” Piper pressed against her window and watched the aerial acrobatics.
Now they were bouncing up and down like jet-propelled pogo sticks.
This time it was Cody’s voice they heard over the radio. But he didn’t do much talking. In fact, it was just one word. Still, you could definitely tell he wasn’t thrilled about what was happening:
“WIL-IL-IL-IL-IL-IL-LARD-ARD-ARD-ARD-ARD-ARD …”
A moment later and Willard’s voice came back on the radio: “Dawkins family, listen up. There is a transmitting device planted on your Jeep. You are being tracked and must — ”
Lightning lit up the sky around them, and static filled the radio.
“Are they all right?” Mom gasped.
Dad leaned forward to look up through the windshield and search the sky.
So did Zach, which explains why he didn’t see the sharp bend in the road just before the bridge.
“Look out!” Dad shouted.
But he was too late. The Jeep shot off the side of the road, and suddenly they were airborne. Mom and Piper screamed as the car sailed through the air, heading straight for the river.
“Hang on!” Dad yelled.
The nose of the car dropped, and Zach braced himself as the river raced toward them.
“Everybody hang — ”
They slammed into the water. Zach’s seat belt dug into his chest as airbags exploded all around. The Jeep righted itself and floated as icy cold water poured in through the floorboards. Everyone was shouting and screaming.