by Mark Tilbury
Ebb’s smile evaporated. ‘But you’ll soon acclimatise. In fact, I can guarantee you will come to hate artificial flavours as your taste buds return to their normal state.’
Ben doubted it. Salt and ketchup had got him through some of his mother’s worst culinary disasters. He stared at his mug of tea and wondered how the hell Ebb considered milk to be artificial.
Ebb pursed his lips. ‘Most of the allergies and illnesses in the western world are caused by poor diet and a tendency towards gluttony.’
Ben tried to marry Ebb’s words with the man’s waistline. Ebb seemed unaware of the contradictions.
‘Here at The Sons and Daughters of Salvation, we only take what we need, and need what we take.’
Alice bowed her head. ‘Amen.’
‘Indulgence is a sin.’
Alice agreed. The glasses perched on the end of her nose made her look like an old school mistress.
Ebb blew steam from his mug and took a sip of tea. ‘The indulgences of the free world are banned here. Your system will soon learn to dismiss them.’
Alice crossed herself. ‘Praise Jesus.’
Ebb turned his attention to Ben. ‘What’s your poison, Benjamin?’
‘Huh?’
‘Stand up, Benjamin.’
Ben stood. His knee begged for an ice pack. One–nil to the tormentors of Stutter-buck.
Ebb studied Ben for a few seconds. And then said, ‘Please refrain from such banal responses. “Huh” is not an answer.’
‘Sorry.’
‘Sorry, Father,’ Alice corrected.
Ebb put his mug on the table. ‘What’s your indulgence, Benjamin? Alcohol? Cream? Pork?’
‘I like sugar in my tea,’ Ben blurted.
Ebb regarded him as if he’d just admitted to liking murder. ‘Sugar is the Devil’s dust.’
‘Amen,’ Alice agreed.
‘The Devil sprinkles it like fairy dust. But what are his motives?’
Sweat trickled down Ben’s back. The coarse material of the overalls rubbed against his skin. He wanted to tell Ebb he suffered from eczema. That his mother had to rub cream into his back sometimes. That the itching drove him mad when it flared up. But Ebb would only attribute the eczema to his western indulgences and tell him that a radical change of diet would soon clear up his skin.
Ebb continued. ‘His motives are simple. He wants to weigh us down. He wants to turn us into slugs, slithering in the slime of our own excesses.’
Alice bowed her head. ‘We shall not succumb.’
Ebb banged the table. The loose flesh around his chin rippled. ‘We must resist temptation.’
‘I can do without sugar,’ Ben said, afraid that he was about to be carted away and flogged to within an inch of his waistline.
Ebb held up a hand. ‘The Devil serves behind the counter of every single outlet in every single town. It is our duty to stand against him.’
Alice crossed herself. ‘We shall not be tempted, Father.’
‘From the bakery to the burger bar, he peddles his filth.’
‘We see him, Father.’
‘Indeed we do, Sister Alice. He is mustard gas on a succulent beef sandwich.’
Alice pushed her glasses up her nose and sniffed. She didn’t seem to have a response to Ebb’s somewhat cryptic statement.
Ebb continued on less confusing ground. ‘But we will flush him out. Flush him out and send him to burn in the pits of Hell for all eternity.’
Alice seemed more comfortable with this. ‘Amen.’
Ebb dabbed his face with a sodden handkerchief. ‘Sit down, Benjamin.’
As Ben sat down, his knee cracked and almost spilled him to the floor.
Ebb studied him. ‘Are you all right, Pixie-pea?’
‘Yes, Father,’ Ben lied. ‘I’m fine.’
Ebb turned to Alice. ‘Gather the troops. It’s time to introduce everyone. Brother Bubba’s in the barn. I told Brother Marcus to tell him to come in before he relieved Tweezer up the tower, but he can be inclined to grow moss on his brain. Give him a nudge.’
‘Yes, Father. Right away.’
13
Dressed in bright yellow overalls, The Sons and Daughters of Salvation filed into the kitchen one at a time and sat at the huge pine table. Ben looked at the two women sitting either side of Sister Alice. Neither bore any resemblance to the photograph of Emily Hunt.
With everyone settled, Ebb stood at the head of the table and clasped his hands in front of him. ‘Thank you, one and all, for coming. I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce you to Benjamin and Madeline. They will be joining us for the journey.’
There was a smattering of greetings and polite smiles.
Ebb smiled at Ben. ‘Stand up and tell the group about yourself.’
Ben held onto the table for support. Every muscle in his body ached. ‘I’m Ben,’ he managed, as all cohesive thought abandoned his head. What was he supposed to say now? I’m here to rescue my father, if you haven’t killed him already?
An uneasy silence fell across the room, broken by the ticking of a china clock on the wall above the sink.
Ebb cocked his head to one side. ‘Tell the group why you’re here, Benjamin.’
Ben saw that shadow lurking in Ebb’s eyes again. ‘I want to do something positive. I don’t like what the world has become.’
Ebb clapped his hands together. ‘Amen to that.’
‘Amen,’ the group agreed.
Encouraged, Ben added that he wanted to lead a positive life and make a real difference to the world.
‘How do you propose to make a difference?’ Ebb asked.
‘By doing the right thing, Father.’
‘You can only do the right thing by opening your heart to Jesus, Benjamin. Are you willing to open your heart to Jesus?’
‘Yes, Father.’
Ebb nodded, like a triumphant gladiator acknowledging the roar of the crowd. ‘Sit down, Benjamin. It’s clear that your intentions are good. We shall see later whether they are genuine.’
A chill passed through Ben’s heart.
Ebb turned to Maddie. ‘Please introduce yourself to the group.’
Maddie stood up and treated everyone to a smile that never failed to make Ben’s heart turn cartwheels. ‘My name is Maddie – Madeline – and I’m twenty years old. I just want to be given an opportunity. A chance to do something good. A chance to belong to something that means more than just following the latest trends. I want to be with people who can see further than the end of their iPhones. Live in a world that cares. Cares about poverty. About making a real difference to people’s lives. I’m sick of listening to politicians ranting on about saving the planet and then dropping bombs on it. I want to be with people who care about the same things as me. People who believe in the power of love instead of the power of the bullet….’
Ben gawked at Maddie as she trailed off.
Ebb applauded. ‘Amen, Madeline. Amen.’
The rest of the group obliged Maddie with a smattering of applause.
Maddie looked around the table. ‘Thank you.’
Ebb grinned, revealing a row of small, even teeth. ‘That was a wonderful introductory speech, Madeline. Please be seated.’
As Maddie sat down, a stocky guy dressed in the obligatory yellow overalls entered the kitchen. He had shoulder-length brown hair and a goatee beard. He sat down next to Ebb.
Ebb clasped his hands together. ‘Ah, Brother Tweezer. Thank you for joining us.’
Tweezer inclined his head. ‘Glad to be here, Father.’
Ben couldn’t see one flicker of emotion in Tweezer’s dark eyes.
‘I’d like you to meet Brother Tweezer,’ Ebb said. ‘My right-hand man.’
A shiver rolled up Ben’s spine.
‘Brother Tweezer, if you’d be so good as to tell our guests about yourself.’
Tweezer stood up. ‘Pleased to meet you both. My name’s Tweezer. I’m forty years old. And before you say it, I know, I only look half th
at age.’
Polite laughter. Ben wondered if someone was standing just out of view with a cue-card.
Tweezer held his hands out, palms up. ‘Let me tell you, brothers and sisters, the Father saved me. I was a sinner, folks. A sinner of the worst kind. For I killed a man.’
As if on cue, the group mumbled thanks to the Lord for saving a mortal sinner like Brother Tweezer. Except Bubba, who studied the table.
Tweezer looked at the ceiling. ‘I’m not proud of what I did. Far from it. I’m ashamed.’
Ebb nodded. ‘We feel your shame, Brother Tweezer. We share your shame.’
Tweezer rattled on. ‘The motorcycle gang I belonged to gave me a false identity and made me worship a false god.’
Ebb pumped a fist in the air. ‘We condemn all false gods to the pits of Hell.’
‘After I killed him, I stood over that poor dead soul and wept like a child. Wept at the senselessness of it all. Feud after feud. The hatred. The disregard for life. Have you ever hated someone?’ Tweezer asked Ben.
Ben remembered the other kids at school. ‘Maybe.’
Tweezer looked at Maddie.
‘No.’
‘Then you are lucky. I was cursed by a cruel and vindictive mind. My ego was like a raging bull.’
‘Hatred is a sin,’ Ebb cried.
‘Hatred is a sin,’ the group chanted.
‘Did that man deserve to die? Of course he didn’t. But my mind was so distorted with hatred, I believed my actions were justified. He took my woman. Violated my property. He deserved to be skinned alive. Beating him to death with a hammer was too good for that low-down dog. But after my anger was spent, I fell to my knees and wept tears upon his dead body. Tears of shame and remorse.’
‘The sin of vengeance,’ Ebb shouted.
Tweezer agreed. Bubbles of spit formed at the corners of his mouth. He looked off into the distance. ‘Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned.’
Ebb closed his eyes. ‘The Lord has forgiven you, Brother Tweezer.’
‘Thank you, Father. I am humbled by the Lord’s love.’
Ebb raised a hand. ‘Praise be.’
‘If I could go back right now and tell that reckless angry fool to put down his hammer and walk away from violence, then I would. As God is my judge, I would.’
Ebb touched Tweezer’s arm. ‘The Lord knows you would, Brother. The Lord hears you.’
Tweezer took a deep breath and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. ‘Sometimes we have to go to the lowest place, folks. We need to feel the flames of Hell burning our backsides before we wake up and reach out to Jesus.’
‘Satan is the salesman of the broken dream, Pixie-pea,’ Ebb babbled.
‘I sold my soul, Father. Made that man strip naked. And then I beat him to death.’
Ebb made the sign of the cross. ‘The Devil coerced you, Brother.’
‘But Jesus saved me. Jesus told me to walk away and reject the ways of Satan.’
‘Jesus loves you,’ Ebb shouted.
Tweezer agreed. ‘No more gangs. No more violence. No more retribution. I walked away from a life of sex, drugs and violence. One step at a time, I learned to walk again. I slept beneath the stars, knowing that Jesus was watching over me and guiding me towards my destiny.’
Ebb raised his hands. ‘Praise Jesus.’
‘And that journey ended right here at Penghilly’s Farm. I must have walked a thousand miles.’
‘The Lord mapped your path, Brother Tweezer.’
‘A beautiful journey,’ Tweezer concluded.
‘The Lord showed mercy to a wretched soul like you, Brother. He does not refuse those who seek to change. Those who seek to obey His ways.’
‘I am blessed, Father. I thank Jesus for bringing me here. For giving me the chance to serve the Lord and lead a valid and worthwhile life.’
‘Thank you, Brother Tweezer. You may be seated.’
The group applauded as Tweezer sat down. Tweezer held his hands up in a gee-shucks-it-was-nothing gesture.
Ebb gestured to the tall guy who’d been working in the barn. ‘This is Bubba.’
There was a sadness in Bubba’s pale blue eyes. His thinning grey hair was combed back, and his face looked like tanned leather. He reminded Ben of a loyal dog who’d been on the receiving end of a boot too many times.
Ebb made the sign of the cross. ‘Bubba doesn’t speak. But I can tell you, without fear of contradiction, he is a loyal and valued member of The Sons and Daughters of Salvation.’
Bubba bowed his head and looked at the table.
Ben wondered why he didn’t speak.
Ebb turned to the middle-aged woman with the short, spiky grey hair and half-rimmed glasses. ‘If you’d be kind enough to introduce yourself to Benjamin and Madeline, Sister Alice.’
Alice stood up. ‘I’m Sister Alice and I’m fifty-nine years old. My journey started soon after I lost my husband seven years ago. Roger was my life. My rock. My anchor. His death ripped my heart in two.’
Ebb bowed his head. ‘We share your loss, Sister Alice.’
‘Thank you, Father. Before Roger drowned in a boating accident, I had the best of everything. Clothes. Shoes. Finest food. Opera. Theatre.’
‘The sin of opulence.’
‘Yes, Father. The sin of opulence, of which I am truly ashamed. After Roger’s death, I drank heavily. Gin. Wine. Vodka. Anything that would help. Antidepressants. Painkillers. Within two years, I was a wreck. Most mornings I couldn’t even be bothered to get out of bed. My head felt like a swamp. My body was bloated. My eyes were puffy. I let my hair go. I looked how I felt and felt how I looked. But in some strange way, there was a comfort in my misery.’
‘It takes courage to live with loss,’ Ebb said.
Alice looked at Ebb. ‘But everything changed the day Father Edward came to my door spreading the word of Jesus.’
‘Jesus showed me the way to your door, Sister Alice.’
‘You saved me, Father.’
‘I was a mere conduit, sister. It was Jesus Christ Himself who came unto me and told me of your need.’
‘I owe my life to you, Father. You and Jesus.’
‘Jesus does not turn a blind eye to those who have lost their way. He is the light. He is the resurrection.’
‘Praise Jesus,’ Alice shouted.
Ebb stood up and closed his eyes. He took several deep breaths and raised his hands above him. ‘Jesus is among us now.’
A communal gasp rippled through the kitchen.
Ebb swayed from side to side. ‘Jesus is proud of you, Sister Alice. He tells me you have surpassed all expectations.’
Sister Alice’s lips trembled. Tears spilled from her eyes. She clutched her hands to her chest. ‘Thank you, Lord.’
‘But there is much work to be done. Jesus wants every single one of us ready for an arduous and challenging journey. We must not fear the path we tread. We must stand up to Satan and defeat him at every turn.’
‘Praise Jesus,’ the group chanted.
Ebb pursed his lips. ‘Jesus tells me that Satan will come to us in many forms. He will hide among us and seek to destroy us. We must repel him. Be resolute. Ready to act against him at all times. We must beware the Imposter.’
‘Beware the Imposter,’ Sister Alice echoed.
Ebb strutted up and down the kitchen, head cocked to one side, as though deep in conversation. He stopped at the head of the table and rested his hands on the edge. He looked at each member in turn. ‘Jesus trusts us. Jesus loves us. Jesus is in our hearts. Praise Jesus.’
‘Praise Jesus,’ the group chanted.
‘Jesus must leave us now, but He wants you all to be assured that you are blessed with His everlasting love. Praise Jesus.’
‘Praise Jesus.’
Ebb told Sister Alice to sit down. He then turned to a thin woman with long dark hair and pale blue eyes. ‘Sister Dixie? If you’d be so kind.’
The woman stood up. ‘My name is Dixie. I’m twenty-six years old.
Jesus saved me from a life of debauchery and abuse.’
‘Jesus feels your pain, Sister Dixie,’ Ebb said.
Dixie looked around the table. ‘From the age of ten, my stepfather abused me. Mentally and physically. By the time I was thirteen that excuse for a man had taken my virginity. I hated him with all my heart. He raped my soul.’
Ebb shook his head. ‘Suffer the little children.’
Ben didn’t think the phrase meant what Ebb had intended, but he was in no mood to correct the maniac.
Dixie took a deep breath. ‘I hung about with older kids. Smoking weed, nicking stuff, bunking school. Nothing too heavy. Just rebelling. Then I met Jazz. He treated me good. At first.’
Ebb sneered. ‘The seeds of seduction.’
Dixie looked out the kitchen window as if her childhood was playing out among the weeds and the brambles. ‘He bought me things. Nice things. Shoes. Coats. Skirts. Handbags. He called me his princess. He even bought me a ring and told me we would get married one day. We would live in a big house with a swimming pool and a Jacuzzi.’
Ebb made the sign of the cross. ‘Lead us not into temptation.’
‘Jazz had a flat. He asked me to move in with him just past my fifteenth birthday. I didn’t need convincing. I’d have walked over hot coals to get away from home. I packed a few things in a bag, and that was that. I never went back home again. Ever. But the good times didn’t last long. Within a few weeks, Jazz was knocking me about. A slap here and a slap there. I used to think I was doing something wrong. You know, like I hadn’t tried hard enough. But then it escalated. He started bringing men back to the flat. He made me have sex with them.’
‘The Devil’s disciples,’ Ebb said.
Dixie took a deep breath. ‘He used to tell me I was useless. Useless in bed. Useless at giving his so-called friends a good time. Some friends! Punters, more like. I’d become a whore without even realising it. I don’t remember turning sixteen. By the time I reached seventeen, my life was a conveyor belt of sex, drugs, beatings, more sex, more beatings, more drugs.’
‘Jesus feels your pain, Sister Dixie.’
Dixie looked at Ebb. ‘You saved me, Father. You rescued me from the clutches of evil. I owe my life to you.’
‘The Lord brought me to your door, Sister. The Lord is your salvation. Thank you for sharing. You may be seated.’