Princess Reigns

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Princess Reigns Page 2

by Roger Williams


  “No!” the crowd shouted in unison. “No!”

  “But that devil, that piece of scum, that no good idiot, that worthless piece of trash – he’s a sneaky one, people. He always finds a way to infiltrate God’s army. He plant his dirty little spies amongst us good Christians. It’s a dirty shame, ain’t it? He’s fighting a useless battle, but still, he fights to the end. And you know what, sometimes, he actually succeeds.”

  “Oh no,” an elderly lady who was standing, shouted at Ava. Tears rolled down the lady’s eyes. “We can’t let him do that, Princess.”

  “I’m sorry, Good Lady, but it happens. His disgusting spies enter our churches trying to destroy us. They go out and they tell lies about us. They say our churches ain’t what they ought to be. They say, we're all a bunch of crooks.”

  A huge black man in the front row jumped up. “Show me where they are, Princess, I’ll take care of them.”

  “I feel like doing that myself, Good Brother, but we have to fight such urges. We are Christians. We don’t fight back. We turn the other cheek. We let the Lord fight our battles. Can I get an ‘Amen,’ good people? Give me an ‘Amen.’”

  The entire congregation concurred. They wouldn’t dare disobey their precious Ava.

  “No matter how much they try to tear us down, they’ll never succeed. We’re on God’s side. We can’t help but win. Nobody defeats God’s soldiers. We’re invincible.”

  “Hallelujah!” came from several members in the congregation. The clapping and the shouting became yet louder.

  “But folks, the backstabbing spies aren’t the only ones who’ve infiltrated our churches. We have other helpers of the devil. The hypocrites. The people who dare to call themselves Christians, when they’re the biggest phonies God unfortunately ever put on this earth. They come into the church trying to participate, all the while acting like Christians, when they’re chasing other mens’ wives, other womens’ husbands. It’s a shame, people. It’s a disgusting shame.”

  Many people in the congregation shook their heads in disbelief. Others nodded their heads in agreement.

  “They call themselves Christians, yet they go around starting arguments – right here in the church. They always want to have their way. If they can’t have their way, they raise hell. And they’re right. They are raising hell; they’re raising it straight up so it can swallow them whole. Heaven has no place for phony Christians. Only hell does.”

  “Amen, Princess Ava. Amen,” the black man shouted.

  “You think God’s gonna have a place for people who want to fight and argue all the time? Who want to act nasty? Be unfriendly? God wants humble, goodhearted people around him. And you can participate in church all you want. You can come to church all you want. You can give money. You can put on phony smiles, while you talk about people behind their backs. If your heart ain’t right, if you don’t treat people right, you’re still busting hell wide open. It’s gonna eat you up; defecate you out. That’s right, I said it. It’s gonna doo-doo you out.”

  Some people were embarrassed by the words. Others laughed. Everybody was moved.

  “They can't fool the Lord. He’s seeing everything they do. He watches with contempt. But he’s biding his time. And when the time’s right, he’s gonna strike. He’s gonna reach down and put all those phonies in their right place. And regardless of what you may think of me, it's gonna happen, Folks. It's real.”

  “We love you, Ava,” a man roared.

  Ava stopped. She clenched her hands tightly together. She bent down and bowed her head. Her face became taut and strained.

  “Oh God, I hate to think what you’re gonna do to the phonies. It’s gonna be so horrible.”

  More loud clapping came from the audience. These people were absolutely amazed at this woman. She was like a Godsend to them.

  Ava straightened herself back up. She began pacing back and forth again. “The phony Christians, I can just imagine – when that day of judgment comes – they’re gonna be the first ones running to the front of the line. And I can just hear them: ‘Oh Lord, please forgive me. I won’t sin anymore. I won’t do any more wrong. I love you, Lord. Give me another chance. I’ll do anything you ask. Please, take me into your kingdom.’ And us true Christians standing behind them, we know what God's gonna say.”

  “What, Princess Ava?” a middle-aged white man shouted from where he stood at his pew. “Please tell us, Princess?”

  “He’s gonna say ‘NO.’ Repeat it after me, good folks. ‘NO.’”

  The people out in the congregation again excitedly obeyed. “NO . . . NO.”

  “NO,” Ava shouted at the top of her voice. “It’s too late now. You had your chance. Where were you when I wanted you here on your knees? Where were you? Adultering. Getting drunk. Fornicating. Cursing. Blaspheming my name. You turned your back on me, and now, I’m turning my back on you. Get out of my face. Get out of my sight. No pun intended, but ’To hell with you.’ You belong to Satan. He can have you.”

  Delirium. That was what came from the congregation. Everybody was in another world. They didn’t care about this world anymore. All they cared about was the world their precious Ava had put them inside. It was a world where they desperately wanted to escape Satan.

  Ava stopped walking. She dropped to her knees. Her eyes became glassy. She looked up to the ceiling. Tears ran down her face. She became peaceful.

  “ . . . Oh God,” she said. “I know the sinners are terrible. Still, I can’t help it. I want you to save them from your wrath. Help them. Show them your way, before it’s too late.”

  The tears became thicker; they rolled off her chin and down onto her dress. Ava slouched over and banged her microphone against the floor three times, as she shook her head in dismay. That was one of her signals. She glimpsed at Joe and Larry, as they stood up. Larry was a deacon of the church just like Joe. They always sat in the first pew directly in front of the stage.

  Ava raised back up. She suddenly screamed at the top of her voice.

  “Don’t let it happen to them, Lord. Don’t let them burn. Nobody wants to burn for eternity."

  Joe and Larry quickly headed for the steps that were on the west side of the stage. They hurried up the steps.

  “I know they’ve earned it,” Ava yelled. “But still, I hate to see them burn. I hate it, Lord. I just hate it.”

  Ava fell backwards, still on her knees. She cried out of control. Joe ran to her and tried to lift her to her feet. Larry pulled the microphone from her hand. Ava tried to snatch it back, but she was unsuccessful.

  “No,” Ava yelled. Her voice could still be heard throughout the church. “I’m not finished. Let me talk to the Lord. Those sinners have to be saved.”

  Joe forced Ava to her feet. He pulled her towards the back of the stage. There was a door and short steps that led into the back. Ava threw out her arms and kicked out her feet.

  “I’m gonna finish talking to the Lord. You hear me? I’m gonna finish saving souls.”

  The audience clapped and applauded their Princess. She was so dedicated and determined to do the right thing. However, Ava was going to lose. Joe forced her down the steps. He then managed to use one hand to open the door behind them, while keeping control of Ava with the other. He forced her through the door.

  “We love you, Ava,” came from the audience. “We love you, Princess.”

  Joe quickly pushed the door closed. Ava instantly freed herself and composed herself, as if at the snap of her finger. She straightened herself up, and she pushed her hair out of her face. She heard Larry’s voice through the door talking on the microphone.

  “That’s all for tonight, Good People. Our precious Ava has overdone it again. But we’ll calm her down and have her ready to go again tomorrow night.”

  There was loud applause and cheering.

  “Please. Do prepare yourself now for our final offering.”

  “Prepare yourself well,” Ava said. She strolled confidently down the narrow hall, headed to her o
ffice. “Cheapskates. I hope they do a lot better than last night.”

  Joe giggled. He followed behind her.

  Chapter Three

  Del Toray, California was next to Los Angeles. It was a city of about four hundred thousand people. It was a growing city, and people were starting to prefer it over Los Angeles. The reason was that it had a good deal to offer, but it still hadn’t reached the level of being the type of rat-race city that L.A. had long ago become.

  That was the biggest reason why Tori Edwards had chosen to come back, rather than move some place else after graduation from college. She believed that her Private Detective Agency could flourish here as well as anywhere else.

  She had spent a good deal of the day there in her apartment pondering those kinds of things; she had just finished studying documents which showed how much business she had acquired in the past month. It hadn’t been as much as she’d liked. But she realized that small businesses usually always got off to rough starts. Still, if things didn’t improve rather soon, she might would have to re-evaluate her stance on remaining in Del Toray.

  Tori sat on the couch. The coffee table in front of her was full of papers. She decided it was time for a break. Her apartment was of decent size. Her den was large. She had wall-to-wall carpeting. She also had two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a half-bath. There was a kitchen, a small study, and a patio. Her thirty-two inch television and stereo system were a few feet away from her, across from the coffee table. It was a pretty nice place, she knew, though it was also rather expensive. One had to pay to play, she figured.

  Tori was usually a cool and confident lady. She considered herself as one broad who nobody messed with. She was feisty, and she was also well aware of the fact that she was beautiful. However, when her head started aching, she could become as weak as the world’s biggest, ugliest wimp. She believed she might be headed down that path now.

  She was dressed in a long, white shirt which reached down to her mid-thighs. She also wore jeans. Also on the coffee table was a bottle of Aspirin and a can of Coke. She slouched over, slightly bent her head, and gently rubbed her temples with both hands. She felt it was getting close to time to pop some more Aspirin.

  She had gotten rid of the migraines for a while. In fact, up until four months ago, she hadn’t had one for nearly two years. However, life had been stressful for the past few months, and the migraines had been triggered back. She hadn’t had many bad ones this time around, but Tori feared that would change. Some of her problems from the past months had been resolved, but there were others which didn’t look like they were going anywhere anytime soon.

  She had had a messy breakup in a relationship, from a man who had thought the world revolved around him. Looking back on the three-year ordeal, Tori couldn’t help but wonder at times just what she had seen in the jerk. He had cheated on her throughout their entire time together. He had always wanted things his way, and she had given them to him, until finally, she had come to her senses. She just wished she had done it sooner. Men, she had to acknowledge, were somewhat of a weakness for her.

  Then there was also the problem of the bimbo. Or at least that was how Tori saw her. Three years ago her father had married a woman half his age, which put her now at twenty-eight. She was only a year older than Tori. Tori actually had nothing against May-December relationships. To each their own. But this woman was queen of the jerks. Tori couldn't stand the bimbo. And the feeling was mutual on the bimbo’s part. They barely got along.

  Tori’s ten-year-old sister Susy didn’t like the bimbo, either. That was what bothered Tori the most. She didn’t like the idea of her sweet baby sister being under the control of that nasty woman. Things had never been great between her sister and the woman, and they were only getting worse. Tori was becoming more and more amazed at how her father let his wife mistreat his own child. Her father was so blind, she had long ago realized. She wasn’t going to be able to stand for it much longer.

  Mom, why did you have to die on us? Tori thought with torture.

  Tori released her temples. She opened the bottle of Aspirin and popped two into her mouth. She then drank from the Coke in order to wash the tablets down. The Aspirin and Coke had worked thus far in stopping the pain. She had more expensive medicine, but she hadn’t needed it; she hoped that would continue. She didn’t want to have to buy expensive migraine medicine on a regular basis, because it would mean her budget having to take a hit. Budget hits were something she didn’t need right now, either. She did have some inheritance money her mother had left her, depleted by what was left after she had started her agency. But she hoped not to have to touch any of that money. She wanted it for a rainy day. Only time would tell what would happen.

  She lay down on the couch and crossed her arms. She closed her eyes. At nearly six feet and big-boned, and slightly muscular arms from working out – she was well aware that she was a pretty big woman. But at times like these, she felt rather small. She also had a cute face with dark eyes and long, brown hair. However, the thought of a possible impending migraine made her feel ugly and weak.

  Tori decided she would try and go to sleep. She didn’t have anything pressing to do this morning. That was another advantage of having one’s own business that she enjoyed – she could make her own hours. She just hoped that when she awoke, her oncoming headache would be gone. If that were the case, it would be a much better day. Before long, she was off, lightly snoring.

  Susy came downstairs dressed in a house robe, her long brown hair bouncing on her head. She stopped at the bottom. She just couldn’t help it. She hated to admit it, but she couldn’t stand his guts. Jimmy Edwards sat relaxed back in the recliner there in the family room. He intently watched television and ate from a big bowl of popcorn. Susy couldn’t help but sneer at him. Everything about him disgusted her.

  Susy was so glad that she wasn’t a big hog like her stepbrother. She was glad to be petite. She didn’t consider herself pretty, though everyone else did. She was also glad to have a darker complexion, instead of the stone white color that her stepbrother had. She was very proud of her dark eyes – which were exactly like her big sister’s. Jimmy’s eyes were dark also, but more like a devil’s.

  As for Jimmy – she frowned – boy, but he was a fat slob. He was ten years old and he looked like he weighed two tons. His hair looked as though someone had put a bowl on top of his head and cut around it. He had no hair around his ears. His bangs were cut sharply above his eyebrows. His face was fat and pudgy, somewhat resembling that of a pig. He wore a large T-shirt and shorts.

  Jimmy noticed Susy at the stairway, and his face brightened up. He knew that it was time for some action. He put on a rather sly smirk. Those dark eyes turned beady.

  “Hello there, little Susy,” he said. “’Bout time you got up. You plannin’ to sleep all day?”

  “It’s not that late,” Susy replied. “Anyway, I stayed up late doing homework. You don’t know what that is.”

  “Who does homework on a Friday night? That’s stupid.”

  “Not if you don’t wanna do it Saturday and Sunday.”

  He just scoffed at her. Susy walked over to the television. There was a DVD player on top of it.

  “What time is this cartoon off?” she asked Jimmy.

  “A couple of minutes,” Jimmy answered. “Why? I’m still watching Tom and Jerry. That’s on next.”

  “No, you’re not. It’s my Saturday to watch TV.”

  “You got up too late.”

  “It don’t matter how late I get up. You get up later than me when it’s your day. And I don’t stop you.”

  “That’s your problem. Besides, you can’t stop me.”

  “I’m turning at nine-thirty.”

  “You just try it, Bucko, and I’ll blast ya.”

  “You’re not fair,” Susy said, highly irritated. “It’s my day.”

  “You had the TV last Saturday.”

  “I did not, and you know it.”

  “Prove it. It’s m
y word against yours.”

  “I’m gonna tell my daddy on you. You always trying to do this.”

  “Tell him. I don’t care. He’s a idiot, anyway.”

  “I’m seeing that TV, Jimmy. I mean it.”

  “That’s fine with me. Just as long as you willin’ to watch what I want.”

  Susy scrounged up her face with anger. She heard some pots banging in the kitchen. Susy knew that it was her father. He was usually the dishwasher in the house. She angrily stormed out of the den, turned the corner, and plowed down the hall. She passed the bathroom, quickly learning from the smell, that Jimmy hadn’t been long come out. He never closed the door, regardless of how many times he was told. Boy, but she had a jerk for a stepbrother, she endlessly realized. She heard Jimmy put down his popcorn and hop out of his chair. He hurried down the hall behind her.

  Susy arrived in the kitchen with Jimmy practically on her heels. Standing by the basement door was a tall, heavyset man. He dropped some paper in the trashcan, and then he walked back to the sink. He wore short brown hair, and he had a mid-fifties face. There was also a good deal of fear on that face.

  “Daddy, he’s not being fair again,” said Susy.

  “You two arguing again?” her daddy answered.

  “It’s my day to watch TV,” Jimmy shot back. “And I’m watchin’ it. You got that, Henry old boy.”

  Henry looked at Jimmy, with just a touch of anger. “Don’t call me Henry. I’m your daddy, Jimmy.”

  “The hell you are.”

  “Daddy, you know it’s my turn to have Saturday. You took me to the movies last week, ‘cause you got tired of watching what he wanted all day long.”

  “You’re a liar,” Jimmy retorted.

  “Actually,” said Henry, very cautiously. “I think she’s right. It’s her turn this week.”

  “You’re lyin’. And I’m telling mom when she gets here.”

  The wrinkles at the corners of Henry’s eyes immediately stretched. Even more fear came onto his face. Yet, he held his ground.

 

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