Which led him back to the one thing he’d been avoiding thinking about. Eternal life. Offered by both Lucifer and the God of the Bible. One was evil, one was good. One lied. One spoke the truth. Both had power, extraordinary power. But which one led to life,reallife?
Tori and the Deviants said the God of the Bible was the real God, and that He was good and holy and loving.
The Neflams said it was Lucifer who wanted the best for mankind, a good god who gave mankind freedom to live as they desired, who wanted to free people from the demanding restrictions and vengeful wrath of God.
Thomas had chosen to believe the latter because it made sense with what he knew of the God of the Bible and all His rules and regulations. Tori’s God really did seem like a bully, like an angry God ready to unleash judgment on poor mankind.
But what Thomas had witnessed in the past three weeks threw all of his beliefs into a chaotic whirlwind. He didn’t know what to think anymore. So he chose not to think at all.
Especially not about Aaron, whom he’d come to respect and care for, whom he’d looked at as a father figure. Obviously, he wasn’t human. Maybe a Neflams of some kind? A spy. A liar. Was anything he’d said to Thomas true?
Dejected, he plodded along, following these ever-cheerful Deviants to a hideout where he doubted he’d fit in. Tori and Brianna never ceased to talk about the recent miracles of their God—as they called them—and Carla had resumed her constant singing.
And although it was nice to be around happy people, and he’d grown to care for them all, Thomas battled a war within himself as memories of his prior life rose to taunt him. Oh, how he longed for a shower, a shave, some decent, clean clothes, and his soft mattress. Even more, he longed to regain his position, power, and prestige, to be valued for his opinion by those above him. To be close to the people who made all the decisions.
Yet here he was, exhausted beyond belief, muscles aching, stomach growling, filthy, smelly, and in charge of nothing at all. In fact, he was being led around like a sick puppy by a woman who had broken his heart. He glanced at Tori talking on her SAT phone up ahead before she slammed the antenna down and slipped it back in her pack.
She was a mess, her wild hair hanging in wavy strings, her jeans ripped, her skin smudged with dirt. What a beautiful, strong, remarkable woman. When she looked his way and smiled, he couldn’t help the leap of his heart. He loved her. He wondered if he’d ever stopped.
Apparently not, since he’d given up everything to save her and continued to follow her even now.
But would it be enough? For herandfor him?
“Nyla and Calan are meeting us tomorrow morning just five miles from here,” she said excitedly, then glanced upward. “It’s getting dark. Let’s crash for the night.”
Once again, Thomas settled down to enjoy his favorite time of each day. After partaking of stale bread and handfuls of wild blackberries Carla had found, they all sank onto beds of leaves under a dark sky, devoid of light. Either there were clouds above them, or the sky was too hazy for any stars to poke through. And without a fire, the night quickly became pitch black.
Tori lowered beside him and laid her head on his shoulder. “Crazy day, huh?”
“That’s an understatement.” He snorted. “First my friend turns into a grotesque monster and flies away and then we walk over thin air that instantly turns into solid ground. Yeah, I’d say it was a crazy day.”
She laughed. “Nobody ever said God was boring.”
Thomas raked back his filthy hair. “I still don’t get what happened.”
“Aaron was our enemy all along, trying to kill us and stop us from getting to UnderHisWings. I should have seen it. I should have sensed it.”
Thomas shook his head. “You aren’t psychic. Give yourself a break.”
“No, but I have a prophetic gift from God. There’s no excuse.”
Thomas swung an arm around her. “You take way too much on yourself, Tori. You’ve done a great job keeping us safe, getting us here.”
She sighed. “Not Sara.”
A night warbler sounded from far away, even as a breeze stirred the leaves on the ground.
“So, tell me,” Thomas asked. “What was Aaron? Not human, I’m guessing.” He chuckled. “And how did you get rid of him?”
“Not sure what he was. Maybe a fallen angel. He was pretty powerful.” She drew a deep breath. “And I didn’t get rid of him. God did. The name of Jesus, the most powerful name ever. You know, it’s like the story in the Bible when Moses’ snakes ate up Pharaoh’s snakes.”
“Say what?”
“Man, for a pastor, you sure don’t know your Bible.”
He shrugged.
“Moses went to Pharaoh in Egypt to demand he let the Israelites go. But Pharaoh’s magicians got their power from Satan, and they turned their staffs into snakes. So Moses threw down his rod, and God turned it into a snake that ate up the magician’s snakes.”
