The creature didn’t answer, just smiled.
The conversation with Jennifer came roaring back to the front of my brain.
“I think I see something,” Jennifer said cautiously.
I leaned forward. Seeing for Jennifer was very different than it was for the rest of us.
“Talk to me,” I said, feeling trepidation.
Her brow creased in thought. “It’s not clear like Heather’s G-string, or Candy Vargo wanting a ferret farm. It’s more vague.”
“Okay,” I said. “Tell me what you can make out.”
She nodded slowly then spoke. “It’s a person. Can’t rightly tell if it’s a male or a female. It’s strong and angry. It wants revenge.”
“It sounds like the Higher Power,” I pointed out.
“I thought so too, but it’s not,” she said with conviction. “It might be worse.”
“Worse than the Higher Power? What in the hell could be worse than the present Higher Power?”
I stole a glance at Jennifer.
She nodded. Her eyes were huge, and my stomach cramped.
This was the being that she hadseen. We needed to get it out of here. What it didn’t know couldn’t hurt it, but what we didn’t know could hurt us tremendously. If I could get it to leave, we could regroup and figure out the next step. The main problem was that this being was a total unknown. The Higher Power, who was now residing in Shitty Ritchie’s stomach, was a known entity. Even though It was heinous, we were familiar with It. This person? Not so much. If Jennifer’s vision was correct, this creature could be worse than the Higher Power.
Fuck.
“You’re going to have to leave,” I said, keeping my voice even and calm. “The replacement for the Higher Power has been found. And you are not it.”
The eyes of the being narrowed dangerously. “Who is this replacement? I would love to converse. I’m quite sure we’d have so much in common.”
At the same time, I denied knowledge of knowing who the replacement Higher Power was, Shitty Ritchie confirmed that he, Alana Catherine and Jennifer were the new and improved Higher Power.
I wanted to scream.
The being laughed. “Too bad, so sad. I’ve waited too long for this. I am the only Higher Power.”
As fast as the creature had arrived in the dull rainbow sparkles, it left. But it didn’t leave empty handed. It took Alana Catherine, Jennifer and Shitty Ritchie with it.
Now I screamed.
Candy Vargo let loose with a string of swear words that would have made Gram freak out. Gideon roared. What was left of the house, cracked and turned to dust.
“What the fuck do we do?” Candy shouted.
“Go after the bastard,” I shouted back.
“But where the hell did it go?” she growled.
That was a question I didn’t have an answer to. But I would find it. I had to.
“We leave immediately,” Gideon ground out. “Candy, Charlie, Heather, Tim, Daisy and me.”
Candy sprinted to the tree line to share the news and retrieve the people Gideon had requested.
“Where are we going?” I asked, trying to hold back my tears.
