She knew him. Knew what he was capable of.
Had witnessed it herself, though she was young at the time and her memory had clouded. Because he’d altered it for her. Insisting that he, older, remembered what had happened more clearly.
He’d convinced her, yet she was still wary.
He had to tread carefully.
But move quickly.
There was no longer time for perfection.
And that was a worry.
He couldn’t afford to make a mistake.
He usually planned his attacks with precision, but tonight he would have to rely on his own intuition and the Father’s help.
“Remember the passage: I can do all this through Him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13.”
“Yes, yes,” he told himself, and though this deed would be far from perfect, he would get it done. “Forgive me, Father.” He knew he needed to atone for his failings, that another self-flagellation was in order, though he could not attain perfection. That alone was for the Lord. He was but a mere mortal.
One who had broken the sixth commandment:Thou shalt not kill.
Well … He’d studied the commandments. He knew the meaning of that particular passage, and of course, murder of an innocent was a sin. But none of the lives he’d taken were without sin. In fact, they were riddled with sin. So, he reasoned, he was doing God’s work.
He would never take an innocent life.
Never.
But sinners beware.
Idly, he fondled the rock he’d fashioned with its bold number 3 carved in Arabic and Hebrew.Thou shalt not take the word of thy Lord in vain.How many times in her lifetime had Nikki Gillette uttered the Father’s name as a curse?
Hundreds?
Thousands?
Enough!
He found himself scratching over his shoulder and forced himself to stop. Irritated, he went to the medicine cabinet, where he located some anti-itch cream next to the roll of surgical tape and scissors. He applied a little of the medication to his shoulders and hoped it would relieve the itch, though he was a little ashamed at having to deal with it. The initial pain and subsequent discomfort were all part of his atonement. He rubbed in the salve and considered what he’d already accomplished.
Billy Huber had borne false witness against his neighbor, breaking the ninth commandment.
Mavis Greenlee had never honored her father, nor her mother, blatantly breaking commandment number five.
And that witch Jeanne LaRoux had flaunted her weird mixture of any pagan religion she came across and probably made up some of her own. Brazenly, she continued to break the first commandment by putting all kinds of false, heathen spirits before the one true God.
They all had paid.
As for the copycat killer who had taken Naomi Kittle’s life?
Well, killing for killing’s sake was a sin. Murder without holy intent was very much a sin, and so far he’d not used the sixth commandment.
That would change when he unmasked the copycat.
Now, he reached for his keys.
Tonight, it was Nikki Gillette’s turn.
