Killing Jesus Christ
Part 1
“The Fire Inside”
By Stephen Mars
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2011 Stephen Mars
Smashwords
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to actual events or locals or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
***
1
Daniel always hated the sight of blood. It wasn't that it made him sick to his stomach, but the mere sight of it reminded him of his childhood. When he was eight years old he fell off his bicycle which opened up a very large cut on his elbow. Frightened and the only one home at the time, he did the only thing he could think of and that was to visit his neighbor, the elderly
Mrs. Thompson. With a small crimson stream running down the back of his arm, young Daniel knocked on the front door. He had always been afraid of initiating any kind of conversation with this woman. Although she knew his parents and would wave to him from her front steps from time to time, he always felt afraid around her. Any stranger who passed by on the street felt the same way. At the fronts steps lay an assortment of gargoyle statues. Beside them a tall leaf-less tree stood blowing in the wind. It was a sight often seen in an old graveyard, and this is even before gazing upon the crooked house. Shingles sat broken and scarred at the top of the old crusty home and vines wrapped themselves gently around each foggy window. Daniel stood nervously on the front steps, clutching his elbow. When the door finally opened, Mrs. Thompson waddled forward and looked the boy up and down. She smiled when she recognized him but then frowned when she saw his injury. "Oh dear, come in Daniel and let’s fix you up." she said with a wave of her bony, wrinkled, fingers. Daniel tried to ignore the splotches of purple on her face and arms as he moved over to the stiff couch in the living room. While the outside of the house looked like cemetery, the inside looked like a funeral home. The brown living room was sterile and neat. Each mustard colored wall and floor looked as if it had been scrubbed over with a very fine brush. "Here you go dear." said Mrs. Thompson walking over and covering Daniel's elbow with a large bandage. Blood seeped into the wrapping like a paper towel over spilled milk. "I put ointment on it. Don't want the good lord to give you an infection now do you?" Daniel zoned out to her words as his eyes were glued to the trinkets that sat around her home. One figure in particular had a golden Jesus on a cross with a triangle shaped marking embedded in his chest. On each wall bolted a different picture of a church or the image of Jesus Christ. Mrs. Thompson smiled when she caught his gaze. "Do you have faith in your heart as well?” she said blinking the few eyelashes she had left. Daniel nodded. He supposed he believed in a God or a life after death but he still wasn't sure about it all. He only attended masses with his parents during the holidays but when he did he often found the services boring. "I think I do." said Daniel scratching his head. Mrs. Thompson laughed. "You think?" she said standing up. "Do you want anything to drink dear?" Daniel forced a smile. "Do you have water?" "Of course I do!" said Mrs. Thompson putting her bony hand on his shoulder. She waddled to the kitchen. Across the room, an urn sat on a table with two lit candles beside it. Wanting to investigate, Daniel walked over and put his finger on the vase. He moved his finger over to one of the candles and surprisingly it didn't hurt and even burn. "Get away from there dear!" Mrs. Thompson's voice called out harshly behind him. Daniel whipped around and was met face to face with the old woman. "I'm sorry to be so short with you dear but I can't let you near that. You see, that's my husband. He died ten years ago to this day." Daniel bowed his head and he could feel his cheeks burn with guilt. Mrs. Thompson put her hands on her hips. "It's okay Daniel you didn't know better. Come and sit down." Daniel shyly walked over and sat silently on the couch with the cool glass of water she had given him. Mrs. Thompson suddenly knelt down and prayed in front of him on the floor. Daniel stared at her and once she opened her eyes she smirked. "Do you want to pray with me?" she said tapping the carpet with her hand. At first Daniel was hesitant but he complied with her wish. “Here take my hand.” said the old woman with a look of sadness in her pale green eyes. The moment Daniel’s fingers touched her wrinkled palm she shrieked at the top of lungs as if she was struck by lightning. “What’s wrong?” said Daniel shooting up. Goosebumps lined both of her spotted arms and she shook like a leaf in the wind. “Nothing dear.” said Mrs. Thompson standing up and nervously brushing off her blouse. “I’ll just be right back.” She wiped sweat from the top of her forehead and limped away. Daniel sat back down. He wondered what he had done as she left the room. He sat silently on the couch for what seemed like an hour and he became worried. Daniel wondered where Mrs. Thompson went but was afraid to wander after her. It was then that he heard her voice. “Daniel dear could you come here for a moment?” He felt his heart jump in his throat. Daniel walked down the dimly lit hallway. It was almost dusk from the look of the purple sky outside the window and his parents were sure to be worried where he was. I’ll just see what the old lady wants and then I’ll go back home, he thought. When he got to the middle of the hallway he stopped suddenly. Whatever it was, something was making him feel uneasy. He had no time to think about any longer however as a shriveled hand grabbed his arm and a knife swung at his face. He fell backwards against a door and landed on his back in the middle of the bathroom. It all seemed like a dream that would soon turn into a nightmare. Standing over him like a giant was Mrs. Thompson in the doorway. Scrapes covered her entire body and her eyes shone bright gold as she stood with a knife gripped tightly in her hands. “I tried everything I could but Father wouldn’t answer.” said Mrs. Thompson in a lower pitch voice than her own. “It seems you have to die tonight child.” In an act of desperation, Daniel lunged forward and grabbed her wrists. The old woman screamed in pain as smoke rose from her hands. In the struggle Daniel managed to push her back out into the living room where finally old Mrs. Thompson fell into the glass coffee table. Daniel landed beside her on the ground. He pulled himself off the glass covered floor and was shocked to see the old woman lying still. Her head was twisted among the pool of shards. Blood on the hardwood floor started to flow like tiny rivers towards him. Terrified, Daniel immediately ran out of the house. Daniel later told his parents the story, although the tale was not all entirely true. The story of Mrs. Thompson’s tragic fall was heard all around the neighborhood in the coming days. “She should have been put in a nursing home. Poor thing didn’t have anyone around to take care of her!” said a neighbor when talking to the local news. Everyone agreed that Daniel was just a witness to Mrs. Thompson’s slip and nothing more. After a few weeks went by and a couple mandatory therapy sessions were conducted, neither Daniel, nor anyone in the neighborhood spoke about the event again. Today, Daniel once again found himself at the scene of a horrific death. A tall muscular man’s body stuck a wall like glue. Steel bolts were driven directly through his palms and through the center of his crossed feet. “Who do you think did it boss? Some crazy religious wack job?” inquired the young man beside Daniel. “It’s possible.” said Daniel adjusting the black fedora on the top of his head and taking a huff of his cigarette. “I don’t know Will. What’s the victim’s name?” “Harry Johnson.” said his assistant. With only a few months experience on the job, the young man wasn’t as nearly as tough or clever as Daniel, but he was smart enough to help him with his cases or when the time came, to fetch him his coffee. Ever since that day with old Mrs. Thompson, Daniel strived to one day become a part of law enforcement. The economy caught up with his family however, and he found himself on the streets as a teenager with no place else to go. That is, until he started his own agency that dealt with unsolvable or unexplainable crimes. With just a call or text he would be anywhere all over the country for someone in need. Of course, this included spending a pretty penny on their behalf. “Look at the marks on his chest here.” said Daniel pointing to a red dot on the victims torso. His assistant leaned in for a moment and smiled. “Just like Jesus Christ.” “What do you mean?” said Daniel moving in closer. “In the bible they stabbed Jesus here with a spear when he was on the cross. I’d say the way the man’s body is nailed is no coincidence.” Daniel stroked his square chin in thought. The murder looked to be the work of a crazy religious killer after all. But why? He had to know more about this man’s life. “Excuse me gentlemen.” said a hefty man in a coroner’s jacket. “We’ll be out in a minute.” said Daniel taking one last look at the victim’s bloody body. The city never liked Daniel’s unofficial involvement in cases like these but their opinions soon changed when they one day received a generous donation. Ever since then they have allowed him at crime scenes, that is, if a tribute continued to grace the city’s doorstep after each case. All the victim wore was a ripped pair of underpants which had one time been white but were now doused in red. Give the man long hair and a beard and he would definitely be indistinguishable with Jesus Christ, Daniel thought. As Daniel and his assistant left the room, they heard a gasp behind them which made them spin around immediately. “Would you look at that!” said the coroner pulling at the victim’s eyelid. The two detectives walked over and found themselves at a loss for words when they saw it. Two dead golden eyes stared right at them.
2
In the grimy center of the city stood a small motel building where the local addicts would often go to deal drugs or hook up with prostitutes. In this building sat a room whose walls were slowly rotting away on the top floor. It was here that the business of Daniel Alaster and his associates conducted their business. “Here’s our friend Mr. Johnson’s criminal record.” said Will dropping a manila folder packed with paper on the top of Daniel’s desk. Daniel took off his cracked reading glasses from the edge of his nose and looked up. “Not the nicest guy I presume?” he said taking out a cigarette from the inside of his coat pocket. Will shook his head. “No sir, not at all. Just read it.” The crimes the man committed in life were extensive, everything from parking tickets to rape. “Was this man ever in jail?” said Daniel furiously scanning each page. “No sir, he wasn’t.” said Will shaking his head. “I looked into his family and it turns out he was the cousin of a very powerful lawyer. Does the name Thomas Benoit ring a bell?” Daniel recognized it immediately. Not one person across the state wasn’t familiar with the annoying advertisement jingle on the radio. It was a jingle that insisted on playing nearly every morning during Daniel’s commute. At the end of each ad a very cheery woman insisted that she call Thomas Benoit, The Problem Solver! “Of course it rings a bell, Will.” said Daniel standing up and straightening his coat. Ash fell from the top of his half burned cigarette and sizzled on the floor. “And I know exactly where to go.” Daniel and Will arrived at Sunview Hotels later that afternoon. Daniel had remembered the case of Ms. Hilary Sanders. Ms. Sanders was a person who could only be described as a cat lady, and it was on Daniel’s twenty-eighth birthday that he got the call to her apartment. The manager had paid him to get rid of her, and upon opening her room door he realized why the man had paid him two thousand dollars. The place was literally covered in boxes with cat hair and waste spread all around it. “It’s a maze of shit.” said Will, just eighteen years old at the time and on his first ever assignment. “I promise you kid it’s not usually like this.” said Daniel stepping through the doorway. It took them nearly the entire day, six hours by Will’s estimation, to clean the apartment and escort the blabbering woman into a mental hospital nearby. “Do you have to bring your calculator everywhere you go?” said Daniel stacking the last box in an ordered pile. Will shrugged. “Not everywhere boss.” he said tucking it in his back pocket. “So anyway, where was this woman’s family? I mean...” Daniel shot him a nasty look. “Oh, right.” said Will looking away. Daniel had told him on his first day what happened to his own family and he told him to always be careful about the subject. Lucky for Will it was just a minor slip up. That evening they ate at a local diner where a young and confident man in an expensive suit strolled in as if he owned the place. A few people recognized his pink tie and wavy black hair and asked for autographs. Somehow Daniel found himself shaking the man’s hand. “Hello my good man, where are you from?” said Thomas Benoit with a twinkle in his eye. He would make a great politician one day, Daniel thought. “I just came from the Sunview Hotel. Had to...” “Sunview?” Benoit bellowed over Daniel. “I was just there as well! Been living there ever since my wife kicked me out of the house. Can you believe she could smell the lipstick on my neck? Anyway, here’s my card. Call me if anything listed on the list below has been to done to you. Remember, If Tommy can’t fix it than nobody can!” Will moved forward to shake Benoit’s hand but Daniel pulled him away. “Come on let’s get out of here.” said Daniel crumpling the card into shreds in his hand and tossing it on the sidewalk. Now he wished he kept that card. “The Sunview hotel.” said Daniel driving up to the front entrance. Will sat fiddling on his phone beside him. “Did you hear me?” said Daniel flicking his cigarette out the window. Will looked up and nodded. “Sorry boss. The new girlfriend won’t leave me alone.” Daniel sighed. “You remember this place two years ago right?” “Which case?” said Will with his eyes still glued to the tiny screen. Daniel yanked it out of his hands and threw it into the back seat. “Hey!” said Will shooting him a glance. “Just look outside will you?” said Daniel feeling his blood come to a boil. “Oh yeah.” said Will pointing his finger toward the orange neon side that flashed “Sun” then “View.” “I wonder what happened to that cat woman.” “No, you idiot.” said Daniel taking out a cigarette from the carton in his coat pocket. “Don’t you remember meeting a certain somebody on that night?” Will pursed his lips in thought. “Thomas Benoit!” said Will suddenly as if a light bulb had gone off in his head. Daniel and Will walked into the lavish hotel. It had gone through many upgrades throughout the past two years and that had no doubt been due to many generous donations by Thomas Benoit. Two years ago the hotel was attended by peoples of various incomes but now it had been regarded as a destination of the elite. Daniel almost lost his footing on the marble floors when he walked in. Will himself found it hard to focus on the task at hand as he was entranced by the shining silver chandelier above. “Hello gentlemen and welcome to Sunview Hotels.” “Hello.” said Daniel with a shy but confident smile. The front clerk was gorgeous. Long blond hair weaved onto her shoulders like a light waterfall and her bright blue eyes shot sparkled against the silver that lined the room. The last time they were here an old Korean woman sat at this desk and ran them out the door when she accused them of taking too many complimentary chocolate mints. “Is Mr. Benoit in?” said Daniel leaning his arm on the top of the desk. “I’m a client of his and me and my brother here are scheduled for a meeting.” “Just one second.” said the clerk scrolling through Internet pages on her computer monitor. She shook her head and looked up at Daniel. The blue color of her eyes reminded him of the summer sky on the beach where his father taught him to fly a kite. “I’m sorry sir but he just left.” “Did he say where?” “Sorry, I’m not allowed to say. Have a good day now.” “You too.” said Daniel tapping the top of the desk. “One more thing.” said Daniel showing his white teeth. “May I use one of the bathrooms real quick?” There was a hint of seduction in his voice. Will sighed in embarrassment behind him. “It’s not company policy... but...” The clerk bit her lip. “Go ahead I won’t tell anyone.” she said, her cheeks reddening. Daniel smirked. “Thanks hun, you’re the best”. Daniel walked toward the bathroom then turned sharply around the corner when the clerk wasn’t looking. “You’re gonna have to teach me how to do that James Bond stuff one day.” said Will following Daniel toward the elevator. “Where are we going anyway?” Daniel walked through the opening metal doors and into the dimly lit elevator. Frank Sinatra played from the cheap speakers. “To find out where Thomas Benoit is headed of course.”
3
Daniel moved from room to room in Thomas Benoit’s expensive hotel room digging through trash barrels and looking under and over the strangest places just hoping to find a clue. The place certainly looked lived in. It was as if Benoit had been using the place as an apartment. Daniel didn’t even want to think about how the man could afford it. “The coast is still clear.” said Will, who stood with his back against the glossy oak door. “Damn it Will do you have to always look so suspicious?” said Daniel shaking his head. “Come over here and help me find something.” Will slowly shut the door behind himself and walked up to Daniel who was now sitting at Benoit’s desk and messing with the keyboard on his laptop. Daniel sighed heavily. “There’s a password. Do you think you can break it?” Will put his hand on his chin and his forehead wrinkled. “Well considering this isn’t a TV show I can’t just hack into this thing like a genius.” Daniel tossed the laptop across the room in anger. Will watched as the skin on his face turned red. “Looks like we hit a dead end.” said Daniel finally. Will’s eyes widened and a slight grin began to spread on his face. “Not necessarily.” he said pointing to the desk. Daniel looked down and a small slip of paper lay gently on the desk where the laptop had been. It must have been under it the entire time. Daniel brought the slip to the front of his face. “135 Benson St.” it read. Daniel couldn’t help but smile as well. “Let’s hope this isn’t an address to some hooker.” said Will. Unfortunately it was looking exactly like an address to some hooker. Their GPS had brought them into the dirtiest part of the city. Nobody who visited these parts or lived in one of the falling apart houses could tell when the tops of buildings ended and the dark sky began. Old newspapers blew in the wind and stray dogs walked around freely. The gentlest of pets scared Will throughout his life and he shuddered when an old albino cat brushed against his leg. “You alright?” said Daniel trying hold back a smile. Watching the troubles of the young rookie had always eased the pain the real world gave him every day. “Don’t laugh.” said Will crossing his arms. “Let’s just find this place and get out of here with Thomas Benoit or not.” Daniel put a new cigarette to his lip and then quickly turned around over his shoulder. “What is it?” said Will looking up from the GPS in his hands. “Nothing.” said Daniel shaking his head. He pointed to the small screen. “How much farther?” “We’re actually just a few steps away boss.” said Will nodding across the street. Abandoned long ago with large termite eaten boards stapled across the door, Will and Daniel looked at each other nervously when they crossed the street. They were met by a building that looked as if it came from a remote part of hell. “After you.” said Will looking all around in one last check for any abandoned pets. Daniel pushed open the door and complete darkness consumed them. Will took out his phone for light for a moment as Daniel turned on his flashlight. “Let’s split up.” said Daniel looking to his left which led to a staircase and then to his right which led down a cold hallway. “Hell no.” said Will putting his hand on Daniel’s shoulder. He could feel his fingertips nervously twitching beside his neck. “I think we should stick together. You know, just in case...” “Fine.” said Daniel cutting him off and moving away from Will. “Watch my back.” Will nodded in agreement. Each step up the stairs brought on a series of creaks and Will felt as if he was inside a scary movie. At any moment he expected some monster with a chainsaw to come out for his blood. “You know, you don’t have to be this close to me.” said Daniel shortly. Will cleared his throat. “Sorry boss.” he said with his voice cracking. Minutes went by just walking down the same hallway. Daniel couldn’t help but notice the creepy pictures of different families on the walls as they walked by. Daniel brought his flashlight up to one portrait and then to another. “What do you think this place is?” said Will running his fingers on the dusty wall. A small spider quickly crawled down beside him which made him jump. “I don’t know.” said Daniel moving his flashlight around. “Wait a second.” said Daniel grabbing one of the pictures from the wall. “Of course.” he said as a piece of ash from his cigarette fell on the frame. “What is it?” said Will. “This place was an orphanage.” said Daniel, his eyes focused on the plaque held up by a teacher in the photo. “Daniel.” said Will shaking and swallowing hard. When Daniel saw that the eyes of the children in the picture were bright gold he felt his heart skip up into his neck. The picture fell from his sweaty grip and the glass frame shattered on the floor. Down the hall a small light flickered. “Let’s get the hell out of here boss.” said Will, ready to run. “No.” whispered Daniel tossing his burned on cigarette on the floor. “Who’s there?” shouted a raspy voice down the hall. Daniel walked ahead and was met by a woman holding a dripping candle. She wore a ripped and dirt stained nightgown and enough makeup on her face to last a lifetime. “Who are you?” she said squinting her eyes. “My name is Daniel Alaster and this is my associate Will Rivers. I’m looking for my lawyer Thomas Benoit. He said he would meet me here. Do you know him?” The woman nodded. “Yes I do.” she said. “He’s my son.”
4
Daniel and Will sat inside a large dark room only lighted by small candles that lined the edge of the window sills across from them. They both looked out the window and saw nothingness. It was black, like the world outside had turned to stone. The strange woman they had met a few minutes ago now came in with two dirty glasses of tea and handed them both to Daniel and Will. Neither of them had any intention of drinking any of it. “So you’re Thomas’s mother?” said Daniel pretending to take a sip from his glass. Lucky he didn’t as a small piece of plaster from the ceiling floated down from the crack above him and plopped silently into his drink. “I am Tommy’s mother.” she said nodding and looking down at her hands which were now shaking in her lap. “But I haven’t seen him in five years. How did you say you know him?” Daniel could feel sweat run down his spine. “He’s my lawyer. He gave us your address and said he would meet us here.” The woman laughed. “Oh no, Tommy would never bring anyone here. He’s ashamed of this place.” “Why is that?” said Will. The woman gave him a crooked smile. “Thomas was a different boy.” she said in a raspy voice. “He didn’t belong here.” Will felt his leg start to shake, A silly habit that he always wanted to stop. “He just wasn’t a believer. He always saw the faith as something wrong in his life. My boy was killing Jesus all over again with his juvenile antics. He never went to church and he never prayed. Please tell me that you two have faith?” Daniel cleared his throat. “I used to.” he said looking over to his partner. Will didn’t want to admit that he himself grew up a Buddhist. It was the idea of his mother when he was five and the rest of his family went with along with it. “I on occasion visit and eat the bread.” said Will completely lost. The woman shot a sharp glance to each of them. “Tommy was fifteen when he ran away. Guess he got tired of all the whippings my husband would give him for disobeying the Lord.” she sighed and then stood up off her rickety chair. The end of her ripped nightgown flowed around her chubby bare feet. “Would you like some more tea?” she said walking over to Daniel. He gave her his cup, still full to the top. “I’m sorry but it just wasn’t the type I like.” he said. “It’s no matter dear.” she said grabbing Will’s cup. It was completely empty. Daniel looked over to Will who was grabbing his stomach and seeming like he was about to puke. “I’ll be right back with a different flavor.” she said walking out of the room. It became eerily silent inside that large room. Only the wind howled softly outside once or twice. One the candles on the window sill went out and the room became a shade darker. “What do you think boss?” said Will still clutching his gut. “I can’t believe you actually drank that.” said Daniel. “I didn’t know...” began Will but Daniel cut him off. “I’m beginning to think Thomas Benoit is more than just a charismatic lawyer.” Will shook his head. “Do you think he was the one who murdered his cousin and hung him up like that picture over there?” Daniel turned his head and his eyes caught the picture on the wall of a feeble looking man holding rosary beads. The man’s long crooked nose and stern look reminded him of the Thomas Benoit’s mother. “It’s possible right?” said Will deep in thought. “I mean, you heard it yourself. The man hated this religious group. Maybe one night his cousin came along looking for him and they fought.” Another candle light went out on the window sill. “It is possible.” said Daniel. “But we can’t jump to any conclusions just yet.” Suddenly they heard a creak outside the door. It wasn’t long before they saw the frame of Mrs. Benoit walk through the door. “What’s she holding?” said Will turning his head toward her shadowy figure. A loud bang and flash crashed through the room sending bits of wood and paper flying in the air. Large bullet holes embedded themselves in the wall beside Will. “Get down!” said Daniel with his hands over his ears. His head throbbed in pain. He could only see Mrs. Benoit’s lips moving in the dim light but he heard no sound. Will, however, caught all of it. “This is the Lord’s house. It’s time to die and meet your maker you treacherous fools.” The voice that came out of the gaunt woman was raspier and deeper than Will had ever heard come out of her. Mrs. Benoit aimed the gun again and fired as Will jumped out of the way under a desk. A bullet grazed his leg and he shouted in pain. Mrs. Benoit walked forward to the shattered desk where Will had hid behind. She was in a complete focus and her eyes began to glow a shade of gold. Daniel felt his whole body ache as he remembered that incident in his childhood. Mrs. Thompson, the man bolted to the wall, and now her. Daniel was beginning to think that their yellow eyes and religious affiliation was more than just a coincidence. Mrs. Benoit’s focus on Will gave Daniel time to crawl up behind her and swipe her feet. She fell backward and shot a shell directly into the ceiling as she fell to the floor. A tower of debris collapsed from above on top of her and Daniel. “Boss!” screamed Will limping over and disarming the lifeless arm of Mrs. Benoit. Will tossed the shotgun across the room and frantically lifted pieces of the pile off of Daniel. Will heard a cough and Daniel push his way out. He was covered from head to toe in a white dust. “Are you okay?” said Will wincing from the pain in his leg. Daniel coughed again. Red powder covered the palm of his hand. “I think we should go to the hospital.” Daniel said with a shy grin.
5
The first time Daniel been in a hospital was after he cut his elbow on that lovely summer day. Still shaking from his experience with Mrs. Thompson, the doctors had to struggle with him to put in the two staples needed to close the wound. Young Daniel felt trapped in the tight and sterile room. The bed he sat on was stiff and cold, and the touch from the overweight doctor was even colder. “Just hold still and it will all be over soon.” said the doctor pulling out a large needle. Daniel’s mother stood beside him holding his hand. “It’s okay Danny I’m here with you.” she said gripping his hand a little too much for his liking. “All done.” said the doctor after a minute. Pain burned like a fire up and down his arm. An ounce of blood swirled in his mouth from gritting his teeth. He felt even more alone once he was patched up when his parents were talking with the doctor outside the room. Daniel figured they weren’t discussing his cut but rather what to do next with him after the traumatic experience of finding a neighbor dead and bloodied in her home. At least, that’s what they only thought happened to him. Daniel felt that same coldness and loneliness again as he opened his eyes in found himself in a similar empty room. The last thing he remembered was being in the back seat of the car on the way to the hospital. I must have passed out, he thought. Finding it a struggle to sit up, Daniel pulled an IV drip out of his arm and waddled to the door. He wondered where Will was and what happened to his partner’s bullet stricken leg. Just then, the door opened. The same doctor who had given him his staples as a child walked in. He was much heavier than before. His stomach rolled over his scrubs. Streaks of silver lined the sides of his head. “Daniel Alaster.” he said looking at the clipboard in his hand. “How nice to see you again. Not being careful on a bike again I see?” The familiar smell of dark coffee still lingered on his breath. Daniel caught the words “Motorcycle accident.” on the clipboard. Will must have come up with a convincing story. “Please lie down. I’ll just...” The sound of the intercom cut him off. “Doctor Gallagher to room 241.” “Well.” said the doctor with a smile. “I’ll be right back. You just sit tight and relax now.” he said shuffling out of the room. Something wasn’t right. Daniel got a strange feeling the moment the doctor walked in that he didn’t feel the last time he was here. It was the same feeling he felt the moment he met Mrs. Thompson and Mrs. Benoit. Maybe it was the slight concussion that was causing him to think this but he had to know that Will was alright. Anyone in this hospital could belong to that religious cult. Waiting it for to be quiet and without any shadows crossing the door, Daniel crept out quickly and turned the corner. Daniel watched a man nearby walk into a bathroom and he followed him inside. “Excuse me.” snorted the man unzipping his pants at a urinal. Daniel had picked the urinal right beside him even though many spots were open along the row. When the man was finished he gave Daniel a dirty look. That was all that he managed do however as Daniel put him a headlock and choked him out. The bathroom door opened and out walked Daniel in a new set of clothes. The unconscious man in the bathroom was spared his underwear as he lay on the wet floor. Feeling an ever growing sense of urgency, Daniel ran up to a nurse nearby and asked where Room 241 was. The nurse told him it was upstairs and he ran down the hall to the stairwell. He didn’t have a care in the world for the way he must have looked or for the poor woman holding a cane that he accidentally knocked to the ground. Daniel climbed the winding staircase and didn’t stop even as his feet felt like they were going to burn right off. He pushed way through the door to the next floor and ran down the hall until he saw the numbers 241 written in bold black ink on one of the doors. He kicked it open. To his surprise there was nothing but an empty room occupied only by an empty bed. Daniel walked into the room in disbelief. Will had to have been here, he thought. “I thought I told you to relax Daniel.” suddenly called a cool voice behind him. Standing in the doorway with bright yellow eyes and a quivering bottom lip stood the doctor. “I knew it.” said Daniel feeling his legs shake. “Little Daniel Alaster.” said the doctor slyly walking in the room and shutting the door behind him. “I knew I should have killed you twenty years ago.” “What did you do to Will?” said Daniel backing up to an opened window a few feet away. “Will is in good hands.” said the doctor moving forward. “Mrs. Thompson was a follower and I should have known it was you who killed her. You have the mark. I can smell it on you.” “What are you talking about?” said Daniel feeling his ankles hit the wall. “It doesn’t matter now boy.” said the doctor reaching into his pocket. “It’s time to meet your maker.” he said, an evil raspy shout emanating from his throat. He lunged toward him with the largest needle Daniel had ever seen. Daniel managed to dodge the doctor’s swipe but he slipped onto the ground in the process. The doctor jumped on top of him with superhuman speed. Daniel found himself stuck under the strength of the doctor and he struggled to get free. “Don’t worry it won’t take long.” Doctor Galagher said as the color of his pupils grew brighter and brighter. The doctor tried to stab the needle into the side of his neck but Daniel grabbed his arm. The doctor’s entire arm turned orange and in an instant it exploded into ash. The doctor backed away and stumbled on the ground. “What the hell?” was all that the doctor could manage to squeal as he stared at his now missing limb. His left side looked like the end of a cigarette. Daniel stood up, feeling stronger than he ever had before. He looked in the mirror and saw that his eyes were beat red. Not the type of red when people’s eyes are irritated, but a red color as fierce as the color of crimson blood now covered his normally light brown eyes. “What are you?” squeaked the doctor, the gold in his eyes fading. “I am death.” Daniel found himself saying. In a last ditch effort the doctor pulled himself up and ran towards him. Daniel put his arms forward and a rush of flames shot out of his hands and towards the doctor like the end of a rocket. The fire carried the doctor crashing through the wall and window. Daniel collapsed on the ground in shock as the buzz of the fire alarm stung his ears and water from the emergency sprinklers doused him in a cold spray. Daniel stood up and walked forward in a trance. It was like he was sucked back into that terrible nightmare he experienced as a child. He turned towards the mirror and noticed his eyes had gone back to their normal shade of amber. Peering over the edge of the charred hole he created, Daniel watched a crowd gather in front of the still flaming body of Doctor Gallagher stories below him on the pavement of a parking lot. He heard the deep fluttering of a helicopter so he turned his head to the dark blue sky above. A black chopper rose above him, no doubt it coming from the roof of the hospital. On the side of the helicopter was a golden triangle shaped marking. It was the same symbol Daniel had seen years earlier in Mrs. Thompson’s house. Will was either dead or on that chopper, he thought. Daniel pulled out a wet cigarette from his coat pocket and tried to light it. His warm fingers trembled as he brought it to the edge of his lip. Time seemed to stop as he stared out the hole in shock. Just then he felt his arm being pulled. “Step away from the edge sir.” called a man’s voice. Behind him stood three police officers. One was putting him in handcuffs and reading him his Miranda rights. Daniel’s mind went blank as he was led out of the building and out to the back of a squad car. In the distance he could see a couple officers putting an extinguisher to the pile of burning flesh on the pavement. Daniel bowed his head and accepted his situation. He just hoped these officers didn’t have the golden eyes. If that were the case then he’d have to kill them during his escape from jail and in his pursuit of Will and Thomas Benoit if they got in the way.
The End
Stephen Mars is a college student living in New England. Currently studying for an English degree, he likes to write short stories of all genres and is currently working on a full length novel.
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Stay tuned for Killing Jesus Christ Part 2: The Mark of Death