revealed belong to us and our children forever
—Deut. 29:29
Sudden Chill
It was a black rain and it fell steadily, darkening everything it touched.
It was not a comfortable rain but it did close me off from the wet darkness outside and the watchers, whoever they were, that preside over the hills.
It was a scary time alone out on the trail with those faceless shapes shadowing and staring down...
It's not just the rain that's ancient, but the spirits that inhabit the hills and occupy the high places around here.
I need Andie to explain that to me because right now I'm freaking out, imagining demonic faces peering in windows...
and huddling before the fire is not dissipating the chill.
A voice whispers behind me, causing me to jump.
It's Andie standing in the doorway.
"Aw shoot! I was about to ask if you were okay, but you look like you've just seen a ghost."
I colour, ashamed of showing my fear.
"I'm not sure I didn't see a ghost tonight," I tell her, "and it's certainly an experience I don't want to have again."
"The Watchers aren't ghosts, Paul—they're angels guarding us."
The prospect of needing angelic guardians was sobering.
I didn't want to ask, but I had to settle my mind.
"You think Malachi Bane is that evil?"
She stared at me solemnly. "It's not what I think but what the Watchmen are showing me. There's something evil going on behind the walls of Bane's estate and I'd like to know what it is."
"You know what you're planning is dangerous, right?"
"I know, but I think we owe it to the town to pull back the curtain, and maybe if his schemes are exposed he might lose interest and depart."
I hesitated for a moment.
"But what happens if he decides to stay and fight?"
"Then we run like hell, Sugar—leave this place forever and never come back."
It was a crazy scheme, but as long as she was willing to stay with me, I was willing to go along with her plan.
"Okay, so what now?"
"Now we eat," she smiled, going back into hallway to retrieve the insulated bag she brought with her. "It's ribs and all the fixin's!" she grinned.
We sat in the den before the fire while lightning lit the windows and thunder rumbled overhead.
It was magical, being warm and fed and shut away with her while the storm raged outside.
We talked about many things, but not Malachi Bane and lay by the fire wrapped in each other's arms.
Fires are mesmerizing, relaxing and hypnotic, they lull you into a state that is pure peace.
I must have fallen asleep, worn out from the stress of the day, because I awoke alone hearing the antique grandfather clock, chiming midnight.
Andie must have gone up to change and get ready for bed. The fire had died down as well, although the storm outside still raged.
And it was there, lying in the darkness that I saw it—the lightning outlined the form of a watcher outside the window peering in.
We stared at each other for several moments and then he slowly disappeared.
I didn't know whether to be comforted or scared.