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CHAPTER 10
Darkness had neverbeen Avery’s favorite thing.
In fact, she downright hated it, whether it was the starless curtain of night...or the shadows she sometimes saw in people’s souls.
So no matter how busy she was or how far she traveled during the day, she always made it a point to be safely in her cabin before sunset. With Mercy by her side, she usually lit a fire in the fireplace, cooked something nice for dinner, and spent the evening reading, journaling, or just daydreaming.
And most of the time that was enough—but not tonight.
Tonight things felt wrong—as if a mysterious enemy lurked right outside the door of the cabin, watching Avery with hungry eyes, yearning to devour her new life.
This wasn’t Avery’s first experience with these feelings. At such times, she could actually sense the tension in the spiritual realms, as if she stood before a window to a world where angels and demons waged war for the souls of mankind. Even before she knew that a God existed, she’d had the “knowings,” as she called them. Once she met El Shaddai, she understood the experiences for what they were—moments of a special knowledge not unlike prophecy.
At such times, there was nothing to do except pray, remain calm, and listen to see what the Lord would say. And write poetry—a way to release the pent-up emotion and settle the turbulence. Avery glanced down at her paper, where two lines were scribbled:
I thought I was safe, but behold the fight
Mutters around me in the depth of the night
I thought I was safe.
Avery curled her legs under her in the comfy chair. She glanced at Mercy, relieved to see that the dog was snoozing soundly in front of the fire. If there was any physical threat—an intruder, a wild animal—Mercy would know before she did. No, the danger tonight was the more insidious kind—spiritual darkness.
Just leave me in peace! I don’t want to see
What rhymed with see? Tree...free...be...me. Me.
What’s taking place in worlds far from me
Avery put her pencil down and rubbed her eyes. That was true. She hadn’t asked for the ability, hadn’t asked to be able to peer into people’s souls as she often could. And she certainly had never asked for the loneliness that accompanied such a power—the feelings of isolation that had dogged her throughout her entire life, as though part of her soul still belonged in those spiritual realms and was unable to speak the language of this world.
She rotated her shoulders, rose from her chair, and crossed the room toward the big windows, trying to peer into the darkness outside. Instead, an oddly irrelevant image drifted into her mind.
Addisyn’s face.
Avery closed her eyes quickly, as if to stifle the pain of the memory. Her sister had been just one of the casualties of her mysterious gift.
What had she done wrong? As always on the rare occasions when she allowed herself to think of Addisyn, tears burned behind Avery’s eyelids. They’d been best friends, their bond only strengthened by their shared pain. But slowly, gradually, the light that had always glowed in Addisyn’s soul became shadowed, concealed, stealthily suffocated by something much more sinister.
Avery had always been afraid of the dark, but that year, Addisyn had started running from the light.
Avery had tried to explain to her sister what she was seeing, but really, she couldn’t blame Addisyn for not understanding. It was difficult to put the knowings into words, especially when she herself often didn’t fully grasp their meaning. And of course, by that point, Addisyn hadn’t even wanted to understand—especially when Avery brought up the subject of Brian.
If ever Avery had received warning messages about a person, Brian was it. There was so much raw evil in his soul that it leaked through his eyes, even during his most charming moments. Avery had been nothing less than panic-stricken when he’d come into her sister’s life. And in her zeal to protect Addisyn, she’d gripped the situation with both fists.
And by doing so, she’d only driven her sister farther away.
Avery was tired of the thoughts. Every one was an old visitor, a familiar enemy sliding along a well-worn path. She could almost feel the furrow in her mind, etched from so many similar times of replaying the whole event. But since she’d come to the mountains, she’d been able to push the pain deep inside. Why was it insistently surfacing tonight?
The unease tickled up and down her spine. A board creaked in her kitchen, and she jerked as if she’d been zapped with an electric current.Relax, Avery. It’s all okay.Purposefully she marched to the light switch on the opposite wall, flicked it on.
Sometimes she needed more light to help her fight the darkness.
With determination in every stride, she moved methodically through her house, flipping every switch she saw. Good thing her house was at least a mile from any neighbors. Anyone passing by would think the crazy hobo girl had finally lost her mind, with her house blazing like a Christmas tree.
The only response was prayer. It had always been. Avery hugged herself and lowered her head.El Shaddai...something is happening, and I don’t know what...but I pray that you will be glorified, no matter what. Bind the forces of the enemy and bring Your truth to victory.Avery paused, instinctively clenching her fingers into fists.O Lord...show me who to pray for...
Her head jerked up. Had she really heard Addisyn’s voice? Calling her...just as she always had...that same lilt in her high, sweet voice.
