Chapter 2: God Will Be There For All Who Need

Gabriel follows Kate up to Fiddletown. It is an old town and much of it could use a coat of paint, but the people who live there are well grounded in ‘proper living’: meaning to say it is in Amador county like Plymouth is and this county is dominated by ranches, farms, wineries and mostly hard working people. God still lives here proudly: which isn’t always a truth for some of California.

They pull up to a dilapidated white house and immediately Gabriel feels evil emanating from the whole house. It is a sensation that weighs heavily upon ones spirit, but when you believe the body is a temple for the Holy Spirit, or at least should be, you can go forward in confidence, truth and love. Before getting out of his truck, as he is grabbing his holy water and healing anointing oil that has been blessed by a priest, he says this prayer, “My Lord, once again you have trusted me to serve those in need. I am grateful for your trust and I ask that you do not let me fail. Saint Michael, the Archangel, muster the forces for we go to do battle with your fallen kin once more. Amen.”

As they are walking up the stairs to the porch Gabriel grabs Kate’s arm and stops her, “Do you believe in God?” Kate slowly nods her head. “Do you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?”

“I think so.”

“You think so! Okay. Uh okay, are you sorry for yours sins?”

Kate’s eyes go big and flood with tears and then she nods emphatically, “Yes.”

“Do you reject Satan and all his works?” The whole house seems to creek and groan.

“Yes,” she says sadly.

Gabriel takes out his healing anointing oil and puts a cross on Kate’s forehead and says, “I anoint you a protected child of God.”

Kate takes a deep breath as if breathing for the first time in a long time, like coming up after a deep dive, and she smiles. Though Gabriel cannot see as she is turned away from him, the look in her eyes does not fit the situation and her smile is more devious than joy. She reaches for the door, but it will not open.

Gabriel turns the knob and it appears not to be locked, it just won’t open. He sprinkles holy water on his cross that he is holding in his right hand by this time and puts the cross on the door, “In the name of Jesus Christ, open.” The door opens by itself. One would think the hinges need oiling by the eerie sound, but Gabriel believes it is the house itself crying out for relief.

Despair and heaviness are everywhere. Kate starts to walk in, but Gabriel stops her and goes first. He holds his cross high and proud which is now in his left hand and he has his holy water in his right. Kate points to a room towards the back and off to the right. As Gabriel is going along he is sprinkling holy water and repeating, “In the name of Jesus Christ, Jesus is Lord” and “Jesus Christ came in the flesh.” Simple truths, but powerful.

They come to a hallway where straightforward is the bathroom, to the left is Kate’s bedroom and to the right is Molly’s bedroom. The thickness of evil emanating from Molly’s room is so thick that it slows Gabriel’s walk down as he progresses towards fulfillment.

Kate starts to call out to Molly, but Gabriel silences her by first touching her arm. Then Gabriel puts his finger to his lips and shakes his head no. Gabriel squirts holy water on the door in the shape of a cross. The door begins to shake. Mild at first, but then it rages in agony.

Gabriel reaches for the door handle with full confidence that he does not walk alone. He opens the door as if he is simply walking in to say hi to an old friend. He is immediately hit with the smell of urine and excrement. Gabriel wrinkles his nose and shies away for a micro-second. Then he looks over into the far corner and believes he sees a little girl curled up in a ball with her knees pulled up to her chin on the carpet hiding from the horrors around her. Yes the room is dark for light bulbs don’t last very long, but there is something more. Much of this darkness is unnatural. In fact, if it wasn’t for a divine glow coming off the little girl the dark would be impenetrable. As Gabriel continues to blink his eyes to get acclimated to the dark he starts to make out cloaked figures, three he believes, standing around and at times even flying about the girl. The one way Gabriel knows that they are present in complete darkness where he can’t sense them is the area looks even more unnaturally dark: it is hard to explain, even for Gabriel, but Gabriel counts himself blessed.

Gabriel gets mad and indignant and yells out far too loudly, “Get away from her!”

The little girl visibly jumps and the shadowy cloaked figures turn towards him. As Gabriel holds his cross out and is shooting holy water everywhere he gets hit by an unseen force and goes flying back out the bedroom door, which promptly slams shut behind him. He ends up at Kate’s feet; who is utterly stunned at this point.

Gabriel gets up thoroughly pissed now. He sends his two hundred and forty pounds at the door full force. The door not only opens but it explodes. “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you away from this child of God!” Holy water streams out in glory. “By the Blood of the Lamb, I cast you out. Come Holy Spirit. Yahweh, you are my shield and sword.” Gabriel soaks his cross in holy water and runs into the shadowy figures.

There are several loud roars and the whole house shakes again. “In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, this girl is now under my protection. By the Blood of the Lamb, I cast you out!” At this point Kate has fallen to the floor weeping in fear, but sensing for the first time in a long time a growing hope.

The shadowy figures flee before God and his servant. Gabriel starts looking around, quite frankly in surprise himself. The room becomes a little less dark. The feeling of evil has lessened, but by no sense has it gone. As Gabriel knows just the presence of true evil can leave a lingering taint on a place, even long after the fallen angel has left. As he has almost reached her Gabriel looks down and sees the little girl’s head start to rise.