A Chance for Charity (The Immortal Ones) (18 page)

“
I won’t argue with that,”
James smiled. “It was on our journey to Chicago that we had our
first run-in with the Lord family. We traveled upriver by
steamboat, on one of the Anchor Line boats. Our stop at Hickman,
Kentucky proved to be quite an educational one. We stayed the night
at a small inn by the dock. While eating dinner at the inn, I was
alarmed by the countless number of people whispering about ‘the
Lords.’ I didn’t know, at the time, to what they were referring.
So, I told Catherine to start eavesdropping, until we found
out.

‘
Jeremiah Lord claims he
finally found one,’ an old man said.

‘
One what?’ His companion
asked.

‘
One of them witches he’s
always warning about,’ he answered. ‘Said he’s got him captured,
down on his property. Said he’ll make an example of him tonight.
Said ‘twas God’s orders. Crazy as a bat that one,’ the old man
continued.

‘
Jeremiah Lord?’ his
companion pondered. ‘Doesn’t he live alone with his son Ezra? Wife
left him a few years back, said she couldn’t account for his
rantings anymore?’

‘
Yep, that’s him. I’m
headed over there after you and I finish eating,’ the old man
informed his companion.

“
Catherine and I decided to
follow him after our meal, and we ended up at Jeremiah Lord’s
house. At the time of our arrival, a small crowd was gathered
around the outside of the house. We found a spot to hide, in some
brush and trees, just out of sight. I looked at this man, of forty
odd years, standing with one arm on his grown son’s shoulder, the
other holding a large bible up into the air. He was ranting about
abominations in the eyes of God. His son stood quietly by, nodding
in agreement.

“
At one point the son
departed, and went around to the back of the house. When Ezra Lord
returned he held a rope in his hand, the other end of which was
tied around the neck of a young man. He couldn’t have been more
than eighteen, by the looks of him. He was a small man, shorter
than most. His eyes danced around the crowd with fear.

‘
This creature is no man,’
Jeremiah preached, ‘it is a serpent sent straight from hell. He has
conjured up all the powers of Lucifer himself, I tell you. Bear
witness to the works of the Devil,’ he said in a frenzied voice,
and then nodded toward his son.

“
Ezra took a large hunting
knife and ran its blade across the boy’s cheek. A deep cut was made
and then disappeared before our eyes. An audible gasp was heard
throughout the crowd. Catherine and I stared at each other. Fear
struck our hearts, like a bolt of lightning. This boy had been
captured, the thing that we most dreaded.

‘
More proof,’ Ezra yelled
to the crowd as he ripped the boy’s shirt off and dragged the knife
across his belly. The boy cried out in pain and doubled forward. A
moment later Ezra straightened him up, to the shock of the crowd
again. The deep wound was nowhere to be found.

“
The boy cried out, ‘I am
not a harm, not a threat. I’m just a traveler. Let me go in peace,’
he pleaded.

‘
You shall go in peace,
traveler. Your death shall bring you to light. God will redeem your
soul if you repent your evil ways and pray for forgiveness,’
Jeremiah’s voice rang out.

‘
Please,’ the boy
whispered.

“
The blur of action that
took place next is forever burned into our memories. We didn’t
expect the swift condemnation of the boy, from the Lords or from
the crowd. Before we took our next breath, Jeremiah pulled his
sword from its sheath, and held it high in the air. The small crowd
had been worked into a mighty frenzy. Jeremiah took a step back and
swung the sword with all his might, aiming for the boy’s neck. A
clean cut was made through the flesh. Another swing - and the head
was removed from the body. A torch was thrown to the body, wood and
kindling added, until a raging fire ensued. Death became a mist
that hung in the air,” James paused and shook his head.

“
That night still haunts
me. Jeremiah vowed to continue the hunt,” Catherine murmured. “I
can still hear his voice.”

“‘
I declare that it will be
my mission, and my son’s, and his sons’, to find the evil in this
world and annihilate it from existence,’ Jeremiah boomed as the
fire consumed what was left of the body,” James
continued.

“
Catherine and I returned
to the inn as quickly as possible, not leaving our room until the
next day, to board the steamboat and depart from the danger. While
on the boat, we listened to every conversation we could hear,
trying to find out more information about the Lords. We lucked out
and were able to piece together several bits of gossip from the
more talkative passengers onboard.”

Catherine chimed in with the details. “We
discovered that Jeremiah claimed to have accidentally shot a young
man while out hunting, twenty years earlier. He cried out an
apology, then trekked across a clearing to check on the man... to
make sure he was not badly hurt. Apparently when he got close
enough, he witnessed the man wiping blood from his arm, but no
injury was apparent. Jeremiah said the young man then ran off into
the forest but he was too afraid to follow,” she explained.

“
Jeremiah had never let
that day leave his memory, talking about it all the time, searching
the forests for the young man. For twenty plus years he had
searched, to the detriment of his marriage and to the detriment of
his mental health. He became a crazed zealot, preaching about the
evil that live among us. He brought up his son Ezra in an
environment of hate and fear. The mistake of the Immortal young man
had been to cross paths with Jeremiah Lord once more,” Catherine
finished.

“
My mistake was that I did
not speak up for the boy,” James admonished himself.

“
You cannot hold yourself
responsible for that,” Link insisted.

“
I always picture Catherine
or Charity in that young man’s place. And it is simply an
unimaginable horror for me. If I had stopped Jeremiah then, that
boy would still be alive. Then maybe the Lord children, and
grandchildren, would never have taken up the hunt,” James
replied.

“
Or maybe you and Catherine
would have been captured by the crowd and killed as well,” I
chided. “Then where would I be? You saved me. I don’t know what I
would have done after Roger’s death if I didn’t have you two. They
would’ve had to lock me in an insane asylum. I would have been
turned over to the Government once it was discovered that I wasn’t
aging and that I could heal myself,” I declared.

“
No, James. You must not
fault yourself. Everything happens for a reason. Charity is right.
We might have been killed too. You must not hold yourself
responsible. Jeremiah Lord killed that boy and there is nothing we
could have done to stop him. I believe the reason we were witness
to that gruesome scene was to become more aware. We both knew there
were people who thought we were evil. But real danger had eluded
us. After that night we knew exactly what would happen if we were
to ever be discovered by those with malice in their hearts,”
Catherine stated. “All these years, James... You’ve held onto that
guilt for much too long,” she smiled at him, pushing the hair back
from his downturned eyes. Catherine cupped his face in her hands
and leaned forward to kiss him – a sweet, tender, loving
kiss.

“
Thank you... for loving
me,” he murmured.

“
Always,” she whispered
back.

Alone again later that night, halfway
through an old musical (Link was being gracious), Link paused the
movie, “They really love each other,” he said.

“
Who?” I
puzzled.

“
Catherine and James,” he
said. “They are each the half that makes the other
whole.”

“
Yes they are. They have an
extensive history together,” I answered.

“
We could be that,” he
said, his eyes intent, intense.

“
We could,” I agreed with
slight hesitation.

“
I need to know more about
you, your history. Can I quiz you a bit?” he asked.

“
Fire away,” I smiled, “but
I get answers from you too.”

“
Where were you
born?”

“
San Diego –
You?”

“
Mesa, Arizona. When we
first met, you said your birthday was in February. Later when I
figured out who you really were you said something about
March.”

“
Emily Johnston’s birthday
is February tenth - arbitrary date. My birthday is March
twenty-second,” I explained. “James and Catherine always celebrate
both. I get two birthdays! When is yours?” I asked.

“
April sixteenth, I only
get one,” he quipped.

“
What’s the best city that
you’ve lived in, so far?” I asked him.

“
Here,” he answered with
simple honesty, “I met you.”

“
I can’t argue with that,”
I leaned forward to give him a quick kiss.

“
On the ride to Montrose
you said the vehicles from the Fifties were so stylish. What was
your favorite?”

“
I’ll say the Thunderbird,
convertible. But that is the only favorite I’ll give. I have been
alive for too long to have absolute favorites. I like so many
different things, it is too hard to pick just one,” I
answered.

“
Okay, no favorites. How
about siblings?” he asked.

“
None, only child, like you
– I’ve assumed,” I said.

“
Correct. What else?” Link
paused in thought.

“
Nothing else,” I answered.
“The past isn’t all that important. You know the basics now - where
and when I was born, my connection to your family. You know my
weaknesses and my strengths. You know I love you and I know you
love me.”

“
That I do,” he said as he
wrapped his arms around me.

“
We’ll make our own
history,” I said as I snuggled into his embrace. “I’ll give you one
more favorite,” I whispered. “Being in your arms... that is my
favorite place to be.”

chapter eleven

DELICATE THREADS

I took off first, daring him to catch me. I
was better at it now, better than I should be. But then I always
picked up new skills quite quickly. We were in the Enchanted
Forest, weaving through the trees. I could hear him behind me,
getting closer. A cackle escaped his lips, I pushed myself harder.
He would not overcome me. I was not willing to accept defeat.

A split-second later a blur whizzed by my
right side. It came to an abrupt halt, creating a white haze before
my eyes.

“
You stink,” I complained.
“Couldn’t you let me win just once?” I whined to him.

“
At the rate you’re going
you’ll be kicking my butt in no time. I will be the victor for as
long as I can,” Link whooped, raising his arms in
triumph.

“
You’re right I can wait.
I’ve got nothing but time. Do you think they make wheel chairs with
skis on them for the old folks?” I asked, sticky sweet, as I skied
over to him.

“
Oh you are wicked,” he
smiled back. “But I still won.”

“
Fine, you won,” I
conceded. “I like that trail. It really feels like you are lost in
an Enchanted Forest. I even have a Knight in shining armor, of
sorts, to watch over me,” I teased.

“
Mr. Knight is at your
service Miss Johnston.” Link performed his best, ski gear, bow.
“You are Emily Johnston today, aren’t you?” He asked.

“
Yes, we are in public. I
realize that switching back and forth can be a little difficult. I
slipped up, the night you found me, after I fell on the mountain,”
I confessed.

“
When?” Link
puzzled.

“
You asked my name and I
actually said Charity,” I reminded him.

“
Oh that’s right,” he
paused, remembering. “Then you said, ‘I don’t need your charity,’
to cover your mistake.”

“
It worked,” I shrugged.
“Sixty plus years of lying, makes one quite believable.” I put my
sticky sweet smile back on, pushed off with my poles, and skied
away.

He easily caught up with me, and ordered,
“Stay on Double Cabin,” pointing to the left. As he passed me, he
yelled, “Galloping Goose and then Bridges.”

Enchanted Forest, Double Cabin, Galloping
Goose, and then Bridges – those were four of the countless names
that were staked throughout the slopes on signposts. The mountain
was a labyrinth of ski trails. Navigating your way down could
easily be compared to driving the freeways of a large metropolitan
city. The ski trails are the tangle of freeways that join each
other at various junctures. The skiers are the drivers that must
watch for signposts carefully. A name and an arrow mark the way for
each trail and the skiers then merge, hopefully without crashing.
Near misses were aplenty that day. Some skiers lost control of
their vehicle and were involved in a single car accident. Luckily I
was spared the embarrassment and the inconvenience.

The fear of a bad fall, with an obvious
injury, was ever present in my mind. I curtailed my usual
recklessness. The influx of people during peak ski season kept the
trails filled with witnesses. If we could ski somewhere truly
remote, completely by ourselves, I would really let go. Then Link
would genuinely have something to contend with.