But then, something did happen. Something unexpected. It was nearing three in the morning and the wind howled outside. Jeremy had only just closed his eyes when a creaking outside the bedroom door awoke him. He gripped the pillow he had been using – an off-white, flimsy thing with several mysterious stains and the smell of sweat and mold – and turned towards the door. His pulse quickened as the door knob opened. And then it all happened so fast: Jeremy was seized and then smothered, as an intense force gripped his body. There was shaking, sobbing, and finally, a release. Jeremy blinked.
“Jeffrey! It's my Jeffrey come home!” Henrietta's face was red and swollen. Bill stood in the doorway behind her, a trace of skepticism in his eyes.
“What?” said Jeremy.
Jason sat up on the floor and rubbed his eyes, “What’re you sayin'? Ma, it's the middle of the night!”
“Don't you see? It's your brother Jeffrey come home at last! This boy is your brother Jeffrey!”
“Jeffrey, can't be–impossible,” said Jason. He turned to Jeremy. “Jeffrey, is that you?”
Jeremy looked around him. The wind continued to howl outside the house. He pushed the pillow away from his head and stood up, irritated. “Listen. I'm not Jeffrey. I am Jeremy.” Jeremy sighed. Perhaps, he thought, he'd be better off orienting himself elsewhere. “Thank you for the hospitality and I'm sorry to inconvenience you, but I must be going. Come on Lyrna.”
Lyrna, ears back, stood up, stretched, and readied herself at Jeremy's heels.
“You aren't going nowhere, Jeffrey.” Henrietta steadied herself in the door frame and cautioned Jeremy to stay put with a thrust of her arms. The moonlight filtered in through the window and gave a bluish tint to her skin. “The Lord spoke to me tonight, and he said, 'Henrietta, this is your charge. You were a bad, bad mother once. Redeem yourself. See that you don't loose him again. See that he don't go wanderin' around in the woods, so cold, so scared, Momma's little baby. Henrietta!' he said, 'The Lord works in mysterious ways!' and I heard him! And I know, Jeffrey, that things are gonna be all right now!” Henrietta puckered her lips. Her face, still swollen from tears, pursed. She held her breath.
Jeremy shivered. Maybe the Lord had spoken with her? No, ridiculous. But then again, only a week ago an angel spoke with me. And then I was in the Haze. Anything's possible. He crossed his arms and gazed intently at the room's inhabitants. At last, he concluded, “It would have been an angel, not the Lord directly. Do you mean to say it was an angel who spoke with you?”
Henrietta's eyes shone wildly. “Lord! Thank you, Lord!” She rushed forward to hug Jeremy once more.
Bill and Jason's mouths hung open, this new piece of knowledge seemingly confirmed by the strange, beautiful boy. They began to rejoice and rushed forward to hug some piece of Jeremy not contained entirely within Henrietta's grasp.
Lyrna, alarmed and puffed, sidestepped the emotional orgy, unsure of whether to attack or wait for it to end. “Lyrna say bad, bad.”
Chapter 12
Maren Awakes
Maren awoke in the back of an ambulance. She blinked. Had she died? A mask was lowered over her face and her eyes widened in fright. She struggled and pulled on her restraints. “Where am I? What's happening?!”
“Relax. You need more oxygen, just keep breathing,” said the paramedic, securing the mask to her face. The driver called from the front of the vehicle.
“How's she doing back there?”
“Her skin's got some color back.”
“Great news. They're doing construction along the front of the NYU Medical Center, so we'll have to take her through the back.”
Maren mumbled through the oxygen mask and twisted her head. The ambulance worker lifted the mask. “Yeah?”
“Where am I?” she repeated between breaths.
“New York.”
“New York? What's New York?”
The paramedic lowered the mask over her face. “Hey Sam, she's not doing as good as I thought.”
Chapter 13
The Call
Jeremy's mother played the piano. It was mahogany with ivory keys and sat on a raised platform in the far right corner of the room. Velvet green curtains parted by gold clasps allowed light from outside to shine on Raaychilla's lustrous hair. Wantoro tapped his fingers and noted how each song his wife played grew increasingly vehement.
At last a messenger entered the chambers with news that the Nononias had been reached. Wantoro nodded and waited for Raaychila to conclude her song.
The walk to the Communications Center was silent. Raaychila was nervous about Jeremy. Wantoro was nervous about Jeremy's reputation. Only a week had passed since Jeremy departed for Lejjone Panil, and already they were receiving a call from his caretakers. Both Wantoro and Raaychila had missed the call, but it was classified as urgent.
Six guards stood at the entrance to the Communications Center, a vast control room which monitored flight traffic, weather, and planet conditions. Offices, divided by white screens, lined the back walls. Wantoro and Raaychila were led to one of these offices and seated in front of a large monitor. The Communications Director initiated video conferencing.
Three individuals appeared on the screen, each wearing a crisp white jumpsuit, a red flame etched on the breast. Raaychila tensed.
“Intergalactic Intelligence Unit, Special Force 64, reporting,” said Bentley, his thick, black brow casting a shadow over his face. He bowed.
Wantoro frowned as his eyes met Raaychila's. He had expected to talk directly to the Nononias. “We received a call earlier from the Nononias and I understand you have information for us concerning Cajjez Jeremy.”
“We do sir,” said Bentley. “He and Maren Nononia have been kidnapped.”
Chapter 14
Out the Window
Meanwhile in Pennsylvania, Jeremy spent the next few days trying to stomach the unsolicited affections of Henrietta Truitt. He was able to piece together that she had irresponsibly left her four year old son Jeffrey in a pasture on the south side of the mountain, about a mile away from the Truitt residence, in order to prepare dinner. “You were always makin' a fuss back then, hollerin' and pullin' your hair out,” she had said. Jeffrey's older brother, Jason, was seven at the time and was helping Bill build a tree stand for hunting deer. When Henrietta returned to the pasture on the south side of the mountain to retrieve Jeffrey, he was nowhere to be found. Police were contacted and neighbors helped with the search, but the boy was never recovered. Henrietta had prayed daily for the return of her son.
And he would be her son, at least for a short while, until he received another sign from the angel. Jeremy believed that an angel had spoken with Henrietta, and that if he just stuck around long enough, his purpose would be made clear. Jeremy continued to sleep in Jason's bed, and was offered all the best pieces of meat at dinner. He cringed at the meager offerings, growing increasingly intolerant of the family's modest means.
Jason scowled. Henrietta wanted nothing more than to sit beside her long lost son and gaze at him, and so doubled Jason’s chores. It was immediately apparent that Jeremy surpassed Jason in beauty, elegance, and intelligence, which was beyond anything the Truitt's had ever encountered. And he was more physically fit. Jason, though five inches taller, felt small compared to the Cajjez.
The school bus let Jason off at his stop and he began the mile and a half trek up the mountain to his family's residence. His friend Adam accompanied him, and together they walked along the trail through the woods.
“So Jeffrey's a weirdo then?” Adam laughed and spit on the ground.
“A freak, yeah. But he's a fast one, tried to get him to play tag football with me and my old man, and he outrun us every time! Never played before neither. Just a natural, I guess.” Jason shoved his hands deep in his pockets.
“And so your mom's gonna home school him?”
“Yep, I think so. She wants to tell him 'bout the Bible, but he keeps correctin’ her. Like, he says she got it all wrong. And then
he adds stuff that ain't even in there!”
“Even I know not to mess with your mom.” Adam ducked under a tree branch that hung over the trail.
“I know! But he don't know not to cross her yet. It's weird though 'cause he knows Bible verses by heart and goes and tells my ma she got it wrong! She's so patient with him, I don't get it. I can't wait for her to turn on him, though.” Jason spat on the ground and swatted at a fly that circled his head.
“You don't mean that. He's only just come home.”
“Yeah, well wait 'till you see this kid.” Jason smiled. The clearing to his house was straight ahead. “Come on then. Watch, my ma's gonna come out and swear at me then kiss you.”
And sure enough, as the two young men approached the house, out ran Henrietta, brows furrowed. “Dang it, Jason! Dang it! I'll have to make more soup. Hello Adam! Nice to see you!” Henrietta swooped in on Adam, planting a slobbery kiss on his cheek.
Adam glanced at Jason. “Hello Mrs. Truitt! Jason's been telling me so much about Jeffrey, I can't wait to see him. My folks wanna come down and see him this weekend, too, if that's all right.”
“Of course! My Jeffrey's a real light, a beacon of the Lord Jesus himself. Tell your parents they can come along back to our place after Church on Sunday. I'll fix us a nice brunch.”
“Sure thing, Mrs. Truitt.”
Henrietta led the way into the house and Jason and Adam followed. They had to navigate their way around piles of dirty laundry and chewed-up dog toys. “Jeffrey!” hollered Henrietta. Nothing. “Jason, why don't you go and fetch your brother, he's probably hidin’ in your room with that cat of his.”
Jason and Adam entered Jason's bedroom and found Jeremy sitting cross-legged on the center of the floor. He had moved Jason's makeshift bed to the side, pushing it against Jason's meager comic book collection. Jeremy was meditating.
“Um, what’re you doin’?” said Jason, sneaking a smile to Adam. Adam stifled a laugh, already amused at the contrast between the two supposed brothers.
Jeremy took his time responding, allowing for the trance to dissolve slowly. “I'm glad you should ask, Jason. I was meditating. I'm getting better at it. For example, in as little as four minutes, I begin to vibrate. And recently I've discovered that after only five minutes of meditation, I can temporarily exit this world.” Jeremy rubbed his temples. “The exit – or you can think of it as my entry into the Haze – requires a certain sensitivity to the forces beyond. And I'm more sensitive to these forces when I meditate.” Jeremy stood up and stretched. “But really I can sense the forces all the time. I'm gifted.” Jeremy yawned and stretched his arms. “When will that angel give me another sign, this is getting ridiculous.”
Jason smiled and shook his head. “Crazy talk. Ma hears you goin' on like this, she'll see the devil in you.” Jason turned to Adam. “See what I mean? He's just plain weird.”
Adam flinched.
“Don't worry 'bout him hearing you,” continued Jason. “He talks right past me all the time. He knows I got no idea what he's talkin' ‘bout and he still goes on and on.”
Adam stepped over a comic book stack to get closer to Jeremy. “So, Jeffrey? Where'd you go all them years anyway? I helped look for you with my parents way back when, when you first disappeared.”
Jason made his way towards the door, calling behind him, “Oh don't bother, he ain't gonna give you a straight answer.”
Jeremy examined Adam. A plump young man, about 5'8 with curly black hair, Jeremy could discern a keener intelligence in his features than in Jason's. Though Adam's poor posture was cringe worthy, Jeremy made an effort to smile. The effect was immediate.
Adam went dumb.
“Come on, Adam. Let's go!” said Jason. He slumped his body irritably against the door frame.
“Adam, is it?” said Jeremy. “Well Adam, I wish I could answer your question, but it seems Jason has you on a short leash. But I can give you a summary of my current thoughts. I've been many places before now, but never here. Only I think I'm supposed to lie and pretend that I've been here before. So my question to you is, why would an angel want me to lie? I can't figure it out.” Jeremy smiled. He turned his back to the two young men and resumed sitting cross-legged on the floor. Lyrna yawned and settled on his lap.
Adam blinked.
“Come on, Adam!” said Jason.
Adam took a few steps back, knocking over a pile of comic books, before turning around and following Jason out the door.
Henrietta dragged an extra chair inside the kitchen from the outside deck to make room for Adam. She rang the dinner bell and within seconds, Bill, Jason, and Adam assembled around the table. Jeremy, as usual, was late.
“Ma, he brought his cat again to supper!” said Jason, jabbing a finger in the air towards Lyrna as Jeremy entered the room. Lyrna produced a deep-throated growl.
“Lyrna stays,” said Jeremy as he pulled out his seat at the head of the table.
“Ma,” continued Jason, “it's been over a week. When's Pa gonna get back his seat as head of the family?”
Bill interrupted, “It's all right, Jason.” He glanced at Henrietta. “Jeffrey's still gettin’ settled in is all.”
Jeremy snorted. Henrietta only smiled and spooned a generous helping of soup into Jeremy's bowl.
“Let's begin, shall we?” said Henrietta after she had served the others and seated herself. The family all held hands, aside from Jeremy, and bowed their heads in prayer. Henrietta waited until everyone was still before continuing. “Dear Lord, thank you once again for bringin’ my family together and blessing us with the return of Jeffrey. We are insignificant. We are not worthy of your good graces, and still you show us mercy. I should’ve been hanged for what I done to my boy, leaving him in that pasture. I should have been burned and beaten. I should have been made to suffer, vultures peckin' at my remains. A corpse. But instead you've given me a second chance, instead you–”
“Air!” shouted Lyrna and she jumped off Jeremy's lap and leapt through the kitchen window. Jeremy stood up.
“Now what?” said Bill, looking towards Jeremy.
Henrietta shrieked, “We do not interrupt prayer! Bill! Close your eyes! Jeffrey, be seated.”
“But Ma!” said Jason, also rising from the table. “Didn't you hear that cat talk just now?”
“I heard it say 'Air'!” Adam chimed in.
Henrietta remained seated and closed her eyes tightly, wrinkles straining along the corners. She gripped the table, her knuckles turning white. “Boys, we do NOT interrupt prayer. Everyone, sit!”
“But Ma!”
“Jason, you've gone and made the Lord angry!”
“But Ma! It's Jeffrey!”
Henrietta opened her eyes in time to see Jeremy exit through the kitchen door.
Chapter 15
Lightening
Lyrna's whiskers twitched as she raced towards the source of the disturbance. She sensed a dark presence. A trail behind the house led gently downhill and Lyrna followed it to its base where a small clearing opened up, a scarecrow at its center. Lyrna halted before creeping towards the scarecrow. The scarecrow was moldy and covered in bird droppings, its left arm drooping to the ground, straw spilling out onto the earth. A red smile was stitched across its face, leering at Lyrna. Lyrna tensed and took a step closer. Just beside the scarecrow bubbled a small sulfur pool. Its putrid smell curled Lyrna's whiskers and she sneezed.
“Lyrna!” called Jeremy, just behind the house at the top of the trail.
“Hot pool! Stinky bad, bad!” mewed Lyrna.
Jeremy ran down the trail and saw smoke rising from the hot spring in front of Lyrna. “What is it? Lyrna don't get too close to it.” Jeremy caught a whiff of sulfur and turned his face away. “What happened?”
“Ground open. Bad!”
“Well, did you see anything? Behind the air, I mean?” Jeremy knelt in front of the hot spring and examined the bubbling water, shielding his nose with his shirt sleeve.
“No.
Just bad,” said Lyrna.
“What do you mean? You think it's a sign?”
Lyrna hissed. “Bad!” She hopped from paw to paw.
Jeremy scratched his head and then held his hand over the hot spring. A bubble on the surface of the pool burst and sprayed a few drops of hot liquid onto his hand. Jeremy winced and pulled back.
“Yes! Evil,” said Lyrna.
Jeremy stood up and put his hands on his hips. He continued to stare at the hot spring in silence.
“Jeffrey, step away from that smoke!” said Henrietta from atop the hill. Behind her, Bill cradled a rifle. Jason and his friend Adam stood stupefied in the shadows. “Boy, I said back away from that smoke!”
“Evil!” said Lyrna, now puffed as she circled around the hot spring.
“Lord Almighty, Bill,” said Henrietta, turning to her husband. “It really is talking. Shoot it.”
Bill raised his rifle and aimed it at Lyrna. His finger squeezed the trigger.
A shot rang out. A blue streak of light flashed in front of Jeremy and Lyrna. The bullet fell to the ground a few feet in front of Lyrna. Jeremy's hands swallowed the surge of blue light and he stood before the Truitt family in shock, his hair frizzy with static. Exhausted, he crumpled to the ground.
Chapter 16
The Trail
Henrietta crossed herself as she walked down the trail behind the house towards Jeremy and Lyrna. She groped a tree and fixed her eyes on Jeremy. “Lord, be my protector,” she mumbled, at last holding out a hand to Jeremy.
Bill watched in horror as his wife neared the scene of the phenomenon. The boy, who may or may not be his own son, had just created lightening. His hair stood upright and smoke rose from a charred piece of wood by his feet. Bill nudged Jason with the rifle. “Go on, get some help from the Watsons. Go down next door, round up some folks from the church and tell 'em what you saw. Take the truck.” Jason grabbed Adam by the elbow and the two boys sprinted to the front yard of the house.