Without warning or reason the creature began to run toward the chapel with amazing speed. It looked like a badly burned and partially decomposed Olympic runner sprinting for the finish line. It made its way around the side of the church and leapt toward one of the windows.
Inside, two of the students, Jimmy and Trevor, had lifted up a large piece of the backing to one of the pews. They were carrying it over to a section of the stained glass window that was still partially exposed. As they prepared to set it into place something broke through the window, sending shards of thick, colored glass all across the chapel floor. It sounded like a hurricane had sent a large tree limb through it.
The students who were nearby dropped to the floor of the church, covering their heads as the others watched in horror at the burned and red creature looking them over with anticipation.
CHAPTER 23
Trent watched as the burned creature looked around at the faces of horror, as if preparing to choose its victim. Trent had been working on a stained glass window nearby when the creature had entered the church. Now, he could smell its putrid skin filling the air and he suddenly felt sick to his stomach.
Three of The Dead climbed inside through the hole the creature had made in the window. They instantly began to attack the students who were on the ground, still avoiding the shards of glass. One of the students was lifted up and immediately bitten, their screams resonating through the small church.
The red creature turned to Trent, its crystalline eyes locking on his. Trent began to back away, heading toward the front of the church. The red creature followed him, keeping the same pace he did. He took the hammer, still in his hands from working on the window, and twisted it around so that the claw was pointing out.
“Help! Somebody help!” he cried out.
His cries were smothered in the sounds of the others who were screaming as they fell under attack. Trent continued to back up until suddenly he felt the edge of the pulpit at the heel of his shoes. He raised his foot, keeping his eyes on the red creature, and went to put it above the next step, only he miscalculated and his feet slipped out from underneath him. He fell hard to the floor, his lower back hitting the corner of the step as he cried out in pain. The red creature leapt on him, lifting him up by his shirt. It threw him toward the back of the church sending papers flying off of the podium and chairs toppling over in his wake.
It ran to him, picking him up again, with such speed that he had no time to react. Trent could feel blood running down his forehead from his fall. His vision was becoming increasingly splotchy and dark and he felt as though he would pass out at any moment. Just as the creature leaned in, letting out a horrid, high-pitched scream of delight, it suddenly fell silent. It stumbled for a brief moment trying to reach for something unseen behind it before collapsing to the floor of the pulpit.
Trent’s vision cleared up and when it did he saw Ewen standing in place of the creature holding a bloody two-by-four. Trent could barely believe his eyes. As he stared at Ewen, his vision still in need of a slight tweak, he could hear a voice speaking to him. After several tries he saw Ewen walk closer to him and he felt him place his hand on his shoulder. The voice became clearer this time.
“Hey, are you alright?” Ewen asked.
Trent could only nod. Ewen noticed the blood on Trent’s forehead.
“You’re bleeding. We need to find a first aid kit,” Ewen said.
Suddenly, Ewen heard Jennifer scream.
“Ewen! Look out!”
Ewen turned and saw two of the creatures approaching him, their claws clutching for him. Ewen looked back at Trent.
“Run! Now!” he yelled.
Trent stumbled a little and then got a hold of himself. Ewen turned back to the creatures and swung the two-by-four, letting it go right at them. They fell to the floor of the church and as they did Ewen took off running. As he slipped through one of the pews still left standing, one of the creatures grabbed his ankle, sending him smashing into the floor.
He could hear Jennifer begin to scream again as he felt the creature crawling toward him. He turned around, expecting It to be right up on him and preparing to feed. Instead, he felt the creature collapse onto him in a heavy pile. Trent was standing over it holding a hammer, claw out. Trent dropped the bloodied hammer and hunched down, helping Ewen up just as the other creature got to Its feet.
“Let’s go!” Trent yelled.
They both took off running toward the back of the church. Billy Culver was waving them all inside through the door to the small storage room. Trent went inside as Jennifer and Ewen embraced before heading down the steps.
As soon as they got inside Billy locked the door. Ewen and Trent began to look for something to barricade it with. Ewen looked around for a second and saw the metal shelf.
“There! Help me move that against the door,” Ewen said.
They both ran to it, lifting it up and putting it in front of the door. Pounding began on the other side, slow but strong. The frame of the door started to rattle.
“That’s not going to be enough. We need something else to reinforce it,” Trent said.
Ewen looked around again, this time he saw one of the students sitting on a wooden chair in the corner of the room. He ran to him.
“Let me have the chair,” he said.
The student got up and handed it to him. Ewen immediately began to stomp on it, breaking it apart. The noise sent one of the girls into hysterics.
“We’re all going to die down here!” the girl screamed.
Ewen didn’t even notice. He continued to break apart the chair into manageable pieces. One of the other students beside her put an arm around her, comforting her. Ewen finally finished, grabbing the pieces of wood and bringing them over to the door.
“Are there any hammers left?” Ewen asked, out of breath.
Trent shook his head. Ewen searched the room again, looking for anything they could use. Suddenly, the wood that covered the rectangular window fell out of place. The Dead reached out for them as the students scattered away from the window. Trent grabbed the piece of wood that had fallen and slid it back into place, forcing the hands back through the window.
“Ewen, I need help,” Trent said, looking back at him.
Ewen rushed over, helping him hold the piece of wood in place and then, suddenly, everything fell quiet. The arms and hands of The Dead retreated back outside and the pounding on the other side of the door stopped. Everyone listened to the silence as it went on for what seemed like an eternity. Then they heard the sound of feet shuffling from the other side of the door. The footsteps were fading. They’re going away, Ewen thought.
CHAPTER 24
Time seemed to have escaped them all as they sat in the small room. Exhaustion had taken over pretty much every student and those who either couldn’t fall asleep or felt obligated to stay awake, like Ewen, were too busy focusing on all that had happened to worry about what time it was.
Ewen sat on the floor leaning up against the wall near the door to the storage room. Jennifer was asleep beside him, her head on his shoulder. He looked over at her, watching her sleep. He was extremely tired and sore, but not too tired to smile. It was rather weak when it came but after all he had been through it meant more than anything.
Ewen didn’t notice that Trent was still awake and looking over at him. He watched Ewen gently brush the hair away from Jennifer’s face. He had spent most of the semester harboring such hatred for someone he now felt somehow closer to. He had been wrong about Ewen. He wanted to apologize for his actions but knew now was not the time. Soon he would set it right, but for now he would just pray that God would give him the opportunity he needed.
He looked away from Ewen, feeling as if he was invading their privacy in some way. He knew that was a bit ridiculous, especially since they were all crammed into such a small space. But he didn’t want Ewen to turn around and think Trent was judging him. Judging others was something Trent would be more certain to avoid from n
ow on.
A beam of white light slowly began to filter in through the cracks in the wood that covered the window. Ewen turned to it, watching as it illuminated specks of dust that floated in the air. Suddenly a loud banging erupted from the door. Ewen jumped, noticing several of the others beginning to awaken. He started to panic but as the banging came again he realized it wasn’t the same as before. It was less violent and more…human. A man’s voice spoke, confident and strong, from the other side of the door.
“Is anyone in there?”
No one said anything. Instead they all stared at the door in complete shock.
“Hello? Is anyone in there?” the voice asked again.
Ewen snapped out of it, getting to his feet as Jennifer let go of him. He said the first thing that came to his mind.
“Help us!”
For the first time in a very long time he realized that help was there already.
“Please help us!” Ewen yelled.
The others all began to get to their feet, kicking up more dust inside the room. Some of them began to cry out for help as well.
“This is the S.W.A.T. team. How many of you are there?” the voice asked.
Ewen turned around, counting quickly.
“About seventeen.” he said.
“Is anyone injured?”
“No, sir.”
“Good. Can you let us inside?”
Ewen looked at the door, barricaded.
“Yes, but it’ll take a minute,” Ewen said, motioning for some help.
“Alright,” the voice said.
Three of the other students, including Trent, lifted the heavy, metal shelving out of the way. Ewen unlocked the door and turned the knob, opening it to three S.W.A.T. members dressed in full uniform. They were wearing masks with air filters and their eyes peered at the students from behind them.
As Ewen and Jennifer were led out of the storage room they saw the wreckage of the sanctuary. Jimmy’s body was lying on the floor now covered with a white sheet as two police officers checked the scene. It was shocking for the two of them, not just because they had been a part of the terrible events that had occurred there but because seeing a church in such disarray like that shook them up. They were use to going to a church, sitting in the pews and listening to a sermon. Now, as they looked out across what was left of the few pews near the front the only thing that remotely resembled anything like their previous experiences in other churches was the large wooden cross at the front.
The S.W.A.T. team led them out of the church through the back door. As soon as they set foot on the grass they found themselves nearly blinded by the early morning light of the sun. The lawn surrounding the church seemed to twinkle as the rays hit the morning dew. On any other day this sight would have been completely normal, and perhaps overlooked because it was so common. Instead, Ewen paid close attention to detail seeing several of the creatures lying dead near the edge of the woods.
Around the front of the church everything was buzzing and blinking as several ambulances awaited any survivors from the area. A black S.W.A.T. van was parked at the edge of the lawn and police units had been dispatched from what appeared to be most all of the surrounding cities. Medics were ushering the students, one by one, toward the ambulances to tend any wounds they had.
Ewen stopped and turned to Jennifer, concerned. As the activity continued to buzz around them he looked her in the eyes. Neither one of them could muster the energy to smile so instead they held hands while they focused on each other.
“I feel like I should say something, but I don’t know what to say,” he said.
“You don’t have to say anything,” she said softly.
Ewen began to wonder what would happen between the two of them. They had shared something so emotional and intense in just one evening. He wasn’t sure whether that would make for a lasting relationship. In fact, he wasn’t sure they even had a relationship—other than friendship—to begin with. He wanted to ask her if she would be his girlfriend but thought against it, deciding that it would sound childish and inappropriate.
“Can we go out again sometime?” she asked him, blushing slightly.
He smiled. "I should have figured that she would know what to say," he thought. He started to laugh and then was suddenly overcome with sadness. Although his smile was still fading the tears came to him quickly and began to roll down his cheeks. Jennifer watched with a look of understanding. It was as if he had bottled up all of the fear and love he had felt all night and because of the trials he had faced had been unable to let much of it go.
“They say that a person can fall in love instantly. ‘Love at first sight’, they say,” Ewen said, still looking at her.
He stopped, unable to finish for a moment. As he did Jennifer smiled at him, trying to encourage him. He looked away, embarrassed as the tears continued to flow.
“Are you trying to say that you love me?” she asked him, sweetly.
He turned back to her, serious.
“I’ve never been so glad to be in love with someone in all of my life,” he said.
With that she leaned in to him and they kissed. Ewen could feel his heart beating in his chest and for a moment everything around them seemed to disappear. He could no longer hear the sirens, the running engines or the voices. The only things that existed were he, Jennifer and God and at that moment he didn’t think a person needed any more than that.
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