The Appeal of Evil (The Road to Salvation) (12 page)

“I’m glad you’re finally coming home.”

Wes smiled. “Me too. We have a lot of work to do.”

Randy squeezed Wes’s shoulder. “That we do, son. That we do.”

Wes’s gaze drifted from his father and fell on her. Katie didn’t think it was possible, but his smile grew wider. He stepped toward her, his arm held outward to wrap her in a hug. All of the frustration and anger she felt subsided slightly. She stepped into his arms and hugged him back. His lips were right next to her ear, his breath tickled her lobe. His blanket of safety wrapped around her.

“I’m glad you came.”

Katie smiled and pulled away. She wasn’t sure how to respond, so she said nothing. Inwardly, she hoped that Wes would be able to answer her multitude of questions. He had never been forthcoming with information before, but maybe that would change now that she knew what he was.

Wes turned to his dad. “Shall we head home? I’m tired of this hospital. I want to sit on my own couch and watch my own TV.”

Randy chuckled. “Yeah. Let’s get out of here.”

Wes helped his dad into the back seat, then climbed into the front. Katie sat behind the steering wheel and headed for home.

Katie was thankful the ride was done in silence. It gave her the chance to stay inside her mind, think about what had just happened, sort out her feelings. It didn’t make her angry to see Wes in front of the hospital. There wasn’t an overwhelming urge to attack him, but she didn’t feel much else. There was no tingling in her stomach, no relief that he was all right. There wasn’t much of anything. When he wrapped her in a hug, the familiar safety surrounded her. It was comfortable, but also slightly irritating because of the most recent events. He should have told her long ago what he really was. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. He stared out the window, the smile permanently etched on his face. He seemed happy to be out, like he’d been imprisoned and was experiencing fresh air for the first time in years. Katie was convinced he would stick his head out the window if it was rolled down. She pictured it in her head, and the thought brought a smile to her lips.

She pulled into the driveway and shut off the engine. Knowing what to expect, she quickly got out and helped Wes get his father out of the car. Randy didn’t seem to mind, and thanked them both when he got to his feet. They headed into the house and into the living room. Katie wondered how long she was expected to stay. She wanted to head home and take a nap, maybe watch a little TV, but more importantly, she just wanted to be alone. She took a seat on the couch, and Wes sat next to her. Randy lowered himself into the recliner.

“So what did the doctor say?” Katie was tired of the silence. She didn’t know if the father and son had some kind of mental telepathy going on, but they didn’t talk much at all. It was driving her crazy. If she was going to be there, the least they could do was talk to one another.

Wes shrugged. “That I was lucky I didn’t lose more blood than I had. He said I’ll heal just fine, but it will take some time.”

“How many stitches did you end up getting?”

Wes thought for a moment. “I think all total it was one hundred sixty some, plus some staples.” He lifted his shirt, but the only thing visible was a white bandage. “Most of them are holding me together here.”

Katie’s stomach tingled with nausea. Her thoughts drifted back to the day Josh attacked them; the image of the blood dominated her mind’s eye. She shuddered. Wes reached out and grabbed her hand.

“I definitely wouldn’t have survived without you.”

Katie glanced away. “You also wouldn’t have been there if it weren’t for me.” She said the words under her breath, almost inaudibly. If Wes heard them, he didn’t say a word, but squeezed her hand.

“What about you, Dad?” Wes turned his attention across the room. “How are you doing?”

Randy smiled. “You don’t need to worry about me. I’ve been hurt a lot worse. I’ll heal.”

“So what do we know?”

Randy sighed. “Not a lot. Josh has been laying pretty low. I assume he’s biding his time, waiting.”

“For what?” Katie asked.

Randy shrugged. “It’s hard to say. Demons are predictable in what they want, but how they go about getting it varies greatly. The only thing we know for sure is that he’ll strike when he knows he can hurt Wes really bad.”

“What do you think he’ll do?” Worry and concern coursed through Katie’s body.

The thought occurred to her that she should tell them about the texts and the late night visit, but it would probably upset them. Neither one of them was in any shape to run out and fight, which Katie was sure they would want to do. Besides, Josh hadn’t done anything threatening; he was only trying to apologize. The fact that he had something to apologize for distressed her, but he also had some answers. Katie was willing to hear both sides until her curiosity was satiated, no matter how upsetting or how unsavory the company was.

“Well, for sure, he’ll try to kill him again,” Randy stated matter of factly. “But he’ll toy with him before that. Put him in pain.”

Katie’s eyes drifted up and down Wes’s body. “He’s already in pain.”

“Physical pain is only one part of it,” Wes said softly. “People train themselves to overcome that. Since he was unsuccessful in killing me the first time, now he’ll go after my emotions, my soul.”

“How?” The question barely came out of her mouth. She wasn’t sure she wanted to ask it. She was pretty sure she already knew the answer.

“He’ll come after the people I love.” Wes squeezed her hand again. “But you don’t need to worry about that. My dad and I can protect you.”

Katie nodded mechanically. Again, her gaze drifted from Wes to Randy, taking in their current states of abuse. She doubted incredibly highly that they’d be able to do much of anything. Randy could barely lower himself into a chair.

Was that why Josh continued to stay in contact with her? Was he still using her to get to Wes? In the back of her brain, she knew that had always been the case. She knew Josh didn’t care about her, that she was just a means to an end, but there was a flicker of hope that it wasn’t true. After all, he said he wanted to tell Katie what was really going on, explain to her the situation. He wouldn’t need to do that if she was just a pawn. And last night, he could have taken her again, and no one would have known what happened. But maybe that was the point. Maybe he was biding his time, waiting for Wes to get out of the hospital. She didn’t really believe that, though. No matter where Wes was, if Josh had killed Katie, it would have crushed him. It would have crushed him even more if it had happened while he was recovering. She glanced at the side of Wes’s face. She imagined the pain and heartache would be unbearable for him if Katie died and he could do nothing to protect her. No, there was something more at play here. Josh was more complicated than she imagined.

Her thoughts drifted back to the warehouse when Josh commented about a blackness in her soul. Wes said he saw it too. What did that mean? Did that mean she was capable of evil like Josh was? It might explain her feelings of indifference toward Wes. A chill ran down her spine. What was she capable of doing? Did she even want to think about it?

“Why don’t you two head into your room, Wes.” Randy’s voice broke her out of her thoughts. “Talk some things out. I’m going to lay down for a little while. We can figure out a plan later.”

“Sounds good.” Wes stood from the couch. “Come on. I’m sure you have a lot of questions.”

Katie allowed herself to be led upstairs and into his room. As they stepped in, she was surprised at how bright and cheery his room was. Sunlight spilled in through the window reflecting off his light blue comforter. Bookshelves lined the wall, and on the right was a desk stacked neatly with piles of papers. Crosses hung on the parts of the walls that weren’t covered by shelves. Katie blinked, as if she were in a dream. She expected Wes’s room to be painted black, matching his secretive nature and tendency to be introverted. This was just the opposite. Wes sat on the bed and patted the space next to him. Katie pulled out his desk chair and sat down, her eyes wandering around the room.

Wes moved so he sat directly across from her. “I thought you were going to come visit me last night.” His mouth turned downward. “I called several times looking for you.”

Katie’s gaze dropped to her lap. “I know. I had some other things to do. Plus, I didn’t recognize the number.”

Wes reached forward and gently rubbed the bandage on her arm. “How are you doing?”

She pulled her arm away and folded it across her chest. “I don’t know. I don’t know if what is happening is real. I’m confused and lost.” It was easy for Katie to drift back into old patterns. Wes had always been the one person she could confide in and talk to. She completely forgot that she was trying to avoid him.

Sympathy crossed Wes’s face. “I know. I’m sorry. I never wanted you to be brought into this world.”

Katie clicked her tongue and slumped her shoulders forward. “I don’t mind being in your world, Wes. I’ve always wanted to be there. But I would have liked to have had a little bit of warning, maybe some information about what I was getting into.” She reached forward and touched his knee. “I told you all of my secrets. You know everything about me. Never once did you let me in. Ever.”

Wes folded his hands into his lap, his eyes focused on his fingers. “I know. I’m sorry. There are rules. Things we can and can’t do. I thought I was protecting you.”

Katie had no idea why she was being so calm. She had every right to scream and yell at him for what he had done, and part of her wanted to, but what would it accomplish? She shrugged. “Things don’t always work out the way you want them to.” And boy, did she know that well.

Wes looked up and placed his hands on her knees. “Look, things are different now. You’ve been brought into the world, so I don’t have to keep it a secret. Let’s start over.”

She sighed. “I’ll try. But there is still a lot of hurt I can’t let go of.”

“You don’t have to, but at least give me a second chance.”

“It might take some time.”

Wes sighed and turned away. “And that’s fine. I don’t deserve it, that’s for sure.” He turned back to her. “But I do love you.”

Katie had waited so long for him to say those words, and now that he had, she didn’t know how she felt about it. She should have been elated. Instead, part of her didn’t believe it. Part of her knew he was going to leave her. Like he always did.

“Come on, Katie. You felt the same way about me once. Given time, don’t you think you could feel it again? I promise, no more secrets, no more lies. Ask me anything. I’ll tell you what you want to know.”

“Why didn’t you ever let me in? Why didn’t you tell me what was going on when we were kids?”

“You wouldn’t have believed me.”

Katie cocked her head to the side and stared at him. “Don’t give me that. You could have made me believe you. You could have shown me your world. You said no more lies, so stop lying.”

Wes bit his lower lip. “I couldn’t. My dad wouldn’t let me.” He said the words quietly, as if he were afraid his dad would hear. “He didn’t want to see me go through the same heartache he went through.”

“You mean when your mom…left?” She couldn’t bring herself to say the word died.

Wes nodded.

“Did a demon kill her?”

Wes shook his head. It was obvious he really didn’t want to talk about it, and that caused anger to flare inside of Katie. How were things supposed to change between them if he wouldn’t change them? She leaned back in her chair and averted her gaze out the window. She pushed the feelings away and reminded herself that at least he was trying. She couldn’t expect him to change overnight.

Wes must have sensed her irritation. He scooted closer and moved his hands onto her thighs. “Look, Katie, what we do is dangerous. By having close relationships, we put the people around us at risk. Demons don’t play by any rules. They play to win. They want power, they want souls, and they will do anything to get them. We have to make sacrifices for the good of others. It’s the burden Praesuls have to bear.” He touched her cheek with his fingertips. “It’s not easy, but we do what we have to do.”

Katie pulled away from him. “Then why have friendships at all? Why not live in the mountains, away from people and only come down when you’re needed?”

Hurt crossed Wes’s face. “I’m still human.”

“Are you?”

“Katie, that’s not fair.”

She took a deep breath. “I know. I’m sorry.” She closed her eyes and swallowed hard.

“Katie, you’re angry, you’re hurt, and you’re confused. I get that. But let me—“

Katie opened her eyes. “Do you really get it? What are you going to do to change it?”

Wes shook his head. “I don’t know. I’ve done nothing to be trustworthy. I’ve hurt you…deeply. If you want to walk away and never look back, then do. But know that Josh won’t stop. He’ll continue to come after you. Only because he knows it will hurt me.”

Katie stood and headed for the window. His words sounded so nice. They were everything she had wanted to hear from him. He was finally letting her in.

“All humans are unwilling pawns in the battle of good and evil, Katie. Most of them are just blissfully unaware of it. I’m sorry you got dragged into this, but I can’t help you unless you allow me to. I will always protect you, but it’s up to you if it’s done from a distance.”

Katie glanced at him over her shoulder. Anger, sadness, and confusion swirled through her. Part of her really wanted to believe him. She wanted to get to know Wes, the real him, and see what would happen if he let her in. She saw sincerity in his eyes, felt it in his touch. She believed it when he said he loved her, and part of her wished she could say the same thing back to him. At one point, she would have been able to. The other part of her held onto the hurt, the lies, the betrayal. It wanted to protect her from further damage. She was conflicted. She really needed someone to talk to, someone to give her advice. But who could she turn to? Wes had always been her confidant.

“Katie, just take some time. Think about it. I’ll be here.”

The desire to turn to him and embrace him overwhelmed her. His words melted something inside her, cast a net of safety over her. Her shoulders slumped, her resolve faltered. So what if he’d abandoned her a couple hundred times; he was willing to make up for it. They were given a second chance, things could be different. Part of her knew she would always regret it if she didn’t give it a try. Josh had almost killed her and she was willing to hear him out, and she barely knew him. Couldn’t she give Wes the same chance? She was just about to turn around to face him when her gaze fell on a picture on his bookshelf. It was of a smiling woman with blonde hair and a young girl, maybe around ten. The background was white, so Katie couldn’t tell where the picture had been taken. Something about the woman’s eyes seemed familiar. She picked up the frame and stared at it. She turned to Wes and glanced at him. That’s where she had seen the eyes before. They were Wes’s.