Becki
I don't even know if I've slept when the curtains are yanked open and the room is lit. Anton sits in the chair by the window which gives him a halo. His teeth still shine more brightly. A large book is open on his lap. I can't see his eyes.“Anton?” I whisper, sitting up slightly.
“It’s time for you to learn it all,” he hisses, slamming the book closed. The door slams closed at the same moment. He is holding a Bible. “You believe in this, don’t you? If you didn’t before, you must by now.”
I nod my head.
“It says He will come back to wipe the slate clean.” Anton places the book on the end of the bed and stands over me, pacing while he talks. “He’s supposed to come down and take all the good little boys and girls up to Heaven, where Santa Claus will give them presents until the end of Eternity.” He stops pacing and stares at me, those eyes seeming to bulge from his angular face. “Guess what happens to the bad people.”
I shake my head.
“You, your mommy, your daddy, your friends, the people on your tour, your fans, and most of the rest of the world, you all fall into the blackest pit of an ever-hungry Hell.” He smiles and relaxes. “And guess who is going to be there, and who isn’t going to be happy.” He doesn’t give me a chance to respond before he cries out, “Me!” He starts pacing again. “You think I’ve been mean on this trip, well, I’ve been in the best of spirits. You don’t want to see me at my worst, I’m not a nice boy.” He picks up the Bible and shakes it at me menacingly. “It’s all in here, and it’s all true. He has tried and tried again to come back with a double-edged sword coming out of his mouth, and time and time again, I’ve managed to abort the process before he could get it going.”
I’m too dumbfounded to speak.
“That’s right, they send him down here, and I find him and kill him. It’s been going on since the first millennium.”
I shake my head. “Anton, the man you want me to kill... It’s not... You’re not saying you want me to kill...”
“Yes!” he cries. “It is, I want you to kill the Messiah. That, my love, will be your good deed for the day. That will be what you do to help the world, what you will do to make up for the incalculable amount of damage you have already done to the world. You will take this gun,” he says, patting the lump under his armpit, “shoot him, kill him, and save a million souls.”
“Anton, no, I can’t. I can’t do that...”
“Why not? Why can’t you do that? Think of the amount of good you will do.”
“By killing the Savior?”
“Yes! By killing the Savior! Think about it.” He falls back in the chair. “He ends the world, a few people get to go with him up to the Promised Land. Most people drop off into Hell.” His eyes narrow. “Not much of a Savior, is he?” His claws dig into the arms of the chair. “You, on the other hand, you kill him, and you feel bad for it. There is no sin he won't forgive, not even murdering Him. You, your mommy, your daddy, and a whole bunch of people get a second chance that He has no interest in giving them. Killing the Messiah is just the first step in doing the Messiah’s work. Think about it, love.” His perfect grin splits into a toothy smile. “What would Jesus do?”
I bury my face in the pillow and sob. “Why can’t you do it?” I weep, and I don’t think he would be able to hear me.
“For one simple reason,” he says. “A simple reason that drives me batty. There are rules in Heaven and Earth that even the Devil must follow. I can’t kill him for that simple reason: I can’t. I’m not able to do it.”
“Anton, I can’t do this.”
“You can! You can, and if you want to help the world, you will.”
“Please, Anton, I can’t do that, this is too much, I can’t do it.” I’m crying freely now. “Just take me back, take me back to the record company. I won’t mention any of your plan, I won’t tell anyone who you are.”
His laughter explodes. “Becki, dear, do you think it would matter in the least if you tell anyone? If anyone even believed you, do you think they could do anything about it? I don’t need you to do this for me, I need someone to do this for me. If you were to jump ship, I could find some street thug in the City tomorrow and flash a briefcase full of money in front of his face. I chose you, because I can give you something that you are looking for. I can give you what you truly want, and I can give you the opportunity to do good in the world."
Anton pauses like he wants me to respond. I don't know what to say.
“The thug would take that money, sink it into things foul and corrupt. But you, you, sweet Becki Murphy, you have the power and the desire to do much good. You could save people, you could save more people than the limp Messiah.” His eyes burn into me like fire. “You can’t turn back on me now, dear, we’re so close.” His tongue runs over his lips. He knits his fingers behind his head. “Tomorrow night. Give me until tomorrow night before you make your decision. If you don’t want this, I’ll drive you home, free of charge, right back into the life you had before. Can you do that for me?”
“What is going to happen?”
“I’ll tell only if you promise to give me one more day.”
Go to Chapter 39
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