chapter 5
Lizzie
“You’re cousin has major issues,” Trevor said as he opened the passenger side door of his car for me.
‘Who are you telling?’ I glanced up in shock. Sure enough, the clouds were gone. The air was a warm paradise and the rain...well, it wasn’t raining.
Millie laughed from behind me. “Yeah, but he is ridiculously H–O–T. I want me some of that!”
Trevor raised an eyebrow and I darted my eyes to her. “Millie, stop,” I breathed.
She raised her hands in surrender, while our bag of half-eaten doughnuts swung in her hand. “Just saying, comrade. Anywho! I will see you at your house, Liz,” she said. Then glancing over her shoulder while Trevor walked around the car, she moved her eyebrows up and down. I held up my fist and she puckered up her lips.
I stepped into Trevor’s Lexus and sank into the leather. “Hard day, huh?” he asked, cranking his car and putting it into gear.
I nodded. “Harder than you will ever know.”
“Your cousin Darrton seems...”
“Like a crazy-ass?” I asked.
“Exactly.”
“Yeah, well, I think he might be. I haven’t known the guy long but he is driving me crazy.”
Trevor pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward my house. “Yeah, I really didn’t want to say much but he is odd and huge. I mean I thought I was big, but this guy is like a damn pro-athlete.”
I twisted in the seat. He was rather large and built. He was freakishly accurate, too. ‘I will stop the rain.’ Gah, could you get any freakier? If I did believe he was a...Horseman. Does that make me crazy?
Trevor’s hand brought me back to the present. It landed on my knee and I stiffened. He pulled it back. “I’m sorry I...”
“No, you just surprised me, that’s all. I was thinking and it just caught me off guard.” I forced a smile. Come on, Liz, pull yourself together. Do not blow this with Trevor because of some wacked-out, religious guy.
“I see,” Trevor said, grabbing my hand and intertwining our fingers. There went that flash of heat again. Holy Moly, he is so cute!
“So, I was wondering about next weekend?”
What about next weekend? I tried to focus my thoughts. “What about next weekend?”
“There is a Kings of Leon concert that I want to go to. I’ve already asked Millie and Brett. They said yes.”
I smiled. “I would love to go. I love Kings of Leon.”
He nodded. “I know, I remember.”
My heart thudded. I had plans with him. He isn’t mad about last night.
Trevor pulled into my driveway. “Where is Millie?” I asked turning around. Trevor laughed. “What?” I asked.
“Millie is smarter than she acts.”
“Millie is an evil genius. She is like plankton, small but evil.”
Trevor laughed. “That is so her new nickname.” We both laughed and he turned to me. “I think Millie is giving us some time alone.”
I felt my insides prickle and fidgeted in my seat. “Sounds like Millie,” I mumbled. I glanced around at the house. Mom’s car wasn’t there and Dad was at work. Should I invite him in? Mom had never said anything about being alone with a boy. But I had never asked to be alone with one, either. “Would you like to—”
“I would love to,” he answered impatiently and then laughed at himself.
I couldn’t feel my legs, when I walked toward the door. Grabbing my keys seemed like an easy task but when I tried to do it, I dropped them on the ground. Trevor was now standing behind me and when I bent down to get the keys at the same time Trevor did we collided.
“Ouch!” I stumbled back and landed on my butt on the concrete step.
Trevor, laughing and holding his head, reached his hand out to help me up. “I’m so sorry. I try to be a gentleman and end up pushing you down.”
I groaned. God, please show mankind how to make an efficient time machine. “No, it’s okay. I’m just a little nervous.”
Trevor stopped. “If you don’t want me to come in—”
“No! I do.” I fumbled with the key and opened the door, “I’m just out of my mind right now.”
Trevor was so close behind me when he said, “Right,” I could feel his breath on my neck. Muffin barked and I turned quickly around. “Hey, puppy,” Trevor said, picking up the dog and laughing while he licked him.
“That’s Muffin,” I said, moving around him to go sit on the couch. The couch is safe. Right?
Trevor followed me and sat down. “So, this is your living room.” He leaned in. “I think I like your room better.”
I laughed but it was a nervous laugh. A drop of blood was beside his foot on the floor. I stood up abruptly. “You want something to drink? I’m so thirsty.” I almost ran to the kitchen. I started to fumble around in the refrigerator. This wasn’t like last night in my room, where there was nowhere to run and I was half asleep. He was right here. I had invited him in. I took out a bottle of water and sucked half of it down. Breathe.
I shut the door and Trevor was standing behind it. His baseball cap was turned backwards and his short sleeve shirt hugging his torso. I looked up at him and smiled, trying to swallow the gulp of water in my throat.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“Yea,” I said while my foot shook irrationally on the floor. “Why do you ask? You want some water?”
He glanced down at my foot and smiled. “No, no water, Lizzie. Are you that nervous?” He took another step forward.
“Nervous? Who said I was nervous?”
Trevor sighed. “Lizzie,” he said. “I can leave if you want me to?”
I shook my head. “No! Don’t please, ugh, I’m sorry, I just...I’m not good around boys. The only reason I was half-calm the last night was because I was half-asleep. I was like this, this summer, too, remember? It’s just I’ve never had a boy really—”
He kissed me.
His lips were so soft against mine. His fingers found my waist and his other hand found the back of my neck. A peppermint taste filled my mouth. I let out a moan. Without thinking, I gripped his shirt and pulled him into me. My water bottle fell to the floor, spilling water everywhere, but I couldn’t have cared less. There was no space in between our bodies. Our breathing was hard and heavy on each other. Trevor pushed me up against the counter. I felt his fingers tighten around my waist then lower to my belt loop. This excited me and I ran my hand along the bottom of his shirt. I wonder what he looks like without it.
Trevor’s hands lowered to my butt and he lifted me up on the counter in one swift motion. Oh God. He positioned himself between my legs and dug his tongue into my mouth. When he pulled back, I felt myself wanting to grab him again. I looked up. His dark blue eyes were boring into mine. He leaned in again and touched my mouth once, then twice. His lips touched the corner of my mouth, then my check, and then my jawline until they were on my neck.
I had never experienced anything like this before. I’d kissed Trevor before but this was different. He was kissing my neck which had never happened before. When we had kissed, it was always sweet. It was pure, white hot pleasure. My fingers, without permission from my brain, dug into his back and pulled him as close as he could get to me. God that felt good.
“AH!” I heard someone yell. I opened my eyes as Trevor yanked me down to the floor. Samantha was staring at us with a bag from The Picnic Basket in her hand, her mouth wide open. “So, I guess someone does know what making out is? I thought she was clueless. Hi,” she said, offering Trevor her hand. “I’m Samantha. Call me Sam, or beautiful. Whichever you prefer.”
I wiped my mouth just as Trevor took Sam’s hand and Mom rounded the corner. “Lizzie!” she said, then looking at Trevor, she stopped. “You must be Trevor.”
Shoot me.
“I am Trevor, nice to meet you. You have a lovely—”
“Mom? What are you doing here? Why do you have those bags?”
Mom gave me the “you’re being rude” look. “Well, since two girls were supposed to bring us back fudge and never showed. You two must have left before we got there, so we went ahead and got our fudge. We thought you two might have forgotten. We can never have too much fudge, anyway.”
“Oh, Lizzie and Millie did go get the fudge but Darrton showed up.”
I bit my lip and nearly slapped my hand over Trevor’s mouth.
“What? Who?” Samantha said, tossing her hip to the side.
Mom passed us and placed the fudge on the counter, where Trevor and I had just been making out. Samantha walked passed her. “Don’t think you want to put those there, Mom, Trevor and Lizzie were...ouch!!!” she screamed as I took the water bottle that had fallen from my hand and hit her over the head. She pushed me back. “What the heck!”
“Lizzie!” my mother yelled.
All of a sudden Millie burst out laughing and I stumbled because I didn’t realize she was behind us. “Way to go, comrade.”
“Say you’re sorry to your sister,” Mom ordered.
“Sorry,” I mumbled.
Sam was glaring at me. She snatched the fudge bag from Millie and went into the living room.
Mom sighed and held her head. “And what is all this talk about a Darrton?”
Millie shrieked. “Oh! Mrs. Lawrence, he is H–O–T. He came looking for Lizzie earlier.
“We don’t know a Darrton, do we Lizzie? Who is it?”
“Darrton your cousin?” Millie said.
“Who? I don’t think so—”
“Ouch!” I yelled and grabbed my shoulder.
“What’s wrong?” Mom asked.
“I have a cramp in my shoulder. We have to go, Mom, I have to go get some pain reliever from the car.” I pulled Trevor along and Millie followed after.
Sam was sitting in the living room glaring at us on the way outside.
“What the hell, Lizzie? Were you that desperate to get away from your mom?” she asked.
“Uh yeah! You’ve met my family.”
“Point taken.”
Trevor stepped closer to me and I blushed. Everything that had just happened hit me and I suddenly felt like floating. Millie was staring at me, and she raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow. “So you two have fun?”
I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth. “Sorry for all of this, Trevor. My family barging in and my rude friend and crazy ass...cousin.”
Trevor eyed me. “You’re mom doesn’t seem to think she knows him.”
“He said he wasn’t closely related,” I lied.
Trevor nodded. “Well, as much fun as this was, and I truly mean it, I have to run. My little sister has dance practice and I have to take her.”
“Okay, I guess I’ll see you later then?”
He smiled and leaned in and pressed his lips to mine once more. “Yea, of course.”
I was utterly surprised. Millie waited two whole minutes while Trevor was backing out of the driveway before she started jumping up and down and asking for details. I gave them to her, down to the smell of his breath and the placement of his hands. His jacket was still snugly around my shoulders. I was on cloud nine. Which reminded me...Darrton, angel, Horseman whatever. Where is he?
Millie excused herself and it wasn’t a minute too early. I had to find my “cousin,” and see if he was okay. He had just run out of there and that glowing ring was freaking me out. I made two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and, after getting a shirt from my dad’s drawer and grabbing a warm wash cloth and a large bandage, I went to look for Mr. Horseman.
He was sitting on the twin size cot in the tree house when I came up. He glanced over at me.
“Got you this.” I threw my dad’s old Columbia T-shirt to him. He didn’t speak but stood and rolled the T-shirt onto himself. It fit...well...sort of. It was so tight that it seemed painted on. His arms looked as if they might pop out of it.
“Much obliged. It is a tight fit.”
I dragged my eyes away from his chest. “Next week we will go get you some clothes. I have an American Eagle credit card my mom lets me and Samantha use.”
From the blank look on his face, I knew that he had no idea what I was talking about. I pulled the sandwiches out of the Zip-Lock bag and handed both of them to him. Obviously, food was something that was the same all over—when you are hungry, you’re just hungry. He seemed to inhale them.
Wiping his mouth, he pulled his hair from his face. “I need to bathe.”
“Well, you’ll have to wait until tonight when everyone is sleeping.”
Darrton stood there for a second. “That will do.”
Trying to steady myself I said, “Sit down and I’ll wash your wound off.”
Darrton’s eyes caught mine and I paused, waiting for him to snap at me. “Okay,” he whispered.
He sat down on his cot and lifted his arm. Trying not to look at him, I raised my dad’s shirt and pressed the warm cloth to his side. He flinched and his body tightened. “Are you okay?”
He nodded. “Yes, proceed.”
I wiped the rest of his wound off, the best I could, and placed the large bandage on his side. It only covered the bad part of it, but it would help from getting anymore dirt in it. I stood and offered him a smile. He nodded as he glanced at his side.
I was trying to think of something to make the moment a little less awkward when I noticed he seemed distracted as if he was debating something. He finally said, “That Trevor boy is not good for you.”
I scoffed. Too bad for a nice moment. “Excuse me?”
“I said—”
“I heard you,” I said. “Why would you think that?”
“He isn’t honest. I can tell.”
I laughed. “Okay, Darrton, whatever you say.”
He cocked an eyebrow. “You don’t believe me. You think I lie?”
“I think you don’t know him.”
He smiled but it looked forced. “I know enough.”
“Can we please talk about something else?” Ugh! The nerve. He doesn’t even know Trevor.
“As you wish,” he said,
Shifting my feet, I tried to think of a reasonable way to ask him what I wanted to.
“Ask your question.”
I cocked a brow. “Well...” I cleared my throat. “I wanted to talk to you about what you are exactly. I mean, I know you said an angel or Horseman, but why would you be here? Is this The Apocalypse?”
“It’s not The Apocalypse.”
“Then what is it?”
Darrton’s demeanor stiffened. “Child, you wouldn’t understand.
“Try me. I’m smarter than I look.”
“Doubtful.”
I laughed without humor. “Whatever.” I got up to leave and Darrton grabbed my arm.
“Sit.” When I opened my mouth to argue, he said, “Do you want to know how I got here or not?”
I shut my mouth and sat down across from him. His eyes were hard and he seemed to be zoning out. “I am one of The Four Horsemen of The Apocalypse.”
“So you’ve said. Is that kind of like a fallen angel?
A shrug. “Yes and no. I am one of The Four Horsemen. I resided in heaven like an angel, but I’m technically not.”
“Yes,” I said leaning closer. “And...”
He raised his head and his pale blue eyes made a shiver run down my spine. “I was damned to Earth.”
I could barely get my voice over a whisper. “Why?”
“Have you ever been to church, Lizzie?”
I nodded. “On Easter, and when I was younger.”
“Did they teach you about The Apocalypse?”
I shook my head and picked at a fringed hole in my jeans. “No, we were too small. It would have scared us.”
“It should.” Darrton laughed without humor. “Do you know about it now?”
I shrugged. “Yeah, I think.”
He stared at me for what seemed like forever. “Well, child, it seems I might need to enlighten you. The Apocalypse is after Christ comes back for his people. After The Rapture, all the people that are not believers in God would be here during The Apocalypse. It’s those who do not know God who will suffer.”
There was that knot in my throat again. “Suffer how?” I asked, my voice breaking in the end. I had to pull my eyes away from him. Focusing on a crack in the floor of the room, I tried to steady my ragged breathing.
“That is where my brothers and I come in. We...” He sighed and stood. “...come to bring famine, war and death upon the earth. We perform a ritual that unleashes it all. They can only initiate what they represent before the ritual. Under normal circumstances, God would send us down and we would have the power to start it. But now that we’ve been cast out, we have to go through Satan to start it.” My lower lip trembled. “Warren starts war and Famine starts famine. We each have a part to play. Although, that is just the beginning of it. They have to have me to perform the ritual first.”
I couldn’t make my mouth move. What if he is telling the truth? He is a Horseman?
“What kind of ritual, Darrton?”
He didn’t answer. He just stared at me and twisted his ring around his finger. “Do you know what all of the Four Horsemen represent, Lizzie?”
He never looked away from me. There was a worry line in his forehead, and I felt a shiver.
“No,” I whispered so low I wasn’t sure if I even heard myself.
“We are War, Famine, Conquest, and Death.”
I sucked in a breath and sat back away from him. “Darrton,” I whispered, clearing my throat and speaking up, “which one are you?”
He titled his head and licked his lips. A cold shiver ran from my head to the tips of my toes. When he laughed, I felt bile coming up from the pits of my stomach. “Darrton, which one?”
His demeanor changed. There was no smile on his face. “I am—”
“Lizzie!” My dad yelled from the bottom of the tree house. “Come on in for dinner, sweetheart.”
When I glanced back up Darrton wasn’t in the tree house.
“Lizzie?” my dad yelled.
I glanced out of the back window. Darrton was gone.
My heart was drumming hard in my chest. He is a Horseman. Which one?
“Lizzie, is everything okay up there?”
No. I shook my head. “Um...coming, Dad.” I climbed down the ladder and hurried off into the house. I couldn’t bear to look at my dad. I knew if he looked me in the eyes, he would be able to tell that something was wrong. He wouldn’t understand or believe me if I told him. I still wasn’t sure if it was all happening. When I opened the door Mom and Sam were gathered around the TV in the living room and they were silent.
“What’s going—”
“Shhh!” They both turned around and gave me death glares. Over their shoulders, I saw the commotion on TV. “It just happened out of nowhere. People are going mad!” my mother yelled.
“It is the craziest thing I have seen, Scott. People are going crazy and fighting one another for no reason! There you see it.” The weatherman on Channel 7 pointed toward a child with a gun in her hand. “That is a dad and his daughter. They are trying to kill one another! The red—it’s hazy. Everything seems to have a red glare—what is going on?”
“Jesus,” my dad said from behind me.
“We have to get out of here,” the reporter said. “This is Lance Grimms, reporting from Dafna, Israel.” The screen went blank.
Any doubt in my mind seemed to trickle away out of my ear and down to my feet. I might as well have stomped on it. It was real. This is real. War was breaking out, War of The Four Horsemen.
Sam was uncharacteristically quiet at dinner, and Mom and Dad seemed to pick at their grilled chicken salads. No one knew what to say. I did, but I couldn’t. I was going to throw up. He was in our backyard. Only a few feet away from our home. How could this be happening?
After diner when everything went quiet, I pulled open my laptop and clicked on Google. My fingers shook as I typed in Apocalypse. I scrolled down and clicked on Bible Prophecy—Apocalypse. The page was never ending. I scrolled down and stopped on a random spot. It read...
These events which are about to be unleashed upon this world, even though global in nature, will focus on one thing – the nation of Israel. One tiny piece of land. A speck of land when compared to the powerful enemies that surround her on all sides (look at a map). A land God calls His own. God says He owns it and the sons and daughters of Israel are His...
I will bless those who bless you (Israel), and curse those who curse you. (Genesis 12:3)
I shut the screen. My body felt rigid and bile was edging its way up my throat. I have to find some answers. Jumping up, I ran toward my closet and started rummaging around. I pulled out a Precious Moments light-pink Bible from underneath loads of quilts. I hadn’t opened it in ages and it was practically brand new. My knees buckled beneath me as I began to skim for Revelations. It took about five minutes before I found something that might help. It didn’t make me feel any better.
Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, ‘Come and see.’ And I looked, and behold, a white horse.
And he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him,
And he went out conquering and to conquer. (Revelation 6:1-2)
My mouth was getting dry. I remembered Darrton’s earlier words. ‘Conquest.’
Right below it, it read...
When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come and see.”
Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the Earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword." (Revelation 6:3-4)
There was such an aura of truth about the words it made me think that it couldn’t be made up. Red. A red horse. The red haze that seemed to be everywhere on TV today. My body shook and I had to bite my lip to stop crying. This was going to happen...this was happening. Darrton said this wasn’t The Apocalypse. Was he lying? Why was he damned? Maybe he couldn’t tell anyone.
I skimmed down farther.
When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.”
So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand.
And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, (A denarius was equal to about a full day’s wage) and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine. (Revelation 6:5-6)
Food. This was something no one could live without. How could someone starve innocent children? If anything made me sick it was the fact that everyone would be hungry. This could lead to cannibalism. The tears had flowed down my face and started to soak bits of words up on my page.
I wiped my nose on my hand and turned the page.
When He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come and see.”
And I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him.
And power was given to them over a fourth of the Earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the Earth.” (Revelation 6:7-8)
Something about this struck a nerve. Not that I didn’t believe Death would come, but I had a sick feeling it was near. Something was picking at my brain. Something familiar about this part...pale. I let out a sickened cry and slid the book away from me. Maybe if I close my eyes, it will disappear. Pale. The pale blue, almost white, in Darrton’s eyes was the only thing that was making its way through my thoughts. It had consumed them. Death. Darrton was Death. Death was in my back yard, within reach of my family.
I could see Darrton’s shadow from the closet floor where I was sitting, and I froze. I couldn’t make myself move. “What do you want?” I asked.
Darrton stood deathly still and tilted his head. “Do you regret helping me?”
I didn’t answer.
“Thou that helped me would not be harmed. I will leave your family safe.” He looked me in the eye but it looked like he was hiding something. “Why are you here?” I demanded. “You said it’s not The Apocalypse. You said you were damned—why?”
He smiled but there was nothing about it that comforted me. I slid farther toward the wall and scrunched myself into a ball.
“I was damned because my brothers and I made a pact to destroy.”
“Heaven?” I asked.
“No, child. Everywhere. It’s our time. It is our time to destroy.”
My eyes were starting to feel heavy and it seemed that there was nothing I could do to stop this. Darrton walked toward me and bent down. His eyes—pale, his pale eyes—were so close. Reaching out to touch me, he lifted my face to look at him. Something pierced my heart. A warm shiver made its way up my spine. “I won’t hurt you. You have to believe me. You sheltered and fed me. You’ve saved me. I’m not sure I would have been able to survive otherwise. My condition is getting better because of you. My injury is only healing because you have helped me.” A piece of dark hair fell into his face.
I didn’t believe him. “You’re evil, aren’t you?”
He shook his head. “This is what I was chosen to do. Kill.”
“Kill the ones that aren’t for Christ. Not everyone. It’s supposed to be after The Rapture.”
His eyes darkened. “The time is come, child. You can’t fight it now. This is the time no matter what anyone says. It’s time to unleash everything,” Darrton said, gripping his ring. “We’ve waited so long.”
“So, you’re plan is to what? Just start killing everyone?”
Shaking his head, he knelt down before me—on both legs this time. “No, I must get with my brothers. War has started his part of this, but they have to wait on me to perform the ritual. I have to be there and so does at least one of the other Horsemen. He has to make the oath while I let the demons out. There has to be four in all. If it is not all four Horsemen, then there would have to be two other beings: fallen angels or demons. Whoever it is has to be of another world to open the seal.”
“Get out,” I breathed.
Darrton’s eyes narrowed. ““Make me.”
“I’ll call the cops...” I trailed off not sure why I thought cops would solve anything.
“You want me to leave?” he asked. “I will leave. But not before Trevor gets what is coming to him. I see who he really is, where you don’t.” He turned to leave.
“No!” I shot up. “Please, don’t!”
“He is bad news.” Darrton stopped and turned toward me, shaking his head as if he was talking himself out of something. “I need to bathe.” I stepped toward him, grabbing at his arms. He flung me against the wall. His breath was coming in harsh beats upon my skin. “Why do you help me, child?” His brows were furrowed in fury between his eyes. There was confusion radiating from his face.
“What?” I said, between gasp.
“Why did you shelter me, feed me, and clothe me?”
“Because you needed help...everyone deserves a chance.” Darrton’s wings broke from his back and my dad’s Columbia T-shirt fluttered to the floor in pieces. “Are you going to kill me now? Is that what you have been planning all along? Were you going to kill me so I couldn’t tell anyone and then leave?” I was talking loudly now but I prayed no one could hear.
“Yes!” he said. “I am going to kill you!” His words slashed like daggers in my skin. Why did that hurt so much?
“Do it,” I breathed. “Just leave my family alone. No one knows anything. They will never know you were here.”
Darrton placed his hands on the side of my face. I saw the muscles in his arms flex. A slight growl escaped his lips and he lowered his hands to my shoulders. Without trying he picked me from the ground, where my feet dangled and bounced off my bedroom floor. Closing my eyes, I prayed to live, to be left alone. He dropped me and pinned me up against the wall.
The silence seemed to go on forever. He still had my arms pinned against the wall. I was still breathing heavily when he leaned toward me. “I can’t now.”
Relief, wonder, and anger seemed to bombard me. I managed to steady my voice and asked, “Why?”
Darrton pushed his head toward my face. I smelled the warm dark hunger of his breath. He stopped and released me. “I have to go now. I will take my bath while everyone is asleep and go back to my chamber. I will see you Monday.”
I was gasping and I had no idea why. “Tomorrow is Sunday?”
“I won’t be here.”