'Come on,' the priest said to Noah. 'Let's find out what's wrong.'
'You know what's wrong.'
'Let's be certain.' They walked over to the man, Father Le Moyne asking, 'What's wrong, Byron?'
Byron Price, the minister, looked at the two men. 'I—am troubled, Daniel. And I feel a little bit lost. Confused. What is happening? My entire congregation seems to be boycotting me.'
'Well, Byron, don't feel like a lost sheep. Richard Hasseling over at First Baptist just told us the same thing, in almost the same words.'
Methodist eyes met Catholic eyes. 'And how about you, Daniel?'
'The same thing. No one came to mass. Not one person.'
'What's happening, Daniel?'
Father Le Moyne hedged that for a moment. 'John Morton at the Episcopal church told us,' he indicated Noah, 'not more than ten minutes ago, that he spoke by phone with several of his older members—elderly. They told him they had been bullied into not attending church this morning. Some of them had actually been physically shoved around, and worse.'
A slamming door caused all eyes to turn to the house beside the church. An attractive woman was leaving the home, walking toward a car parked by the curb.
'My wife,' the minister said glumly. 'She's leaving me. Taking up with a seventeen-year-old boy. The Johnson boy. Seems she's been having an affair with him for several months. Maybe longer than that. Just came right out last night and told me all about it. Said—this is shameful and embarrassing—she said he had staying power in the sack.'
'I beg your pardon?' Father Le Moyne said.
'He can fuck for a long time,' Noah told him bluntly.
'Great scott, Noah!' Le Moyne looked at his friend. 'How crude.'
Byron Price put his face in his hands and openly wept. Father Le Moyne and Noah could do nothing for the man except feel pity for him. Byron was a good and decent man, who worked hard at his faith. He deserved better than this. But both men knew what had caused the breakup.
Mrs. Price rode by the three men in front of the church. She said something to the young man and they both laughed. The Johnson boy looked at the trio of men and extended his middle finger to them.
Noah reached for the pistol in his belt. Father Le Moyne's hand stopped him.
'Not that, Noah! Not yet. They've got to make some overt move first. They have to put us into some life- threatening situation. Only then can we use force. You should know that far better than I.'
Byron raised a tear-stained face to the priest. 'Daniel, what in the world are you talking about? You're confusing me even more.'
'Go to your parsonage, Byron,' Father Le Moyne told him. 'Pack several changes of clothing. Get your personal things together. Come with us. And Byron—if you have a gun—get it.'
'All right,' Monty said. 'I think it's coming out into the open now. They're trying to get us to leave town voluntarily. I think when they see we're not going to run, they'll attempt to run us out; scare us out. What I don't understand is why they decided to move so quickly with this. It all seems so abrupt.'
'They haven't moved quickly,' Sam said, and all eyes swung toward him. 'I would bet this is an old coven. Perhaps one of the oldest. Don't ask me how I know that, I just sense it. I—no outsider really knows much about any given coven—the inner workings. But while it appears they move quickly, they actually have spent years getting set. And I'll bet Satan is here—personally.'
Sam reiterated some of his experiences in and around Falcon House, in Canada.
The mighty voice had spoken to Sam several times, the words thundering in the young man's head. Just seconds after Sam and Nydia performed the marriage ceremony, by themselves, on themselves, the voice came to both of them.
Nydia had said, 'I guess we're married, Sam.'
'In whose eyes is the question?' the strong voice came to them.
Nydia was frightened. Sam calmed her. 'What do you mean—whoever you are—'in whose eyes'?'
But the voice was silent.
Nydia said, 'I sensed his presence in our room this morning. Or I should say
'The voice speaks in riddles,' Sam warned her. 'So be prepared for a puzzle.'
'Not this time, young people,' the mighty voice boomed. 'The hooved one has made his decision. You, young warrior, are marked for death. A special black mass has been called for tomorrow night. They will attempt to call out the forces of darkness. If they succeed, I will do battle with them. You will know at midnight tomorrow if their calling has been successful. If so, you must take your—wife and leave the house at once. Do not attempt to fight them alone. You both must run and hide in the timber. But a word of warning: You cannot travel past the set boundaries. You will know them, for they are easily seen. Remember, young warrior, your sole purpose is to destroy the tablet, if possible.'
'What tablet?' Sam asked.
'The Devil's Tablet. It is here. Hidden.'
'And if I destroy it, what happens?'
'I cannot answer that, for it has never been destroyed.'
