Chapter 260: Her Strong Prayer

Noah grabbed Paul’s ankle, and he pulled it towards him as hard as he could. It was totally unexpected, and as Paul fell flat on his ass, he shrieked in pain. His tailbone was shattered.

For the first time in her life, Nancy’s reflexes were quick. She grabbed the lamp on the bedside table and smashed the base against the back of Paul’s head, and he went down like a sack of bricks. Then she crawled off the bed and went to sit with Noah. She cradled him in her arms and asked him if he was okay.

Noah did not reply. He was severely injured. His face was bruised and puffy, and there was congealed blood under his nose and mouth.

She ran her hands through his hair as he flickered in and out of consciousness, and she wept over him. “There, there,” she cried. “Everything will be alright.”

Beside them, Paul slowly opened his eyes, and when he saw that he was not being watched, he quietly got to his feet. First, he looked down at Nancy scornfully. Then he lifted his foot and stomped on Noah’s chest as hard as he could. “That’s what you get!” he roared.

There was a satisfying crunch as Noah’s ribs broke and popped out of his chest.

Nancy was stunned. “Paul…” she gasped.

“You…” This was beyond anything that she would have guessed he was capable of.

Paul nudged Noah with his foot, then he looked at Nancy and said, “You must be disappointed by such a miserable failure. Can you believe that he actually thought he could beat me?!?!”

“Let him go!” Nancy wailed. “He is innocent!”

“No one is innocent,” Paul scoffed.

Nancy grabbed Paul’s leg, and she tried to pull him away, but he was like a rock. He could not be moved. Finally, in desperation, she grabbed the lamp that she had hit him with before, but he just laughed and said, “Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice... Ah, who are we kidding? I will not be fooled again. You stupid bitch. It would be best if you had killed me when you had the chance. Now your little boy toy is going to pay for your mistake with his life!”

Paul stomped on Noah’s chest again, and two more shattered ribs popped out.

Nancy swung the lamp with all her strength, and he caught it. Then, he slapped her across the face with his free hand, and she let go of her weapon. The force of the blow sent her reeling. Her thighs hit the bed, and she fell backward into it.

Paul kicked Noah in the head, and he did not even make a peep. This frightened Nancy, and when she sat up, she realized that she could not tell if he was breathing. She begged Paul to stop, but she might have well saved her breath.

Finally, when it seemed that Noah was gone, Paul turned his attention back to Nancy. He walked towards the bed, and she backed away from his approach. She knew that there was no escape for her, but her brain continued to look for a way out.

She clasped her hands tightly in front of her chest as if she were getting ready to pray. “What do you want?” she asked. “If you are going to kill me, then kill me. Just don’t make me suffer the way that you did, Noah...” She closed her eyes in preparation for death. In her head, she was reciting Psalm 23 - Ye, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil...

She felt his scorching breath on her face and his spittle on his cheek, but she refused to open her eyes. She just kept on praying - For thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, thy comfort me…

Paul looked at her in a weird way, as if it were his first time seeing her. There was a glow about her, and he suddenly realized that no matter what he did, he would never again control her. She began to mutter something, and he leaned in so that he could make out what she was saying.

Nancy was surprised that she was still alive, but she still refused to open her eyes. “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies.” She prayed in a whisper. “Thou anointed my head with oil.”

Paul recoiled from her words. He suddenly felt guilty over everything that he had done, but before he could atone for his sins, the demon inside him clawed its way to the surface. “Woman,” he hissed. “Is this how you want to die, sniveling like a dog to an impotent God?” He sneered like a devil, and his eyes practically glowed red; they were that bloodshot.

Had Nancy opened her eyes, she might have been so frightened that she wet herself. She did not open her eyes, though. She squeezed her eyes shut as tightly as she could, and as she continued to pray, her voice grew louder. “And my cup runneth over!”

Then, as she opened her eyes, Paul’s inner demon fled, and his heart softened towards her. His hands fell to his sides. He got off the bed, turned, and left the room.

Nancy knew that this was not the end, but she thanked God for this: Her first victory. She sat there for a moment, basking in the silence, and then she remembered Noah.

****

A bomb fell from one of the helicopter’s gaping mouths. It landed beside one of the tanks, and then it began to hiss. Before long, poisoned gas began to billow out of it. All around the cathedral, other bombs just like this one were being dropped, and soon the fog on the ground was so thick that you could not see through it.

Vic looked around frantically. It was not in him to give up or surrender, but the battle was lost. His boss had been captured, and there was nothing left for him to do but to call for a retreat.