Chapter Nineteen: The Great Leader:

“Who are you?” Ann asked. The child lowered her hands.

“The one coming to collect you,” she answered. The Goth woman blinked at her.

“But who are you?” she asked again. “Are you an angel?” The girl shrugged her shoulders at her.

“You could say that,” she said.

“And where are we going?” Ann asked.

“My master’s house,” the girl answered. She grabbed onto the Goth woman’s hand before she could ask another question. She held out her hand and began to chant. Ann watched as an archway opened up before them. The angel turned her had to her.

“Let’s go,” she said. The child proceeded to drag Ann through the arch. Ann herself used her hand to shield out the light around her. Right in the middle of the room sat the man in white who was in her apartment days earlier. The Goth woman opened her mouth in shock.

“Hey, you’re…” she began to say. The angel let go of Ann’s hand and knelt before the man’s feet.

“I have brought her, my lord,” she said.

“Good, good,” he said. “You are dismissed.”

“Yes, my lord,” the child replied. She rose to her feet and vanished into thin air. Ann stared at the man in white before her. He smiled waved her over.

“Sit, sit,” he said. “We have so much to talk about.” Ann did so with big, suspicious eyes. The man in white gave her an angelic smile.

“Aw, what’s with that face?” he asked. “I just wanted to show my gratitude.”

“Gratitude?” the Goth woman asked.

“Yes,” he said. “You did a good job of convincing that woman not to die.” Ann gave him a puzzled look on her face.

“I really didn’t do anything,” she said. “She decided to live on her own.”

“Never mind that,” the man brushed off. “You did well.” He crossed his hands in his lap. “Anyway, let’s get to the point here,” “God” went on to say. “There is something I really need you to see.” Ann frowned at him.

“Listen,” she said. “I really need to get back home. My husband and son are due back in a couple of days.”

“This won’t take long,” he brushed off. “Just come with me.” He rose to his feet and walked further into the white light. Ann rolled her eyes as she sat there.

Like I have a choice, she thought. The Goth woman rose to her feet and followed behind. “God” led her through the endless sea of white nothing. Ann glanced around her, trying to understand what they were doing now.

“Where exactly are we going?” she asked.

“To church!” “God” announced. Ann’s frown grew deeper.

“What?” she asked. “You’re joking, right?”

“No,” he said.

“You serious?” Ann asked.

“Yes,” the man insisted.

“May I ask why?” she asked. “God” shook his head as they walked.

“You’ll have to see for yourself,” he said. That sentence alone didn’t sound good to her. They came to an empty wall. The man in white reached out and touched the empty surface. Ann strained her ears to listen in as he chanted. Another archway opened up before them.

“After you,” he said like a gentleman. Ann gave him a sarcastic smile as she walked by. Inside made her jaw drop. If she had known any better, she could’ve sworn that she was in a mega church made of gold and crystal. She could see every angle of herself in the shiny reflections. The pews to her left and right were packed with people. Some even pretended to be sitting in chairs. All eyes focused on a stage made of diamond. Ann turned behind her.

“Is this a…?” she began to ask.

“Yes, dear,” the man in white answered. “And you’re about to witness a monster swallowed up by money.”

“Huh?” the Goth woman asked. The room suddenly grew quiet. The spotlights focused on the stage. A man dressed in fancy grey suit stepped up to the microphone. His rings almost blinded everyone in the front row. He opened his heavy bible on the podium.

“Good evening, my flock!” he greeted his practitioners. “We will begin tonight with the Gospel of John!” Ann zoned out as soon as he started talking. However, she came back to earth when something caught her eye. As the man spoke, black swirls of clouds swirled around his body. A pungent smell so bad made Ann cover her nose and reel back.

“What is that?” she whispered.

“Don’t you see?” the man in white asked. “This man is not of the church. He is really of Satan himself. For years, he has taken money and used it on his own personal wealth.”

“Okay,” Ann said. “This isn’t surprising. Some pastors are like that in these types of churches.”

“Yes, but he has stolen something from me,” the man in white told her. “And I need you to get it back for me.”