something was different, very off.

this behavior was odd, something she hadn’t seen before.

he must have taken something different tonight.

he went from confusion and disorientation to barely breathing.

she was scared when he became unresponsive.

she shook him, attempting to wake him.

then in a faint voice, he asked her to call an ambulance.

she dialed the phone and waited.

the dispatcher answered.

she explained his condition.

as she talked, the unthinkable happened.

he sat up and became belligerent.

demons were manifesting.

he wanted to go out.

she stood in front of him as he sat on the side of the bed.

before she could stop him, he reached in the drawer of the nightstand and pulled out her glock.

the dispatcher was still on the phone, listening as she asked him to give her the gun.

“ma’am, did i hear you say he has a gun?”

she sighed internally, thinking, ‘oh, no, no, no.’

“yes, but…that’s not why I called.”

the situation immediately shifted from a medical call to a ‘situation.’ crap.

“ma’am, i need you to stay on the phone with me.”

she stayed on the phone with the dispatcher, describing her actions as she moved.

somehow, she wrestled the gun from him without getting shot.

the .22 gun was already in her bag. she’d had the foresight to secure it earlier.

outside, she heard sirens wailing and tires screeching as the police set up a perimeter.

he was coming after her as she walked to the door.

she slipped through his grasp, advising the police she was coming out.

there she was, her handbag hanging on her right shoulder with two handguns with in it.

as she walked out of the apartment, she saw guns pointed at her from every direction.

the swat team had her locked in their sights. she might be the problem. they didn’t know.

when they were sure she posed no threat, they stood down on her and secured her behind a building.

then they went in, searched him, searched the apartment.

after finding him to be no threat, the medics checked him out.

 

he refused treatment. of course he did.

when it was over, she was in shock. she nodded silently when one of the officers asked if he could keep the guns for a few days. it would be best for a bit.

the officer studied her as he wrote out receipts for the guns.

“why do you stay with a guy like this?” her answer surprised him.

“everyone needs someone to believe in them.”

(copyright 2016 jane doe)

she could no longer recall when it began.

life was normal, or as much as it could be.

they’d have dinner and talk about the day’s experiences.

rainy nights often sent them to bed early.

they cuddled, talked, held hands, watched movies.

they did what lovers do.

things were good until they weren’t.

he sat up suddenly one night, swinging his feet to the side of the bed.

he dressed in silence and pulled his boots on.

his eyes were vacant.

his face was set like stone.

she asked where he was going.

he did not answer.

she asked where he had been when he returned.

he did not answer.

he could not answer.

it became a nightly ritual.

she knew it was a demon, a powerful one.

it took control of him each night at the same time.

it was sent to destroy him, to destroy them.

the weeks turned into months.

she wept as she held her position.

his life was on the line.

she prayed for his protection.

angels kept him.

(copyright 2016 jane doe)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

he was acting off, rather sullen and tense at the same time.

she watched him, discerning the spirit she sensed.

he left with the car.

standing in the middle of the front room, it dawned on her.

running to the storage cabinet, she pulled the doors open.

they were gone, both the glock and the walther.

she dropped to her knees to see if he had just moved them.

they weren’t there.

she went through the closets, the nightstands, the cupboards and every conceivable place she could think of.

they were gone.

she was sick to her stomach and she was angry.

he must have needed cash.

they were at the pawn shop.

then, the voice came.

“you’re going to have to forgive him for that.”

she drew in a deep breath.

“father, I forgive him as you have forgiven me.

i ask you to forgive him, too.”

(copyright 2016 jane doe)