XVI

Destiny, Brock and Seven froze when there was a knock at the door. Not only because of the timing as Seven quoted Revelation 3:20, but the actual time. It wasn’t even 6 am yet and it was still completely dark outside. A second knock made Brock arise and go to the door. He pulled the curtain aside and peered out.

“It’s Captain Kirk, and he’s with a woman.”

“His wife?” Destiny asked.

“No, but she looks familia,” Brock replied before he opened the door and invited them in.

“Hello, kids,” the pastor greeted. “Sorry to bother you at such an early hour.”

“Nothing I ain’t used to Cappy,” Brock said with a smile and a wink.

Captain Kirk chuckled sheepishly and then looked concerned as he turned to the woman he was with. “This is Zella LaStella and we have a serious matter to discuss. She came to see me when I was going for my morning walk at the rec center.”

“Hello, Zella. Nice to meet you,” Brock said as he offered his hand. “But, haven’t we meet before? At Billy Bob Booker’s wedding?”

“Yes, we did,” she answered with a warm smile.

Seven stared in wonder at the beautiful woman. Her ebony skin seemed to glow with health and vitality. She was lean and fit in her black leggings. Seven wished she wasn’t wearing a winter jacket so he could get a look at her upper body. Her black hair was corn rowed and tapered into long braids that were corralled into a loose ponytail.

“You’re Willa’s friend and roommate,” Destiny said as she clasped the woman’s hand with both of hers as they shook. “How is she doing? I haven’t seen her at church for a few weeks.”

“Oh, she’s fine,” Zella replied. “She’s been doing a bit of traveling, but now she’s back and very much with child. I’m sure you will be seeing her at church soon, maybe even this weekend.”

“We’d love to see you join her,” Destiny said with a sweet smile.

“Thank you, I might take you up on that some time,” Zella replied. “You all at Cotton Creek Cove are good people, but right now it’s not really my cup of tea.”

“I heard Johnathan Embers was writing a story about Willa?” Brock commented.

“Yes, it’s already out,” Zella said with enthusiasm. “It’s an e-book called ‘Billy Bob Booker and the Hooker.’”

“I can’t wait to read it,” Destiny cooed. “It was both strange, yet fun reading the story he wrote about us.”

“I’d like to read that, what’s it called?” Zella asked.

“’Knight Storm’,” Destiny and Brock answered at the same time.

Seven continued to study Zella with great concentration. He marveled at her large, almond shaped eyes and longed to kiss her bow of a mouth with her plump, silky soft looking lips. She looked at Seven and her intelligent eyes became startled. She looked at Brock and then back at Seven. She pointed a well-manicured finger at him. “You’re Seven Sallie.”

Although Seven was taken off guard, he stood, removed his hat and pressed it to his chest, and attempted a charming smile. “Yes, ma’am, it is I.”

“Thou art the man!” She said sternly as she put her hands on her hips. A chill ran up Seven’s spine.

“You see, that’s why we’re here, my boy,” Captain Kirk said as he sidled up next to Seven and clasped a friendly hand on his shoulder. “Miss LaStella had an, um, odd situation arise with a client of hers.”

“What kind of client?” Seven asked, as Captain Kirk scowled and stroked his long white beard and then looked at Zella.

“I’m a psychic,” Zella replied calmly. “That’s why church isn’t my cup of tea. It seems my profession isn’t approved of there.”

“Not so,” Captain Kirk replied playfully. “I think selling herbs, vitamins and produce is a wonderful thing.”

Zella chuckled as Captain Kirk referred to her other business.

“Please know we don’t judge you, my dear,” Captain Kirk said sincerely as he reached out and gave Zella’s hand a squeeze. “And you are welcome anytime.”

“I know, Pastor, and thank you,” Zella replied and then grinned. “And you’re welcome to a reading anytime. First one free of charge.”

“So if you’re psychic, tell me what I’m thinking,” Seven challenged.

Zella reached out and lightly drew a finger along Seven’s jaw line as she smiled seductively. “That’s not the way it works, honey child. I need time to do readings on the health and wellness of your aura. I’m not a mind reader. But I do ascertain that a white bearded pastor and a black woman claiming to be a psychic showing up at six in the morning with a warning for you has left you unsettled.”

“True enough,” Seven replied. “So what do I have to do with some deranged client of yours? I mean, how does she know of me? My podcast, YouTube, Twitter?”

“I suppose that’s part of it,” Zella said, her hands on her hips and gazing at Seven with something like compassion. “The truth is, I think she’s crazy. But Pastor Samson here thinks she’s demon possessed.”

“Do you know her, Cappy?” Brock asked the pastor.

“We all do, with the exception of probably Seven,” Captain Kirk replied.

Seven scowled. All the years he dreamed of being rich and famous, and now that he was, it was turning out to be a curse. Death threats at home, so he lays low in farm country, and now a lunatic has it out for him here.

“Who is she?” Destiny asked.

“Lexi Gomez,” Captain Kirk answered and then sighed.

“Amy’s sister,” Brock said, frowned and then looked at Zella with displeasure. “You associate with that witch that tried to have her sweet innocent sister gang raped.”

“She has told me about that,” Zella replied as she put up her hands in a defensive gesture. “She claims she wanted to put a scare into her sister, but she didn’t intend for her to be raped. Trust me, she is genuinely remorseful about what happened. I’m pretty good at reading people.”

Brock folded his arms in resignation and sighed. He recalled his ex-girlfriend and current FBI agent Nora Medora telling him the same thing about Sexy Lexi Gomez.

“So Zella,” Destiny began. “How long have you known Lexi and what exactly is going on with her, and how does it apply to Seven?”

“Okay, first of all, I consider myself more of a life coach than what you all think of as a psychic,” Zella explained. “I refer to myself as a psychic in the sense that I am highly sensitive to a person’s emotional state. I am also intuitive to the wrong or right direction a person is going in their life and therefore attempt to give them guidance.

So Lexi came to me for the first time about a month ago. I could tell right away she had been involved in some pretty dark spiritual things. She practically begged me to do the Ouija board with her. I told her I don’t mess with spiritualism, it’s too dangerous. I’m more about teaching a person to tap into their own positive energy and dispelling the negative. So, to make a long story short, we got together at midnight last night to do a reading and work on her positive energy. She…”

“You did a reading with her at midnight?” Brock asked with surprise.

“Sure, I do most of my life coaching work at night. There’s a few per week I do before I open my herb store, but most schedule after I close up shop at 7 pm.”

“Have you been up all night then?” Destiny asked with a wince.

“I have. But this was a unique situation.”

“That’s right, you were telling us about your encounter with Lexi last night when we interrupted,” Brock said.

“Yeah, so Lexi has displayed multiple personalities with me before, but last night was like being in a movie about demon possession. I mean at times she was ranting incoherently and her eyes looked crazy inhuman. I was freaked! Completely freaked!

The thing is, she had been showing such improvement. I mean, granted, last night was only the sixth time she used my services, but I saw noticeable improvement in her outlook and attitude every time she came to me. Then last night she was completely off the rails and obsessed  with Seven Sallie.”

Seven felt a chill race quickly up and down his spine. Everyone looked at him and he smiled sheepishly.

“Obsessed how?” Brock wanted to know.

“She said that some departed spirit named Ambrose told her that she needed to make sure that Seven Sallie returned to Minnesota post haste or he would become a departed spirit himself. I asked her how he would become a departed spirit and she said he needed to be sliced by the edge of a knife.”

Destiny and Brock exchanged a knowing glance at each other. There was no disembodied spirit. They were dealing with a demon or demons possessing a human.

“I asked if she would do it herself, and she laughed maniacally and said of course not. Then she demanded I do a séance to conjure up Ambrose to give us direction. I told her, just like the Ouija board, I didn’t do stuff like that. She flipped out and pulled a knife on me. I was beyond scared. But I told her to leave in the most confident, authoritative voice I could muster. And she fled, cackling maniacally all the way.

So, I called the cops and told them everything. They said they’d try to find her and they would keep a look out at my place. So then I knew that after Willa joined your church, she often met Pastor Samson at 5:30 in the morning to walk and talk with him. Since it’s the cold weather season, I went to the rec center, and low and behold he was there. I told him what went down with Lexi, and he asked me if I would come here and talk to ya all.”

“Zella, you pointed to Seven and declared thou art the man,” Brock said. “What did that mean?”

“Oh, nothing really,” she said with a shrug and then eyed Seven lazily. “I’m a bit sleep deprived and was being a little dramatic.  But, speaking of sleep deprived, I need to get going and grab a few hours sleep before I open my shop. Do you mind giving me a ride back to my car, Pastor?”

“Of course not, honey,” Captain Kirk replied. “Thank you for coming out here. I wouldn’t have asked you to come if I had known you had been up all night.”

“No biggy,”  she grinned. “Nice to meet you all. Good luck, Seven.”

“Yeah, thanks, I guess,” Seven replied.

“Call me if you need anything,” Captain Kirk said.

“So what are you gonna do, Seven?” Brock asked after they left.

“What’d ya mean?”

“Are you gonna leave?”

“Not unless you want me to.”

“Of course we don’t, Seven,” Destiny said.

“Speak for yourself, Dee,” Brock joked.

Seven looked at Brock with hound dog eyes and Brock laughed. “I’m kidding, Seven.”

But Seven simply nodded and then stared into his coffee mug with a forlorn expression. It occurred to Brock just how chaotic and stressful all of the death threat situation was for him. He also noticed the way his cousin looked at Zella LaStella. There was something deeper than lust. It was longing.