IN A FOG because of the fight with my parents the night before, I walked down the hallway at school with my eyes toward the floor, not wanting to talk to anyone. Suddenly someone smashed into me, causing me to drop my book bag and stumble a few feet. I heard a high-pitched laugh and looked up to find Vicki Beecham staring at me, hands on her hips.
“Watch where you’re going, twit. Oh, and watch out at practice today. A stray ball might just hit you right in the face.”
Really? Today of all days? Vicki had been bullying me since seventh grade. I had no idea what I ever did to cause it.
As I steadied myself and readjusted my backpack on my shoulder, my cell phone rang, and I pulled it out of my jacket pocket to see who was calling. Andy Fergusen. We sat together in Spanish class, and we’d been having a lot of fun joking around lately. He was a soccer player, funny, gorgeous—and Vicki’s boyfriend for the past two years. Rumor was that they’d just broken up this past week.
I tossed a smug look at Vicki and raced down the hall so I could answer the phone.
“Andy, you there?”
“¡Hola, mi amiga bonita!”
I blushed at him calling me beautiful. “Your girlfriend just bumped into me and almost sent me skidding ten feet down the hallway. That was not an accident.”
“You mean my ex-girlfriend?”
I laughed. I needed that.
“Hey, you wanna hang out Saturday night?”
I swallowed hard, surprised at his question. My eyes caught sight of Vicki walking my way, flipping her long blonde hair, strutting as she always did.
“Yes.” It flew out of my mouth before I could stop myself.
Oh, such sweet revenge.
“G-great . . . uh . . . I’ll pick you up at seven o’clock at your place. Movie?”
“Sounds great. Gotta go.” I hung up and thrust my phone into my jacket pocket.
My boy-crazy streak was emerging again. I hadn’t dated anyone in a while, and I had a chance to make Vicki insanely jealous.
I tried on three separate outfits, wondering which one Andy would like best for our date to the movie theater. I finally settled on jeans, flats, and my favorite band T-shirt.
I half expected Mike to show up and try to talk me out of this date, considering all the other dates he’d ruined for me. But I hadn’t seen him for a couple of days. I hoped Mike wouldn’t botch this date up like the others. I really liked Andy. I never thought I’d go out with a jock, but I was warming up to the idea. After all, he was one of the best-looking guys at school.
And to be honest, I wanted to get back at Vicki for being so mean to me.
Let’s hope she never finds out, or the bullying may get worse.
As I brushed my hair I noticed my Bible sitting on my nightstand. I hadn’t opened it for several days. But I didn’t have time for that right now. I had to get down to the business of finding Mr. Right. After all, Mike had told me he’d be coming. Maybe Andy was the one.
I rarely wore makeup, but for tonight I used a little bit of blush and mascara. Vicki wore a lot of makeup, so I hoped Andy would like this touch of color better.
I grabbed my red sweater off a hanger in my closet, then stepped into my bathroom looking for some perfume. I hardly ever used the stuff, but Christina said it had quite an effect on guys. As I picked up the bottle I noticed the name on the label.
Innocence Lost.
Ignoring the twinge of guilt, I sprayed some on my neck and wrists, then set the bottle down on the bathroom sink and grabbed my sweater.
I heard a knock on the front door. After one last glance in the full-length mirror on the back of my bedroom door, I hurried down the stairs.
Mom opened the door, and Andy walked in. His muscular thighs stretched at the fabric of his jeans.
Down, girl.
“Come in, dear,” my mom cooed. My mom and Andy’s mom had been friends since high school, and they went to the same church as us. I knew Mom would let me go out with him.
“Thank you, Mrs. Stanton.” His deep blue eyes seemed to burn right through me as I came to the bottom stair. “You look amazing.”
My face felt hot. “Thanks.”
I fumbled to put on my sweater. When Andy noticed, he held a sleeve for me.
My revenge date was becoming so much more. I really liked this guy.
Dad entered the foyer and shook hands with Andy.
“So nice to see you, sir.”
Dad winked at me, just like he did before every date. It was his reminder that I could call him if I ever felt uncomfortable and he’d come pick me up. That was the whole reason he bought a cell phone for me.
“We’ll be back by ten,” Andy said. He opened the door for me. I waved good-bye to my parents.
Andy smiled at me as we walked down the sidewalk. The front door closed behind us with a thunk. “Thanks for going out with me tonight.”
“No problem.” I spotted his shiny blue classic Corvette parked in our driveway. “Nice car!” I’d always been a fan of vintage sports cars.
“I restored it myself. It’s a ’77.”
I already knew that.
We both reached for the handle on the passenger side at the same time, and his hand caught mine for a moment.
“Watch your head. Getting into this car is like stuffing yourself into a sardine can.”
I laughed and slipped into the seat. Andy shut my door. The smell of his musky cologne filled the car.
When he got in, we were so close our elbows touched. He turned the key, put the car in reverse, and backed out of the driveway.
“Vicki’s not going to be happy about this.”
Andy sniffed. “Let’s forget about her tonight. I’m here to spend time with you.”
I was excited to get to know him better and have some good laughs. I stared at his full lips, wondering what it’d be like to kiss him.
Andy pulled into the parking lot at the movie theater and looked at the sign. “Wait a minute. I don’t see Revenger listed. Is there another movie you’d like to see?”
I scanned the list. “Not particularly.” Even if there had been, I wouldn’t have said so. I wanted to spend time talking with Andy instead of staring at a screen for two hours.
“Maybe we could go to Hopkins Park and watch the sun set. Feed the geese on the pond. Then get a bite to eat at the Charcoal Pit.”
Going in a car with a guy for two hours was not a good idea. A small voice inside my head said no. I ignored it.
“Sure, let’s go.”
“There’s an unopened bag of potato chips in the backseat if you’re hungry.”
I reached around, grabbed it, and tore it open. While munching on our snack, Andy and I shared amusing soccer-team stories on the way to the park. By the time we got there we were both breathless from laughing so hard. While he parked I grabbed the review mirror, turned it in my direction to make sure my mascara wasn’t running down my face, then moved the mirror back into its original position as best I could.
I looked at Andy’s hands on the steering wheel. I wondered what they’d feel like cradling my chin.
Maybe I should splash some of that pond water on my face to cool off.
Just before we got out, rain started coming down, so we stayed in the car. We talked about Spanish class, sports, and what colleges we were thinking of going to next year.
“Who are you going to the school dance with?”
Was he going to ask me to the dance? “I’m not going, since no one asked me.”
“I was planning to ask Vicki, but now I’m not so sure.”
I waited for him to ask me, but he didn’t. “I hope this doesn’t offend you, but you seem like a nice guy. How could you date her? Do you know what a jerk she is to me?”
“Yeah.” He paused and slipped another potato chip in his mouth. While still crunching on it he added, “I’m really sorry she’s like that with you. I guess I only dated her because she’s a nice accessory to have on my arm. She must be jealous of you.”
Jealous of me? She’s so beauty-queen beautiful, and I’m so . . . average pretty.
Andy interrupted my thoughts as he pointed at me and giggled. “You have a piece of potato chip on your lip.”
“I do?” I stuck out my tongue to try to get it.
“Here. Let me just . . . ” He reached out to brush it off. When his hand neared my mouth, I grabbed it and stared into his eyes.
He kissed me. I kissed him back. He pressed me against the passenger door. I ran my fingers through his hair, satisfying the urge I’d had all night to do that.
I’d kissed three boys before, all of which had been quite awkward. I could never quite get the head tilt right or how big to open my mouth or whether to let a tongue in. Of course, the salami-breath guy was a major turn-off. I hadn’t really looked forward to the opportunity again—until now.
After a couple of minutes, the windows fogged up. The two of us were getting cramped in the small space, and my foot got stuck in the steering wheel. Andy grabbed me around my torso and pulled me over the center console. When my head hit the roof, we laughed. I quickly pulled him close again.
I could get used to this. I wished time could stop for a while—at least until I became dehydrated and had to have nourishment.
I buried my nose into his neck and breathed in his musky scent.
Andy drew back, and his eyes wandered to the opening of my blouse.
I knew I should suggest we go for a juicy cheeseburger before this went further than I wanted. So I pushed away from him, but he gripped my waist and his lips pressed harder on mine.
OK—just a minute longer.
His hands moved from my waist and started tugging at my blouse.
“Andy, don’t.” I tried to wiggle away, but his strong grasp overpowered me. His body weight crushed me into the vinyl seat.
I felt his hand slip inside my blouse. I pushed it away.
He tried unbuttoning it. I pushed his hand away again.
As he stretched the material, I heard my blouse rip. The lust in his eye landed on my exposed bra.
God, help!
I heard a noise like claws scratching at the car door. Andy snapped up to a sitting position. A low growl rumbled. Yellow eyes appeared through the window, and globs of drool ran in rivulets across its fogged surface. My mind exploded in fear.
Andy let go of me and scrambled into the driver’s seat, letting out a string of curse words. I clutched my ripped bloused together. He turned the key, rammed the car into reverse, and stomped on the gas pedal.
I peered out the back window, searching for the creature that attacked the car. It looked like a wild dog—maybe a Siberian husky. Its breath sent billows of steam into the cool evening air. Its fierce topaz eyes glowed.
As I watched, the creature thinned into a vertical line of light. Then I spotted a red shirt, jeans, and white sneakers.
Mike! He’d ruined another date. I was relieved this time.
Andy drove to my house in silence, dropped me off without saying good-bye, then sped off. I was pretty certain that was our first and last date.
Fortunately, my parents were already in bed when I got inside, so I didn’t have to explain the ripped blouse.
When I opened my bedroom door, I found Mike leaning against the bookshelf with his arms crossed, glaring at me. I’d never seen him angry. My angel notebook did say that angels had emotions, so why was I surprised?
“What were you thinking? Oh yeah, you weren’t thinking.”
“You didn’t have to be so dramatic. I mean, come on, a wild dog?”
“I think your dad would have thought the rabid dog thing was a nice touch.” Mike continued glaring.
“Stop looking at me like that.” I turned my back to him.
“That boy was attacking you, Liv.”
Then it hit me. What might have happened if Mike hadn’t shown up?
Maybe Andy wouldn’t have stopped.
I turned to face Mike. “Are you saying I could’ve been raped?”
“Yes. But you weren’t.”
“Because you intervened?”
“Because you prayed.”
“I did?”
“Yes, you did. I always show up when you invite me.”
I tried to remember when I’d prayed. Then I recalled crying out to God for help in the car when I heard my blouse rip.
I flopped hard onto my bed and put my head in my hands. “I shouldn’t have gone out with Andy in the first place. But I’ve been feeling lonely lately. And when I saw the chance to get back at Vicki, I started on a big ego trip.”
“How did you feel when you accepted the date?”
I thought back. “My stomach felt tied up in knots.”
I’d had several other red flags that I ignored, like knowing I was going out with a guy that I knew slept around a lot and who dated a girl that was a jerk.
How could I be so naïve and reckless?
Mike sprawled out on my floor, his head resting on the backs of his hands. He looked up at me. “You’re human. Don’t be too hard on yourself. You’re still learning. And the Enemy tends to attack people in the areas where they’re the weakest.”
“In my case, boys.” I rolled my eyes.
“But now that you recognize your area of weakness, you can conquer it.”
“How?”
“By listening to the voice of God. He can give you power over temptation.”
“Yeah, that twinge of guilt I felt in my bathroom right before I left on the date was God telling me I was making a bad choice. But I ignored it.”
“Listen to that still, small voice—the one that tried to warn you when Andy invited you to go out with him. Whenever you feel uneasiness in the pit of your stomach, pray. And don’t put yourself in situations that will cause you to fall.”
“Like in a parked car with a hot guy?”
“Exactly.” Mike chuckled, then looked serious again. “When you feel the Enemy pressing in, remind him of your position in Christ. Say it out loud so he can hear it. Memorize Scripture so you can quote it when you need to use it during spiritual battle.”
I giggled at the thought of quoting Scripture at Andy in the car and reminding demons out loud that I was a child of God. He’d have driven home even more shaken than when he thought he’d seen a crazed dog.
“If you command evil spirits to flee, they have to leave. And if you ask God to give us angels charge over you, we’ll come to your aid right away.”
“So you’re saying I have power to resist the devil. I just need to use it?”
Mike grinned. “I knew you’d get it.” He stood, then vanished, but a glow lingered, assuring me that he was still here.
“Can you stay here while I sleep?”
“I always do.”
I dove under the covers and slammed my head into the pillow.
God, I almost got raped tonight because I ignored Your voice. Please forgive me. Make me wiser. Help me to listen to You and resist temptation.
As I drifted off to sleep, I wondered if Bev had prayed for angels to watch over me tonight.
“Your mom prays for you, too, you know.”
She does?
“She’s put me on assignment many times.”
This surprised me. Mom didn’t always act like my ally. But if she prayed for me, I was thankful.
Noxious fumes blew into my face. Green eyes glared at me from above my bed. An invisible force held me down.
“God, help me—”
“Quiet,” a spirit shouted.
I felt an invisible hand cover my mouth. I tried to move my arms and legs, but the force would not let me go.
“You think your big friend and his angel gang are so strong, but we demons are stronger.”
“He is called the Deceiver for a reason. He is a liar.” It was the still, small voice again.
Four more pairs of green eyes floated around my room. The demons then took on various forms. One had the body of a dog and the legs of a spider. The other had a man’s body, but the face was a twisted, rotting piece of skin.
The faces pressed in closer. I shut my eyes.
God, do you hear me?
“We can help you as much as He can.” The high-pitched voice hurt my ears.
The creatures holding me down shook me so violently I feared I might fall off the bed.
The dog with the spider legs shouted, “God doesn’t care about you.
You’re one of millions of pathetic humans who are going to fail over and over and then die.”
“But I’m going to heaven,” I mumbled.
“Silly girl.” The voice was deeper, so I assumed the man with the twisted face was talking now. “There’s no heaven. No glory. We’re going to win in the end. We almost won two thousand years ago. Now we’re smarter and stronger.”
The spider monster spoke again. “Our lord has plans for this town. There are hordes of us in every corner of the city. We’ll take down every person who lives here, one by one.”
I remembered Mike telling me to call out to God at times like this. I mustered up the strength to yell out, “Jesus!” Since my mouth was covered, it came out muffled. So I screamed the name again inside my head.
I knew I was in trouble when I saw the menacing shadow lurking in a corner of my dark bedroom. An invisible fist twisted my heart until it felt like it would explode. Unseen hands gripped my mind, paralyzing me with fear.
The shadow emerged, and I saw a grotesque face with hollowed-out eyes and skeletal features framed by a black cloak. I sensed a fire of hate in its crimson eyes as they flashed at me. I knew it intended to kill me. But I couldn’t move. I was pinned to my bed.
Its rage enveloped me as it choked me with its bony fingers. My head swam as I gasped for oxygen. Was this the end?
My eyes rolled back in my head. As I attempted to draw one final breath, I saw a flash of light. I was sure my spirit had departed from my body.
But as I gave in to inevitable death, the brilliant light lingered. When I focused on it, I recognized Him. The one who was sent to fight for me.
The one who had promised to battle beside me.
That’s when I realized that I was not in this alone. And that the struggle was far from over.
God, where are You?
“Watch this,” Mike bellowed.
I opened my eyes and saw a window of light open amid the blackness.
Mike appeared in an enormous form of his human self I’d never seen before, filling the room. He grabbed the smaller demon by the neck and hurled it out of my room. He disappeared right through the wall.
When the demon on top of me released me in order to fight Mike, I flew to my bedroom door and leaned against it, recoiling as the demon hissed and slammed into Mike, encircling him with his willowy, bony arms.
I prayed as hard as I could. Mike’s wings filled the room the way they had the night my father was assaulted. He wielded a flaming sword in his right hand. A trail of fire followed its every swing.
The remaining demonic creature raged in response, spewing black smoke from its mouth. Mike melted through the wall, taking the tussle outside.
I dropped to my knees beside my bed and decided to quote Psalm 23, the only Scripture I knew by heart since I’d heard it read so many times at church and funerals. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.”
Before I could quote the rest, I began to sing the only worship song that came to mind. “Peace, peace, wonderful peace, coming down from the Father above.”
God, send backup help if Mike needs it. And please— I heard a knock on my window. The glass shuddered but didn’t break.
I looked outside. Mike hovered about six feet outside my window. Red and green blood ran down the blade of his flaming sword, dripping off the end as it hung toward the ground. Mike’s chest rose and fell rapidly.
The demon was nowhere in sight.
I turned the latch and threw open the window. “Are you OK?” My chest was heaving so hard I could hardly get out another word.
“I am.” He gasped for another breath. “Thanks for sending backups.”
“Yeah, I had prayed for that.” I held my hand to my head. “I need to read my Bible more often. And memorize more verses. I want to be prepared next time.”
Mike gave me a thumbs-up. “Great idea.”
My phone rang, and Mike disappeared. I grabbed my cell from the bedside table.
“Liv,” Christina yelled. “Get to Greg’s house, fast! I’ll meet you there.” She hung up.
What now?
I grabbed my purse and keys and flew out of the house.