M McDonald - March Into Hell

Jim sidled closer to Mark. "Do as Mark says, and put the gun down, miss."

The agents who'd escorted Mark onstage closed ranks around him. The crowd had scattered, leaving empty chairs around Judy. Was that Jessie and Dan easing towards her?

Judy's gaze wavered, but Mark had the impression it was in reponse to something else, not him or the officers approaching from behind. The gun remained planted firmly against her temple. Where was Kern? Was he here? Jim must have had the same thought because he dipped his head and Mark caught Kern's name mentioned as Jim fired off orders into his hidden microphone.

Mark tried to recall if this had been part of his dream. There had been a photo with Judy in it. Lily had tentatively ID'd her, but with the dyed hair and not much left of her head, it had been hard to know for sure. Was he supposed to stop Judy from committing suicide?

He tried to push through the agents, but they didn't allow him through. Shoulder to shoulder, they pointed their guns at Medea, which made no sense to Mark. She already held a gun against her head. He was taller than they were, so he settled for looking between them, and re-establishing eye contact with Judy. Jim could deal with Kern if he was around.

"Judy, listen to me." Her eyes pulled from whatever she'd been focusing on and settled on Mark.

"That's it. You don't need to do this. Set the gun down. Just put it right there on the stage. Whatever role you played in my kidnapping, we can talk about later. I'm fine now. It's not too late for you to come forward and talk to the police. You have to understand-it's not up to me to forgive anyone. You go to the police and if you do, I bet you can work a deal. I'll do whatever I can to help, okay?"

Judy bit her lip and tears welled in her eyes. "Why?"

"Why what?" Mark pushed the agents from behind, urging them a little closer to Medea, but they held their ground and he couldn't blame them for not wanting to get too close to the gun.

"Why would you help me, after what I did?"

Mark wished he had time to think of a good answer, but he didn't. "I have no idea, Judy. I just know that none of this is worth dying for. Kern isn't worth dying for. We have to move on-both of us. Kern used us. Do you want to let him win this time too? Do you want the press to forever paint you as the girl who was Kern's puppet?" He sensed movement in his peripheral vision, but didn't tear his attention away from Judy.

Judy's eyes narrowed. "I'm nobody's puppet."

"That's right, you're not. That's why you have to cut the strings. Do what you want to do. What you feel is right."

She nodded and slowly eased the gun away from her head.

Mark took a deep breath, but before he could let it out in relief, Jim shouted, "Behind you!" He saw Jim rushing the stage, his gun in hand, but he bypassed Judy without a glance and Mark whirled.

There was no time to duck, and barely time to register Kern standing with a gun pointed before something slammed into Mark, as he staggered back, two more impacts sent him flying onto his back.

Pain ignited in his chest, and he couldn't breathe. Dimly, he heard another shot, but the edges of his vision closed in.

His awareness returned by degrees, but he didn't know if he'd been out seconds, minutes or even hours. He blinked, wanting to see what was happening, but the agony in his chest kept him motionless. At least he wasn't dead, and his breathing returned even if every inhalation felt like someone was stabbing him.

He turned his head. One of the agents lay several feet away, his face contorted as he clutched his right thigh. Blood oozed between his fingers. The other agent was nowhere to be seen. Where had Jim gone? Shouts, the clang of the chairs, and feet running across the stage penetrated his brain. He curled onto his side with a groan, but bit back the sound as he took in the scene before him.

Kern stood with his back to Mark, holding Jim in a headlock with a gun digging into his temple. Beyond Kern, Jessie and Dan stood at the edge of the stage, their guns aimed at Kern, but neither would be able to take the shot without the risk of hitting Jim.

"Reverend Jim is a fraud and a murderer! I saw him pull the trigger. He shot Mark Taylor. Then that young sweet girl ended her own life when hope of forgiveness died with Taylor."

Mark stifled a moan of pain as he rose to a sitting position, fighting the darkness that encroached on his vision as he sat and waited for his sight to clear. The lack of blood on his robe, and the fact that the pain was easing reassured him that the vest had done its job even if it did feel like he'd been kicked by a mule. As he put his hand down to move to a standing position, he felt something cold and metallic. The agent's gun. He picked it up, not quite sure what to do with it. Not only had he never fired one, he'd never had reason to point a gun at another human being.

Standing, he blinked, getting his bearings before he straightened as much as his aching ribs allowed. If he could distract Kern, Jessie or Dan might be able to take him out. He aimed the weapon at Kern's back. It crossed his mind to shoot the man, but he didn't trust his aim, and didn't know if the bullet would pass through Kern into Jim.

"Kern." He'd wanted to sound strong and forceful, but he hadn't been able to take a deep enough breath to add volume so Kern didn't hear him above the sound of his own shouting. His second effort was louder, and Kern pivoted sideways, yanking Jim along with him. A trail of blood welled from a groove along Jim's head. It explained the glassy look in Jim's eyes and how he'd been captured.

"Well look here. It's a bonafide miracle!" Kern eyed Mark, his mouth twisting into a sneer. "You're not dead."

Jessie took a tiny step to her left, indicating to Mark with a subtle gesture that she wanted him to keep talking. Mark shook his head at Kern. "Nope. As you can see, I'm very much alive, so you can release Reverend Jim. He didn't murder me."

"You think I can just let him go and everything will be fine?"

Before Mark could answer, Kern tightened his grip, and Jim's eyes went wide as he clutched at the arm across his throat, his fingers digging into Kern's flesh.

"What do you want, Kern?"

"I want you. More specifically, I want your power. Reveal it to me, and I'll let this old man go."

A couple of dozen audience members still huddled on the floor where they must have dropped when the shooting began. Several lifted their heads, curiosity replacing the fear in their eyes.

"I don't have any power. Don't you think I'd have given it to you the last time we met if I'd had anything to give?"

"At first, I didn't believe you had any powers. I was just using the media hype to inspire my followers."

Mark felt bile rise, and swallowed convulsively. His hands shook, his aim wavering. The whole ordeal had been just a ploy for Kern to look good in front of his pathetic group of followers?

Kern shrugged and continued, "But now, I'm a believer. How else do I explain the dream I had last night? I saw all of this, and I know how it ends. I heard your speech and everything. The only thing different, is you were wearing a blue shirt, instead of that robe. I haven't figured out why that's different, but the rest of it-it's exactly the same."

A chill swept Mark. So Kern had been present in the dream. He wished he could somehow cleanse his mind and wash out any lingering trace of of the evil man.

Jessie was almost behind Kern.

He had to keep him distracted just a moment longer. "You're delusional."

Kern hiked Jim higher as he moved a step closer to Mark. His face twisted in rage. "I'm delusional?" He chuckled. "I'm not delusional, Taylor. What I am is your fiercest believer. Who do you think will spread the word on you when you're dead?"