Ten Plagues

“I promise I’ll lock you both in the lineup room if you don’t work this out.” O’Shea heaved himself to his feet. “We’ve got a murder to solve, and if I have to do it myself”—he turned on them—”because you two kids never learned how to work and play well with others—”

His voice rose to a shout. “There’s gonna be payback for both of you.” Then a roar. “That you’ll still be stinging from, years from now.” He stormed off in a huff.

The two of them stared after O’Shea in shock. Then they looked at each other.

“Did he just threaten to spank us?” Paul asked.

Keren looked at her coffee. Paul noticed she was fighting a grin. “Maybe. And that bit about the lineup sounds a little like being sent to our rooms.”

“And this is definitely a time-out.” Paul swirled his mocha-shmocha-cappa whatever, trying to keep the concoction mixed up until he was done drinking it and to give himself something to do besides talk to Keren.

Finally, she moved. He glanced up and saw she had her hand extended toward him. “Hi, my name is Keren Collins. It’s nice to meet you. Call me Keren.”

Paul shook his head then took her hand. “My name is Paul.”

“Oh I’m sorry, I heard your name was Rev. Where did I get a silly idea like that?”

“Can’t imagine. So … truce?”

Keren nodded. Then she said in a hesitant voice, “I know you’re a good man, Rev … I mean Paul.” She arched an eyebrow at him. “Rev really suits you.”

“Paul or nothing.” Paul realized he was still holding her hand and dropped it. He rubbed his hand on his pant leg to cool it off.

“I’m sorry I’ve been riding you so hard.” Keren glanced up at him. “I can’t even blame this case exactly. I mean, it is the case but …” She shrugged.

Paul saw her clench her teeth to keep from saying something. He wondered what it could be.

“O’Shea says I have good cop instincts, and all my instincts tell me we’re dealing with an evil that is beyond …” Keren fell silent again.

Paul had been trained in counseling. He shouldn’t put words in her mouth, but he was so sure of what she was going to say he had to do it. “An evil beyond what any human is capable of.”

“Without help.” Keren nodded.

“Do you believe in the devil, Keren?” Paul was amazed how many people didn’t, even when they were faced with the evidence of him every day.

“You bet I do.” She surprised him. “All that is wrong with this world isn’t just the evil in people’s hearts. I believe in the rebellion in heaven. I know Satan has been cast out, and now he and his minions walk among us. I know that’s not the accepted idea these days. Even a lot of Christians don’t believe in him.”

“I’ve seen too many people lured away while I’m trying to lead them to God.” Paul thought of Juanita and LaToya, two girls who hadn’t been lured away. He prayed now for LaToya’s safety and thought of Juanita, who was with the Lord, beyond earthly pain, beyond the need of any prayers.

“And I’ve felt Satan in myself, warring with God.” Keren took a sip of her coffee. “Trying to infect me with greed and jealousy and anger.”

“Oh, c’mon, when have you ever been angry?” Paul asked dryly.

Keren looked up and smiled. “I’ll take the Fifth on that … Paul.”

“Now that didn’t hurt, did it?”

“ ‘Bout killed me.” Keren stared into her cup for a long minute, then she said, “Do you know the verse that says Satan will be set loose on the earth?”

Paul quoted, “ ‘When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth.’ It’s from Revelation.”

“I wonder sometimes if we’re not living in that time,” Keren said. “I wonder if Satan hasn’t been released from his prison.”

“Ask the people in Africa dying of AIDS, or the people in North Korea who are starving to death, or the people in Saudi Arabia who are being put to death for becoming Christians, if they think Satan isn’t loose,” Paul said.

“You may not need to go so far afield,” Keren said. “How about we ask LaToya?”

“You really are a believer, aren’t you?” Paul felt the assurance in his heart even before she answered. She wasn’t the kind of Christian he was used to. She was too cold, too busy, too grouchy. Of course, they’d met under nasty circumstances. He hadn’t exactly been on his best behavior, either.

“I really am.” She stood. “I’ll get rid of the cups, then we’ll go see if our ‘time-out’ is over and Mick’ll let us quit sitting in the corner and get back to work.”

Paul wasn’t perfectly satisfied with their new harmony. He knew there was something else going on. Her jaw never really relaxed. Her piercing eyes, so pale they were breathtaking, watched him until he thought she could have performed laser surgery with them. But she wasn’t attacking him anymore, so he didn’t push.