Chapter 8
“Turn back to God now!”
Gideon heard the shout from around the corner. He’d come out of the workshop, cleaned up after his last job, and was heading to his dad, but he walked around the corner to see what was going on instead.
A small crowd had already gathered with more turning up. Word spread fast.
“Repent!”
He moved closer, trying to get a glimpse of the speaker, when he saw arms poke above the crowd, reaching for the sky.
“Your time is running out!” the man bellowed. “You have sinned against God by turning away from him. These are the consequences, but it’s not too late.”
“Weirdo,” someone mumbled beside Gideon and walked away.
“What did you expect?” the voice continued. “He saved you, and you turned away. You worshiped things made by human hands and not the creator. You have received what you have requested.”
Gideon had never witnessed a street preacher besides what had been caught on video and uploaded on social media. But there had been so much hardship in Asher, it made sense that some around town would struggle with their mental health. Trying to convince an uninterested population wouldn’t end well for this guy, whoever he was. It would take more than these words to get anyone in this crowd to turn to Jesus. But they didn’t mind a good show.
“You will all be held accountable.”
Gideon was about to leave when the crowd shifted, and he caught a glimpse of the speaker.
“This is your last chance!” Eric shouted.
Gideon shook his head. He should have guessed. On the plus side, this show was enough to convince him that Eric wasn’t working for Fairfax. However, his being mentally unstable didn’t do him any favors. It wouldn’t take long for the news to get back to Nikki and Beth and should be enough for them to give the man space.
“God says, ‘I am the Lord your God.’” Eric’s voice boomed through the park. “‘You must not worship other gods.’ And yet, you have done the unthinkable. Those totem poles are an abomination.”
That got a new reaction from the crowd. They liked their art and wouldn’t let some stranger tell them they were wrong. They tried to drown him out with their shouts, but Eric’s words somehow pierced through it all.
Gideon checked his watch. He was tempted to wait and see how this all played out. He didn’t trust Eric, but he hated to think about the grief the crowd could give him.
He backed out and watched for another minute, but no one was getting rowdy, his dad was expecting him, and this wasn’t his fight, so he left and got the coffees he’d promised.
Before he reached the top of the stairs at his dad’s place, he heard the snoring.
“Geez, Dad,” he said as he pushed the door open, thankful he’d gotten a key so he didn’t need to wait outside with no idea where his dad was. “You could go up against Eric out there with the decibels in here.”
He set the coffee on the kitchen table, then went to the living room where he found his dad asleep on the couch, completely naked. He jerked back and covered his face. “You have got to be kidding me.”
He exhaled with his eyes focused firmly on the floor while he released his fists, stretching his fingers as he regained his composure. It could be hours before his dad woke.
In the bedroom, he found a blanket discarded on the floor and laid it over his dad, then went to the kitchen and washed the dishes before tidying the living area.
Once he’d finished, he leaned against the kitchen bench and sipped his lukewarm coffee. A wasted morning. They were supposed to go over some basic business plans. Gideon was sure his dad had gotten drunk and fallen asleep just to avoid it .
After dumping what was left of his coffee down the drain, he carried the trash with him outside and deposited it in the large garbage bin inside the workshop.
Before getting into his truck, he listened, waiting for another shout from Eric, but none came. He hadn’t looked like he was close to finishing, but maybe he’d finally decided the town wasn’t worth saving.
Isn’t it?
It was an odd question to surface in his mind. He was doing all he could for this town. There wasn’t much hope left for them.
Are you sure?
It would be perilous for him to care more than he did. And it was like Nikki said. She couldn’t rely on him because soon, he wouldn’t be there anymore.
As his thoughts drifted through questions that had no answers, he found himself rounding the corner. He looked toward the park where the crowd had dispersed. But now he heard a new sound coming from the nearby alley. It was a sound he knew all too well and had him hurrying to see who was in trouble.
“Hey!” he shouted as he sprinted toward them, his bad knee almost buckling, but he made short work of the distance.
Eric was on the ground, and three men, two of whom he recognized, looked up at him.
He focused on Cole, checking for the weapon at his hip. Gideon may not be the commando everyone thought he was, but he’d grown up fighting and had excelled in hand-to-hand combat while training .
The man Gideon didn’t recognize headed for him, but Cole put a hand up. “Hold on, Adrian. This guy’s on our side. Aren’t you, Gideon? You helped me out last time. I’ll assume you’re here to do the same now? You’re a smart guy.”
“You have a history of bullying those who are weaker than you. Three of you against one old man?”
“He was disturbing the peace. You weren’t there?—”
“I was, actually. I saw and heard what he was doing.”
“Good. Then you’ll understand why we need to take care of this before things get out of hand.”
“What things?”
“He’s getting exactly what he deserves.”
Eric pushed himself up, and Cole kicked him. That was enough for Gideon to spring. He yanked Cole around before punching him in the face, then ducked when Adrian swung and missed.
He barreled into the third, flipping him over his back, but Cole had gotten back on his feet and punched Gideon, causing him to stumble back before diving forward to catch Cole’s next punch. With a grip on his wrist, Gideon pulled him forward, punching him in the stomach before slamming his head down to connect with his knee.
Pain exploded in Gideon’s leg as Cole went down, unconscious, and the other two stood back, unsure whether it was worth pursuing this quarry.
“Get your friend,” Gideon said, “and get out of here before you two end up on the ground with him.” He moved away from Cole so they could collect him .
As they dragged him from the alley, Gideon dropped to the ground to check on Eric, who had crawled to the wall out of the way. He had one arm wrapped around his middle, and blood covered his face.
“You won’t see out of that eye for a while.”
“I’ll be all right.” Eric spit blood on the ground beside him.
“Can you stand?” Gideon tried to help, but with his leg a mess, it was a struggle.
“I think the question is, can you stand?”
“It’s an old injury.”
“It’s new now.”
“Unfortunately, yes.” With a little help from Gideon, Eric got to his feet. “But it’s okay, I’m used to limping.”
Eric staggered to the wall and leaned against it. “You’re lucky you found me when you did.”
“I’m the one who’s lucky?”
“Sometimes the hard stuff leads to the good stuff. You should be looking forward to the future.” He grinned, showing off his bloodstained teeth.
“You’re not making sense. After a few knocks to the head, it’s best if we get you to the hospital.”
“Don’t bother. It would be a waste of time.”
“I’m not so sure. You could have broken ribs and a concussion. Can you remember if you blacked out?”
“I remember every last detail. No blackouts.”
“Still, I think you should get checked out. Especially at your age.” And he could mention to the doctor the incident in the park.
“Don’t take me to the hospital. ”
“There’s nothing to be afraid of. It’s a bit of a drive, but they’ll all be really nice.”
“I’m not afraid. I just know they’re busy. And I’m not injured.”
“You’re not in any pain?”
“Pain is sometimes subjective.”
“Well…how about I take you somewhere to get you cleaned up, and we can reassess from there?”
“I like that plan.”
The two men hobbled out to the street. Gideon didn’t love the idea of taking Eric to his dad’s place, or the thought of climbing the stairs in their condition, but it was the best he could do under the circumstances. He would have considered taking him to Nikki’s if he was willing to let Eric near her again, but it was out of the question.
“My dad’s asleep, but he won’t mind us using his place. It’s not far. I just hope you can climb stairs because I’m not going to be much help, and I’m not completely sure I can do it. My physiotherapist is going to kill me.”
“Not to worry. Everything will turn out how it should.”
Gideon looked at him sideways. “Yeah, sure.”
When they arrived at the apartment, the two men relied heavily on the railings to get themselves up the stairs.
“Wait here a second,” Gideon said, opening the door and confirming his dad was still fast asleep. “If I could take you somewhere else, I would. I apologize in advance.”
“No need,” Eric said, limping inside. “This will do perfectly. Lovely spot you have here. Is that your dad?” He nodded toward the loud snoring coming from the couch.
“That’s him. If you want to sit down in the armchair over there, I’ll see what I can find to clean you up.”
He watched as Eric carefully lowered himself into the chair and raised his eyebrows in Joey’s direction.
“Like I said, I apologize in advance.”
“No need.” He leaned back in the seat and closed his eyes, clasping his hands across his stomach as it deflated in a long sigh.
“Please let there be something here,” Gideon muttered before opening the cabinet in the bathroom. He didn’t want to face the stairs again so soon, but he wasn’t having any luck finding what he needed besides a nearly empty bottle of vodka that he could use as a disinfectant if pressed.
He pulled open the cupboard door and sighed, his chin dropping to his chest. “Great.” It took him almost a minute to get back to the living room. “Sorry.” He grimaced against the pain. “I thought he’d have what we needed. I’m going to have to run to the store.”
“Run? Won’t that hurt?”
“Didn’t you say pain was subjective?”
“I said it was sometimes subjective . ”
“I’m glad to see that, through your pain, you have a sense of humor.”
“You don’t?”
“It’s best if I stick to pragmatism for now. I’ll leave a note for my dad in case he wakes up.”
“You’re putting yourself through a lot for nothing. I don’t need anything.”
“Maybe you’re still in shock.”
“I was never in shock in the first place.”
“Then you’ll have to trust me. You haven’t seen your face yet. You’re in bad shape.”
“If you insist on going, I can’t stop you. But I’m telling you, it will be a wasted effort.”
“Let me worry about that.” He scratched around on the coffee table, settled on an abandoned envelope, then found a pen in a kitchen drawer. It dug into the paper but didn’t leave a mark. He tossed it in the garbage and tried another, which also didn’t work.
“You can leave your dad to me, you know,” Eric said.
Gideon’s laugh was breathy and uncertain. “Trust me on this one too.” He found a pencil, but the tip was broken off. He speared it into the garbage, then found a thick permanent marker. “He probably won’t wake, but if he does—” He finished the note and brought it to Eric. “Show him this.”
Eric read it, then folded it and laid it in his lap. “If you insist.”
“I do.”
“And he’ll agree to read it?”
“Why wouldn’t he? He has a stranger in his house. If you tell him what happened, he’ll be curious enough.” Gideon turned for the door but stopped. “A word of warning. He’s not wearing anything underneath that blanket, so…”
“Ah. Got it. Thanks for the heads up.”
Gideon scanned the room, uneasy about leaving Eric alone with his dad. There was no way to know how either man might behave. He chewed on his lip but decided Eric was too injured to move from his spot in the chair.