A Salem Awakening

Chapter 32

Abigail and Joseph appeared from nowhere inside the Sampson house. There, slumped on the floor, they could see the silhouette of a man.

Joseph ran over and knelt next to the figure, "Rennik. Can you hear me? Are you all right?"

Rennik wearily raised his hand and placed it on Joseph's shoulder. "I'm weak and badly hurt. Please help me up."

Joseph looked at Abigail, "Here, come help me with your father."

She rushed over and put Rennik's other arm around her shoulder and together they helped him stand. But something didn't feel right to Abigail – her father should be much taller and thinner. She looked at Rennik's face and backed away in fear, almost causing him to fall back to the floor. Luckily, Joseph caught him.

"Who are you? You are not my father."

Joseph intervened, "Actually Abigail, this is your father. This is his actual body – his genuine face. The man you've known your whole life, Samuel Sampson, was a facade – a costume. He embodied that man to hide his true identity. Your father is the Master of the Order of the Wick, Rennik Samson."

Again, this day showed something to Abigail which by itself would be too much to digest. And logic, of which Abigail was a fan, would dictate multiple unbelievable events and facts, being exposed all in one day, would be too much to handle by any person. But this new, inconceivable fact actually gave Abigail some sense of solace, as if everything bad was happening for a larger purpose. She still did not like that it happened at all, and the reasoning behind it completely escaped her, but there seemed to be some underlying logic and order at play, regardless of whether she understood it. This made her less fearful of this stranger than she otherwise might be.

Abigail moved in closer to Rennik's face. She wanted to get a good look at this man. But as she looked closer, she realized he wasn't really a stranger. She saw his face before. She rubbed her chin and furled her forehead. "Where have I seen him?" Suddenly, it occurred to her. She ran off to her parents' bedroom.

Joseph called to her, "What are you doing? We need to get your father out of here."

Abigail ran back into the room, holding a picture. It was a drawing of two people dressed for a wedding. She held the picture next to Rennik's face. He was breathing heavily and still slumped over, hanging on to Joseph's shoulder for support.

"This is you, isn't it? Mother told me this picture was of my grandparents, but it's really you. Right?" By the tone of her voice, Rennik couldn't tell if she was excited at using the clue to solve a mystery or if she was angry for being lied to her entire life.

"Yes, that is your mother and me on our wedding day. Abigail, there is much you cannot understand yet. For one, that drawing is from the year 1446. That is the year we were married. This will be impossible for you to understand but I am almost three hundred years old. I realize this all must shock you, but please, don't be angry. We don't have time for this right now – you must harness your emotion and focus on what matters." He coughed and wiped some blood from the corner of his mouth. "Take me back to the Porter's house so we can talk. You have much to learn and too little time to learn it."

Without thinking, Abigail put the drawing down, grabbed the cloak and put all three of them underneath it. Joseph objected, "You can't transport three people with the cloak. Only two can go. I just came along to make sure your father was all right. You take him back with the cloak, I'll run back to my house and meet you there in a few minutes."

Rennik looked at Abigail and nodded. Through coughing he agreed, "He's right Abigail. Belle can only transport two people. Thank you, Joseph. We'll see you in a few minutes."

Abigail repeated the steps to activate the cloak, but this time she knew what the inside of the Porter's house looked like, so she could imagine it and deliver Rennik directly inside.

Just as Abigail was preparing to close her eyes, Joseph grabbed her shoulder and said, "Tell my wife to engage Plan Three A. She'll know what it means."

Abigail nodded her understanding and closed her eyes. It was difficult for her to keep her arms around Rennik as he slumped over so much. She clenched her hands as tightly as she could and began her energy cycle.

Rennik struggled to stand in order to help ease the load and said, "Thank you, daughter."

"I have to say, it's weird hearing those words come from that face. It will take some time to get used to."

Rennik smiled as he laughed and coughed simultaneously. Abigail closed her eyes, felt her energy build and as soon as her eyes popped open, they disappeared.

After making sure they were safely on their way, Joseph left the Sampson house and started running back toward his own. He just needed to make one quick stop along the way.

Tobias' house was not too far from Joseph's, perhaps at most a five-minute walk. Even running at a great speed, it would take him seven or eight minutes to arrive. He wanted to see how Junius fared during the battle.

Running out of breath, Joseph reached Tobias' house in near record time. He slowed as he approached, panting heavily, and what he saw surprised him. The house looked as though a tornado made a direct hit. He walked by the shattered glass from the windows and tried to count how many gaping holes he saw in the house's structure. There were almost too many to quantify – holes of varying sizes covered the walls, from a couple of inches in diameter, to five or six feet in diameter. Around the house were trees split in half, branches were down and thrown all over were large rocks. He opened the door, which took some doing because it was hanging partially off the hinges, and slowly entered. There was no sign of Junius, but the house was a disaster. Nothing was in its proper place. Strewn throughout the home were dishes, silverware and glassware, broken into many pieces. Overturned chairs were on display and somehow a rug was hanging from the mantle. "This must have been some battle," he thought. "I wonder if Junius survived."