Peter Hunter and the Minions of Mara

Chapter 26 - The Eternal Rule

Peter breathed a sigh of relief. He felt humiliated that he hadn't been able to stop this asura on his own either, but he was immensely grateful that Sensei had been there.

Rob offered a hand and said, "Remember that they can take any shape. And it might scare or startle you, but their form never affects their power. You could've taken him easily."

"Oh," Peter said, realizing that he had basically fallen for a simple parlor trick.

"And chanting can help focus your thoughts," Sensei reminded him.

"Oh, yeah. That chanting thing," Peter said, feeling increasingly stupid.

"Don't worry," Rob said, reading his face. "This is why you have a mentor. And you kept the victim safe. That's priority number one."

Peter and Rob propped Jeremy up to a more comfortable position, against the wall of a booth. The area had started to become populated again, now that the spiritual threat had evaporated.

"So Jeremy?" Sensei asked. "Is this the Jeremy?"

Peter nodded. "He's also the son of that husband and wife from a few weeks ago."

Sensei made a sympathetic face. "How sad they all must be," he said softly. "Can you imagine the amount of pain that family must live with?"

Peter suddenly felt guilty for every thought of ill will he had had for Jeremy.

The guy can be a jerk, but I guess he's been in pain all these years...

"You think he's been possessed this whole time?" Peter asked.

"Maybe not," Sensei speculated. "They were probably working on him for years, conditioning him. But now there's hope for this guy. One good influence can make all the difference." Rob eyed Peter emphatically.

"Me?" Peter laughed. "Yeah, right. I mean, I'd love to help the guy, but he hates me with a passion."

Sensei shrugged. "If not you, we can only hope there's someone who will help him."

"You really think he could change?"

Rob nodded. "The Buddha said, 'Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love. This is the eternal rule'."

The thought weighed on Peter. It was nearly impossible to even imagine loving Jeremy.

"Well, I have to get back to a date with a lovely woman," Rob said with a smirk. "Have a good night." Then he disappeared.

Peter looked down at Jeremy and wondered how he could even start to like the guy.

***

Peter returned to the picnic tables to find Zahid, his brothers, and Yara waiting for him. He braced himself for Zahid's anger.

"You owe me," Zahid grumbled. "She played with my hair."

He said it like it was the cruelest, most sadistic form of torture.

"I really am sorry," Peter said.

"Why do you not like Big Sister Gina?" Yara asked innocently.

Peter raised his eyebrows.

"'Big Sister Gina?'" Hassan repeated.

He and Ahmed started playfully punching their big brother while laughing.

Zahid groaned, "Please don't call her that, Yara." Then he explained to Peter, "They hit it off big time."

"She was nice," Yara said. "Why don't you like her?"

"American girls are just a little more bold than I'm comfortable with," Zahid explained to Yara. "Remember back in Syria how boys and girls don't touch in public? It's different here and I'm not used to it. Speaking of bold girls," he turned to Peter, "are you going to ask Alicia out?"