Salvation

Salvation #27

Joseph slings my limp body over his shoulder. I thrash violently, screaming and kicking wildly. I dig my nails into his back and claw at his neck.

"You God damn bastard!" I cry.

"Shut up!" Joseph growls.

Adam cups his hand over the back of Nate's head and slams it against the wall. "Mierda!" Nate winces.

"Now keep quiet sweetheart," Adam's cold gaze bores into me.

"Follar," Nate hisses through his teeth.

"Watch it boy," Adam warns, shoving him forward.

Nate struggles against his binding, yanking out of Adam's grip. "Follar todos ustedes," he mutters.

The two men drag us out onto the front porch. Sunlight pours over my skin and stings my eyes. The clean air fills my stale lungs, soothing them and fighting the musty air that had oozed into them, poisoning them.

Joseph puts me down roughly. My legs bow beneath my weight and I sink to my knees. The splintery wood scrapes at my knees.

My wide eyes stare at the vast fields surrounding the house like an endless sea. Wind whips across the long grass and sweeps over me.

"Get up," Joseph snaps. He hauls me to my feet, burrowing his fingers into my arm. A small squeal leaps over my lips. Tears stain my cheeks, trickling down my jaw.

He ushers me across a field. The sharp, broken stalks slice through the bare soles of my feet.

"

Padre, sé que he quebrantado tus leyes y que mis pecados me han separado de ti," Nate mumbles from somewhere behind me. I listen to the sound of foreign words spilling over me, an odd comfort. They catch in his Spanish accent and fade into the dry wind.

"

Lo siento de verdad, y ahora quiero dar vuelta lejos de mi pasado pecaminoso y hacia usted," I recognise the exotic words as the prayer he had whispered to me in the basement. The rush of memories flood through my mind. All of them a beautiful mistake that I could never bring myself to take back.

"

Por favor, perdóname y ayúdame a no pecar de nuevo." A worn barn looms in front of us. The paint has peeled away revealing large patches of rooting grey wood. Rain has bitten into it's walls, breaking them down slowly.

"Creo que su hijo, Jesucristo murió por mis pecados, resucitó de entre los muertos, está vivo y escucha mi oración," Nate breathes. Awkwardly I glance over my shoulder, stealing a glimpse of him. His head is bowed and he stubbornly staggers beside Adam. His dark eyes flicker up, meeting mine, " Invito a Jesús para convertirse en el Señor de mi vida, para gobernar y reinar en mi corazón desde este día en adelante."

Joseph jerks me forward. I stumble into the grass. It sweeps over my shoulders, brushing against my waist. "Come on," Joseph groans.

"

Por favor, envía tu Espíritu Santo para que me ayude a obedecerte ya hacer tu voluntad por el resto de mi vida."

"You're praying for the wrong thing boy," Adam says bitterly.

"En nombre de Jesús, oro Amén."

They lead us into the barn. Specks of sunlight break through tiny holes in the high ceiling. The pool over the dirty floor and streak past us. Cob webs drape over the thick, wooden beams.

My captor is sitting on a crate, examining his hands. He turns them over in the dusty light. His eyes focus on their motions as if he's a stranger inside his own body.