Shadows in the Dark Read Online Free PDF Page A

shining brightly. People walked
in and out of the church, smiling and laughing with their friends
and family.
I stood in at the front, staring at the entrance door. The bag
sagged low from my grasp, almost touching the ground. I couldn’t
see Jackson and his men anywhere. But that made me feel more
comfortable. They were doing what they needed to do.
Taking in a breath, I slowly walked up the front steps and into the
church.
A cool wave of air splashed me in the face. The hum of air
conditioning rang all throughout the service room. People sat in
the pews, reading their bibles as the pastor got everything ready
for the service.
Trying to be as unnoticeable as possible, I walked around all the
pews and stopped at the door of the pastor’s office. Inside his
office was a basement. I had to go in there and act like I was
planting the bomb just in case Ralph was the church.
I looked around the room. Everyone was reading, the pastor was
still getting things ready, and the pianist was nowhere in sight.
This was my chance.
I quickly opened and closed the door as I walked in. Looking out
the small window that was on the door, I saw that no one noticed
me.
My heartbeat slowed a little, calming me down. Now all I had to do
was “plant” it. I walked over to the basement door and set my hand
on the handle. Feeling like I was being watched, I opened the door
and walked in.
The basement smelt musty and felt like it hadn’t been touched in
years. I hadn’t walked down the stairs. This was as far as I needed
to go to make Ralph believe I was planting the bomb, if he was watching
me.
I leaned on the basement wall, relaxing a little. All I had to do
was wait for a few minutes, walk out, and look suspicious. I took a
long, deep breath and kind of laughed. I couldn’t help but think.
Why me?
Was it because I called him? Did I have a feature that Ralph liked?
Or was it because I seemed the most vulnerable? Either way, I was
unlucky.
A small, quiet ringing came from my pocket. I quickly grabbed it
and flipped it open. It was Rick. I had no choice but to
answer.
“Hello?”
“Eli! Eli, get out of there!” Jackson’s voice boomed from the other
line, hurting my ears and making me flinch.
“What? Why?”
“The bomb, Eli! The bomb is fake! The whole plan is fake!” I
dropped the phone and stood in shock. The world stopped rotating.
Time seemed to stop. I wasn’t tricking Ralph. Ralph had tricked
me.
I boomed out from the basement and the pastor’s office, busting
into the service room, not caring about the bag. People jumped and
yelped, dropping their bibles.
I didn’t have time to tell them what I was doing there or what I
had done.
I flew out of the entrance door and saw Rick running towards the
church. I met with him halfway.
“Where are your men?” I asked, breathing hard.
“I sent them to search the perimeter. Why would the creep kidnap
you and give you a fake bomb?” Jackson had sweat dripping off the side of
his face.
I thought hard. It didn’t make any sense. Did Ralph see this as a
game? Did he just do this to be amused? Why a fake bomb? Why a fake
bomb…
Then, it hit me. It hit me harder than punch to the face. The
sudden realization made my heart stop. We didn’t trick Ralph. Ralph
tricked us.
“For more time!” I started to yank my hair and panic, pacing
around. “He gave us a fake bomb to distract us! So he could do
what he needed to
do!” Jackson starred at me and gasped. He had agreed.
“That psycho! Why would he need-”
It was as if lightning had struck just next to us. Our eardrums
vibrated in pain, making Jackson and I cover our ears and fall to
our knees. I gritted my teeth so hard to the point it hurt my
jaw.
The noise had vanished and Jackson freed his ears. I did the
same.
“What in God’s name was that?” Jackson said. Before I could answer,
I turned and saw it. The local hospital across the street was
demolished. People all around screamed and cried for help, gasping
and standing in