Alternate Worlds: The Fallen Read Online Free Page A

feet.
    That galvanized me more than the sounds from
outside.
    Nuts on the outside, fire on the inside and
a totally pissed off ‘whatever’.
    I looked up at the dangling rope, but I
didn’t figure I had enough adrenaline pumping through me to climb
it again, even with fire—and brimstone—chasing me up. Glancing
around a little frantically, I grabbed a hymnal and pitched it at
the nearest window just as one of the candle holders bent and the
doors burst inward.
    They screamed. Grown men didn’t usually
scream when they saw fire. I knew instantly that the ‘demon’ was
loose. Taking a running jump, I dove through the broken window,
managing an awkward tuck and roll when I hit the ground on the
outside—awkward because one of my arms gave way. Pain shot through
my arm, but I was too revved to pay it that much attention. Leaping
to my feet, I sprinted toward the woods.
    I could hear a good many shouts and a lot of
screaming behind me. Some of it was screams to stop, the rest
screams of terror.
    Like I was going to stop! Get real! The
yelling to stop only made me run faster. I was traveling at such
velocity by the time I got to the edge of the road I had a hell of
a time braking to make the turn, sliding halfway into the road like
a baseball player sliding toward home base.
    Rocks burned my palms as I clawed at the
ground and finally regained my feet.
    The adrenaline made it easier to snatch the
driver’s side door open in spite of the underbrush. Thankfully, I’d
had the foresight to leave the keys in the ignition. I started the
vehicle, yanked the gear into reverse and floored it.
    There were a couple of screams behind
me—first news I had that my pursuit was that close. I hoped the
jouncing was just the SUV bouncing over the ruts, but I sure as
hell wasn’t getting out for a look. The smell of burning rubber and
the scream of tires filled the cab as I slammed on the brakes when
I hit pavement. Jerking the gear into drive, I floored it
again.
    The fire in the temple was already out of
control by the time I zipped by. People were running in every
direction. I got a glimpse of something really big leaping from the
belfry.
    A mixture of relief and nerves tightened in
my belly.
    He was free. I wasn’t going to have to spend
the rest of my life wondering—not that any of it was my fault. He’d
gotten himself into the mess, after all. And the bloodthirsty kooks
had caught him. It was their war. I was just a bystander.
    My thighs were sticky with his seed, though.
I couldn’t resist a triumphant grin about that.
    Mission accomplished!

Chapter Three
    I decided, under the circumstances, to take
the rental through the car wash before I returned it. When I’d
washed it and vacuumed it several times, I returned it to the
rental place, praying it had been too dark for anybody to catch the
license plate.
    I was pleased that I managed to behave
perfectly calm and naturally.
    I’d used a fake ID to rent the thing. I’d
felt a little silly at the time, like someone playing spy, but it
was a covert operation, after all, and I’d decided it was better to
be safe than sorry.
    I had reason to be pleased with my
foresight.
    When I left the car rental office, I spied a
news stand. After studying it speculatively for a heartbeat, I dug
a couple of coins out and bought one, then caught a cab and had him
drop me off downtown.
    It was harder to act nonchalant when I got
out of the cab. I hadn’t taken the time to read the article on the
front page, but the headlines had made me feel a little ill.
    Satanists Burn Church
    Like it was my fault the morons had
frigging candles all over the place! In a wooden building, no
less!
    It took me an hour to reach the place where
I’d left my car. I had to force myself to keep my legs to a brisk
walk, but I wasn’t rattled enough to draw attention to myself by
running.
    As tempted as I was to sit and read the
article—just to see what lies they’d told—I started the car and
left.
    The drive