Midknight, page 15
“That is why my friend and myself are here, Sergeant Jasper.... to assist you with them.”
“No offence, dip shit but you and Batman there don't exactly look like the dynamic duo.”
“That's enough, Barry!” Sergeant Jasper barked out. “As much as I hate to admit it, John, he's right. You shouldn't be out here. It's too dangerous.”
John D’Angelo smiled once again. “That's understandable, Sergeant, but it's been my experience to never misjudge someone by the way they look.”
A gentle white glow started to slowly form around John where he stood until his features were lost in the light causing the police officers to cautiously back up. A second later, a blur of light shot towards Barry Walker and then returned to where the Celestial stood. The glow about him faded and in his hand, he held Barry’s rifle. Calmly, he handed it to Sergeant Jasper and looked back at Barry Walker, who had a baffled look on his face as he stared at his now empty hands.
“I haven't been totally forthcoming with you.... perhaps another time I can elaborate more. For now, all you need to know is that we are on your side. We mean you no harm as we are here to assist you however we can. We have certain abilities that are... enhanced, but we're going to require these powers to counter those like us who are coming to do you harm.”
“How do we know we can even trust you?” Barry Walker asked. He was still watching Beau closely, not sure what to think of him and Beau worried for a moment that Barry could see that it was him under the black hood.
“You're going to have to take our word for it. We just want to help protect Paradise Flats like you do. If we meant you any harm, we would have done it by now and there is little that you could do to stop us.”
“I guess I'm going to have to take your word for it, John.” Sergeant Jasper replied after taking a moment to think about it, “You've already been instrumental in helping us with preparations so far.... and there are already plenty of strange stories going around about what you did for the Sanderson boys up in Southby...kind of paranormal stuff. With everything going on and all the weird shit that I’ve seen lately, I can’t say that I’m totally surprised that there’s more to you than what you appear to be. This whole glowing thing, however, might take some getting used to. As for your friend here all dark and mysterious.... we've never seen him before so you can't blame us for being a little cautious.”
“Actually, yes you have.... at least his handiwork you’ve seen before. He was the one responsible for dealing with those five individuals at the Ford dealership. I believe he saved one of your officers that night, as well.”
There was a sudden realization among those gathered that no one knew for sure what exactly happened inside the Adams Ford building or who was responsible for the apprehension of the five men.
“What about the men in the black SUV that was parked on the lawn in front of the police station? Was that you, as well?” Bruce Williams interrupted, recalling that mystery had never been solved either.
Beau nodded, but no one could see the subtle movement of his head under the hood.
“Yes.” His voice sounded different. Deeper and more guttural, which was good as Beau was certain that Bruce would recognize him.
“Do you have a name?”
Beau looked to John for help. The Celestial shrugged.
“He's as black as midnight in that get up. Are you sure we can trust-” Barry Walker started to say before being cut off by John.
“Yes, that's it. Midknight.”
“Midnight?” Scott Jasper repeated.
“Midknight. Mid and then night with a ‘k’ on the front of it.”
“Midknight. Very well, Midknight, it is.”
John gave Beau an approving look. That would work in keeping Beau's true identity secret and the name tied in with the Knights of the Apocalypse lore. As he thought about it, there really was no reason for any of the people present to believe what John was saying about Beau’s feats as some kind of caped crusader. No one had actually seen him in action and they had no idea who was lurking beneath that cloak. Despite this, John had a way of convincing people who he spoke to that what he was saying was the truth. That someone running around in a black cloak was legitimate and not some crazy loon.
“How do we contact you if we need you?”
“We won't be very far away.” John answered and nodded at Beau. A second later, they were both gone, disappearing into the night and leaving the officers gathered there to wonder what had just taken place.
Lauren found the waiting excruciating and looked for something to keep her mind preoccupied as she glanced at the clock on the wall. While she wondered what was going on with Beau and where he might be at this moment, Lauren couldn't help but worry. Michael had been put to bed an hour ago and even though she adored Beau’s parents, she felt like she was intruding in their home. It wasn't her idea to stay here, but Beau felt that it might be best if they came to town for the time being. He wouldn't say why, but Lauren knew something was troubling him and it was obvious that he didn't want to scare her.
She had seen him talking to John D'Angelo earlier that evening out at their acreage and knew something was up. It was still difficult to fathom everything that Beau had told her about what he and John had spoken about concerning Celestials and the Forsaken. Lauren still struggled to believe that any of this was really happening to the man that she loved and that some kind of entity was possessing him. If she hadn't seen it for herself, Lauren would have never thought something like that was possible. Beau still seemed like his normal self, but how long before this Schadowe entity took control of Beau? What would happen to him then?
“Sandra, can you tell me about how Beau beat the cancer when he was little?”
Beau's mom had been sitting in the living room crocheting by candlelight to keep her mind preoccupied. She was just as upset as Lauren was went Beau took off into the night to do God knows what. Sandra Sittler didn't care if her son thought it was important. It was too dangerous to be out and about traipsing around in the middle of the night.
“Do you want the medical version of how it happened or the real story?”
“The real story with... Delilah. That was her name, right?”
“Yes. Delilah Simmons. Beau was only three when he was first diagnosed with the brain tumor. For two years we tried various types of treatments but none of them seemed to help. He was five years old when it looked like all of our options had run out. There was another type of treatment that the doctors wanted to administer to Beau, but it was kind of a last-ditch effort and quite expensive. Beau's little body had been through so much already that one of our doctors feared that the treatment might do him more harm than good.
We decided to give Beau a break from the treatments and hospitals and brought him home, hoping that with a change of scenery he would rebound. When he didn't, we feared the worst and that his time was.... well, that's when Delilah stopped by the house here. I don't know exactly what she did or even how she did it, but she took Beau’s cancer from him that day. Just by touching his face and going into some kind of trance. I saw it firsthand and after all of these years, I still find it hard to believe what she did. The doctors can take all the credit they want for Beau’s recovery, but I know that it was Delilah that saved him.”
“And Beau was cured just like that?”
“Just like that. He had been bedridden for weeks but was up moving around shortly after Delilah took the tumor away. It was a miracle. Even the doctors said so in a roundabout way. Beau was cancer free.”
“And it never came back?”
“Nope. Full remission. We went to the doctor regularly after that for checkups and screenings, but Beau always received a clean bill of health. Whatever Delilah did to Beau not only cured him of the cancer, but he has never been sick a day in his life since then. Brent and I feared that his immunity would be compromised from everything that he had been through, but Beau has been the perfect specimen of good health ever since.”
“Yeah, I don't remember him ever being sick since I've known him now that you say that. Whatever happened to Delilah Simmons?”
“She actually died later that day. Shot to death. There had been a serial killer that had encountered Delilah somewhere along the line and tracked her here to Paradise Flats. His name was Bishop... Tom Bishop and he had kidnapped Amanda Brody and used her to force Mark Brody to take Delilah out to some old farm by Crystal Lake. There was another lady.... a Brittany Spencer.... you wouldn't know her, she's been gone for about ten years now...that this Bishop kidnapped, as well.
“Tom Bishop was the one who killed Delilah then?”
“Yes.... he was the one that shot her. Mark Brody might be a better person to talk to about that. He was there when Delilah died. In fact, he was here, as well when Delilah took the tumor from Beau.”
“That's the part I don't get. How did she just take it from Beau?”
“Again, Mark might be the better person to talk to about that. I only know what I saw and still can't really explain it to this day. After what she did, I was convinced that she was an angel, but Mark wasn't so sure. She wasn't a normal human being.... that I know for sure. It doesn't really matter to me what she was, she saved Beau and that's all that I care about.”
“And the tumor didn't affect her.... or did it?”
“I remember her struggling after she took it, but Mark said that she passed it on to Tom Bishop before he killed her.”
“How?”
“Again, you would have to talk to Mark about that. He knew more about her than the rest of us. Why the sudden interest in what happened almost twenty-five years ago, Lauren?”
“It kind of came up in conversation. Beau doesn't usually talk about it. He says that he doesn't remember much about it and that you would be a better person to talk to.”
“Well, like I said.... it was a long time ago, but I'm convinced that Delilah had powers that saved Beau. Mark mentioned once that she was almost a hundred and twenty years old, but she didn't look like she was a day over twenty-five.”
“Really?”
“So, he says.”
Lauren thought about that for a moment. “Is it possible that she might have passed some of her powers onto Beau when she saved him? Like how he never gets sick? Could she be responsible for that?”
“It's possible, I suppose. I've kind of wondered that at times myself. I was so worried that the cancer would someday return and when it never did, I’ve often wondered if Delilah did something to protect Beau in the future.”
Lauren found herself thinking the same thing now. Was this why this Schadowe entity hadn't fully possessed Beau yet? Was Delilah's power holding it at bay? If so, for how long would it last?
The back door of the house opened causing both women to jump. They stood and cautiously peeked around the corner from the living room and found Beau and John D'Angelo standing in the porch. The two men made their way to where Lauren and Sandra Sittler were standing and Beau gave them both hugs. Lauren noted how tired he looked as he did so and even though Beau was smiling and seemed at ease, his body language told her that he was bordering on exhaustion.
“Lauren.... mom...this is John D’Angelo. He asked if he could meet you. Where's dad?”
“He's in bed, dear. He wasn’t feeling well and went to bed early. Hello John. I'm Sandra Sittler.... Beau’s mom.”
“Hello Sandra. It's a pleasure to meet you.”
“Would you like something to drink? Coffee? Tea? Water?”
“Water would be nice, please.” John replied and Susan rushed off to the kitchen.
“Hi John. I'm Lauren.... Beau’s significant other. He's told me a lot about you.”
“Hello Lauren. Beau speaks very highly of you. He's lucky to have you by his side in light of.... everything that has occurred recently.”
“I'm still trying to wrap my head around what's been taking place and doing my best to understand what's going on with Beau. Just so you know, Sandra doesn't know anything about Schadowe, just in case you’re wondering.”
“Understood. Beau informed me that you are the only one he has talked to about his predicament.”
“Is that why you're here, John? To help Beau manage with this? With everything that's going on in the world right now.... is that why you're here in Paradise Flats?” Lauren had been curious as to why an omnipotent being such as a Celestial would be here in their little town. In the grand scheme of things with the end of the world taking place, it had to be because of Beau being possessed by Schadowe that John was here.
“Beau is the victim of some cruel circumstances that were beyond his control and yes, his well-being is a priority, but there are other matters of concern that I need to attend to here, as well.”
Before Lauren could ask John to elaborate on that, Sandra returned from the kitchen with a bottle of water and a plate of cookies. The four of them sat down and visited in living room, but with Sandra present, the conversation stayed away from any mention of the Schadowe entity. After a half hour, Beau’s mother decided to call it an evening and went off to bed.
“What was going on tonight?” Lauren asked Beau, who looked like he was ready to fall asleep.
“Just some riffraff causing some trouble outside of town.” He answered in a casual tone to make light of what took place so as not to worry her. “Nothing too crazy.... nothing that John and I couldn't handle.”
“That's good.” Lauren didn't think that she was going to get all of the details from Beau concerning his evening and decided that maybe that might be for the best right now.
“I got a nickname tonight.” Beau grinned as he changed the subject. “Midknight. That's what I'm known as now. Midknight with the ‘k’ in front of the night.
“Interesting. Nobody figured out that it was you who was under the cloak?”
“I don't think so. Bruce was there and I don’t think he recognized me.”
“For both of you and your family's sake, it is for the best that it stays that way.” John interrupted them. “If our enemies ever found out who Midknight really is, they would seek retribution by harming Beau’s loved ones.”
The conversation then switched to Beau’s plight as John explained to Lauren what was at stake for him and everyone else if the Forsaken broke free of Perdisius. Most of it Lauren already knew from what Beau had told her, but John was able to fill in any blanks to anything that she didn't understand, not that it made things any less terrifying. They were still deep in discussion when the three of them heard tiny footsteps come running down the hall. Michael emerged from around the corner and scampered to his mom where she sat.
“Mommy, I had a bad dream.”
“Oh honey, you're okay now.” Lauren said and wrapped her arms around him and kissed the top of his head. “Can you say hi to our friend, John? John D’Angelo?”
“John the angel?”
“That's close enough for me.” The Celestial laughed. “Hello Michael.”
“Hello John. You were in my dream. Boo and you were fighting monsters.”
“We were? That sounds frightening!”
“It was.”
Lauren gave Beau an inquisitive look which he shrugged off. Had Michael overheard them talking about the Forsaken?
“I better get you back into bed, mister or you're going to be a monster in the morning.”
“Will you come lay down with me for a bit, mommy?”
“Yes, honey. Say goodnight to Boo and John.”
“Night, night” Michael said and gave both the men big hugs.
“Night, night Mikey.”
“Goodnight, Michael. It was a pleasure meeting you.”
Beau and John chatted a little longer while Lauren was putting Michael to bed. After John left, Beau went to bed in the spare room of his parent’s house. Lauren joined him shortly afterwards and the two of them snuggled up together.
“You good?” Beau asked.
“Yeah. Just worried about you. Worried about what's going to happen down to the road if it gets as bad as what John says it will. Do you think that he's telling you everything?”
“Probably not and maybe that's a good thing.”
“Maybe. He sure seemed drawn to Michael.”
“Really? How so?”
“Didn't you see how he looked at Michael? He couldn't take his eyes off him. Almost like he was fascinated by Michael.”
“I never noticed.”
“Does John have a family of his own?”
“Not that I'm aware of. He’s never mentioned it. Why?”
“Just curious if these Celestials have children of their own. Maybe John has kids and felt a little homesick when he saw Michael.”
“Maybe. I'll ask him the next time I see him.”
“Do you want to discuss your excursion earlier this evening?”
“There isn't much to tell other than defending the town from a few intruders and getting a name for my alter ego.”
“How many were there? Were you with John the whole time?
“I'd say about thirty, maybe forty. A lot of them were desperate people with nowhere to go. I kind of felt bad for them. John said that it's unfortunate, but that's just the way things are now. The worst is yet to come according to him. We were only together right at the end. I was patrolling the south side of town and he was on the north side.”
“How are you doing with this whole Schadowe... or Midknight business?”
“So far, so good. I'm still me. I don't feel any different that I can tell. I'm scared.... I'm not going to lie to you about that. It is pretty incredible, though what I can do when I'm in Midknight mode. I'm faster and stronger and can jump from place to place just by thinking about it. Kind of like teleportation. Some of it feels like it's second nature... like I barely have to think about it... almost as if the cloak is doing all the work and thinking for me.”
They were quiet for a while after that as they reflected on the day's events. Beau’s breathing became slow and heavy, indicating to Lauren that he was falling asleep. She leaned over and kissed him before whispering “Goodnight”.
“Night.” he mumbled back and drifted off. Lauren laid there for a long time after that thinking about what Beau had just said. It scared her when he mentioned that it felt like the cloak was almost in control when he was Midknight as he was now being referred to apparently. What would happen to Beau when Schadowe was in full control?
