Empty Bodies (Book 5): Damnation by Zach Bohannon Read Free Book Online Page B

said. “And thank you for the meal.”
    “It’s no problem.” Maureen turned and exited through the front door.
    Mary Beth sat down at the table in front of one of the plates. Hungry, she started to dig into the pasta, but then hesitated.
    “Go ahead,” Holly said. “We know you’ve got to be hungry.”
    Mary Beth blushed. “Shouldn’t we… say something? Like a prayer, or something?”
    “Absolutely,” Will said. He hadn’t been one to believe in a God, but with everything he’d been through over the past few weeks, he’d come to believe that something was out there.
    “Do you want to say something, Mary Beth?” Holly asked.
    The girl nodded. “Bow your heads.” Everyone did, and she started. “Lord, thank you for this food and for this shelter. Thank you for keeping us together and keeping us safe. Lord, we pray that you watch over Dylan, and make him okay again. I don’t know what life is going to be like for him now, but please be with him.”
    There was a moment of silence until Charlie said, “Amen.” The others followed.
    No one spoke as they ate.
    After they finished eating, the group gathered in the living room to relax on the sofa while they awaited news on Dylan.
    They didn’t have to wait long.
    As the day was making its transition into night, the door opened. Sitting in a chair, and leaned over with his hands clasped together, Will looked up to see Doug.
    “Please, come with me,” Doug said.

CHAPTER EIGHT

    Fluorescent lights and silence.
    That was all Gabriel would remember about waking up.
    Aside from the pain.
    When his eyes opened, he squinted. The lights above him were so bright. He threw his hand to his face and let out a groan when his ribs screamed at him. It felt like someone driving their knuckles into his side—twisting, turning, and digging into his ribs.
    “He’s awake,” someone said. It was a male voice. An unfamiliar male voice.
    Gabriel tried tilting his head to the side to look at the person, but his neck wouldn’t allow the range of motion.
    As he regained his conscious mind, he came to the realization that he wasn’t dreaming. This was real. The pain was real. The male voice had been real. The bright lights above his head were real. But where was he?
    Furthermore, where were the others? If Jessica, Thomas, or Claire had been inside of this room, surely one of them would have said something by now.
    He started to speak, but his throat felt as dry as asphalt on an August day in Tuscon. He’d been to Arizona on many sales trips. How long ago were they now?
    “Are you all right?” the male voice asked.
    “Yes,” Gabriel muttered. It came out raspy.
    “We’re going to get you help,” the man said.
    We?
    Who else was in this room? And, for the love of God, if someone only could have turned out the lights. At least the ones beaming down upon Gabriel from just above him. Even closing his eyes did little to shield him from their power.
    “When they come in,” the man said, “don’t ask questions. None. Just let them tend to you.”
    “Who?” Gabriel asked, but the man didn’t answer.
    Heavy footsteps replaced his voice, pounding on tile flooring. With each step they became louder, moving closer to wherever Gabriel was.
    I am home , Gabriel thought. Not home, but near home. Maybe I’m in a hospital and those steps belong to a doctor, coming to bring me to my family. Yes, to Katie and Sarah. Oh, my Sarah. Will she be in that dress her mother and I bought her for her birthday? The robin egg blue one that makes her look like a princess? Yes, that’s the one.
    Just then, everything started to come back to Gabriel. What had happened, where he’d been.
    The accident.
    “They’ve drugged you,” the man said.
    “Drugged me where?” Gabriel said, laughing on the inside.
    “Not dragged you, but injected you with something.”
    Gabriel wondered, if they had drugged him, how could he feel the pain?
    “Not drugs for the pain, but for your mind,” the man