Justus by Madison Stevens Page B

John walked behind him. His eyes locked with
hers, and she struggled to hold herself together as the madman
stared at her. His mouth curled up at the corners. He was enjoying
the pain he was causing.
    John nodded, and the men that
had been holding her stepped to either side of him and dragged
Justus to his feet.
    Justus stood there and didn’t
struggle. He could break free. She knew he could. He was stronger
than them. She’d witnessed the strength of hybrids more than once.
All he had to do was toss them off.
    Justus looked over to her.
She could see the resolve in his eyes, and she struggled to get to
her feet. He wouldn’t run. He’d let himself be killed to save
her.
    “It will be fine,” he said
quietly to her.
    She shook her head. It
wouldn’t be fine. There was no way it would be fine.
    “Fight them,” she shouted.
Tears streamed down her face. “Don’t do this.”
    John smiled grimly.
    “I will do what I need to, so
you are safe,” Justus said.
    “The Lord preserves all who
love him, but all the wicked he will destroy,” John said to the
crowd. “Prepare the cleansing fire for the jezebels. They will be
purified as I was. Perhaps the Lord will even see fit to let them
live after the cleansing.”
    Paige noticed that some
cheered, but others seemed to be like Megan, lost in some sort of
trance. She didn’t know which scared her more: the people in the
trance or those who’d willingly participate in this insanity.
    A dozen people moved forward,
holding woods in their arms, they deposited the wood into a growing
pile. A few other men started dousing the wood pile from plastic
kerosene containers.
    “No,” Justus shouted. More
men closed on him as he spoke. “You said you would take me. That
wasn’t the deal, you son of a bitch.”
    John gave a satisfied
smile.
    “And we are taking you. They
will face the cleansing before meeting their maker,” he said with
great joy. “We do this to save their souls, but you, infernal
creature, you will know true pain before you meet yours in Hell.”
He rubbed his chin. “Maybe, just maybe, if you go to your death and
repent, they’ll be so moved they’ll accept the Lord’s grace, and we
won’t have to do the cleansing. That’s up to you, abomination.”
    His grin suggested she
wouldn’t escape the fire no matter what Justus did.
    Paige let out a cry. She felt
her knees shake as she slumped to the ground.
    “Show him no mercy,” John
said.
    The crowd descended on him
like vultures. The thump of punches, kicks, and grunts filled her
ears.
    She couldn’t bear to look and
squeezed her eyes shut as even more people arrived to join the mob.
Seconds later, a wave of heat passed over her. She opened her eyes.
A roaring fire now feasted on the wood. She was surprised that
they’d already lit the fire. The savages just intended to throw her
in she guessed.
    An old-weathered face moved
in front of her own, but she continued to stare past it to the mob
of men who now blocked any view of Justus.
    “You need to stand,” the old
man whispered to her.
    Her eyes came into focus on
the familiar voice.
    “Mr. Cobb?”
    He had a shotgun slung over
his shoulder and was frowning.
    “Stand, or we won’t be able
to save him,” he whispered.
    Paige stood, her legs shaking
as she did.
    Mr. Cobb glanced around.
Everyone was focused on the beating of Justus. He quickly leaned in
and cut the zipties with a pocket knife. Lena, who had been quiet
beside her, linked their hands together behind their backs.
    “They want to burn you,” he
said. “How messed up is that? I’m not going to let some mind
control garbage mess my town up. I’ve been ready for this crap for
my whole life. The freak is going to want to do it himself. He
comes over, you shove him toward the fire with everything you got.
I’ll get your fella.”
    Paige gave a short nod. At
that moment, she wanted nothing more than to watch that bastard
burn in his own flames. He wanted purification, she’d give