Lilith, Is That You?

“Mom and I are down at the hall setting up for the meal and fellowship after the burial. She saw the flower van coming up the hill to the church and I came up as fast as I could. I’m too late; I saw the van drive away just as I came around the corner of the church.”

“No worries. The guy dropped off a bouquet and took off. It’s the one on the left of the altar. If you want to see it, you can come on up to the altar.”

“Great, thanks! I need to get this stuff into the sacristy anyway.” She had several bags of unidentifiable shapes that made a clumsy load.

“Here, let me help you; I can pack some of these bags for you,” I offered.

“Thanks, that’d be helpful.”

Once we got to the altar, I asked, “So, how did you know the deceased?”

“I’m Larry’s eldest daughter; actually, I’m his only daughter.”

Knowing that his youngest son was twenty-four and that he had four older brothers, that puzzled me.

Being the ever-so-socially-correct guy that I am, I asked, “So, how old are you?”

Without missing a beat, she said, “Forty.”

“Forty? I’d’ve guessed twenty-four!” I wasn’t flirting; I was astounded. Her beauty, enhanced by her wardrobe that was way-low here and way-high there, would entrance many of the funeral-goers forthwith.

“I tell people it’s the blood of my enemies that keeps me young. That’s following the old gods, of course, not these new ones.”

As a lay church official, I was obligated to say, “Whoa, we mustn’t speak of them in this place.”

“Oh, I know,” she giggled. “But you kind of like it, don’t you? It’s kind of naughty and nice all at once, just like me.” She twirled on the toes of her spike heels dizzying me.

“What are you doing, Ma’am?”

“Dancing for a moment before I must become the mourning daughter, sister, mother at Daddy’s funeral. He was my stepdad, you know.”

“I apologize, Ma’am. I didn’t know about you until you walked in the church just now. Where are you from? Where’s the rest of your family?”

“My brothers are coming in a few minutes to be with me. And, Mother’s coming up from the hall to see how I’m doing. And, to meet you. She told me that you’d be here. She’s been watching you for several years now and she said you’re ready to meet her. She says you’ve matured into quite the specimen.”

“Specimen?” I croaked. “What do you mean, specimen? I’m just a guy who’s trying to do right by his God and his people.”

“She said you’d say that. She explained to me that you’ve struggled with that whole God thing for a long time.

“Well, you’ve struggled long enough. We’ll help you transcend the spirituality issues you keep raising for yourself. You just need to accept yourself and some assistance from a greater one to move forward.

“Wait, Mother’s here.”

At her words, the double doors into the vestibule from outside sprang open and the light framing the incoming woman was blinding. Once she stepped over the threshold and the doors closed behind her, I could see her.

Dressed far more demurely than her daughter was, she strode over the threshold between the vestibule and the sacristy and the entire church moaned. I attributed that sound to the summer monsoon storm brewing outside.

“Daughter, you’re here and I see you’ve met my dear Jack. Is anyone else here yet?”

She inclined her head a bit as she addressed the woman, “Mother, there is no one else in the building. I brought up the boxes of tissues and the roses as you wished. Jack helped me bring them up here from the vestibule.”

“I told you he was a nice man. But you’re not a good man, are you, Jack?”

“Madam, I am not sure of what you speak. I know that one can always enhance one’s goodness in one’s life and I have worked for years to become a better person in the eyes of God and humanity.” She brought the formal out in me.

“Cut the crap, Jack! You’ve worked to become nicer to others with God as a witness to the effort and results. And He is quite impressed. However, being nice is not the same as being good, now is it.”

“Wait, dear Madam. I follow the Commandments; I am kind to animals, children, students and strangers and family members. I believe I have made great strides in becoming nice and in becoming what I believe is a good man.”

She continued, “Oh, really? Can a nice man smile at someone and develop a perfect assassination for the scumbag even as he shakes the scum’s hand? Yes. Can a good man? No.

“You’ve developed quite a process to separate your niceness from your not-goodness. You are the politest, nicest, most compassionate assassin I’ve ever met. And believe me, I’ve met many over the millenia.

“You follow the Commandments most of the time. I know for a fact that you hold no strange gods before I AM; you don’t consider them strange gods. I have never known you to blaspheme nor to ignore the Sabbath. Your folks are dead, so you’re covered there; no honor for them required. You’re unmarried, so adultery is out. You have everything you want and need, so no stealing. Unlike your country’s leadership, you don’t lie about others. You don’t covet your neighbor’s wife; you have porn. And, as I said, you have all you want and need so you don’t want anything from anyone. Except, you do want to be very well compensated for your work, which is always excellent.

“No one holds that against you. I and my circle admire you and your work.

“Because of that, I want to invite you to join my family. I have sensed your attraction to Daughter; she finds you interesting and desirable and will work with you to enhance your expertise.

“She follows the ways of the old gods and practices the oldest ways. She will share with you her secrets that I shared with her nearly forty centuries ago. She is here to be with you. She came in the guise of the grieving daughter to arouse your sympathy as well as your libido. She knows that you control your senses and personal desires with an iron fist. She also knows that you are susceptible to the occasional inappropriately dressed young woman in distress. As you’ve said, you’re a nice guy.

“We’ll meet again soon.” She turned and headed up the aisle.

As she neared the main doors, the church seemed to lighten up and as she walked through the doors to the outside, the church sighed in relief. I know, churches don’t sigh when someone exits. This church sighed when that woman got outside. Can’t explain it; don’t plan to try.

“I told you Mother knew you. Now, what do you want to do?”

“What do you mean? You know I’m expected to help with the service.

“Wait, did you say Larry was your stepdad? I thought he was married to your mother.”

“He was and, like so many others before and after him, he loved her dearly after the lust wore off. She diminished her glamor when she met with you. She didn’t for him. She wants me to bring you into the old ways and she didn’t want to distract you. Neither I nor any of my siblings were born out of Mother’s relations with men.

“Now, continue with your façade. It has served you well for many years, but we’ve got to move on soon.

“You are an expert in your field; this church-ish work is a distraction. That’s why I’m here. I will become your distraction. We will move away, you will marry me, and I will guide you in the old ways. Your power has grown. You stop the wind; you delay the rain; you guide people into your line of sight by willing it.

“It is time you took your place at the left hand of Father.”

I was stumped. Drawn to this woman, I certainly was. That was her plan it seems. Her Father---you could feel the capitalization. What did he want? I pretty much knew who he had to be, and I know that guy does nothing for nothing. What could he want from me?

No higher honor could be given than the invitation to be at his left hand. Everyone assumes that being on the right hand of someone is a good thing. In the days when assassinations were generally done by knife point, one always put one’s guest to one’s right so that they had to reach across their own body to stab one. To be seated to the left was to be trusted without question.

So, why did this guy trust me so much?

“Dear One, you seem pensive, uncertain,” she started. “Don’t you find me attractive?”

Being a mere mortal, that question seemed stupid to me. She had unveiled her glamor. There was no way I could not find her attractive. But there was some filter in me that allowed me to dampen her effect. I can’t explain it and won’t try. I would bet any other man would have swooned in her presence at that moment. It was that intense. But I didn’t.

Why not?

Then the light rapidly dimmed. The flash and thunderclap announced that feeling of doom one only feels in the presence of evil. Inside the church, I felt protected, but I knew I had to go outside. I didn’t like that thought at all.

Out I headed with Little Miss Glamor clinging to my arm as if she was frightened or overly lustful.

“Wait a minute! What is this? I don’t even know your name or why you picked me or where in the hell we’re going. Give me some answers quick before I step out there,” I demanded.

Little Miss Glamor leaned away just a bit so she could look me in the eyes and her honeyed words flowed over me. “Call me Lily. I didn’t pick you; Father and Mother did. We are going outside and from there we are going to Bali where you will meet the rest of my kin and where we will live until Father says otherwise. Now, we are expected.”

With that, she snugged back into my arm, and we proceeded outside.

Father was waiting in the parking lot a fair distance from the church.

“I don’t like getting too close to all that God stuff,” he inserted into my mind. Unlike anything I imagined the Prince of Darkness could resemble, he left no doubt in my mind who he was.

To his right stood Lily’s mother. She flashed her glamor for an instant and I understood how she could detract from Lily’s effect on mortals.

“Is that you, Lilith?” were the only words that came to my mind.

Her return smile was truly wicked.

I can’t imagine what they want from a compassionate assassin like me.