Floyd grabbed the puppy as it darted out of the kennel, and tossed it to Sasha.Then he stepped in front of the door.
Don skidded to a halt. Unable to turn easily in his shackles, he dropped to the floor, and began to roll in the opposite direction.
Floyd lunged, throwing himself onto the possessed child.
Sasha held the snarling puppy by the scruff of the neck. "Great work! But what were you doing by the door, Floyd?"
He laid there grinning. "My mama raised a polite son. I was going to open the door for you."
Sasha laughed. "Be sure to remind me to thank her, if I ever meet her."
Father Sutherby went and picked up the kennel. "It doesn't seem to be damaged. Let's secure them both before you leave, Officer Russels."
Once the possessed puppy was locked up again, they tied Don to a fold up chair.
Father Sutherby grimaced. "We should have done that to begin with. I'm sorry I put you two in danger."
Sasha frowned. "I know what they are, but they're in a little kid and a golden retriever puppy. And we successfully detained the child, and transported him here. He's pretty strong for his age, but doesn't have superhuman strength."
Father Sutherby ran his hands through his thick, sandy brown hair. "I've dealt with cases like this before. Once a two year old toddler threw a steel desk at me. I wonder why this one allowed itself to be captured so easily."
Sasha and Floyd looked at each other, and swallowed hard.
"You mean that thing could have killed us both at any time?" asked Floyd.
Father Sutherby frowned. "Unless there's something different about this one, yes. Any time before he was taken over the church's threshold, you were at his mercy."
"Good, they don't suspect that I don't have my powers. Maybe after the girl leaves, I can escape," thought Don.
Once Sasha Russels was gone, he tried to yell through the gag, and tipped his chair over.
"I wouldn't go near him right now," warned Father Sutherby.
"Should we just leave him like that?" Floyd asked.
"Yes. I don't know if the creature has the same powers as the others I've encountered, but they are all extremely skilled in deception. It's better not to play along."
Don grinned. "Good. This should give me time to think of a way out of this mess. That priest is already scared stiff."
After testing his restraints yet again, he sighed. "It looks like I'll just have to use my cunning..."
He closed his eyes and began to meditate.
About twenty minutes later, Sasha walked in with a small bundle. "I got the straightjacket, and I stopped at the hardware store for some chains and padlocks too."
Father Sutherby nodded. "Good thinking. I'll get him ready for the next stage."
Floyd and the priest righted the chair, and Don's head lolled to the right.
Floyd checked the boy's pulse, then went pale. "He's not breathing..."
To be continued
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Cover image made in Canva Pro using their gallery