Prologue
St. Mary's on Broadway, Providence, Rhode Island.
Spring – 1896.
The Beast sat at the back of church.
The Congregation all ignored him as he sat down with some difficulty. He was thankful the butler was there but he disliked the feeling of the stares – especially from the children. It hurt him when he peered over and one of them, a young boy, edged closer to his mother and clung to her cloak. Seeing this, it hurt his innermost being, so instead of staring, he moved his attention to the priest and servers on the altar. He reached down and struggled to pull out the kneeler as he thought.
"If I can only kneel… I will be able to thank God for entering into me!"
But then the butler's hand rested on his shoulder and when the Beast looked up, the man shook his head as the man mouthed silently.
"No."
The Beast nodded in understanding and then resumed his attention to Father Charles. But as he watched – he made a fist when the Congregation rose all but him. He felt the pain in his back when Father turned and addressed in Latin.
"You are dismissed. Go in peace."