The Cross Files


The Truth is out there!

Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. Proverbs 4:14-18

"Dr. Runyon!" A middle aged woman rushed into the Sugar Creek Emergency clinic with her long bleached blonde hair trailing behind her. "Dr. Runyon!"

The elderly Dr. Runyon waddled out of Examination Room A with his wrinkled brow furrowed over his spectacles. "I'm here, Mrs. Bloom. I'm here. Calm down, sweetie, and tell the doctor what the trouble is." He soothed as he pushed her into a hall chair and rubbed her back.

Mrs. Bloom panted to catch her breath. "A teenager...at...the...diner..." She choked. "He...passed out...He isn't waking up!"

"Well, I'm sure its nothing to warrant this kind of anxiety, Mrs. Bloom. Just let me warn the nurse that I'm leaving and I'll be right there."

"Oh, no, that's all right. Jeff is bringing him over here."

"You're moving him?" Dr. Runyon's brow knit again. "You really shouldn't move someone like that, Mrs. Bloom."

"I'm afraid its a bit too late for that, Doc." Jeff interrupted from the doorway.

Dr. Runyon's small eyes widened at the sight of his patient. "That's the man who fainted?"

"Yes, Sir."

The teen was certainly out of place for rural South Dakota. His hair had been dyed black, his fingernails painted the same morbid shade. His skin was unnaturally pale, perhaps an illusion caused by all the black his clothes were comprised of or simply the result of many hours hidden from the sun. The most shocking aspect of his appearance was the many piercings adorning his eyebrows, ears, nose, tongue, and lip. "Uh, well, let's get him in Room B and have a look at him."

As they carried the young man into Examination Room B, a slip of paper fell out of his pocket and fell unnoticed underneath a cabinet in the waiting area.

X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

Since the fall of the Angel of Light, there has been an ongoing battle between Good and Evil raging in our world. We are not the warriors in this battle, but the prize. Each and every day our souls are pulled both in the direction of God and the direction of Satan. It is ultimately our decision as to where and how we proceed. But, we are not helpless in this war. Through the sacrifice of Jesus, we are given the power to overcome the legions of Satan, and his legions are everywhere.

We are a small, but powerful organization created to aid humanity in the war against Satan. Our directive is clear, defy the Wicked One through our testimony and the power of our faith. Our adventures are strange ones, wrought with what some might call 'paranormal' activity. However, we know better. There is nothing supernatural about Satan, or the Cross Files.

X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X


Galilee's lips crinkled up into a cute smile. "You have a dab of ketchup on your nose, Jordy." She teased.

Jordan blushed crimson. "I do?" He asked in a flustered voice.

"Um hm. Hold on." Lee laid her own hot dog on the coffee table and left the living room couch only to return with a paper towel wadded up in her hand. She grinned maliciously, spit on the towel, and then bent to rub virgorously at the splotch on his nose.

"Ah, gross! Galilee! That's disgusting!" Jordan tried to fight her off while making gagging noises.

"Don't be such a baby! Besides, its gone now."

"I don't think it was ever there."

"Are you calling me a liar?" Galilee placed her hands on her hips and glared at Jordan with feigned malice.

"If the name fits..." Jordan started before she whacked him on the head with a couch cushion.

"You little..." Galilee's angry rebuttal was cut off by the sound of a knock at her door. She sighed irritably and walked off into the foyer. A moment later, she returned with a thick manilla envelope in her hands. "You deserve this, Jordan. After all, there is no rest for the *wicked*."

Jordan sat up straighter and stared at the package she held. "Is that what I think it is?"

"Case # 2. It was left on my doorstep by the Invisible Man. Would you like to do the honors?" He took the envelope from her hand and carefully opened the flap.

After several seconds of examining the contents he frowned, handing them back to Galilee. "I don't get it."

Lee patiently removed the papers from his hands and flipped through them. "These look like copies of medical charts."

"That's what I don't get."

"Let's see...over the past two weeks seven teenagers in a small South Dakota town have come down with an unidentified illness. Samples of their blood were sent to the CDC in Atlanta for analysis and produced no known cause of infection. According to cultures and microscopic inspection, there are no viruses, bacteria, fungi, or parasites which could be causing their conditions." Galilee glanced up from the papers to meet Jordan's confused gaze. "I think we're going to South Dakota."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"I hate my life!" Jordan moaned from the passenger seat of their rental car. Galilee had to fight down a smirk. "Why is it that *your* luggage arrives here safe and sound, Lee, but the airline manages to lose everything of mine but my carry-on?"

"Serves you right for hitting on that stewardess, Jordan."

"She's a *flight attendant*. Besides, *you* were the one who was going to pass out from hunger pains. I got you that extra bag of peanuts, didn't I?"

"Had I known what underhanded methods you were going to use to obtain them, I wouldn't have mentioned the fact that I was hungry." Galilee declared with an unamused glare in his direction.

"Um hm. And, who flirted with the pimply teenager at the rental car desk?" Jordan asked with eyebrows raised.

"I did no such thing!"

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Lee."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dr. Runyon stared at the congested hallway of his small town emergency clinic. Usually, his caseload consisted of sprained ankles, colicky babies, and the town hypochondriac. Running a clinic in South Dakota was supposed to be a relaxing way to retire. But, this. This was nothing like what he had expected.

The Sugar Creek, South Dakota Emergency Clinic's seven rooms were already housing sick teenagers. The patients' parents now filled the hallway demanding to know what was being done for their children.

"They should be in a hospital, not some rinky dink clinic!" One mother shouted.

Dr. Runyon held up his hand. "I've already talked to the staff of the nearest hospital. They're sending some nurses to help me care for these kids. But, right now, none of us think it's wise to move them."

"Excuse me, Doctor." A diminutive nurse tugged at the eldery man's sleeve to get his attention. "There are two people in your office. They say they're investigators, and they need to talk to you."

"Thank God." He murmured as he spun away from the angry adults and bussled down the corridor to his office. Dr. Runyon rushed in the door, closed it securely behind himself, and leaned against it as he panted for air.

Jordan glanced at his partner incredulously. Galilee caught the look in his iridescent blue eyes. He was apparently unimpressed by the elderly physician. She shrugged her slender shoulders and crossed to the man's side. "Dr. Runyon? I'm Galilee Gilchrist, and this is my partner Jordan Thomas. If you're not busy, we would like to ask you a few questions."

The old man shook her hand before falling heavily into the chair behind his desk. "Of course. Of course. I'll tell you anything and everything I can...which I'm afraid isn't much." He gestured to the seats in front of his desk. "Have a seat, please."

"Thank you." Galilee perched on the edge of her seat, notebook and pencil in hand. "What can you tell us about the teenagers' conditons?"

Dr. Runyon sat back against his chair. "Patient Zero was an unidentified male who was admitted here exactly one week ago. He was unconscious during the first twenty-four hours of his stay. His physical symptoms were inconclusive. He had a fever of 104 degrees, an inability to hold down solid food, some lesions on his chest, and a terrible cough. His motor function was nonexistant. On the third day, he regained partial consciousness. Although, he was not fully aware of his surroundings. He seemed to be having paranoid episodes...claiming we were going to kill him. At times, no one on staff could understand a word he said. Two days after he was admitted, the others began to arrive. We have seven here currently. I have no way of knowing when this epidemic is going to stop, or if it ever will." He paused, folding his hands and examining the investigators with curiousity. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you two are an answer to my prayers."

Galilee grinned. "Who says we're not?"

Jordan rolled his eyes. "Can we have a look at this 'patient zero?' "

"I'm afraid not." Dr. Runyon declared with a frown. "We haven't released the information yet. To be honest, we're afraid of how the parents will react...but Patient Zero died at four this morning."

Lee bit into her lower lip and glanced at Jordan anxiously. They'd already lost one soul... "May we see one of the other patients, then?"

The doctor shrugged. "I hope you've got a strong stomach. It's isn't pretty."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Galilee fell back against the far wall as she watched the nurses and doctor try to revive patient number two, Sindee Murphy. She'd flat lined nearly five minutes ago. Lee held her breath, feeling the tears form in her eyes as the young girl's body remained lifeless.

Jordan glanced down at his partner with worry, she didn't look good. Gently, he laid a hand upon her shoulder. "Are you all right?"

She looked up at him slowly, her eyes glassed by tears. "Will you pray with me?" She asked in a small voice.

The expression on her face and the sorrow in her eyes broke Jordan's heart. He could feel the ice which surrounded his faith melting underneath that stare. How could he ever deny her anything? "Of course."

For a moment, she looked like she might smile. Before she allowed herself that display of gratitude, she took his hand and led him out into the hallway. Galilee bowed her head before beginning. "God, we come to you today to pray for Sindee Murphy. I don't know what is happening to her. I know You've sent us here to find out why these kids are sick, but the entire situation seems bleak. I know that through You all things are possible, so I ask that You help to revive Sindee. I'm convinced that her illness has something do with the Legion. I want to help You attain her soul, but I can't do that if she's dead. Please, help us to unravel this mystery and heal these children. Above all things, let Your will be done. In Jesus's name I pray, Amen." Galilee and Jordan raised their heads to find a young woman standing a little further down the hall staring at them.

"Oh! Gosh, excuse me." She mumbled in embarrasment as she tried to turn and run the other way.

Jordan stopped her with a hand on her arm. "That's all right."

Galilee looked the girl over with a critical eye. "What's your name, and what business do you have here at the Clinic?"

The girl's eyes fell to the linoleum floor. "Um...my name's Denise Denofrio, but everybody calls me Denny. I'm...my best friend is Sindee Murphy. Can I see her?"

Galilee glanced back at the closed Examination room door. "Not right now, Denny. She's with the doctor."

"How's she doing?" Denny looked to be around fourteen or fifteen with long strawberry blonde hair and big brown doe eyes. She was cute, in an innocent sort of way. Galilee could tell by the way the teenager avoided eye contact that she was hiding something. Based on that assesment, Lee opted to be bluntly truthful.

"Not good, Denny. Not good at all. We can't determine what is causing this illness, and we can't heal it until we do."

"Are you a doctor?" Denny cocked her head to the side as she peered at Galilee questioningly.

"No. I'm an investigator."

"Like with the FBI?" She looked frightened now.

Lee held back a flinch. "Not exactly. I work for a private firm."

"Oh." Denny glanced at her watch and frowned deeply. "I need to go. My mom will have dinner ready soon, and I can't be late."

Galilee and Jordan stood back as they watched the girl go. "She knows something. I have a feeling Denny Denofrio is the missing link." Galilee observed in a soft voice. "And, I mean to find out exactly what she knows."


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Jordan sat down heavily in a chair in the Clinic's waiting area. Sindee Murphy had been revived, although she was still unconscious. Galilee was trying to get something from the other five patients, but none were in any shape to provide clues as to their conditions. He hung his head in his hands, wishing for a moment that he'd taken a nap on the plane out here. He had a feeling it would be several days before he got a good night's sleep.

With his head held down in his hands as it was, he could see a few inches beneath the display cabinet which dominated one wall of the room. His brow furrowed as he dropped to his knees on the ground to probe beneath the article of furniture and retrieve a small piece of white paper concealed there. "Well, what do we have here?" Jordan asked as he held the paper up to examine it. "I bet Lee would be interested in you."


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Galilee paused a moment before raising her fist to knock loudly on the front door. She was on a mission. As each moment passed and she thought about those sick teenagers, her ire grew. How could Denny allow her friends to go through something like that when she had the power stop it?!

"Oh, hello. Can I help you, 'mam?" A woman, who had to be Denny's mother, opened the door.

"Good evening, Mrs. Denofrio. My name is Galilee Gilchrist. I'm an investigator looking into the conditions of the seven sick teenagers in Sugar Creek. I was hoping I might be able to speak with your daughter."

Mrs. Denofrio cast an unhappy look back into the house before calling, "Denise, Honey, there's someone here who would like to talk to you!"

Denise emerged from the kitchen. Her face held a quick look of panic which she tried to hide the moment she saw Galilee. "Um...why don't we talk outside, Miss Gilchrist." She suggested.

Galilee nodded, her smile disappearing at the first sight of the teenager. Denise led her to the backyard and gestured to a picnic table on the deck. "Thank you." Her voice was icy as she took the seat the girl had offered.

Denny bit into her lower lip and started tracing the pattern of the wood which composed the table.

"You know something, Denny. You know why these kids are sick. You know what made them sick." Galilee observed in a voice as hard as concrete.

The teenager swallowed hard and shook her head. "I don't know what's causing their illnesses, Miss Gilchrist. I swear I don't."

"Look at me when I talk to you, Denise. If you want me to believe what you're saying, stop behaving like a liar." Lee's typical warmth and understanding had long ago been lost in a sea of fury. The very idea that this girl could call herself a 'friend' of those sick kids and then hide the truth was enough to make Galilee irate.

Denise slowly raised her eyes from the table. "I really don't..."

"He died, Denny. That first boy, the goth one, died this morning. Sindee came very close to dying today. If we don't find out what's wrong and fix it soon, your friends are going to be dead."

"Razor died?" Denny asked in a small voice. There were tears gathering in her eyes now.

"You knew him?" Lee pressed, not bothering to answer her question.

"Yes and no. I never met him...but I talked to him online. We all did."

"We?"

"Me...and the others. The ones who are sick. We were all at Rick's after a JV football game. We were just playing around online, having fun Rick took us to this weird website that talked about Satan worship and demons and stuff. It made me uncomfortable but everybody else thought it was funny.

"He went into the site's chatroom and started talking to this guy with the screenname 'Hell Razor.' Razor told us that he helps build Satanic churches. The guys started playing along with him, talking about how they wanted to start one here in Sugar Creek. I don't think they took him seriously."

Galilee's face clouded at the girl's words. "But, they should have, shouldn't they? He showed up here in Sugar Creek a couple weeks later, didn't he?"

Denny managed a shallow nod. "Yes, m'am. He waited for us outside of the school. He got Rick's picture off his homepage. Razor told us that we would have our first Black Mass that night at midnight. They actually went along with him! They thought it would be funny to take part in a Black Mass 'just for fun.' I tried to tell them! Honest, I did! I tried to tell them that you don't mess with Satan just for fun. They didn't listen...and now, and now..." Denny dissolved into hysterical sobs.

Lee's anger dissipated with Denny's first tears. "Shh, now don't cry, Denny. We'll find a way to fix this." She soothed, patting the young woman's back.

"How?" Denny hiccuped.

Galilee paused. "Did they tell you what they did at that Black Mass?"

Denny thought carefully. "They said this weird stuff in Latin. Sindee said they cut off some chicken's head and drank his blood. They did some other stuff, but I don't remember what..."

"That's okay." A light sparked in Lee's brown eyes. "I think I know what to do."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"How much do you love me, Lee?" Jordan greeted as Galilee tossed her coat on the her hotel bed.

She looked up to see her partner standing in the doorway connecting their rooms. "Who said I loved you?" She asked innocently. "I'll admit, I'm a little fond of you...but love? I don't think so. You're cute, but certainly not my type."

Jordan knew she was just teasing him, but he couldn't help the slight pang which hit his heart. "Take a look at this." He entered the room and handed a piece of paper to Galilee. She looked at it for a moment before glancing up at Jordan quizically. "They're screennames. HellRazor is Patient Zero. He has it tattooed on his...um, well you know. So, I'm thinking those other screenames are the sick kids. They met the guy online. *Now*, you love me, right?"

Galilee chuckled. "You're a step behind me, Lover Boy."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pastor Denofrio, Denny's father, finished laying the items Lee had requested out on the table in the waiting area. Her demands had been strange to say the least, and he was more than anxious to see what the woman had in mind.

Galilee re-entered the room with her Bible in her hands and a confident smile on her face. She glanced over the faces of those seated in the Waiting area; Jordan, her partner and still a non-Believer; Pastor Denofrio, the preacher in the local church; Dr. Runyon, the presiding physician in the case; and Denny, a teenager only partially involved with the satanic dealings which had made her friends ill. Lee had asked them all to come and play a part in this, and she was constantly praying that it would work.

"What I am going to say to you is going to sound crazy, so I want your solemn promise not to interrupt me until I'm finished." Galilee began in an authoritative voice. Those present in the room nodded their agreement before she plunged ahead. "I believe these teenagers are in their present conditions because of something called a Pelesit. It exists in ancient Malaysian mythology. Simply put, its a demon which causes illness, hallucination, and death whenever it can.

"I believe they were exposed to this demon and his wiles when they took part in a Satanic ritual they were enacting 'for fun.' They opened themselves up to Satan and his minions, allowing him to corrupt their physical bodies and even take the life of 'Razor.' "

Pastor Denofrio sat with a stunned expression on his face. "Demonic possession. Is that what you're suggesting, Miss Gilchrist?"

Galilee nodded emphatically. "I know with absolute certainty that Satan has played a part in this grievous event. I have every reason to believe that the Pelesit is responsible for this."

Dr. Runyon frowned thoughtfully. "If you're right, there's really nothing we can do for these kids medically. We'll just have to put it in God's hands."

"You're half right, Dr. Runyon. We do have to put the situation in God's hands, but there is something we can do. At least...I think there is." Galilee added. "These kids are still holding on, despite the demons trying to take their lives. I think they're at least partially aware of what's going on around them. I believe the 'infection' was introduced through the blood of a chicken they drank during the Black Mass. So, my somewhat logical cure for this possession is..."

" 'And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.' The Blood of Christ." Pastor Denofrio interrupted, rising from his seat. "That's a bit unorthodox, Miss Gilchrist."

Jordan chuckled softly. He found it funny that the small town pastor had just unknowingly called an ethnic Jew 'unorthodox.'

Galilee shot him a warning look before addressing the pastor. "Unorthodox, yes, but I believe it will work. Alone, we don't have the power to cast out these demons, but..."

"Through Christ we have the power to overcome all evil." Denny had never seen her father as excited as he was with that simple statement.

"Amen, Pastor Denofrio." Galilee returned with a smile. "What do you say we go kick some Demon tuckus?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pastor Denofrio poured the sacrament into the paper cup as Galilee directed, finally giving her a quizzical look.

She knelt down beside Sindee Murphy's weary form. "Sindee, honey, I know you can hear me. You can't speak to me, but you can hear me. You're sick because of something that you did. You participated in a Satanic ritual, and now you have to renounce it. I know you can't talk, but not all prayers need to be out loud. Please, honey, we can give you this sacrament, and it might be enough to help you...but you need to pray with all your heart and soul. If you aren't already Saved, and I'm guessing your not, you might want to do that as well." Gently, she tipped the edge of the cup into the girl's mouth. Despite her sickened state, Sindee still managed to swallow the red liquid and collapse back against her pillows. Occasionally, Galilee could see the girl's lips quiver as she prayed.

Pastor Denofrio stood back against the wall, staring at the scene with the wide eyes of one witnessing a miracle. Sindee's eyes squinted closed just as the alarm on her life support equipment beeped a warning. Sindee had flatlined.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dr. Runyon bolted into the room with a crash cart at the ready, followed closely by Jordan and a sobbing Denny.

Galilee held her arm out to stop them. "Give it time." She whispered, without the slightest surprise. It was as if she was almost expecting this.

Pastor Denofrio's mouth went dry. "Mark Chapter Nine, verses twenty-six and twenty-seven."

Galilee nodded and glanced back at the man with a smile. " 'And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead. But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.' Allow Christ to take Sindee by the hand, and she will rise again."

As if in answer to Galilee's calm words, Sindee's body was unexpectedly overcome by a round of violent coughs as she drew air into her body.

Jordan stared in amazement at the young woman as she pushed herself up in the bed and looked at Galilee with fear filled eyes. "Is it over?" She rasped.

Galilee rushed to the girl's side, taking her hand and squeezing it reassuringly. "Yes, honey, this battle is. We won."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Galilee double-clicked her mouse on the mailbox icon and sat back to read that day's correspondence. She was only slightly surprised to see a familiar screenname. She highlighted the email's subject and clicked again.

Dear Miss Gilchrist,
I got your email address from my dad, I hope that's all right. I just wanted to thank you for what you did. My friends owe you a lot. I know you said you didn't do anything, that Jesus did it all...but I still think He used you. You're in my prayers, now. The other's, too. We've started a prayer group at the high school. It's just the seven of us right now, but I'm hoping to get the word out. Did you say you're parents were missionaries? I've been giving that some thought as a career choice. If I'm not bothering you, could you tell me about it?
Thanks a lot. Sorry if I'm annoying you!
God Bless,
CU L8er,
Denny

Galilee paused before clicking the 'Reply' button. "Thank you, God. My mother was right, Your plans for me are so much more exciting than the ones I had for myself. I still can't believe You're letting me play a part in this. I'm truly humbled...and I can't wait until next time."


To be continued....

Coming Soon!

Episode 6
Children at a church Bible Camp become the victims of a series of violent 'accidents'. Galilee and Jordan are called in to investigate the cause of these supernatural occurences and put a stop to them before someone becomes seriously injured.

Feel free to email me with any comments you might have!
Bethany--Ottiga@aol.com