Claimed By Sin: Father Levi

Chapter Eight: Invitation

Levi

I sat in front of the Jesus statue, muttering my prayer for forgiveness to our lord. If Father Thomas finds out my sins, I will be exiled from the church and cast to the streets to pick up my old habits.

“Not such a bad idea–then maybe you can finally fill Kanara up.” The distorted voice made a comeback while I wrapped my prayer up. I sat there, leaning on my knees with my elbows. Clasping my hands together with my rosary between my thumbs, I chewed the inside of my lip replaying the events of the past couple of days.

I spent my nights watching her–studying where she was going. She was confined to her room, but the guards' whispers were all I needed. I found out she was being married off to Dmitriy Mikhailov, one of the most notorious crime members within the city. He was known to be a womanizer and abuser. He was next in line to take the bosses seat, he was expected to take it by the time he was twenty eight.

Leaning down I placed the tips of my thumbs on my forehead, racking my brain. How do I go about this without diving more into the pits of hell and damning my soul?

“Pfft, already past that point.” The voice was mocking. I took a deep breath, shoving off the bench. I turned and headed toward my office. My train of thought was cut off by a greeting from one of the sisters. I smiled wearily, nodding and continuing forward.

I arrived at my office door, reaching out for the handle. I paused as my fingertips grazed over the knob. Taking a deep breath, my digits wrapped around the metal. A click echoed through my ears as I stepped through. I stood there, scanning my area. Something felt odd, like someone was in here. Nothing seemed disturbed, but my instincts told me something was –off.

I took calculated steps, sweeping the room with my gaze. My shoes echoed through the oddly silent room, my muscles tense as I approached my desk. I placed a hand on the wood, gliding my fingers over it as I walked around it. I paused as I saw one of my drawers askewed. A lump formed in my throat as my eyes landed on the middle section. I reached out, grasping the handle.

Pulling it out, I was met with my pens and notebook. Panic slowly crept up into my core while I quickly looked through it. This drawer held something precious to me, and that is now missing.

My teeth clenched as I sucked in a breath through my lips. f**k. Where is it?! I tore apart the drawer, ripping it out and tipping it over. All the items dropped onto the floor, clattering. Pens rolled away as paper fluttered around. It’s gone. My only piece of heaven on this planet–the magnificent lock of angelic essence, is gone.

Rage rolled underneath my skin, sending a heat surging through my veins. My vision grew shaky on the edges as my eyesight started to tunnel. I clenched my fists, storming to my office’s door and ripping it open.

“Sister!” I roared as I made my way down the hall. My voice reverberated off the walls, bouncing around me as that horrible voice laughed within me.

“See– you follow blindly and what do you get?” It chuckled as I rounded the corner, stepping back into the church's core. The statue loomed on my right, a sister was kneeling praying as another stood in an aisle way, looking at me. Her brows furrowed concerningly as my gaze landed on her. It was Sister Christa, the only nun I really bothered to learn their name from. She clasped her hands in front of herself, her body became rigid as I approached her.

“Sister Christa, please tell me who’s been in my office.” My words came out sharp, not the way I wanted them at all. She pursed her lips together, shifting her gaze to the statue.

“I’m sorry Father. I was requested by Father Thomas to–” My vision blurred and before I realized what I was doing, my hand shot out. I grabbed her delicate neck, squeezing. She struggled against me, grabbing my forearm and digging her nails into me as she coughed, the air struggling to reach her lungs. I lifted her off the floor, the color in her face turning into a satisfying purple.

“Father Levi!!” Thomas’s voice boomed from behind me. I blinked viscously, my jaw twitching as I released Sister Christa. Her body hit the floor as she curled into herself, holding her throat. She wheezed, my chest heaving up and down. I gritted my teeth, turning to face Father Thomas.

“I sensed something was off–” He shook his head, his wrinkles showing more than normal. My eyes scanned him as he took a step toward me. “You’ve been acting like you did when you first arrived here Levi.” His words cut through me, shattering my current mind set like glass. Like when I first arrived…

I shook my head, placing my hand on my brow.

“I–I’m sorry.” I whispered, slumping my shoulders forward.

“No you’re not, you’re just wearing another mask, Koschei.” That horrid voice filtered its way through my mind. “Stop hiding me, let us become one.” I could feel electricity zip up my spine.

“Father Levi! Are you even listening to me?” Thomas bellowed, snapping my attention back to him. My eyes landed on his right hand, he held the lock of black hair I snipped off my Kanara. My heart froze.

“Why do you have this?” Thomas tapped his foot impatiently. My lips pursed together as I stared blankly at him.

“More importantly, who did this come from?” His brows raised as his eyes searched mine. I parted my lips, my mouth dry as words refused to come out.

“Come–to my office…Now!” He barked, lifting his hand and gesturing to me to follow him. Sister Christa sobbed behind me as another sister rushed past me to comfort her. Tucking my head down, I followed Father Thomas to his office.

The tile that pathed the way to his room echoed our footsteps. My gaze darted around, the corner of my vision slightly turning distorted. I stuffed my hands into my pockets while I stared straight ahead. Multiple paintings of depictions from the bible were hung on the wall, my peripheral kept flashing them through my mind. My heart skipped a beat as an image of Cane and Able crept up. I paused in front of the painting, turning slightly.

“Levi!” Thomas snapped at me. I inhaled deeply, tearing my eyes away from the imagery.

Father Thomas pushed open his heavy wooden door, standing off to the side and gesturing for me to take a seat. I nodded slightly, keeping my head down as I entered through the frame.

“Look at how whipped you are, keeping your head down–doing as you’re told.” Static slipped through my eardrums as that voice spoke. I clenched my teeth as I pulled the chair out, taking a seat.

“So– where did you get this?” Thomas’s voice was stern but had a tinge of concern behind it. I stared at the corner of the desk, my lips pursed together as my chest screamed at me. It was screaming to take that man into my hold and choke him. It wanted me to twist his fat neck, squeeze the last breath out of this imbecile's lungs. My lips twitched, wanting to smile as the picture of me committing that atrocity slid through my mind.

“I was walking in the garden one day–the sun shone down on a wonderfully built bird's nest…” My words slipped out fluidly, as I looked up at Thomas. My gaze locked with his as I leaned back in my chair. “ It was spectacularly built, Father. It had a blue bead in it along with that lock of hair. Something told me to take it and treasure it.” I smiled softly, clasping my hands and placing them in my lap.

Thomas sighed, taking the lock and tossing it in the trash. I kept my smile as I stared at him, my eyes focusing on the window behind him. Violent tendencies boiled under my skin as I dug my nails into my knuckles.

“Father Levi– He’s not speaking to you again is he?” Thoms leaned forward, placing his elbows on the desk and tucking his hands under his chin.

“Who, Father Thomas?” My smile dropped slowly as I pulled my brows slightly displaying concern. My eyes flicked to behind Thomas, a figure stood behind him with a grin plastered on its face.

“Ooo look at you lying so well.” It spoke, tilting its head unnaturally. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

“I hope you’d tell me if it was Levi.” Thomas’s voice was low as he studied my face. “We took you in, helped you cage that demon through prayer and…”

My chest squeezed, my lips formed into a thin line as my breath slowly halted.

“A lot of reformation treatment.” He sighed, leaning back.

“Ha! reformation treatment– he means locking you in the basement for days while they whisper the Lord's prayers. Of course I left, it was utter nonsense.” The words crackled into a deformed laugh. “But I’m back now. I gave you enough time to see through his charade. It’s time Koschei made a comeback.”

“Of course Father Thomas, your efforts weren’t for nothing.” I forced a smile. The sun behind Thomas cascaded through the stained glass, casting an eerie illusion of Mother Mary. The shadow figure stood within the colors, his shoulders moving up and down while a distorted chuckle echoed around me. He moved his arms out, posing while flinging his head back.

“This act is going to end Levi! It's going to spew forth like the great flood, destroying everything…” his head snapped forward, tilting to the left as a grin spread from ear to ear. “ Yet recreating something truly beautiful.”

“Is that all you wish to discuss, Father Thomas?” I cleared my throat, the image disappeared as he stood up

“No. An invitation came addressed to you.” He reached for a drawer on his right, opening it. He removed a prestigious white envelope with golden lettering.

“It's Ms. Smirov’s wedding. She wanted you to officiate it but that goes against the church's interest.” he slid the envelope to me. Temptation washed over me. This must have been how Eve felt when the snake offered her that apple.

“Thank you Father Thomas. I appreciate you not concealing this.” I tilted my head slightly in a nod, reaching out for the vile envelope that would drag me further down this road of sin. I took the smooth paper in-between my fingers, sliding it off the desk.

“If you wish to repent Father Levi, my door is always open.” He extended his hand across the desk. His limb lingered there as I stared at it. I sucked in a breath, smiled and took his grasp within mine.

“Of course Father.”