The reverend then looks at a shocked congregation, including the ones he knows are members of The Children of the Circle. He then decides to speak while everyone is frozen from the shock.
“I followed a demon who told me he knew the road to immortality. I followed everything he told me and had others follow me as I followed a demon. None was more loyal to the cause than Alistair Wingreen. The elixir of immortality kills the body and leaves the spirit on Earth. Alistair’s son Calum wanted to be the test subject and it was successful. I then go home to my loving wife who tells me she is pregnant with my child. Knowing Cassie will need me I chose to cancel everything involving The Children of the Circle.”
A member of the congregation then stands up and asks, “Then why is Alistair saying those things?”
Reverend William lets out a sigh and then continues talking, “I found out about Cassie’s pregnancy after we tested the elixir on Calum. When I told Alistair that I was planning to disband The Children of the Circle, he wasn’t having it. I was not expecting him to break into the church of all places to steal the elixir, which is just household chemicals that are harmful when swallowed. As for the Wingreen family becoming ghosts, it was an enchantment from a demon. After Cassie telling me she is pregnant, I see the error of my ways now and I need to do what is best, not only for my future child, but for each of you as well.”
Many members of the congregation, including some members of The Children of the Circle stand up and give Reverend Michaels an applause. He did say he will not be unveiling who is, or who was a member of The Children of the Circle. He said it’s not his secret to tell but that he will forgive any and all members. Many choose to follow the reverend and go back to their church going ways. A few decide to exit as they still believe in the works of The Children of the Circle. To avoid any scandals, the papers reported that the Wingreen family died of carbon monoxide poisoning. They even dug up Calum’s body and placed it in the Wingreen house along with the bodies of the other members of the Wingreen family. Other members of the Wingreen family leave town with many believed to have changed their last name to avoid being connected to Alistair and his family. Reverend William Michaels shares one final enchantment, a spell that will force the Wingreen family to stay in their house until their spirits can crossover. Reverend William Michaels and his wife Cassie soon give birth to a little girl they name Juliana. A few years later they have a son, William Jr., or Billy. After years of making things right, the reverend turns things around and becomes a very well-respected reverend and community head. He eventually steps down to do more work for the community.
While on the surface, the Wingreen family was forced inside their home until the end of time, Alistair Wingreen also stole the book of incantations and the demonic painting that inspired the Children of the Circle. While not being able to completely remove the enchantment, they do spread the range to cover the entire street. The Wingreen family soon scare off many people living on the same street. Those who were not scared off were eventually killed once the Wingreen family learned how to possess human bodies. The Children of the Circle were fully disbanded, or at least that’s how the Wingreen family wanted it to look. The Wingreen family found ways to make certain that The Children of the Circle will remain a family. Years after the Wingreen sacrifice, people would go to their house to see if they were still in the house, Alistair made sure to take advantage of this. Alistair used this moment to either kill people blind to the truth or take this opportunity to recruit people to The Children of the Circle with him as the New Father. Behind the scenes, Alistair Wingreen is only beginning to prove he is the New Father and leader of The Children of the Circle.
C.L. Williams
C.L. Williams is an international bestselling author currently living in central Virginia. He's written eight poetry books, five novellas, one novel, and a contributor to a multitude of anthologies. C.L. Williams is currently working on a novelette series titled Chaos Fusion. He's also working on the book Bed Bugs, a supplement book to the MMH Productions film of the same name that features his short stories "The Boogeyman" and "When the Cameras Stop Rolling".
Gushers: Zoe’s Secret Club
Chuck Buda
Aiden made sure he entered last. It was becoming his signature move, waiting across the street, behind the tree. Making sure all the others entered the back yard before him. This time it was more critical because he didn’t want to explain what the jug of blood was about. Aiden felt it would detract from the monumental gesture if everyone knew it was coming.
Once he watched Todd get inside the fence, Aiden made his move. He crossed the street with the heavy jug. It weighed him down after holding it for a good twenty minutes. Aiden couldn’t wait to put the jug down.
As he neared the gate, he could hear some muffled talking. The yard was big enough to swallow up the content of the words themselves. But close enough, Aiden could distinguish Zoe’s voice from Todd’s.
He swung the gate open. Immediately, Aiden felt all eyes upon him. He tucked the milk jug full of fake blood into the crook of his arm so it would be more difficult to distinguish in the yard’s shadows. The red lighting would mix with the crimson contents, further preventing a quick revelation.
The First Cut was prepared for him. Zoe stood upon the top step of the hot tub. She was painted from head to toe in white paint, with huge black circles around her eyes. The black make-up spiraled out from each eye socket like frantic bolts of lightning. Aiden pictured her as the fifth member of the band KISS the way her face was made to look. He noticed dark streaks which ran from her lower lip down over her breasts to her stomach. From where he stood, it appeared as if she had already drunk blood and dribbled it down her body. Her nudity almost hidden by the collection of paints.
Todd and Ryan stood off to the left of the hot tub, Jordyn wedged in between them. They both wore bathing suits, while Jordyn was decked out in a silky robe. Aiden scanned her figure and found no lines of clothing pushing against the silken robe. He figured she was naked beneath, and ready to begin.
Leah stood to the right of the tub. She wore a bikini but it was nothing as revealing as the ones Aiden had seen Jordyn and Zoe in before. Leah’s was more of a conservative cut.
In front of the group stood Spencer. Like Zoe, he was decked out in white paint from top to bottom. He was already naked. Spencer also had black designs etched on his face and chest. The symbols looked more like Egyptian hieroglyphics. Except for one large symbol across his muscular chest and stomach. Plain as could be, a pentagram was drawn on his torso. Aiden knew what it represented as he had seen enough movies and ghost hunting shows. Before he could begin to worry about the meaning behind the new symbols, Zoe called Aiden to the front.
He startled when Zoe called his name. The voice he heard sounded more like a growl. It didn’t resemble a young female’s voice at all. Aiden thought he had lost his mind because nobody else seemed to react to Zoe’s command.
Aiden, the most dressed attendee, thought it would be proper to come dressed in an unassuming manner. Even though Zoe had given him permission to re-join them, Aiden wanted to appear humble and submissive. He stepped forward and knelt before Spencer. Aiden raised the milk jug full of fake blood above his head.