In Extremis Page 3

lady was dirty and bleeding and her clothes were torn. The nun noticed the woman was only wearing one shoe. Claire realized if this poor soul was still alive, there had to be others. Job raised the cross high above his head. The dead pushed the lady to the floor in front of the altar. Claire recognized immediately Liturgy of the Eucharist, the collection of alms. With wild eyes, the lady searched for an escape until she looked into the confessional. Claire put her hand to her mouth as the woman reached out to the box. Job brought the cross down on her head, glancing across her scalp. A flap of skin fell down upon her left eye as the woman continued to scream. Her face was a mask of crimson.

  Job struck again, splitting her skull at the eye socket. The blow sprayed blood across the front of the priest’s robes. Her mouth was wide in a scream that wouldn’t be heard. Her hand stretched out towards the confessional. The priest gripped her head and pulled the skull apart, the skin stretching wide before ripping. He scooped out a handful of the brains and offered it to each of the dead. Claire closed her eyes. Others started to come to the mass. The room was soon full. The nun gripped her rosary as her lips moved until she heard the other confessional door open. Job had come to hear her sins.

  No hope, only prayer.

  Amen.