An Angry God

�d sit, smile, and pretend to take notes. He’d have no
use for theorems, Moby Dick, the periodic table, the battle of Waterloo,
or anything of their other crap in the real world. And if he did, he’d
remember it all anyway. That’s just the way his brain worked.
Some might say Kevin was too smart for his own good. But he didn’t
see it that way. His motto was, “Play all the angles and win the game at
all costs.”

So there he sprawled, in front of the flat screen, catching up on the
day’s news and smoking a joint. Hand-rolled. Excellent stuff. Just what
he needed this fine morning. He’d get rid of the evidence, Febreze the
house, and paste a smile on his face long before Mom and Step got home
from work. His mom lived at the office, and Step was not much better.
He inhaled deeply and held the smoke in his lungs, as the blue
BREAKING NEWS letters filled the screen. The news anchor, Chet
Charles, hair all perfect, dark suit with matching tie and silk flower in his
lapel, star of Greatwood, Indiana’s CBS affiliate Channel 4, monotoned,
“Force Four News has just learned a body was discovered in Fullerton
Arboretum an hour ago. Nathan Miller was jogging with his dog when
he felt a pull on the leash. Miller apparently tried to get the dog back on
the path, but the black lab pulled away, ripping the leash from Miller’s
hands. When Miller ran after his dog, he found a gruesome sight and
immediately dialed 911. Force Four reporter Marlon Gordon is on the
scene. Here’s what he has to say of this discovery.”
The screen cut to Greatwood’s heartthrob reporter, muscles bulging
in a form-fitting Force Four News polo, park joggers running behind him
on the trail, seemingly oblivious to this aforementioned slaughter. The
guy, mic in hand, nodded his head—why do they always do that?—and
began to speak.
“As you said, Chet, a body was discovered. We appear to have a white
male, perhaps sixteen to twenty-two, who has been bludgeoned to death.
Our cameraman was able to get footage before authorities shooed him
away. A warning here—the video is graphic, and parents may want to
take caution.

“Out of respect for the victim and his family, we are not showing his
face, but I must say, it will be difficult to identify this young man on facial
recognition alone. As you can see, his clothing is soaked in blood,
appearing as if this attack was in the last few hours.
“The police and crime scene techs are still gathering evidence. It
seems, however, this murder, if it is indeed a murder and frankly, I don’t
see how it could be anything but, is the fourth in a series of murders that
have plagued several areas of Greatwood, each time the victim a young
man, who was later identified as gay, with sandy brown hair, blue eyes,
and a slight build. This latest victim does indeed fit this physical
description. As they work the case, police will certainly ascertain whether
this particular victim also was gay.
“As we know, our police chief and district attorney’s office were
reluctant to call these murders hate crimes, yet with this, the fourth
young man to be murdered in the same fashion, we expect that
designation to be made at the next press conference.
“Certainly, local anti-gay activist Spencer Fellows, founder of the
group Family Now, is convinced the murderer is targeting gay men. Just
last week, when the third body was discovered, Fellows was quick to
release this video statement…”

The familiar Fellows mug, his fake benevolent smile slashed across his
face, replaced Marlon Gordon’s. He spoke in his I’m holier than thou
way. “The Lord is indeed angry that we, as a society, are sheltering
sinners. And this anger overflows into innocent citizens. If our laws, our
moral values, our governing bodies, and our police will not take care of
the situation, then, make no mistake, someone will. I’m not advocating
the murder of sinners nor lawlessness, but I am saying that the Lord loves
a warrior, and whoever is committing these acts will not be turned away
from his Heavenly Father.”

Again, Kevin saw Marlon’s perfect cover model head fill the screen.
“Strong words. They unleashed quite a furor last week. Reverend Sid
Kramer, the city’s most vocal LGBTQ+ advocate, was quick to release
his own statement.” Gordon held up a sheaf of papers and read.
“Reverend Kramer said, ‘Fellows’s opinion is just that—an opinion. It is
sad that he, a man who purports to be a pillar of Family Now, that local
bastion of hate masquerading as a Christian organization, can make such
an inflammatory statement. He famously calls himself and his followers
‘warriors for Christ.’ The Christ I and my friends know doesn’t need
warriors, for our Christ only preaches love, not hate and certainly not
vengeance. I have many friends of all religions, Christians, Jews, Muslims,
Buddhists, who feel otherwise. They, like I, feel that no God would ever
be happy to see a member of His flock murdered, much less in such a
heinous fashion. These murders are being committed by someone who
deserves the full force of the justice system. Whether he or she will wind
up in the fires of hell is something none of us will ever know. But for now,
we need this person caught and locked away.’”