Part 10: The Catalyst

The Promised Land:
(Part 10) The Catalyst

Shiloh’s bloodstained hoodie was on the ground next to him. He white t-shirt was soaked in red. Caden was applying pressure to Shiloh’s side. He looked up to see Eden and asked, “Where’s the car?”

 “About that… I found a couple of trucks, but I can’t find the keys.”

“Shiloh’s bleeding and you’re worried about finding a set of keys?” There was that sharp tone in his voice again.

“I…I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to do.” Eden’s voice squeaked with terror. She had never seen this much blood before nor had she ever felt so helpless.

“Get over here.”

Eden did as commanded and knelt beside Caden.

“Hold this in place,” he said calmly as he grabbed one of her hands and pressed it against the wound. “I’ll go get the truck. Don’t you dare leave him and don’t ever let go. If anything else happens to my brother…”

Caden shot up and ran to find the trucks. Eden kept her eyes fixed on Shiloh. He was still conscious, but he looked to be in a lot of pain. This close, Eden could see that he was actually a lot thinner than she first thought, almost sickly thin. His breathing was shallow.

Eden looked on, anxiously trying to stop the blood from seeping through.

“I’m sorry this happened,” Eden started nervously rambling. “If I didn’t run off like that... if I hadn’t been here at all, you wouldn’t have been hit. I’m so sorry. I wish there was something more I could do to help.”

Shiloh’s left hand started scrawling in the dirt. When he finished, the lines spelled a word.

“’Sing?” Eden read the word in confusion. “You want me to sing?”

He slowly nodded.

“At a time like this? What am I supposed to sing? I don’t know what you want me to…” Eden quit rambling long enough to take a shaky breath and calm her nerves. After a few seconds to clear her thoughts, a familiar tune came to mind.

“Okay.”

With another deep breath, she starting singing softly, “I am a poor wayfaring stranger just traveling through this world of woe, but there’s no sickness toil or danger in that bright land to which I go.” She sung a little louder at the chorus.

“I’m going there to see my father. I’m going there no more to roam. I’m only going over Jordan. I’m only going over home.”

Her voice started quivering with just the mention of home. Turning her mind back to Shiloh, she couldn’t help but think of what would happen if he died right in front of her. Feeling tears start to well up, she continued singing. “I know dark clouds will gather round me. I know my way is rough and steep, but golden fields lie out before me where the redeemed shall ever sleep.”

She was sniffling by the time she came to the chorus. “I’m going there to see my mother. I’m going there no more to roam. I’m only going over Jordan. I’m only going over home.”

She found herself mentally pleading, “Please don’t let him die. Not here. Not now. Please.”

Eden was familiar with loss, but funeral parlors and formalities had a way of diminishing the battle between life and death. She could see the war in front of her and she was terrified of losing.

“When did children become soldiers?” she thought to herself. “These kids should be playing football in a grassy backyard with other children their age, not getting shot at. Shiloh needs a mother to comfort him in time of pain, not a lost college student. Caden needs a father to protect him from the harshness of this world, not a loaded gun. Where did things go so wrong?”

She dared not sing the last verse for fear that Shiloh would actually fade as she sang, so she sang the chorus again. “I’m going there to see my father. I’m going there no more to roam. I’m only going over Jordan. I’m only going over home.”

As she finished, the roar of an engine grew louder and a dingy red, four-door truck pulled up. Caden hopped out of the driver’s seat and opened the backseat door.

“Here’s the plan,” he said as he rushed back to his brother. “We need to get him into the truck. You keep the pressure on his wound. Whatever you do, don’t let go. Come on, Shy. We need to get you help.”

Ever so slowly, with Eden pressing firmly against Shiloh’s side to keep the blood at bay, Caden transported his brother by piggyback to the backseat of the truck. The whole process probably took about five minutes, but it felt like an eternity to Eden. Once they were in the backseat, she desperately wanted to change her job for another.

After Caden returned with all their belongings, Eden asked, “Can we trade? I’ll drive.”

Tossing their stuff in the back, Caden took over for her and she went around to the front. She wiped her shaking, blood-coated hands on her jeans and wiped the tears from her face. As soon as she was in the driver’s seat, Caden said, “We need to get on the road in front of us and follow it until we reach Jericho. I’ll tell you where to go from there.”

She nodded and drove off. A few minutes in, Eden realized Caden was staring at her through the rearview mirror with red eyes and a weird expression.

“What?”

“Nothing.” His eyes returned to normal. “I’m just confused. You keep changing colors.”

“What color now?”

“Orange.”

“Is that better than grey?”

“Always. Orange is a good color.”

“I don’t know why it changed.” Eden said as she looked back at the road. “How is he?”

Eden could see a pale hand lifting a thumbs-up in the back.

She heard Caden whisper, “Liar.”

The vehicle was swallowed in silence as they continued down the road. Silence led to contemplation and wandering thoughts led to worry. No longer able to stand the quiet, Eden began humming.