A Strange Coin (Three Trinities Haven Church)

[Ezekiel]

The coins could denote many things, but the conceit encouraged by their discovery never ceased to amuse him – nearly everyone thought there was a reason behind it, like they’d been chosen by some divine hand. Sometimes there was a truth in that, but in most instances they were simply a tool. Viral marketing. A shove off the safe path through the forest. A beckon into shadows. And beyond that engineered moment of catalyst, which invariably brought them to Zeke’s doorstep, he made the rest up as he went. But it was true he did like to make people feel special.

Tatyana seemed afraid. He liked fear, but not when he was the object of it. He tapped his fingers along his lip before he straightened, and sauntered his way down to her. There was nothing imposing in his stature. His unruly curls shaded warm eyes. If his dark clothes and mismatched tattoos suggested something feral might lurk underneath the facade, it wasn’t a face he ever showed at the church. Zeke plucked the coin right from her grip, looked her right in the eye. Hers were glazed, fighting for cognition. But sometimes the best truths came from inhibition.

“And what do you want for it, Tatyana?”