“Go with God, my son.”

Gabriel had lived a long life for only being twenty-eight. During that life, he often found himself going back and forth between what he believed in and what he didn’t. It was at this particular period in his life that he had decided to believe in God again, and he was fairly certain that his mind was finally set. Caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol were his holy trinity for a large part of his youth, but Gabriel had left his past emotionally behind as he’d left his home physically. Embracing celibacy and cleanliness, he became the Father of the local chapel in a small town in the middle of nowhere; population fifty-seven.

The town of Resolve was welcoming and the church elder, himself not long for the world, saw the goodness in Gabriel’s heart. It was he who asked Gabriel to take over the sermon. And he did.

There wasn’t a person in the town that didn’t enjoy Gabriel’s lessons. In truth he had no experience, but he did have experiences which he found he could relay in a manner in line with God’s teachings. It was as though he were meant to find his way to the town of Resolve and spend his days doing the Lord’s work.

Of all the townspeople, there were two who especially enjoyed the sermons. The old man named William was always front and center. His son, the young man named Bill sat beside him. Gabriel understood that his work was the most important part of their life, although he never truly grasped why.

Besides the father and son, there was a woman named Lana who was one of the first to arrive at the chapel and one of the last to leave. He’d met her eyes more than a few times while at the pulpit, and he suspected there was an attraction on her part. Gabriel had dedicated himself to God and to avoid awkward situations, he tried to make sure he and Lana were never alone together.

Gabriel loved the irony of that expression; alone together. In his current state, he felt a connotation of love and devotion in the expression. Two people are sharing something with each other that no one else will ever take from them. But in his darker days, he had understood it to mean that even when you are with someone, you are ultimately alone.

One day, a man in a black trench coat entered the church. Gabriel did not recognize this man so he made a note to introduce him as a guest in town. The man wore a hat that he didn’t bother to remove and though this rubbed Gabriel the wrong way, he chose to let it slide. After the opening prayer and hymn, Gabriel asked the man to stand so that the town could recognize him and welcome him to their service. He stood and spoke.

“Well, thank you very much Father. I am certainly very glad to be here in the small town of Resolve. I am nothing more than a passing stranger and by this time tomorrow, I’ll be long gone. But I’ll never forget your kindness and hospitality.”

He wore the smile of a man telling a joke that he found hilarious to a degree that he was troubled in containing his own laughter before reaching the punch line.

“My name is Brian. You have a wonderfully charming town. Houses and apartments and a few stores. A volunteer fire department and a doctor who still makes house calls as well, I would guess. And not even a police department…”

Gabriel’s heart started to beat a little faster. His palms began to sweat. The hairs on the back of his neck tingled. Just let it blow over, he told himself. Everything will be alright.

“Well, I’m not actually traveling alone. I have nine men outside who I travel with and they are awaiting my call to come in and take your belongings.”

There was a gentle stirring in the crowd, and some nervous laughter.

“It sure is nice to find a town in this day and age where everyone is at the same place at the same time and law enforcement is an old man with a rifle who can’t stand under his own power.”

Gabriel interrupted.

“Brian, if you will excuse me. This is a peaceful town. We mean you no harm and we do not intend to try to fight you. I ask in the name of the Lord that you go about your business. These people will give you whatever you ask for. When you are done, would you please leave so we may finish our sermon?”

Brian smiled. Then he whistled. Nine men barged in through the doors. A gun was fired and people gasped or shouted. The men started going through the aisles and taking things. They snatched and yanked at jewelry. Brian was more polite. He kindly asked for money and watches, necklaces and rings. He thanked people as they gave him their only property in the world.

One of the men came to Lana. Gabriel couldn’t hear what they were saying but Lana was holding something tightly. The man wanted it but she would not give it to him. Suddenly, he pulled it from her so fiercely that her dress ripped down the side. It was like the first drop of blood in shark-infested water. The man started grabbing at Lana’s dress and trying to tear it from her. During the struggle, he dropped the belongings he’d been collecting, and this angered him more. He began digging into Lana’s clothing. His intentions were clear. Brian smiled wider.

“Stop.”

It was William. Though he was old, his voice boomed like he was in his prime.

“Sirs. You are free to take whatever you want from us as far as earthly possessions. But to rob a woman of her innocence and self-esteem in the house of God is unforgivable. I cannot allow this.”

Brian walked forward slowly. The man had stopped struggling with Lana and all eyes were now on the two men standing in the aisle. Brian wore the smile proudly. The butt of his gun had slammed into William’s head before anyone even knew he had a gun. The crowd was startled again. There were gasps and cries. The old man was now on his hands and knees. Brian returned the revolver to his holster.

No one had noticed that, during the struggle, the man who had been groping Lana had lost his own gun among the belongings scattered on the floor. No one but Gabriel. He stepped down form the pulpit. Brian noticed his movement and watched, clearly not in fear of the actions of a man of God. Gabriel stooped and came up with the gun.

All the men except Brian went for their weapons, and the man over Lana tried to hide his embarrassment when he found that his was missing. Brian just watched. Gabriel turned the gun so that the barrel faced towards him and held it out.

“Take your weapon. It is blasphemous to have this in the house of God. Leave the young woman alone. Take our belongings and the money in the donation box in the lobby and leave.”

Brian looked down at his feet. From under the brim of his hat, his words rose up. “I don’t think you are in a position to argue.” The man smiled and returned to his attack on Lana, though he’d had time to cool off and he was more methodical and less enraged.

Bill stood up. Brian placed his hand on his gun and waved his other hand, signaling for his men to continue about their business. Bill started walking towards Brian. He didn’t speak. He just held his arms open. Brian pulled his gun up and pointed it at Bill. He told him not to take another step. Bill kept walking. He walked into the gun. He embraced Brian and told him that God would forgive him. Brian fired.

The crowd was startled for a third time. Blood shot up in an arc. William, who was now sitting up on the floor, was in shock. His son’s body hit the ground, already dead. Brian, for the first time, looked a little disheveled, but he regained his composure and signaled his men to keep going. By now Lana was crying and her dress had been removed. The man was working on her bra.

A single tear slid down Gabriel’s cheek. He still held the gun which Brian had assumed wasn’t a threat in the hands of a priest. It was a revolver. Ten men and six bullets. He closed his eyes.

Gabriel flipped the gun and caught it gracefully, firing three shots so close together that they sounded like one. The first shot was perfectly lined up and pierced through the bodies of three of the attackers, one of which was only seconds away from stripping Lana. He slumped over on her, and warm blood began to flow onto her chest and stomach. The second shot had blown through another two of the men, and an old lady was screaming in fear at the corpse of one of her attackers. The third bullet had hit Brian in the chest. He collapsed.

Three bullets left and four men. They split apart, and began returning fire. Gabriel dodged the bullets effortlessly, not even bothering to take cover. In mid-stride, he grabbed a communion tray and deflected a particularly well aimed bullet across the room into the face of another of the shooters. One of the men grabbed a small boy to use as cover. Gabriel shot his arm and he dropped the boy, revealing his body. The next bullet sliced through him. Gabriel’s final bullet hit one of the men in the back; he was fleeing for the door.

The last man had exhausted his own weapon. He was moving to reload. Gabriel leapt and cat-walked across the pew-tops until he was next to the man. He back-flipped, kicking the loose bullets into the air. He landed, and with one hand he flipped his gun, grasping it along the top so he could rotate the cylinder out with his thumb, while he used the other hand to dismantle the other man’s gun as he held it. One of the bullets fell into an empty chamber. Gabriel flipped the cylinder back into the gun and twirled it in his hand. He brought his arm across the back of his neck and fired the gun into the man’s neck. Gabriel opened his eyes.

No one spoke. Lana’s face was wet with tears and her body with blood. Bill was dead, William only semi-conscious from shock and trauma. Gabriel looked back at Brian. He was barely alive. “May you go with God.”

Gabriel walked out of the church. He didn’t say anything. He didn’t go to his apartment to get his belongings. He only removed the white collar from his robe. He walked west. And as he went, he decided that he had been alone in that building. All the people in there had been alone together. No greater force aided them, not even when they needed it most. Gabriel left Resolve behind. But he kept the gun.