The Way

When the prayer finished, the reverend began his sermon. He leaned forward on the podium as he spoke, his eyes burning with passion. Prudence kept her eyes on the floor while Samantha met the reverend's gaze and thought she saw a hint of a smile pull at one corner of his mouth.

"My children, there are many temptations in this world. Many of them are not obvious to us. Satan couches his evil words in the sweet and loving voice of an angel to make sins seem harmless. He starts us down the dark path by suggesting we are only telling one small lie. When we give in to this temptation, he sends us farther down his dark road until at last we become lost from God's way."

"This is why we must at all times adhere to The Way for it alone will lead us to salvation." The reverend continued speaking about the importance of The Way, but Samantha could not pay attention. In the pew behind her, she heard a rustling and sensed trouble a moment before something dry and rough touched her neck.

She turned around to see a black snake looking back at her. She screamed and jumped off the bench, stumbling backwards to trip over a step and crash next to the reverend's podium. The entire church erupted into laughter, except for Reverend Crane, who glared down at her. "What is the meaning of this?" he said.