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Book 5: Gospel
Annie and Ed are looking quite a bit younger, and they wonder what happened to Riley. Mildred is now looking nearly as young as her daughter. Bowl’s mother goes to the sheriff about her missing son. They change the sign at church: now there’s only going to be masses held at night, no more in the daytime. Mildred finally goes outside, and the town considers it another miracle. Erin goes looking for Riley. The sheriff goes looking for Joe.
Everyone comes to church that evening after dark. It’s Good Friday, so it’s a big time for the church. Father Paul talks about being good soldiers during the coming war; morality changes; you must follow your conscience. When the service ends, Mildred is horrified at what she heard and refuses to go back.
Riley comes to Erin’s house, and he looks fine now. They row out on a boat for some privacy.She wants to know where he was, and he has a monologue.
He eventually gets to his story that we get to see in flashback. He wakes up on the floor of the community center where the creature attacked him. Paul forcibly straightens Riley’s broken neck; it cracks a few times in the process. He wakes up a while later, looking much better now, but really hungry. He runs outside and starts burning in the sun so Paul yanks him back in. He’s a full vampire now, and Paul explains things. They start with who Paul really is.
Paul explains that he, and Riley as well, have been taken back to their perfect self, their best selves. Bev comes in to see if everything is going to plan. She obviously knows everything. Riley can hear the heart beating in her chest; he wants to eat her. Paul explains it all away as God’s will. Bev exalts how all this is right there in the book Revelations, and it mostly does fit. Riley, still mostly an atheist, doesn’t really fall for it. The sun goes down, and they let Riley go.
Riley overhears Mildred outside the church, and his hunger starts to hit again. He looks in on his sleeping family and then goes to Erin’s house. We pop back the present, with Riley and Erin on the boat. He wants to show her, to prove it to her. He apologizes for what she has to see. He begs her to go to the mainland and not try to save the others, but he knows she will anyway.
The sun comes up, and Riley burns. Erin screams.
Comments: The episode is mostly concerned with Father Paul explaining the logic behind vampirism to Riley in the recreation center. It’s amazing how someone can twist scripture to support just about anything, but what he says all makes sense and is pretty logical if you ignore the ethics behind it.