Blood Oath, Blood River (The Downwinders Book 1) Read online

  Dayton let the picture drop and stood up. He sat next to her on the couch. He placed his arm around her and held her.

  “There, there,” he said reassuringly as she heaved heavy sobs. “You’ve done a good thing, and I want you to know I appreciate it. There’s a special bond between those of us who have the gift. Your father was so proud of you. I know he thought you were a strong, powerful daughter of Zion. He wouldn’t want this for you, all of this running around, fighting against authority. He believed in the church, in the council. If you’re willing to meet me halfway, I’m sure we can come to some kind of arrangement. If I can count on your discretion, and you’re willing to do exactly as I tell you, I’ll talk to your Bishop about the excommunication. Are you willing to do that?”

  “Anything!” Deem cried, sucking in air and using it to sob some more. “You name it. I want to help the council, not be against it. I’m on your side. I want to make my father proud.”

  “Here, stand up,” Dayton said, standing next to her. Deem rose from her seat, wiping tears from her face with the Kleenex.

  “Let’s shake on it,” he said, extending his hand. “I’ll talk to your Bishop. You agree to help me out, when I need it.”

  “Deal!” Deem said, letting a smile break through her tears. “I so appreciate this, President Dayton. You can count on me.”

  “I hope I can,” he said, leading her to the front door. “We’re serious about deals, as you know.”

  “Yes, I know,” Deem said, letting him escort her to the door. She opened it and walked out. She turned back to him.

  “Thanks for giving me another chance,” she said, wiping the remaining tears from her eyes. “I really appreciate it.”

  “Of course,” Dayton said, smiling at her as he prepared to close the door. “Everyone deserves a second chance, especially a sister with gifts such as yourself.”

  As Deem turned to walk away from him, he closed the door, and the performance was over. Deem walked to her car, wiping the remaining tears from her face. She got inside, closed the door, and began to drive. She drove until she reached a bluff overlooking Mesquite. It was a hot evening, and the stars were just beginning to come out. She turned off the car and opened the windows. It was hot, but she wanted to feel real air on her face.

  A slight breeze came through the windows, and gently rocked the orange handcuffs she’d attached to the rear view mirror. Why’d I buy those things? she wondered. Some deep-seated bondage desire I don’t realize I have? Or maybe some psychological thing, like a symbol – a symbol of being free, or a symbol of being trapped?

  She reached for her Big Gulp and took a long sip. It tasted good, really good. She thought about her father’s journals, and realized she may never get them, if they even existed. They had propelled her into a confrontation with powerful forces that manipulated and controlled life in the area where she lived. She was playing with the big boys now. If I never find them, she thought, at least they brought me here. Exposed this all to me. So I could open my eyes, and stop being a little naïve kid.

  When I was a child, I did childish things, she remembered from Sunday School. But when I became an adult, I put away childish things.

  She thought about Carma and Lyman, and all they’d done to help her. She thought about Claude, and a pang of guilt hit her. Then she thought about Awan and Winn, and their promise to help take down Dayton.

  “Keep your friends close,” she said to herself, taking another sip of her Big Gulp. “But keep your enemies closer.”

  Glossary/Bibliography

  Blood Oath, Blood River is a work of fiction, set in a real place and culture. Local Mormon vernacular is used in the story to keep the characters authentic. People not familiar with the local and cultural terms might find some of them unusual and confusing. While the novel itself defines most of the important and relevant terms within the context of the story, this glossary is offered for those who would like to have the terms better defined. The type of definitions offered below (along with references to outside sources and more information) would have been too disruptive to include in the narrative.

  Use of Wikipedia information is released by CC-BY-SA, and attributions to various contributors can be found using the links provided in each glossary item. I have made adjustments to some of the Wikipedia information in each entry to bring it into harmony with the focus and tone of the novel. Note that links can sometimes change. If you find a broken link, feel free to drop me a note at www.michaelrichan.com.

  ADIT – An entrance to or passageway through a tunnel that is horizontal or nearly horizontal.

  APOSTATE – someone who leaves a particular group or religion because their beliefs have changed.

  BAPTISMS FOR THE DEAD – A proxy ordinance performed by the LDS Church in temples. It is based on the belief that baptism is a necessary ordinance to enter heaven, and that the deceased person can choose to accept or reject the baptism performed by the living person in their name. Children twelve and older are allowed to perform these baptisms, often in organized youth group outings. Each person typically performs ten to forty baptisms by immersion during their visit. See Wikipedia, “Baptism for the Dead” page.

  BEARING YOUR TESTIMONY – One Sunday church service per month in each LDS ward is designated as a “fast and testimony meeting.” Instead of scheduled speakers as part of the sacrament service, which is the norm, a block of time is allocated for members to stand and speak, similar to a Quaker service, and address the rest of the ward. When they speak, the expectation is that they will “bear their testimony,” which means to tell the other members what they believe. Typical elements of a testimony bearing are phrases such as “I know the church is true,” “I believe Joseph Smith was a prophet of God,” “I believe [insert name of current church president] is a prophet of God,” etc. Sometimes the bearing of the testimony drifts into storytelling and travelogues, and there are usually one or two people in each ward who will use the time to spout crazy theories or supernatural stories, which is frowned upon. While there is no time limit for each speaker, five minutes is considered the maximum, so that others will have time to speak. See Wikipedia, “Worship Services for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints,” page, “Fast and Testimony Meeting” section.

  BISHOP – The leader of a local congregation of LDS church members, who holds responsibility for all of the temporal and spiritual aspects of the ward, much like a pastor or priest in other religions. They serve without pay and are selected from the ranks of the ward to serve for a period of three to five years. In the LDS hierarchy, they report to a Stake President. See Wikipedia, “Bishop (Latter-Day Saints)” page.

  BLESSING CIRCLE – Newborn infants are presented at ward fast and testimony meetings to undergo a non-saving ceremony called “the naming and blessing of children.” Provided the father is a holder of the priesthood, he conducts the blessing, and invites as many priesthood holders as he chooses to participate, which usually includes relatives, close family friends, and any visiting church dignitaries. They form a circle around the infant, each reaching in to support the child as it is held in its father’s arms, while the father performs the ceremony by formally giving the child a name and pronouncing an extemporaneous blessing. Similar to the baptism of infants in other faiths, it is an important social event, usually drawing relatives from other wards. See Wikipedia, “Naming and Blessing of Children” page.

  BLOOD ATONEMENT – The theological concept, popularized by Brigham Young in the 19th century, that there are sins so grievous, they cannot be forgiven through the atonement of Jesus Christ. To atone for these sins, a person must die in a manner that sheds their blood (such as firing squad or by a knife wound.) See Wikipedia, “Blood Atonement” page.

  BLUE STAR PROPHECY – A Hopi legend describing the destruction of the world via a cataclysmic event, ushered in by a series of nine signs. The appearance of the blue star Kachina is the ninth and final sign, signifying the coming of a “Day of Purification” and a
new world. Some consider eight of the nine signs to have already occurred, and that the ninth sign is imminent. See Wikipedia, “Blue Star Kachina” page.

  CELESTIAL KINGDOM – The LDS believe that after death, the spirits of all people will wait in a “spirit world” until the second coming of Jesus Christ. At that time, all people will be resurrected. Thereafter, a judgment will occur, and people will be sorted into one of four places to reside for eternity: the worst is the LDS version of hell, called “Outer Darkness.” The other three are considered “kingdoms of glory,” of which the Celestial Kingdom is the highest, and best. The Celestial Kingdom itself is divided into three parts, the highest of which is reserved for people who have been sealed (which is why the LDS perform proxy sealings for the dead). In this highest section of the Celestial Kingdom, resurrected beings will live as gods. See Wikipedia “Degrees of Glory” page.

  COUNSELOR (IN A STAKE PRESIDENCY) – When a man is selected to become a stake president, he is allowed to pick two men from within the geographical boundaries of the stake to serve as his counselors. The counselors are also given the title “president.” The three men, together, are known as the “stake presidency.” See Wikipedia “Stake (Latter-Day Saints)” page.

  D.I. (DESERET INDUSTRIES) – A chain of retail thrift stores operated by the LDS Church. Locals often abbreviate the name, calling it “the D.I.” It operates similarly to Goodwill Industries. The name Deseret is taken from the Book of Mormon, and is the name given to the provisional state that was essentially a theocracy created by the LDS when they emigrated to the American west. See Wikipedia, “Deseret Industries” page and Wikipedia, “State of Deseret” page.

  DANITES – A vigilante group of LDS church members in the 19th century dedicated “to put to right physically that which is not right, and to cleanse the Church of every great evil” (- Joseph Smith). Their name was taken from the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament. The group operated in secret, supposedly executing the will of church leaders. There were rumors that the group persisted after the LDS Church moved to Utah, and that it existed into the 20th century. See Wikipedia, “Danite” page.

  ENDOWMENT – A religious ceremony created by Joseph Smith and organized/instituted by Brigham Young. The LDS version of the ceremony is performed in temples. People who wish to be sealed must first perform this ceremony. The ceremony is considered preparation to become a king or queen in the afterlife, by taking part in a scripted reenactment of the Adam and Eve story. During the ceremony, the person makes several oaths, many based on Masonic oaths, including a promise to keep the oaths themselves secret. The ceremony has been changed several times since its inception, primarily to remove objectionable and violent elements. Prior to 1990, the oaths included penalties that involved ways in which life could be taken if the oaths were violated. Prior to 1927, the oaths included an Oath of Vengeance: “You and each of you do covenant and promise that you will pray and never cease to pray to Almighty God to avenge the blood of the prophets upon this nation, and that you will teach the same to your children and to your children's children unto the third and fourth generation.” The “prophets” were Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum, killed by a mob in Illinois. “This nation” was the United States. In addition to removing the Oath of Vengeance in 1927, the LDS Church also softened the language of the penalties from specific ways in which the penalties might be executed (“my throat ... be cut from ear to ear, and my tongue torn out by its roots…our breasts ... be torn open, our hearts and vitals torn out and given to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field…your body ... be cut asunder and all your bowels gush out”) to a gentler “suffer my life to be taken.” See Wikipedia, “Endowment (Latter Day Saints)” page, Wikipedia, “Endowment (Mormonism)” page, and Wikipedia, “Oath of Vengeance” page.

  EXCOMMUNICATION – A disciplinary act of a church against a member. In the LDS church, an excommunication is conducted if church leaders determine that a serious sin was committed. The LDS teach that the excommunication eliminates the chance for that person to reach the Celestial Kingdom and nullifies all ordinances such as baptism, endowments, and sealings. If the person repents and rejoins the church after a period of exile, their ordinances can be restored. See Wikipedia, “Excommunication” page, “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints” section.

  EXIMERE – (Spoiler alert: skip this paragraph if you have not read Eximere, the fourth book in The River series.) Eximere is the name of an underground house in the novel of the same name. The house was created by a character that was gifted, but renounced his gift and worked to undermine the gift in others by draining their abilities, killing them, and stealing any memoirs and objects they may have possessed, keeping them locked away in the secret underground mansion. Steven and Roy Hall, along with Eliza Winters, discover Eximere under the haunted estate of Harold Unser on the Olympic peninsula of Washington State, and establish a way to take possession of the place, working to restore the stolen memoirs and objects to their rightful owners or heirs. Restoring memoirs has been an easier task than restoring objects, since the memoirs can be read and an owner more easily determined. The objects at Eximere do not have obvious owners and most have unexplained abilities and powers that Steven, Roy, and Eliza have not discovered. See “Eximere” by Michael Richan. Better yet, read all of the books in the entire River series! See “By The Author” at the beginning of this book.

  EXTERMINATION ORDER – Missouri Executive Order 44, issued by the governor of Missouri, Lilburn Boggs, in 1838. Its most dramatic wording included: “…the Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the State if necessary for the public peace…” It was used as justification for forced expulsion of Mormons from their properties in Missouri. Some of the more notorious expulsions were done in the middle of cold winter nights, forcing Mormon families to abandon all of their possessions and run into nearby fields with nothing more than the clothes on their back, watching from a distance as angry mobs burned their homes and farms. It wasn’t rescinded until 1976, when then-governor Kit Bond acknowledged the unconstitutional nature of the order. See Wikipedia, “Missouri Executive Order 44” page.

  FUNDAMENTALISTS (MORMON) – In order for Utah to become a state, the LDS Church was forced to give up the practice of polygamy that it had condoned in the 19th century; US laws forbade polygamy. The LDS church formally renounced polygamy in 1890, after sixty years of teaching that it was only by polygamy that a person could reach the highest level of the celestial kingdom in the next life. Many members of the LDS church in 1890 weren’t prepared to part with this teaching, and broke off from the church, becoming smaller groups known as fundamentalists. They continue to believe that polygamy is a divinely sanctioned practice, and they hold to several other teachings from the Brigham Young era, such as blood atonement, the “Adam-God theory,” and that black males cannot receive the priesthood. Perhaps the most famous fundamentalist in modern times is Warren Jeffs, leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the largest of the break-off sects. See Wikipedia, “Mormon Fundamentalism” page, Wikipedia, “Mormonism and Polygamy” page, Wikipedia, “Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints” page, and the “Jeffs, Warren” glossary entry.

  FUNERAL POTATOES – A delicious but unhealthy traditional casserole served as a side dish at Mormon after-funeral communal meals in Utah and Idaho. Often prepared by the sisters of a ward for those who are grieving or ill. See Wikipedia, “Funeral Potatoes” page.

  GADIANTON ROBBERS – A secret organization of people, described in the Book of Mormon. They formed large criminal organizations, and identified each other by secret signs. They were responsible for assassinations in the Book of Mormon story. As a group, they appear in three different iterations over the span of the book. Modern folklore speculates that the organization still exists to this day. See Wikipedia, “Gadianton Robbers” page.

  GARDNER, RONNIE LEE - Received the death penalty for m
urder in 1985, and was executed by firing squad by the state of Utah in 2010. The execution of Gardner at Utah State Prison became the focus of media attention in June 2010, because it was the first to be carried out by firing squad in the United States in fourteen years. Gardner stated that he sought this method of execution because of his Mormon background. See Wikipedia, “Ronnie Lee Gardner” page.

  GENEALOGY – The study of families and the tracing of family trees. Members of the LDS Church are primarily interested in genealogy for the purpose of acquiring names for proxy ordinances in temples. See Wikipedia, “Family History Library” page.

  GENERAL AUTHORITY – The highest levels of leadership in the LDS Church, including, in descending order, the president of the church and his counsellors, a quorum of twelve apostles, and a group known as the quorum of the seventy. Collectively, these men are colloquially referred to within the church as “the brethren.” In the hierarchy, stake presidents report to members of the quorum of the seventy. Unlike the positions of stake president and bishop, general authorities are paid by the church. The president of the church is considered a prophet by default of his position, and members of the church are expected to support and sustain all general authorities. See Wikipedia, “General Authority” page.

  INVESTIGATOR – LDS term for a person who isn’t a member of the church but might be interested in becoming a member. Mormon missionaries call potential converts who are studying the church “investigators.”

  JACK MORMON – A lapsed or inactive member of the LDS church. See Wikipedia, “Jack Mormon” page.

  JEFFS, WARREN – Leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Convicted in St. George, UT in 2007 of two counts of rape as an accomplice. His conviction was overturned by the Utah Supreme Court due to improper jury instructions. He was extradited to Texas, where the church had a temple that had been raided by authorities. He was convicted in Texas of sexual assault and aggravated sexual assault of children. He was sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years.