The Visionary Of Salem: Ministers Of The Mystery

By Kathie Costos

Chris and his friends face more battles as he struggles with trying to finish his third book. He's haunted by terrifying dreams of a woman. He is stalked by a fraud who passes himself off as a reverend but was the head of a cult. He had to deal with having hallucinations of Reverend George Burroughs who was hung during the witchcraft craze in 1692. The worst thing to face was a haunting dream tormenting him.

Chris always wondered what those people would think about what Salem turned into as a tourist destination. He just never thought that real witches were all around him and he wasn't the only one keeping secrets.

It took a witch named Mandy to show him the power within himself. He healed, became a best-selling author of two inspirational books, a series being filmed, reunited with friends, and had more wealth and fame than he ever dreamed of, but still, he fought against changes in his life. His new psychologist was trying to get Chris to figure out what she already knew about him. She gained his trust, but he had no idea what she did in her free time. She knew the secret he did not dare to share.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kathie Costos
• Release date: Dec 3, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215334973

Kathie Costos

Kathie Costos survived over ten traumatic events that could have killed her. For four decades she helped other survivors heal using personal experience, research, and thousands of articles, she compiled many true stories in creating The Ministers Of The Mystery Series THE SCRIBE OF SALEM IS BOOK ONE THE VISIONARY OF SALEM IS BOOK TWO 13TH MINISTER OF SALEM IS BOOK THREE Kathie lives in New Hampshire with her second husband of over three decades, and their dog Murray. Other books are For The Love Of Jack, The Warrior SAW, Residual War, Websites; Wounded Times and PTSD Patrol

Book preview

DEDICATION

In Memory of Gunny who passed away

January 3, 2022, from COVID-19

He was my buddy, supporter, encourager, and adviser, and never let me give up on myself.

THIS IS A WORK OF FICTION. Names, characters, businesses, events, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental, but I hope you imagine them to be true.

prologue

"A lthough they still believed in witches and believed witches may have invaded Salem, they had doubts that so many people could have been guilty of the crime." The Witchcraft Trial of Reverend George Burroughs Rebecca Beatrice Brooks

Chris always wondered what those people would think about what Salem turned into as a tourist destination. He just never thought that real witches were all around him and he wasn’t the only one keeping secrets.

He discovered that the people in his life were there for a reason and a higher purpose. He had to fight to heal, reconnect to his spiritual faith, and believe in miracles again. The only thing standing in his way was his inability to believe in himself. It took a witch named Mandy to show him the power within himself.

He healed, became a best-selling author of two inspirational books, a series being filmed, reunited with friends, and had more wealth and fame than he ever dreamed of, but still, he fought against changes in his life.

1 THE VISION

The twelve women returned to the beach at Salem Willows. This time they chanted, Open your eyes, Matthias! The leader pulled down the hood of her purple cape showing her cinnamon color hair with streaks of gray and purple glasses and cunningly smiled at the others like Sharon Stone in The Muse. She winked and the circle broke.

CHRIS WAS DONE WAITING for another miracle. Five months of torture, trying to bring life to a miracle, he feared were coming to an end. The lessons he should have learned over the last couple of years eluded his thoughts. At 2:00 in the morning, walking back from another night at his bar through his neighborhood, he saw a vision of a demon waiting for him across the street. He shook his head, closed his eyes and it vanished. It was almost as bad as the nightmarish hauntings in his dreams.

While Chris watched his life change day by day, this time it was changing in a way that terrified him. January 3, 2022, he was trying to finish his third book but struggled with the last few chapters. Somehow he managed to finish off ten chapters but unlike his first two books, completed in a matter of a couple of months, this was arduous.

After yet another night with only a few hours of sleep, he was sitting at his desk, working on the book when Grace opened the door. Chris was startled, quickly shut his laptop, and jumped off his chair. She looked at him, laughing at the expression on his face as if he just gotten caught doing something wrong. Um, I got your mail because I thought you were on your way to Gabriel.

Oh, thanks. I have to stop by the dentist and see my shrink, but then I’m leaving,

Are you ok?

Ya but it’s gonna be a rough few days.

She looked at the stack of notes next to his laptop. I have to ask. Are you writing another book?

Why?

Don’t give me that. I know you and I know you’ve been keeping a secret. It isn’t a far reach to know that’s why you closed your laptop as soon as you saw me.

Chris was still good at keeping secrets but lousy at lying. Ya. I am. He looked down at the floor, Please don’t tell anyone.

I won’t. So what’s it about?

The usual. He smiled looking back up at her.

So I’m guessing you don’t want to talk about it?

Guessed right. He chuckled, then looked down at the floor again, Sorry you can’t come with me.

Me too but I still have to watch the girls so that Bruce can take care of Mrs 2. He doesn’t want the girls to catch the flu.

I understand. At least it isn’t COVID.

You’re right. Thank God it isn’t. She’s nice and he’s a great husband to her, just like he was to me, I’m grateful they want me to be a part of their lives.

It’s a lot better on the girls knowing they’re loved by all of you and you all care about each other.

It is. It was clear to see Grace was getting emotional. Sometimes, she looked down at the floor, I still regret the decision I made to leave them, but then I remember what I was like back then. I don’t know what would have happened if I stayed. She looked into Chris’s eyes.

You did the right thing, but I know how hard it is for you. They had the same conversation many times before but he knew sometimes, she needed to repeat conversations to reassure herself, just like he did.

Thanks. You should get going. It's getting late. I’ll take care of Salem and Gabriel while you’re gone.

Oh, my God! I’m sorry. I forgot to ask you to feed the cats.

It’s ok, but you need to get going.

Ya, you’re right. He walked over to Grace and hugged her. He picked up his bag and they walked out the door. What time is your Zoom meeting with the Chaplains?

She forgot all about it, and looked at her watch, In ten minutes! Good Lord! I forgot! Drive carefully! Grace ran down the hall to her apartment.

THE PASTOR ED SUGGESTED he talk to for help healing PTSD had retired but he suggested another pastor/psychologist he knew. She was a good fit for Chris and gained his trust. He called her for an emergency appointment before he left for Gabriel.

Chris arrived at Dariana Kemp’s office. He had no idea what else she did before working in her office with the women on the beach that morning.

Her office was in an old mansion in the center of Salem. She was only middle-aged but had the wisdom of what Chris called an old spirit with an infectious laugh. He thought she looked like Sharon Stone and once in a while he slipped, calling her Sharon. At first, because she dressed like Stevie Nicks, Chris thought she was going to pull out a crystal ball until he found out she was an ordained minister. She got into working on PTSD using psychology and spirituality after losing her Vietnam veteran father to suicide.

Chris sat in the huge leather chair near the fireplace playing with his fingers as his eyes moved everywhere in the room, avoiding having to look at Dariana. He knew she could see right through him.

While he was looking at the massive wall of books, she gave him a few minutes to put his thoughts together, then gave up. Ok Chris, it’s time to speak up. What’s going on? You said it was urgent. She knew him well enough to have extra patience with him. For a great writer, he was lousy at concocting stories to speak and even worse at lying to cover up what he didn’t want to say.

I’m upset Grace isn’t coming because I don’t want to do this but she was going to make it a little easier to do. Now I have to go there alone, have my heart ripped out for Mandy, and then drive back alone. He took a deep breath, finally looked at her, then hung his head down. I don’t want to do it, but I know I have to.  I want you to tell me I don’t have to go there.

She raised one eyebrow, You don’t have to go there. You could just email Drake, or call her, get her thoughts about Mandy and let her approve the script or make her changes. But you already know that. Why do you need me to tell you what you already know?

I guess I needed reassurance. Hating the thought of having to admit it, My confidence is in the toilet right now. The first book was done and in bookstores in six months and so was the second one. I’ve been working on this one for five months and it still isn’t done.

What do you think is holding you back?

The others were easier, I guess because I lived in that hell and I knew what put me there. With this, with it being about kids, it’s causing more emotional pain than I expected. I had to read so many articles on child abuse, that it made me sick. That’s why I knew I had to talk to the people already in my life because they lived in that hell and found their way out. Dariana saw he was holding something back. She waited. He slammed the arm of the chair. You know what pisses me off the most about all this?

That it’s all still happening?

Not just that. The so-called pro-life people screaming about how they are protecting the lives of the unborn! What about protecting the lives of the born? What about protecting them when they get raped or abused by their parents? I keep thinking about that woman who was raped and decided to have the baby so she could put it up for adoption but the rapist had rights just because of the state they lived in. If he hadn’t freaked out and got shot in jail, I wonder what would have happened to the baby.

Sometimes it’s like laws protect criminals more than the victims.

Raising his voice, Ya. All these claims about morality and not a peep out of any of them about kids being gunned down in schools by weapons designed to kill as many as possible because other people want to have fun with those same guns. These born children should matter to all of them at least as much as the unborn. Since they don’t, since they don’t show up in mass to protect children born into this world, with the soul from God within their bodies, it proves those people are only pro-birth and I think that is a true abomination.

God granted everyone free will to make their own choices about their bodies and what they do or do not believe. Sometimes I wonder what gives others the right to force their own beliefs onto everyone else. Just like during the Witch Trials, they scream the loudest, so everyone else is their enemy and evil in their eyes. There are denominations believing people have the right to decide for themselves. Presbyterians fully support the right for people to decide for themselves so that every child is loved because they were wanted. I still preach when another pastor goes on vacation and get into all kinds of discussions with folks because of all the other talk that’s out there. They know what is right for them and what their moral values are, but they end up questioning themselves because others try to force theirs on them.

And most of the others are phony as hell. Dariana saw how the anger just rushed out of him. Then sadness moved in. Like Mandy’s parents. I need to know what it was like for Mandy before she became a miracle worker. That’s the only way I can be able to help kids with the new book. I think the only way I can understand what it was like living in that hell, is to go in there so God can get them out. He fought back tears.

She raised her eyebrows, So how are the mood swings now? How many times does it still happen?

They aren’t as bad as they used to be.

Good. Work on that more. You’ve been hearing the stories of others for a couple of years now. Why is Mandy’s story so hard for you?

I honestly don’t know. There was just something astonishing about her and it was almost as if she got into my soul. He looked down, shook his head, and looked back up at Dariana, I’ve been questioning myself more than usual in the last couple of months. I mean, I had a great childhood. My parents loved me, gave me what I needed and I always knew they were proud of me. His hands began to tremble. He stood up, she turned to watch him walk to the window. He was looking away from her, shoved his hands into his pockets, and took a deep breath. In a way, I’m glad they passed away before all that happened. I don’t think I could have taken seeing the pain in their eyes. They’d have no way of knowing how things would turn out like this and it would have been seven years of agony for them too.

I can understand that. What do you think they’d feel about all this now?

They’d be proud but, I’m glad they didn’t have to suffer before my life got good again. He slowly walked back to the chair and sat down.

She waited for him to say more, watched his body language and how his eyes were moving. I think you’re holding something back, but when you’re ready, you’ll tell me what it is. How’s the drinking?"

Good. I enjoy it now instead of abusing it and starting to learn how to, as you said, experience my feelings, like you said I should, instead of trying to drown them. It isn’t easy but you taught me how to stop fighting them.

She grinned, Seriously? Did you forget you suck at lying?

Honestly, I still drink too much when things get too intense.

We'll work on that and maybe start praying on it instead of trying to get plastered.

I’ll try harder.

We talked a lot about the flashbacks before but I need you to go back to right before it. Where were you going to?

We were headed to meet Bill and his unit.

What was your mood like?

I don’t know, he shook his head. I was pissed off about something.

Can you remember what it was?

As he covered his mouth, his eyes were moving rapidly, then froze looking at her. I was pissed off because I tried to get her to go a different way. It was like a premonition that the road was dangerous.

Any idea where that came from?

I don’t know. The longer we were on that road, the stronger the feeling of doom came over me. He sat quietly searching his memory. The more upset I was getting, the more she laughed at me. I told her she was just as bossy as my wife and told her they had more than just their names in common... Oh my God! I forgot her name was Brenda too. Wow! Anyway, we had the windows up because of all the sand, but for some reason, I opened mine.

You said you were looking out the window. Do you remember what made you turn your head to the left?

He winced, If I say it, it will become real and you’ll know I’m nuts.

Just say it and then that memory will lose some of the power it has over you. Besides, I told you before, we’re all a little bit nuts.

He didn’t want to say it. The words were trying to get out but he locked his lips to stop them from escaping knowing once he said it, he’d never be able to take it back. He looked at her, remembered how much he knew he could trust her, and the words escaped. I heard my name.

Was it your driver’s voice?

No, it was a man’s voice. I heard it loud and clear but I can’t make sense out of it because we were going something like 40 miles an hour and her window was still up.

Have your thoughts about that changed since it happened?

No. To tell you the truth, I forgot about most of that. Why? What do you think it means?

Maybe God was trying to prevent it? We hear stories of things like that happening all the time. Someone didn’t get on a plane for reasons they couldn’t explain and it ended up crashing. People decide to go a different way and then end up discovering there was a major accident or a bridge collapsed. I think God tries to prevent a lot of things but people don’t understand what He’s trying to get them to pay attention to.

I guess but with everything that has happened, it’s hard to believe sometimes that He’s that active.

She smiled, We talked before about how you think the goodness in people stopped the Witchcraft trials. I think you’re right but think about what kind of courage that took for them to do that. Don’t stop at just trying to understand that, but ask yourself what could have happened if they had listened sooner and prevented it all from happening in the first place.

I don’t understand.

John Willard hunted down accused witches and was one of the first to speak out against the trials, but he ended up accused of being one and hung. Everyone that stood up to stop the nightmare showed great courage because they knew what happened to Willard, could have happened to them as well. As for Rev. Burroughs, he arrived in Salem in 1680, but could not get the people to open their eyes or even pay him. What if the people listened to him and paid his salary? It was so bad for him, he had to borrow money to bury his wife. As bad as that was, by 1690 he was preaching in Maine. I mean, he wasn’t even in Salem when two years later, he was accused of witchcraft and ended up being put to death because of grudges held against him. What if the people of Salem had listened to him before all that started? He tried to get them to open their eyes and stop hating one another but they didn’t want to do the right thing.

So you’re saying that God sent Burroughs to prevent all of it but no one listened?

Yes. You didn’t have to listen to the voice inside of you telling you that road was dangerous. You could have dismissed the urge sent to you to put down your window, just as easily as you could have ignored the man’s voice calling your name.

Deep in thought, he leaned forward, All I know right now is, if I didn’t open the window, the glass would have shattered on top of the shrapnel hitting. If I didn’t turn my head to the left because of the voice, if I survived it, my face would have been destroyed and I probably would have been blind. Hard to take in right now, but I know you’re probably right.

I’m glad you told me that and let that secret out. That flashback will lose some power now, just like when you found out Brenda died and wouldn’t haunt you anymore. What about dreams? Any closer to making sense out of them?

Nope. They’re getting stronger. When I finally fell asleep, I saw Grace at the Salem Willows wharf. She was standing on the edge for a while then she jumped in. She didn’t come back up. Chris looked down at the floor."

Is that how it ended?

"No. I was terrified and woke up. My heart was beating hard and I forced myself to go back to sleep. Then in the dream, she came up out of the water holding the woman from the other dreams. Grace was dry but she was dripping wet with her hair all over her face. The only thing I could see was her lips. She mouthed the words, help me find my way, and then I woke up."

Didn’t the sleeping pills help?

No, I stopped taking them because they made it worse. I couldn’t wake up after it started and then it just went into a loop replay with the same dream. Without them, I can wake up and when I finally fall back to sleep, they usually don’t start again.

So the dreams could be tied to the book. You said they were getting stronger since September and that was when you started to struggle with it.

I just keep thinking what if, he didn’t want to get the words out because he