He nodded again. A sudden lump had formed in his throat, and he didn’t trust himself to speak. All he wanted was to reach out to her and pull her into his arms. He felt an overwhelming urge to place his lips against the top of her golden hair and whisper to her that everything was going to be okay. That he would stay by her side through this, through whatever was going to happen.
But he resisted the urge. It wasn’t the time or the place; and besides, he had no idea how she would react. She was stunned, trying to figure it all out. And she still thought that he was crazy. He knew that. Just because they had found out details about where her father had been didn’t mean she now believed him that demons were behind it all.
Suddenly, she pointed. “Look. Josiah is coming back to the truck.”
Thad turned. Josiah was indeed heading back to them. He approached the passenger side, and Thad wound down the window.
“He’s having a good day,” he said, slowly. “He didn’t get angry when I said I had some people who wanted to talk with him, so you can come in. But still be wary. If he starts getting agitated, I am taking you both out of here.”
Thad nodded, turning to Keeley. “Do you want to come in, or would you feel better staying here?”
Keeley took a deep breath. “I’ll come.”
They got out, walking beside Josiah towards the shack. Keeley could feel her heart beating like a hammer.
Her eyes widened in surprise as they stepped through the doorway.
It was a hoarder’s paradise, so packed with junk that she could barely see a way into it. She glanced to the left. Piles of old newspapers were stacked everywhere. A large orange cat growled at her from the top of one, its tail stiff and flicking in warning. Where was this man?
Eventually, she spotted him. He was sitting in an old armchair, surrounded by his junk. So, this was Old Fairley.
He was a large man, so heavy that the chair sagged beneath him. And old. The top of his head was completely bald, but long grey tufts grew from the bottom, almost to his shoulders. He was dressed in a dirty white singlet and brown shorts, with a thin chenille dressing gown draped over his shoulders.
“Fairley,” said Josiah, in a loud voice. “This is Thad Morgan and Keeley Walters. The people I was telling you about.”
The man turned his head slowly to stare at them, his bushy grey eyebrows turned down. Keeley felt a shiver of foreboding. His brown eyes were angry. Should they just turn and leave?
But then, he lurched up from the chair, the anger dissipating entirely. He smiled. She could see a row of blackened, stubbly teeth.
He nodded quickly. “Good, good,” he said briskly. “They aren’t monitoring me today. So, I can talk for a little while.”
Thad took a deep breath. “Thanks for seeing us,” he said slowly. “Who is monitoring you?”
“Them,” he said, jerking his thumb in a vague way. “They keep an eye on me, you see. But they know that I’m not going anywhere, so they don’t care too much. Still.” He pointed to the roof. “I try to listen to what they are saying, but they are tricky. They keep changing the frequency.”
Thad’s eyes flickered towards Keeley, then back towards the man. “Do you mean the antennas that we saw on your roof?”
The man nodded quickly. “They pick up some stuff, but not all. They are always one step ahead.”
Keeley was suddenly distracted by a large corkboard behind the man. It was filled to overflowing with torn out paintings and drawings of similar figures. Grey figures with bald heads, and large black eyes.
Her eyes trailed over it. There were pictures, too, of flying saucers.
She felt a frission of unease spread through her. He was obviously crazy. But the drawings of the figures reminded her of the creatures in the painting above the bed in her motel room, back at the Hacienda.
Was it just coincidence?
She could see that Thad had seen the corkboard, too. He studied it for a moment, then turned his attention back to the man.
“Who are they?” he asked softly.
Old Fairley was obviously not used to being listened to. His smile widened.
“No one knows,” he said, flinging his arms wide. “But I have my ideas. They aren’t human, that’s for sure. They look nothing like us. Grey and bald. I think they came here from another planet, trying to take over the world. Aliens.” He took a deep breath. “The government turns a blind eye to them. I’m still trying to figure out why, but I think they are all in on it. They know what happens there.”
Josiah coughed into his hand.
Thad nodded. He reached into his pocket, taking out his phone and scrolling to his photo of the painting back at the motel. He held it out to Fairley.
“You could be right,” he said. “When you say what happens there, are you talking about this place?”
Fairley’s eyes widened, and he collapsed back in his chair, ashen.
Chapter Twelve
Old Fairley was gasping as if he was suddenly choking. Keeley looked at Thad and Josiah in alarm. The man’s face was going a shade of purple.
Thad leaned over the man. “Can you breathe?”
The man nodded with difficulty, but his colour was slowly returning to normal. Josiah was staring at him, shaking his head. Keeley could see that he was concerned, too.
“How did you get that?” Fairley spluttered, fanning himself with one of his old newspapers.
Thad straightened. “It’s a painting in a room at the Hacienda,” he said. “The motel in Farrow Valley.”
The man drew a deep breath. “It was the shock,” he said slowly. “I haven’t seen that place in years. I hoped to never see it again.”
Thad squatted down next to the man’s chair, staring at him. “It’s the place in the desert, isn’t it?”
Fairley nodded. “Everyone knows it’s there,” he said, his voice venomous. “But they all pretend that they don’t. They’ve either been paid off or they are cowards.”
“How did you get there?” Thad’s voice was soft.
Fairley stared at him, laughing. “I didn’t want to,” he said. “I was just out wandering the desert. I must have tripped a wire or something. Next thing I know they dragged me in there.”
Thad nodded. “How long did they keep you there?”
Fairley stopped laughing abruptly. “How the hell should I know? Years, probably. I wasn’t quite so old when they got me.” He took a deep breath. “I escaped once, you know. They found me. Ran me over with one of their cars. When I woke up I was back there.”
Thad stared at him. “So, how are you here now? If they pursued you and took you back?”
Fairley started laughing again. “They didn’t have any further use for me.” His eyes blinked rapidly. “I was invalid. They’d done everything they could, and I wasn’t one of their chosen ones. I suppose they could have just killed me, but instead they dumped me back in the desert. And I’ve been living here ever since, trying to figure out just what they are doing.” He stared at Josiah. “Don’t think I don’t know that you all think I’m crazy.”
Josiah sighed. “It’s a strange story, Fairley. You must admit that.”
“It’s the truth!” The man suddenly stood up, his face quivering. “That place is evil! They are doing things there that…that…” his voice trailed off.
Keeley felt her mind spinning. Was he telling the truth? Was the place in the desert—whatever that was—abducting people and doing strange things to them? Keeping them locked away for years? And did her father stumble across it somehow, and that was why he was imprisoned in his own mind?
“Fairley,” said Thad in a calm voice. “It’s okay. I’m here to help. Tell me what they did to you.”
But Fairley was not listening. He started pacing the small area of floor that wasn’t covered in junk. Keeley watched, appalled, as he started wringing his hands, twisting them together. His eyes stared at the overladen cork board, covered with his own paintings and drawings.
“No one knows,” he m
uttered. “No one wants to know! It’s been there for years and years, and everyone just goes about their business, turning their heads away! It’s not right!”
Thad stepped towards him. “No, it’s not right. But to help you I need to know as much as I can.” He took a deep breath. “What are they doing in there?”
Fairley stared at him without replying.
Keeley took a deep breath. Should she try to show the photo of her father to him? See if he recognised him? She just didn’t know. He was getting agitated, and it had started when he had been shown the painting of the building. If her father had been there, and he recognised him, would it tip him over the edge?
But suddenly, Fairley turned to her. His dark brown eyes seemed to be seeing her for the first time.
“You should get her out of here,” he said. “They like to take young women as well. And you don’t want to know what they do to them.” His face looked stricken. He turned back to Thad. “Do you hear me? Get her as far away from here as you can!”
Keeley felt the blood drain from her face, and her heart started to thud uncomfortably in her chest. This was too much. This whole place, with its junk everywhere and the mad man within it standing like a black spider in its web, was starting to make her feel claustrophobic.
“Get out!” He was yelling, gesticulating to the door. “Get out!”
“We should go,” said Josiah quickly. “Now.”
Keeley could see frustration in Thad’s face, but he nodded, grabbing her arm. They all walked out of the shack, back towards the truck.
“Don’t look back,” hissed Josiah. “And don’t run. If he sees you running, he might get his gun.”
Keeley started shaking, but then she felt Thad’s reassuring hand on her arm. He wasn’t leaving her. After what seemed an eternity they finally climbed into the truck. Keeley fearfully raised her eyes towards the shack.
Fairley was standing there, watching them. His great bulk was quivering with rage.
“They are coming!” He screamed. “They are coming!”
Josiah quickly reversed down the path, before putting the truck into drive and hurtling away. Keeley felt her breath leave her body in relief as soon as the shack disappeared from the rearview mirror.
Thad slowly turned to look at her. She gazed at him, and she knew.
They are coming.
The exact words that her father had been saying, all these years. Over and over again. A frozen loop in his mind. And Old Fairley, the crazy man in the shack in the desert, was saying them, as well.
It could only mean one thing. Her father had been to that place.
***
The motel was shrouded in darkness by the time Thad pulled into the parking lot. He cut the ignition and turned to Keeley, who was staring silently out the window.
“What do you think?” he said softly. “Should we head to the bar for supper?”
Keeley sighed. “I suppose we should,” she said, turning to him. “Although I don’t feel hungry at all. And that place is unwelcoming, to say the least.”
“We need to eat,” he said evenly. “You need to eat. Worrying yourself sick over it all doesn’t help. You need to be strong.”
She nodded but didn’t say anything.
They walked slowly to the bar. The night had turned cool, and Thad could see a million stars starting to wink like car headlights in the sky. Keeley was still silent, walking alongside. He frowned slightly. She hadn’t said much at all since they had left Fairley’s shack and returned with Josiah to his place. They had stayed another hour talking with the old man about the building and where it was exactly located.
He had wanted to go there immediately, but it had been getting late by that point, and they still had another half an hour’s drive to get back to Farrow Valley. Besides, he had been worried about Keeley. He wasn’t sure if it was all too much for her, now. So, instead of heading further into the desert, he had turned towards the town.
The bar was almost empty when they opened the doors and walked in, placing their orders and sitting down at the same table where they had breakfasted. He stared at her.
“Would you like a wine?” he said. “Or a beer?”
She smiled slightly. “I would usually say wine, but I don’t think they would have a great selection in this place. So, a beer it is.”
The slightly bitter taste of the ale was welcome. He hadn’t realised how thirsty he was. His stomach was growling, too. It said a lot about how hungry he was that even the thought of eating in this place was welcome.
Keeley drank her beer mechanically, as though she wasn’t even tasting it. Her pale blue eyes looked troubled again.
“Tell me what you are thinking,” he said slowly.
She sighed. “I hardly know what to think,” she replied. “It’s all so bizarre. First your stories that the book is a demon sacred text, and that this building is populated by demons. Then Fairley’s mad ranting.” She sighed again, wearily. “At least I have discovered how my father got back to Coyote River.”
They were interrupted by the barman, placing their meals on the table. Tonight, they didn’t bother to thank him, merely nodding their heads at the surly man, waiting for him to leave.
Thad watched her eating as mechanically as she had drunk her beer. He felt a cold shiver fall through him. She wasn’t coping with this. Well, it was a lot to take in and comprehend. He knew that. Especially for a woman like Keeley, who believed in hard facts. She had said that she had no interest or belief in the supernatural at all.
To suddenly be confronted with the possibility that there were things in the world beyond rational explanation was clearly troubling her. Thad speared a piece of dry chicken onto his fork as he thought about it. He should persuade her to leave Farrow Valley. Go back home to her old life and leave all this behind.
It would be safer for her, too. He wanted her safety. But the thought of her leaving troubled him even more, in a way that he was having difficulty understanding.
Her voice interrupted him. “You look thoughtful.”
He smiled wryly. “There’s a lot to think about. We achieved a lot today, but it’s also a lot to take in.” He took a deep breath. “Keeley, I would understand completely if you want to leave this town.”
She nodded slowly. “I have been thinking about it,” she admitted. “All of it is a bit beyond me, and everyone here seems slightly insane. All this talk of alien abductions and conspiracy theories…”
Thad took a deep breath. “The truth of it is in there somewhere. I’m not saying that I believe everything that Fairley said. He’s obviously troubled by whatever happened to him, and it’s affected his mind. But I have to investigate it.”
She frowned. “I know. There’s too many coincidences stacking up.” She sighed again. “If there wasn’t all this bizarre element, my reporter’s nose would definitely be twitching.”
Thad looked down at his meal. “I’m not a reporter, but I am an investigator. Sort of. Or I once was, and I think that I still have it in me.” He gazed up at her suddenly. “There is enough here to know that something is definitely going on. And it is centred around that building in the desert.”
Keeley pushed away her plate. “I can’t eat any more of it. It was even worse than what I had for supper last night.”
Thad nodded. “Do you want to finish our drinks and head back to the motel?”
She nodded, draining her beer and grabbing her bag. They stepped out into the night. His hand itched to take hers as they walked side by side along the street back towards the Hacienda. He knew he desired her, but it wasn’t that. Or not entirely. He yearned to comfort her. Tell her that it was all going to be fine and not to worry.
Except he couldn’t, could he? First of all, it would be a lie. He knew the danger that she would be stepping into if she decided to stay. And secondly, he wasn’t sure at all if she would welcome it. They had grown closer today, but she still thought he was mad.
She thought everyone was crazy. Thi
s place and everyone in it, including him. He could sense her quaking a little like a jackrabbit caught in the headlights.
They reached the doorway of her room. He hesitated, not knowing what to say.
“Do you want to come in?” she asked slowly.
His eyes widened slightly, and he could feel his heart start to hammer.
“Just to talk a bit more,” she said quickly, ducking her head.
He nodded, and she unlocked it, switching on the lights.
His eyes were drawn to the painting above the bed again. She frowned, following his gaze.
“You really believe it, don’t you?” she said, staring at him. “That what is in that painting is real.”
“I know it’s real,” he said slowly. “I’ve spent most of my adult life fighting those creatures.”
She sighed, sitting on the bed. He walked around the room before settling on the only chair in the opposite corner, staring at her.
“Why would they put it there?” she asked suddenly. “The painting, I mean. If it’s true that they are trying to deny what is happening in the desert.”
He sighed. “I’ve wondered the same thing myself,” he said. “It seems blatant. I guess whoever placed it there thought that no one would recognise it.”
She turned and stared at the painting. “That still doesn’t tell us why they would bother.”
Thad sighed again. “There is power in the words and the pictures,” he said slowly. “It’s the same as someone who is religious placing a painting depicting something sacred to them. They do it because it’s important to them.”
Her eyes widened. “We’re talking about Jim Scott, aren’t we? He must be the one who placed it there.”
He nodded. “Jim Scott is definitely involved. That painting tells us that the building is an important place for him. And that he knows the demons are there.”
Keeley swallowed painfully. “Does it mean that he also knows what goes on there? If we believe what Old Fairley said, of course.”
“He must.” Thad leaned forward. “Keeley, you have to believe at least that whatever happened to your father has something to do with that place now. He was found wandering in the desert, incoherent, with that book in his bag.”
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