“Thanks,” she said, as she took the card, glanced at it, and tucked it into her purse.
“One day, you and I need to talk about the dreams you had with my sister in them. I want to know everything you can remember. I think it would help me find her,” Johann said.
“Any time you want to,” Belinda answered.
Johann and Robert bid farewell to the small group and made their way back to Johann's car.
“By the way. How ya doin' with the not smoking thing,” asked Johann.
“Eh,” Robert replied, making a gesture with his hand, “Not easy, but I can do it.
As the two men walked out of the church, they heard a loud shriek from above them. They peered up and saw a huge Raven flying away from the church. The enormous bird toward the motel.
“That son of a bitch,” Johann said, as he watched the black bird.
“Too late to worry about that now,” Robert said. He grabbed Johann's arm, as though stopping him from a fight. “If he heard anything, which I would assume he did, we'll just deal with it.”
“Come on. Let's go, and talk to that bastard. Maybe we can put him into the intensive care ward,” Johann said. Robert eyed his companion nervously.
“It's a good thing you left your gun in the room,” said Robert, as he got into the car.
“Yeah,” said Johann. He didn't let Robert see his smirk.
-8-
On their way to the hospital, a small uniform shop stood out from the other stores on+ the street, and Johann realized they most likely sold medical scrubs. He and Robert went inside and purchased white lab coats.
“What do we need these for,” asked Robert, as they got back into the car.
“You'll see. Carry it over your arm when we go into the hospital. Don't do anything to bring attention to them. If anyone does ask about them, let me do the talking.”
A few minutes later, they arrived at the hospital and parked near the general entrance. They walked into the modern and spacious lobby and went to the visitation desk.
“Can I help you, gentlemen,” asked the receptionist, an elderly woman. She wore her grey hair pulled back into a small bun at the back of her head. This gave her the appearance of being stern, much like a librarian, although she seemed quite friendly. Johann glanced at her name, Edna, on the tag she wore.
“You sure can, Edna,” said Johann, as he used the best Boston accent he could, “We came all the way from Boston to visit our buddy, Blake. We heard he got himself shot. Blake Harris and I believe the room number they gave me was three seventeen.”
The nurse accessed the information on her computer.
“Three seventeen. There you go,” she said, as she handed two passes to Johann and Robert, “The elevators are over there. Visiting hours end at nine tonight.”
“Oh, we won't be here that long bothering him. Just want to say hi and find out how he's doin',” Johann said.
The two casually walked to the elevator, doing their best not to attract any undue attention. The elevator door opened a few moments after they got there, and they boarded. Being the only two on the elevator, nobody could witness their “transformation” into doctors.
The two donned their coats. Johann already wore a jacket to conceal his shoulder holster. To made sure the weapon remained hidden from Robert, he put his lab coat on over his jacket.
“Aren't you a little warm with two coats on,” Robert asked.
“It's gonna get hotter,” Johann answered. Robert glanced at him with his brow furrowed. He wasn't sure he liked where this conversation was headed.
The two demon hunters walked quietly down the hall to room three seventeen. They did their best to not attract any unwanted attention from the nurses at the nurses' station. Blake sat up in his bed, startled by the two strange doctors who entered his room.
“Who are you,” asked Blake.
“Close the door, doctor,” Johann said to Robert as they entered the room. “I'm your new doctor,” Johann said as he approached the bed.
“My new doctor? They didn't tell me anything about that,” Blake said.
“Allow me to introduce us. This is Doctor Kildare, and I'm Doctor Gonnafuckyouup,” Johann said as he grabbed Blake by the hair on his head, “And if you don't tell me why you're conjurin' up this fuckin' demon, you're gonna find out how I got my name.”
Blake winced in pain as his head went back from his hair being pulled. His hands flailed, as he struggled to find the button to call the nurse. The pain of having his hair pulled had the effect, at least, of making the pain from the gunshot wound less noticeable.
“Doctor, get over here and hold this bastard,” Johann said to Robert, who closed the door and came over, as fast as he could. Robert grabbed Blake's hands, and Johann reached inside his jacket.
“Hold him, while I give him his shot,” Johann said, as he withdrew his pistol, and held it to Blake's head, which caused Blake almost instantly to stop struggling. Robert's mouth dropped open with surprise at the sight of the gun. He had no idea Johann had it with him, and the sudden appearance of the weapon startled him.
“Are you nuts? We can't just shoot him,” Robert said.
“Watch me,” Johann answered, “The people would thank me when all the suicides stop because this bastard's dead.”
“You're fucking crazy; you know that? What's wrong with you,” said Blake, as he tried to look at Johann while his head was being held so it couldn't move. He began to tremble, and nervous sweat dripped down his face.
“Don't piss him off. You're right about him being crazy, you know,” Robert said to Blake. Then he turned to Johann, and tried to sound as convincing as he could, “Did you take your pills today?” Johann glanced at Robert, then turned his attention back to Blake.
“Look, you can't hide it from us that you're the conjuror. So, unless you want your brains scattered all over these clean white sheets, you better tell me you're gonna help us rid this town of the demon.”
“ 'Conjuror,' 'demon,' ” said Blake, “What demon? It looks to me like you're the only one with some demons here.”
Johann jerked Blake's head and rubbed the pistol barrel on his cheek, to encourage cooperation.
“I'm not kidding you, you son of a bitch,” Johann said.
Blake raised his hands and began to try to cover his face.
“I swear, I have no idea what the fuck you're talking about,” Blake said, as he began to cry from fear. “Mister, I've had some hard knocks the last few years. If you want to kill me, go ahead. I'm done with this bullshit life anyway. Things won't be getting any better for me. So, if you want to blow my brains out, go ahead. I'll help you pull the fuckin' trigger.”
“I think he's telling the truth,” Robert said.
“Remember what I told you about demons,” Johann asked Robert.
“Yeah. But, I don't think this guy's a demon, Johann.”
Johann softened his stance ever so slightly and removed the gun from the side of Blake's head.
“So, if you're not doin' it, who is,” asked Johann, as he put the pistol back into the shoulder holster.
“Doin' what? Tell me what you're talkin' about,” Blake said, as he rubbed his head where the pistol had been pressed against it.
“So, you're tellin' me you didn't notice all the suicides around here lately? What are you, blind,” Johann said, as he waved his hands in front of Blake's face.
“No, I'm not blind,” Blake said, as he grabbed at Johann's hand to stop him from waving it. “The people in this town are frickin' crazy. I can prove it. I'm here 'cause some jerk shot me 'cause he thought I stole some soap,” he turned to face Johann, “Stole some soap. Can you believe that? I may be homeless, but I ain't no thief. Never was, never will be. Then you come barging in here like Sherlock Clueless and put a gun to my head, tellin' me I gotta get rid of your demons. I mean, what the fuck, Doctor Getabrain?”
“I wouldn't piss him off, if I were you,” Robert said to Blake, who, by now, had become very confu
sed over what was happening.
While the three talked, a nurse came into the room. She glanced at Johann and Robert in the white doctor smocks and became concerned.
“Excuse me, Doctor, but I don't recognize you,” she said.
“Just friends of Blakey boy here,” Johann said. The nurse turned her attention to Blake. The moment she turned away from Johann, he opened his smock to remind Blake about the pistol he carried.
“Yeah. They're friends of mine from out of town. Lucky me,” Blake said, nervously.
The nurse proceeded to take Blake's blood pressure, heart rate, and temperature. All the while, she kept an eye on Robert and Johann, as she tried to decide if she should throw them out of the room, or not.
“Why the smocks,” the nurse finally asked. He tone didn't sound as though she was not very amused about the two being dressed as doctors.
“Oh, just havin' some fun with our buddy,” Johann said.
“Your heart rate and blood pressure are a little high, Mister Harris. Try not to let yourself become too excited about your friends being here. How do you feel today,” she asked.
“Better, nurse. The doctor did a great job getting that bullet out. Not in much pain at all now,” Blake answered, “Just a slight headache.” He leered at Johann and rubbed his head a little.
“Glad to hear it, Mister Harris. The doctor will be by in a while to check on you. I'll tell the orderly to bring you an aspirin for your headache.” she said as she headed for the door to leave, “Enjoy the visit with your friends.”
“Thanks, but I don't think an aspirin is going to help this headache much,” Blake said to himself, as the nurse walked through the door, into the hallway.
The nurse left the room. The smile immediately vanished, like magic, from Johann's face. He walked back over to the bed, even more, determined than he was a few moments ago, to find out the truth about Blake.
“Okay. What can you tell us about the demon in this town,” he again asked Blake.
“What 'demon,' ” Blake asked, making air quotes with his fingers, “I don't have any idea what you're talking about. You keep asking me about a demon, and you're not telling me what you're talking about.”
“Alright. I saw you on the corner yesterday, preaching to the people. You said 'he' was going to get everyone -,”
“Yes. 'He,' ” said Blake, as he interrupted Johann, “ 'He' is God. God is going to punish them if they don't change their ways.”
“You're a religious man,” asked Robert.
“Yes,” said Blake, turning to Robert, “I was a contractor in town, but I'm also an ordained minister.” He stared down at his hands on his lap “A fallen minister, but a minister nonetheless.”
“So, you know something about demonology,” Johann said.
“Of course, I do,” Blake answered, as he glanced up at him.
“Then, you're familiar with who Earl Raum is.”
“Which Earl Raum? The 'Earl of Hell' Earl Raum, or the 'son of a bitch businessman who doesn't give a damn about the people in this town' Earl Raum,” asked Blake.
“They're one and the same,” said Johann. Blake slowly gazed up at him.
“Are you shittin' me,” he asked, “That guy's a God damned demon?”
“He is,” Robert said.
“I should've known. Ever since that slimeball came to town, things have been going downhill. It all started when he forced those people out of their homes, so he and his partner could build that monster of a motel -,”
“Partner,” Johann asked.
“He's got some kind of silent partner or something,” answered Blake.
“Interesting,” Johann said, as he glanced at Robert.
“Anyhow,” Blake said, as he continued his story, “Everyone thought he was just greedy. He even tried to smooth things over by showing that he was 'giving to the poor,” he again made air quotes, “All he did was divert attention from what was really going on.”
“What was that,” asked Johann.
“The self-destruction of the town is what was going on. Everything started to fall apart. People became depressed. They no longer had any pride in the town. Every day, there would be suicides. It became almost like an epidemic. I should've realized what was happening.”
Realizing there was a good chance Blake was telling the truth and was not the conjuror they thought he was, Johann turned to Robert, a hint of desperation in his eyes. He began to walk away from the bed and motioned for Robert to come over to him.
“What is it,” Robert asked.
“Bob, do you know what this means,” Johann asked, in hushed tones. Robert shook his head and made a facial gesture.
“What,” asked Robert.
“If he's not the conjuror, then we're no closer to finding him than we were yesterday. We're back to square one,” Johann said.
“Almost. At least we found out who the demon is, so we're not completely back at square one.”
“But, we still need to find the conjuror so that we can banish the demon.”
“I agree,” Robert said, as the two began to walk back to the bed.
At that moment, the door to the room opened, and in walked several police officers. Johann and Robert turned toward the lawmen, and Johann couldn't help but roll his eyes. One of the officers was Officer Phil, who walked into the room with his thumbs in the top of his pants, like the classic “southern sheriff.”
“Well, we meet again,” the officer said, as he eyed Robert and Johann suspiciously, “Can I ask what business you gentlemen have with our suspect, here?” The other officers positioned themselves, so Robert and Johann were, effectively, surrounded.
“Well, since we were there right after it happened, we just came by to check on how he was doing. What do you mean 'suspect'? He was the one who was shot. Wouldn't that make him the victim,” Johann said.
“No. He ain't no victim,” said Phil, as he leered at Blake, “He was accused of theft, then his accuser died under mysterious circumstances. In my book, that makes him a person of interest in a possible murder case.”
“ 'Died under mysterious circumstance,' ” said Robert, as he paraphrased the officer's words, “There was no mystery. He committed suicide. We were there when that happened.”
“Did you witness him pull the trigger,” asked Phil, as he stared Robert in the eye.
“No, we didn't actually see him pull the trigger, but we were right across the street. We didn't see anyone go inside before it happened, and nobody came out afterward, either.”
“Well, then I guess you wouldn't be able to swear on a bible that it was nothing more than a suicide, could you?”
“Well, I - no, I guess not,” Robert said, his voice trailed off.
“What is your problem,” Johann said to the officer, as he pumped out his chest. He became impatient with the attitude he detected. The other officers near him put their hands on his shoulders, to hold him back. “How could he possibly be guilty of murder, when he was here in the hospital? What is he, some kind of magician or something? A ghost? A demon?” Officer Phil turned to face him, a little bit of rage in his eyes. Johann knew that somewhere, he struck a chord.
“You two poked your noses into the affairs of this town since I saw you the other day at that 'greasy spoon' outside of town. You want some advice? Stop meddling and let us handle our own affairs. Heed my warning. Pack your things, leave this town, and don't come back.” The two stared at each other for a few moments. Johann reached up, and stroked his mustache, then broke eye contact.
“You're right,” he said, as he tried to show a little smile, “Maybe we should leave it to you guys. We apologize for stepping on your toes.” Johann glanced at Robert, who had a bewildered expression on his face. “Come on, Bob,” he said, “Let's head back to the motel, get our stuff, and head on out on that vacation we were taking.”
“Splendid idea,” Bob said.
“You take care of yourself,” Johann said to Blake, as he gave him a facial ges
ture to try and make Blake aware he and Robert were going to guard over him.
“I will,” Blake answered. Something in his voice told Johann that Blake was more frightened of Officer Phil than he was of Johann.
Johann and Robert walked out of the room and toward the elevators.
“We're not really leaving, are we,” asked Robert.
“No, of course not,” answered Johann, “But, did you see his reaction when I mentioned 'demon'?”
“He didn't look happy; I can tell you that.”
“Yeah, like he wanted to kill me. I struck a nerve with him, and I think it was a good thing those other cops were there.”
“You think he has something to do with this?”
“I don't know,” Johann said, as they got onto the elevator, “But I do know that if he's not directly involved with this somehow, maybe he's got an idea who would be. All I'm positive about is that in that room right now is the conjuror we're looking for. I don't know if it's that Blake guy, or one of those cops. I have a gut feeling, though, that one of them is the one we're after, and we're going to find out which one.”
-9-
A short time later, Johan and Robert found themselves at a small diner, sitting down to dinner. They both silently took stock of the room; each mulled over in their head the events of the day.
“So, we were wrong about that guy in the hospital,” said Robert, as he picked up the menu, and read it.
“Yeah. I guess,” answered Johann, “But something about him still bugs me. Not crazy about that friggin' cop, either.”
The two sat there and waited for the waitress. They became aware of someone at the table next to them, who was making some small chortle noises. It sounded like this person was, perhaps, chuckling about something.
Johann slowly turned his head. He expected that someone would be there, who was watching a comedic video, or perhaps listening to something funny on a smartphone. Instead, he discovered a woman who sat by herself and stared at the table. She chortled and twitched. Almost as though having some sort of convulsive fit.
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