The Belial Children

by R. D. Brady

  Laney let the tears fall. They stayed together like that for a few moments before Laney pulled back. She wiped at the tears on her cheeks and Patrick did the same.

  “How is she?” Patrick asked.

  Laney gestured toward the doors that led to the operating suite. “Maddox is in with her. She came through the surgery fine.”

  Patrick took her hand. “That’s good news. Any leads on Max?”

  Laney shook her head. “No. Not yet. Jake’s at the police station. He says all the men in the van were former military, but they won’t answer any questions, except their name, rank, and serial number. We think they had another car waiting and transferred Max over, then used the van to lead us down the highway.”

  “Have you told Henry?”

  She shook her head. “I didn’t want to call until I could tell him something about Kati.”

  “Go ahead. I’ll stay here.”

  Laney nodded and headed down the hall. As soon as she turned a corner, she leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. Someone was grabbing children, had gone after boys, had taken Max and shot Kati. And right now their only lead was that one of the guys might have been in the military.

  Goddamn it. She opened her eyes, torn between anger and fear. They had no good leads, and now Max was in the middle of all of this. She pulled out her phone and punched in Henry’s number, realizing that now everything hinged on the Happy Meadows Sanitarium.

  Great. Our best chance of finding all those kids is in the hands of a paranoid schizophrenic. What could possibly go wrong with that?

  CHAPTER 51

  Cleveland, Ohio

  Henry pulled into one of the visitors’ parking spots at Happy Meadows Sanitarium. He and Jen got out of the car and stopped to take a long look at the place.

  The building was composed of grey brick, with a black, wrought iron gate enclosing the grounds. No shrubbery or flowers dotted the edges to break up the monotony. In fact, the only colors to be seen anywhere were black and grey.

  Jen looked at him out of the corner of her eyes. “You know, I can’t say I see anything ‘happy’ about this place.”

  Henry nodded. “Yeah. So much for truth in advertising.”

  He glanced up at the windows. A few patients stared out at them. One banged his fists repeatedly before he was dragged away.

  Henry swallowed a curse. Gerard had sent him on wild goose chase. “Goddamn it. We don’t have time to chase down false leads.”

  Jen took his hand. “Well, right now we don’t have any other leads. So let’s at least check it out, okay?”

  Henry looked over at her and felt his heart stutter a little bit. “Okay.”

  They headed up the broken concrete steps. The front foyer had a deep green tile on the floor and a smell of antiseptic. There were no chairs to wait in, although indentations in floor demonstrated where some chairs had once been bolted down. No pictures broke up the dull color of the grey walls, only signs:

  No Smoking.

  You Must Sign In.

  All Visitors Must Be Announced.

  All valuables should be left in your car. The Happy Meadows Sanitarium is not responsible for any lost or broken items.

  Jen glanced at Henry, her eyebrows raised. “Welcoming.”

  “Yeah. Not where I’d like to spend my golden years.”

  A fortysomething woman behind a Plexiglas window stared at them. She did not smile. Henry did as he leaned down to the counter. “Hello. My name is Henry Chandler. I spoke with Dr. Marsden about visiting with Linda Grayston.”

  “ID,” the woman said. She hit a button under her desk, and a drawer slid out from underneath the counter. Jen and Henry fished out their driver’s licenses and dropped them in. The drawer pulled back.

  Squinting at the cards, the woman inspected Jen and Henry; Henry struggled not to squirm under her attention. Finally she nodded, dropped the licenses back in the drawer, and slid them back out. A door buzzed open to their left and the woman went back to her paperwork.

  Jen looked at Henry with a shrug before heading for the open door, where an orderly in his late thirties appeared, dressed all in white.

  “Mr. Chandler? Dr. Witt? I’m Casey. Dr. Marsden asked me to take you to see Linda.” The man barely spared Henry a glance, saving his attention for Jen.

  She ignored him.

  As Casey led them down the hall, he turned to her. “So, are you a psychiatrist?”

  “No,” she replied. She didn’t elaborate.

  Henry tried to hide his amusement. “Um, what can you tell us about Ms. Grayston’s condition?”

  Casey stopped walking and looked up and down the hall. “Um, I know Dr. Marsden said I was supposed to help you, but I don’t think I should provide patient information.” He paused, looking expectantly at Henry.

  Henry pulled a fifty out of his pocket and slipped it silently into Casey’s hand. The man smiled, pocketed the money, and continued to lead them down the hall. “Well, Linda is a paranoid schizophrenic with an extra dose of persecution complex.”

  “Persecution? By who?” Jen asked.

  Casey perked up under her attention. He leaned toward her as he whispered. “Fallen angels. Says they’re all around us.”

  Jen and Henry exchanged a glance but said nothing.

  Casey didn’t seem to notice. “Anyway, don’t get within her reach. She’ll grab you. She’s not violent, just kind of clingy.”

  Henry’s phone buzzed just as Casey unlocked a door toward the end of the hall. Henry glanced down and gestured for Jen and Casey to go ahead, then he stepped to the other side of the hall and answered. “Laney? I haven’t met with her yet. I’m about to go in.”

  Laney’s voice was shaky. “Henry, somebody took Max.”

  “What? What happened?” Henry listened in growing disbelief as Laney explained about Kati taking off with Max.

  “How’s Kati?” he asked when Laney was done.

  “She made it through surgery well. Maddox is with her now. He looks like he wants to rip someone apart.”

  “I can’t blame him. Do you have any leads?”

  “No. Nothing. We have the three guys in the van, but they’re not talking.”

  “I’m so sorry, Laney.” The silence felt heavy between them before the realization hit. “That means they were after Max, not Danny, at the bookstore.” Part of him felt relief, and another part of him felt horrible for feeling it. “Do you know why?”

  “No.”

  Henry heard something behind her denial. “Laney, you can read potentials.” It was a skill she had realized after working with the kids at the Chandler School. She knew which kids would develop abilities and which wouldn’t. “And there’s nothing there with Max,” he said slowly. “Right?

  “Right. He’s not a potential.” Laney paused. “Do you think maybe they grabbed him to get to me?”

  “Do you think they grabbed him to get to you?”

  She sighed. “I don’t know. But I think that’s why Kati ran. To get Max away from all of this.”

  Henry closed his eyes, knowing how guilty Laney must feel. “Even if that’s true, it’s not your fault.”

  She gave a bitter laugh. “If it’s true, then yes it is my fault. If I had stayed away from them, Max would be safe right now.”

  Henry wasn’t sure what to say, because she was right. It was the same worry he had about everything Danny was being introduced to.

  Before he could speak though, Laney did. “But listen, meet with Linda, get whatever you can, and get back here as fast as you can. Okay?”

  “Yeah. Will do.”

  Henry slipped the phone back in his pocket and leaned against the wall, suddenly feeling exhausted. Someone had Max. He pictured Max and Danny holding hands.

  Oh, no. Danny. Henry pulled out his phone out to call him, then stopped. No, right now he needed to meet with Linda and cross this stupid errand off his list. Then he could speak to Danny. But first he called Laney back.

  She picked up almost i
mmediately. “Henry?”

  “Have you told Danny that Max is missing yet?”

  “No. Not yet.”

  “Good. Can you do me and favor and not tell him?”

  “What? Why not?”

  “I just…” Henry sighed. “I just don’t want Danny to worry. Let’s just keep this from him until we have something to work with, okay?”

  “Henry, Danny could help us search—”

  “I know. But I don’t want him involved in this. Max is like a little brother to him. Just don’t tell him until I get back at least, okay?”

  There was a long silence on Laney’s end of the phone. “Okay. But we tell him as soon as you get back.”

  “Thanks, Laney.” Henry disconnected the call and bowed his head. Max.

  A middle-aged nurse headed down the hall toward him, pushing a cart. She gave Henry a strange look. He shook himself into movement, pushing away from the wall. They needed to wrap up this meeting and get home. They were needed there—not on this ridiculous errand.

  He knocked on Linda’s door.

  Casey opened it up with a smile. “They’re having a nice little chat.”

  Henry ducked under the doorway and got his first look at Linda Grayston. She was skinny, too skinny, with stringy brown hair that hung past her waist. Her fingers were gnarled, probably from arthritis. Her eyes had sunken into her wrinkled face. If he didn’t know she was sixty-one, he probably would have guessed she was in her late eighties.

  Linda sat at a table, leaning forward toward Jen, her voice intense. “They’re here. We have to be careful. The end of days is coming. You need to—”

  Her words cut off abruptly as she caught sight of Henry. She went still, then leapt from her chair. With one finger pointed at Henry, she screeched, “Abomination! Abomination!”

  “Oh, shit.” Casey pushed off of the wall. He walked toward Linda, his hands raised in a calming gesture. “It’s okay, Linda. There are no abominations here. It’s okay.” His voice was as soothing as it could be, considering he had to shout to be heard over Linda’s screams.

  Linda’s shrieking continued; if anything, it got louder. “Abomination! Abomination! They’re here!”

  “Well, I’d say that’s our cue,” Jen murmured and stood, pulling Henry toward the door. They stepped outside and closed the door behind them.

  Another orderly hustled down the hall, followed by a nurse with a dark complexion and hair streaked with grey. They both bustled into the room. Henry watched as Casey and the other orderly held Linda down while the nurse injected her with a syringe.

  “Abomination! Abomination! They’re…” Linda’s voice suddenly changed to a slow whisper. “… here.” She sagged into the arms of the two orderlies. They carried her toward the door.

  Casey caught Henry’s eye as he walked past. “Sometimes they just lose it. Sorry.” He and the other orderly carried Linda down the hall.

  “Abomination,” Jen whispered. “The same word the men who tried to grab Danny and Max used.”

  Henry nodded. There was something here. He watched the orderlies disappear around a corner with Linda. And that something is disappearing into the bliss of anti-psychotic medication.

  The nurse came out of the room and sighed. Her nametag read Agnes. “Sorry about that.” She looked up at Henry and then shook her head. “Well no wonder she lost it.”

  “Sorry?” Jen said.

  Agnes shook her head. “Casey shouldn’t have let you guys in there.”

  “Dr. Marsden cleared us to visit her,” Henry said.

  The nurse nodded wearily. “I’m sure he did. But I’m guessing he didn’t know how tall you are.”

  “What does my height have to do with it?” Henry asked.

  The woman stripped off her gloves and dropped them in a hazardous waste disposal bin before leaning against the wall. “Linda has this idea that fallen angels are giants. So one look at you, and I’ve no doubt she thought they had finally come for her.”

  “Ah,” Henry said.

  The nurse shook her head. “You know, when she’s lucid, she actually makes a pretty decent case. She’s told me all sorts of stories about ‘giants in America’ that fought with Native Americans before Columbus ever stepped foot here. If she weren’t schizophrenic, she probably would have been a great history teacher or maybe a writer.”

  The woman shrugged, pushing away from the wall. “Well, I’m afraid that’s all you’re going to get from Linda tonight. That drug will have her knocked out for hours. Sorry you wasted your trip.” She turned to head back down the hall.

  Henry stepped forward. “Ma’am?”

  Agnes looked back over her shoulder.

  “Has Linda had any other visitors?”

  “Not for years.”

  “So she did have visitors at one time?”

  “Just her son.”

  “Her son?” Jen asked.

  The nurse nodded. Henry and Jen exchanged a look.

  Henry looked back at the nurse. “Any chance we could buy you a cup of coffee and you could tell us a little about him?”

  CHAPTER 52

  Thirty minutes later, Henry and Jen hurried from the hospital to the car. “You take the wheel,” Henry said, tossing Jen the keys and heading for the passenger door.

  Jen caught the keys one-handed and ran to the driver’s side. She took off as Henry pulled out his phone and dialed.

  Laney answered almost immediately. “Anything?”

  “Yes,” Henry said. “Linda and Phillip Northgram have a son named Nathaniel.”

  Laney’s voice exploded through the cars speakers. “What? How the hell did we miss that?”

  “His mother took him away when she left,” Jen said. “Apparently she didn’t think Phillip was ‘father material.’”

  “Well, that’s the first thing about her that shows some good sense. Goddamn it. Hold on,” Laney said.

  Henry could hear her telling someone to run a check on Nathaniel Northgram.

  “Try the mother’s maiden name too. Grayston,” Henry said.

  Laney relayed the information before getting back on the line. “What can you tell us about him?”

  “He’s a minister somewhere out west. And according to the very chatty nurse we spoke with, he’s one step away from being institutionalized himself. Has the same preoccupation with fallen angels, or abominations as they call them, as his mother. I think this is the break we’ve been waiting for.”

  “Let’s hope. When will you be back?”

  Henry looked at the clock on the dashboard. “A couple of hours.”

  “Then hopefully by the time you get here, we’ll have something to move on.”

  “Good.” Henry was about to disconnect when Laney cut in. “Henry, what is her persecution complex about? Who does she think she’s being persecuted by?”

  “Believe it or not, fallen angels.”

  Laney paused. “Did you guys get any sense off her?”

  “No,” Henry said slowly. “We didn’t sense anything.”

  “But there was something,” Laney pressed.

  “Well, she didn’t react to Jen at all. In fact, the two of them were chatting pretty amicably until I stepped into the room. And then she completely lost it.”

  “Any idea why?” Laney asked.

  “The nurse said she’s obsessed with giants. She thinks my height may have somehow indicated to her that I was a nephilim. But Laney, she’s psychologically disturbed. Full-blown schizophrenic, with the papers to prove it.”

  “She told me about how giants once ruled the United States,” Jen cut in.

  Henry looked over at her. “What?”

  “Before you came in,” she said. “She was talking about how the Smithsonian had covered up evidence of the giants in America. That the government was conspiring with the Fallen and that none of us were safe.”

  “Huh,” Laney said.

  “Huh?” Jen asked. “What does that mean?”

  “It means,” Laney said, “th
at Linda may not be as crazy as she sounds.”

  “Care to elaborate?” Henry asked.

  “It’s not important right now. Look, don’t head back here. I need you guys to head to Chicago.”

  “Chicago?” Jen asked.

  “That’s where Phillip Northgram lives,” Henry said.

  “Exactly,” Laney said. “We’ll run down what information we can from here, but I’m hoping maybe you can get something from the source.”

  “Will do,” Jen said. “What are you looking for?”

  “Anything he can tell us about his son.” Laney paused, and when she spoke again her voice had a hard edge. “And guys? Don’t be nice.”

  CHAPTER 53

  Sacramento, California

  Nathaniel sat at his desk. Tyrell had called. The mission had been a success. Three men had been captured, but no big loss. They could all be trusted not to speak.

  Nathaniel opened his book, dipped his pen in the ink bottle, and crossed out the name Max Simmons. He scanned the list. All fourteen names were crossed off now.

  But he knew this was only the beginning. The Shepherd never failed to find the abominations. When this first duty was successfully accomplished, there would be more. The Shepherd, Nathaniel, and his followers: they were the last vanguard against the unholy.

  A knock sounded at the door. Beatrice peeked her head in, her voice nervous, her eyes wide. “Nathaniel? He’s here.”

  “Who’s here?”

  “The Shepherd.”

  Nathaniel stood up, nearly knocking over the inkwell. “You left him waiting? Send him in!”

  Beatrice scurried out of the room, and Nathaniel quickly wiped up the ink with tissues. Why is he here?

  He threw out the stained tissues, trying to calm his heart. Is he displeased?

  He watched the door, his anticipation and fear growing. We’ve done everything he’s asked. He should happy, right?

  Beatrice opened the door again. “Nathaniel, the Shepherd is here.”