The Diablo Horror (The River Book 7)

by Michael Richan

  “What’s going on here?” she asked. “Do we dare take it apart, stop what it’s doing?”

  “It looks to me like it’s concentrating something,” Steven answered, examining it more closely. “The liquid. Becoming more and more concentrated. Or refined.”

  “Wonder what the liquid does,” Eliza said. “Wish there were some way to know.”

  She left Steven and began wandering along the tables, looking at the other projects.

  “Roy would like to stop and see Judith, on the way back tomorrow,” Eliza said, still browsing the items. “Thinks that if you tell her the details of the deal, she might be able to explain a few things.”

  “I don’t need her to tell me I killed my son,” Steven said, leaving the moss and moving to the next project on an adjacent table.

  “I’ll let him explain it,” Eliza said. “But I hope you’ll hear him out.”

  “Always do,” Steven said. They browsed for a few moments more, then Steven spoke up. “You know, he was not sleeping when I did it. He was awake, looking at me. He tried to save himself, he tried to roll off the bed, out of the way of my ax.”

  “You weren’t holding an ax, Steven,” Eliza said. “That was a dream.”

  “I know I didn’t kill him with that ax, I killed him some other way. But he tried to save himself, and couldn’t. The ghost there with me, the one that possessed me – he was stopping Jason from moving by saying something. A word. He kept repeating it, and it was holding Jason in place so I could kill him.”

  “Have you told Roy about this?”

  “No.”

  “Well, I think you should. He’s trying very hard to sort things out.”

  “There’s nothing to sort out. The deal with Aka Manah is done, and Jason is dead. I’ll have to live with that for the rest of my life. Time to find the next book to return.”

  “I think there are some questions still,” Eliza said, working her way back to Steven. “Things may not be completely over yet. I think Roy won’t have any closure until those things get figured out.”

  “I can’t tell you how many times last night I wanted to come down here and find an object that I could use to kill myself,” Steven said. “That’d be some closure.”

  Eliza walked up to him and put her hand on his back. “That would destroy your father,” she said. “And it’s not what Jason would have wanted.”

  Steven began to cry again, and Eliza wrapped her arms around him. “Jason was a good kid, wasn’t he?” she asked, after he had a moment. She let him go.

  “Always a good kid,” Steven said, composing himself. “Never in trouble. You see so many kids who lose track of themselves. He was never like that. God, his mother is going to be devastated. And it’ll drag on and on, because she’ll think it’s a missing persons case.”

  “Listen to Roy when he talks to you, OK? As a favor to me? I think what he’s worried about makes sense.”

  “Alright,” Steven said. “I’ll go to Judith’s. Why not.” He began pacing around the room once more, studying the objects, trying to divert his mind.

  Chapter Seven

  “How long ago were we here?” Eliza asked. “Two weeks? So much has happened, I’ve lost track of time.”

  They waited in the finely appointed drawing room of Judith Duke’s mansion. Clara, the maid, had left them to announce their arrival.

  “About that,” Roy said. “Hopefully this will be the last time.”

  “How did you meet her?” Eliza asked.

  “Dixon,” Roy said. “Said she was the best at demons. That he knew.”

  “Beautiful place,” Eliza said, walking around the room and examining the books. “She must have had a very successful career.”

  “Mrs. Duke will see you now,” Clara announced at the doorway. “Please follow me.”

  They left the drawing room and followed Clara as she ascended a large, wide staircase to the second floor. “Mrs. Duke isn’t feeling well today, and isn’t able to come down to the ground floor. So she’s asked that I bring you to the upstairs sitting room. If you’ll limit your visit so as to not tire her out, I’d be grateful.”

  “Of course,” Steven said.

  They entered the sitting room, and Clara announced them. Judith was reclining on a day bed placed near large windows that overlooked the bay. She turned to watch them approach, but didn’t rise. She looked as though she was convalescing from an illness, with a large blanket covering her legs.

  “Oh, it’s you again!” she said. “Forgive me for not getting up. I have a back ailment that is quite painful, and doctors have ordered no movement on my part.”

  They each approached her and shook hands.

  “Something awful has happened,” Judith said, examining faces. “Something sudden and tragic. What is it?”

  “My son,” Steven said. “He… passed away.”

  “Oh, young man,” she said, raising a hand to her chest just below her throat. “My deepest sympathies. How dreadful. What happened?”

  “It’s a long story,” Steven said. He stopped, already exhausted.

  “Which is why we’ve come to see you,” Roy jumped in. “The last time we were here, Steven told you he’d made a deal with Aka Manah. The deal is over. We all know the details of it now. We’ve got some questions that we thought you might be able to help us with.”

  “Tell me what happened,” Judith said, “but before you do, please bring four glasses from the tray behind you, will you? And the glass cruet.”

  They watched as Judith went through the ritual of pouring them all a glass of protection from the cruet. Once they all had a glass, they downed it in a single gulp, then replaced the glasses on the tray.

  “There,” she said. “As you know, even talking about demons invites them in. So I believe in taking all precautions. Now.” She turned to look at Steven. “Tell me why these other people,” she motioned to Eliza and Roy, “know about the deal. You didn’t tell them, did you?”

  “I did,” Steven answered. “The deal is done, and he lied to me. I consider the aspect of secrecy null and void.”

  “Well, it was never null and void,” Judith replied. “You made a huge mistake telling them. The agreement to keep the terms secret doesn’t end when the other aspects of the deal are completed. The secrecy goes on, forever. I believe the demon could use the fact that you’ve broken the secrecy against you.”

  “Well, maybe so,” Steven said. “But the cat is out of the bag. They know everything.”

  “Well, you might as well tell me,” Judith said. “You’ve already broken the terms, telling me won’t change that.”

  Steven related the details of the deal, leaving out specifics about Eximere. He told her about the objects, the Agimat, and Diablo. He didn’t tell her how Jason died.

  “You say Aka Manah just disappeared after you told him where the body could be found?” Judith asked.

  “Yes,” Steven answered. “He seemed frustrated, then – poof! Gone.”

  “Interesting,” Judith said. “Seems like you’re done. I’d be grateful it’s over and go on my way.”

  “There are things that don’t make sense,” Roy said. “If he knew the Agimat would revert to its previous owner, why send Steven after it? I assumed he’d be more capable of retrieving it than either of us.”

  “Oh, most assuredly,” Judith said. “If he had been able to get at it, he would have. But didn’t you say it was at Diablo?”

  “Yes,” Steven answered.

  “And the pit? It’s near there, too?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  “There’s millions and millions of gallons of water, held back by that dam. If there’s anything a demon dislikes, it’s water. They don’t like to be anywhere near it; it makes them nauseous. They’re especially nervous about dams, all that water hanging over their heads. Dams break all the time. We don’t think so, because we only live a few years, we only see a couple breaches, and only the ones we hear about. He’s lived for thousands of years.
He’s seen many dams break. He’s smart enough to never set foot anywhere near a dam, especially when he can usually find a way to send someone else in to do anything he needs done. In this case, you.”

  “Then, whatever he’s after, in that pit, he’s too scared to retrieve it himself,” Roy said. “He’ll get someone else to retrieve it.”

  “If that’s what he’s after,” Judith said. “You don’t know. It’s speculation.”

  “How do we kill him?” Roy asked. “I want to eliminate him completely.”

  Judith laughed. “Oh Roy, you are such a disarmingly handsome fellow. Your naiveté is so charming. How I wish we’d met years ago.”

  “Is there a way?” Roy asked. “I want to know.”

  “Water,” Judith said, “but they’re way too smart for you. As you’ve seen, he won’t even go near a dam. So it’s useless, really. In all the years I spent dealing with them, I never saw one die. Certainly never killed at anyone’s hand. Ever. It doesn’t happen.”

  “Is there any way, other than water?” Eliza asked.

  “She speaks!” Judith said. “Honestly, I thought you were just here for show! No, there are no other ways. If you try to build some kind of water trap, he’ll know what you’re doing. It’s pointless.”

  “So in all the time you’ve worked against demons,” Roy said, “you never once extinguished one? It’s always just deals?”

  “Always,” Judith said. “There are certain things they need or like from humans, and that’s the only leverage you’ve got. They know we can’t kill them.”

  Roy growled in frustration and turned away from Judith. Steven watched, dazed.

  “So there’s nothing we can do?” Eliza asked.

  “What’s to do?” Judith said flippantly. “You completed your work with the demon. The deal is finished. You should count your lucky stars and go back to doing whatever it was you did before all this started. You’re all lucky to be alive. Be grateful and move on.”

  “My son isn’t alive,” Steven said.

  “Yes, well, the demon didn’t kill your son, did he?” Judith said.

  “If the demon hadn’t sent me to Diablo, he’d be alive.”

  “But he did send you, because you made a deal.”

  “I made a deal because he threatened my friends.”

  “My god,” Judith said, exasperated, “you think it’s an even playing field when you interact with demons? You think your rules apply? It’s their rules, from début to la fin! They’re higher up the food chain, you idiots!”

  “Come on,” Roy said, marching toward the door. “We’re leaving.”

  “Take my advice and drop it! You’ve won!” Judith barked as Roy passed her. “Your bullheadedness will get you killed!”

  Eliza turned to follow Roy. Steven, still dazed and numb, turned to follow her, walking as if on automatic pilot.

  “It won’t just be your son! Imbeciles! You’ll all die!”

  They walked down the stairs, Judith howling in the background. They passed a stern-looking Clara and walked to the front door. Roy held it open as Steven and Eliza walked out, then he slammed it shut behind him.

  “Well, that didn’t go very well,” Eliza said, walking to the car.

  “No,” Steven said.

  “What was I thinking, coming to see this cunt?” Roy said. “Pardon my French, Eliza.”

  “No need to apologize to me,” Eliza said. “She’s what the word was made for.”

  ◊

  Roy drove Eliza back to her rental car, parked at a mall in Tacoma. They agreed she’d return the car to the airport as they drove back to Seattle, so she was following behind Steven and Roy up I-5.

  Roy was still seething about Judith. “That bitch! Some nerve, that rotting, dried up whore bitch!”

  “Dad, stop,” Steven said. “What she said was right. It’s over.”

  “No, something’s not right,” Roy said. “It’s not over.”

  “No, it’s done,” Steven said. “The whole thing is finished, and Jason was the price. I want it to be over.”

  “I don’t want it to be over,” Roy said. “It doesn’t feel over to me.”

  Steven dropped it, retreating into his thoughts. He went back to what he always thought about the past few days: the moment when he killed Jason. The way his mind felt when it was occupied by the deluded thoughts of the ax man. The way Jason lay on the bed, awake but immobile. He replayed it several times in his head, feeling worse each time.

  “You know,” Steven finally broke the silence, “Eliza said I should tell you something.”

  “What?”

  “When I was standing over Jason, the ax raised, and all the crazy thoughts were going through my head, Jason was awake, staring at me. He wasn’t asleep when I killed him.”

  “Yes?”

  “And I’ve wondered, did he see me with the ax? Was he part of the ghost’s influence, the way I was? I could feel the ax in my hand. Could he see it? Or did he just see me, standing over his bed, looking down at him, unaware that I was about to kill him?”

  “Eliza thought you should tell me that?”

  “I thought he was trying to move, to get away,” Steven continued. “I saw his eyes go wide when I raised the ax. He knew something bad was coming. I thought he was trying to roll off the bed, out of the way, like Brett’s girl did. But he couldn’t. He was frozen. Every time he started to move, he froze again. And the ax man, next to me, was saying something to Jason, over and over again. It was like a mantra that controlled Jason, holding him still for me to kill.”

  “The embedding,” Roy said. “Aw, fuck. Deem warned me about it.” He hit the steering wheel, causing the car to swerve a little. “Goddamnit.”

  “Embedding?” Steven asked.

  “It’s a residual from St. Thomas. Deem warned me that the things they did to people there left subconscious handles in people’s brains.”

  “What are you talking about?” Steven asked.

  “When Jason was in St. Thomas, one of the first things they did was embed ways to control him. Words and phrases that conditioned him to do certain things. We pulled Jason out of St. Thomas, but the embedding was still there. The ax man must have detected it within Jason and used it against him.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” Steven asked.

  “I honestly didn’t think it would be a problem,” Roy said. “I figured I’d keep an eye on him, that’s all. We both just wanted Jason to be back home and normal again. I didn’t want to ruin that with suspicions. And I wasn’t completely sure Deem knew what she was talking about.”

  “Apparently she does,” Steven said.

  “I’m sorry, I really am. I should have told you. We got home and we were so excited to have Jason back, and I didn’t want to tell you in front of him, of course. I should have found a way to let you know about it. I’m sorry. But would it have made any difference?”

  Steven thought about this. A brief moment of anger at Roy had mercifully replaced the cold numbness and guilt he had been feeling, but lashing out at Roy wouldn’t make him feel better in the long run.

  “Probably not,” Steven said.

  “I suppose we could have dosed Jason up on protection all the time.”

  “He’d have wondered why. Nah, let’s not second guess. It’s over, it’s finished. I just want everything to stop for a while.”

  “That’s the guilt in you talking,” Roy said. “And the grief. But I don’t think we should stop. It’s not over. I’m convinced of that.”

  “You heard her. There’s nothing more you can do to a demon. We should be grateful he’s not here, demanding more stuff.”

  “I’m not grateful at all. I want to kill the bastard.”

  “How? What would you have us do? There’s nothing to be done.”

  Roy was flustered. “I’ll bet Eliza wants him dead, too.”

  “I’m sure she does! So do I! It doesn’t matter!”

  “I think we should go over Judith’s head. Find someone els
e to talk to. She’s just a dead end, that’s all. Doesn’t mean we’re done.”

  Steven looked at Roy. “Normally you’re the one who wants to end things. Now look at us. I just want to stop, for it to be over, and you want to keep going, even though there’s nowhere to go. Funny how things flip.”

  “I don’t think it’s funny at all. I’m as serious as a heart attack. I have my reasons.”

  “What are they?”

  “They’re just… reasons.” Roy’s conversation with Thomas was foremost in his mind. Now it seemed that there was no path forward, and that was exactly the time that Thomas had advised him to press on. He was determined to do it.

  Steven sighed. “I thought Judith was the expert.”

  “According to Dixon. He knows a lot of people, but not everybody. Most of his contacts are old timers. We just have to search for someone else who knows more. Maybe we’ll get lucky. Think of it as getting a second opinion.”

  Steven paused and thought. Maybe Roy was right; a second opinion wouldn’t be a bad thing. He felt tired, wrung out, and he didn’t have the internal drive to keep the engine going, but Roy did. Maybe he should just trust him and let Roy do the driving for a while.

  “Alright,” Steven said. “If we can find someone else, I’m game.”

  “That’s my boy,” Roy said, smiling. Steven thought it was the first time he’d seen a smile on Roy’s face in several days, and it warmed him a little.

  ◊

  Back at Steven’s house, Roy explained his intention to keep searching for answers to Eliza. She was on board with all of his suggestions.

  “So, we just need to do some digging,” she said. “Find someone who is more of an expert than Judith.”