by Deena Remiel
Liar. Her problems weren’t nearly solved.
Emma ruffled Hannah’s hair and kissed her soundly on the forehead. “Good night, my angel. I’ll be in after I look through my e-mail and do some chores. I love you,” she cooed in her ear.
“I love you more,” Hannah whispered back, and wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck.
“I love you most,” Emma replied, nuzzling her neck.
“You win, Mama.”
“We both do, Angel.”
The nightly ritual always made Hannah smile while drifting off to sleep. It broke Emma’s heart knowing the smile never lasted very long. She made sure to put the bedside table light on before she left and kept the door wide open.
Returning to her study, her favorite place to unwind, she eased into the overstuffed chair by the fireplace and settled her laptop on her knees. She loved this chair. She had a vague memory of sitting in it as a child with her mother. Now, it felt like she received a comforting hug every time she sat down on its downy pillows. Her tensed muscles slowly relaxed. She decided to close her eyes for a couple of minutes while the laptop was booting up.
No harm in doing that.
Chapter Seven
Michael slammed his hands against the steering wheel as he drove back up the driveway to the street. As if I should have expected Emma to have reacted any differently?
He understood her anger, her denial. She should have known who she was when she was six years old, not by accident at thirty. Too much time had gone by. Enough time for a child’s innocence to have died and an adult’s cynicism to set in. But if he looked at this objectively, how could he hold back? Their lives were in danger, as was the fate of the mortal world. There was no time to be gentle and take it slow.
So Satan has re-surfaced, and Agremon is with him. Agremon’s presence intrigued Michael more than Satan hanging a shingle. There was a score to be settled with the fallen angel. Brethren weren’t usually in the revenge business, but this development called for an exception. It’d been a long time since the forces of Good and Evil collided. It had been a war to rock both mortal and immortal worlds—Michael’s specifically. This time, he wagered, wouldn’t be any easier. One thing was certain, Agremon would die.
Unwilling to let Emma and her daughter face whatever the demon had in mind for them, he spun the car around, drove back up the driveway, and parked. He would protect them with every ounce of his blessed immortal soul. And this time, he wouldn’t fail.
Michael turned on the radio to occupy his time. He didn’t know when he would sense Agremon’s presence this evening and wished he’d been able to give mother and daughter his Talismans to wear before he’d been thrown out. But he hadn’t forgotten the energy flow that occurred between him and Emma. That would help since he could still feel that connection, microscopic as it was, connecting the two of them together. He would have to be extra vigilant tonight at picking up on the particular thread of fear that would be floating through the air like silky energy waves. “Garbage, garbage, ah, the news. That’ll work.” He eased his seat back, cranked up the volume, and closed his eyes.
“…the Arson Squad is investigating. In other news, the religious cult, The Source, that’s been gaining popularity overseas, has reportedly found a new home base in Arizona. The cult’s leader, Ahriman Namirha, has been seen all around the state this month recruiting followers….”
Michael’s eyes sprung open and he bolted upright in his seat. So this was how Satan’s doing things this time around. He had taken on human form and used a cult to insinuate evil into the mortals’ minds to cultivate his minions. A rather ingenious plan, even if it does lack some inventiveness.
But what did Namirha need from Hannah? He decided to call Gabriel, one of the other Brethren. If he couldn’t figure it out, no one could. After giving him all the information he had gathered, he put his phone away and began a sweep of the area surrounding the house. It was a mental sweep to pick up on any trail Agremon might be laying down as he came to mother or daughter in their dreams. He felt nothing yet. While part of his brain was doing the incessant sweep, another part was checking all of his vital powers, making sure he was armed and ready for whatever was required. He had quite the arsenal of protective gifts, which made him the most powerful Protector out of the three that existed, he, Gabriel, and Urie.
He was going to need his team, as well as the other Brethren teams: the Warriors and the Saviors, and their troops, to defeat Evil and keep Emma and Hannah alive.
***
Agremon sewed his dream-world suggestions in Emma’s drowsy mind and watched with wicked pleasure as she succumbed. He sent a warm breeze to caress her face, and implanted sounds of ocean waves lapping upon the shore. Birds sang songs that hypnotized and dolphins played off in the distance. He massaged her simmering discontent with her life and suggested that this little vacation on the beach was exactly what she needed.
That’s right, just ease into it Emma. No need to rush it. Enjoy your little respite for a few minutes. You look extremely hot in that wisp of a bathing suit I so generously provided for you. Maybe I should have you take a little walk along the shoreline. Mmm. I like the way your sinewy muscles move as you take each step. Yes…just like that.
Emma’s body moved like a tigress from her chaise lounge as he compelled her to do his bidding.
***
Emma walked along the pristine beach, the warm breeze seducing her with its fingers burrowing into her hair and massaging away the months of built-up tension in her shoulders. She was lost in the sensual experience. For an instant, she pictured Michael giving her the massage, and then scowled.
Agremon appeared before her like a gruesome tower of flesh, wearing of all things—surfer’s shorts.
“Hello, my precious. Well, aren’t you looking particularly delectable today? I do have great taste in swimwear, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Wh-wh-what? Oh, my God!” Her heart skipped a beat as she stood frozen in place, staring at the behemoth in front of her. His entire body was mottled red and black, and bubbly, like his face, with little thorn-like protrusions all over his arms. He was even more grotesque than he had appeared on the computer screen earlier that day, and she forced the bile back down, scorching her throat in the process.
“Thank the devil I’m not your God, but I could definitely let you worship me like I was. You are one hot mama, you know that? Hey, isn’t that what Hannah calls you, Mama? I have a great idea! Why don’t I go get her and bring her here with us? We could have a family picnic right here on the beach. It would be so cozy, only the three of us. What do you think?” Fire blazed in his eyes as he ran his tongue over his needle sharp teeth. Blood oozed out of his mouth.
“I’m going to wake up; I’m going to wake up right now. I’m having a nightmare and I’m going to stop it right now,” Emma muttered over and over, squeezing her eyelids shut as her body dropped to the sand beneath her.
“You’re pathetic if you think you can wake from this dream, precious. This isn’t just any old dream. You’ve got the Master’s Original made especially for you. Now let’s get this party started.”
With a mere wave of his hand, Agremon abruptly altered their surroundings to one of a cemetery. A dense fog hung around them like a shroud, and a cold darkness replaced the warmth of the soothing sunshine. Emma shuddered uncontrollably. He compelled her to stand before what appeared to be a centuries old mausoleum. With another wave, he changed their attire. He was decked out in a funereal suit, and she wore a strapless, sheer, black chiffon evening gown. As awareness finally broke through her stupor, she looked around. For a moment, she almost wanted to laugh.
“If you think turning this into one of those old time vampire movies can scare me, you’re way wrong. I grew up watching those silly movies and loved them.” A spark of confidence ignited inside her. I might live through this nightmare yet.
“Don’t you think I knew that little detail about you? I research my subjects very carefully, precio
us. Oh no, you’re not starring in a campy vampire movie. I’ve something very special planned for you. I’ll be on my way now. I’ve a date with a little girl I know who loves when I come to visit.”
“Don’t you go near my daughter, you bastard!” Emma shrieked. She lunged towards him with nails ready to rip him to shreds. He simply froze her in place.
“Have fun! Oh, I believe the mausoleum is where your party is.” Agremon raised a finger, spun it around, and pointed to the mausoleum. Her body immediately swung around and began moving jerkily towards the small decrepit building.
“Ooh, you’re a fighter. I like a challenge.”
***
Michael picked up on something. The microscopic thread that held Emma to him was definitely humming. It seemed too early for her to be asleep. But then again, she hadn’t had much sleep for a long time. If he’d known sooner what was happening to Hannah…what was done was done. All he could do was protect them as best he could now. He raised his own shields so he couldn’t be detected by Agremon and got out of the car. Keys in his pocket, phone on vibrate, he made his way quickly yet cautiously up the dirt driveway.
As he approached the house, the humming got exponentially stronger. Something was definitely happening, and it wasn’t good. He raced up the path to the front door. It was locked. That wouldn’t keep him out. He waved his hand over the lock to open it and crossed the threshold. Where was she? His senses drew him to the study. When he entered the room, he stopped short, barely containing his rage. Her body was crouched in a fetal position on the oversized chair, her laptop broken to pieces on the floor in front of her. He hustled over and felt her skin. She was ice cold, and there were beads of sweat on her brow. Her breathing was shallow and her heart raced. Damned Agremon! Michael had to get her out of that nightmare, and fast. The quickest way to get her out was for him to go in. But he had to protect Hannah first.
While reaching into his pocket for a Talisman, he raced to find her bedroom. She wasn’t in there. He tried Emma’s room next and entered silently, relieved to see Hannah unaffected by the demonic Agremon. He wrapped the protective necklace around her neck and sped back to the study.
Swapping places with Emma, he gingerly rested her on his lap. In order to enter her dreams, as much bodily contact as possible was necessary. He placed his right hand on her forehead and slowed his breathing down considerably.
It took a couple of breaths and he was in. He found himself wading through her past dreams and thoughts she kept to herself. After passing through dreams about test anxiety, disastrous dates, a marriage gone wrong, and an overwhelming sense of distrust of people, he finally came to her current nightmare.
“Agremon certainly has a flair for the dramatic,” he muttered dryly as he glanced around. A cemetery of all places. He heard faint whimpering coming from the mausoleum to his right. “She must be in there.” He approached the door and was immediately thrown back, landing with a harsh thud on a gravestone. Agremon had shielded it, barring anyone from entering. As Michael recovered, he noticed her name, Emma Livingston, written on the gravestone. In fact, as he looked around, every gravestone had her name on it, even the mausoleum.
“Nice touch, asshole,” he hissed. Calling upon his protective powers, he spoke the sacred word, Discaoil, and dissolved the shield like it was tissue paper. Michael trudged toward the small doorway to the crypt. Of course, it was sealed shut. What would a nightmare be without complications and roadblocks?
“Emma! It’s me, Michael! I’ve come to get you out of there! Hold on!” he called out, hoping she heard him. The seal would take a little longer to dismantle. He reached inward to find the right protection key to unlock it. Once found, he spoke those sacred words, and the door crumbled to rubble on the ground.
***
Emma lapsed in and out of control. As hard as she fought against going into the mausoleum, she couldn’t break free from Agremon’s tight reign over her. Her limbs trembled in defiance. Anger was good. She could function with anger, but the fear that followed when the door was sealed shut behind her was crippling.
He knew. The bastard knew.
The dark terrified her. When that mausoleum door closed behind her, she was thrust back in time. She turned into the four-year-old girl who’d gotten stuck in a pitch-black, dank basement closet while playing Hide and Seek with friends. It felt like forever until she was found. Everyone had thought no harm done, but for her, that was the day Darkness became her enemy—an enemy she had yet to defeat.
Emma stood unmoving, paralyzed by her infernal fear, while her scream tried to echo, but came up empty. She had to find a wall, a corner, something to shield her. Being exposed this way in the middle of the room wouldn’t be safe. Who knew what could come at her? Agremon did. She knew that now.
He was using her own fears to scare her to death, literally.
Chapter Eight
Emma willed her legs to move as she felt around for a wall. She hadn’t been able to see much of anything when she had first entered the crypt, and now that she was sealed in, she was surrounded by a stygian darkness. She bumped into something solid and stone-like, and immediately crouched down on the floor in a fetal position. Her body shook, her lips trembled and her mind conjured creepy-crawlies, fantastic monsters, and demons of all shapes and sizes to terrorize her. And they came, one and all in full force, to crawl over her skin, to nip and paw at her, and to literally pull her to pieces.
��I’m going to wake up, I’m going to wake up,” she simpered over and over like a mantra while she rocked herself.
A loud rumble sent shockwaves through her body. And, as if from another dimension, she heard her name, insistent and urgent. A giant monster emerged from the rubble and stood before her warped mind. She scuttled feverishly even further into the crypt.
“Get away from me, get away!” she cried out madly, deep in the throes of terror.
“Emma, look at me. It’s me, Michael. I’m not here to hurt you. I’ve come to take you out of this nightmare. Can I do that, Emma? Would you let me? Hannah’s waiting for you. You have to let me come a little closer to you so I can help get you out of here, all right?”
“No!” She struggled furiously with him when he picked her up. Her arms flailed wildly, but it was no match for his strength. With all of her energy spent, she had no fight left in her and gave up, going limp in his arms.
“Don’t hurt me,” she whimpered feebly, and swiped at the imaginary spiders crawling up and down her arms.
“I would never hurt you, Emma. Never.”
As he carried her out of the mausoleum, she could feel her tattered gown dragging against the craggy ground. She batted at invisible webs that she was convinced had been woven over her face.
“It’s gonna take all of my energy to get us out of this nightmare, but I can do it. Then, I’ll get help from Raphael, a Savior, to heal your mind and soul. Until then, you’re gonna be plagued with bouts of terror. I’m so sorry. The Talisman I’ll give you can help ease that a bit, but it won’t rid you of the terror completely.” He placed his hand on her forehead, gently closed her eyelids, and breathed slowly in and out.
She awakened and immediately began fighting again. “Let me go, you monster! Let me go!” A hoarse whisper was all that she could muster.
“Emma, I’ve got you. You’re safe now. You’re safe.” Michael gathered her close, his arms encircling her as he’d done that morning, giving her all of his protection. He nuzzled his face in her hair and kissed her forehead, her temples, and her cheeks.
“You’re safe,” he repeated.
She looked up at him, finally comprehending it was Michael holding her and not some horrifying zombie. They were back in the study and she relaxed. For the first time since her nightmare had begun, she saw with eyes free of terror yet filled with undeniable understanding and defeat. She clung to him with desperation and sobbed. And he held on.
“It’s okay, Emma. Everything is going to be okay. You’re safe now. I’m here, and
I won’t let anything harm you or Hannah.”
“Hannah! Oh my God, Hannah! He’s gone after her! Michael, we have to wake her up! I won’t let him take my baby girl!” Frantic to go to her daughter, she tore away from him and immediately fell to the floor. But sheer determination got her to her hands and knees scrambling toward her daughter’s bedroom.
“Whoa, slow down.” He grabbed her by the waist and stalled her advance. “Before coming to get you, I put a Talisman around her, a protective necklace. Agremon can’t get her while she’s wearing it. I have one for you, too. Here,” he offered, while digging in his pants pocket. “Put it on right now and Agremon won’t be able to get to you again either.” He held it out to her. Her hands shook so much that he had to help put it around her neck.
“Thank you. I-I-I have to go to her. I have to see that she’s all right. Lord, but I can’t go to her looking like this! You won’t believe what Agremon’s dressed me in, the freakin’ pervert. Wait a minute. You got me out of there, so you already know what I’m wearing.” She paused and took a breath. “Good grief!” she muttered and her head dropped in wretched embarrassment. He gently touched her cheek.
“Emma, look at yourself, sweetheart. He only dressed you up that way in your dream. See? You’re still in shorts and a top. No worries.” She wasn’t totally relieved. After all, he had seen her wearing that Frederick’s of Hollywood get-up in her dream. She hoped he had a short memory, but something pressing against her thighs told her his memory was in perfect working order. Maybe she shouldn’t be so embarrassed.
“Let me help you up. You still seem a bit shaky.” As he coaxed her up off the floor, he held her hands, and she felt a curious surge of energy flow continuously between them. She was standing now and filled with wonder.