Cunning Devil

by Chris Underwood

  “If Osric and I are right,” Early said, staring out at the room, “if someone really is trying to work a curse of that magnitude, then the events of the last few days could affect everyone in this room. This community, this whole town could be at risk. Until we have answers, we have to be cautious.”

  “Wait a minute,” the charm-seller said. “Let’s not get stupid. No witch within five hundred miles could work magic like that.”

  “The hag could,” Lilian said quietly.

  That shut everyone up. The ghoul in the corner had run out of fingernails to chew on and had moved onto her toes. Even Isaac wasn’t looking so sure of himself.

  If the hag had turned on us, we were in big trouble.

  Early turned to the charm-seller. “You have friends among the witches, don’t you?”

  “Friends?” The charm-seller looked like he was about to spit on the floor, but he caught Early’s eye and stopped himself. “I wouldn’t call them that.”

  “We need to find out what they know. Can you do that?”

  The charm-seller hesitated, frowned, then nodded. “Fine. I’ll see what I can do. But I want it noted I still think this whole thing is bullshit.”

  “Treating with the witches, cunning man?” Isaac said. “It’s not like you to deal with the devil.”

  “We all have to, sometime or other,” Early said quietly. He clicked his fingers at the ghoul in the corner. She jumped, pulling her toes away from her mouth. “We also need feet on the ground, gathering information from the community. Can you round up your brothers and sisters, get the word out about what’s going on?”

  The ghoul scratched her head nervously. “Ah, um, yeah, yeah, okay. I’ll try.”

  “Good.” Early nodded. “See if anyone has any information about the hag’s whereabouts. And listen out for anything else that seems strange.”

  “Yeah.” The ghoul was nodding enthusiastically now. “Yeah. I can do that.”

  “I’ll search my notes,” Alcaraz said. “I can pass along everything I know about the use of hobgoblins and roggenwolves in spells.”

  “Good.” Early stroked his beard. “We need to find out what this curse is. It might give us a clue about who is responsible.”

  Isaac stood. “If it is the will of the conclave, I believe my mistress may be able to assist. Miss Lockhart has the most extensive library of the arcane in this town. She doesn’t possess the hag’s knowledge, but the answer to your question is almost certainly somewhere within her archives.”

  Early’s face remained neutral, but I knew him well enough to see he was uncomfortable seeking the aid of the vampires. But I guess we didn’t have much choice. “All right. I’d like Ozzy to be the one searching the archives.”

  “What?” I said. “No way. I’ve got other things to do.”

  “Your apprentice’s presence won’t be necessary,” Isaac said. “We can find the information ourselves.”

  “Ozzy,” Early said. “We all need to—”

  “No.” I stepped in close, lowering my voice so the rest of the conclave wouldn’t hear. “I’m sorry, Early, but no. I came here, I talked to your conclave. I did things your way. But I already have something I need to do. The Mills kid could still be alive. I need to find whoever took the boy. Whoever used me. And we both know where I’m going to find them.”

  The old man held my gaze, frowning as he studied my face. I set my jaw. I wasn’t backing down. Not this time.

  Without answering me, he turned to Isaac. “I’ll be in touch with your mistress soon. Start your search.” He looked around the room. “Are we all clear on what we’re doing? Yes? Then let’s get to it. We can’t afford to waste any time.”

  Murmuring quietly, the ragtag conclave began to disperse. The ghoul was the first to dart off, with Isaac swanning along behind. Lilian shot me a questioning look on the way past, but I ignored her, and she was shooed on by Alcaraz before she could ask any questions.

  I heard the front door creak shut, and then a couple of vehicles starting outside. Silence returned to the house.

  And then Early and I were alone.

  20

  “I know you’re angry,” Early said to me.

  “I’m way past angry.”

  “But I think you’re making a mistake. You pulled yourself out of this hole once before. I don’t want you falling back in.”

  I turned away, stared into the empty fireplace. “You’ve got to do things your way. The cunning man’s way. I get that. And I think you’re right, we’re going to need help to get to the bottom of this. But I’m not going to go sit in a vampire’s library and page through dusty old books. I can’t, Early. Not when I know what I need to do.”

  “And exactly what is it you think you need to do?” he said.

  “You already know the answer.”

  “Tell me anyway.”

  I spun back to face him. “Who do you think stole the Mills boy, Early? Huh?”

  “Ozzy—”

  “It was a goblin, Early. It has to be.”

  He frowned. “Or maybe that’s what you want it to be.”

  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “Drop the wise man act, for one goddamn minute. We’re looking for a creature capable of replacing a baby with a convincing replica. We’re looking for a creature conniving enough to use the boy to blackmail his father. It’s a goblin, Early. It has to be. I’m going back to the Mines.”

  I turned to leave, but Early didn’t let go of an argument that easily. “Goblins can’t work curses like the kind we’re talking about.”

  “Then maybe we’re wrong about that. Or maybe someone else is involved as well. I don’t know, and I don’t much care. You’re this community’s wise man. You have to protect them. I understand that. And I know you want to protect me. But it’s too late for that. I’m not like you, Early.”

  He paused, his eyes hard above the gray of his beard. “So you’ve made your decision then? About whether or not you want to be a cunning man.”

  “Looks like it.”

  “Is this really all it takes? One changeling child brings back memories of your brother, and all of a sudden you’re donning your witch’s cloak and turning a man into a puppet?”

  My hands tightened into fists. “He killed me!” I shouted. “He killed me, Early, do you understand that? He shot me dead. I did everything you said. I gave it all up. I became a good person. I did it for you, and for Alice, and the twins. I did it because I missed the start of those boys’ lives, and I wanted to be around for the rest of them. I wanted them to be proud of me. I wanted you to be proud of me.”

  I stomped about the room, the vials in my coat rattling with every step.

  “And for what?” I said. “I was good, I wanted to help, and I got killed for it. I lost Teddy a long time ago. And now I’m going to lose everything else. Can you at least try to understand that? Can you try to understand why I have to do this? I have one day left, that’s all, and I’m going to spend it well. I’m going to find that boy, it he’s still alive. And then I’m going to get my revenge.” I dug my nails into my palms. “I’m going back to the Mines. I’m going to find out which bastard goblin is responsible for all this. I’m going to drag him out of his hole. And I’m going to make him answer for what he—”

  I stopped, my jaw slamming shut with a click. Lilian was leaning against the sitting room doorway, arms folded across her chest as she studied me. I couldn’t read the expression on her face.

  “I thought you’d gone,” I said to her after a few seconds. It was the only thing I could come up with.

  “I heard shouting.”

  Hell. How much had she heard? I didn’t want anyone’s pity. But the look she was giving me wasn’t pity. I couldn’t work out what it was.

  “You’re going to the Mines?” she asked.

  I glanced at Early, then nodded. “Yeah.”

  “I’ll come with you.”

  “What?” I said.

  “What?” Early echoed.

 
; “I want to help find the hag,” she said. “I…I need to. If we don’t find her, I’ll have to leave Lost Falls.”

  I frowned. “What? Why?”

  “I just will, okay? Things will be very bad for me if we don’t find her. I trust your instincts. If the hag is connected to all this, maybe we’ll find some clue in the Mines. Besides, you’ll need someone watching your back.”

  I scratched my head. I hadn’t been planning on this. Last time I’d gone to the Mines, I’d done it alone. It hadn’t even occurred to me that anyone might want to help.

  But maybe she was right. Maybe I did need someone watching my back. Maybe I needed someone along to keep me level.

  “It’ll be dangerous,” I said.

  “No shit.”

  I shot Early another look. His face was a mask again. I shrugged. “I’ll be glad for the company.”

  “Good,” she said with a nod. And that was settled.

  Or so I thought.

  “This is all pointless,” Early said. “You won’t be able to get into the Mines.”

  “I did before,” I said.

  “The goblins have tightened their wards since the unrest. They’ve become even more afraid of outsiders.”

  He gave me a hard look at that, which wasn’t entirely unwarranted, I suppose. When I’d gone to the Mines before, all I’d wanted was to get Teddy back. But my actions had stirred up the whole damn wasps’ nest.

  “How do you know?” I said.

  “I talk to people.”

  “Well, I’ll find a way in. Every ward-net has holes.”

  “Maybe.” He sighed and glanced at the door behind him, as if coming to a decision. “Are you sure you have to do this, Ozzy?”

  “I am.”

  He nodded grimly. “Will you do one thing for me?”

  “What?”

  “Remember what I’ve tried to teach you.”

  Something sat heavy in my chest. I nodded slowly. “Of course.”

  His face was still troubled, but he seemed resigned to my decision now. He glanced at the door again, then held up a hand. “Wait here a second.”

  Without explanation, he left the room, closing the door behind him. I stared after him in confusion for a moment, before shooting Lilian a look.

  “What was that about?” she asked.

  “I have no idea.” I cleared my throat. “So…uh…how long were you standing there?”

  “Quite a while,” she said. “Surprised it took you so long to see me.”

  “I was distracted,” I said.

  “So I gathered.” She pushed off the doorway with her hip, crossed the room, and pressed her fingers to my throat.

  “Uh…what are you doing?” I tried to lean away, but she grabbed me and held me still.

  “You still have a pulse,” she said.

  “Yeah.”

  “Then you’re not dead yet.”

  I shook my head. “You don’t understand. At midnight tomorrow—”

  She put her hands on either side of my skull and pressed tight. Her eyes burned. “You’ll know when you’re dead, Ozzy. Until then, you’re alive. And you better act like it. Understand?”

  “Not really.” I’d obviously touched a nerve, but I had no idea how.

  She set her jaw, her hands tightening on my skull. For a fleeting moment I was afraid she was going to try to snap my neck.

  Something cold washed over me, like I’d been dunked in ice water. Black dread filled my chest.

  Terror beyond reason. It obliterated my vision, shut out thought. I opened my mouth to scream.

  And then it was gone. I staggered back, collapsing into the armchair Alcaraz had vacated. I gasped for breath, felt the delicious warmth of life spread through my bones once again. I nearly wept.

  “What…what was that?” I croaked, rubbing my skull. I looked up at Lilian. “What are you?”

  She waggled her finger at me. “We still have a bet, don’t we?” She leaned over me, gripping the arms of the chair. “Life feels a hell of a lot better, doesn’t it? Don’t let it go lightly. Fight for it. Fight for it with everything you have.”

  “All right, all right,” I said. “Jesus.”

  “You don’t need another demonstration?” She reached for my temple again, and I flinched away.

  “I get the picture.”

  “Good.”

  She held out her hand to me. I hesitated, then took it gingerly. Nothing happened this time. All I could feel was her soft, warm flesh in my palm.

  She hauled me to my feet and held me until I stopped swaying. I looked into her eyes.

  “You scare the hell out of me, you know that?” I said.

  She just grinned.

  I took a few breaths, letting the warmth creep back into my toes. I felt reinvigorated. I felt alive.

  She was right. I wasn’t dead yet. I still had the transfer clause. My one slim chance of escaping my debt. And if I couldn’t use it, well, I was going to fight for every breath just the same.

  I opened my mouth to ask her what she’d done to me, but just then I heard a raised voice from down the hall.

  “You hear that?” I asked Lilian.

  She nodded. “Sounds like an argument.”

  I hadn’t been able to make out the words, but it had been Rhodes’ voice I’d heard. Curious, I crept to the sitting room door and eased it open.

  The voices had gone quiet again, but I could still hear them arguing in hushed tones. They were somewhere down the hall, near the back door. Another voice—Early’s—said something I didn’t catch, but I could just make out Rhodes’ response.

  “This is a bad idea.”

  Again Early’s words were too quiet for me to make out. I started to creep down the hallway, trying to get closer.

  “You shouldn’t be eavesdropping,” Lilian whispered.

  I glanced back at her. “Chicken?”

  She scowled and followed silently behind me.

  “It’s too dangerous,” Rhodes said. “I can’t go back. If they catch me—”

  “I know. I know.” Early was using his patient, understanding voice. Rhodes seemed to find it as infuriating as I did. He grunted in frustration.

  “The hag is missing. You know what that means. Once I change, I can’t reverse it. You’re asking me to give all this up.”

  “For a while. We don’t know the hag is gone for good.”

  “And if she is?”

  “We’ll figure out an alternative,” Early said.

  I moved silently closer, avoiding the creaky floorboards. I sidled up to the open back door. I could see Rhodes on the back porch, facing the river. Early stood behind him, palms upturned in supplication.

  “He won’t be able to do it without you,” Early said.

  Rhodes hung his head. “I want to help. You know that. But I don’t trust him. I can’t. Not after what he did.”

  “He’s changed.”

  “Has he?”

  Early sighed and leaned against the railing next to Rhodes. “This is a big sacrifice. I can’t make you do it. But you know you can’t hide here forever. You can’t hide who you are. Sooner or later, you have to face that. You have to face what you left behind.”

  “You’re insufferable,” Rhodes said.

  “So I’ve been told.”

  Muttering something to himself, Rhodes dug a small vial out of his pocket. The thin milky liquid inside shone in the moonlight. Didn’t look like any concoction I knew of, and the vial itself was nothing like the ones Early and I used. This one looked old, the glass uneven, as if it’d been hand-blown.

  I watched as Rhodes pulled the cork out with his teeth and spat it over the side of the porch. He held the vial to his lips, hesitating.

  “I only had a few days left anyway,” he said, like he was trying to convince himself of something.

  Then, shoulders stiffening, he threw back the vial, drinking its contents.

  Behind me, Lilian made a noise. “Was that…?”

  I glanced at her. S
he was peering out the window as well, frowning.

  “What?” I said.

  Her eyes widened. “Oh, shit,” she whispered.

  A sound like bones cracking came from the porch. I followed Lilian’s stare.

  Rhodes was hunched over, hands clenched on the porch railing. His face was turned away from me, but I could see his tensed muscles. He groaned as another series of pops and cracks rang out.

  I didn’t know what the hell I was looking at. Was he hurt? Early put a hand on his shoulder to comfort him, but Rhodes lashed out, growling and shoving him back.

  “Hey!” I shouted. Lilian grabbed at my arm and tried to pull me back into the hallway, but I was already through the door, catching Early before he could fall. “What the hell are you doing?”

  Rhodes snarled. He glanced at me and then covered his face, turning away.

  But not before I saw the bones of his skull shifting beneath his skin.

  “Ozzy!” Early looked shocked to see me. He brushed away my hand. “I’ll explain in a minute. Please, just wait inside.”

  I ignored him. Rhodes staggered to the far end of the porch, and I followed. His clothes seemed to grow looser on him as I watched. There was another loud crack and he grunted, grabbing at the corner post. His fingers had grown longer, thinner, and his skin had taken on a worn texture, like tree bark.

  “Rhodes,” I said. “Look at me.”

  “Fuck off!” he snapped. His voice had become harsh and guttural.

  “Look at me!”

  Hands grabbed at my shoulders. “Let’s go back inside,” Lilian said. She tried to pull me back, but she couldn’t move me.

  “Rhodes!” I yelled.

  There was one last pop, and finally the transformation was complete. Panting, Rhodes slumped to the floor, his back to me. The sharp points of his vertebrae poked against the fabric of his now-loose shirt.

  “Look at me, Rhodes,” I said.

  Slowly, Rhodes turned toward me. Except he wasn’t Rhodes anymore.

  He stared at me with eyes that had grown large and sunken. They shone yellow in the moonlight. The rest of his face was narrow and pointed, cheekbones unnaturally high. His ears rose to points and a long crooked nose drooped from the center of his face. He peeled back his lips, revealing pointed yellow teeth.