The door at the top of the stairs smashed open.
I drew the revolver and pointed it at the woman we had spoken to the first time we came to Dogwood. She had on a billowing long-sleeved shirt with the sleeve cuffs unbuttoned. It made her look skinny. Her frizzy gray hair hung loose around her head and her leathery face looked dark in the dim light. She began descending the stairs.
“Put that down, dear,” she said.
I kept the gun pointing. Suddenly I had no idea if the safety was on. I hadn’t checked. But I was pretty sure the hammer would fall on a loaded cylinder.
“Stop there,” I said.
“Or? That didn’t help the poor man who used it the first time. Now be a dear and put it away so we can talk.”
“Are you bulletproof just like Chronos?”
She made a sour face. “Don’t call him that here. For now all you need to know is he’s my boy, and just the fact that you’ve come back to us means you’re someone special too. Don’t be rude. Put the gun away and we can go upstairs and have some tea and talk this out. That would be nice, neh?”
“You’re his mother?”
“Someone has to be. And apparently he’s being naughty.”
The pounding in my head resumed. Then my stomach decided it was a good time to give another squeeze. I doubled over and heaved but nothing came up. During that time the woman didn’t move even though the gun was pointed away. I coughed a few times and spat. When I looked up, I saw a growing look of concern on the woman’s face.
“You poor dear,” she said. “You’re wondering what’s happening to you.”
“I’m fine. It’s just nerves and whatever is going on out there that’s got everybody freaking out.”
“Nerves? I wish it were something so benign. Ever since you came here the first time, you’ve been sick. And it will only get worse unless you let me help you. Because right now, you’re dying.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The old woman moved forward. “Let me give you a hand, dear.”
She hesitated when I raised the barrel of the revolver. The room spun and my arm felt suddenly heavy. A wave of dizziness rolled over me.
“What’s happening to me?” I asked.
“Nothing that can’t be helped. What’s your name, sweetheart?”
I tried to think of a new name I hadn’t used yet but drew a blank.
“Jade.”
“Call me Mercy. It seems you’ve learned so many things and no doubt have questions. Can we go upstairs so I can fix you something that will make you feel better?”
“Tell me about all the dead bodies,” I said.
Mercy sighed. “People that stay here too long get sick. Squatters, vagrants, anyone that we can’t discourage from moving along.”
“What happens to them?”
“The same thing that’s happening to you. It starts from the inside. In your bones and blood and guts and soon it spreads out to your skin and by then it’s all too late.”
“What is it?”
She gestured vaguely. “It’s the air, the soil here. All poisoned. It’s been like that for many years. Only a few of us have managed to survive. We’re like the caretakers here. Our job is to keep others away so no one gets hurt.”
“All those bodies in there are squatters? I don’t believe you. There’s a cop, there’s a census taker.”
“People who kept coming back over and over. Like you. Sad, really. No matter how hard we try to discourage them, some insist and ignore all the warnings.”
The revolver trembled in my hand. “What warnings? You sitting in your garden telling people there’s no Starbucks here? Why don’t you close the road? Call the government? Get the EPA or CIA to do something about this if it’s killing people?”
“Because this is our home and we don’t want outsiders here who might try to take it away from us.”
“And it’s Chronos’s home too,” I said. “While he’s out fighting criminals, you’re here killing anyone who might find out about him. Does he know what you do?”
“You don’t get to talk about my boy like you know him. This is his place to rest and heal and ready himself for another day of trying to save all of you from evil.”
The ache in my stomach was getting worse. It felt like I had swallowed glass.
“Why aren’t you sick?” I asked.
“Some of us acclimated. And the universe just decides some things, neh? Like who is strong and who is weak? Look at my boy. He’s strong. As am I and those who still live here. Maybe you’re strong too. Share a cup of tea with me. It will settle your stomach. We can talk like civilized folk up in the kitchen and not down here in this musty cellar.”
She wore an odd, faint smirk, an expression that was strangely familiar. I realized I had seen it on the face of Chronos just before he killed my parents.
“I don’t believe anything you’re saying,” I said. “How many people would care about this place enough that they’d come back? Just passing through doesn’t get anyone sick. A census taker might not be around for more than an hour or two knocking on a few doors. But you’ve been hiding Chronos here, and people have been curious about where he goes every night. You kill to protect his secret home. And Chronos must help with that too?”
“No tea for you then,” she said.
I heard a shuffle behind me. From the shadows beyond the door to the crawlspace, the man with the ball cap came rushing towards me. The clippers were raised like a club.
My reaction was instant. I ducked the blow and fired up at him. The man screamed and tumbled into the rack of clothing. He lay there, twitching.
Mercy rushed to him. “Temp! Temp!” she cried.
He groaned and pushed her back and slowly got back up. A wound in his stomach was leaking blood, but with each moment he seemed to be regaining his strength. His eyes burned with fury as he glared at me from under the bill of his cap.
“Stay down,” I ordered. “Don’t move, neither of you.” I began to back up the staircase.
“Jade, dear, this is a mistake,” Mercy said. “If you try to leave, you’ll get sicker. You’ll die unless I help you.”
Listening to her and being inside that house was making my skin crawl. My stomach and head would all settle down once I made it back outside and got away. The man she called Temp was standing now and appeared ready to charge, but Mercy held him back.
“The pain will only get worse,” she said. “I saw you move. You’re fast like Diligence. Maybe you’re strong like him too. You believe it will protect you, but it won’t. Your infirmity is why he has to return. You will too or you’ll die in agony. Put the gun down. Sit with me. We can talk this out like grown-ups and save you.”
I made it to the top of the steps. The door’s latch had been smashed. Mercy was a strong one. I would have to be careful with her. Once out of the basement I saw the front door was open and I ran for it. My stomach squeezed as I made it out into the night.
As I tried to jump into the air I landed hard and scraped my knee on the rocky ground. My head was fuzzy. From within the house I heard Mercy shouting, but I couldn’t make out the words. I didn’t have time for my powers to grow fickle. I tried to relax.
Step into the air like it’s nothing, I reminded myself.
If anyone had been watching it would have looked like I stomped my foot on the ground. My guts gave another squeeze. With my free hand, I held my belly tight and ran. The gun hand stayed loose at my side. I glanced from side to side along the dirt road, expecting that at any moment another resident of Dogwood would try something.
But I was alone and the road was empty.
At the periphery of my senses I heard whispering. The susurration followed me, a dozen voices speaking nonsense until one of them whispered, “Daughter.”
I limped as fast as I could through the darkness.
“There’s nothing there,” I muttered to myself over and over to drown out the phantom sounds.
Mercy’s words kept rattling around
in my head. So many lies, but something bad was happening to me. I worried if I fell I wouldn’t be able to get up. The taste of battery acid filled my mouth. I spat. If I didn’t make it back, would Carter have the sense to ignore everything I had told him and come get me? Or would Megan pull him out of my orbit and take him back home to protect him from the crazy girl who was indulging his neurotic fantasies?
One step at a time.
Something was moving in the night around me. I heard the rustle of clothes, the crunch of a boot on dry grass, the scent of old bodies washed with apple cider vinegar and soap made of plant roots.
“Leave me alone!” I shouted. The strain of my words made me feel as if something inside me was tearing. I ran as fast as I could, but the road was so dark. Several potholes almost took me down but I persisted. The whispers grew closer. More footfalls. Motion draped in shadow.
Then through the night gloom I saw yellow blinking flashers. It was a beacon, a lighthouse, and the sounds and claustrophobic air of the weird village peeled back as I saw my salvation. The night specters fled. My mind cleared. Carter had decided to turn on the hazard lights and it was what I needed to see as I ran.
“Carter! Megan! Start the car!”
I moved out onto the main road and crossed the street. Then as I got closer I felt ice in my veins.
The flashing lights were coming from a white van parked in front of Megan’s Civic.
“You were right,” Princess Pike said. “She did come back. Lucky for you. Losing her signal again made me just want to scream. But here she is.”
The interior light in the back of the van came on. Both Carter and Megan were in back, tied up. Princess Pike stepped out of the shadows, the blinking illumination highlighting her tall form and the lethal weapon in her hands.
“And now, Jade dear, we finish what we started. And this time there’ll be no interruptions.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Princess,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper, “we all have to get out of here. We’re in danger.”
Princess Pike twirled her spear. The blue tip seemed to glow and leave a trail of light in the air. One of her flunkies stepped out of the driver’s seat, causing the door alert to start pinging. Pike paused to look back in his direction. He closed the door. The alert continued unabated. He opened it and slammed it and the sound stopped.
“Sorry,” the flunky muttered.
She sighed, then returned her attention to me. “You’ve picked up some fancy moves. How?”
“I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you everything. Take me as your prisoner. Let them go. Then we get into your van and drive.”
“How noble. But I’d like to hear your answer. And drop the gun.” She brought the tip of her weapon down to my face.
I raised my right hand so the revolver dangled on my finger. “It’s Chronos. This is where he lives.”
“You lie.”
“It’s true. We tracked him. I’ve been tracking him. I never meant to get involved with you. He killed my parents. I’ve been trying to find out where he goes every night and this is it. But you have to believe me when I tell you we need to leave. Now.”
My stomach gave a squeeze. I had nothing to throw up. Coughing, I tried not to double over but it proved impossible. The pain in my side was intense as I retched.
“What’s wrong with you?” Princess Pike asked.
I was trembling and down on my knees. “Some kind of poison at his house. It’s in the air.”
She seemed suddenly uncertain and looked at the goon. He stood there all lunky and dumb like a good henchman.
“Killing you is no fun,” she said. She adjusted her grip on her weapon. “But we didn’t drive all the way up here for nothing.”
A shape flew overhead and landed hard on top of the van with a loud bang, denting the metal. Pike spun and looked up. At first I thought it was Chronos, but it was the threadbare figure wearing the ball cap. The clippers were no longer in his hands. The man named Temp wheezed and stared down at me as if Princess Pike and her goon didn’t even exist.
“Get off our van!” Princess Pike ordered.
When Temp didn’t move, she brought her weapon around and stabbed at him. He caught the shaft and snapped the front end off. The blue tip fell to the street. Pike pulled at the spear still in Temp’s grip and it separated at a joint. Another blade sprang from the end of the newly shortened weapon. She thrust it low, but Temp somersaulted forward and landed in front of her. His hand was a blur as he chopped at her throat. Princess Pike dodged, but not fast enough. He smacked her hard and sent her down to the street. Her goon rushed the man. Temp caught him by the throat. I heard the goon gasping.
Ignoring the burning inside my stomach, I forced myself to stand. “Put him down.”
Temp glanced my way but showed no signs of letting the goon go. I thumbed the hammer back. That always got people’s attention in the movies, but not this time. He was going to kill the man. I wasn’t sure why I cared, but I did. I pulled the trigger. Temp dropped the goon and spun towards me even as the revolver clicked and failed to fire. The hammer had landed on an empty cylinder.
Temp let out an animal snarl and came at me, both hands clawing in my direction. His fingernails were long and jagged. My reflexes were there for me and I dodged him, but I faltered as a stomach cramp tightened. Temp nailed me with a forearm to the side of my head. Pain erupted. The night spun and I fell.
Carter was shouting something. My vision stabilized in time to see Temp standing above me. From his belt he drew a long, curved knife. I could smell him. He stank like a wet old dog. His breathing got quicker and more excited as he raised the blade.
I readied myself to push off the ground and launch at him, but my arms and legs weren’t cooperating. I tried to think up some final thing to say to tell the animal off, but my words failed me.
“I’m sorry, Carter,” I managed, surprising myself.
“Temperance, no!” Mercy called.
Around me and behind Temp, shadows came towards us out of the night, drawing closer into the blinking orange light from Pike’s van. A dozen villagers stood around me, with Mercy leading them. It was an army of scarecrows come to life, a ragged, timeworn posse gathered to protect Dogwood’s secret.
“They all must go,” Temp said, his voice scratchy. “They know so they go.”
Some of the townspeople nodded. “They know so they go,” one man said in agreement.
“No,” Mercy said. “We need her. We gather them up and take them with us.”
Temp looked down at me as if still considering cutting my throat. Then in a blur his knife hand came down, the hard handle knocking me across the head.
***
I came to what must have been just moments later. I felt a solid shoulder digging into my gut. Someone was carrying me. The arm that held me was like iron. As I drifted in and out, I was plopped down onto a hard wooden bench. I could see the stars beyond a dilapidated overhang. A lantern was lit, throwing off an amber glow. As my head continued to pound and my guts churned, I wanted nothing more than to fade into unconsciousness.
But they had Carter and Megan.
I realized I was on the front porch of a house. From inside, I heard furniture being moved and muffled voices. Soon came the shrill whistle of a teakettle. Someone came out a creaking screen door and crouched next to me. A damp cloth was pressed against my forehead. It felt icy cold. It was then I realized I was sweating.
“You poor dear,” Mercy said. She dabbed at my face. I forced myself to sit up.
Another villager, a younger woman who looked skeletal with straight straw hair, brought out a china cup on a saucer. The aroma of steeping herbs wafted forth. After a minute, Mercy removed an infuser on a thin chain and handed the cup to me. My hands were shaking. I couldn’t take the cup without spilling it. So she lifted it to my lips.
“Sip this slowly. It will help.”
I turned my face away. “Where’s Carter? And Megan? They were both tied u
p in the van.”
“Your friends are safe.”
“Where?”
“One of the farms near here. They won’t get sick like you. They’ll be cared for while we speak. But first sip. You’re in terrible shape.”
It seemed convoluted to save me only to kill me with poison, so I blew at the cup and sucked down a few drops of the liquid. It tasted like the worst kind of herbal tea and smelled like a chopped-down tree and old leaves. I coughed but kept it down. The warmth made me feel good, at least. I was beyond tired and the adrenaline from earlier was gone, but sitting here so close with the woman who’d identified herself as the mother of Chronos filled me with a cold dread. In my state the thought of escape or fighting seemed impossible. All that remained was the mystery of why I wasn’t dead like all the other victims stashed under the red house.
Mercy waited and watched as I drank more tea. The edges of the pain in my stomach dulled. My headache tapered down to a dull throb. I finished the cup.
“We’ve been here for a very long time,” Mercy said. “Every now and then, someone discovers our secret. Someone like you.”
“You’ve killed everyone who’s found this place.”
“Nothing so dramatic. Some who won’t be deterred come back or try to stay despite our best efforts. They die because of what the ground around us does to them.”
“What’s happening to me?”
Mercy poured hot water from a teapot into the cup and dropped the infuser back in. “It’s making you like us.”
“You mean like Chronos?”
She winced when I said the name. “Diligence is a good boy whose heart is full of mercy. He shares his strength with you.”
“He kills people. And right now your boy has gone completely around the bend.”
“I’m aware. He hasn’t returned. He’s sick and needs help coming home.”
I waited for her to continue but realized she was waiting for me to respond. “You want me to help him?”
“That’s why you and your friends are still alive. Some when exposed perish quickly. For whatever reason, you’ve demonstrated a certain resilience to this place. That puts you in the position to return back to your city and find Diligence and bring him back.”
Blood of the Masked God (Book 1): Red Wrath Page 19