Wings In Darkness

by Gregory Kay

  The Sheriff’s eyes widened slightly, grasping the threat’s implications – all places, big or small, have their share of political corruption, and he shuddered to think about just how much and what kind of information might be exposed, but Luke didn’t wait for him to respond.

  “Now I’ll play ball with you, I’ll work for you, and not give you any problems, but I will not stand by and see our people hurt by a bunch of thugs out of Washington or anywhere else.” He pointed toward Fiona. “Right now, my assignment is working with this reporter, from a paper with circulation all over the country, including West Virginia, and we’ve become pretty close, close enough for me to know she’d just love uncovering a corruption story, especially one tied to a cover-up like this. So, before the words ‘suspended’ or ‘fired’ come out of your mouth, you might want to think real hard about that, and ask yourself whether you’d rather have me inside your tent pissing out, or outside it pissing in.” He grinned without any humor whatsoever. “My bladder feels pretty full right now, so I can do it either way.”

  Pete couldn’t think of anything to say, so he spun on his heel and stalked off without a word, and then a sudden revelation slammed down on his deputy like a ton of bricks. He abruptly realized why a certain number seemed so familiar.

  “Just a second, Sheriff,” Luke called, just before Pete reached his cruiser, “I have something for you, before you go, something I think you might be interested in.” Walking to his own car, he retrieved the license plate he’d found earlier, and had transferred from his Jeep to the police vehicle with the intention of dropping it off later. He carried it to his angry awaiting boss and thrust it out at him.

  “Here; it just came to me as to where I’d seen this license number. Next time you talk to whoever is giving you your marching orders these days, you might want to ask them if they know anything about this. It’s off of Arthur Barnett’s van, so whoever it was told you the ‘devil’s disciples’ were driving through Columbus is full of shit, unless they’re driving without tags. Funny; I’d think the cop who supposedly pulled them over would have noticed that, wouldn’t you?”

  Pete took the plate, his face pale and mouth hanging open in shock. A moment later, the door of the Sheriff’s cruiser slammed shut with unnecessary force, and he punched the accelerator too hard, peppering the bumper of the State Police vehicle with gravel as he left.

  “You shouldn’t have done that,” Harry said quietly, having eased over unnoticed just far enough to catch the gist of the conversation, “He was trying to look out for you.”

  “Don’t piss down my back and tell me it’s raining,” Luke advised him, “Pete was just trying to cover his ass!”

  “No, he was trying to protect yours, just like I’m doing right now. You need to leave this alone, Luke, seriously. I mean it.”

  The deputy glared at him accusingly.

  “You too, huh? Well, at least I know who my friends are.”

  Harry didn’t miss the sarcasm, and he snapped, “Damn it, boy, don’t you get it? These people aren’t anybody to screw around with! I don’t want anything to happen to you!”

  “Like what?”

  “You know what!” he suddenly shouted, unconsciously stomping the sole of his left shoe into the gravel for emphasis, “That order has the power of the Federal Government behind it, and we all know it, whether anybody is willing to say so or not!”

  “Then they’d better haul their asses back to their Federal reservations, because this is Mason County, West Virginia, and this is the part of the country I’m responsible for!” He waved his hand over his shoulder at the trio of civilians gathered around the cruiser, watching wide-eyed. “Right now I’ve got dead and missing animals all over the place, monster sightings, strangers terrorizing people, one kid beaten up and four more missing, and people running around trying like hell to sweep the whole thing under the rug; you think I can just let that go?”

  “Look, who cares about those four pieces of shit?”

  “I do, because they’re our pieces of shit! Regardless of what I think of the nasty little sons of bitches, as long as they live in this county, it’s part of my job to protect them!”

  “You look! If the Feds are involved, those guys you had the run-in with are undercover officers themselves!”

  “Officers, my ass! The people who attacked us were nothing but criminals: thugs hiding behind their bogus authority! I may not have time to actively hunt for them at the moment, but if I run across them again, I’m going to treat them exactly like what they are, and they’re either going to jail or to the coroner’s office! Right now, after they were getting ready to shoot all of us, including a woman and a teenage girl, I don’t give much of a damn which!”

  “But the United States Government – “

  “Piss on the United States Government! This isn’t the United States Government! This is West by-God Virginia! Just like it says right here!” He sharply rapped the State Police badge on Harry’s chest with the knuckle of his index finger to emphasize his words. “Remember that? I’m beginning to wonder if Pete is the only one who’s forgotten who he works for.”

  “I haven’t forgotten; I also haven’t forgotten the West Virginia Constitution. Ever read it? I’ll be happy to recite it for you! ‘The state of West Virginia is, and shall remain, one of the United States of America. The constitution of the United States of America, and the laws and treaties made in pursuance thereof, shall be the supreme law of the land.’ Article One, remember that?”

  “Oh, yeah, I remember that just fine. I also remember there’s nothing in any Federal law or treaty, and damned sure nothing in the Constitution, that authorizes a goon squad to run around terrorizing people, beating up kids, stealing their cars, and slaughtering their dogs. And making people just disappear.”

  “We have no evidence those incidents are connected to this.”

  “Bullshit, Harry. They both happened here, in a place where things like that just don’t happen, and they occurred within hours of each other. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to put two and two together.”

  Harry blew out his breath in disgust.

  “Now it’s government conspiracy theories! Do you know who you sound like? Just like your crazy buddy, Whitey!”

  From the look that passed across the deputy’s face, Harry belatedly realized he had just pushed things way too far with that remark, so much so that it came as an actual surprise that Luke’s response was cold and verbal, rather than an anger-driven fist in the face. That didn’t make it hurt any less.

  “Whitey may be crazy, but it looks to me like he’s the only honest friend I’ve got left; he’s damned sure the only one who still knows right from wrong, and at least I can trust him to watch my back, no matter who I’m going up against!”

  As one, both men turned and walked away from each other, back to their cars, angry and fuming. They both knew if they didn’t, if one more word was spoken by either of them, they were going to fight right there in the road.

  Seeing the black, angry look on Luke’s face, Fiona did the only thing she could, and she did it instinctively, without thought and without caring what anyone watching thought; she came to him, meeting him with open arms and hugged him tightly. At the feel of her body pressed against his, he stroked her hair with a tense hand as the worst of his anger drained away.

  Lowering his face to the top of her head, burying his mouth in her dark curls, and breathing in the scent of her, he whispered, “There are some things you need to know. We’ll talk more about what just happened as soon as we’re alone, okay?”

  “Okay,” she whispered back to him, so comfortable in his embrace that she never wanted to let go.

  Alison’s statement at the scene of their Mothman encounter was almost a verbatim repeat of Johnny’s, and produced nothing new, other than allowing Fiona to cover all her bases, and the good feeling it engendered among all concerned that the two were together again.

  At Luke’s insistence, Johnny followed th
em the Parks home and parked along the curb in front. Alison went inside to let her parents know they were back and to ask if Johnny could come in; for the moment, he was standing beside his car while Luke quietly read him the riot act.

  “Now you’re going to go inside and sincerely apologize to Allie’s dad, and act surprised when he tells you he’ll allow you to see her there or at church,” Luke instructed him, punctuating it with a finger beating time in the air a couple of inches from the boy’s face, “Plus, you will thank him for his consideration in allowing you to do so while promising not to betray his trust. Do you understand?”

  Despite his battered condition, Johnny was still grinning broadly at being reunited with his girlfriend while he bobbed his head up and down.

  “Sure, but I was planning on doing that anyway.”

  “Just see that you do. You screw things up again, I can’t do anything else to help you.”

  “I understand. Thanks, Luke...and you too, Fiona.”

  “I don’t know what I did,” she told him with a smile, “but you’re welcome.”

  The front door swung open and Joe Parks appeared on the porch.

  “You come on in here, boy,” he said gruffly, “I want to talk to you.” As Johnny approached into the glowing circle of the porch light, he shook his head. “Damn! You look like you’ve been sacking wildcats and ran out of sacks! Did I do all of that?”

  Johnny pointed to his jaw.

  “No sir; this lump here is yours, but most of the rest of it is from those guys – “

  Joe waved him to silence with his un-casted left hand.

  “Yeah, Allie told me just now. Anyway, get in there and sit down, and have Kathy look at that for you. I need to talk to Luke.”

  He waited until the door closed before asking the deputy, “What the hell happened out there?”

  “Well, for starters, I think Allie inherited your guts; she saved all our lives.”

  Luke gave him a brief rundown on the events, and, after momentarily thinking about it while Allie’s father had a brief but exceptionally violent and heart-felt cussing fit, swore him to secrecy before telling him about who the two “carjackers” apparently were.

  “Good Lord!” Joe exploded, waving his arms and instantly regretting it as the centrifugal force moved more blood into his injured hand, “What are those Illuminati bastards doing out there in the TNT?”

  “Illuminati?”

  “It’s a widespread conspiracy theory,” Fiona broke in, having heard about it several times in the course of her job, “an quasi-occult elite that supposedly controls everything – politics, banking, governments – through a combination of power, money, and, possibly, magical ceremonies. A lot of people believe it’s tied to organizations like the Council on Foreign Relations, exclusive fraternities like the Skull and Bones, even certain Masonic lodges.”

  Joe nodded.

  “Exactly; I’m glad somebody’s done her homework.”

  “I’m not saying I believe in it as a conspiracy as such, but, as Assistant Paranormal Editor, I keep an open mind.

  “So, why do you think it might be the Illuminati?”

  Alison’s dad began counting off on his fingers.

  “First, because they have the power. You told me how quick the Sheriff and that State Trooper backed off with their tails between their legs; they got the word from somewhere, and they at least think it’s the Federal Government. Second, there’s weird stuff going on all around us right now, stuff that never happens, at least not here. Shit, Luke, nothing ever happens here, and now you’ve got people seeing strange lights in the sky, you’ve got animals being mutilated.” Luke wasn’t surprised that Joe knew that, considering the power of the gossip hot line. With a troubled look on his face, the older man waved a hand at the closed doors of his house. “You’ve got monsters popping up in front of my little girl, and God only knows what that thing might have done if Johnny hadn’t at least had enough sense to get her out of there. Then you’ve got the government and all the major media running interference for everything that’s happing, telling us there’s a logical explanation for what is plainly occult!” He paused and added, “Satanic occult, at that!”

  “Occult? Good grief, is everybody doing magic here now?” Joe's eyes swiveled toward Luke, and the deputy gave him a brief rundown of what they’d found in the igloo in the TNT and the missing teenagers whose plate he’d found nearby, plus the gist of what Whitey had told him, leaving only his friend’s name out of it.

  “Like I said: occult. As if the crap that happened here this evening ain’t enough!”

  “What crap? What are you talking about?”

  “We’ve got a prowler.”

  Luke frowned. That wasn’t a common call in Point Pleasant, and when it happened, it most often meant a pubescent peeping tom, a petty thief looking for something to steal, or a drunk who had given up and passed out in someone’s yard on the way home.

  “When and where?”

  “Right around dark, in the alley, about even with Allie’s bedroom window.” His face darkened at the thought of what that meant as he pointed in the direction of the back yard and its border of cedars that ran along a chain link fence. “I went to let Kathy’s cat in, and heard the neighbor’s dogs raising hell. I saw him standing back there in the shadows, watching the house. My first thought was that it was Johnny, but all it took was a glance to see it wasn’t him.”

  Luke felt chills running up and down his back as he pulled out his pocket notebook and a pen, already having a feeling about what he was going to hear.

  “What did he look like?”

  Joe shrugged.

  “It was hard to tell because it was getting dark, but he wasn’t particularly big; average size, maybe a little smaller. He looked dark-complected, but I can’t swear to that.”

  “What did he have on?”

  “A dark coat and a hat.”

  “Like a cap?” Luke asked, hoping it was some local, but Joe shook his head.

  “No, a hat, with a brim all the way around; not a cowboy hat or anything, more like a gangster hat. Oh, and he was wearing sunglasses too. At night.”

  Fiona shivered visibly, causing Luke to unobtrusively shift his weight until his arm was touching her shoulder, subtly offering comfort. Both of them knew exactly who it must have been.

  “So, what did you do?”

  “I hollered at him, asked him what he was doing back there, and he just stood there grinning at me; he must have been on something, because I’ve never seen a human being smile like that. I thought, ‘Okay, you son of a bitch, if you want to play it that way,’ and I grabbed my .45 and went out there. When he saw that, he turned and ran.”

  Luke had already noticed the pistol grip sticking out of an inside-the-pants holster on the man’s waist band, but gave it little thought. He knew Joe had a permit for it, was on his own place anyway, and wasn’t a threat...to him, at least.

  “Did you call the police?”

  “No; he was already gone and I knew you’d be coming, so I figured I’d just wait and talk to you.”

  “That’s it?”

  “Pretty much.”

  “What about the cat?” Fiona asked, a sudden sinking feeling coming over her and coming out in her voice, and both of them looked at her, “Did the cat ever come back in?”

  Joe scratched his head.

  “No, now that you mention it, she didn’t. That’s odd, because she’s so old, she seldom even leaves the yard.”

  Fiona’s eyes met Luke’s, and suddenly he had a very bad feeling as well. The deputy took a flashlight from his utility belt.

  “Let’s take a look.”

  Fiona was proud of herself, she supposed; at least, she didn’t throw up this time when they found the cat torn to pieces, with its entrails deliberately hanging from the chain link like clothes on a line, and its head setting atop one of the posts, its glazed, yellow eyes wide open and staring at nothing.

  Even through the closed windows, th
ey could hear Kathy sobbing inside, and Alison whimpering while Johnny and Fiona offered what comfort they could. While the Deputy called the Point Pleasant Police Department, Joe had forbidden his wife and daughter to come outside, and told Johnny to stay with them and make sure they obeyed. A gloved Luke helped the patrolman gather what was left of Kathy’s pet into a small biohazard bag, so small as to make it obvious there wasn’t nearly as much cat left as there had been at the start, and nobody was willing to verbally speculate on where the remainder might have gone.

  Once they finished, Luke gave his notes to the city cop, whose jurisdiction the incident was part of, and the officer left a little more quickly than usual, glad to be away from the seething Joe Parks.

  “Luke,” Alison’s father said with remarkable softness, considering his voice was a growl originating deep in his chest, like a warning from an angry bear, “You know what I’m going to do if that son of a bitch shows back up here again.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  “You’re not going to try to talk me out it?”

  “Nope,” Luke told him with a shake of his head to emphasize it, “You know the law, but you’ve got responsibilities inside, there.” He jerked his head at the house, then locked eyes with his friend. “Joe, I don’t know what in the hell is going on here, but I know those two bastards out in the TNT would have killed all four of us; I know it in here!” Gesturing sharply at his own chest with his thumb, he continued. “We’ve got four kids missing already, and I also know this piece of shit that killed your cat was after Fiona, and would have gotten her if it hadn’t been for Muggs.”