Storm Demon

by Gregory Lamberson

  Laurel raised her eyebrows. “No, I was looking at the security monitors.”

  Maria studied the screens. One showed the maintenance man crossing the lobby.

  “That man is a friend of mine. I’d prefer he didn’t know Jake found me.”

  “Whatever.” Maria closed the book and tossed it onto the desk next to a replica of the Maltese Falcon. She gave Laurel a hard look. “I’ll be back with Jake.”

  Maria strode past the kitchenette and through the reception area.

  “Are you going after Jake?” Ripper said.

  She faced him from the door. “Yes.”

  Ripper picked up a holstered .38 and slid it into his pocket. “Then I’m going with you.”

  Carrie’s eyes widened and she ran to his side. “Ripper, no! If you’re going, I’m going, too.”

  He held her at arm’s length. “Uh-uh. Jake said for us to stay here and make sure Psychic Lady doesn’t leave. One of us has to listen to him.”

  “To hell with her.”

  Ripper looked at Maria.

  “Suit yourself,” she said.

  23

  Sitting in the front seat of the Cavalier, Bernie ran the windshield wipers just so he could glimpse the traffic light ahead bouncing up and down on its cable.

  “That bad boy’s coming down,” he said to himself, wondering how many others would do the same.

  The front passenger door opened, and Maria leaned forward, rainwater cascading from her head and shoulders. She unlocked the doors and got in. “Turn around and drop me off at the Flatiron Building.”

  “Can I ask—?”

  The back door opened, and an Asian man with dreadlocks and hardened features got in behind her.

  “I hope he’s with you,” Bernie said.

  She stared straight ahead. “Yes.”

  “If we’re taking him in he needs handcuffs.”

  “I’m not under arrest,” Ripper said.

  “So, what, we’re giving him a ride somewhere?”

  “Please drive,” Maria said. “He’s with me.”

  “Oh, well, that explains everything.”

  “Bernie, meet Ripper. Ripper, this is my partner, Bernie.”

  “’Sup?” Ripper said.

  “Is Ripper an Asian name?” Bernie said.

  Ripper didn’t answer Bernie, who pulled into the street and executed a slow, wide U-turn through six inches of water.

  “I think I like Jake better,” Bernie said. “How is he?”

  “That’s what we’re going to find out.”

  “Of course.” His cheery tone turned dour. “It’s almost eleven.”

  “I know.”

  The car rolled forward, water jetting out from under its sides.

  “This is like going through a car wash without the wax job,” Bernie said, squinting. “That looks like a red light ahead.”

  “Go through it. The street’s empty.”

  “I had a feeling you’d say that.” He steered the Cavalier straight ahead. Through the rain, a vague outline blotted out the sky. “We’re almost there. We passed this tower on the way down here, you know.”

  “I knew as much as you did then.”

  “You know more now?”

  “Turn left on Broadway so we can get out.”

  Bernie frowned. “We never talk anymore.” He pulled over to the curb. “Don’t be long.”

  “If we’re not back in fifteen minutes, leave without us.”

  The wind rocked the car.

  “If I can leave in fifteen minutes.”

  Maria got out and slammed the door, and Ripper did the same.

  Bernie couldn’t even see them disappearing into the building. He glanced at the car’s clock.

  As soon as Laurel heard the front door close behind Maria and Ripper, she went to the reception area, where Carrie wiped her eyes.

  “Are you all right?” Laurel said.

  Carrie nodded, her features unseen by Laurel.

  “I’m going to close this door and give you some privacy, okay?”

  “Sure, whatever.”

  Laurel slipped back into Jake’s office and closed the door. With her hand still on the knob, she pushed in the button lock and turned to the safe. The window shook, sheets of water rattling its glass.

  Afterlife, she thought. Through Jake, she had already experienced some of its contents, but she wanted to know more. When he had offered to let her keep it, she had demurred. In the hands of a witch, the information in that research file could become deadly. It had been difficult for her to refuse even then; the research might have given her an edge over Lilian.

  Now things had changed: if Maria didn’t return with Jake, Laurel would be on her own. Carrie and Ripper—if Ripper survived—would be useless to her, even if they offered to help, which she doubted.

  More likely they’d deliver me to Lilian tied in a bow. She couldn’t blame them if that happened.

  Jake had said she’d know what to do if he didn’t return.

  Down on one knee, she caressed the safe’s gray metal surface, creating friction against her skin. She slid her fingers up to the first dial and closed them around it. Jake had not changed the combinations since returning, and she shared his memories. She didn’t have to think about the combination; she just twisted the dial on instinct. Three turns to the right, passing zero each time, stop at forty-two; two turns left past zero, stop at fourteen; one turn right past zero, stop at twenty-three.

  Separating her palm from the metal, she dragged her fingertips down to the next dial.

  The turning of the doorknob caused her to jerk her head toward the door even though she had locked it.

  Laurel rose and walked to the door, which she unlocked and opened. Carrie looked up at her.

  “Yes?”

  “Why was the door locked?”

  “I gave you your privacy. I wanted some for myself.”

  Carrie looked at the safe, then back at Laurel. “If you need privacy, lock the door to Jake’s bedroom, not this one. I’m his office manager. I need access to his office.”

  “Whatever you say.” Laurel opened the door wide, then walked to Jake’s desk, sat, and booted his computer.

  Carrie returned to the reception area, and Laurel’s focus returned to the safe.

  Accompanied by Ripper, Maria exited the elevator on the twenty-second floor of the Flatiron Building. She had only needed to show her shield to the doorman to get in. Their wet shoes squeaked on the polished floor as they approached the glass partition and door leading to Eternity Books. No one sat at the reception desk inside. Maria pulled on the door handle, which caused a sharp clanging sound, and Ripper pressed the doorbell.

  A woman with auburn hair walked into the lobby and opened the door from the inside. Her hair had an unkempt, morning-after look.

  “Can I help you?”

  “Yes.” Maria took out her shield. “I’m Detective Vasquez. We’re here for Jake Helman. Bring him to us now.”

  One corner of the woman’s mouth turned up. “I’m sorry?”

  Maria returned her shield to her pocket. “What’s your name, dear?”

  “I’m Harla Soto, the president of this company.”

  Maria folded one flap of her raincoat back, revealing her holstered Glock. “Harla, Jake’s here. He belongs to me. I want him.”

  “What’s going on out here?” A woman with a perfect figure and fashionable bangs stood at the threshold. Maria thought Lilian Kane must have a daughter who bore a remarkable physical similarity to her. She wore a designer dress and pumps, perfect for stormy weather.

  “This woman says—”

  Maria stepped past Harla, and Ripper followed her into the lobby. “I want Jake Helman.”

  Lilian smiled. “Maria.”

  Maria made sure not to react to Lilian’s familiarity with her. “Thanks for the book.”

  “Jake bought it for you. I just personalized it.”

  “I’ll thank him once you’ve returned him to me.”
>
  “You make it sound as if we abducted him. He came here on his own.” She shifted her gaze. “Didn’t he, Ripper?”

  Ripper said nothing.

  “You have one minute to produce him,” Maria said.

  “Or what?” Lilian said.

  “Or I’ll bring a tactical team in here, and you’ll be all over the news at noon, five, six, ten, and eleven.”

  “I doubt it: look outside.”

  Maria turned to the wide windows. The downpour whipped across the sky at an almost horizontal angle, blotting out her view of the Tower across the street.

  “I think the police and the news teams will be unavailable for some time.”

  “The clock’s ticking,” Maria said.

  Lilian pretended to shudder. “I like your style. Harla, bring Jake out for Maria.”

  Harla nodded to Lilian and walked past her.

  “At least you were smart enough to bring someone with you,” Lilian said. “Not that it would matter if I chose to keep Jake for myself.”

  “It’s hard to imagine him appealing to someone as

  sophisticated as yourself.”

  “I find you much more interesting.”

  “I’m just a lowly civil servant. I don’t belong up here in the clouds.”

  “You’re probably right. I’d invite you to visit me sometime and give it a try, but I don’t think any of you will be alive for long.”

  “That kind of talk is no way to impress a girl.”

  “It depends on the girl.”

  Harla and two other women, one blonde and one black, hauled Jake into the lobby, his feet dragging beneath him and his head slumped forward. Maria thought they all looked like they had crawled out of a brothel for breakfast.

  They stopped beside Lilian, who sank her fingers into Jake’s hair and pulled his head back, revealing his face. His skin was pale, which emphasized the circles around his dark, glassy eyes, which failed to acknowledge Maria. A strand of drool rolled over his lower lip, and he blinked.

  Maria’s heart sank and she felt a knot in her stomach. She had seen Jake strung out on Black Magic before on

  Pavot Island.

  Lilian released his head, which bowed again. “Put him on the floor, where dogs belong.”

  The women tossed Jake onto the floor, but Ripper jumped forward and dropped to one knee, catching him in his arms. He stood and draped Jake’s left arm over his shoulder.

  “You can have him back now,” Lilian said. “We’re through with him. Wouldn’t it be something if Harla, Chloe, and Jada all became pregnant at the same time? I’d have to create a nursery here.”

  Maria’s jaw tightened as she gazed at each of Lilian’s subordinates, who wore shit-eating grins.

  “Tell Erika I sent Jake back as a token of my generosity. She’s to take his place here on her knees or I’ll flatten this island.”

  Maria pushed a button to unlock the door, and then she held it open for Ripper, who dragged Jake through it. She followed him into the corridor, allowing the door to lock behind her, and joined them at the elevator. She draped Jake’s other arm over her shoulder and pressed the call button. Only then did she look at the four women standing in the lobby of Eternity Books, staring at her.

  An elevator door opened and they boarded the car. Pressing the button for the ground floor, she prayed they made it there in one piece.

  Bernie sat in the Cavalier with the engine running, listening to police calls. The wind howled on both sides of the car, rocking it back and forth. A splitting sound made him think of thunder until a tree collapsed in front of the car, blocking Broadway.

  He reached down to shift the car into Reverse when the rear passenger doors opened. Ripper shoved Jake into the backset while Maria, on the street side, pulled him into a somewhat upright position. Ripper got in beside Jake and closed his door.

  Maria ran around the front of the car and slid in beside Bernie. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  Bernie looked over his shoulder at Jake.

  “It’s not what you think.”

  “It sure looks like what I think.” Bernie knew that Jake had resigned from the force rather than submit to a drug test in the wake of a shoot-out in which he had slain two armed robbers.

  “Those witches were fine,” Ripper said to no one in

  particular.

  “Did you just say witches?” Bernie said.

  “Drive,” Maria said in a flat tone.

  A bolt of lightning struck the tree in front of them, severing limbs and igniting leaves.

  Bernie recoiled. “Jesus!”

  The rain extinguished the flames and the tree branches smoldered. Bernie backed the car up through six inches of water, made a three-point turn, and got back onto Twenty-third Street. The car bounced on its shocks, the wipers sloshing rainwater from side to side, wind roaring.

  A metal sign slammed onto the sidewalk and skidded away. The wind blew waves west across the flooded street, smacking the car. A dislodged tree from the grassy area surrounding the Tower sailed through the air in front of them, striking an apartment building on their right and dropping to the sidewalk.

  “So this is what I’ve been missing not living in the Caribbean,” Bernie said.

  A flagpole dragging an American flag struck the other side of the street like a spear thrown from above.

  “Whoa,” Ripper said.

  A streetlight crumpled over. An awning over a restaurant collapsed amid the twisting of metal. As they passed Madison Avenue, Bernie lowered his window. Two blocks away, a crane atop the skeleton of a skyscraper under construction dangled from the top of the structure. He raised the window and Maria lowered hers.

  “We’re almost there,” she said.

  Bernie pulled over to the curb in front of Jake’s building. “What now?”

  “I have to help get him upstairs.”

  Grimacing, Bernie looked outside. “Do you want me to wait again?”

  “No, I want you to get back to the station safe. He needs me.”

  “He needs Betty Ford. What should I tell L.T.?”

  “Tell him I decided to hole up with some civilians. Or tell him the truth.”

  “I’m glad I don’t know what the truth is.”

  Maria got out, closed her door, and opened the rear passenger side door for Ripper, who slid out and pulled Jake after him.

  Then the door slammed shut, leaving Bernie alone again.

  24

  Maria and Ripper dragged Jake into the vestibule of the building, and Maria watched Bernie drive away. The water flooding the street spilled over the sidewalk. Ripper pushed the buzzer for Jake’s office. Maria noted the building engineer had left his post, and a moment later the door buzzed open.

  They carried Jake to the elevator. Maria pressed the button and the elevator door opened. They boarded the elevator and Ripper pushed the button for the fourth floor.

  “Thank God the power hasn’t gone out,” Maria said as the elevator rose.

  “I’d hate to carry him up four flights of stairs.” He looked at her. “It’s Black Magic, isn’t it? He looks like a scarecrow.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Too bad he isn’t as light as one.”

  The elevator stopped and the door opened, and they carried Jake to the office door.

  Carrie opened it. “What did they do to him?”

  Bringing Jake inside, Maria ignored her question.

  “Never mind,” Ripper said.

  Carrie closed and locked the door, and Maria and Ripper dropped Jake onto the sofa bed.

  Laurel ran to Jake’s side and, grasping his face, turned his head left and right.

  “How bad is it?” Maria said.

  “They definitely knew his weakness,” Laurel said. “A trip to the ER won’t do him any good.”

  “Good thing. The ambulances will be out of commission soon. Can you handle this?”

  “Yes, just like Mambo—”

  “—Pharah—”

  “—
did on Pavot Island. I can’t say I’m looking forward to it.”

  “What are you talking about?” Ripper said.

  “I’m a psychic healer. I can absorb the Black Magic from Jake’s system.”

  Carrie grasped Ripper’s hand. “But then it will be inside you.”

  “Yes, that’s why I have to expel it as fast as I can.” She looked at Maria. “Help me get his shirt off.”

  Together, they took off Jake’s wet shirt, which Maria tossed aside.

  Laurel turned to Carrie and Ripper. “I need to concentrate.”

  “We’ll be quiet,” Carrie said.

  “I prefer you wait in Jake’s office with the door closed. Turn the TV off on your way.”

  “Shit.” Carrie picked up the remote, turned off the TV, and led Ripper into Jake’s office, where she closed the door.

  “Now I need him facedown.”

  Maria helped Laurel roll Jake over onto his stomach. Then Laurel climbed onto the bed and straddled Jake’s buttocks.

  Maria stared at her.

  “This is how I work,” Laurel said.

  I bet, Maria thought.

  Laurel pressed her fists into the small of Jake’s back, then pushed her palms up to his shoulders and drew her fingertips back down to his waist. She pressed her fingers into his muscles, kneading them like dough, and he moaned.

  Maria dug her fingernails into her palms.

  Laurel stopped moving, then snatched her hands away as if she had contracted a contagious disease. Her eyes opened wide. “No . . .”

  “What is it?” Maria said.

  “Lilith.”

  “Who the hell is Lilith?”

  With tears forming in her eyes, Laurel resumed her task. She worked Jake over and then moaned as well, swaying, and Maria realized she had become high from the Magic in Jake’s system. Sweat formed on Jake’s face and his breathing became regular. Laurel’s body quivered. She toppled off him, falling from the bed into a heap on the floor.

  Maria kneeled beside her and helped her up. “Are you all right?”

  Covering her mouth with one hand, Laurel staggered to the bathroom, closed the door, and vomited.

  Maria kissed Jake’s cheek. “You’re a stupid son of a bitch.”