by Terri Reid
Watching through the rearview, Sean saw Jamal’s face ease up a little, but there was still concern etched across it. Smart kid, he thought.
He pulled down the narrow, side streets and headed west, towards the church. The neighborhood they’d been in, Canaryville, was on the southwest side of the city. It was a close-knit community that looked out for its own. Both Sean and Pete had known they’d be safe there. But moving beyond those borders, down Pershing Road past Halsted Street, they’d need to be on the alert for the people who had been following Pete earlier that evening.
The sky was the gray-lavender hue of twilight, and the street lights were beginning to glow. The traffic was light, most of the rush hour traffic having dissipated about an hour earlier. Sean and Pete didn’t talk at first, each watching for a sign they were being pursued.
“They don’t know you’re involved,” Pete finally said.
Sean shook his head. “No, and I’m trying to keep it that way.”
“Smart move,” Pete replied. “It’ll give you more access to whatever we might need to solve this.”
“Yeah, about that,” Sean said. “This is not going to be one of those ‘we got the bad guys and now we’re done’ kind of crimes.”
“You telling me I thought I signed up for a date to the prom and we’re actually married now?”
Sean grinned. “Pretty much.”
“Shit.”
Jamal giggled.
Pete turned and looked over at Jamal. “You probably shouldn’t repeat words like that in front of your grandmother,” he said.
Jamal nodded. “Yeah, I know. She’d tan my hide for sure.”
Pete choked and Sean chuckled. “Jamal,” Pete finally said, “I think I’m going to like your grandmother.”
Suddenly, Jamal’s eyes went wide and he inhaled sharply.
“What?” Pete asked.
Lifting a shaking arm, Jamal pointed up into the sky in the west and a little north of where they were driving. Pete and Sean looked over. “What are we looking for, Jamal?” Sean asked, taking his foot off the accelerator.
“That cloud, over there,” Jamal said. “It’s just like last night. Swirling and all. It’s just like what brought those things to the park. It’s happening again.”
Sean turned his attention to the northwest. “Damn,” he muttered, seeing the powerful, black vortex wrapping around itself. Switching on his siren, he accelerated down the street.
“Well, holy hell,” Pete said. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Yeah, me either,” Sean said, passing Ashland Avenue and heading towards Damen. “It looks like it’s right over the park.”
“What the hell is going on?” Pete asked.
“Well, don’t look now, but I’m going to be showing you a wedding reception you’re never going to forget.”
Chapter Twenty-six
Sean’s unmarked police car sailed past Damen Avenue and then slowed as it moved parallel to the large, city park. The park totaled about 70 acres and featured a large lagoon in the center. Trees on the outskirts of the property hid the center of the park from the street view, making it a popular place for gangs.
“Are you going to call in some backup?” Pete asked.
Shaking his head, Sean sent an apologetic glance to his friend. “Sorry, I can’t,” he said. “I don’t know who the good guys are yet, and I can’t risk Jamal’s safety.”
Pete glanced over his shoulder to see Jamal cowering in the back seat, his eyes transfixed on the cloud.
“Then maybe we ought to give up the chase and just take Jamal to wherever we started to go in the first place,” Pete suggested, turning back to Sean.
“Yeah, that would seem to be the safest way to handle it,” Sean said. “But I’ve got a feeling that the more people that witness what’s going down, the safer Jamal is going to be.”
Sean turned onto an access road leading into the park as the cloud dipped below the tree line. “I think it’s dropping over by the baseball diamonds,” he said, passing by the lagoon on the right and following the twisting path through a forested area. “I’ll park behind the fieldhouse.”
The parking lot was deserted, and Sean drove the car to the edge of the lot, pulling up onto the grass. The sky was now dark and opaque, and Sean flipped on his high beams to see into the baseball fields. Suddenly, debris started slamming up against the side of the car.
Pete looked up at the cloud lowering itself towards the ground. “Is this what Jamal was telling me about?” he asked. “Like something out of a slasher movie?”
“Yeah, exactly,” he said. “And if we have a couple more witnesses…”
“It makes it harder to shut us up,” Pete finished and then added, “Not impossible…”
Sean nodded, his face grim. “But harder.”
Jamal whimpered and clapped his hands over his ears, sliding lower into the back seat. Sean looked out the window and his stomach twisted. Bodies, more than a hundred bodies, lay scattered in the grass less than fifty yards away, and even from this distance, Sean could see they had been brutally dismembered.
Sean felt a tug on his shirt and turned to see Pete pointing to a rise just beyond the bodies. Sean followed Pete’s direction, and his heart stopped for a moment. He’d never seen anything like them. Tall, skeletal and fierce, they moved with long, gangly gaits, their arms like tree limbs scraping against the ground. Their backs were slightly rounded and their heads bowed as they followed their leader across the field, blood shimmering on their weapons. As the leader, mounted on a white horse, reached the top of the rise, he stopped and turned. The horse reared, its mighty hooves slashed the air, and its mane whipped in the wind, demonstrating its supremacy. But the actions of the horse did not affect the leader who had turned in his saddle and now stared back at Sean and Pete with blood-red glowing eyes.
“Holy shit,” Pete whispered, his mouth dry. “What the hell have you gotten me into this time?”
Jamal sobbed. “It’s them again,” he cried. “They gonna kill everyone.”
Sean ripped his seatbelt off and grabbed hold of the door, Pete’s hand on his arm staying him for a moment. “Are you crazy?” Pete asked.
Sean shook his head. “I’ve got to go,” he said. “It’s my job.”
He paused and lowered his voice. “You stay in here with Jamal,” he said. “If I’m not back in five minutes, you take the radio and call for backup. Then call my friend Ian and have him come and get you. His number is on my phone.”
Pete nodded. “Don’t be stupid, Sean,” he said.
Sean took a deep breath. “Yeah, good advice.”
The wind nearly threw him back against the car when he got out. It blew the door shut with a slam, and Sean was nearly doubled over as he pushed against the wind, his weapon drawn, and moved towards the murky mist before him. Up ahead, he could hear screams filled with horror and pain, and he rushed forward.
The gray, swirling cloud was right in front of him. Sean took a deep breath and then stepped inside, tiny bits of dirt hammering his face felt like a sandblaster against his skin. He lifted one arm, protecting himself from the larger pieces, batting his arm against the newspapers, soda cans, and bottles, and muscled his way forward. A few more steps and he stepped out of the wind into the dim twilight of the park. He could hear the screams again, but this time they were nearer. His stomach twisted as he watched the horror unfold before him.
Creatures. Monsters. He didn’t know what to call them, but they were still at the other end of the field. They were huge, at least twelve to fourteen feet tall. They looked like…trees…but not trees. Their arms were like long branches and their bodies were moss covered. Their faces were long and fierce, their eyes devoid of humanity.
They welded long swords and swept them back in forth in a scything movement, decapitating and dismembering the horror-struck gang members before them. Sean pulled his gun from his waistband and ran forward.
“Stop!” he yelled. “Police!”
The creatures paid no attention, moving forward like harvesters reaping a field with giant, brutal swings.
Sean stopped, anchored himself and fired at the monster closest to him, fifteen yards away. It paused and turned, glaring at Sean with glowing red eyes. Sean swallowed. “Stop!” he forced himself to yell again. “Police!”
The creature turned and whipped its sword around, cutting off the screams of yet another human being.
Sean could smell the metallic tang of blood; he could taste it in his mouth. The creatures had cut a wide swath through the gangs and had left body parts strewn all around the baseball field in pools of the victims’ own blood. Moving forward, Sean stepped around the bodies and the blood and pursued the creatures as they made their way forward, increasing the carnage on the field.
Why the hell weren’t these kids running?
Then he realized it. They were so frightened, they were in shock.
“Run!” Sean yelled. “Run to the lagoon!”
The gang members, frozen in fear, finally started to move.
“Now!” Sean screamed. “Run like hell!”
There were only a few dozen left, but almost as one they started to run beyond the field and towards the lagoon. Sean watched as they pushed through the wall of wind, slapping at the dirt and debris, and disappeared from his sight. The sigh of relief caught in his throat when he turned back to see the creatures were now facing him.
“Shit.”
He brought his gun forward and pointed it at them. For a brief, hysterical moment, he thought about telling them they were all under arrest, and then he took a deep breath, wondering what it felt like to die.
The wall of creatures parted in military precision, and the rider on the white horse appeared from the rear of the group and galloped towards him. He was like the other creatures, but he wore the skull and antlers of an elk on his head.
So this is what the Elk King looks like, Sean thought. At least I’ll get taken down by royalty.
Sean fired a warning shot above its head. “Stop! Police!” he yelled, pleased with himself that he still could use his voice.
The Elk King came closer and lifted its long, sinewy arm, the silver blade of the sword glistening in the dim light. Everything seems to be happening in slow motion, Sean thought. He could hear the pounding of the horse’s hooves on the sod, could actually see the dirt being ripped up from the ground and flying into the air. He could feel the ground trembling beneath him and smell the combination of primeval forest and death in the air. He widened his stance, held his arms out in front of him and emptied his gun into the oncoming creature. The bullets did nothing and his enemy continued forward.
The Elk King pulled his arm back, cocking it as you would a gun, ready for the release. For one moment, Sean pictured his family and hoped they would understand that he died doing his job. The sword started to move forward. Sean could almost hear the blade cutting the air before him. He didn’t close his eyes. He had made that decision when he was twelve years old. He wasn’t going to meet death with his eyes closed.
The sword arched and Sean took a deep breath.
Clang!
It took him a moment to realize that was not the sound he was supposed to hear. He turned to see Em, her sword before her, parrying her sword against the Elk King. Even though she was at a disadvantage because she was on her feet, she was engaging him stroke for stroke. But how long would she be able to do hold on?
Em had moved to the left, causing the Elk King to swing to his right, over the side of his horse. There was only one thing Sean could think of doing. He ran forward and punched the horse in the face with all his might. Faltering, the horse slipped sideways on the bloodied ground, and the Elk King lost concentration for a moment. But that was all Em needed. Swinging her sword, she brought it down on his wrist.
Sean heard a sound, like an ax cutting wood, and a moment later the hand and the sword of the Elk King lay on the ground.
The Elk King stared at Em for a moment, lifted his head and screamed. A long, blood-curdling wail echoed in the park. Urging his horse into action, he galloped back to his army, and in a moment, they were enveloped by the whirling cloud and disappeared into the sky.
Sean turned to Em. “Who the hell are you? Batman?” he asked.
“Who?” she responded.
Shaking his head, he stepped forward but tripped on something lying in the grass. Looking down, he recoiled when he saw a decapitated head, eyes staring up at him. He stumbled backwards, landing upright against a tree, and gagged.
“Sean, what’s wrong?” Em asked, the darkness of the night covering the head.
He wanted to reply, wanted to say something pithy, but his body decided to finally react to the carnage all around him. He held up his hand, then turned around and lost all of his dinner on the roots of the tree.
Em lifted her sword and it started to glow, casting a soft light around them. She gasped softly when she realized what had happened. “This is what the boy saw?” Em asked.
Sean nodded. “Yes,” he whispered, taking a deep breath. “Yeah, I think this is exactly what he saw.”
“It was the Elk King and the Wild Hunt.”
“I kind of thought it might be,” he replied, turning and meeting her eyes. “I would have died...”
She shrugged. “You need to get a sword,” she interrupted him and bent down to retrieve the sword the Elk King had left behind. “This is Chrysaor.”
He shook his head. “I won’t use that,” he said.
“Chrysaor is the sword of the Knight of Justice,” she replied, walking to him with the sword lying on her outstretched hands. “It is the right sword for you.”
“No, it still has their blood on it,” he replied.
“What better reminder of the lives you must avenge?” she asked, lifting her eyebrows in question. “What better reminder of the heartless creatures you fight against?”
Tentatively he reached forward and took the hilt in his hand. He could feel a jolt of power surge through him when he touched it. “I can feel it,” he whispered.
She nodded. “Then you can control it,” she said. “It will be a good partner for you.”
He lifted the sword from her hands and held it against his side. “No, the only partner I want right now is you,” he said, and then he hefted the sword, testing its weight and balance. “But this will be an excellent tool. Thank you again.”
“It was my honor,” she replied, “Partner.”
Chapter Twenty-seven
“Pete and Jamal, I’d like you to meet Em,” Sean said as he opened the back door and helped her slide inside, placing his sword on the floor in the back seat.
“She’s a good guy,” Sean added. “She’s on our side.”
Jamal slowly nodded his head, still too traumatized to speak.
Once Sean had settled into the driver’s seat, Pete turned to him. “So, do you want to explain what happened?” Pete asked.
Sean shook his head. “Let’s wait until we get back to the church,” he said. “Then we can have a long conversation.”
On a hunch, he flicked on his radio scanner and listened to the dispatcher’s calls. At first they were regular calls, accident reports and a domestic violence call. But a few moments later, a call went out to all available cars and named their park.
“That’s my signal to go,” he said, putting the car into reverse and pulling out of the parking lot onto the street. He continued down Pershing Road in silence until his cell phone rang, startling all of them. Sean picked it up and put it through the car’s speaker system.
“O’Reilly.”
“Hey, Sean, it’s Adrian. I think we’ve got another call like last night,” he said. “Do you want in?”
Closing his eyes for just a moment, Sean shook his head slowly. “Hey, thanks, but my case load is too heavy right now,” Sean said, his voice feigning lightness. “Besides, I’m heading home to Tiny, and you know how he gets when dinner is late.”
&nb
sp; Adrian chuckled. “Yeah, your cat is worse than a wife,” he replied.
“So, was anyone hurt this time?” Sean asked.
“No one that matters,” Adrian said chuckling, “just a bunch of gang-bangers. This keeps up and we’ll have Chicago cleaned up in no time.”
“Yeah, but then they’ll transfer you to Animal Control,” Sean joked, though his stomach was twisting in his gut.
“Just one group of animals to another,” Adrian replied. “Well, gotta go. Oh, wait, your report from last night never did come through.”
Sean met Em’s eyes through the rearview mirror. “I’ll send it again once I get home,” Sean said.
“Great, just trying to tie up all the loose ends,” Adrian said. “Thanks.”
The connection on the other end died. Sean picked up his phone and turned it off, just to be sure there was no way their conversation could be heard.
“The call just came through from dispatch,” Pete said. “There’s no way he could have known the incident tonight was like the one from last night.”
“No way unless he knew what was going to happen before it happened,” Sean said.
“Could a detective—” Pete began.
Sean shook his head, cutting him off. “No, he couldn’t do this on his own, but who the hell he’s working with is a good question.”
“We don’t know who they have,” Em interjected. “We just know it’s above district level.”
“Someone from headquarters?” Pete asked.
“Or someone who has a hold over someone from headquarters,” Sean surmised.
“Yes, exactly,” Em said. “We just know that strings have been pulled in the past to stop our investigations from getting too close.”
“So what is this all about?” Pete asked. “What does this mean?”
Sean pulled into the parking lot of the church and pulled around to the back, hiding the car behind a cinderblock wall. He turned off the car and turned to his friend. “I would like to say that all of your questions will be answered once we get inside,” he said. “But I’m afraid that you’re going to have even more questions once you get the first ones answered.”