The Horror of Devil's Root Lake

by Amy Cross

  “Are you talking about a storybook?” she asks cautiously. “It's not real, is it?”

  “Don't worry too much,” I tell her. “We're going to figure this out.”

  “I need the bathroom,” she continues, turning to Luke. “I need to go pee.”

  “Just head inside,” he replies, pointing toward the door, “and then turn right. You'll see the bathroom, it's clearly marked.”

  “Am I going by myself?” she asks.

  “I think you might be okay,” he tells her. “Go on, just be quick. If you're not back in five minutes, I'll send Emily in after you.”

  I watch as Alice goes into the diner, and then I turn to Luke.

  “Are you sure it's safe to let her go in there alone?” I ask. “Even if it's just for a few minutes, she might -”

  “It's fine during daylight,” he replies. “I'm sure of it. Don't worry, I won't let her out of my sight once darkness falls.” Reaching into his pocket, he takes out a folded sheet of paper, with what looks like a crude map drawn on one side. “Right now, we need to go check out this newspaper archive. If I'm right, they have stories in there that'll help us figure out where we can find Chanciechaunie next. We might not even need to go to Malmarbor at all.”

  ***

  “I've never seen so much dust,” I mutter as I slide another yellowed newspaper from the shelf. “These are seventy years old, Luke. Are you sure there's not some easier way to go through them?”

  “The archives here have never been digitized,” he replies, blowing dust from another file. “We're gonna have to do this the old-fashioned way.”

  “But are you sure we're not wasting time? The longer we stay here, the less chance we have of making it to Malmarbor by this evening.”

  “So we'll find a motel.”

  “I'm not sure we can afford to take the risk,” I point out. “He's stronger at night, he could enter Alice's head again, or yours, or mine.”

  “We can manage one more night if it means knowing more about this monster,” he replies, holding up another newspaper and taking a look at the front page. “I'm sure we're not the first people who've ever gone after him. He must have been noticed at other times in history, but I guess no-one was able to get to him before. I don't want us just to be the latest idiots who throw themselves at him and get killed. I want to stop him.”

  “Sure, but -”

  “Can you please just let me do this?” he snaps suddenly, before sighing. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. This is important to me. That's all.”

  “So what exactly are you expecting to find here?” I ask, glancing across the room and spotting Alice looking bored in the far corner.

  “People don't generally survive encounters with Chanciechaunie,” he points out. “A few children escaped thanks to pure dumb luck. I should know, I was one of them. But other than that, he seems to always get what he wants.”

  He takes another box from the shelf.

  “Apart from you,” he adds.

  “I don't know what you're -”

  “Something about you must be different,” he continues. “He wasn't interested in you at first, you were just another parent of a child he killed. But when you showed up in Redfield, something seemed to change. It's like you caught his attention. And then he went after Amanda and the others, and it's almost as if...” He pauses. “It's almost as if he wants something from us. Or from you. You said you felt him in your mind the other night, Emily, and that you were able to push him out again. How did you do that?”

  “I don't have a clue.”

  “But you said you had E.C.T., right?”

  “Sure, but -”

  “So maybe that changed you more than you realized.”

  I step around the desk and look at some more papers, but I know Luke is watching me.

  “The E.C.T. damaged my brain,” I admit finally. “I don't know the details, but my memory is shot to pieces. I still don't remember very much of what happened while I was in Redfield, but I think I'm starting to remember certain things that I thought were gone forever. I'm getting closer and closer to knowing what this monster's face looks like. I feel like there's a block in my mind, but I'm starting to break through. I just need a little more time...”

  “I'm going to check the storage room,” Luke replies, heading to the door at the far end of the room.

  “Isn't that just stuff from hundreds of years ago?”

  “There might be something useful.”

  “He's bald,” I continue, as I think back to the sight of the creature as it examined me in the cottage. “Hunched. His face is twisted, and there's a scar running from his forehead down to his -”

  “Emily? Did you hear me? I said I'm going to the storage room.”

  Turning to him, I see that he's standing in the open doorway, and he seems to be expecting a reply.

  “Sure,” I stammer, “but -”

  “I'll be back soon.”

  “But I -”

  Before I can finish, he hurries down the stairs, leaving me standing in the dusty room. Looking down at the papers on the desk, I see to my surprise that Luke has been examining newspaper records from a couple of centuries ago. He seems particularly interested in the records of a local family with the surname Fleming. After a moment, I turn and see that Alice still looks bored. I want to keep looking through the boxes, but instead I wander over to join her.

  “I guess there's not much here for you to do, is there?” I ask.

  She looks up at me, and after a moment she shakes her head.

  “When we're done with all these boring old files,” I continue, crouching in front of her, “I think we should go get an ice-cream. Does that sound good?”

  She scrunches her nose for a moment. “Why are we here?” she asks finally.

  “To look for some information about something that happened a long time ago.”

  “But why does that matter?”

  “Your father thinks it might help.”

  “And will it?”

  I hesitate for a moment. “Maybe. I don't know. I assumed we'd just go straight to Malmarbor, but he seems to want to conduct a thorough search here first.”

  “Why?”

  “Well...” Again, I hesitate. To be honest, I don't quite understand why Luke is so determined to stick around here in Huntingdon, and I'm starting to wonder whether – deep down – he might be delaying the trip to Malmarbor. I guess there's a chance that he's scared. Either that, or he's genuinely interested in these Fleming people who apparently died off more than a century ago. “Don't worry,” I tell Alice, placing a hand on her shoulder. “It's just -”

  Suddenly I hear a scream from outside. Getting to my feet, I hurry to the window and look out, just in time to see several figures running toward a store on the other side of the street. At the same time, a couple of people come hurrying out, and it's clear that something's wrong.

  “Call an ambulance!” a voice shouts. “Quick!”

  “What's wrong?” Alice asks.

  “Nothing,” I reply, hurrying to the door before stopping and looking back at her. “You can't stay here alone. Come with me.”

  “But Daddy said -”

  “He'll understand.” I reach a hand out toward her. “Alice, come with me!”

  She pauses for a moment, before climbing off the chair and running to join me. Once I have her hand in mine, I lead her out into the main part of the library and then through the front door. We get to the street just as more people hurry past, and someone seems to be sobbing in the store on the corner.

  “It's just awful,” a woman says as she walks past with a man. “Maybe he's been playing video games. You hear things about those awful games and how they make people violent.”

  “What happened?” I ask, grabbing the woman's arm. “Is someone hurt?”

  She eyes me with suspicion. “Are you from around here?”

  “No, but I heard the scream.”

  She pauses. “A young boy did something quite awful. H
e was in the store with his mother, and he took a knitting needle and...” Her voice trails off for a moment. “I saw it myself. There was so much blood!”

  “That little girl's eye can probably be put back in,” her friend says, although there's doubt in her eyes. “They can do wonderful things these days.”

  “He didn't just take her eye out,” the first woman replies, her voice trembling with shock. “He pushed it in, through the back and... I think he stabbed it into her brain!”

  Hurrying past them, I lead Alice along the sidewalk, before stopping once we're opposite the store. There are more cries from inside, and a moment later a man comes rushing out with a child in his arms. A white cloth has been placed over the child's face, but blood is already soaking through as the man places her on the back seat of a car. At the last moment, the cloth slips away, revealing the little girl's ravaged right eye with blood dribbling down her face. Her other, undamaged eye is staring straight up, and her mouth is wide open.

  I reach down and grab Alice's shoulders, turning her away so she can't see the horror, and a few seconds later the car races away along the street.

  “What happened to her?” Alice asks.

  “I'm sure she'll be fine.”

  “But her eye -”

  “Just don't think about it,” I tell her, leading her back toward the library's front door. Before we can get inside, however, Luke comes out. “A girl was hurt,” I explain. “I think a little boy attacked her.”

  “That can't be a coincidence,” he replies, looking past us as more shouts ring out from the store. “Chanciechaunie must be here. I think he just sent us a message.”

  Chapter Forty-Two

  “We have to get out of here!” I tell Luke as I follow him across the hotel room. “If he knows we're here, he'll come for us again tonight!”

  “Not necessarily.”

  “But -”

  “Just let me think!” he hisses. “I need to come up with a plan!”

  “I thought the plan was to go to Malmarbor?” I remind him. Glancing over my shoulder, I see Alice standing in the doorway, and it's clear that she's terrified. Turning back to Luke, I watch as he pulls the drapes aside and peers out at the parking lot.

  He mumbles something under his breath, but he seems lost in thought. After a moment, he takes a print-out from his pocket and unfolds it to reveal a copy of a family tree.

  “Who are the Flemings?” I ask.

  When he doesn't reply, I step closer and see that the tree ends in the nineteenth century.

  “They died out?” I whisper.

  “They only had sons,” he replies, with a hint of sadness in his voice. “The boys all died in the war, and that was the end of the family. It shouldn't have been like that. We should have...”

  His voice trails off, and he seems lost in thought.

  “There's something you're not telling me,” I continue. I wait, but it takes a few seconds before he turns to me, and I can tell I'm right. “What are we really doing here?” I ask, stepping closer. “We can't work together if you're not going to be completely honest. Whatever's wrong, I need to know!”

  “It's...” He pauses. “It's Alice. I just don't know what to do with Alice while we're off fighting monsters.”

  “Don't you have any family members she can stay with?”

  “There's no-one. Besides, it's not as if she'd be safe anywhere. If we try to strike at Chanciechaunie, he might reach out and do something to Alice. She's young, she wouldn't be able to keep him out of her mind.”

  Checking my watch, I see that it's almost 7pm, and when I look at the window I realize that night is falling. Chanciechaunie always seems so much stronger during darker hours, and there's no reason to think he won't come for us again. I might have been able to force him from my mind, but I can't do anything to keep him away from Luke and Alice.

  “There's only one person you can trust to look after her,” I tell him. “You know that.”

  “Who?”

  “You have to stay with her. You can come to Malmarbor, maybe, but after that I need to do this on my own.”

  “Emily, no, you'd -”

  “I don't have a choice,” I continue, hoping that he'll see reason. “The E.C.T. seems to have changed my brain somehow, and that seems to give me a chance to fend him off. It doesn't mean it'll be easy, but at least I have a shot. I can't be constantly worried about what's happening to you two, so the obvious solution is for me to go and face Chanciechaunie alone.”

  “And do what? Just walk into his cottage and try to kill him with a magic dagger?” He sighs. “This is sounding more and more like a fairy-tale, but it's not a fairy-tale. Emily, you don't have a plan.”

  “He's scared of me.”

  I see a flicker of shock in his eyes. “What makes you say that?”

  “Maybe not scared, but cautious,” I continue. “I can tell from the way his voice was taunting me the other night. If I'm the first person who's ever been able to push him back like this, it's natural that he's unsure of himself. Maybe he doesn't know how far I can go, maybe he's worried that I can genuinely challenge him.” I look down at the pile of papers that Luke has gathered together over the years. “And maybe there's something in here that we can use against him. Maybe he doesn't know exactly what we've figured out yet.”

  “Maybe you're relying on that word maybe too much.”

  “Daddy,” Alice says suddenly, coming through from the bathroom, “can I go to the candy machine and get a can of soda?”

  “Of course,” Luke replies, taking some cash from his pocket and handing the notes to her. “Get something for me, too.”

  “Are you sure that's wise?” I ask, as Alice hurries out of the room. “She shouldn't be alone!”

  “It's only for a few minutes.”

  “But -”

  “She's a smart kid. She's smarter and tougher than me. I've trained her to spot the signs of Chanciechaunie trying to enter her mind.”

  “That didn't help much last night.”

  “She'll be better prepared if it happens again.”

  Heading to the window, I look out at the gloomy parking lot and see Alice half walking, half skipping to the soda machine. There's no-one else out there, and she seems happy enough, but I can't help feeling surprised by the way Luke veers from one extreme to the other. Earlier he was extremely protective, and now he seems happy to let her go off by herself. I'm still convinced that he's hiding something from me.

  Suddenly I feel him placing his hands on my waist from behind.

  “You're tense,” he says calmly.

  I watch the long shadows in the parking lot for a moment. “I'm worried.”

  “We both need a distraction.”

  I turn to him, convinced that I must be misunderstanding, but he quickly moves closer and tries to kiss me. I pull away, but he tries again and finally I have to step around the bed and over to the far side of the room. I hear him coming after me, so I turn and hold a hand up, hoping to stop him before this situation becomes even more embarrassing.

  “What's wrong?” he asks. “Don't you want to try?”

  “I'm married!”

  “To an asshole.”

  “To a good man,” I reply, trying not to panic. “He's been through a lot, he's been trying to deal with it as best he can and he's made mistakes, but underneath it all he's the most wonderful man I've ever met.”

  “Apart from when he had a tracking chip put in your arm.”

  “He was just trying to look after me.”

  “Said every abused woman ever.”

  “I think I need some air,” I mutter, heading to the door.

  “Maybe Craig's the one who's in your head,” he continues. “He seems to have persuaded you that he's doing these things for your own benefit.”

  Stepping past him, and making sure to not get too close, I head back to the window and look out. Alice is still at the vending machine, still making her choice, and I can't help hoping that she'll come back inside s
oon. After a moment, however, I hear Luke coming closer again. Turning, I realize there's a strange look in his eyes, as if somehow he's studying my every move.

  “Craig was a good man when I met him,” I explain, “but so much has happened over the past few years, and he's ended up... twisted. I'm partly to blame for that, but when this is all over I'm going to try getting things back to normal.”

  I glance outside again. Alice is no longer by the machine, and I breathe a sigh of relief as I realize that she must be on her way back inside.

  “Chanciechaunie isn't the only one who can get into people's heads,” Luke points out. “Humans can do it to each other. In fact, maybe humans are even subtler.”

  I turn to him.

  “It's true,” he continues. “Maybe Chanciechaunie is just a normal creature who really understands how to burrow into the minds of his victims. If you can forgive Craig and rationalize his behavior, maybe you can do the same thing for Chanciechaunie.” As he gets closer, he stops next to the window and stares at me for a moment. “Has it occurred to you that maybe Chanciechaunie isn't so bad after all?”

  I pause, before looking at the door.

  I wait.

  Silence.

  “Where's Alice?” I whisper.

  “Emily, I'm just -”

  “Where's Alice?” I head over to the door and pull it open, but when I look outside I see nothing but an empty corridor. She should be back by now, I should at least be able to see her coming this way, but there's no sign of her at all.

  “You're not listening to me,” Luke continues. “Emily, I'm just trying to get you to look at things a little differently.”

  Ignoring him, I head out into the corridor and make my way to the door. Once I'm in the parking lot, I hurry to the vending machine and lean down, reaching into the tray at the bottom. Sure enough, there's a can of soda that no-one has bothered to collect, as if Alice placed her order and then became distracted by something. Turning, I look out across the lot, but all I see are a few cars. The sun is setting, casting long shadows, but there's no sign of movement nearby and the only sound comes from the nearby freeway. A moment later, in the distance, I hear the blaring horn of a passing train.