Hold Back the Dark

by Kay Hooper

  “What about Jim? Will he wake up?”

  Victoria replied, “In a couple of hours, probably. Unless—” She looked at Hollis, abruptly worried.

  But Hollis was shaking her head. “I don’t think he’ll stay asleep longer than the nap you gave him. He resisted. He didn’t kill his wife or anyone else.” She looked at Archer. “It might be a good idea to have a doctor standing by for when he wakes. If he’s in the same state he was, sedation or an antianxiety med might be the best thing for him.”

  “You don’t want to talk to him?”

  “Definitely, assuming he’s up to it. Not tonight, though. He needs to be a lot calmer when we talk to him, and I don’t think that’s going to happen in the next few hours. Hell, it may not happen at all. But I’d put him in a cell, Jack. If possible, not close to Elliot Weston. Both need to be watched.”

  “Yeah, okay.” He glanced toward the empty bullpen.

  Galen got to his feet. “Logan and I will carry him back to the cells, Sheriff. If you’ll lead the way.”

  In the same numb voice, Archer repeated, “Yeah, okay.” Then he got up and led the other two men out.

  Hollis noted that Logan had looked a bit pale, and she said to her partner, “I think he’s just realized.”

  “Yeah, he has,” DeMarco responded quietly.

  Victoria frowned at them. “What?”

  “Logan never really had much luck building a shield,” Hollis said.

  “Yeah, I know that. He’s never been able to keep out spirits. So?”

  “The energy in this valley is affecting nonpsychics, obviously, if all our theories are right. It’s driven people to suicide or murder even if we don’t exactly understand how. Lonnagan fought it and didn’t kill, but we don’t know what damage may have been done to his mind during that struggle. The energy is also affecting us. Reese has a double shield, and he can still feel it. I can feel it. You and Logan have been aware of it.”

  Victoria frowned a moment longer, then went a bit pale herself. “You think— You’re saying that the same thing that happened to that deputy could happen to us? That we could be . . . urged . . . to kill someone against our will?”

  “I’m saying it’s probably more likely than not that we’ll be targets. That one or more of us will be somehow negatively affected. Anybody with a weak or nonexistent shield is more likely to feel it first. We don’t really know what symptoms to look for; there must be a period before these people heard that voice, when the energy was first taking hold, but so far none of them has been able to tell us much about that.”

  “Then—”

  “Keep your shield up, Victoria. And if you start experiencing any unusual symptoms, tell us immediately.”

  ELEVEN

  WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 8

  Hollis attempted to use the phone they carried, but since it only crackled loudly she had to use the hotel landline in their room to report in to base nearly two hours later.

  “Communications are really screwed up,” she told Bishop. “My tablet’s already dead, and I had to plug my laptop in for more than ten minutes before it would even boot up.” She was on the bed, leaning back against pillows banked behind her. “Wi-Fi’s useless, but this hotel kept their earlier data ports feeding into a ground line, so it looks like we’ll be able to send and receive information that way. Not sure about the Internet yet.”

  “Log on as soon as you can and go through the handshake process with the databases we use. Remember that?”

  “Yeah, pretty sure, even if it’s been a while. If not, Logan’s an IT guy, right?”

  “How he makes his living.” Bishop paused, then said, “The real estate agent who killed his clients. He was completely blank?”

  “Pretty much. I mean, he could talk, he could respond to questions, more or less, but he was clearly out of it, didn’t have a clue what was going on. Even forgot he was wearing handcuffs unless he moved his hands. And even though Archer didn’t seem to notice, Reese and I both believe Weston got . . . worse . . . just in the time we were there. Tomorrow morning, we may find him asleep, catatonic, or, if we’re lucky, no worse than he was. Which would be smiling, pleasant, and with absolutely no memory of what he did.”

  “So no help in understanding what’s happening.”

  “No, I think we’ve gotten all we’re going to from Elliot Weston, and Reese agrees. We checked the hospital just before calling you, and Leslie Gardner is still asleep. I’m not at all sure she’s ever going to wake up, but we’ll go to the hospital tomorrow anyway and see if Reese can read her. Not sure what we’re going to have when Deputy Lonnagan wakes up, and I don’t know what I fear more—that he’ll still be wild with terror, or that he’ll be mindless.”

  “Which do you really expect?”

  Hollis paused for a moment to consider, gazing at her partner, who was leaning back on the bed near her feet. “Well, that depends on whatever’s behind the energy. We can’t know yet whether the aim is to destroy the mind—or take control of it just because tools are needed to kill and cause chaos, and leaving a wrecked mind behind is just a side effect of the process.”

  “But there’s a definite goal or goals.”

  “Oh, yeah. Lonnagan was raving about the voices in his mind telling him to kill his wife. He fought, he resisted, and she’s still alive. Not sure how long ago it started for him. For any of them. I mean, how long do you have to work at a woman’s mind before she’ll butcher her own kids?”

  “That probably depends on whether the energy found a weakness in her somehow. A vulnerable place.”

  Hollis frowned. “We were thinking that. The deputies who went to check on Lonnagan’s wife came back just before we left the station. Said they found her hysterical, terrified, and that she didn’t say much they could even understand. They called her sister to come stay with her, waited for her to get to the house, then left. The thing is, Reese was able to read one of the deputies, someone who’s been fairly close to the couple, and one thing she got from Kim Lonnagan, hysterical or not, was that her husband had accused her of infidelity, which is apparently a very sensitive thing between them. Both saw their parents’ marriages torn apart by infidelity, and both had always sworn it wouldn’t happen to them.”

  “A vulnerability.”

  “Yeah. Which, if you ask me, makes this energy thing a lot more dangerous and scary. It not only got into Lonnagan’s head, it apparently knew exactly which button to push—or found it once it was in his mind. That’s not just energy, that’s energy being directed, by a very clever, very devious and ruthless mind.”

  “But is it a human mind?”

  “I have no idea, and neither does Reese. So far we haven’t sensed anything to tell us if it is. Or if it isn’t. Look, we all know it’s more than possible for a single evil mind to do a hell of a lot, but . . . Assuming this destructive energy is supposed to balance the scale with the positive energy that summoned us, which I really hope is the case, I’m wondering if the positive energy I can sense here is what summoned us, or was left over when we were summoned. And, if so, will it come into play at the right time to help us.”

  After a thoughtful moment, Bishop said, “That may depend on how much of the energy was required for the summoning.”

  “True. But the negative energy is being used or expended at a very high level. I mean, at the very least this thing has been affecting and controlling people during overlapping time periods. I’m really hoping it’s limited in that way and can’t go after all the people in this valley at once, but we’re all feeling the energy, so who knows? Maybe that’s what it’s building up to.”

  “That’s probably more likely than not.”

  Hollis had been wondering if he knew more than he’d told them about this. She thought she had her answer. But all she said was, “Then finding the source or sources and sealing whatever doorways or portals are there is the on
ly way to stop the energy buildup.”

  “I would expect that to be a first step. Later, we can send people to make those seals as strong as possible, but the most important thing is to close them as best we can as soon as we can.”

  “Yeah. Well, Reese and I need to get out and explore the valley tomorrow; the energy is still visible to me even tonight, but it’s a lot clearer in the daytime and a lot more likely to help show us whatever it is we need to know. Hopefully we’ll find those doorways or portals before more people are killed and/or driven mad.”

  Bishop was silent for a moment, then said, “You said Logan and Victoria were shaken by the deputy.”

  “Not when he first rushed in, I think. They took that pretty calmly, on the whole, and Victoria was quick to act. Looked to me first, which was a bit reassuring; I still don’t know how many of them are going to accept a team leader. Or even being part of a team. Anyway, when Victoria and Logan realized after they saw Lonnagan that it was at least possible the same thing could happen to one or even all of us, that we could be forced to fight just to keep control of our own minds . . . Yeah, that shook them. Shakes me too.”

  “You handle energy better than any psychic I’ve ever known,” Bishop said.

  “Be that as it may, until we find the source or sources of the energy I don’t think there’s a lot for me to handle. Or, at least, not a lot I can handle. So Reese and I both feel that’s the priority. Unless one of us in some way senses someone in trouble, someone we might be able to help, finding the energy source has to be our priority. Otherwise, we’re just sitting around uselessly speculating or else racing to reach a murder scene too late to do anything about it. Profiling a killer isn’t what this is about, so what we normally do isn’t going to help.”

  “I’d agree.”

  “I hope Archer does. He called for help and what he got was a group of psychics who are turning his belief system completely upside down. Pretty sure he’s not going to be happy when most of us are just out roaming around this valley looking for the energy source.”

  “Do you want me to call him?”

  “No, not yet. But he may call you. Depends on whether he gets any sleep tonight and how clear his head is tomorrow.”

  “I’ll be here if and when he calls.”

  “Good. Now, what about the others? I don’t know about Sully’s shield, how strong it really is, and I know he’s limited by distance, but there are a hell of a lot of very freaked-out people around here, and I’m fairly sure that’s going to be difficult for him, never mind the energy. I’m worried about Olivia because she’s so fragile; I’m worried about Reno because she’s so open; and I’m worried about Dalton because—well, I’m just worried about him.”

  “So am I,” Bishop said wryly. “Miranda and I have done what we could in the little time available, but each of these people is pretty much coming to Prosperity with the abilities they had when they were summoned. They may well be affected by the energy, and their abilities could evolve to help them fight. Which I hope was the intent of whatever or whoever summoned all of you.”

  “Bishop, be straight with me. What did you and Miranda see?”

  He was silent for so long Hollis wasn’t at all sure he’d answer, which would be fairly typical of him, but when he finally did offer an answer, she almost wished she hadn’t asked.

  “We saw . . . something of what could happen if the team isn’t successful at stopping this. It was a lot like Reno’s vision, except we saw the beginning. Saw the darkness spreading outward from Prosperity, destroying everything in its path. That’s the line your team has to hold, Hollis. If whatever it is escapes that valley, stopping it becomes pretty damned close to impossible.”

  Hollis drew a breath and let it out slowly. “Next time, just tell me I really don’t need to know,” she said.

  “This time you did. You can handle this, Hollis.”

  “Yeah. Right. When are you going to send the others?”

  “It’ll be late morning when they arrive. Since it sounds like Sheriff Archer has all he can deal with for the moment, I’ll have them meet up at your hotel. They can get checked in and then wait there for you and Reese. Plan to be there around noon.”

  “Okay. What about Galen?”

  “What about him?”

  “You told me he wasn’t summoned, but he felt he had to be here. Fine. But what’s his part in all this? I’m not complaining, mind you, because I’m sure he’ll be an asset in any kind of fight—any kind of normal fight, at least. And he and Reese have the strongest shields against this energy, so another plus. Still, if he wasn’t summoned, does he have a part to play?”

  “I expect you’ll all find why you’re meant to be there, including Galen. He may want to spend more time prowling alone, or he may be . . . drawn . . . to a member of your team.”

  Hollis held the receiver away from her ear for a moment, staring at it, then put it back to her ear and said, “I knew Yoda had to come back sooner or later. Listen, do you think maybe this isn’t the time to be all cryptic and mysterious?”

  “It’s just a hunch,” Bishop said calmly.

  “One you’re not going to explain.”

  “Best not. I could be wrong.”

  Hollis absorbed that for a moment. “Um. Okay. Well, Reese and I have agreed it probably isn’t wise for any of us to be roaming around Prosperity at night, at least not until we get a better handle on what’s happening here. Which we need to do as quickly as we possibly can. We don’t know how many other people have already been affected, or are being affected now, and for all we know the voice could be telling half the town to shoot cops and feds. And it’s a well-armed town.”

  “You expect to be targets? Specific targets?”

  “I think we wouldn’t be smart if we assume otherwise. The whole town is so freaked out I haven’t been able to sort through all the emotions to sense whether anybody is struggling now the way Lonnagan did a few hours ago. Right now it’s just waves of emotion from just about everybody. Not fun. Reese wants to keep me inside his shields all night, especially since my iffy shield is even less dependable when I sleep.”

  “A smart precaution, I’d say. Take breaks from the energy whenever you can, Hollis. I don’t believe your mind could be affected by it, not controlled by it; you’ve faced evil and negative energy too many times. But until you know what the source is, you won’t know what it’s going to take to transform or disperse that energy.”

  “Transform or disperse. Step one is to find the energy source or sources. Step two is to seal those portals. And step three is dealing with the energy here in the valley, transforming or dispersing it. Because energy can’t be destroyed.”

  “We know this. You know it better than anyone. And you can handle it, whatever it is. If the barrier over the valley is indeed holding the energy inside, then discovering the source, fighting it, defeating it, may not destroy that barrier. You may have to punch a few openings in it. But take care, Hollis. That energy must be rendered harmless before it’s allowed to escape the valley. Even without a guiding consciousness it could do an incredible amount of damage.”

  “Right. Right.”

  “Hollis, don’t think you have to handle it alone. You have Reese and you have the rest of the team. I have to believe you were all summoned because everyone does have a part to play. Don’t focus on protecting them.”

  After a moment, she said, “It’s hard not to do that. This sort of thing is new to them. Using their abilities in a situation like this with so much at stake. Being a team. How can I not worry?”

  “You’re bound to worry, just as any team leader would. But you can’t let worry pull your focus away from the source of the energy. And you have to remember they need to be there just as you do.”

  She sighed. “Yeah, copy that. I take it you expect my instincts to kick in at the proper moment and tell me just how we can
transform or disperse the energy.”

  “They always have,” Bishop pointed out.

  “But no pressure.”

  “You can handle it,” he repeated.

  “Right. Right.” Hollis paused, then added, “I had a moment to speak to Katie Cole, and she told me the slam of information she got included a warning for her to shore up her shield, to protect herself as much as possible. So she’s doing that, and she seems to have a fair shield. She agreed with me that the best place for her to be in all this is with the sheriff.

  “He’s a good cop and doesn’t need his hand held, but Katie’s known him long enough and well enough that I believe she can help him accept all this. She thinks so too.”

  “So do I,” Bishop said.

  “Seven murders today. I’m counting Bowers, since he was forced to do what he did.”

  “Yes.”

  “I doubt all the killing just stops, Bishop. For all we know, tomorrow could be a bloodbath.”

  “Yes, it could be. But you’re there, first, to find and deal with the energy source and the energy itself. Nothing stops until that’s stopped.”

  Hollis wished that reassured her. She wished it very much. “Okay. I’ll report in tomorrow night. Sooner if anything breaks, or the situation changes.”

  “Copy. Get some rest,” Bishop replied.

  Hollis hung up the phone and looked at her partner. “You got all that, right?”

  “Yeah. Handy thing, our connection.”

  “Seems to be.”

  “Bishop’s right. We need to rest while we can. You need to rest while you can, and take a long break from the energy. It could make all the difference when we find this thing.”

  “And you have no doubt that we will find this thing.”

  “Absolutely none.” He smiled faintly. “But it’s been a very long day, and ours started before dawn with packing and flying nearly a thousand miles. So, for tonight, I say we order room service, have a shower, and then go to bed.”