by D V Wolfe
Nya and I went back outside to wait for Noah. When he came out, Noah smiled at us both in reassurance. “He’s sleeping for a little bit now. He said he just needed a nap and then he’d be back on the radio. He told me that not having the visions was starting to bother him, so he was kind of relieved they were back.”
I nodded. “Well Watson,” and then I grinned at Nya. “Watsons,” I corrected. “Case closed.”
Nya rolled her eyes. “If anything Bane, I’m Sherlock and you two are Watson.”
I shook my head. “Watson was a doctor and he took the notes. You’ve seen my stitches and penmanship.”
“Yeah,” Nya said with a grin. “And I usually can’t tell one from the other.”
15
We were quiet as we circled back around the house to our trucks. I looked around at the open prairie and fields surrounding Walter’s house. I could see the small town of Vigil in the distance, but I couldn’t help thinking that Walter must feel pretty isolated out here. I looked back at the little white house with the radio tower and thought how similar old Walter was to the preacher in Ashley when I was growing up, Pastor Scruggs. He’d been widowed too, preaching to the rest of us about what was supposedly coming. I guessed Walter was different though. He knew exactly was coming, well, for the most part, whereas Pastor Scruggs spoke more metaphorically. Or so he thought. I wondered what his thoughts were about the situation now that he’d seen the actual Hell and damnation he’d been preaching about.
“Well that’s one problem solved,” Nya said with a grin as she leaned back against her S10. “In a little bit, the radio will be overrun with Walter’s visions.”
I nodded. “That’s a relief.” I looked at Noah. “Because we need to get some serious hunting in.”
Noah’s stomach growled in answer and Nya turned to look at him. Noah blushed.
“Maybe we should all grab some grub first.” Nya looked at me. “Does Vigil have anything that would resemble a diner?”
Mo’s Midtown was a gas station diner with no parking lot and two fill up tanks outside the front doors. We parked around the corner with Nya behind me. The town was quiet and when we swung into the diner, there was only one table of burly farmers in the back corner. We grabbed a booth in the front corner so we could all sit, somewhat facing the door.
The bored waitress popped her gum and shuffled her shoes over to us. We ordered and sent her away again. I leaned back in the booth and put my hands behind my head. “So Nya, what else have you been up to these days?”
“You mean besides following the trail of demonic toilet paper stuck to your shoe?” Nya asked, crossing her arms and smiling.
“Yeah,” I said. “Besides that. I mean that can’t take all your time.”
“You’d be surprised,” Nya mumbled.
“I wouldn’t be,” Noah said. Nya grinned at him and his face turned beet red again. “It’s just, I’ve only been around her for two weeks, and I know that trying to look out for her would be a full-time job.”
“Kiss ass,” I whispered. Noah cut his eyes to me.
“Thanks, Noah,” Nya said and I recognized her wolf-grinning-at-granny smile. She was going to have some fun with him.
“Danger Will Robinson…” I muttered to Noah.
He ignored me and said. “So Nya, who did you piss off to end up getting stuck with looking out for Bane?”
I rolled my eyes and Nya chuckled. “Oh, I’ve known Bane for what’s it been, four years now?”
I nodded. “Ever since Charleston.”
“What happened in Charleston?” Noah asked.
“Crocottas,” Nya and I said.
“I don’t want to know,” Noah said.
“That was a bit messy,” I said.
“Messy?” Nya said. “I had to stay behind for two weeks scrubbing that town clean after you blew their mayor up in front of city hall.”
“I meant to send you flowers,” I said.
Noah turned to look at me. “Why didn’t you stay to help?”
“I went after one of the crocottas that got away,” I said.
“Things haven’t changed much,” Nya said, shaking her head. “You’re about to chase after another one that got away. Speaking of, tell me more about the Solomon’s Spice and how you killed these demons.”
Between Noah and I, we filled her in on the monk’s legend, the ‘God’s Tears’ elixir, and the Solomon’s Spice stakes.
When we finished, Nya sighed. “Bane, you need to not be running around in the open right now.” I drew breath to argue and she leaned forward, her voice changing from asking to pleading. “The demons have got to be pissed. You’ve figured out how to kill them. They are going to find more and more ways to ‘accidentally’ bump into you on a hunt just so they can say they were justified in taking you out. Please, can’t you just go hole up in Fort Hope with Rosetta or up in Prosper with Tags or hell, even Messina with Stacks, and wait this out? I’ve got contacts, I’ll check with them on the Solomon’s Spice and see if it will be enough to kill the Duke. I’ll see what I can find out about demon gatherings where they might be trying to raise him again. I’ll see if I can pendulum to find him, though, after St. Louis, they may have more precautions in place to make it harder to crash their party.”
“Nya, I have less than five months.” I was trying to keep my voice even, but I was doing my own pleading now. “There isn’t going to be a ‘Porky’s II’ type sequel for me. I have to hunt.”
Nya shook her head and we were quiet for a moment.
“Are you the one who taught Bane all about pop culture?” Noah asked out of the blue.
We both turned to look at him and Nya gave him a small smile. “No, that was Jo, Bane’s girlfriend.”
“And Andi,” I said. “I watched a lot of TV while I was healing up. I used to be a lot better at getting the crap kicked out of me.”
The waitress was back with our food and we tore into it in silence.
“So where’s your next stop?” I asked Nya.
“Clarksville, Tennessee,” Nya said, dunking some fries in ketchup.
“You know,” I said, grinning down at my sandwich. “If you got a cell phone, it would make keeping in touch a lot easier.”
Nya shook her head. “Nice try. Just always keep yours on you so I can find you. I don’t want everyone in the world to be able to track me down. You, on the other hand, need babysitting.” She grinned and tugged at my hair.
I huffed. “Maybe I’ll just lose it.”
Nya looked at Noah. “Don’t let her lose it.”
Noah snapped Nya a salute.
“Smartass,” Nya said, but she was grinning. “I have to say though, having met you, Noah, I do feel a lot better knowing she has you with her.” I felt Noah sit up a little taller next to me. “Where are you two headed next?” Nya asked.
I shrugged. “Wherever Walter’s report and the wind blows us.”
The check came and Nya grabbed it off the table. When I started to protest, she glared at me, her jaw set. “This is my apology for not being with you in St. Louis. Even though I told you not to go.”
Noah and I thanked her and once the check was paid we wandered back out into the midday sun. We were almost around the corner when the air was filled with a high pitched ringing. I dug in my pocket and yanked out my cell phone. I glanced at the caller ID. “It’s Rosetta.”
Nya laughed. “It’s her superpower. She knows you’re with me. She’s calling to see how badly I’ve corrupted you.”
“More likely it’s the other way around,” I said with a grin.
“Either way,” Nya said, opening her driver’s side door and stowing her Glock, Mr. Blasty, back in the modified counsel on the seat. “That’s my cue to exit.”
I hated that Rosetta and Nya couldn’t seem to get along. I knew why, but it still sucked. It was just like Joel and Nya rubbing each other the wrong way. I guessed it was to be expected. Not everyone was going to like each other but still, I loved them. Maybe after I le
ft…. I felt the panic in my chest trying to get a toe hold. No, there would be time to think about that later. But after, Rosetta and Nya would have no reason to dislike each other. I wouldn’t be in the picture anymore. Same thing for Joel and Nya, though I was pretty sure that some of what annoyed Nya about Joel was his surfer personality, which was just who he was.
“Oh, before I forget,” Nya said, leaning across her seat. She pulled back, holding a plastic bag, full to bursting. “I knew your stash was probably getting low and these were on clearance.” She handed the bag to me. I opened it and stared down at a dozen cartons of Peeps.
“Better than roses,” I said with a grin. Noah groaned beside me.
“Nya, why do you support her habit?” Noah asked.
Nya sighed. “Well, it was either these or painkillers.”
“Tough call,” Noah muttered.
Nya hugged Noah and then she and I squeezed the crap out of each other. “I miss you,” I groaned as her arms tightened around my shoulders.
“Miss you, Calamity Bane,” she said, pulling back. “I’ll call you after Clarkesville.”
She got in her S10 just as my cell started ringing again. I looked down. Rosetta.
Noah and I waved goodbye to Nya and climbed in Lucy. I got behind the wheel and flipped the phone open.
“Hi Rosetta,” I started. And that’s where I ended.
“Damn it, Bane, you scared the shit out of us. Why didn’t you answer? My God, you could have been lying in a ditch or stretched on a rack by some demonic dingus with your toenails stuffed down your throat…”
“Whoa Rosetta,” I cut in. “Stop right there, before some demon hears you and starts taking notes.”
“Where are you?” She snapped.
“We’re in Vigil, Nebraska,” I said.
“That’s why,” Rosetta said and her voice was muffled, as if she was turning to talk to someone else. “She’s in Vigil.”
“That’s why, what?” I asked. More muffled talking. “Rosetta?”
“I don’t want to talk about it over the line,” Rosetta said. “You and the kid hot foot it over here.”
“It’s a fifteen-hour drive,” I said. “Can’t you just tell us? We have hunting to do.”
“Bane!” Rosetta barked, in her don’t-mess-with-me voice.
I sighed. “Fine. We’ll ‘hot foot’ it as quickly as possible.”
“I’ll bet you can make it in twelve,” Rosetta said.
Now I knew this was serious. If Rosetta was telling me to speed, hell must be about to break loose.
It was a little after three am when we rolled down the alley behind Rosetta’s house. I paused when we got to the crooked horse chestnut tree. There were a lot more vehicles here than there should have been. Besides Rosetta’s pink Cadillac convertible, there was Tags’ beat up Scout and unfortunately, Gabe’s green Triumph motorcycle. Maybe not, unfortunately, but it tore up something inside of me to see it.
“Some kind of party Rosetta must be planning,” I muttered as I eased into the only open patch of gravel next to Tags’ Scout. Noah had been snoring but when I shifted into park the swaying of the cab woke him up.
“What the…” He started and swiped at his eyes. “Are we at Rosetta’s?”
“The one and only,” I said.
“A lot of vehicles here,” Noah said.
I nodded. “Rosetta must be having a garden party.”
Lucy’s doors squeaked when we kicked them open and Rosetta’s back gate slammed open. I glanced up to see her framed in the light from her back porch, Big Joe, her twelve-gauge shotgun, tucked into her shoulder.
“Get your hinders in here,” She barked. Noah scrambled to grab his bag off the floor and I grabbed the sawed-off and shut the door.
“We’re coming,” I said. “Sorry, we’re late for cocktails. Did we miss croquet?”
“Well your sass is right on time,” Rosetta muttered, standing to one side to let us pass. “Get inside.”
“Are we grounded?” I asked, climbing up the back steps.
“You might say that,” Rosetta said.
Noah made it inside but I stopped to turn and look at her. “Rosetta, what’s going on?”
“Inside. I don’t….” Rosetta looked around her yard as if expecting demons to peek out of her bamboo stand and out from under her lawn chair. “Not out here.” She gave me a little push and I climbed the porch steps. I paused in the doorway and turned to look at the people sitting around her kitchen table. Tags sat closest to the door, next to him was Stacks, his head buried in a book. Next to him, there were two empty chairs and then, there was Gabe. I felt a jolt like electrical current run through my heart and I stopped breathing. The smell of bacon and leather and pine was coming from him like cartoon steam, wafting towards me. He turned in his chair and his eyes found mine. I felt my mouth open on its own, not sure what it was going to say and then Noah spoke next to me.
“You must be Gabe.”
Gabe’s gaze shifted and he got to his feet, holding out a hand to Noah.
“That’s me,” Gabe said. “And you must be Noah.” It wasn’t a question and I cut my eyes to Rosetta, knowing she had probably spent the last few hours catching him up on everything that had happened in St. Louis.
“Well,” I said, taking the chair next to Stacks and leaving the chair between me and Gabe for Noah. “I suppose you’re wondering why I’ve called you all here.”
Tags sighed. “Sure is good to see your sass again, I was starting to forget how annoying it was.”
I leaned forward and put my arms on the table, determined to not look at Gabe. “So what’s going on?”
Tags and Stacks both turned to look at Rosetta, so Noah and I followed suit. I caught Gabe’s eye for a second before he turned to look at her as well.
“I got a phone call today…” She glanced at the clock. “Well, yesterday, a little after noon,” Rosetta said. “It was about twenty seconds before I called you, Bane.”
I nodded. “So probably not your minister?”
Rosetta ignored me. “It was Walter.”
I sat up straighter. If it had to do with me, why didn’t Walter just call me? Why call Rosetta? Especially since we were still in Vigil.
“Bane, there’s a huge trap being set for you,” Rosetta said.
“How would Walter know that?” I asked.
“Because he had a vision,” Rosetta continued.
I shook my head. “Rosetta, the dam broke. Walter’s wife was blocking him. We put her to rest and then he was suddenly unblocked and being hit with all the visions of crap he’d missed. Maybe he was seeing St. Louis…”
“Bane,” Rosetta barked, interrupting me and I met her gaze. “This hasn’t happened yet. He saw a bloody smiley face that turned into a full moon and a tall man was standing in front of it, calling down tornadoes that consumed everything in their path.” I felt a cold sweat breaking out on my back. The cannibals.