Chapter 19
Our breaths became visible as we exhaled in the cold night air. We walked slowly across the small parking lot, our legs stiff from a two hour drive, towards the old church that towered before us.
“Why didn’t we just fly here?” I complained. “It would’ve been a lot faster to come all the way to Gatineau!”
“Because it drains a lot of energy to do so,” Ben looked sideways at me, “and you’ve never even flown before.”
“So?” I said, knowing as I said it how lame a retort it was.
We made our way up the front steps and stopped short of the door. “You know what to do?” he asked.
I nodded. “I got it the first three times you said it.” I moved to open the door and stopped. “How do you know about this anyways? It’s not like you were in the area to hear about it.”
“The Masters have infinite sources.” He gestured to the double brown doors, a sign that the conversation was over.
“Fine,” I mumbled, entering the church. It was just like any other gothic style catholic church; big arches adorned the walls, stained glass windows were on each side of the small room as well as religious sculptures and paintings, wooden benches stood in rows throughout the room. Two doors were on either side of the center stage at the far end.
Ben and I strolled down the rows, deciding to sit on the first one to the right. We bent slightly to make the cross sign over ourselves just before we sat. Immediately Ben went down on his knees, hands clutched together before him as if in prayer. I found it funny since I knew for a fact he was Jewish. But for the time being, he would play the part.
Then a lone figure dressed in a robe came out from the door on our right. Being the only visitors at this late hour, the priest had nothing better to watch than us and so he did. His soft white hair and beard were the only signs of aging he held, the rest of his skin barely showing any wrinkles.
I turned to look at him, mustering the saddest look I could possibly give. He focused his withering gaze solely on me. With my eyes, I gestured to the confessional that was near him. He glanced to it, and turned back to me with a short smile and nod.
I stood up and got out of the bench while the priest made his way towards the brown and red confessional box. Opening the left door, he entered it, and as I finally reached it, I entered through the other door. It was a small space, having only a little stool to sit myself on. I shut the door, sat down and looked through the wire screen that connected the two areas. Since there wasn’t much light coming through the confessional, I could just make out his face, but nothing more.
“Tell me; what ails you, my child?”
“I am having thoughts of murder.”
The priest leaned his face closer to the screen. “Do you truly wish to act on these... thoughts? Is it truly in your desires to kill someone?”
“Oh, but you misunderstand me, Father,” I said in my most innocent tone, “I wish to kill demons, not humans.”
“Demons?” he croaked.
“Why yes. In fact,” I dropped the innocent tone in my voice, “I intend to send you back to the hell right now!” My dagger pierced the wired screen and imbedded itself in his face.
The demon didn’t scream, having died instantly. Removing my dagger, I let its human form lean limply against the confessional’s wall. Repulsively, I reached down just enough to wipe the black blood off of my dagger and on the demon’s head. Once clean to my satisfaction, I placed it back in its sheath at my thigh. Then I grabbed the glass vial attached at my belt, uncapped it and extended my hand through the holed screen to let one single drop fall onto the corpse. Recapping it immediately, I watched the body slowly disintegrate, as if eaten by some invisible termites. Within seconds, the body had completely disappeared, along with the blood that had splattered on the confessional’s walls, floor and my arm. I sighed, happy to have no more yucky blood on me.
Inspecting the inside for anything, and satisfied to find nothing, I made my way out of the confessional and to Ben. He was leaning against the bench he’d been sitting on earlier, arms crossed. “And?” he asked.
“It’s done. You? Any problems?”
He shook his head. “Nobody comes here on week nights, especially not a Wednesday. That’s why it was so easy for the demon to kill humans; they were alone and there was no one in the vicinity.”
We walked back towards the door. “Bastard,” I sneered. “Posing as a priest; how despicable.”
Making our way out the door, we strolled casually, just in case someone would pass by the dirt road and spot us. Hurrying would make us look suspicious. And that wouldn’t be good if someone filed a missing person’s and we were suspects. “You know, it’s weird how the very people we try to protect could very well turn on us and throw us in jail.” I sighed.
“They would if they got the chance. That’s why we take precautions; to not give them any.” He stopped by the co driver’s side of his grey Mercedes. “You can give me back the vial now.” He put up his palm, waiting.
I unhooked it from my belt and gave it to him. “That thing’s pretty cool,” I stated.
“Yup. Really useful to dispose of any corpses.” He twirled the vial carelessly between his fingers.
“Don’t do that!” I screeched, grabbing his hand. “Do you have a death wish?!”
“Don’t worry!” he said calmly, “this is white magic. It’s specifically made to attack demonic or other dark creatures’ blood. It wouldn’t affect you if it touched you.”
“I’m really sick of people saying ‘don’t worry’!” I admitted through clenched teeth, “Especially ‘don’t worry, be happy’. I think the next person who says that, I’m going to jump him right where he stands!” I swore.
“Calm down. No use getting yourself all worked up over it. Besides,” he opened the car door and gestured for me to get in, “we still have a long way to get home.”
* * *
Two miserable hours later, we found ourselves driving up to the house. I’d been dozing in and out the whole trip there, and by the time we arrived, my only thought was to go to bed... and possibly hibernate. By his sly grin, Ben thought my tired state was very amusing.
I didn’t.
Somehow I managed to drag myself into the house. Once there, I didn’t bother to remove my coat and shoes, muttering a “Good night” to Ben as I climbed the stairs. I had just stepped out of the staircase when I heard one of the bedroom doors open. Taking a few more steps, I realized it was the door to Greg’s room that had been opened and was now being shut carefully to make no sound. Only it wasn’t Greg coming out.
“Oh hell no! Tell me you didn’t,” I screeched!
“Shh!” CJ hissed, moving towards me.
“I can’t believe you!” I said angrily, although quieter.
“What’d I do?”
I crossed my arms and lifted one single brow. If her messed up hair, wrinkled clothes and swollen lips weren’t enough to illustrate she’d just had sex, it was pretty obvious by the display of hickeys on her neck. When I stared at her neckline for some time, she put a hand to cover it.
“All right, all right. I get it. But now I gotta go.” She sounded pressed and almost...scared.
“What’s wrong?”
“He’s insatiable, that’s what! We’ve been going at it for hours and he’s still not worn out! I mean, don’t get me wrong, he’s great in bed,” she smiled in remembrance, “but he’s an all-out kind of guy and I’m a one-time-only kind of girl.”
“Sounds like you’re getting what you deserve,” I stated not without amusement.
“Think what you want, I’m outta here-“
Suddenly the bedroom door swung open and out came Greg. CJ instantly tensed.
“Hey Crys! How’d your first great quest go?” he joked, coming up beside CJ.
“Went well,” I said, trying to ignore the fact he was only wearing boxers. “And you?”
“Doing great.” He smiled. “I was just wondering where CJ was.”
“I-I needed to talk to Crys for a minute,” CJ squeaked.
“Oh, really? Were you two done? ‘Cause we still have some unfinished business, CJ and I.” He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him.
She, on the other hand, was looking at me pleadingly. You could almost hear her pleading to me help me! Help me!
I smiled. “By all means, take her away.”
His face beamed just as CJ’s expression turned murderous. Scooping her up into his arms, he turned to look at me. “I hope you don’t need her tomorrow; she’s going to be very tired.” Then he winked and walked back to his bedroom with an angry CJ.
“That is way too much information,” Ben stated as he came to a halt beside me. Then, when a loud gasp could be heard from the bedroom, he moved quickly to his bedroom. “I need to find my earmuffs,” he growled just as he shut the door.
As much as I was glad to have had CJ caught in her own little games, I definitely didn’t want to stick around to hear about it. So I followed Ben’s lead, heading straight for my room.
If it was even possible, I felt more tired than I did before. That’s probably why it took me a few seconds to notice the figure sitting in my chair in the corner. I got a sudden adrenaline kick, yet chose to ignore it long enough to pull off my shoes and coat and throw it towards my laundry basket by the door.
“What’s up?” I asked casually.
“Nothing much,” Tony replied. “Did the round go well?”
“Yeah, everything went smoothly.”
A round was what they called when they went hunting for anything. It was more subtle than saying a mission or quest, although they still joked about it. That way, if any unwanted people happened to overhear, it seemed as though we were talking about any ordinary job.
“Good. Look I need to talk to you.” He moved forward in the seat.
I sat down on my bed. “What’s wrong?” I could tell by the tone of his voice something wasn’t right.
“There have been rumours,” he said simply.
“Don’t talk in riddles, Tony. I can take whatever it is.”
He sighed, raking a hand through his hair. “There have been rumours for some time that Frederick was plotting against The Masters. Apparently, he’s changed his target.”
“Huh? So what, now he’s after humans instead?”
“No. Well, yes. He’s always wanted to rule humans, but they pose no threat to him, so they remain at the bottom of the food chain. For now.”
“Okay... So who’s at the top of the food chain then?”
“You”
I froze, staring at the thread of my comforter I’d been toying with. “What?” I said finally, looking up at him.
He had mixed emotions crossing his features; one minute angry, the next sad. “He has this idea that you’re this...this... I don’t know! Some all powerful being or something!” He’d gotten up and was pacing in front of the bed, his emotion of the moment being anger.
“So he’s going to try and kill me now?” It was more a declaration than a question.
At my comment, he stopped pacing and came to sit down on the bed, drawing me to him for a hug when he did. He was squeezing me tight and sharing massive amounts of body heat. “I won’t let him touch you. I won’t let you out of my sight!”
As much as the thought warmed me, I knew he couldn’t actually do that. That’s when a thought crossed my mind.
Maybe I really should go into hibernation.
)
