by Greg Ballan
Erik nodded, reaching over and gently brushed her shoulder. "That's okay. I didn't expect you to, but I appreciate you being a sounding board. You're an amazing woman, Alissa, and I'm grateful for your friendship." Erik shook his head. "No, you're family. If I had a sister, I'd want her to be just like you."
The young woman blushed. "Thank you. You are probably the best big brother in the world." She pointed toward the door. "Take your sister's advice now, big brother. Go home. Get rest and keep your Esper senses on full alert."
Erik leaned over and hugged her. "I will. Thank you."
Alissa smiled through tear-filled eyes. "Focus, Erik. Don't think about this. Little John will be back in a few days and so will Rebecca. We can manage things here and I'm sure the firm already knows what's going on, I expect some unsolicited assistance from them as well."
Erik nodded. "That wouldn't surprise me, but keep me apprised anyway. I'll do my best to keep you in the loop. If Brianna calls, contact me. She always calls the office phone."
The young woman gave a curt nod. "We'll take care of everything here. You have your family to protect, and a war to prevent."
◆◆◆
Vatican City. Rome, Italy
The long limousine pulled up to the Audience Hall by Saint Martha's Palace. Erik spotted Bishop O'Malley and several other high-level clergy gathered to meet them. Shanda was visibly apprehensive and held EJ tight as the young boy was captivated by all the different sights. Martin seemed tense. The normally stalwart counselor had been very quiet on the ride over. Erik didn't know if it was due to the long plane ride or if his mentor was having some flashbacks to their experiences on the last trip and the mixed feelings of knowing his son was resting here for all eternity. The detective placed a comforting arm on Denton's shoulder. "Are you okay Martin?"
Denton smiled and nodded. "I'm sorry. I'm just a bit jet lagged is all. My back side is a bit sore from all this sitting."
Erik nodded. "Yeah, we all need a rest." He looked over at an animated EJ. "Well most of us need a rest."
They came to a stop and the driver opened the door. As they climbed from the limo, Erik spotted the Archbishop. The old man walked toward them and the officials seemed to part like pigeons allowing him to approach the new arrivals.
"Mr. Denton, Mr. Knight, welcome back to Vatican City." The old man looked over toward a nervous Shanda. "And you are Shanda Knight. Welcome."
Shanda nodded. "Thank you…" She wrung her hands. "Sir? I'm sorry. I don't know how to address you."
The Archbishop smiled. "Most people call me, 'Your Grace,' but that seems a bit formal."
Shanda did her best to smile. "Your Grace."
The Archbishop nodded. His eyes went wide as he spied EJ. He took two steps toward the boy. EJ moved forward to greet him but Shanda held him close. The Archbishop stopped abruptly and knelt. "Hello, young man, how are you?"
EJ smiled. "Hi! I'm EJ." The child looked at the Archbishop, his brow furrowed. "Why are you wearing a robe? Did you just wake up?"
Erik rolled his eyes. Martin broke out laughing and Shanda turned beet red.
The Archbishop, to his credit, nodded and smiled at the boy. "It does look like I have a bathrobe on doesn't it. But I've been up for a while."
Bishop O'Malley walked forward. "Archbishop, we have refreshments inside. I'm sure our guests are weary and would be glad for a chance to sit so we can get reacquainted."
They were escorted to a large corner room. A lavish buffet had been set up and Erik suddenly felt famished. Two young nuns entered and offered to take EJ to a separate room with food, games and several toys. Shanda refused. "He's fine here with me, but thank you for offering."
Erik leaned over. "Hon, you wanted to come here. This is protected ground. If something happens, I'll know immediately. He's just going to get bored and antsy here." He gave his wife a moment to reconsider.
Shanda sighed, then nodded. "EJ, do you want to go with the nice ladies and play with some toys?"
Erik motioned for his son and the boy came over quickly. The protective father reached inside his shirt producing his Esper weapon. "Protect EJ!"
The staff hummed an eerie baritone octave and flowed around the boy's wrist taking the shape of a heavy bracelet.
EJ held up his forearm. "It feels warm."
Erik nodded. "You'll get used to it in a few minutes." He held his son close, looking directly into his eyes. "Mom and dad need to have some adult talk with our friends here. You be on your best behavior. Okay, buddy? I'll be by to get you later."
EJ nodded and walked over to the nuns. He took their hands as they gently led him out of the room.
"Do you like Lego?" EJ asked as the door to the conference room closed. "I like your hats!" was the last sound they heard as the boy happily walked down the hallway.
Martin snickered.
"A most robust, inquisitive child," The Archbishop complimented. "You have done well."
Shanda's eyes remained fixed on the door where EJ had gone. "Thank you."
The tension in the room grew palpable. "Agent Knight, it seems we owe you an apology. Our records regarding you and your son were flawed. I am extremely embarrassed. We are supposed to have the preeminent archive of all records. It's disturbing to discover that an underground anti-government activist has more accurate biblical data than the Vatican archives."
Erik laughed. "I assume you're referring to Charlie Gallagher."
The Archbishop inclined his head. "Yes. I believe that's the gentleman's name."
"Mr. Gallagher is very resourceful, but he is on a leash, I assure you." Denton remarked as he sliced into a side of roast beef.
"We believe our records were tampered with during the establishment of our computer systems. One of our clerics that manage our information systems is running a thorough check to make sure nothing else has been corrupted."
Bishop O'Malley leaned in. "May I ask a question?"
Erik shrugged. "Fire away, Your Excellency. We're all friends here and we're all allies. We're going to have to be open and honest with each other and trust each other. I freely confess that's a weakness in my character; trust. But I'm willing to give it freely."
O'Malley raised an eyebrow. "We appreciate that, Agent Knight and we'll do our best to be worthy of your trust." O'Malley looked at Shanda. "And you, Mrs. Knight, does your husband speak for you as well?"
"No, he doesn't," Erik jumped in. "Mrs. Knight is free to make up her own mind."
All eyes focused on Shanda, she looked over at Erik. He winked. She smiled and blew out a long breath. "In this case, I'll defer to my husband's good judgment."
O'Malley nodded and the tension in the room evaporated. "Excellent. Now let's get down to business. We have a great deal of ground to cover. What's been going on? We were only told that you would be returning and there was a disturbance of great magnitude?"
Erik poured a cup of coffee, then offered the carafe to Shanda as he began to speak. "You know about the attack on the DC3 by the gargoyle-like creatures, but my wife and son were also attacked at the same time by some kind of dark, smoky entity. It tried to kill them. I was able to send my staff through a portal and EJ was able to use the weapon and vaporize the demon—" Erik grinned "—and the entire back side of our house and two large pine trees. That was a clear attempt at killing me and my family in one simultaneous assault. The next day, an entity named Bartholomew came for EJ at my gym and insisted that I surrender him. I declined the offer and we discussed our difference of opinion by exchanging demonic fire for plasma blasts, nearly ruining my gym in the process. Later that evening, EJ and I were attacked by several more demonic forces, progressively stronger, with some beings over twenty feet in height. The entire plaza and parking lot were damaged during the battle." Erik paused as the gathered clergy gasped in shock.
O'Malley shook his head in dismay. "There are specific rules and laws that forbid such creatures traversing into this realm. Bartholomew is an agent of Lucifer. He knows the
rules and has never before violated them. I can only assume that with the discovery of the chosen being of Light, Lucifer is desperate to keep his advantage."
Another cleric poured a glass of water for the Archbishop. The old man accepted it with a shaky hand. "Lucifer would not break the covenant. Bartholomew is often rash and impulsive while doing his master's bidding. I suspect your interaction was nothing more than bravado. No doubt Lucifer has punished him in some way. But as for the other acts against you, that stinks of Molec and his army. But why all these forces would attack now in tandem makes no sense. Many demons are like mindless predators, reluctant to work together and difficult to control. I am grateful you took shelter here, Agent Knight."
Erik shook his head. "I don't know if it was Molec who organized the fight in the parking lot. Lucifer spoke directly to me, as a voice in my head. Also, I had backup during the second attack. A winged being of pure white vaporized one of my larger opponents and restored my ruined truck with a simple wave of his hand. This being and Lucifer spoke like they knew each other and had battled before. This entity extended the protective offer of Vatican City. He also told us of the price my son has on his head by both Molec and Lucifer. I'm not sure what it all means but I know it's bad. Perhaps you'll enlighten us as to just how bad?"
Bishop O'Malley scratched his head. "Can you describe the first entities that attacked you?"
Erik nodded. "Between six and seven feet tall. Their skin resembled gnarled tree bark. They were rust and brick colored. They had glowing green edged weapons and could project greenish energy." Erik rubbed his shoulder. "They were very skilled fighters and very persistent."
O'Malley rubbed his chin. "Were there five of them?"
"There were."
"The Quint Demons! They are in the employ of Molec functioning as his primary assassins for hire. I think you experienced a mixed bag of freelancers, Agent Knight. I imagine both Molec and Lucifer are equally frustrated at this point."
Denton cleared his throat. "If these demons are all mercenaries, then they'll work for the highest bidder. I guess the question is whose going to raise the stakes higher, Lucifer for possession of the boy or Molec wanting the child eradicated?"
Shanda shuddered, then looked up at Erik.
"Your thesis doesn't give me a warm fuzzy, Counselor." Erik sighed heavily.
Denton nodded. "I know. I'm sorry." He glanced over at Shanda. "But right now EJ is safe and Shanda is safe. The forces of Dark had their shot and they blew it. Had they joined their forces and organized an assault, who knows what would have happened. Our enemy's hatred of each other may work to our advantage. I'm guessing Lucifer and Molec will be fighting each other as well as fighting us. That gives our side an advantage. We just have to figure out how to capitalize on it."
The Archbishop leaned forward. "I know you have been informed of the dangers by Light's messenger. There is little we can add to what you've been told save that a soul bounty is forbidden. It's obvious that Molec wants the boy dead, period." He looked at Erik. "He wants you dead as well, which explains the attack at your house and on the plane. It seems Lucifer would rather possess the child than kill him, which is why demons are attacking in groups and with some organization."
Erik frowned. "I don't know, those large creatures seemed pretty intent on barbecuing us both at one point. If not for the staff's protection, my son would be toast. If Lucifer wanted to kidnap EJ, he's going about it in a peculiar fashion."
"Not really." The Archbishop shook his head. "Lucifer wants the boy alive. Your life, however, is expendable. By threatening the child, the evil one forces you out in the open where you can be engaged directly and possibly destroyed. If the child has no guardian, he can be taken easily. Lucifer knows you have to be eliminated. I believe this first attack by Bartholomew was exploratory. Bartholomew has been known to be arrogant and an opportunist. He probably was hoping to impress his master with his bravado. The Dark Lord wanted to test you with the other attacks, see the extent of your power by throwing progressively more powerful foes at you and observe as you responded to each threat. This would give him time to study you, gather vital data, and look for weakness. Only after his hordes ground you down would the real attack begin." The old man fumbled with a water glass. "Lucifer, the devil, simply wants to win, and having the boy alive would feed his sizeable ego and give him a much-needed edge. Whether or not God would directly interfere at that point is unknown. I believe, and it pains me to say this, but Lucifer isn't the real threat at this point. Molec and the forces he can bring to bear are the real danger right now. Molec has zero regard for rules or life. The archdemon doesn't care about anything except causing the most damage to both sides and ruling in Lucifer's place. We've provided a temporary stopgap by hiding you here. The child is protected from all demonic attacks while in this sanctuary. We are still susceptible to human intervention as you discovered earlier." The Archbishop gave Shanda a reassuring smile. "Worry not, Mrs. Knight we've been cleaning house over the last weeks and most of the rats and cockroaches have been purged. There are enough elite guard and other entities within our walls to keep your child and you well protected."
Martin exhaled heavily and rubbed his forehead. "I don't want to appear combative, Your Grace, but I'm not comfortable assigning human motive and human desire to beings that clearly aren't human. How do we even know what Molec or Lucifer really want? We can assume and guess based on the limited information available to us, but do you really know? Does anyone really know?"
Erik jumped in. "I understand your concern, Martin. But the divinity in my office pretty much had the same assessment. I would have to believe that he…" Erik looked over at the Archbishop. "Are there male and female divine entities? He seemed like a man."
The Archbishop actually chuckled. "They are divine, immortal beings that assume a familiar form when making appearances to man. Angels are not human and don't reproduce like mortal species. They do not have a gender, Agent Knight. And to answer your question, Mr. Denton, despite their inhumanity and immortality, the traits of greed, avarice and ambition are not limited to the human species."
Denton frowned shaking his head. "I meant no offense."
"None was taken. On the contrary, your mind is sharp and you asked a relevant, pointed question."
Erik knew his friend was tired and jet lagged. Shanda displayed signs of fatigue as well. They needed some time to recuperate and rest. "As I was saying, I'd have to believe the entity we spoke to understands the motivations of beings like itself." Erik looked over at his wife and winked. She seemed tense, constantly looking toward the door. He could sense her desire to be with her child. "Have any other of your sources come up with any kind of lead on Molec? Is there anything we can use as a starting point?"
Bishop O'Malley shook his head vehemently. "Nothing. Our people, divine and otherwise are looking feverishly, but the demon is very adept at hiding."
Erik glanced over at Martin. The detective cracked his knuckles, balled his hand into a fist and grumbled. "We're going to have to fly back to DC. I want a few words with Speaker Collins and his staff. We need answers."
O'Malley waved his hands. "I don't think the Speaker will be very cooperative."
Erik's eyes went steel hard. "I'm sure I can convince him."
Denton laughed. "Special Agent Knight can be most persuasive, Your Excellency. His methods are a tad unorthodox but still effective."
"I suspect if we tip over enough apple carts in DC, we'll find some slugs and worms we can twist until they bleed out a few leads."
The Archbishop leaned in. "When you get to the capital pay a call to Congressman Anderson. He is one of our trusted servants. You'll find he can be of great use in helping you navigate your way through the labyrinth of DC politics. Sometimes it's better to navigate the maze with a guide than to just smash through the walls upsetting every applecart, Agent Knight."
The detective grinned. "Maybe, but that's not nearly as much fun." Erik looked over at Martin
. "What do you say, Counselor, we eat some more of this great food, then grab some shut eye?"
Martin nodded. "Yeah, some sleep sounds wonderful." Denton shot O'Malley a snide look. "Not to be a rude guest, but since we're all chummy now, can I assume we'll have the courtesy of privacy in our respective quarters? I can set up another white noise box but I'd really rather not."
Bishop O'Malley blushed and gave an almost imperceptible nod. "I will personally guarantee your privacy."
Denton smiled. "Thank you."
Erik looked over at Shanda. He could sense her unease and discomfort. He leaned over and whispered in her ear. "Are you okay, babe? I'm usually the one giving off bad vibes, but I can sense your discomfort. If you're not comfortable here just say the word and we take EJ and head home on the next flight out. We're not prisoners here, you know that."
"I know. I'm sorry. I didn't think I'd be so uncomfortable. I didn't think you'd be leaving so soon after we just got here."
Erik put his arm around her. "I can spend another day or two here to see if you get acclimated. If not, we'll be on a plane for home."
Shanda lightly kissed his cheek. "Just give us one day together before you leave and I should be fine."
"One day it is." Erik looked over at the Archbishop. "Excuse me, I'd like to make a slight adjustment to our itinerary. I'd like an extra 24 hours to stretch my limbs and be with my wife and son."
The Archbishop nodded. "I suppose we can delay another day. EJ is safe, and we can inform Congressman Anderson of your arrival and ensure the maze of bureaucracy won't require your pummeling. In the meantime, we can do our best to overwhelm your lovely bride with our hospitality."
Shanda blushed. Erik knew the Archbishop sensed her distrust and the old man was going out of his way to be accommodating. The detective appreciated that. They were allies now and he had to trust them along with his new divine partners. Erik knew the ethereal beings had their own agenda beyond his capacity to understand, but he had to focus on the here and now. Protecting EJ and Shanda was his goal. In order to do that, he had to stop Molec. This was the only viable course of action open to them.
