Erasmus’s sneer was world class, but he suddenly didn’t look particularly scary. “I have to talk to him. I get the feeling he doesn’t want to talk in front of you guys. I’ll be fine,” I added when Doc seemed reluctant to let me go.
“Call me when he’s gone,” said Doc. “No matter how late.”
“Okay, will do. Jolene?” She looked up. “Keep digging. If we’ve got to find this thing that killed Karl, I want to know all I’m up against.”
She saluted and sank down in front of her tablet again. Doc still held my arm but gave it a squeeze before finally releasing me. Nick was frowning from across the room when I closed the door on their warm camaraderie. Was I making a mistake? Should I have stayed there safe in their little chalked pentagram?
I cast a glance at Erasmus. He was scowling but didn’t seem dangerous. I unlocked the Jeep, opened the trunk, and shoved in the Booke and the crossbow. I looked at both of them sitting on a blanket in the back of my car when a sense of the surreal washed over me. Without overthinking it, I quickly pulled down the trunk door.
I moved to the driver’s side while Erasmus remained motionless on the driveway. “Well, don’t just stand there,” I told him. “Get in.”
His dark brows shot upward. “What do you mean?”
“I mean get in the car. What do you think I mean?”
“You want me…in your conveyance?”
“Why not? Are you going to smolder again? Set yourself on fire? If not, get in.”
I got into the car, and the headlights sprang to life and covered the front of Doc’s house. I could see them all standing in the window, looking back at us through the curtains. Erasmus stood tentatively on the driveway, swaying a little. I rolled down my window. “Are you getting in or not?”
He moved sluggishly to the other side of the car and cautiously took hold of the door handle. He fumbled with it a bit before he got it open and peered inside the cab.
“We don’t have all night, you know.”
Awkwardly he swung inside and settled into the seat.
“Seatbelt,” I sighed.
He looked at me inquiringly and I motioned to it, miming at my own. He still didn’t seem to understand, and I had to unbuckle mine to reach across and grab his. He startled back into his seat and I looked up at him. He was still looking at me curiously, but this time his face wasn’t scrunched in disdain but full of genuine interest. It was an awfully handsome face, with a nose worthy of a Greek statue, and sculpted lips that would be perfect if they smiled without that smug snarkiness, and a square chin with a bit of scruff. His eyes, dark and intense, scrutinized my face, and seemed surprised to be pleased by what they saw. Okay, that last bit could have been my overactive imagination. I had to remind myself that he really wasn’t a he at all, but more likely an it. Boy, it really had been a while since I’d left Jeff.
I drew away hastily and cleared my throat. “All buckled in?”
I threw the car into gear and slid it backwards out of the driveway. We bumped jerkily over the verge and settled onto the main road.
As we drove through the darkened woods back to my place, I kept snatching glances at him out of the corner of my eye. He grabbed the door and the center console for dear life. His fingers whitened.
In silence, we drove over the curving road to my brightly lit shop, where I got out and went to the trunk. After a few moments, Erasmus opened his door and stumbled free.
Slamming the trunk down, I carried the Booke and crossbow to the pool of light over the front porch. I handed him the key under my bundle. “Open that, would you? My hands are full.”
By the astonished look on his face, I realized he might not have been offered the niceties before, but he took the keys with two fingers and did as bid. He opened the door for me and stood aside as I entered, flipped on a light, and set down the Booke and the crossbow beside it. Turning toward Erasmus, I noticed he seemed to be a little cowed.
“Why did you drive me here? I could have just appeared.”
“I know. But this is more civilized, don’t you think?”
“No.”
“Are you contrary on purpose?” I asked, peeling off my coat. “Or is that just your way?”
“I—” After a pause he shrugged. He wouldn’t stop his concentrated stare at me even as I motioned for him to take a seat. He didn’t take off his jacket. Reluctantly, he sat in one of the wing chairs by the fireplace. I knelt beside it, getting kindling together and crumpling up wads of newspapers.
He reached over and lightly touched my shoulder. “No, no. Allow me.” He pointed a finger at the fireplace and the logs instantly ignited.
I fell back onto my backside. With a calming breath I got to my feet. “Oh. That’s…handy.” Even after his disappearing and reappearing trick I still had a hard time thinking of him as anything but human. I knew it was dangerous to make that mistake. I vowed to be more vigilant.
I sat in the chair opposite him and we simply stared for a while.
“So,” I finally said. “Demon, huh?”
The sneer was back. He settled into the chair, hands curled around the arms. “So…human, eh?”
I chuckled. “Okay. Maybe that was rude, but I’ve never met a demon before. Didn’t know they really existed.”
“I am afraid what you know about the world around you can fill one of your little tea cups.”
“Granted. But I’m learning. And I’m curious. Just what is a demon? I thought they were all red with horns, a tail, and a pitchfork.”
He studied me. With his elbow resting on the chair arm, he ran his finger lightly over his lips. I couldn’t help but follow the movement with my eyes. “Do you really want to know?”
I nodded. “I mean, this is all pretty new to me. It would be helpful.”
He sat back, still studying me.
I looked over to where the Booke sat. I felt it in waves, this understanding I had with it. The Booke had its own instinct. And it seemed to be telling me that my instincts were correct. Erasmus might try to lie to me, but the Booke would assure that I always knew the truth. I didn’t know how I knew that, but it was as solid an answer as I had ever gotten anywhere. Maybe he was tied to the Booke.
Erasmus saw me looking and frowned.
“The Booke,” I said. “The Booke knows.”
He steadfastly refused to glance back at the Booke. I thrummed with satisfaction. I hadn’t known I was engaged in a contest, but now I knew I’d won. At least the first round.
“So.” I settled in. The fire was cozy. A handsome man was sitting beside me. Under other circumstances this would have been an ideal situation. “Where do demons come from? Where did you come from?”
“You wouldn’t—it’s too difficult to explain.”
“Look, I’m buying all this, all right? I don’t understand any of it but I’m coming to believe it. I have to, don’t I? I think I can take in a little demon history.”
He’d halfway risen from his seat. “No, you can’t!”
“Sorry. I just thought…” I sighed. “Well, what can you tell me about the Booke?”
He settled down again. “You’ve already sussed what you need to do.”
“But not enough. I want to know where it came from and why it turns up when it does. It’s not just from 1720. I feel…I feel like it’s older than that. Much older.” I squinted at the Booke over my shoulder, annoyed that I knew things about it against my will.
“There you have it. You already know much. I suspect the book is telling you.”
“Yes, but why?” He remained tight-lipped. I blew out an exasperated breath. “If you won’t tell me about the Booke, why do you bother making an appearance at all? What is it you’re not telling me?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
I rolled my eyes. “Look, I’m not stupid. You appeared the same time the Booke did. So I’m thinking you’re somehow connected. Come on, throw me a bone here. It seems like we both want the Booke closed again.”
Erasmus stared into the fire. The firelight flickered deep in his eyes, eyes that seemed to reach back for fathoms. “I am not permitted—”
“Oh come on!” I leaned closer. “Surely you can give me a hint. Me and my chthonic crossbow.”
“Which you stole.”
“I only asked for it.”
“By stealing my amulet.”
My hand went to the dangling necklace and closed over the warm metal. Strangely, it made me think of him, Erasmus, not the beast-face on the thing. “Well, I’m sorry. I’m playing by your rules. Ordinarily I wouldn’t do something like that. But these circumstances seem far from ordinary.” I looked down at it again, unable to resist this time. The jeweled eyes seemed to glow at me, and I closed my fingers over it just to stop it from staring back. “Have you had this a long time?” I asked quietly.
“Yes. A very long time. Centuries.”
“Sorry. You’ll get it back. Promise. But you have to help me.”
One brow raised and he angled his face toward mine. “I suppose,” he said grudgingly.
I slapped my thighs. “There! Now you see? We can work together. So. First. Who are these Powers That Be?”
He sighed and glared into the fire again. “They are the Powers That Be. All-powerful. Hence the name.”
“What do you mean? Like…gods?”
“Yes, like gods! Of course. Why would I be concerned with anything less?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know anything about gods or demons.”
We both sat staring into the fireplace, both with arms crossed with pouts on our faces. I decided to be the bigger man first. “Look, Erasmus, if we’re to work together, then it only makes sense to start by my telling you a little about me.”
“I have no desire to know anything about you. You’re mortal; you live, you die. End of story.”
“Well, there’s a little more to it than that.”
“No, there isn’t. I’ve lived hundreds of years. Hundreds. I’ve seen your lot pass through this place like dried leaves. Your life means nothing to me.”
“Fine!” One thing I knew for certain about demons; they were rude! “Then what’s so important about this Booke? Why should you care if it kills more of us mere mortals? What’s it to you?”
“The book should not be opened!”
“Why? Because the Powers That Be declare it so?”
“Yes! Yes, that’s part of it.”
“What’s the rest?”
He shot to his feet. “It doesn’t matter. None of it matters.”
I scrambled from my seat and stood in front of him. “It matters to me! I’m stuck with this thing now. I’m the one who’s got to kill something and write it down in that damned Booke. I didn’t ask for this! I want nothing to do with it.”
He got up right in my face, those dark eyes glaring into mine. “Neither did I! I’m just as cursed as you are! As soon as you opened that book, I—”
He stopped, freezing in place.
I was about to ask, but then I stopped, too. I heard it a split second after him.
That strange inhuman scream, deep in the woods.
He looked off in that direction, head cocked. “I hope you’re satisfied,” he whispered. “It’s killed again.”
Chapter Eight
I slapped his shoulder. “How come you didn’t tell me about that ahead of time!”
“Ow!” He rubbed his shoulder indignantly. “What! I’m not omnipotent. You don’t know anything about the world’s religions, do you?”
“I think the world’s religions would be failing me miserably at this point. So, whom did it kill? And is it a succubus?”
“I don’t know—to both questions.” He moved toward the window and looked out, squinting into the moonlight. “It’s close, though. Very close. It…is aware of you.”
A chill shivered over my skin. Okay, so maybe that meant Erasmus was in the clear. Maybe. “Can it…can it hurt me?”
He looked me over. “If it is a succubus, it can’t kill you but it can harm you. It would take an incubus to kill you. But it is dangerous nonetheless.”
“What’s the difference?”
“Good grief. Look it up!”
“You’re the most unhelpful demon I’ve ever met.”
“Met many, have you?”
“You’d be surprised.”
He snorted and headed toward the door.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“I’m not your personal pet. I have places to go, people to see.”
“But—” I swept my hands around the empty room. “What am I supposed to do?” I didn’t mean for my voice to get so small, but despite my earlier bravado, I was concerned about all this dropped in my lap.
He flicked his head toward the crossbow. “Get to know that.” He pointed a finger at me. “And keep my amulet safe!”
My hand flew to it again. He gave me a parting sneer, before he threw open the door and disappeared into the night.
• • •
Dutifully, I called Doc Boone once Erasmus didn’t look as if he would be coming back. I told him my suspicions, that the demon was not only tied to the amulet but perhaps the Booke as well. “You’d better keep in touch with your coroner friend,” I sighed into the receiver. I couldn’t help but stare out the window, searching the darkness for that which I knew I couldn’t see and certainly had no desire to. “That thing killed again. And yes, I’m pretty sure it wasn’t Erasmus because he was right beside me when I heard the…howl. It was a pretty horrible sound.”
Doc was silent on the line for a moment. “I can’t exactly call him and ask the coroner if he’s heard about another body.”
“I know. But just…keep in touch, you know?”
“I will. Kylie, I’m concerned with you being alone with this…this Mr. Dark.”
“I’m fine. As long as I have this amulet, I don’t think he can hurt me. And for some reason, he needs this Booke closed again as much as I do. I think he’ll be forced to work with me. Or at least not work against me.”
“Hmm. Well, Jolene has been working nonstop to find out about the book and that amulet.”
“I appreciate it.” I looked at my watch. Wow. It was late. “I hope you took her home by now.”
“Yes, she’s home. But I have a feeling the Wiccans will be more than a once a week society from now on.”
I smiled. “You don’t know what a relief that is to me.”
He laughed. “Well, I must admit, this puts a whole new spin on it for me, too.”
“I meant to ask you but didn’t quite know how to put it.”
“What’s a man of science like me doing with hocus pocus like this?”
“Well, to put it bluntly, yeah. Of course, I guess I don’t look at it as hocus pocus anymore.”
“The physical world, biology, has always been a mainstay of mine, of course. I couldn’t be a doctor without full knowledge. But several years’ back, I took a sabbatical to Africa and I learned a thing or two about herbal remedies. I began doing my own research on it and also the spiritual nature of native medicine. It was more than the placebo effect. I began to think there could be more than we in the West understood. I devoted more time to this study after I retired. And when Seraphina brought her Wiccan beliefs to town, well, it looked mighty interesting to me. She brought the spiritual and I brought the practical. That’s when Nick and Jolene came into the picture. We’re a small group but dedicated. And frankly, young lady, your being here, well, it’s brought a whole other level to it that has forever changed us. We’re meeting again tomorrow night. You’re welcome to come.”
“Thanks, Doc. I appreciate it. I’ll be there. Tell the others to be careful. They’ll need protection from whatever’s out there.”
“Maybe it would be best to meet up at your place. We might need the use of some of your more unusual herbs.”
“Of course! I’d be happy to host. Oh.” I glanced at the wall calendar. “There’s a Chamber of Commerce thing at
five. Let’s meet after. And I’ll put you all to work, too. I’ve got to open these doors by the end of this week or I’ll be out of business before I’ve begun.”
“Ay-yuh, we’ll be there.”
The silence that followed the phone call enveloped me. I knew it was best to get upstairs to see if I could get some sleep, though I didn’t hold much hope for it. I glanced at my copper kettle on its hob behind the counter. A little chamomile would do the trick, with maybe a pinch of lavender.
• • •
By the next morning I was busily trying to get my shop ready. There were still boxes and boxes of herbs to open and sort through. I knew that once my inventory was all in the right places it wouldn’t seem so daunting, but those endless boxes and those empty cubbyholes seemed a bit overwhelming.
And I kept passing both the Booke and the crossbow. I started taking them into various rooms I was working in. Last night they had both been in my bedroom. I had to throw an afghan over both of them, getting the feeling that they were looking at me. Once I was showered and dressed, I carried them down to the kitchen, and now the shop, like two lethargic pets.
More than once I slowed as I passed the crossbow, and ran my fingers over the smooth organic silver shapes embedded in it. Finally, I gave in and picked it up. I looked around the empty shop. Surely it couldn’t hurt to fire it at least once. After all, Erasmus had told me to get to know it.
I pulled out one of the quarrels, as Nick had called them. I examined it and noticed that each one of the ten quarrels looked slightly different. All of them had metal tips except two, which were just sharpened wood. One had a crystal of some kind embedded in the shaft, and each one had a different set of fletching, the feathered part.
The thing had to be cocked. A quick look online told me that I had to pull the string back until it held into place. Once it was pulled back all the way, I placed a bolt chosen at random into a groove right in front of the taut string. Slowly, I lifted it up and pressed the stock into my shoulder like a rifle. With one eye closed, I swung it toward the back door and aimed. Slowly, I squeezed the trigger.
Booke of the Hidden Page 8
