The bum stared at me with fascinated eyes, taking a shaky breath as he straightened his shirt and led me forward. We were in the country, so I needn’t have worried about random people being harmed by my Shadow Walking, but there could have been a car. Or a cow. I grimaced as my mind showed me an image of that. I followed in the man’s footsteps as we approached a crossroad, branching left and right. The moon hung bright, not quite full yet, but casting a cool glow over the silhouettes of brush, trees, and hay bales in the fields beside us.
The man murmured an unintelligible word under his breath. Then did it two more times.
There was a sharp crack to the air, but it felt slimy. More like a wet smack. And a figure made entirely of shadows and about ten feet tall stood before us, eyes of white fire seeming only a moment away from engulfing the monster’s face. The shadows flickered and wavered like black flame, darting out and smacking back towards the center mass of the creature. Embers like the coals of a roaring fire appeared and died, emitting sparks throughout the shadows, so that the creature looked like a sparkler from Wes Craven’s nightmares.
Something about it tugged at my memory, but it was gone as my sense of alarm increased.
I was entirely sure that I had stepped into something that I really shouldn’t have.
He looked nothing like I had anticipated.
But… this was for Indie. She was dying. The Minotaur had confirmed it, and before he had uttered the words I had been stubbornly denying the truth standing right before me. But I knew he was right. She was on borrowed time, and that terrified me. I had lost her once, truly, and the only reason she was back now was because Death had found a loophole.
A loophole that transformed her into a Grimm. The last Grimm in our world. Sure, there were allegedly hundreds more in the Dark World, salivating to make it over here and renew their purpose, but for now my world was safe.
But the very cure that had brought her back now seemed to be killing her. And I had no way to help her because I knew nothing about being a Grimm. And the second I started tinkering with magic to try to help her, she was likely to turn into a Maker herself and defend herself against me with extreme prejudice, because naturally, I was an enemy of the Grimms.
I shook my head free of the thought, noticing that the dark part of my soul was watching the exchange with great interest. Not alarm, but interest. The cane seemed to pulse under my palm. I released it. But the response made me shiver a bit. This thing inside me saw a potential… friend in the monster of shadows and sparks.
I opened my mouth to get this over with, but the creature of darkness turned to the bum, who was standing ahead of me and a few paces to the side of the monster. “Your service has been commendable. You have broken your covenant with me, knowing full well the consequences.” The man nodded back firmly. “Be careful what you wish for…” the Demon chuckled darkly, and then faster than a striking cobra, a tendril of shadow lanced directly into the bum’s chest. He gasped in pain and I almost let loose with my magic, but froze a heartbeat later.
The bum was smiling in peace.
Sure, I was pissed at him for deceiving me, but I had accepted it. He was doing as commanded. He had no other choice. Well, he had made the ultimate choice now. Sacrificing his life in order to bring me here. Not truly, he had actually sacrificed his life by telling me about the Demon in the first place. Discretion seemed to be part of the parcel. Get your wish, don’t talk about it. And the bum had tried to warn me off, guaranteeing his much-desired death.
The bum died, his body drifting away like a pile of dust. I glanced about cautiously, the shadow seeming to breathe in the scent of death as the white fire of his eyes closed slightly in rapture and he emitted a pleased purr.
Charon never came. Which usually didn’t mean anything good. The Boatman always came for dead souls. Unless something was wrong.
I waited for the Demon to finish celebrating. The bum’s body was all but gone now, a memory. Finally, the mass of shadows turned to me, appraising me up and down. I tapped my cane down firmly and stared right on back. He began to chuckle.
“So brave…”
“Why’d you kill your pet, Demon?”
“He spoke of that which was not to be spoken. To a mortal unfettered by my gifts. Only my children may speak freely. Those who have tasted the bounty of my fruits. All others shall die, or become my minions.”
“Yeah, well, not really a fan of that title. Maybe it was the movie that ruined it for me.”
“Then you shall die for knowledge you should not hold,” the Demon purred hungrily, not catching my reference.
“Pump the brakes. I’m not scared, so cool it on the freaky factor. I know what you are. Killed a few of your kind before. Then went and got a burger.” I shrugged.
The Demon… laughed. “Oh, you will taste sweet. You think you have dealt with my kind before? You have no idea…” he watched me, anticipation obvious, despite being a roiling collection of smoke, shadow, and sparks.
“Let’s deal, Demon.” I muttered angrily. “I’ve got things to do, and better company to keep.”
“Yesss…” the shadow quivered happily. “Let us deal, Maker.” I shivered at the tone, but kept the concern from my face. “What is it you seek?”
“The health of one I love restored. No catches. She’s dying. Heal her, and keep her powers intact.”
“That sounds like more than one request.”
I shook my head. “I ask that you keep her as she is now and heal her. I’m simply stating that you are to take nothing away from her in the process.”
“A high bargain… perhaps what she is causes her malady.”
I shrugged. “That’s your problem,” I folded my arms. “Can you do it? If not, I’m walking.”
The figure darted to the side, a good dozen feet. My eyes tracked him, careful not to lose him in the darkness, but the sparks helped keep him in view, even if he was just a blur of darkness otherwise. An appendage reached out as if feeling the night, and I realized he was stroking a moonbeam through a tree.
And…
He touched it.
Let me clarify. His hand – or whatever you would call it – didn’t pass through the light. It plucked the light and moved it a few feet to the side. The light crackled in his fist, and I could tell it pained him, pieces of shadow flaring to sparks and dying away. The Demon let go and the beam stayed in its new place, shining from a thick patch of leaves that the natural moonbeam should not have been able to penetrate. I managed to hide my disbelief. Perhaps it was just an illusion…
But I knew better.
“You know the parameters of our compact?”
I nodded slowly. “You grant my wish in exchange for something…”
“Yes.”
I waited. “Well, what is that something? I might decide it’s not worth the cost.”
The Demon sputtered a mocking sound. “For the life of your loved one? I think not.”
I scowled. “I’m waiting.”
The Demon tapped his lips thoughtfully, even though I couldn’t discern any lips. Maybe he was picking his nose. He finally held up the shadowy appendage. He was suddenly closer, very, very close. He leaned forward, and the sparks from his body flared around me, but didn’t burn. My body tensed as he took a big old whiff.
Then he was gone, back by the tree. I relaxed my shoulders a bit, careful not to overreact and lash out with my powers.
“You have secreted away items that do not belong to you,” he cooed. The tension came roaring back, suddenly concerned about the Armory. I couldn’t give up anything from the Armory. Especially not knowing what everything was. So I remained perfectly still, waiting. “Amulets. Belonging to the Grimms.”
I hid my sigh of relief. “Perhaps.”
The Demon’s eyes narrowed. “I require the amulet belonging to Jacob Grimm.”
And my heart stopped. “That would nullify our agreement.”
The Demon waited, watching me.
“That amu
let is gone, remade into something new. It is currently bonded to the woman you must heal.”
The Demon’s eyes narrowed, realizing its conundrum. “I see…”
Score 1 for Team Temple! But that didn’t last long.
“I shall require the amulet of his brother, Wilhelm.”
I let out a breath. It was currently resting in my safe. “Okay, I will deliver it to you. After you heal my-”
And a gateway suddenly erupted between us. Silver Tongue towered over it, gaping maw open in a dark snarl, sparks and embers floating freely from a forge fire of evil that must be his throat. “We shall retrieve it now. Shift the gateway.”
I blinked at him, and studied the gateway. It led into a pool of darkness. I heard a distinct crowing roar off in the blackness, and my heart stopped. I had heard it before. The demonic rooster horse from my shop. But also from the land where the Grimms dwelled. The Dark World. Silver Tongue had just opened a portal to the freaking Dark World, and I, the one person the Grimms wanted to slaughter more than anyone else in the world stood directly before it, like a dangling steak to a pack of wolves.
And judging by the alarmed cry from the monster, I had been spotted, and the Grimms were no doubt on their way for revenge. I flicked my gaze up to Silver Tongue. He was smiling, I think.
“A Maker should make a quick decision at this juncture. Shift the gateway or be torn to shreds by your enemies.”
“But…” I spluttered, “I don’t know how!”
The Demon let a few more moments pass in silence, and the monster on the other side of the gate let out another crowing roar. I could hear distinct voices now. Human shouts and bellows of fury. Shit, shit, shit.
“Think of where the gateway should be. Make it so, Maker.”
I took a breath, staring resolutely into the gateway, imagining my office in perfect detail. Each picture, chair, paper, rug, book, pen, everything. The gateway quivered once, began to change slightly, and then snapped back as a human voice shouted from just beyond. “It’s him!” A dozen voices responded, very fucking close. I doubled down, reaching into the darkness inside of me for assistance as I grasped the cane in desperation. Help!
A contented murmur rose from the deeps like a breaching whale in the ocean, and the gateway snapped into place almost immediately. I heard a lone cry of frustration before the Dark World disappeared entirely and my office stood before us. I rounded on Silver Tongue, panting. “What the hell was that? You tried to kill me!”
“I gave you motivation, nothing more. And you allowed your ally to assist you…” he answered cryptically. I simply stared back at him in stunned silence. He knew of the darkness in my soul, and that made me suddenly certain I did not want to become friends with him. Anyone who knew of the darkness, and was already a dark being, made me one million percent sure I didn’t want to join the club. I forced the darkness back down, politely, suddenly nervous as to how much of a person it actually was. I didn’t want to offend it. It had just saved my bacon after all. Thanks, I called out in my mind. The presence stubbornly remained for a moment, not responding, and then dove back down into the depths. I released the cane handle. The Demon before me was watching my hand.
I hadn’t really analyzed where exactly the presence inside me came from, or where it went to, but the fact that I was referring to something deep inside me as having his own world to dive down into sent all sorts of nervous flutters into my stomach. At the thought of that, I felt a soft chuckle from those depths, amused at my thoughts. I took a calming breath and pointed at the gateway. “I’ll be right back.”
The Demon was suddenly behind me, and murmured into my ear, “Be quick, and no trickery…” sparks sailed over my shoulder, dancing merrily before my face and into the gateway. I nodded, and stepped through. I glanced over my shoulder to find Silver Tongue watching me hungrily. I hopped the desk, knocking over some papers, and quickly opened up the secret safe. As the door swung open, I saw the copy of Through the Looking-Glass wobbling as if surviving an earthquake. I ignored it, pressed for time, and snatched up the amulets, shielding them from view. I plucked out the one that had belonged to Wilhelm, recognizing a distinctive scratch on the side, and closed the safe. I dove back through the gateway, eager to escape before Dean decided to clean the office, or before the Guardians noticed the breach.
I landed on my knees in the road, scuffing the skin underneath my pants. Silver Tongue let the gateway close, sniffing the air with a contented sound. “Ah, that’s it. A seeder,” he murmured.
I climbed to my feet to find his shadowy arm outstretched towards me. I glanced down at the amulet, knowing this was a horrible decision, but not knowing what else I could do to keep Indie from dying.
“Heal her.”
“Ignorant mortal, she’s already been healed,” and he snatched the amulet from my hand, cackling madly as he disappeared in a puff of embers and sparks. I took a deep breath, and then gasped in pain, clutching my forearm. I fell to my knees, my skin burning painfully as I tore back my cuff to reveal…
My veins pulsing black, racing up into my body, spreading fire into my torso now. Silver Tongue’s cackling laughter increased, growing further away, but louder somehow, as if shifting into my very mind as the pain raced like a poison to my face, my legs, my stomach, and finally my eyes as I collapsed into senselessness. Pain my only ally.
What had I just done…?
Chapter 46
When I awoke, I found myself lying on the concrete pavement outside my bookstore. I flinched in confusion, wondering why I wasn’t still at the crossroads. After a sigh, I shook it off. Who cared. I was already a doomed man. But at least Indie would live. I glanced over to see the bum’s coffee cup resting just to the right of my head, wobbling in a light gust of wind, held down by a few coins resting in the bottom of the cup.
I closed my eyes regretfully.
“What are you doing here, Temple?” a demanding voice commanded down at me from on high.
I rolled onto my back with a groan, casually covering my arms with my sleeves, and I was suddenly filled with terror as I stared at Eae, the Holy Warrior, Angel of Heaven, and…
Demon thwarter, as his name literally meant.
I swallowed audibly. “Rough night,” I murmured, amazed my voice didn’t crack in terror.
This was it. All I had sacrificed had been for nothing. A damn Angel who specialized in Demons was about to sense something off about me and the whole thing would have been worthless. I would die. The immortals would hunt down my friends in search of the book, not believing my death to be a coincidence.
And I would get to behold the wonders of the great beyond.
After making a deal with a Demon, I was almost certain that my great beyond would be rather warm and uncomfortable. Forever.
Eae scowled down at me and reached out his hand. I sighed, accepting my fate, and met his hand, waiting for a gang of Nephilim to swarm out of the woodwork and smite me back to the Emperor Nero era.
Our flesh met, and Eae pulled me to my feet without an ounce of strain. And nothing happened. No trumpets. No warriors of Heaven. No posse of Demons grasping at my ankles to drag me to Hell. In fact…
Not even a frown on Eae’s face.
Surprisingly, he wore a look of sympathetic concern on his chiseled, angular face.
Our first meeting, Eae had wrongly accused me of sympathizing with Demons. And here he was now, not accusing me of absolutely consorting with Demons. No wonder he had been demoted. But I would take it.
“What are you doing here?”
He glanced over his shoulder, well, over the folded feathery wings peeping above his shoulder. “Greta stepped inside that building to purchase a hot, drug-induced beverage.”
I smiled. “A coffee?”
He nodded.
“What is Greta doing here?”
“She is picketing with a group of other volunteers. Protesting the Prince of Lies.” He turned to face me, eyes concerned. But he didn’t accuse me of anythin
g. How broken was his halo?
“I hate to ask, but she’s not implying that…”
Eae chuckled as he realized my line of thought. “No, nothing to do with you. Just that… monsters almost killed her and a group of children under her care directly outside your shop. In fact, lately she has nothing but high praise for you. Seeing you in action…” he corrected himself. “Hearing you in action, since she had her eyes closed the majority of the time, showed her the depths of your convictions. She still thinks you have much to absolve with the Father, but that your head is in the right place.”
I nodded. That was huge. It wouldn’t change her actions around my shop, apparently, but at least she didn’t think I was on the edge of becoming a demonic overlord. “That is very… thoughtful of her. I don’t see any harm in that. Well, long term. Short term it’s going to make my bookstore look bad.”
Eae was shaking his head. “She plans to announce that your bookstore is a bastion of good in a world of evil. A safe refuge.”
Oh, boy. Alucard was definitely fired now. If she announced my bookstore as a Biblical outpost for her crusaders, there was no way he could work there. He couldn’t even step foot inside if her army descended on my shop. I began to fear what that meant for my business. After all, the majority of my stock was very open minded on the spiritual side. I told Eae that.
He smiled, but sounded distracted as his eyes seemed to focus on the place where my invisible cane rested. “She has mentioned that she will announce that your head is in the right place, and no matter anyone’s ill-placed faith, your shop is sanctuary and shall be respected for all religions. Good will prevail over evil. Simple as that.”
“Holy crap.”
Eae’s gaze deepened in disapproval.
“Sorry. It’s just, that’s incredibly different than her usual stance.”
“She has taken to my lessons with much fervor. Even though Christ is the one True God, there is room for those intending to be good, and through our understanding perhaps these lost souls will see the errors of our ways. To be righteous, one does not surround themselves with those of like mind. Christ himself dined primarily with sinners, beggars, and the sickly. It does no good to associate only with those who agree with you.”
Silver Tongue: A Novel in The Nate Temple Supernatural Thriller Series (The Temple Chronicles Book 4) Page 25
