I barely heard a rustle when a yiaiwa materialized directly in front of me. Shrieking, I jumped back bringing my hands up and ready to blast if it took even one step more toward me. Not exactly the best response after my boastful threat.
You are foolish, girl. I heard the words in my head.
“Maybe I am,” I said aloud. “But I think we may have a shot at sending you all back to Hell.”
It grew in size, spreading its body wider, and the eyes glowed with a fire-blaze red. Maybe provoking it hadn’t been a good idea.
I look forward to eating you, the voice said and I had the sudden perception that the words were coming from Belphegor rather than the demon I faced.
Putting a smirk on my face, I raised my middle finger to the creature before me. “I guess you got the message. See you soon.”
On instinct, I shot a blast of light into the yiaiwa in front of me a split second before it started a lunge at me. Immediately following that display of bravado, I willed myself back to Ferris.
I gasped and leaned forward, my right hand barely hitting the ground in time to stop a face smash into the snow. Reacting almost as fast, Ferris grabbed my waist and pulled me backward and into his arms.
“Are you all right?” he asked, voice tense with a touch of panic in it.
I nodded and leaned into him. “Yes. A little winded, but okay. The message is delivered. Let’s go now.”
He helped me to my feet and I leaned forward to brush the snow off my ski pants. The dampness seeped through them, chilling my legs. But the task was done and the plan set in motion.
Back at Ferris’ house, we drank coffee and I told him as much as I could about the advancement of the yiaiwas on that plane. I tried to explain what was happening, how the demons had gotten loose, without mentioning Gavin in it. I didn’t want to alarm him, but I wanted him to understand what I had to do.
“What’s the next step?” he asked.
I pursed my lips, took a doughnut out of the box we’d picked up on the way, and said, “That’s where I go out of town for a few days and we slay the monster.” I bit into the sugary pastry and blinked my eyes at him in innocence.
“Oh, no. That is nuts. How do you think you can do that?”
“It won’t be me alone,” I answered. “I’ll have Gavin and his colleague with me, and I can tap into Madame Astrid here and maybe another woman in New Zealand.”
“What are you talking about?” His frown got deeper as he set his coffee down and leaned almost into my face. “Gillian, this is too dangerous.”
Gazing into his gorgeous eyes that were blazing with worry and anger, I suddenly felt his fear and knew that I finally had something worth having. Now, I was going to risk it to save all of us. How could I make him understand?
I licked my lips, tasting the dregs of the sugar. “I know it is. I am properly terrified if that’s what you’re wondering. But I have to do it. I am the chosen one.”
“What?! Is that some line Gavin’s fed you? No, you cannot do this.” His fist hit the table and the cups bounced with the concussion.
I sat back, getting more space between us. Ferris rarely lost his temper, but he was damn close to it now.
“No, it’s not a line. It wasn’t even Gavin who said it. I was told that a year ago when this all began. I just didn’t understand what I had been chosen for. It has to do with the skills I’ve been given and the path that the Universe has set me on.”
Lord, after all this and I still couldn’t say God. The path God had chosen for me.
“The path the Universe...? Do you hear yourself, Gillian? Do you truly believe what you’re saying?” Disbelief registered in the scowl on his lips.
“I thought you were on my side.” My voice choked as I said it. “You said you had my back and I believed you meant it.”
He heaved an exasperated breath. “I do have your back and I mean that with all my heart. I just have a hard time accepting the rest. I mean, I saw you today and you looked like you were a million miles away while you sang, then you just seemed to crumple forward when you jerked awake. It was weird and scary. But it’s hard for me to believe that part of you, the spirit part—your soul—is missing at that point. And this path that you believe you’re on could kill you.”
My heart fluttered, aware of the passion and love in his voice as he scolded me. “I know. But to not do it would be worse.”
His gaze bored into me for a few more moments, then he slumped back in his chair. “Why? Why are you having to do it?”
“I told you. This is my task. The demons need to be stopped and the portal to their dimension closed.”
“Why can’t Gavin and his friend do it? They seem to know more about it. All I know is that you see the demons and you think you need to be a hero.”
“Not a hero,” I said softly. “I just have my part to do and I have to be there. I won’t be physically or psychically fighting them, but helping to trap the main demon.”
But—”
“Ferris, if you could see what I have, you would understand. This is a prelude to a war we don’t want to have. One in which we could lose everything. I’m counting on your support because I really need you.”
Tilting his head back, he gazed at the ceiling, then dropped his eyes back to down to mine. Tears formed at the edges and I could see how upset he was. “I don’t understand it all, but whatever you need, I am here...always.”
Popping up from my chair, I crossed to him and standing behind him, threw my arms around his shoulders, so grateful to have him in my life. “I promise I’ll stay as safe as I can and I’ll come home.”
I just hoped that everything I told him was true.
TWENTY-SEVEN
As Gavin and I cleared customs in New Delhi, I felt like I’d stepped into another world. Prior to this trip, the only time I’d gone abroad was a short visit to the Yucatan, which was the only reason I even had a passport. Now, I looked out at a busy and crowded city with ancient and modern buildings standing next to each other threaded by streets jammed with vehicles and a scattering of hand-drawn carts.
Gavin caught my arm, pointing me toward a taxi pulling up to the curb at the airport exit. Picking up my backpack, I skittered along with him, dodging people as I went. I climbed into the seat, sliding across. He tumbled in next to me and the vehicle pulled away before he’d barely shut the door. Gavin gave him our hotel name where Orielle had already booked rooms for us. She should have arrived the previous night while we’d taken an overnight flight out of San Francisco.
As we drove, my head bobbed around trying to take in as many sights of the city as I could. Although tired, as sleep on the plane had proved elusive, I wanted to enjoy the short visit we’d have here. Gavin spotted a mosque tower a couple of blocks to the east and pointed to it, telling me the name as if I should know it. All I glimpsed was a red stone-looking minaret before our car whipped around a corner to go another way.
Within twenty minutes, the taxi pulled up in front of an older hotel on a block surrounded by restaurants, clothing, and travel businesses. A tourist zone, no doubt, so it probably meant they spoke some English and the food would be safe. At least, that was my interpretation.
Inside, the hotel looked clean and modern. Rich burnt umber-shaded walls with deep red accents and leaf designs made a bold statement behind the check-in counter, a bamboo-looking long counter with a marble-toned top. The clerk looked up and smiled, his dark eyes searching us, possibly seeking a sign of additional luggage.
Stepping up, Gavin spoke to him as I eyeballed the lobby area. An archway, draped with colorfully designed curtains, led to a dark bar or lounge area where I could just make out tables with candles on them and the glisten of bottles on the wall behind the bar. Four semi-comfortable-looking chairs sat near the entrance in front of the check-in desk for customers. I turned as Gavin called my name and we started up the stairs that ran along the left side of the check-in. Following along, I hoped our rooms weren’t on the top floor. He turned
to continue to the next floor and I climbed up those a little slower.
At the top of that landing, he turned to the right, went three doors down, and knocked on the third. I’d just caught up when the door opened and Orielle greeted him with a hug.
“Welcome to India,” she said as he stepped by her and I followed along. “How was your flight?”
“Bumpy,” I said and set my backpack on the floor next to an armchair and gazed around the sitting room. A small brown and gold patterned couch sat in front of the double window that faced the city as opposed to the building next door, a coffee table in front of it, and the armchair. Off to the right side, a door led to a bedroom with two twin beds and a small bathroom next to it. On the other side, a connector door opened to the second bedroom that held a double bed and another slightly larger bathroom.
“So, this is the suite?” Gavin asked, clearly not impressed.
Orielle nodded. “I know. It’s not the Hilton, but it is only for two nights. I think we will survive.”
Uncertain which way to go, I took a look in the room with the twin beds and guessed that I would be in there. Whether Orielle would room with me or shack up with Gavin was anybody’s guess, but I figured, either way, I had a twin bed.
Then I noticed Orielle’s suitcase in the corner and figured we were sharing. Gavin settled on the couch, pulled a map out of his pack, and spread it out on the table. Drifting back into the room, I sat cross-legged on the floor while Orielle sat next to him.
He pointed to a red circle he’d made on the map. “This is our target, Maoli Khader, the city closest to the dig I worked on where I found the puzzle box. We’re here—” He paused and pointed to the city marker that looked to be about a hundred and seventy-five kilometers from our destination. “We’ll need an SUV, which can take us almost to the location, then we hike in.”
We both nodded. I’d brought hiking boots and sturdy jeans as Gavin had instructed. I also had a couple of lightweight shirts and sleeveless tee shirts. I expected jungle conditions and had brought insect sprays, bandages, Band-Aids, and ointments in preparation for unaccustomed walking.
“Did you clear the permissions through the University?” Orielle asked.
“Yeah. We’re good to go although it proved a little tricky to avoid telling the authorities too much.” Gavin flashed his shit-eating grin. “But I managed to dance around the truth enough to get us in.”
“What do you mean? Is it difficult to get into the forest?” I said.
“Most all the forest land in India is protected area. A temple sits at the southern end of this site, so it’s not always easy to get permission to go in. Luckily, I was able to convince the minister that it was imperative we have access without going into the detail of why. It helped to have the Washington University backing me. Very few people know about the yiaiwas and we’d like to keep it that way.”
“Oh, I see. So you’ve bluffed the way in for us.” A covert operation. That didn’t make me feel better about this excursion.
“Yep. Now, you go grab a nap,” he said with a glance at me. “Ori and I will be out arranging the transportation and supplies.”
“Okay. Anything I need to do today?”
“Rest and practice that chant.” He winked at me, folded up the map and put it away, then headed to the bathroom in the connected room.
Taking the opportunity, I went to my bed, kicked off my shoes, and stretched out. I pulled my cell phone from my jeans and sent a text to Ferris to let him know I had arrived safely. He hadn’t been a happy-faced boyfriend when he’d dropped me off at the airport, but I appreciated his concern. Miss you already, I added at the end of the message.
I dropped my head on the pillow thinking about the magical chant again. The words sounded like gibberish to me, but I’d written them out phonetically and practiced them over and over trying to get them right. The only problem was that I didn’t know if I’d said them exactly the same when I’d repeated them as I’d heard them in my vision. I worried that they wouldn’t work and we’d fail.
I closed my eyes and tried to clear my mind, then I reached to pull up the actual memory I’d gotten from the puzzle box. I breathed deeply, seeing the scene, and played it back, attempting to slow it down so I could hear the words better. I repeated it two more times, listening to the inflections on them and getting the rhythm down. I thought I had it right.
I drifted off with the words running through my mind, flowing in the sing-song rhythm... “segel se tan kunci daya tida... ada kebe basan untuk... se lama lamanya...”
I snapped awake at the sound of the door opening and I glanced at the clock on the cheap bedside table. Nearly two in the afternoon, so I’d probably slept about three hours. Getting up, I went into the sitting room where Orielle sorted through some of the purchases of the day. Food, drinks, water, rehydration tablets, and more insect spray. All in all, it didn’t suggest a pleasant hike into the jungle.
“Where’s Gavin?” I asked, my mouth dry. Tempted to snatch up a water bottle, I turned to the bathroom instead and filled a paper cup.
“He is parking the car. He’ll be up soon. We are all set. We have more equipment in the back of the SUV and more water.”
I sipped the water, detecting a slight iodine flavor to it. Treated water and not very tasty. “Is the water out of the faucet safe?”
“Yes. Not very flavorful, but it will not harm you,” Orielle replied. “Next time, take a bottled water. I placed a pack under the sink for us.”
Now, she tells me. I shot her a thanks-for-nothing look and turned back to the bathroom to get one.
A few minutes later, Gavin returned, set the car keys on the table, and dropped onto the couch. “We’re set to leave in the morning,” he announced. “I think we should get an early start, around five before the city traffic gets too heavy.”
“Yes, you’re right about that,” Orielle agreed. “Being a capital city, there is always a lot of traffic on the streets, but after seven, it is almost impossible to make any progress.”
“Maybe we should leave at four,” I suggested. Even if it meant getting up at an obscene hour, I’d rather do that than sit in traffic. Besides with the time difference, my body didn’t have any idea what time it was in India. The internal clock was still in Reno where it was morning now. My short nap had refreshed me a little, but I was still tired enough I would welcome an early night.
“Fine with me,” Gavin said, and Orielle nodded her agreement.
With that, he pulled out his phone, tapped an app, then looked at it for a couple of moments. “Just going down the checklist to make sure we haven’t missed anything and it looks good. The temple forest is only a kilometer or two away, practically in the city so getting to it is fairly easy. We’ll park on one of the side roads and walk in from there. I went through all my notes to find the exact location where we were digging for evidence of an ancient town in the area. It’s been obscured by the forest for the most part, but if you go near the waterfalls and pools, you’ll find some evidence of humans living there.”
“Did you find the box near the waterfall?” Orielle asked.
“Pretty close. There’s a cave near it that goes pretty deep and it was large enough for shelter. Although it was covered by brush and some roots across it, I noticed the dark opening under it and went in. I soon spotted indicators that people had used it at one time or another. It was barely high enough for me to stand in it, but I ran my flashlight around the cave and saw a few markings on the wall. Some were more modern Hindi, but others were symbols I didn’t recognize. I took photos and kept looking.”
He paused, flipped through something on his phone, and held up an image for us to see. “I uploaded a couple to my phone. I want to see if they’re still there.”
I peered at the image and saw the characters he mentioned, which of course, meant nothing to me. Hindi writing was as alien to my brain as Ogham, the ancient form of stick writing, so I could only discern that one was different from the other in
the image.
Orielle looked closer, recognizing the Hindi script, but frowning at the other one. “No, I do not know what it is either, Gavin. Did anyone place it?”
He shook his head. “I thought maybe it might match the scroll you found that mentioned the puzzle box.”
“No, that one was in a Chinese dialect as the story had been passed on. These are not Chinese.”
“Anyway, a section of the wall near these was covered with a mud plaster. To me, it looked odd, suggesting an opening or a tunnel behind where we were. I could tell it wasn’t recent and in some places, it was cracked and breaking away. I chipped off a few pieces and took it back outside to study it.”
He closed his eyes as if he looking into the past to see the story more clearly. “The head of our team, Dr. John Graymonk, took a look and agreed that it looked old and was definitely of the composition of an early mud plaster. With his approval, we broke the plaster off the wall, preserving as much as possible. Luckily, we started near the middle and soon found an opening behind it, a hole carved into the wall that was big enough to hold the single object behind it.”
“Across the front were four bars of ivory, about an inch in thickness and they were set into the sides with a thick plaster that was really hard to remove. I had no idea how the builders got it so hard. Inside, we found the puzzle box.”
“Then what?” Orielle asked, leaning forward in her seat.
Gavin shrugged. “It was a puzzle box, so I worked at it until I opened it. That was later that night as the team returned to our campsite and relaxed. I worried with that thing until I figured it out. I opened it and found only some ashes that still carried the scent of jasmine. But, when I opened it, a sudden rush of air hit my face, brushing past as if it had released a stray breeze. I recall that I shivered, thinking that it felt like a spirit had touched me as it escaped. But if it was a burial box, it was way too small.”
A Song of Forgiveness Page 26
