by Karl Morgan
“Which mutual friend is that, sir?”
“Joshua Carpenter, of course. Hammond Finch has attempted to murder him in Georgia this morning. However, he underestimates Joshua’s resilience. Are you a believer, Ted?”
“I hardly see what that has to do with anything, sir. But if you know where Josh is, why don’t you help him?”
“Unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that, son. Will you help him for me, please?”
“Of course I will, but I’m hours from Georgia, and I have no idea where to look for him. I’m not sure I can do anything.”
“I will provide a bit of assistance, Ted, however, please know that there are many dangers surrounding Josh. You will need to be brave and risk your own life.”
“So you asked if I was a believer because I could get killed.”
“Everybody dies, Ted. I asked you if you were a believer, because if you agree to help Josh, you are about to become one. Will you do it?”
“Yes, I will. Josh is my friend and I’m partly to blame for this. What do I do now?”
“After you disconnect, put your phone in your pocket and close your eyes.”
Ted ended the call and put his phone away. He felt like an idiot standing there in the empty room, but closed his eyes nonetheless. It was suddenly stifling hot and humid, and the floor of the room had become squishy under his feet. He opened his eyes to find himself standing in a swamp. He was holding a spade in his left hand. He looked down and noticed he was wearing boots, and had a holstered pistol and hunting knife on his belt. He knew he had to be dreaming. None of this was possible. He heard voices in the distance and began to move toward them.
Ted stepped up on a rise to get out of the stagnant water. Mosquitos and other bugs swarmed everywhere. He moved slowly and quietly toward the voices. After a few minutes, he could see four men standing near a white SUV. Three of them appeared to be shoveling dirt into a hole. The fourth kept a wary eye on the area. Ted hid behind a tree and tried to hear their words. “It’s hot out here, Trance,” one said. “How much more dirt do we have to put in this hole?” Ted glanced around the tree and saw one man staring up into the sky.
“What the hell is that?” Trance shouted. The others looked up as well. A blood curdling scream came from up in the sky. Ted looked up and saw a huge winged beast of some kind carrying a man across the sky.
“It’s got to be swamp gas or something screwing with our brains,” another man said. “We’d better get out of here before we’re all in holes like this poor bastard.”
“That works for me,” Trance said. The four climbed back into the SUV and drove away. Ted moved around the tree to keep out of sight of the truck. When it had disappeared, he hurried over to the grave.
The reason he had a shovel suddenly popped into his mind. He fell to his knees and began digging away at the loose dirt. He dug and threw out the dirt until his hands and arms were aching. When he was about to rest a minute, he heard a low groaning from the dirt. He redoubled his efforts and dirt flew in every direction. He felt something under the dirt, so he tossed the shovel aside and raked away the remaining dirt with his bare hands. Under the last of the soil, he found a body bag. He took the knife from its scabbard and gingerly cut through the bag, exposing Josh’s face. He shook him by the shoulders and said, “Josh, are you okay?” Josh groaned again, but did not open his eyes. “Josh! Wake up, God damn it!”
Josh opened his eyes and looked blearily at Ted Dixon. “Ted, what’s going on? And what are you doing here?”
“Digging you out of an early grave, Josh, and by the way, you’re welcome.”
Josh sat up and Ted helped him get out of the body bag. “Shit, Ted, my whole body is stiff and sore. Who did this to me?”
Ted pulled Josh to his feet. “We need to get out of here. The men who buried you might come back any second, or that weird flying thing I just saw. We can talk later.”
“Why would anyone bury me, Ted? And how did you know where to find me?”
Ted grabbed him by the arm to pull him along. “Let’s get out of here now!” They began to run in the direction opposite the way the SUV had gone. At the end of a dirt road, they came upon a two-lane highway and began to jog on the shoulder. “Keep up, Josh. We don’t know how much time we have.” After ten minutes, they arrived at an intersection with another road. There was a gas station on one corner and a small diner on the opposite corner.
“Ted, I need to rest. Let’s go have a cup of coffee in the diner.”
“Okay. I don’t really know where we’re going anyway. Maybe we can call Mr. Judah to see what to do next.”
“Who?”
“Emmanuel Judah. He’s the one who told me you needed my help. You know him, right?”
“Yeah, I know him. Before we go in, you might want to lose or hide that gun. I didn’t even know you had one.”
“I do, but this one was a gift from Judah in case I needed it.” Ted walked over to a dumpster and put the pistol and knife inside. Then he removed the holster and scabbard and threw them inside as well. The two men then walked into the diner and sat in a corner booth, out of view of the street. Three old men sat on stools at the counter pestering the solitary waitress, who eyed the new customers warily. Then she walked over to their table.
Flo, as her name tag announced was a middle-aged, heavyset woman with dyed red hair and eyes so dark they seemed black. Her uniform was impeccably clean, but frayed at the edges from too many years of use. “Howdy, boys. What can I get you all?” she drawled in her thick accent.
“Coffee for me,” Josh said.
“I’ll have a Coke,” Ted noted.
“Last of the big spenders, I see,” Flo replied as she walked away.
Josh felt his pockets and realized they were empty. “My phone’s gone, Ted. Let me use yours to call Mr. Judah.”
He pulled out his phone and glanced at it. “No service, Josh. Now what?”
“Tell me what else Manny told you.”
“You mean Emmanuel Judah?” Josh nodded. “Well, he said that Hammond Finch was trying to kill you and you needed my help.”
“I remember that now. I opened my hotel room door and Finch was standing there. Then he touched me on the arm, and that’s it. He drugged me!”
“I remember one of the guys burying you called another one Trance. Trance seemed to be their leader.”
“I’ll bet it’s the same Steve Trance I have met more than once, but he’s with the FBI. He wouldn’t do something like this. Anything else, Ted?”
“Judah said helping you would make me a believer. I still don’t know what that meant, unless it had something to do with the flying monster.”
Flo returned to their booth and set down their drinks. “Anything else, Mr. Rockefeller?” The men at the counter chuckled.
“That’s it for now, thanks,” Ted replied. He glanced at her and for a second thought her pupils were glowing red, but passed that off to glare. She went back behind the counter and began whispering to the other men.
“What flying monster, Ted?” Josh asked in a hushed voice.
“Well, it had to be a mirage or something, but it was huge and black with bat-like wings, and it was carrying a man who was screaming for help.”
“Oh no,” Josh gasped at the memory of the monster on the plane and from his dream when he met Adlat. The three old men from the counter walked over to their booth, blocking their exit. Josh began to shiver.
“You should have stayed dead, Joshua,” one of the men said. The others smiled and nodded their heads.
“Get out of here!” Ted shouted at them.
“You should have kept your pistol, Theodore,” a second man said. “You could have put yourself out of your misery then.”
It became as dark as twilight, as though the power failed at the same instant as a total solar eclipse. The air became icy cold and their breath was like dense fog. “What’s going on, Josh?” Ted squeaked as his body began to shudder involuntarily. The three men began to t
witch and squirm as their bodies darkened and expanded. Within seconds, they had become tall and black, with glowing eyes and large wings.
“Why are you still alive, Joshua?” one of the monsters said. “Hammond gave you enough poison to kill ten men. Now we have to do his job.”
Another beast turned to the first and replied, “Actually, Zinta, I think we will enjoy this part. It’s been way too long since we’ve killed anyone.”
“Well, thanks to Barsat, we will have many such opportunities in the future, Nisfat,” Zinta replied. The three began to laugh. They stopped suddenly when a limousine pulled into the parking lot with its headlights on. The driver opened the back door and Armand Sattu exited. As he approached the door, the three monsters backed away from the table.
Sattu entered the diner and walked up to the beasts, saying, “You three are a real disappointment to me. What do you think you’re doing?”
“Ending these miserable humans’ lives. We are not cowardly like you, old man.”
“And that’s all the respect I get from you, Kali? You were always one of my favorites. Now all of you get out of here before anything else happens,” Sattu replied. The three dropped their heads and then began to fade away. After a few seconds, they were gone and the sunlight and electricity returned. Sattu walked over to the two men and sat next to Josh. “What a mess, eh, Josh?”
“What the heck just happened here?” Ted asked.
“A big mistake. This is not how things were supposed to happen, but sometimes others make poor decisions. Josh, you know I have bigger plans for you than this.”
“You control those things?” Josh gasped.
“Apparently not as much as I thought. It would seem there is an insurrection afoot in my family. I apologize for all of this.”
“And for trying to murder my friend?”
“Yes, Ted, that too. You both should know that they were acting on their own. I have never wished harm on Joshua. We have big plans together, don’t we, son?”
“Ted, Armand thinks I should rule the world.”
“Josh, that’s just crazy. You’re just a regular guy, like me. You ruling the world is the most ridiculous thing I ever heard,” Ted snarled.
The waitress walked out of the kitchen and came over to their table. “Where did you three come from, and how did you get those drinks?”
Armand looked at her, smiled and said, “Flo, please get me a cup of coffee, and how about three pieces of your best pie? Your doors are open, so where have you been?”
“I must have passed out in the back,” she replied, looking nervous and unsure of herself. “That never happened to me before.”
“It must have been a frightening occurrence, madam,” Armand cooed. He pulled a hundred dollar bill from his pocket and handed it to her. “This should cover it, my dear, and if I may say so, you have beautiful green eyes.”
She blushed and hurried away. “But her eyes were black before,” Ted noted.
“Perhaps she was under the same spell that made you believe there were winged monsters in this diner?”
“But . . .” Ted started to say as the door to the diner opened again and Chris Judah walked in. He smiled and walked over to the table and sat next to Ted. “Who are you?”
Josh reached out and shook Chris’s hand. “It’s good to see you. Ted, let me introduce you to Chris Judah.”
Chris shook his hand and said, “It is nice to meet you.” He turned to Armand and began, “And it’s interesting to find you in this place, Armand.”
“Just undoing some damage caused by my son, Henri. How have you been, Chris? It has been so long since we have been together.”
Flo returned with the pie and coffee and looked at the new customer. “Nothing for me, thank you,” Chris said, and she walked away. “This was a dangerous escalation, Armand, and nothing good can come from it.”
“I know that, Chris. Henri is acting on his own now. It would seem he has his own vision of the future, most likely with him taking my place.”
“Is that even possible?”
“What are you two talking about?” Ted asked.
“Please be quiet and just listen,” Armand growled. “Chris, long ago I would not have believed it to be possible, but now, just look at the enigma sitting next to me. Humans are not supposed to be capable of such things, and life usually does not end peacefully for those who go around performing miracles, as you know better than anyone. Joshua is an omen of the end of days. I know it and I’m sure your father knows it too.”
“I can’t believe that’s true,” Chris spat. “You and Henri want to rule the world, plain and simple. Josh here is the tool you’ve been waiting for, and an excuse to destroy life and eliminate my family.”
Armand laughed out loud. Then he stood and looked down on the three men. “Perhaps you are right, Chris, although I don’t know how we could get rid of the Judah family, even though that would be a wonderful thing. Time will continue forward and fate will decide what happens next. Au revoir!” He walked out of the diner and climbed into his limo, which then sped away.
Chapter 12
Hammond Finch woke on a pile of straw on the floor of a cavern. His suit was torn and covered in dirt. The air was stale and filled with smoke and the stench of sulfur. He coughed and sat up, wondering where he could be. He stood up and noticed a small opening over his head that let a thin beam of sunlight in to partially illuminate the chamber. The room was about twenty feet long and ten feet wide. One end was open to another cavern. That chamber seemed to be illuminated by a dull red light. He walked over to the opening which led into a massive cavern, at least two hundred feet from floor to ceiling and almost half a mile from side to side. A rocky path led one hundred feet down from the small chamber to the floor of the larger one. A few hundred yards from there was a large open lava pool. The glowing lava provided the reddish light. He squinted to see better near the pool and noticed a large group of people ringing the pool dancing and chanting. He began to move slowly down the path in order to get help from the revelers. Halfway down, he stopped cold. He was closer now and could tell the people were actually black winged beasts like the one that kidnapped him. One of them must have brought him here, he realized. He considered returning to the small chamber and trying to escape through the small hole in the ceiling, but it was only inches wide.
The monsters stopped their frolicking, and several were now pointing at him. One of the beasts left the group and began to walk toward him. As it approached, it began to change form. Its wings disappeared and its skin lightened. Clothing formed on its body and it continued forward. By the time it arrived at the base of the path, it had transformed into Henri Sattu. “Hammond, please come along!” he shouted. “I’m glad you’re awake now and I apologize for frightening you so.”
“What do you want, Henri?” he shouted from up the ramp. “Why did you bring me here?” Instantly, Finch was standing next to the other man.
“Hammond, as I told you before, we need to talk. The rules of our relationship have changed,” Sattu said.
“This is hell and I’m dead, right?”
Sattu laughed. “Hammond, if I wanted you dead that would have happened when I first appeared in your office. You most certainly are not dead.”
“I want to go home now, Henri. Please let me go home.”
“In due course, Hammond, now let us walk and discuss the future, shall we?” Henri put his arm on Hammond’s shoulder, and the two began to walk around the cavern. “First, you must know that my father and I are having some issues. Accordingly, you will need to choose which of us you wish to serve.”
“Serve? I thought we were business partners.”
“Think whatever you like, Ham. In one way, I serve you as well. After all, it is my family’s designs that give you wealth, correct?” Finch nodded. “You see, we both serve each other, but now you must choose either my father or me.”
“Frankly, I have known Armand much longer. Why should I choose you?”
Sattu laughed again. “You are an excellent businessman, Ham. Immediately you move the conversation from choice to profit. That is why my friendship will best serve you.”
“You have already made my family rich, so what else do you have to offer us?”
“I have no interest in the rest of your family, Ham. You can give them anything you want, but they will not be part of our arrangement.”
“If they are cut out, they will likely choose Armand. Is that a risk you are willing to take?”
“First of all, you should know there will be no more gifts from my family. What we have provided is sufficient to attain our goals. That being said, you and your family have more than enough cash to last forever. They can choose my father if they like, but he won’t be paying them either.”
Finch stopped walking and looked confused. After a moment he said, “I don’t understand, Henri. Without Second Chance, what good am I?”
“First, you are very loyal, which is a rare commodity these days. You attempted to murder Joshua Carpenter because I asked you to.”
“I did kill him.”
“Much to my chagrin, the attempt failed. I underestimated the strength of his spirit. But the fact that you tried is fantastic. You didn’t even bother to ask my father if he wanted that done.”
“I assumed. . .”
“It is never a good idea to make assumptions, Ham. And my father has made a fatal mistake as well. He believes that Joshua is a sign the universe is entering a new phase where the old rules and cultures will be washed away, and one leader will rule the world. My father also believes that Joshua will be that leader, but he will control him and be the true overlord. He is a fool! He has neglected to weigh the impact the Judah family has on him. I believe if Joshua rules the world, he will eliminate my entire family, bringing some future of love, understanding and peace.” He spat in contempt.
“I wouldn’t worry about that too much, Henri,” Finch chuckled. “Human nature is not decent enough for that.”
“Perhaps you are right, but the eternal struggle between the Sattu and Judah families will continue, and Joshua will be able to weaken us. I cannot stand by while that happens. That’s why I want you to rule the world, Hammond.”
