Elinor gave birth to a healthy son nine months later, shortly after she had moved to a new house in rural Sussex following William’s tragic death in a car accident. No one could explain how Elinor and her unborn child could have survived the crash. Whilst Elinor had barely a scratch upon her, William’s mangled body had sprayed his life blood over her unconscious body.
Some said it was divine intervention.
Others claimed the total opposite.
Distraught at losing the man who had been her husband all of six months, Elinor ignored the speculation, thanked the Lord that she and her child were unharmed, and pleaded to be allowed to rebuild her life in peace.
In time, everyone who knew of the accident forgot about the miracle of the pregnant woman who walked unscathed from the twisted, mangled, burning wreckage of her husband’s car.
All save for one little girl named Dolores Hawthorne.
The child was born, and Elinor named him Malcolm. She still had no contact with her family; she did not need them. She coped admirably alone. She loved her son. He resembled William so much, at times she felt as though her husband had been reincarnated in his son.
But, at times there was a gleam in the child’s eyes that should not have been there. It was the knowing gleam of an adult filled with rage and hate, and whenever Elinor saw it in Malcolm’s eyes it truly terrified her. But then the look vanished and he was once more just a little baby, adorably chubby and cute, and she could not help loving him for he was her son.
In time, Elinor came to decide that she had imagined what she saw in her son’s eyes.
As he matured, Malcolm became aware of the beast within him, awaiting the return of its father. He could fight it for control of his body, for as he grew older, Malcolm developed exceptional willpower, but he could not rid his body of the haunting presence. The only way to be rid of the spirit was to father a child, whereupon the beast would be transferred to that child, and if the child were then subsequently killed, the thing would be without a body; it would be trapped and helpless.
Malcolm grew to manhood and married the very first woman who would sleep with him. He convinced Maureen, his lovely bride, of his undying love for her and his devotion for the son she already had from a previous relationship. Malcolm wanted a child of his own, but Maureen did not want another baby so soon. A child of six was enough of a handful for her to deal with. There would be plenty of time to start a new family together. Malcolm was furious at his wife’s refusal to bear him a child right away.
One night, Malcolm drowned his sorrows down at the local tavern; alcohol strengthened Malcolm’s control over his body, even as it lessened control of actual movement and rational thought. In his controlled drunken stupor, Malcolm seduced a local girl. Later that same night, he returned home to find Maureen awaiting him, dressed seductively. She confessed that she had thought it over and had decided the time was right for a baby. She wanted to be happy, and she wanted her husband to be happy too.
Even in his inebriated condition, Malcolm was in charge of the situation, and he performed his marital duty admirably.
When he awoke the following morning, after slowly recovering from the effects of the alcohol, Malcolm felt a huge difference within himself. There was a distinct lack of bestial presence within him; his thoughts were his own, lonesome within his empty mind.
He was free.
Some weeks passed before Maureen confirmed her suspicions and his hopes that she was pregnant. In his delight, and perhaps due to the excess of alcohol he had consumed that night, Malcolm conveniently forgot about the young woman he had seduced. He never knew her name and he never saw her again; he did not hear from her, so had no way of knowing that she was also pregnant with his child.
But Dolores Hawthorne did. She knew everything about Malcolm Tyler and his parents; she knew about the beast, and that it would be passed on to each firstborn until the return of its father, when it would rejoin its siblings.
Amanda Saunders was the name of the young woman Malcolm had seduced, and Dolores knew from that moment on that she would have to direct her attention towards Amanda instead of Malcolm, Maureen and their offspring, and so she lost contact with their whereabouts.
Years later, Amanda’s firstborn, Virginia, having reached school age, met Rob Tyler, Malcolm and Maureen’s son, and they grew up together for a while, before fate dragged them apart on more than one occasion.
As she grew older, Virginia became aware of the demon growing stronger within her. She knew she could not hope to control it forever, and so, rather than allow the beast to harm or even kill Rob, whom she loved dearly but did not know was her half-brother, Virginia left him without saying goodbye and without any explanation.
Even Dolores lost track of her after history seemed tragically almost to repeat itself, until she turned up in Dorstville several years back as one of the disciples of the High One, the High Priestess of Apollyon.
Only there was something different about Virginia.
The beast no longer resided within her.
* * *
Dolores paused in her telling of the history of Rob’s family, rose from the sofa and moved across to the window. She peered outside as she drew the curtains. If only I could shut out the darkness in my soul, she thought longingly. If only the burden had not fallen on my shoulders.
But it had fallen to her, and she could not shut out the darkness in her soul until she had told Rob everything – and she had barely started.
She turned to silently observe Rob, who was clearly stunned at what she had so far told him, though Dolores could see he was not yet quite ready to fully suspend his disbelief enough to believe all that she had said.
But then, if I were in his shoes, would I want to believe my grandparents had unknowingly committed incest, that I myself had unwittingly followed the same path?
No, of course not!
But, beneath the cool veneer of doubt stretched taut across Rob’s mask-like face, Dolores witnessed a glimmer of horrified disbelief.
And that very disbelief could only mean that he was actually on the cusp of believing the tale she had told.
‘Are you saying that my father was the spawn of the devil?’ Rob spluttered incoherently, his incredulity giving way to stunned revulsion. ‘And that Ginny, my ex-lover, is my sister?’
Dolores returned to the sofa. She nodded solemnly, almost unwillingly, as though she wished it were not true. ‘I’m afraid so, Rob.’
Rob touched his quivering lower lip with an equally unsteady finger. ‘If she somehow found out, that would explain why she left me. She left before either of us could get hurt too badly.’ In comparison to the pain he had endured after Virginia’s desertion, what they would have both suffered if they had continued with their relationship was incalculable. Rob closed his eyes, unwilling to even consider the implications.
Dolores spoke harshly, her words breaking through his barrier of thought. ‘You are wrong, Rob. Virginia Saunders still does not know who her father is. She doesn’t know that you are her brother. She left you because she could feel the evil growing stronger within her, and she didn’t want to harm you.’
‘You implied she had a baby. Was that baby mine?’
Dolores sighed. ‘I really don’t know, Rob. All I know is that the last time I saw her, the beast was no longer within her.’
‘So how do you know she never knew of her true relationship with me?’
Dolores looked directly at Rob, her blue eyes piercing his soul. ‘Virginia and I met finally through a mutual friend. I gained her trust, and she told me everything that she knew… including the fact that she knew the beast left her when she gave birth. The father of her child is irrelevant, so she never told me. She still loves you very much, and if anything were to happen to you as a result of her being with you, she would never forgive herself.’
‘She telephoned me very recently.’
‘Yes, she said she was going to try and warn you. She became involved with the follo
wers of Apollyon, and what their intentions entail eventually frightened her even more than the thought of what might happen should she meet you again. She came to me for help, and I gave her guidance on how best to shield her thoughts from the High Priestess of Apollyon, who can reach out into the minds of mortals.’
‘You mean Val? I’ve been trying to work out who she is. I know that Stan O’Nass is an anagram of Satan’s Son, so I kind of had an inkling about his true nature. Is he not the spirit you mentioned?’
Dolores shook her head. ‘No. The Maleficent Man was one of five children, if you remember. His persona is spirit form. He can maintain a corporeal existence only when his father has been resurrected. Your novel, The Creature Within, is more true to life than you could have possibly imagined!’
‘Stan’s father being the Devil, just like Daemonicus was the child of a demon in my book?’
Dolores nodded and sighed, sitting back in the sofa. ‘I must say, Rob, you are taking this rather more calmly than I thought you might.’
‘I haven’t made up my mind yet whether I believe you or not. So anyway, Stan then is one of the remaining four children of the Devil?’
‘Yes. He is the spitting image of his father, but can use the flesh of men to shield his true nature.’
‘The Horned Beast?’
‘If you like.’
‘But what about Val? I know you’re speaking the truth about her ability to get into someone’s mind. She’s tried that trick on me several times. And then there’s that stench of honeysuckle. What’s that all about?’
‘She is the only female offspring of Apollyon. He suckled her with the honey of His breast, and honeysuckle grows in abundance over the barrow that was her own tomb.’
‘One of the five tors in this area?’
‘Yes. Her name, the name she herself selected after she attained her freedom, much like Stan’s, was selected in a kind of sick humour. Dr Val Hide-Guest is an anagram of Devil’s Daughter.’
‘And Dorstville I already know to be an anagram of Devill’s Tor.’
‘Three of Apollyon’s children now walk among us, though Val and Stan know nothing of Virginia’s child. We must make contact with that young woman at the earliest opportunity.’
‘Ginny’s dead!’
Rob’s blurted statement caught Dolores by surprise. ‘When did that happen?’
‘Just after my arrival in Dorstville. What was left of her was a bloody mess. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was like she exploded.’
‘Imploded more like,’ sighed Dolores, her eyes filled with tears. ‘Yes, I have seen it before. It is a particularly nasty death, a party trick of Val’s. Agony for only a few seconds, but agony the likes of which you have never endured.’
‘A party trick?’ gasped Rob. ‘It’s inhuman; hardly the sort of thing one would demonstrate at any party!’
‘But that’s the nature of the beast, Rob. Val, Stan and whomever poor Virginia’s child is, they are all by the very definition of their existence inhuman. Val might be the only one to maintain human form without the need to feast on human flesh, but she is by far the most deadly. Her powers seem limitless. She has the powers of telepathy, telekinesis and the ability to kill with a single thought. She kills out of pure malice.’
‘She killed Ginny with just the power of her mind? If that’s the case, what’s to stop her killing us?’
‘I gave Virginia the inner strength to shield her thoughts, but she was obviously distracted when Val struck out.’
‘She saw me! Go on with your story. You said she came to you for help?’
‘Indeed. She was one of three spies within the coven. I gave each of them the power to shield their thoughts. The other two are two men from the village, named Everard and Kinelm.’
‘Two men whom Val tried to convince me as being figments of my imagination. Presumably all those she said were ghosts are in fact members of her coven.’
‘Probably. I shall come to those two in due course. I fear I may have misjudged them … only time shall tell. Returning to the subject of your father; did you never wonder why he treated you in such an abominable manner? He knew nothing of Virginia and believed you to be his firstborn. He knew he would have to kill you to rid the world of the power of the Maleficent Man, spiritual son of Apollyon.’
‘But he couldn’t bring himself to kill me,’ gasped Rob as he finally realised the truth. ‘My God, he really did love me after all!’
‘Perhaps, but the fact remains that the Maleficent Man exists still, along with Val and Stan. Stan requires human flesh to maintain his human form, and he accidentally revealed his true nature to Lilly.’
Rob grabbed Dolores by the arm. ‘Lilly! My brother and I came here to find Lilly. How could I have forgotten! Stan kidnapped her.’
Dolores was horrified at this news, but she could do nothing to rescue her daughter without revealing herself to Val, and she knew that was something to avoid at all costs – even at the expense of Lilly’s life. ‘It would seem the good doctor has used her mental powers to manipulate your thoughts. You say you came here with your brother. Where is he now?’
Rob screwed up his eyes, forcing concentration. His thoughts were a jumble of contradictory images. ‘His car exploded, killing my cat. But the next day the car was whole again… and Gerry was acting very oddly. He left for London, but came back with Ginny and Ralph, another friend.’ He shook his head. ‘That still can’t be right, because that was after I found Ginny’s body!’
‘Val must have used her powers to alter her appearance temporarily so she could look like Virginia to convince you that all is well. I suspect Stan played the part of your other friend, which doesn’t bode well for him, since Stan can only take on the countenance of those he has killed.’
‘What about Gerry? Is he dead too?’
Dolores shook her head emphatically. ‘Unlikely. I would say he has been hypnotized by Val and has undergone the initiation into the coven. There are always thirteen members, and since Virginia is dead, you say, they will have had to replace her.’
‘And what of Lilly?’
‘We can do nothing. It might seem harsh to you, Rob, but if Lilly really has been kidnapped by Stan and is being held prisoner, then she is better off dead. Val will most likely torture her to get the information she requires. Should that occur, Val will know the truth about you, which is the worst thing that could happen. I cannot allow that. You are vital to the plan for defeating Apollyon. Or at least, His followers believe you are.’
‘What are you going on about now?’
Dolores held up a hand. ‘There are some things that I simply cannot tell you, Rob. But there is still much more that I must tell. The worst part is yet to come.’
What could possibly be worse?
Rob sat on the edge of the sofa and faced Dolores, no longer comfortable, sweating with fear, aware that he would not like what Dolores was going to say next.
The anticipation was excruciating, but as she recounted the remainder of her tale, instead of being relieved at knowing the facts, the truth finally consumed Rob with terror.
* * *
The Maleficent Man knew that one day his Father would return to the Earth to seek vengeance against those who possessed the impertinence to imprison Him. He knew of the prophecy, but had no knowledge of when it might be fulfilled. He drifted from one life to another, growing weary with each rebirth as he awaited the sign that would come once more from the village of Dorstville.
The locals knew of the superstitious myths that surrounded the five tors, They knew that one day, Apollyon would walk the Earth once more; nothing would be strong enough to prevent His awakening, which would be preceded by the rebirth of His children. Some of the villagers allied themselves to Apollyon, believing that to obey His will and assist in His resurrection was to be spared. The Apollyonites felt that life under the rule of their Dark Lord was preferable to death.
Others within the village believed there had to be some way to
prevent the return of the Destroyer, and set about to uncover the full legend of Apollyon, imprisoned within the dark dimension of Gehenna. The key to opening the passage from Gehenna was held safely by the Custodian.
The Apollyonites had knowledge of this too, but they also knew that with the arrival of the Chosen One prior to the Night of Madness, then the identity of the Custodian would be revealed and the Key to Gehenna could be uncovered.
Some years back, a group of archaeologists foolishly excavated Doh Tor, exhuming the tomb beneath and freeing the way for the creature buried within to return. A sudden freak rock fall killed all but one of the archaeologists, a young woman who suffered such terrible head injuries that the doctors believed she would die too. But she recovered, except for her memory which remained a void. She could not remember who she was, and not even the relatives who loved and cherished her could rekindle those memories. She was an empty shell and had to start her whole life over.
But there had been a witness to that excavation and rock fall.
Dolores Hawthorne saw everything in her mind’s eye, including the death of the young woman, but remained silent for fear of revealing her own true identity.
The young archaeologist eventually returned to Dorstville, claiming to feel more at home there than in London. She changed her name to Dr Val Hide-Guest, stating that as she could remember nothing of her old life then she should start afresh with a whole new identity. She lost contact with old friends and relatives, who seemed to forget she even existed, and soon even the village itself seemed forgotten to all but those who lived there.
She knew who she was though, and so did some of the villagers, who welcomed her with open arms. She gathered herself a group of true believers and set them the task of locating the Custodian and the Key to Gehenna before the arrival of the Chosen One, who was to be sacrificed, so the myth dictated, on the Night of Madness, when the Earth’s shadow passed before the sun and blotted the moon from the sky. As the blood red shadow of the lunar eclipse bathed the five tors, as the blood of the Chosen One dripped down into the earth, in conjunction with the Key to Gehenna, the gates of hell itself would be opened freeing Apollyon from his prison.
The Five Tors Page 17
