Skargel moved forward, and taking her in his arm he gave her a vampire kiss, while drinking her blood, its fee, his eyes lit up as the blood of the Satanist slipped down its throat. Soon the demon had taken its agreed fee, feeling very disconsolate at leaving such a delicious nectar behind, he left scowling, leaving a weakened Satanist who dropped into a nearby chair and rested, then a smile began to play on her young face, as she planned the death of Mark Parkston.
“Mark must commit suicide, driven to it while the state of his mind is temporarily unhinged, following the death of the lovely Susan, his beloved wife.” Moira decided. “They had been such a loving couple, and his suicide is believable, just.” Moira concluded.
“Yes, Moira, they were a loving couple, and such bores, always went on about their bridge nights, their amateur dramatics, made me want to retch.” Parkston agreed with a scowl scarring his normal good looks.
“As he lives at Kingston, maybe he could make use of the river, its lovely at this time of year.” Moira decided, and then smiled so sweetly.
“Yes, a drowning, we have not had one of those in the family for simply ages.” Parkston agreed with a smile.
Skargel was once again employed to carry out the task, this time one of the coven, Johnathan Towers, had called on the demon to commit the murder. Towers had had a run in with Mark Parkston when Mark Parkston had visited the manor house, on one of the rare occasions that he did so, and Towers had sworn to get even with the man at the first opportunity.
The demon Skargel arrived at the Parkston home with the usual cold chill that forebode ill for those within the house. He watched the human as he tended to his two young daughters, trying to comfort them after the premature death of their mother. As soon as the two girls had retired for the night, Skargel got to work on Mark Parkston. Skargel put the desire for Parkston to visit the river into the man`s head, it was two days after the inquest into the death of his wife, and the moon was just rising, lighting up the dark night. Walking down to the nearby river, Parkston looked and felt like an automaton. As soon as he reached it, he walked along the riverside walk until he reached the bridge, he then walked out to the centre of the bridge, and here Parkston stopped to look down at the dark water. He remembered the last time he and his wife had stood there, looking down at the water, then to his consternation, he felt invisible hands grab him and pick him up, and then he was thrown into the river, his cries drowned out by the loud splash as he hit the water. The demon followed Parkston into the water; however, although a passer-by would have heard the demon enter the water, they would not have seen him. Skargel reached out for Parkston, who was swimming for the river bank, and grabbing his victim`s ankle, holding it tight in an iron grip, he dragged him down to the river`s muddy bed. No one seemed to notice the death of Mark Parkston, for no one called out, or searched the surface of the river for a sign of a drowning person. Once again, Skargel took his fee from the Satanist, this time from Towers, once again Skargel left with a smile.
Parkston`s body was found the next morning by a jogger, the inquest decided that Parkston had committed suicide while the balance of his mind was disturbed, because of the recent death of his wife. Simon Parkston was there at the cremation of Mark and Susan Parkston, and he walked forward to comfort his two nieces, Stephanie and Evelyn, who were weeping at the sudden loss of both of their parents.
“Evelyn, Stephanie, the deaths of your parents is such a tragedy, and so unfair.” Parkston said softly.
“Why, Uncle Simon, you hardly ever visited us while our father was alive, why the sudden interest in our family now that our parents are dead?” Evelyn asked rather sceptically as tears slid down her young face.
“Why, because the death of your parents has brought home to me how stupid I have been, a misunderstanding on my part, one lost in the mists of time, separated us, and now it is too late to apologise to them. You are the only family I have left to me, as Marjorie and I are to you two girls. Please accept my heart felt apologises on their behalf.” Simon Parkston pleaded, tears now visible in his eyes, one even trickling down his face.
“You must come to the manor house, live there with us, let us share your lives, I will ensure that you do not live to regret it.” Parkston begged.
So earnest were his pleas that the two young girls agreed, the alternative being to stay in the council run children’s` home where they had been staying for the last few nights, and then Simon Parkston enfolded them in his arms to welcome and comfort them. He drove them back to the children`s home where Parkston used his satanic power to coerce the officials into agreeing that he could have the guardianship of his two nieces. The girls then packed their clothes and personal possessions, and the Simon Parkston took them back to their old home for a last look at it. Their old home in tears, taking with them many memories, mostly good, but a small part of them was glad to leave these memories behind them, just for the moment.
They were soon passing through the small hamlet of Parkston, which encircled the manor house; the other members of the coven lived here, the original tenants having been evicted over the period that Parkston had been in residence. Then they passed through the gatehouse of the manor house and into the large courtyard. The two sisters were immediately taken to their suite of rooms. Their two bedrooms and a private bathroom were within the North Tower, and they had the whole of the tower set aside for their personal use. This large amount of space meant they could spend time alone, when their emotions became too much for them to want company.
Moira had the use of the rooms above the gatehouse, and Simon and Marjorie`s bedroom was in the Solar Block, with their bathroom and dressing room within the South Tower. The lower part of this tower had been converted for use as a library and reading room, although anything satanic had been moved to the gatehouse while the two sisters were guests at the manor house. The Great Hall was used as a living and dining area, this then was the manor house.
**********
Rob`s initial investigation into the whereabouts of Moira Bourbon had got them nowhere, Moira Bourbon had disappeared into the woodwork. Rob went through the address book that they had found at the home of the now dead Ulysses Bourbon in Lower Boulding. They kept it in the SIS archives, for use if required in the future, but after another extensive investigation into the names in the book, they were no nearer to finding a clue that would lead them to another Satanist. Therefore, Rob, Gerry and Father Pritchard decided to pay a call on the former home of the dead Satanist, so they contacted Inspector Davies of the local Lower Boulding police force, and he met them at the house.
“It is nice to see you again Rob.” Davies said after being introduced to the other two men.
“Unfortunately, Inspector, the same problem has arisen, as you have no doubt read in the newspapers. Moira Bourbon killed her psychiatrist and escaped from the psychiatric hospital where she was confined following her escapades both here and in France. This is why we want to search the house again, to ensure that Moira Bourbon is not living here, and if she is not here, then I want to search through the house, especially the library, hopefully we can find a clue there as to her current whereabouts.” Rob explained.
“Ok, then we had better get started.” Inspector Davies replied, and unlocked the door to the house.
“Oh before we search the main part of the house Inspector, can we check on the temple in the cellar, and the secret room, just to ensure that neither of them has not been used since our last visit here?” Rob asked
Inspector Davies looked at Rob, Rob could see a flash of fear appear in the policeman`s eyes, the same fear that he too felt at the thought of returning to the temple, but he wanted to be sure that the house was not being used by Moira Bourbon.
Rob led the way down to the cellar, thankfully, although it was cool and a little damp, the icy touch that would signify the presence of evil was not present there. As they approached the door to the temple, Rob felt rather apprehensive, as too did Inspector Davies, thankfully, though it was inhab
ited by nothing more than the odd spider.
They then looked into the concealed room at the other end of the cellar, the one where Christina, Cassie, and their mother had been confined by Ulysses Bourbon at the beginning of the last satanic investigation by Rob, but it too looked unlived in. They then searched the remainder of the house; however, it provided no clues to help them. Although, on entering the library Rob did notice a number of the bookshelves were now empty of books. Dust on some of the shelves told Rob that the books that had stood here had been taken away when Ulysses Bourbon had fled to France, but there were a number of dust free spaces. Of course, Rob did not know who had moved the books, in fact, some had been taken by a demon on the instructions of Moira, and Jonathan Towers had collected some others to assist them in their plans to enter the demon dimension of Tartarus. With nothing to show for their time, Rob checked out the pictures hanging on the wall, for one of these had given them their lead the last time the Satanists had come into the lives of Rob and the Ryman family. However, he found nothing here to assist them, and so they took their leave of Inspector Davies and returned to London.
Their investigation had brought no clues to light that pointed the way to Moira Bourbon`s whereabouts, even with every police force in the country looking for her. Sir Willoughby Brown was beginning to become a little impatient about their lack of progress, he had even hinted that they might soon have to return to their normal jobs, as he was in need of two good agents for a particularly tricky job that had just come up.
One good thing was that Rob`s body repaired itself during this time, and he and Christina got back to enjoying a normal married life, and even Cassie felt more at ease, no longer afraid to go out alone, and no longer fretting when a stranger stopped her to ask directions.
**********
During these two months, the two Parkston sisters were settling nicely into their new home, and their new school, life for them was slowly getting back to normal. It was late October and the courtyard of the manor house was being readied for a Halloween party, plastic witches on plastic broomsticks rode the walls of the courtyard, plastic vampires stalked the courtyard itself. All this was meant to put the two young sisters at their ease, which it did. At the far end of the courtyard was a sacrificial altar, newly reinstalled after Parkston had ordered its removal so as not to alarm the two girls. The altar was more for the Satanists than for the two sisters, even though it had been decorated with a plastic skeleton and a guillotine to conceal its real use. However, Stephanie and Evelyn Parkston were not really in the party mood, even though Halloween was the day of Evelyn`s sixteenth birthday, the death of their parents was still too fresh in their minds, still, they decided to play along, for their uncle and his wife had gone to so much effort to please them.
**********
A storm was raging outside of the room that Father David Pritchard was making use of, he was lying awake in his makeshift bed in Rob`s small apartment, trying to get comfortable, something quite difficult in a foldaway camp bed. They had given up on sleeping within the pentagram, as Moira Bourbon had made no new attempts on their lives or wellbeing, and anyway why would the Satanist recommence hostilities, now she had what she wanted? He decided that he would return home to his own house in Salisbury, in the morning, it would certainly be more comfortable sleeping in his own bed. He would only return when a lead was discovered that would take them to the Satanist, and he could carry on his own research into this matter just as well at home. With this decision made, he smiled, just as a bright flash of lightning lit up the sky, followed by a loud crash of thunder. Anyone else might have thought that his decision had angered the gods, but he dismissed it as an act of Mother Nature, and he turned over and within minutes was asleep. However, he fell into a fitful sleep, and just as the church clock struck two o`clock, in the early morning, he sat bolt up in bed, he realised two things, one that he was sweating, profusely, and two, there was someone standing at the foot of his bed. Even before Father Pritchard could turn on the light, the figure spoke.
“David, listen to me, I only have moments to tell you this. Moira Bourbon is going to sacrifice two more young girls, it will be at midnight on Halloween, you must stop her or Hell itself might be let loose on Earth, find her before it is too late. I do not know the exact location of the black mass, but she is somewhere in the vicinity of a ruined church in Yorkshire, maybe near to the small village of Parkston...” The rest of what the ghostly figure was going to say was cut off.
Father Pritchard saw the ghostly figure turn around, and then he heard his visitor cry out in fear, an arm raise to protect himself from an unknown assailant. His makeshift bedroom was lit up by a bright flash, and then it was if a thunderclap had exploded in the room, and the figure of the man was no longer there. Father Pritchard was almost deafened; he certainly did not hear Rob, Christina, or Cassie, run into his makeshift bedroom.
“David, are you all right, what on Earth caused that noise and the bright light?” Rob asked.
Father Pritchard looked up at his friend with a mixture of fear and puzzlement upon his face; no, he was not all right.
“I think that I just had a visit from John Ryman, your brother Christina, Cassie, he came to me to warn me about Moira Bourbon. He just had time to tell me whereabouts we will find her when he was cut off by something he was terribly afraid of, which is when the lightning bolt and the thunderclap occurred, inside your front room.” Father Pritchard said in a shaky voice. “Rob they are near to a ruined church in Yorkshire, maybe in the vicinity of a small village name Parkston. He said that the Satanist bitch is going to sacrifice two more young girls.”
Christina and Cassie both hugged one another, as visions of their own run in with Moira Bourbon and her father flashed into their now frightened minds.
“Rob, you must do something, stop her from murdering the two girls.” Christina cried out in alarm, with Cassie nodding violently in agreement. Christina felt a little guilty that she and Cassie had been saved, but the price could be the lives of two other girls.
“I will Christina, Cassie, that mad bitch is not going to sacrifice anymore innocents for her depraved beliefs.” Rob said earnestly. Rob immediately went into the front room, to a small bureau, on opening it pulled out a road map of the UK, and he found only one village listed under the name Parkstone, and it was near to Poole in Dorset.
“That cannot be the only one; John definitely said Moira Bourbon was in Yorkshire.” Father Pritchard declared, and a little steadier this time as he went through in his mind everything that he had been told by his dead friend.
“In that case it must be too small to warrant a mention on a road map of this scale, what we need to use is Google Earth. Turning on his laptop, they soon found the small hamlet of Parkston, and Father Pritchard cancelled his trip back home, for they would soon be travelling north, and going into action.
“We do not have much time to find her, Halloween is tomorrow, and that gives us less than 24 hours to stop her and to save the two girls.” Christina exclaimed anxiously looking across at her husband.
“David, Gerry and me will find her, you and Cassie are staying here Christina, and when the sun sets, you must stay inside of the pentagram.” Rob ordered his wife who immediately scowled at him. “I will have the office send over a couple of our guys to stand guard, just in case this was all a trick to get us out of the way while they kidnap you and Cassie.” Rob declared, and both Christina and Cassie nodded their agreement, for they knew that if they joined in the hunt, it would only make things more difficult for Rob and the others.
Rob walked over to the phone and dialled Gerry Handley`s mobile, and was answered by a very sleepy voice. “Hello, I just hope that you have a good reason for waking me.” Gerry moaned.
“Gerry, we know where they are, and also when they intend to act, we will meet you at the office, have a fast car ready, we have only 21 hours to stop her, and the clock is already ticking.” Rob ordered his colleague.
“O
K, Rob I will be there.” Gerry replied, instantly awake.
As soon as they were on the way to SIS headquarters in London, Rob put a call into Sir Willoughby Brown to tell him the news, although grumpy at being woken at such an early point in the new day, he was instantly alert on hearing the news.
“OK, Rob, keep me informed on your progress, if this revelation turns up the Satanist then shoot first and ask questions later, I want this Satanic problem dealt with, I do not want you sent off to some other dimension because you attempted to take her alive. When you have something concrete, call the local police and have them on hand to arrest the other members of the coven. I will call the local chief constable and put him in the picture, and do not worry about your wife and her sister; I will ensure that no harm comes to them.”
**********
As the sun rose that same morning, Marjorie Parkston was looking out of the window of their bedroom at the countryside beyond the walls of the manor house; she looked across at her husband and she smiled sadly.
“Poor little Evelyn, she will be just sixteen when she dies, I feel so sorry for her Simon, and even more so for Stephanie, she will be only fourteen. Simon, how will we explain their disappearance from school; I for one do not want a cell next to Moira. Are you sure about her, she scares me, so sure about everything, and so cold, why don`t we put it off until next year, give the girls a little longer to live, and us a little more time to go over everything?”
“Marjorie, everything will be fine, I will make up a potion, that and a little magic will ensure that no one queries their disappearance, they have no other family, and I will take care of any friends who come looking for them, have faith in me my darling.” Simon Parkston replied dousing his wife`s fears.
“I do my darling, it is Moira who frightens me, well ok, though it is a shame about the girls, I have become quite fond of them, but needs must I suppose, when Lord Lucifer drives.” Marjorie Parkston said, and then laughed at her twist of the well-known phrase.
The Satanists Page 9
