After Death (41 page)

Stop — This is IMPOSSIBLE! Disgusting! Stop!

The melodic voices were deafening —

“Oh, shadows and shades, those that want more,

Drink quickly, drink deeply, that you may pass through the door.”

He quivered with euphoria as he ripped the glass across the soft tendons of her —

STOP!
This was not real! — None of this was real! — He knew he was back in the cave — He would not be deceived — No, he would not!

The blood from Lidia’s wrist shot in a geyser towards his face and instead of flinching, cowering, fleeing, as he would’ve expected, he leaned towards the flowing red fountain and extended his tongue… He was ecstatic, giggling, floating with glee and more than anything —
hungry
. Suddenly he was reproached by a rising new wave of revulsion and disgust.

This is sick, this isn’t me! It’s a trick!

He blinked in shock. Once, twice — The melody and voices stopped —

A new slide clicked into place. He was back in the cave. He looked around him as if for the first time, head aching. Something was different. He’d returned but it wasn’t the same…

In front of the mirrors at the end of the cave, reflected again and again, was an audience of decapitated heads, arms, and hands — those of men, women and children — all looking at him, pointing, reaching….

Where had they come from..? Why hadn’t he seen them before..?

The decaying head of Billy Wassau stared at him and he recoiled. A woman’s hand, her nails freshly painted, stretched for him from a severed arm.

“
Oh, shadows and shades, those that want more
!

Drink quickly, drink deeply, that you may pass through the door!”

The chanting had returned, no gradual build-up this time, just thunderingly loud.

“STOP!” He screamed. But he couldn’t even hear his own voice over the din. The tempo increased with the volume — His head was on fire — He couldn’t take much more of this…

“
Oh, shadows and shades, those that want more
!

Drink quickly, drink deeply, that you may pass through the door!”

“STOP!” He screamed again and inside his head there was an odd Snaaaaaap! as though all the blood vessels of his brain had simultaneously exploded in a system-wide short-circuit. All sound stopped and his reason reset and returned in a rush —

It was all lies! These horrific unbidden visions were all attempts at masterful deception! DECEPTION! He was the hero, he was here to save Jackie — the evidence of Eli’s deeds was all around them — ENOUGH OF THIS NONSENSE!

He turned and looked at Fernando and the two others who stood a distance away, now only the muscular one had his gun drawn. At least they had resumed being frozen.

A wave of solace passed through Frank — A calm of realization.

They were ploys! Unreal tools of a clever, wicked, malignant, vicious, hell-born genius; ELI! They weren’t real!

He could feel his face go dark as he frowned and glared at them. He shook his head and spoke out loud to himself —

“Eli and his fucking tricks. Eli and his fucking tricks. Messing with my mind. Trying to confuse me. You must really be scared, Eli.”

He glared harder —
Now he KNEW the truth. The game was over. He would not be deceived.

“You can disappear whoever you are. It didn’t work. I already know what’s real and nothing can stop me from saving her because if I don’t get the blood to cross over, she’ll be dead too. And since I can’t kill anybody, I guess I’ll have to drink of myself.”

They slowly began moving again and looked back at him with the requisite confusion and horror.

Of course they would! So clever, Eli! So clever!

“As if you didn’t already know that —
Minions
!” He spat at them.

Why was he even talking to them? Why was he wasting his time on these fantasies when he needed to act quickly for Jackie’s sake?

***

Parks took one ever-so-small step closer. His voice took on yet a different quality; lower, calmer,
so
relaxed.

“Easy, Frank. We’re just here to talk to you…”

Frank glared at him, then smiled, wild-eyed.

“You can leave now.” He swung his head towards Fernando and Washington as well. “All of you pawns. Tell Eli,
Nice try
.”

He gave them one last sneering half smile and turned away. He began humming that same odd tune as he calmly moved to one side of the cave and pulled a spike from the ground and shook off an impaled hand.

Washington tensed and gripped his gun in both hands, triceps rippling. He lined up Frank’s head in the center of his sites.

“Put the spike down, motherfucker. Put it down!”

Frank paid no attention and tested the sharpness of the stake against a finger.

Parks hissed at Washington with the sharp edge of command in his voice.

“Stand down, Washington…!”

A rumble rose from deep in Washington’s throat and his eyes burned with hatred.

“This motherfucker should die..!”

Frank turned and faced the mirrors. He held the point of the sharp spike over his extended bare wrist and stood absolutely motionless.

Fernando saw that Washington was as beyond listening to Parks as Frank was. As Washington’s knuckle went white on the trigger, Fernando stepped out in front of him and blocked his shot before he’d even realized what he was doing.
Why would he care what happened to Frank? He was a psycho — a child-killing psycho… Still… He’d seen something in him… Somewhere inside there was a glimmer of good in a furious battle with the devil…

He called out to Frank, trying to get his attention while still making sure he kept his body between him and Washington.

“Listen to me, Frank —” He said, trying to sound calm and friendly. “You’re ill, man. You’re imagining all this — Just come with us… Let us help you…”

Frank paused and turned slowly back towards him and for a moment he stared intensely at Fernando, his eyes seeming to narrow in recognition. Fernando smiled.

It was working — Frank wasn’t completely gone!

And then a cloud of transformation crept over Frank’s face — and Fernando clutched at his crucifix reflexively as it was one of the most disturbing things he’d ever witnessed.

A twitching ripple literally swept across Frank’s features from left to right — a crease and a facial tremor that at first only twisted the left corner of Frank’s mouth then made its way to his left eye, seeming to change the retina from blue to black. The ripple continued until finally his whole face leered insanely and his lips pulled slowly into an imbalanced grin as he glared darkly from pitch black eyes.

“I said you can disappear, minions.” He growled. “Your trick didn’t work — Fuck off!”

***

Frank stared at them and waited.

Why were these ploys still here? Fuck off, duplicitous cretins! FUCK OFF!

And then, Fernando and the others slowly lost shape and consistency — just as he knew they would. Their forms gradually faded, segueing from transparent figures to smoky wisps and finally to empty air.

Frank was alone once again to face the monster and do what he knew he must —
Save
Jackie — His beloved Jackie.

So clever, Eli.
He thought and shook his head.
So many clever tricks, Eli — but not clever enough!

Eli leered back at him from the mirrors and tilted Jackie’s perfect neck backwards pulling her throat flesh taut.

She looked at Frank with glassy eyes — pleading — her jugular vein pulsing.

“Help me, Frank.
Please
help me…”

Eli readied for the final stroke, knife hand flexing, his sharp fingernails twitching in anticipation. It was at that moment that the last piece of the puzzle became clear to Frank with an acute profoundness — A tingling epiphany —

Eli had been wrong! — Hate wasn’t the only catalyst to cross over — there was another — One much more powerful —

LOVE!

Love would give him the necessary strength to do the unthinkable!

With this thought came a force that shimmered around him like armor. The knowledge made him instantly powerful in a surging rush! He knew the exhilaration Eli had felt — He had it himself now! He too was no longer bound by human constraints — He too could defy the laws of gravity!

He looked across at his own lifeless body crumpled before the mirrors.

The answer was there, right before him the whole time!

He soared over to his own limp body with breath-taking speed, carrying the spike. He raised one of his own lifeless wrists before Eli had time to even react.

It must be done NOW! This would be his only chance to save her and he must act quickly!

He ripped the spike across the wrist flesh and blood began to pour out.

It was a steady flow — It wasn’t too late… Good… Good!

He put his face to the fresh wound and drank deeply and marveled that he was no longer repulsed — His phobia was gone! — It had been replaced by the new fervor and righteousness of his actions.

“Oh, shadows and shades, those that want more,

Drink quickly, drink deeply, that you may pass through the door.”

He felt a delightful sensation ripple through him and he knew he was changing, the transformation was happening! He held his arm before his eyes and watched as the foggy outline grew more distinct… The freshly ingested blood worked its way through newly visible veins... Soon tissue hid the veins and his arm grew opaque until it was almost as solid as it had been in life.

The transformation was almost complete! Almost complete! Eli, your time has come!

He glanced back at Eli — The arrogant face that had shown the glow of victory only seconds before now looked slack and shocked for the very first time.

There was no time to waste
, Frank thought —
Eli’s clever — Now is the time for the righteous to smite the heinous!

Frank hefted the spike like a spear in his newly solidified hand and flew at Eli without hesitation, face set with unshakeable resolve.

In the brief instant before impact, Frank saw Eli’s expression change from shock to something Eli had never felt before, something he had no way of understanding;
Unadulterated FEAR
.

***

Fernando, Washington, and Parks had no time to react as Frank turned and ran away from them at full speed towards the center mirror at the end of the cave. He clutched the wooden spike in one hand and now raised it like a spear.

***

Frank soared at Eli and closed the distance at his new unnatural speed.

There was no stopping him now — Jackie would be set free at last!

Eli looked up at him and blanched in horror. He released his grip on her, fleeing backwards in an effort to save himself — But Frank was too fast now — too powerful — He was instantly in front of Eli, blocking his escape —

No chance you get away to wreak more havoc, monster! I empowered you, I will finish you!

Eli made yet another attempt to flit in another direction but Frank locked onto his throat with an iron hand and slammed the spike into his chest with the other.

The glory! The satisfaction of the righteous!

***

The group watched as Frank took a long flying leap at the final mirror, screaming a triumphant wail as he went:

“Diiiiiiie, monsterrrrrrrr!”

He crashed head-first into his own reflection, jagged shards flying in all directions — and came to an abrupt halt as he impacted the wall behind the mirror — impaled on the pointed spike he had turned towards himself as he leapt.

***

Eli stared back at Frank and twisted his sinewy neck to peer down at the wood protrusion sticking out of his chest. Time seemed to stretch in dream-like sluggishness — Eli was defiant — His face reflecting his belief in his own immortality as he grinned back up at Frank.

“You didn’t really think… that —”

A spasm abruptly shook his ethereal body — and he noticed in surprise the smoking stench pouring out from around the wound. He held a long-fingered hand up before his face and examined it. It was growing fainter… disappearing…

“Impossible..!” He said, aghast. “Impossible!”

Frank grabbed Eli’s head and held it facing one of the side mirrors so that he looked directly at his own rapidly changing reflection.

This time he would be forced to watch himself perish —
Frank thought grimly.
Turn-about is fair play
.

***

Parks led the group carefully forward, closer to Frank who lay bleeding to death in a pile of broken shards and staring fixedly at his own reflection in a splinter of mirror lying on the ground nearby.