Cataclysm (23 page)

Thoroughly ecstatic I had convinced Athen that this was a good idea, I began searching out my potential victim. They were close by, but I wanted to do this by myself. I didn’t need to make a spectacle out of myself, and I didn’t feel like providing any new material in case something went wrong again.

I roamed around Pike Place Market, following the brick pathways through the throngs of vendors. The place was its typical crowded self, breeding an exhilaration, which only added to my already over-the-top feeling. The hollering from the crowd as the fish guy tempted them all with a throw of a salmon, made me chuckle. Some things never changed.

Ice pouring, over the day’s catch, was sounding through the air, along with the bartering between vendors and customers. The locals taking home their fresh vegetables for the day, and beautiful bouquets of flowers made me long for a time when this could be my typical day.

A little boy ran in front of me, making his way to the pretzel vendor, so he could sample the latest pretzel and mustard concoction. My heart began to ache when I thought about the innocence he still had, and the loss of innocence that the little girl up in La Connor experienced.

Rather than letting myself get completely immersed in the bustling around me, I needed to start tapping into the qualities of the life I disdained. With such a mix of people, there had to be a few evil stragglers around.

My mind drifted to that other side and immediately began sensing the darkness, which I usually tried so hard to avoid. Finding the nearest stairwell, I quickly made my way down the stairs and turned onto the street. I didn’t see anything too unusual that should peak my interest, but the energy got stronger.

I crossed the street, making my way down to the waterfront, when I spotted where the feeling was coming from. There was a girl, probably in her early twenties, standing against one of the piers. From what I could see, she hadn’t been turned yet, but she certainly seemed to be a prime candidate.

Everyone made a point of scurrying by her quickly, before her sharp tongue made them her next target. She was hollering insults and flicking her ashes on anyone who got too close. She would do nicely. I could only hope she was already well connected to the world I needed to get into.

Taking a deep breath in, I decided now was as good a time as any. I opened my mind up briefly so that Athen and everyone could see my target and know who to look for if anything went wrong. I’d like to think after many attempts, mostly successful, that I would get this right.

She looked up at me, her eyes locking mine. I knew it was only a matter of time before her mouth would utter some sort of cruelty. That, usually, was their coping mechanism when attention was cast on them.

“Oooh. That was a good one. Not too creative, but a zinger for sure.” I was only feet away from her. She began an uncomfortable shift against the wall. Interaction was definitely not something she enjoyed. It was actually kind fun to make her squirm.

“Why are you so close to me. Are you going to hurt me or something?” she spurted out.

“No, that wasn’t the plan, but your attitude wouldn’t make it that hard.” I tried my best to scare her a little. I felt a little guilty but not that bad.

“Seriously, lady. What do you want?” Her lips were snarled, and she was becoming more unpleasant by the second.

“Okay, I heard you would know where to learn about certain things,” I ventured. I had no idea if it was true, but the worst that happens, is I strike out and try with someone else.

“What kinds of things?” Her guard started to diminish a little.

“I’d rather be discreet about it. You do know what that word means, don’t you? Or is it too much for you to handle?” I loathed myself for flinging it back at her, but I was pretty sure it was the only way to make her think I’d be asking.

“What do you mean people can’t get in there? I was just there, but it sounds like you don’t know what I’m talking about, so don’t worry about it.” I began walking, waiting for the magical desperation I so gingerly scoped out.

“What’s it like in there?” her voice the meekest I’d heard from her, which wasn’t saying much.

Spinning back to face her, I wrapped my arm around her shoulder, and we began walking down the pier.

“Pretty incredible. The music is an amazing mixture. And the people are the most interesting ever. There are all kinds there, if you catch my drift.” I did my best to not let my true feelings get in the way.

“So it’s true? Are they all there? Can you find actual demons there?” Her eyes were finally starting to show life in them, which only made the sadness flood through mine.

“They sure are. Tell me, has anyone tried to recruit you?” I asked. We had reached the end of the pier. There were ferries and boats off in the distance, floating far away. The seagulls were flying all around.

I continued to let my spirit and hers connect. Images from her childhood began washing through me. Her childhood home, siblings, friends were all briefly emerging. The darkness of her soul began to paralyze the process, but I was determined not to let that happen.

Her blue eyes started to fill with fear. That’s what I was going to tap into. The whirl of our minds and cells began to take over as I felt my spirit begin to mingle with hers. Her eyes went blank, as I merged into her shell. The process was complete.

Reaching into my back pocket, I grabbed the wallet. Opening it up, I found the girl’s identification. Let’s see, my name for the evening was Bethany Turner, and I lived in Seattle. Going through the wallet, I finally found the post-it with an address scribbled on it. This must be it! The excitement and fear started simultaneously running through my veins.

I was so nervous about where I was headed, I couldn’t even revel in the fact that my shapeshifting event was a success. Although, getting into people never seemed to be my problem. It was coming back out.

The city streets were bustling with everyone getting off of work. There were people waiting for the busses, calling for taxis, and others walking to their destination. Everyone had places to go and people to see, all while I’m on my way to meet up with the ambassador of the underworld.

We finally started hitting green lights, and I started counting down the street numbers until I realized we were only a street away. The cab pulled up to the sidewalk.

Searching the house numbers, I finally landed on the home that was meant to bring in new recruits. I understood why this idea might be enticing.

I was standing directly in front of a sprawling home, with ivy crawling up the sides. The deep burgundy bricks, seemed endless, as I took it all in. The small pathway leading up to the front door seemed extremely tiny. The curtains were all open, and the lights were on.

It was a very welcoming invitation. These guys knew how to do it. A figure appeared in the corner window and peered out the front. Feeling especially awkward, I decided I’d better get a move on.

I took the first step to a situation that I knew nothing about, but I hoped that would prove vital in our future planning. The front door opened and someone my age stepped out onto the concrete porch. She was dressed in a beautiful sweater and slacks.

“Welcome, Bethany. We hoped you’d come to learn about us,” her words settled over me.

“Thank you,” I told her, still confused by my voice.

Walking up the steps, I saw a marble foyer and a hanging chandelier, which was larger than most mid-size cars, dangling above. My jaw dropped, regardless of what state I was in. There were two cherry wood staircases leading to an upstairs, I hoped I didn’t venture into.

“Right this way,” she said, holding out her hand. “We have several other visitors in the study. We were about to start a session.”

“This is beautiful,” I uttered, truthfully.

“Why, thank you. This, or somewhere like it, would be where you’d be staying,” she said smiling.

Ahh, that makes sense, eternal life, wealth, and immortality. It did sound pretty enticing. Preying on the weak and offering them something, they wouldn’t even be able to imagine in their normal world, was definitely not a new concept, but they seemed to have refined it.

“My name is Mandy,” she said turning to me, as I followed her down a hallway.

She opened the double doors, to a library filled with books, floor to ceiling, a large desk, and a seating area for probably fifty people. Unfortunately, it was looking pretty close to capacity. The crowd was filled with all ages.

I found a seat towards the back. She closed the doors behind me, and I looked around the room, trying to hold in my sigh of discouragement.

The lights were flipped off, and a screen was lowered. This was quite the operation. It was in direct contrast to those tunnels through the mountain. If only they knew that was where they would probably end up. These demons had their act together here, snag them in and then whip it all away.

“So,” a man’s voice came from somewhere I couldn’t see. Everyone was in their seats, shifting to find the man who was about to begin the most important sales pitch of their lives.

Finally, a man dressed in a grey suit, stepped out from behind the library wall that moved outwards. Everyone gasped as they realized they actually got to see a cool hidden wall. They really did know all the tricks.

“We’ve got kind of a light turnout today. It’s probably the weather. If it’s a little sunny in Seattle, people forget their heads.” His attempt at humor, of course, brought the normal chuckles from the Seattle crowd.

“My name is Sean. We’ll probably get to know one another well. I’ve got a little film for you to watch, and then we’ve got some refreshments, and a time to ask any questions you might have. We don’t expect you to make any decisions today, but you may want to,” his voice sung, and my heart sunk.

The film began, and I felt like I was enduring a timeshare lecture. There were beautiful images of people all over the world, enjoying the finer things in life. There were women in bikinis and guys in swim trunks one second, switching to images of people mountain climbing. The people around the room seemed completely enraptured.

The film continued on about the lavish aspects of this lifestyle choice, as they termed it. They seemed to be leaving out the really essential elements, like most dark demons are constantly regenerated and dumped off in the world to fend for themselves. The images continued for another ten minutes or so and ended abruptly. There were no explanations of expectations or anything.

Immediately, a hand shot up in the air. The man noticed instantly and seemed delighted.

“Yes?” he asked the woman with the outstretched arm. She was an older woman, who was dressed nicely. I wouldn’t have guessed she had an interest here.

“Now, drinks and appetizers are over through those doors,” he said, pointing to his right. “Plenty of time to ask questions there.”