Crimson Falls (The Depravity Chronicles) (24 page)

“You son of a …”
Dean began, but stopped speaking when he saw it wasn’t Alan. It was hardly
human. It stood nearly eight feet tall, with ash for skin, talons for fingers,
and teeth for a face. He knew it was the last thing he would see on this earth.
He pulled the rosary from his pocket and began chanting to himself. Through his
prayer he could hear the creature scraping something against the rock. He
opened his eyes, and to his horror, realized that the bastard was sharpening
his teeth.

* * * * * *

4

While Tim and
Geraldine were preoccupied with the people in the woods, Trevor saw his
opportunity.

“Dude, let’s go
into the house,” he said to Simon.

“Did you not
hear your mom?” he asked.

“Don’t be that
guy.”

“What guy is
that?” Simon huffed.

“The loser who listens
to Mommy,” Trevor said. “Besides, it’s my mom. Not yours.”

“And you don’t
think she’d call my mom? Or have you forgotten that my mom is a bitch and my
dad doesn’t give a shit?”

Trevor felt
badly about what he had said. Simon was like a brother, and was often at the
Blackwood home since Simon’s household was unwelcoming and dirty. Rose, Simon’s
mother, was a bitch from Hell who used to beat Simon. Trevor knew his mom would
never call Rose. If anything, Anna would finally adopt Simon like Trevor has always
wanted.

“You’re right,”
Trevor said. “But seriously, I am going into that house.”

Trevor turned
and looked at the large windows in the back of the house. They were huge. Simon
whistled.

“I don’t know
how I feel about that, but you know I’m with you. There’s only one problem.”

“What’s that?”
Trevor asked.

“We have no
weapons.”

Trevor patted
the front of his pants.

“Oh, that’s
rich. Since when does you dick fire bullets?” They both laughed.

“I also left one
under the seat in Mom’s cruiser. Let’s go get it.”

They started to
walk away slowly, trying not to bring attention to themselves. Trevor prayed
that the people in the woods would make it, but he was secretly glad that
something had happened to give them the opportunity to sneak away.

“We’re almost
there,” Trevor whispered as they approached the cruiser. “Keep watch.” He
opened the back door, thankful that his mother hadn’t locked it.
Please let
it be there
, he thought as he reached under the seat. There, just where he
left it, was one of the Berettas and a pack of ammunition. “Simon,” he
whispered harshly.

“What?” Simon
said, walking around the open door.

“Put this in
your pants,” Trevor ordered as he shoved the gun toward Simon. Once Simon hid
the gun, Trevor shut the door. They were only about ten feet away from the
stairs that led into the house. Trevor looked around. Tim and Geraldine were
trying to keep everyone calm, and while their backs were to the boys, they took
full advantage. They shot up the stairs.

“Jesus!” Trevor
yelled as Simon ran into him.

“Why did you
stop?” Simon murmured. “You were practically running, then you suddenly stop
right inside the door. What the hell was I supposed to do?”

Trevor pushed
past Simon and shut the door. He looked out the four small, glass squares that
decorated the door.

“Anyone
following us?” Simon asked.

“All clear,”
Trevor sighed. “Let’s go.”

When they
entered the kitchen, both boys turned in a circle, gawking at the expensive
appliances and ornate backsplashes.

“Who would have
ever thought Acorn Alan lived in such wealth?” Trevor asked.

“Yeah, I always
thought this place would have been dirty and run down.”

“Check this
out,” Trevor said as he began investigating the wall of cabinetry that were
half opened.

“Didn’t your mom
say that she was going to the library and under the house?” Simon asked.

“Yeah.” Trevor
opened the secret door that led to the wine cellar. “This isn’t the library.”

Simon nodded,
following Trevor’s logic. “Then let’s check it out.”

Trevor and Simon
treaded cautiously down the stairs, pausing at each step to listen for sounds.
After a moment they were standing in the cellar. Turning on the light, they
scoured the room.

“This must have
been where Tim and them lost Lionel,” Simon observed.

“You don’t miss
a trick, do you?”

“Well, they were
talking about it in the car, remember?”

“Sure,” Trevor
laughed. “They shot this room up good. Look at all the broken bottles.”

“And you can
smell the alcohol. Look, they must have gone through there,” Simon said as he
pointed to the large hole in the center of the room. Trevor saw the drain cover
sitting beside it. He walked over and looked down. Simon joined him.

“A ladder,”
Simon observed.

“A real genius
you are,” Trevor joked. “Get your gun out and cover me. I’m going down.”

Simon didn’t say
a word. He pulled the Beretta from his pants and did as he was asked.

Trevor slowly
descended, a gun in one hand and a ladder rung in the other. He jumped down
when he reached the bottom, displacing the water under his feet.

“All clear,” he
called to Simon. Trevor pulled out his flashlight and began looking in all
directions.

“Which way
should we go?” Simon wondered. “I think we should go that way,” he said while
pointing to their right. “That direction leads toward the back of the house,
where all that shit with Michael went down.”

“Good call,”
Trevor said.

As they crept
through the water, trying not to make noise, Trevor began to wonder if the
shadow werewolf would hear them.

“Do you think
it’s safe to walk through this water?” he asked.

Simon looked at
him with wide eyes. “I don’t see what other choice we have, Trevor. It’s either
this or we go back into the house and follow your mom. And I doubt that is a
good idea.”

“But we’re
making too much noise. I think it will hear us.”

“Unless it can
climb the dirt ceiling, we will hear it coming, too. Sure, we’re making noise,
but the shadow will make the same sound. Probably louder.”

Trevor admitted
he had a point. It still didn’t calm the nerves in his stomach.

“Besides,” Simon
continued. “I think we’re safer down here than in the forest. There are less
places for it to hide, and fewer places for it to jump out at us.”

Without warning,
they heard something not far in front of them.

Splash!

“Oh shit!” Simon
said. “It sounds like something running in the water.”

Splash!

“It’s getting
louder,” Trevor said. “Get ready to shoot it.”

Splash! Splash!
Trevor was
prepared to kill his father if he had to. The sounds grew louder and closer,
until finally their flashlights illuminated the shape. It was moving fast.

“Stop!” Simon
yelled. “Stop or we’ll shoot!”

The figure
continued to race toward them. It was still too dark to discern if it was the
creature. Trevor knew they didn’t have time to discuss what they should do.

Pow!

Pow!

Pow!

Trevor shot
twice, Simon once. They could see the shadow collapse as the water splattered
against the tunnel walls. They stood motionless, waiting for it to regain its
footing and charge them again.

“Do you think
it’s dead?” Simon asked.

“Only one way to
find out.” They advanced toward the creature, prepared at any moment to fire at
it again when it stood up. But it didn’t move.

“Oh, God,” Simon
gasped. “Shit. Oh, God.”

Trevor said
nothing. Panic and horror filled his thoughts. He tried to move, but he was
frozen.

“What should we
do?” Simon pushed. “Oh, God.”

“Would you stop
saying that!” Trevor shouted. “It’s not our fault. He didn’t answer us when we
called to him.”

Simon didn’t say
anything. He just stood over the dead body of Officer Lionel Flowers.

Again, without
warning, they heard something in the distance.

Splash!

“Oh, shit!”
Simon yelled again. “That sounded close!”

Trevor looked at
Simon, then felt something grab his ankle. It pulled with such force that he
fell into the water.

“Trevor!” Simon
cried.

Lionel Flowers
climbed over Trevor’s body and began pushing his head underwater. Trevor tried
to breathe, but swallowed a mouthful of water. He badly needed to cough, but
each time he inhaled, water would fill his throat and burn his lungs.

Pow!

Pow!

Trevor could
feel Lionel’s iron grip loosen. He used his hands to push his head above water,
and he began to vomit water. Simon pulled Lionel off of Trevor, and he was face
down in the water.

“Are you okay?”
Simon asked as he rubbed Trevor’s back.

“Do I sound
okay?” Trevor asked between coughing and several dry heaves. He looked at
Lionel’s limp body. “You shot him?”

“Would you have
rather I let him kill you?”

“No, no,” Trevor
said, shaking his head and trying to stand. “Just, you know, just going over
what happened.”

Splash!

The sound startled
both boys, who immediately pulled their guns again.

“Why do you
think Lionel tried to kill you?” Simon asked.

“He was probably
out of his mind,” Trevor said. “Do you think we should look at him?”

“What do you
mean?”

“You know, flip
him over and look at his face.”

“Good idea. That
way we can see if he is still human.”

Trevor nodded to
Simon and they both grabbed Lionel’s right arm and turned him over so they
could see him. Simon immediately jumped back.

“What the hell?”
Trevor moaned. Lionel’s eyes were missing.

“They’ve been
gouged out,” Simon said. “And check this out.” Simon pointed to Lionel’s neck,
which had been bitten repeatedly.

“Just like
Michael Mullins,” Trevor recalled.

“Well at least
Michael is alive,” Simon said. “We didn’t murder
him
.”

“You have to get
over that,” Trevor said. He knew he was asking the impossible, because he was
quite sure he would never get over killing someone who had actually been to his
house several times for dinner.

“Yeah, okay,”
Simon hissed.

Splash!

Trevor and Simon
froze, listening for another sound. It didn’t sound any closer than the first
time, but he couldn’t trust anything at this point.

“Trevor!” a
female voice called.

“Dude,” Simon
whispered. “Is that who I think it is?”

“Trevor! Come
quickly! Trevor!” It was his mother.

Simon began to
walk toward the voice, but Trevor grabbed his shoulder, shaking his head.

“The tunnel
behind the library probably leads down here,” Simon said.

“Maybe,” Trevor
said. “But remember what Michael said? He heard Mom’s voice in the woods.
That’s how the shadow lured him in before it attacked him.”

“Oh, yeah,”
Simon remembered.

“Trevor!” the
voice called again.

“I think we
should stay right here,” Simon said.

“We’re not
falling for your bullshit!” Trevor screamed at the voice. Simon shoved him,
wondering why he would call attention to their position.

“It knows where
we are, dumbass,” Trevor growled. “If it wants us, it’s gonna have to come and
get us.”

So with guns in
hand, they waited for the shadow werewolf to charge them.

1

Once Anna had
crawled through the panels, she was surprised to see just how large the bear
totem was.

“So what exactly
does this represent?” Anna asked.

“It is first
about a family connection to that animal,” Matthew pointed out.

“That is not
necessarily true,” Anish corrected. “The animal represents the family, that
much is true. But as far as the use of animals in totems, it simply represented
the continuation of nature and the relationship between us and the animal
kingdom.”

“So why have I
read the opposite in so many books?” Matthew asked.

Anish nodded.
“In the eighteenth century, after first contact with the White man, a
researcher came into an Ojibwa tribe and tried to understand the totem. In
fact, he was the first to use the word ‘totemism.’ This man, however, was
confused by what totems meant. He helped spread the incorrect theory that the
totem animal was psychically and intimately linked to the people connected to
it.”

“So that isn’t
true?” Matthew asked.

“No, it is not
true. The totem represents social identity for the Ojibwa people. Let me give
you an example. When we traveled and encountered foreign Ojibwa tribes, we
would search for our totemic family.”

“You mean that
you would find the family with the Bear totem,” Anna offered.

“Indeed,” Anish
agreed. “And that family would be expected to show hospitality and protection.”

“Uh, not to be
rude,” Jake interrupted. “But what exactly does this have to do with
anything
that matters right now?”

“We have
established the fact that Alan has ties to the Ojibwa people, including his own
blood,” Anish said firmly. “They are known as clues.”

Anna was trying
not to laugh at Jake getting slammed by Anish, so she just looked at Jake
sternly. His face was getting red and she was sure he was about to blow, but he
kept his cool.

“As I was
saying…” Anish continued. “By understanding what Alan reads and what he may be
practicing deep under his house, we will have a better idea of what is stalking
us as we speak.”

“Whatever,” Jake
growled. At that moment Anna decided to put Jake behind a desk for the next six
months. Maybe then he could find a way to control his attitude and arrogance.
If not, he could sit on his ass for the next ten years.

“Let’s go to
where Michael was being held,” Anna said.

“This way,”
Matthew said as he pushed back the shelf that acted as a door.

“Interesting,”
Anna observed as she looked around the shelf and down the flame-lit tunnel.
“How far underground does this lead?”

“Well, it was a
bit of a walk,” Matthew admitted. “So I would think at least a hundred feet or
more.”

“Definitely,”
Amy agreed.

“I would say
approximately 175 feet,” Jake said.

“How can you be
sure?” Matthew asked.

“I have
experience,” Jake hissed.

“Isn’t guessing
the number of feet the same as guessing the number of jelly beans in the jar?
You’re bound by chance alone to be positively dead wrong,” Amy said, making
Jake’s face go red again.

As they were
walking down the tunnel, a strong breeze blew toward them and extinguished the
lights.

“Well that was
strange,” Anna said. She wondered how a breeze could move so freely, and
powerfully, in an underground tunnel. There were two options. Either this
tunnel leads to an exit somewhere in the woods and the wind kicked up, or it
was supernatural.

“The same thing
happened to us earlier tonight before we found Michael,” Matthew said.

“Something is
near,” Anish whispered. He closed his eyes. “It does not want us to be here.”

“I would think
not,” Anna said. “A penchant for killing people does not exactly make for the
best host.”

Anish ignored
her. “Yes, it is close to us now.” He looked to Matthew. “Can you feel it?”

“Yeah, it’s
oppressive,” he agreed.

Holy crap, I can
feel it
,
Anna thought to herself. There was a slight tightness in her chest that made it
more difficult to breathe. Anxiety swelled in her stomach as she wondered what
kind of creature might be hunting them.

“Screw this
shit,” Jake howled. He pushed past them with his flashlight and sprinted out of
sight.

Another breeze
blew through the tunnel, this one more forceful than the first.

“We need to get
moving,” Anna said. They picked up their pace and, after a few minutes, arrived
at the opening where Matthew and Amy had found Michael. Jake was standing at
the entrance.

“About time,” he
mumbled.

“This is it,”
Matthew said, ignoring Jake. “We didn’t get a good look around inside. We were
more concerned with getting Michael out of there alive.”

As they
illuminated every corner of the damp, underground area, they saw several sets
of chains tied to a large wooden beam above their heads. The ground had several
dried pools of blood, as well as toenails that had been ripped from someone’s
feet.

“This was where
Michael was being held,” Matthew said.

“And by the
looks of it, a few other people as well,” Anna added.

“Check this
out,” Sam called. As more lights shined in his direction, Anna noticed that a
small corner of the room had been sectioned off from the rest. Black fabric
hung on the dirt walls, along with a bear rug beneath their feet. A massive
ebony hutch, boasting many books, knives, and other cultic paraphernalia, sat
against the wall where Sam was standing.

“Wow,” Matthew
said when he poked his head around the corner.

Anna wasn’t sure
what to make of the scene in front of her. She knew in front of the hutch was
some kind of altar. That was obvious since there were ceremonial bowls, plates,
candles, knives, and strange cards. Well, the whole damn thing seemed strange.
Anna wondered what kinds of things Alan must have been doing under his house.

“Can you make
heads or tails of anything?” Anna asked as Matthew and Anish scoured through
the many items lying around. Anna noticed there were a few books, all of them
looking ancient, their pages fragile. A large book stood at what seemed like
the center of the altar. Anish walked up to it and thumbed through a few pages.

“Is that what I
think it is?” Matthew asked.

“It is a
grimoire.” Anish looked at everyone, most of whom Anna assumed didn’t know what
the hell a grimoire was. She had heard of it, but couldn’t remember exactly
what it was.

“And that would
be?” Anna asked.

“A textbook of
magic,” Matthew said with an edge of excitement in his voice.

Anish nodded at
him with a knowing expression. “What I see here are incantations for summoning,
invoking, and subduing certain spiritual entities.”

“Certain
spiritual entities?” Anna repeated, shrugging.

“In a word,
demons
,”
Anish answered simply.

“Demons?” Amy
repeated. “I took him communion every week. I never would have taken him for a
Satanist.”

Anish disagreed.
“I would not take him for a Satanist, Amy. At least not the Satanism as
portrayed in Judeo-Christian traditions.”

“Okay, so what
exactly is written there, Anish?” Anna asked.

“Well, there are
a few books of interest,” he said as he picked up the one sitting to the right
of the large book in the center. “This is a book about demons.”

“Okay, so why is
that important?” Ann asked.

“It is not your
typical book on demonology,” Matthew said after he took the book from Anish.
“This is very specific.” He read a little further. “Wow. The most specific book
I’ve ever read.” He laughed, but it was without humor.

“And what kind
of demons are in this book?” Jake asked. Anna nodded.

“It is specific
to Algonquin peoples in the northern Midwest,” Anish said as he lifted a new
book into the air and began skimming through it. “But we shall return to this
in a moment. This is what we need.”

“What is it?”
Amy asked.

“It is his personal
grimoire,” Anish said. When he visibly realized that no one had understood what
he meant, he continued. “It is a sort of diary. In this book, Alan would have
explored different spells, incantations, writing down his personal experiences,
things of that nature. This will assist us in determining what he has accomplished.”

“What he’s
accomplished is done screwed this town up!” Jake yelled. “He got himself
killed, and probably Sheriff Kelly, too. We need to find any acquaintances in
that book.” He grabbed the book from Anish. “That way we can track this man
down and kill him.”

“Track someone
down?” Matthew exclaimed. “Are you kidding me? This isn’t some guy living in
town who you wave to when he’s outside mowing his lawn. This is
not human
.”

“Are we
absolutely positive that he isn’t human?” Anna asked. “Isn’t it possible that
the demon possessed someone? Or perhaps more than just someone? A bunch of
people?”

“We are not yet
sure,” Anish acknowledged. Matthew agreed with a nod.

“Jake, give that
book back to Anish so he can figure out what Alan was up to,” Anna said.

“I can find
someone, I know I can. This isn’t some ghost shit.” Jake threw the book at
Anish in frustration. “Are you guys shitting me? You’re going to read about
demons?” He turned to Anna. “You can’t be serious, Sheriff. You’re going to buy
into this bullshit the Indian and priest are selling to us? We’re wasting time
and people are dying because we’re holding a goddamn séance.”

“Jake, I think
you need to calm down for a moment,” Anna said, trying to sooth him before he
freaked out. “This is hard for all of us to digest.” She looked at Anish.
“Okay, most of us.” Anna tried to laugh. Matthew chuckled.

“I am not doing
any such thing!” Jake barked. “I don’t recognize you as Sheriff. I am taking
over this investigation. And this time next year, I will be taking over your
job.”

“Now isn’t the
time, Jake,” Anna insisted.

“Now is the
perfect time. This isn’t some demon. It’s
men
. People working together.
And from what I’ve seen, they don’t have guns. I’ve got mine and I’m going in
after ‘em.” Jake turned and walked past where Michael had been hanging only a
few hours earlier. He was headed toward what looked like an exit on the
opposite side of where they had entered.

“Jake, don’t do
this,” Sam said, surprising everyone. “You go out that door, where none of us have
even been yet, you may not come back.”

Jake laughed.
“Grow up, Sam. You sound like that dumbass teenager. There’s no such thing as
werewolves.” Jake laughed again, this time in a mocking tone. He walked out of
the room and his light faded in the distance.

“What an ass,”
Sam said. “Should we go after him?”

“He’ll be back,”
Anna said with confidence. Not thirty seconds later, Jake returned.

“I think there’s
something out there,” he said as he panted heavily. “I can’t do this alone.”

“And so you will
wait until we find out exactly what we are dealing with here,” Anna said. “Good
luck in the election.” A small smile formed in the corners of her mouth. Sam
noticed, and he smiled with her. Anna was finally finding her feet again,
taking charge in a difficult situation without fear.

“Yes, Sheriff,”
was all Jake managed to say.

“As I was saying
prior to being interrupted…” Anish said with some level of annoyance. Having
picked up the workbook that Jake had thrown to the floor, Anish began reading
it aloud.

September 30, 2011

ü
 
I summoned Lilith tonight.
She appeared in front of me like never before. After my previous failure
summoning Beelzebub, I thought for sure the Princess of Hell would not hear my
call.

ü
 
She told me to be ever
mindful that I do not roam outside the gates of Hell. What a strange thing to
say. What else could there be? Are not all demons under the dominion of Hell? 

October 1, 2011

ü
 
I spoke tonight with Lilith.
This time it was through the mirrored portal. As I do with many of my demon
contacts, I asked to see my future. She showed me a rock with blood on it. When
I asked her what it meant, she just said, “I only reveal what must be known.”
What the shit does that mean?

ü
 
Tomorrow I am going to summon
something outside the gates of Hell. If I can handle Hell, then anything is
possible.

October 12, 2011