Crimson Falls (The Depravity Chronicles) (29 page)

“No, he is very
much real. But he is not alive,” Anish answered.

“What is that
supposed to mean?” she retorted.

“It may not be
Alan,” Anish warned. “We cannot be sure who – or what – this is.”

Alan put his
face in his hands, and the grotesque sound of shifting bones filled the cold
air. When he faced them again, he had become Thomas Blackwood.

“Dad?” Trevor
asked, hoping against hope that his father had returned. He uttered a silent
prayer in his mind that his father could overcome whatever evil had possessed
him.

“It is
not
your
father,” Anna reminded him.

“Are you not
happy to see me?” Thomas asked. Anna was unnerved by seeing her husband. It
looked and sounded exactly like him. It was uncanny and downright terrifying.

“HELP ME!”
a voice cried
from the woods beyond the cemetery.

“Oops, I thought
I killed him,” Thomas chuckled.

“Don’t anyone
move,” Sam said slowly. “We need to take him down.”

“You would kill
your own husband? What kind of woman are you?” Thomas put his hands on his
hips, grinning widely.

“It is a
Wendigo,” Anish whispered to the group.

“Another one?”
Matthew gasped. “Is it possible for two to coexist?”

“Oh, I wouldn’t
say we coexisted,” Thomas said. “I’ve been here much longer than his brother,”
he said as he pointed to Sam.

Anna turned to
Sam. “Your brother?”

Sam sighed, then
nodded. “Alan Brickton was my brother. I was adopted.”

Anna put her
hands in the air, confused and still frightened by the image of her missing
husband standing in front of them.

“What?” Trevor
asked, then stood back and pointed a gun at Sam.

“Put that down,”
Sam said with a huff. “I will explain later. Right now I think we have other
shit to deal with.”

Anna pointed her
gun at Thomas, then pulled the trigger.

Click
.

“No more
bullets?” Thomas mocked.

Out of the blue,
Anish pulled several small stones from his pockets. He quickly dropped them
around the group, forming a circle. As he moved, he chanted and sang.

Thomas sprinted
toward them, but when he reached the stones he was thrown backward. He shrieked
in pain, and his body convulsed as it began to shift again. When he stood up,
he was nearly seven feet tall. Long white dreads hung from his head, matted
with blood and dirt. His eyes were large, blood red spheres, and his teeth
yellow. One tooth was obviously missing. He began to sharpen his claws against
the headstone beside him, breathing heavily and grinning.

As the Wendigo
looked at the moon and began to shriek again, Anish suddenly broke the stone
circle and sprinted toward one of the fresh graves. The Wendigo immediately
fell upon him, biting his shoulder. Anish made no noise, but the creature
grunted gleefully with madness.

“I think this is
our chance,” Sam whispered.

“Our chance to
do what?” Anna asked.

“I think I know
what Anish was doing. He was trying to reach that,” Sam said as he pointed to
the pile of dirt five feet from Anish. On top of the mound was the silver axe.

“I got it!”
Trevor yelled. Before Anna could grab him, he jumped over the stones and ran
toward the commotion. Simon, not wanting his friend to be in danger, also ran
toward the axe.

“Oh, hell!” Anna
cried, as she and Sam chased after them, Matthew close on their heels.

The Wendigo
didn’t seem to notice that Trevor had run past it. It was too engrossed in
ripping flesh from Anish’s shoulder. Just as it was about to deliver a fatal
blow to his neck, the Wendigo jumped up from Anish and quickly turned on Anna and
Sam.

“Shit!” Sam
yelped as he stopped as quickly as he could, slipping in the moist grass. It
only took a fraction of a second for the creature to jump him. As he did, Anna
grabbed her gun and swung it as hard as she could, striking the Wendigo on the
side of the head. It growled at her, then shrieked, nearly piercing her
eardrums.

“Yo, ugly mother
fucker!” Trevor yelled from a few feet away. The Wendigo growled and stood up,
turning to face Trevor.

It seemed to
rotate in slow motion, whizzing through the air and striking the creature in
the chest. The silver axe Trevor threw had hit its mark with a sickening
Thump!

“May your heart
of ice be shattered by the blessed silver of this weapon!” Anish bellowed,
startling everyone around him. He stood up and ran toward the Wendigo.

When the
creature dropped to its knees, a small silver knife rushed through the air,
nearly striking Anish’s injured shoulder. It ripped through the demon’s
forehead, dark blood immediately spraying in all directions.

“Nice shot,” Anna
said to Sam, who was still in the throwing stance.

“Just in case
the axe didn’t hit his heart,” Sam said to Anish.

Anish looked all
around him, making sure a third Wendigo was not on the prowl. One by one, each
member of the group joined him to stand over the near dead creature. Sam then
grabbed the handle of the axe and pulled it out of its chest.

“We never die,”
the Wendigo promised.

Sam walked
around to the side of the body, then heavily swung the axe again. With a
deafening thud, the axe hit the headstone under the Wendigo’s now severed head.

After chopping
off both arms, Sam wiped his brow and looked at Anish. “Please tell me there
aren’t any more of these fuckers running around the woods.”

Anish laughed.
“I wish I could, Sam, but alas there are always creatures of darkness in the
world.”

“Jesus, dude,
you could have just humored us for once,” Trevor complained.

“Are you okay?”
Matthew asked Anish as he looked at his shoulder.

Anish pulled
another pouch from his pocket, sprinkling powder on his wound. He hummed and
chanted, then winced at the pain. Amazingly, the bleeding stopped and his skin
was once again whole.

“You have to
show me how to do that,” Sam said.

“Time to dig a
few more holes,” Anna said to the group. “But before we do, Sam, I have a
question.”

“I know,” Sam
said as he raised his hands. “I knew my family came from Crimson Falls, which
is one of the reasons I returned. I apologize for not telling you that, but I
had no idea I was connected to the Brickton family.”

“When did you
figure it out?” Matthew asked, genuinely curious.

“When Jake was
reading the diary, I saw a book about the genealogy of the Brickton family.
There, plain as day, was the name of the unwanted child of Alan’s parents.”

“How do you know
it was you?” Anna asked.

“Because my
birth mother had only one request. Whoever adopted me had to name me Samuel.
Plus, my adopted last name was also listed, so that made it pretty clear.”

“Damn,” Anna
said. “Looks like you just inherited a shitload of wealth.”

“And an f’ed up
house,” Simon added.

“We’re burning
that shit down,” Sam sighed. “And I’m giving that money to charity. I’ll be
damned if I keep it. Literally.”

“My department
could use the money,” Anish joked. In the midst of the death, blood, and
damnation, they had to laugh at the joke.

“Can I ask a
question that may sound stupid?” Trevor said.

“What’s that,
honey,” Anna answered.

“Who was that
Wendigo? I mean, I sort of understand that Alan was the first Wendigo. But the
second one?”

Anna and Anish
exchanged glances.

“It is impossible
to know, Trevor,” Anish answered. “But given the ease with which he spoke and
shifted, I would say he was at least a century old.”

“Oh, that will
do.” Trevor smiled and everyone knew what he was thinking.

1

The drive back
to the station was quiet. Sadness ran like blood through Matthew’s mind, his
hand throbbing from the multiple fractures and broken bones. Although grateful
to be alive, he knew the guilt he felt over Amy’s death would haunt him
forever.

As they got
closer to the station, Anna broke the silence. “By the time we get back to the
station, we have to figure out a story,” Anna said. Her heart began breaking as
she had time to reflect upon Tim, Aaron, and the others. They hadn’t deserved
to die this way. But then again, who does? Other than Alan – and her husband.

“I assume
Geraldine let Michael know what happened,” Sam answered. “We need to pin this
on someone, but how could we do that? I can’t imagine that people would believe
this story.”

“What did they
do twenty years ago when all that shit went down?” Simon asked.

Anna sighed
heavily, angry that Sheriff Kelly had not given her the full story.

“Well?” Trevor
pushed when no one answered.

“They covered it
up,” Matthew answered, feeling somewhat validated. “But we can’t do that this
time because too many people have died. Important people. Cops.”

Anna sighed
again. “It will be a cold case.”

“A frigid one,”
Sam agreed.

* * * * * *

2

When they
arrived at the station, Lisa was standing outside. She rushed to the cruiser,
taking Sam into her arms as he stepped out.

“Easy, Lisa,” he
laughed. “I’m doing just fine.”

Anna smiled, and
took Trevor’s hand as he and Simon climbed out of the back. Damien ran up to
her, along with the remaining officers on the force.

“We have our
fallen friends in the cruiser,” Anna explained. “Let’s take them out and lay
them in the break room. Respectfully.” Slowly and sadly, they did as they were
told.

When they walked
into the station, Janet screamed in a strange combination of horror and
delight.

“I am so glad
you’re alive!” Janet yelled. Thankfully, the phone began ringing. Janet gave
the switchboard a look of death, then answered it with a pleasant tone. Her
face contorted in nerves.

“What is it?”
Anna asked.

“It’s the state
police. They’ve received calls that something was happening in the woods.”

“Tell them to
come on down. I’ll debrief them,” Anna said. “But at the moment, I need to see
my children.”

Anna, Trevor,
and Simon walked to her office, grateful to be alive and once again reunited
with Tommy and Trisha.

“It’s about
time!” Tommy yelled in frustration. “We had no idea what was going on, and that
dumb bitch out there wasn’t any help. I know, I know…language”

Anna laughed
when she realized he was referring to Janet. She hugged her children, wondering
what they would have done had she not survived the night.  Trevor looked at her
as they embraced, a newfound love and respect blossoming between mother and
son.

A knock came at the
slightly open door and Anish’s head poked around the corner. It was almost
comical, his ponytail falling onto his broad shoulders.

“Come in,
please,” Anna said. Matthew and Sam followed him. “Thank you so much,” she said
to Anish.

“It is what I
do,” Anish said.

“Do you think
Crimson Falls has seen the last of the Wendigo?” Anna asked. When he said
nothing, she changed the question. “Will it be back soon?”

“It is
doubtful,” Anish said. “But I will help ensure that the portal the demon
travels through is closed.”

“You mean it can
come back?” Sam asked.

“It is a
spirit,” Anish replied simply. “The bodies we killed were only its vessels. It
can be anywhere at any time. It can hibernate inside a person, waiting for the
opportune moment to unleash its darkness and force out the human soul.”

“And you can
close the portal by yourself?” Anna asked, astonished. “I doubt that’s a good
idea.”

“I can handle
it. But for good measure, I will bring Father Matthew with me.”

“Works for me,”
Matthew agreed.

“Okay, then be
on your way before the troopers arrive. They will want to go to the Brickton
Estate.”

“Stall them for
at least an hour. After that we will be in the clear,” Anish instructed.

Anna walked up
to him, taking his hands in hers. “I hope you are not a stranger. Please come
back and visit soon, although I know our town doesn’t seem too touristy at the
moment.” She grinned, and he returned the smile.

“You are quite
the Sheriff, Anna,” he complimented. “Congratulations.”

“On what?” she
asked.

“On surviving,”
he said simply. “All of you,” he said as he gestured. Anish bowed, then he and
Matthew left the room.

“Okay, like,
what was that about?” Trisha asked, her voice filled with fear.

“It’s a scary
story he told us on the long drive home,” Trevor said as he put his arm around
his sister. “I’ll tell you about it when you’re older.” She punched him,
shrugged, then turned to her mother.

“Can we
please
go home now? Seriously, Mom, it’s like the middle of the night.”

“We’re going to
sleep here tonight, Trish,” Anna said. “It’s been a long night, and I want to
keep you guys close to me.”

Although Trevor
groaned, he was happy to be staying where there were weapons, and where he
could be close to his mother, his siblings, and his best friend.

Simon looked
forward to the adventures he and Trevor would experience when they made hunting
demons their lifelong career.

* * * * * *

3

Anish and
Matthew pulled up in the old, beat up Ford, to the Brickton Estate. Both of
them felt somewhat uneasy about the insanity of the night, so they had driven
to the house without speaking.

“So what’s the
plan?” Matthew asked as they got out of the truck.

“It’s simple,”
Anish said as he reached into the back of his pickup. He pulled out a massive, five
gallon tub of gasoline. After he set it on the ground, he reached into his
pocket and sprinkled a dark powder into the gas. He chanted under his breath,
then hummed for at least a full minute.

“Simple, huh?”
Matthew laughed as Anish grew quiet again.

“We must spread
this around the house and on the first floor to be sure we are successful.”

“Can’t wait to
go back in there,” Matthew said as he looked at the house. It was beyond
intimidating.

Anish lifted a
second five gallon tub from the truck and repeated his ritual.

“Bless this,”
Anish said. Matthew took a moment to pray over the buckets of gasoline. They
then walked up the stairs and back into the house. It was eerily quiet, and the
noises of the house seemed supernatural.

“Do you sense a
presence?” Matthew asked. “Because I sure do.”

“Evil resides
here,” Anish said. “But it is held underground for now.”

“Won’t it still
be there? Can we be absolutely positive that the portals down there will be
destroyed?” Matthew asked as he pointed toward the floor.

“No,” Anish
acknowledged. “One can never be sure that evil is totally banished from a
single location. And given the depth of transgression and depravity that this
house has known, I imagine that the land itself has been cursed.”

“True,” Matthew
agreed.

They poured the
gasoline throughout the first floor of the house, neither of them saying a word
to the other. They were too busy praying and chanting in their respective
religious languages. Walking outside, they saturated the outside of the house
with the gas.

When they had
finished, they reeked of gas, sweat, and blood. They stood in front of the
large house, both men looking forward to bringing an end to the reign of terror
that had held Crimson Falls captive for so long.

Anish pulled a
match from his breast pocket and turned to face Matthew, holding the match
between them.

“Would you like
to have the honor?” Anish asked.

“It’s all you,”
Matthew said, gesturing with his hand.

Anish walked up
to the front door, opened it, struck the match, then threw it onto the floor.
Flames instantly erupted around the foyer, quickly igniting curtains and other
fixtures in the room. Anish turned around slowly and walked toward Matthew.

“Your turn,” he
said.

Matthew took the
matchbook, closed his eyes, and struck the second match. He threw it onto the
small set of bushes beside the door, immediately sparking fire to life. He took
another match and did the same with the matching bush on the other side.

“Hell hath no
fury like a mansion scorned,” Matthew said, only half joking.

“Indeed,” Anish
agreed.

Both men watched
as flames began to consume the Brickton Estate. As he watched the fire growing
wildly and furiously, Matthew wondered if Hell really was on Earth. In
Minnesota. Even with the fire raging, he shivered in the night air.

Anish turned to
Matthew. “You ready to go?”

“As ready as can
be,” Matthew laughed. He took one last look at the house. He nodded, then
smiled. “Let’s get the Hell outta here.”

As they turned
from the house, neither of them noticed the pair of red eyes in the trees,
watching and waiting, bloodthirsty and deadly.