Jack County Demons (10 page)

Juana fumbled at the back door to the church. She jiggled her keys, tried three different times before finding the right one
. The church was locked tight. For this, she was happy. Her daughter was inside, and even though the locks weren't what kept them out, they did make her feel better.

Juana was in her forties. Her body was half th
at age, though. Tight and firm and with Latina hips, Juana was stunningly beautiful in a natural sort of way.

She walked through the back room, where the church stored a variety of supplies, tables and chairs, and things for their a
nnual auction. It was dark and dusty, but a feeling of calm overcame her. The dark didn't scare her. Not here. Not now.

Juana stopped at a second door. Again, she fumbled through her key
s. It took a few attempts, but she finally found the right one. The lock clicked, and she opened the heavy door. Closing it behind her, she was now inside the church. She saw the altar nearby. What she didn't see, however, were the three Seals. They were across the room, tucked away in the shadows, and they indeed saw her.

But Juana's attention was elsewhere. She soon spotted what she was
looking for. There, rested on the front pew, covered in a wool blanket, was her sixteen-year-old daughter, Angelina. Juana rushed over quietly, careful not to wake the girl. She sat down and slowly began to stroke her daughter's hair.

Angelina tossed, restless.
"Mom?"

"It's okay, baby. I'm here."

"I was afraid you wouldn't be here. I was so afraid. I just had a bad feeling," Juana said.

"I'm here, Mom. I'm okay. Thanks to them," her
daughter said.

"Who? How?"

Angelina pointed to the Seals in the shadows, who stood up slowly so they did not appear threatening.

"Oh, my," Juana said, startled.

"Don't worry Mom. They're here to help. The demons came. They saved me from them," her daughter said.

Juana carefully laid her daughter's head back down,
and then rose to face the three men. She strode over, vigilant and determined. "What the hell!" she said, hands raised. She was angry.

"Whoa, lady, calm down," LT said. "We're no t
hreat to you."

"What are you doing here? This isn't your home. You don't
belong here," Juana protested. Turning to the priest, she said, "Father, why are they here? This is the house of our Lord. Look at them. They have guns. This is a haven for the children and you allowed them in? Get them out of here Father. Get them out."

"Now lady, just listen . . ." LT began.

"Don't speak, just turn your asses around and head out. I can smell trash a mile away."

Father Rodriguez rushed up. Holding his hands ou
t, he latched onto Juana's arm, attempting to calm her. He pulled her to one side, saying, "Juana, they are of no threat. And your daughter is correct. That man saved her. Manitas was here. He sought out your daughter, and she ran toward him."

"What? Why?"

"His power is becoming stronger, I guess. She was scared. It doesn't matter, she's safe now. That man held her back, pulled her from the demon's hands."

"Father, with all due respect, those men may have helped, but they don'
t belong here. They aren't our friends."

"How do you know?" the priest asked.

"I saw them. They're bar brawlers. Nothing more. They hurt other men, and many of them. These men are savages. They are brawlers. They aren't our friends."

"Juana, I believe they are angels, sent to protect us."

"H . . . how could you?" she asked in disbelief.

"Just look at them. Rugged, looks like they haven't showered in weeks. They're bleeding, all cut up. And the guns. You allowed
guns in here? Father, don’t you even wonder where they came from?"

Father Rodriguez sighed, holding his head low. "Listen carefully.
Please, hear me out. These men battled a dozen of those demons. Faced them head on. They fought valiantly, and they survived. They saved your daughter, too. These men are deserving of our compassion and respect. They do not deserve scorn, or judgment by their looks. They fought them, Juana. Can you believe it?"

Juana frowned, looking past the priest, straight into LT's watchful eyes.

Commander Jacobs remained at his station. He sipped another cup of coffee, this one to his
liking. It was a gourmet blend, one from South America. One he approved of. He took another sip, then set the cup down. Rubbing his eyes, he looked at his watch. He'd been awake a long time. Jacobs turned as Barnes entered the Control Room.

"Sir, I think I have something."

"Show me."

Barnes handed him a folder. Inside were various pages. Jacobs flicked t
he switch to his desk lamp. It was dim enough not to disturb the others who were sleeping at their desks. Jacobs flipped through it, reading fast yet carefully.

"What is this exactly?" Commander Jacobs finally
asked.

"
Malleus Malificarum, sir."

"Who?"

"Malleus Malificarum, 1486. Heinrich Kramer. He's German."

"German
? Great," he muttered sarcastically.

"Sir, religious artifacts are repellent to demons. We've hit a wall up until n
ow. Until this. Sir, this will help, I think."

"Ah, it makes sense," Commander Jacobs said, thinking. He tapped h
is forehead, understanding the revelation now.

"Sir?"

"The church. That's why they didn't go in. That's why they didn't assault our team. They weren't stopped from entering. They couldn't enter. It's the church. They can't go inside. There must be . . . there must be an artifact inside."

"I have a file on the place," Barnes mentioned. He rushed to his desk, fl
ipping through his paperwork until he found a small file. Looking through it, he found a single page with a write up on the church. There wasn't much information, but enough. "Sir, here, look at this," Barnes said.

Reading through it, Jacobs said, "A crucifix. Don't
all churches have them?"

"Catholic ones, yes. But this crucifix is massive. Was imported in, as yo
u can read. Sir, there must be a reason this crucifix, that's much too elaborate for a church in Jack County, there must be reason it's there."

Commander Jacobs nodded after mulling over it. "It does make sense
, if such a thing can. If this crucifix stops them from entering, maybe we can use it to our advantage. For now, though, it's perfect. Gives our team a place to rest safely. Now we must contact them. Let them know. Anything else,

Barnes?"

"Sir, I have an idea. If I may," he gestured to the Commander's computer. Jacobs nodded and backed away, and Barnes clicked away at the keyboard. Finally, he brought up an image from their files. It was copied from microfiche. It was an image from a newspaper, along with an article from several years ago.

The headline read:

'The Disappearing Crosses of Jack County'

Below the headline was a large photograph of the ornate crucifix the two men h
ad been speaking of.

"There it is," Barnes said with a whistle. "You see, the cross is important.
Look at it! That belongs in a fancy church in New York, or Rome. Why is it there, in Jack County?"

"Yes, it does seem out of place."

"According to this article, the entire area was once blessed with hundreds of crosses. They were everywhere. All over the church grounds. All throughout the town. Even on public buildings. Most northern states would have an epic freak out over that, but in Texas, it's a way of life I guess. Lots of crosses. Thing is, over the years, they were stolen. At first, they blamed it on the local kids. Teenagers just having fun. But as the years passed, and the crosses kept missing, locals figured something was up. Something bigger, though they didn't know what."

Jacobs stared at the picture of the crucifix. His mind was racing.
The problem was his mind just didn't work this way. Yes, he was chosen to think outside the box. Yes, he was chosen due to the strange nature of this case. But he still couldn't wrap his mind around this. This was all beyond him.

"Sir, are you okay?" Barnes asked.

"What is it about the crucifix? About this certain one that makes it so special?" Commander Jacobs wondered aloud.

Time passed and Juana calmed. She neared LT, carrying a small
bowl of water and clean gauze. She walked up, humbled and quiet, pointing to his head. "You're still bleeding."

LT reached up, touching the wound. He flinched.
It hurt. "I suppose I am."

"Please, let me."

"Not necessary, ma'am."

"Just sit down. Let me fix your head, okay?"

"Not sure if that's possible," he replied, grinning.

She smiled at this briefly. Then, she sat him on a nearby chair. Placing
a candle nearby for light, she pulled up her own chair, resting alongside him. Juana dipped a clean rag into the water, and ever so delicately touched it to his wound. He flinched, but she was gentle. "Just relax," she said. LT grunted his disapproval. "You really fought them?"

"Suppose I did."

"And you survived?"

"I'm here, aren't I? Do you know them? Know who
they are?"

"I do."

"Maybe you could tell me what's going on. Nobody seems willing to talk," LT said.

Juana nodded at
this. "Small town, that's why. Everybody knows everybody. Everybody knows what's going on here, but they're too scared to speak of it."

"Well, you finally have help. Besides, they already came for your daughter. What do you have to lose?"
LT reasoned.

"True," she said, nodding. She kept cleaning his wound, making sure it wouldn
't get infected. "They rode into town a few months ago. Damn, I remember that day. All of them on loud motorcycles, we thought the Hells Angels were having a bike rally or something. Wish that was the case. The demons came into town from the west. Settled in one night and never left."

"Then what?"

"They started causing trouble, that's what. The leader, his name is Santana. He brags about how many people they've killed. They're vigilantes. They aren't human."

"And the ones I faced tonight? Was Santana one of
them?" he wondered aloud.

"Doubtful," she remarked. "You'd know if Santana was here. He's not afrai
d to reveal himself. And trust me, when you see his face, you'll know why the town is afraid. He's a demon straight from hell. His face is all contorted. Messed up. No, you met Manitas. He's powerful, don't get me wrong, but he serves the same master as the rest of them."

"Santana?"

She nodded.

"What else?" he asked, prying her to speak up.

"Well, they rode off after that night. Caused havoc, picked a few fights, then rode off. It was the strangest thing. The town was happy they left, but some of us knew better. We knew they'd be back. Sure enough, they did come back. A few weeks later and the girls started disappearing. It took the people a bit to realize it was them, but I knew all along."

"Taking virgins, right?" LT asked, shaking his head in disbelief. H
e couldn't believe he was even discussing this.

"That's right. Virgins are the source of their power. They began taking them.
Weren't lots in town, and a few people even grew wise and moved their daughters out. Those who could that is; others, like me, had nowhere to go. So, we hid our daughters. But Santana and his crew, they are growing stronger all the time. They are figuring everything out. They know where are daughters were hidden, so we brought them here, to this place. To this church. This is the only safe place we know."

"Looks like it's worked so far."

"So far," she said, nodding reluctantly. "I'm worried, though. I can't allow Angelica out of here. Too risky. And Santana won't stand around. He won't wait forever. Eventually, he'll find a way in."

"Or lure her out," LT said, thinking.

Across the room, Red and Father Rodriguez stood together, huddled close,
and whispering. They both stared at the massive crucifix above while they did. They couldn't help it. There was something magical about the artifact.

"Is it old?" Red asked.

"Oh, very," the priest replied. "Over five hundred years. It once protected a small church in Eastern Europe. It remained there until the late 40s, when it was shipped here."

"Why was it brought here to Jack County?"

"No clue, that was before my time. The priest before me didn't know either. The story goes that the decision was made by Rome. People much higher up in the church wanted it here. It was as if they knew we'd need it one day. And it was shipped in secret. They didn't want us broadcasting that we had it. I suppose the fancier churches would get jealous."

"And you think it protects us? Protects the church from them?"

"Indeed it does. There's something supernatural about the piece. It was chosen to be here. This is all fate, son. That relic is our only chance against the demons."

"What if it's stolen?"

"They can't near it, so there's no worry about that. I suppose some humans could break in and take it. The thing weighs a ton. Besides, we have you three here to protect against that."

"Yeah, considering bullets don't work against the bikers," Red grumbled, sti
ll baffled by that fact. "Does the crucifix really have that much power? Can it really stop them?"

"So far it has. We hope so."

"But what if . . ." Red trailed off, thinking to himself.

"What?" the priest asked.

"Never mind, I'm just thinking outside the box."

"Please, that's what we need, son. If you have any thoughts that ma
y help us, please voice them," Father Rodriguez said.

"I was just thinking, what if the same artifact that is keeping them awa
y is also keeping them around? What if its very presence is what brought them here in the first place? Sounds crazy, I know."

"Son, all of this is crazy. I believe you might be right in some ways. The
y arrived here for a reason. I hold them responsible for all the thefts over the years. This town was once littered with artifacts. Crosses and crucifixes, mostly. But over time, they were all stolen. Only this one remains. I believe they came here because of it. I believe they want something with it."

"Why not broker a deal? A trade?" Red suggested.

"Son, this icon is what's protecting us. Only religious artifacts are known to kill demons. It gives life, and it also takes it away. Do you really suggest we try to deal with the devil?" Father Rodriguez asked.

"I don't know, sir. I'm an atheist. I doubt you know that, but I am. All of this is beyon
d me. I'm not a believer, that's for sure," Red explained.

"After this, you will be," Father Rodriguez said
confidently.