The Demon Conspiracy (18 page)

I quickly went into his mind to see what was
going on in there before he blocked me, but Jon must have
anticipated it. He blocked me out before I could get even a peek at
his thoughts.

“You have to take us to school,” I reminded
him.

“I can’t go to school. I have much work to
do. I must work….”

“Hard and fast,” I interrupted. “But you’ve
got to work hard and fast in school, too, you know. If you don’t go
to school, all they’ll let you do is flip burgers, or something.
You can forget doing magic if you don’t go to school.”

Jon considered this. “They won’t let me do
magic unless I go to school?”

“Nope.”

“Then I will go to school. When does school
end?”

“High school lets out at three o’clock, like
always. Why would you ask that?”

“I will be down in a minute.”

I got my books together and set my new
backpack by the front door next to Travis’ old one. Travis came in
and studied both packs for a moment.

“You were right. I shoulda
taken my
old
pack
to the cave like you did. I can’t believe I lost the new
one.”

“You can always borrow my Barbie pack from
under my bed. Of course, it’s still got cave dirt all over it.” I
grinned at him just to rub it in a little.

Travis shook his head.
“Gross! I’m not takin’ a
girl’s
backpack to school!”

“In that case you’ll have to use a shopping
bag when your straps break.” I didn’t need to read his mind to know
he was considering the idea as a backup plan. I looked upstairs.
“Jon! Come on! We have to go!”

When Jon finally came downstairs he still
had on the dirty caving clothes and his hair looked like a bird’s
nest. He carried no books or backpack and walked through the
kitchen without even a glance at breakfast.

“Eat, Jon,” said Angie. “You’ll be starved
by lunch. Where’s your backpack?”

Jon shrugged. “Must have left it in the
cave.”

“He did,” I said. “I think your brain was
inside it.”

Jon grabbed his own head and felt around.
“No, I am certain my brain is right here.” I exchanged uneasy
glances with Travis and Angie. Was he kidding? I scanned his mind,
but as usual, couldn’t pick up on any thoughts. If only he couldn’t
block me so effectively.

“I’ll get you a new pack today, Jon,” said
Angie.

“I need a new one, too,” said Travis,
holding up the old pack. “Sorry, I lost my new one in the
earthquake. I couldn’t help it.”

“I wondered why you had that old thing,”
said Angie. “I’ll get you a new one, too. Are you ready to go?”

“We’re ready,” I said. “But, Jon, you’ve got
to change your clothes. You can’t go to school looking like that.
And put on some deodorant, you stink.”

“I agree,” said Angie. “Toss the clothes in
the hamper, Jon.”

Jon looked down at his filthy clothes and
then at us. “What is a hamper?”

“What’s a…?” Angie pointed to the ceiling.
“The hamper is where we put dirty clothes. Our hamper is the
upstairs hall closet. Now make it quick, or you’ll all be late for
school. And brush your hair.”

Without protest Jon went upstairs. Travis
looked at us nervously.

“I’d better go with him,” he said, following
Jon up the stairs. “In case he’s forgotten what a hair brush
is.”

When they returned, Jon’s hair was neatly
brushed and he wore shorts and a T-shirt. He smelled better, too.
Hooray! He actually looked more like my normal teenage brother
again. I nearly forgot about his possible demonic possession. We
said goodbye to Angie and headed out the door.

I waited with Travis by the Mustang, but Jon
made no effort to get his keys out. He just stood there,
clueless.

“Unlock the car,” said Travis, trying the
handle.

“Hurry, we’re going to be late.” I gave Jon
a look, but he seemed puzzled.

“What?” He blinked at us.

“You’re driving us.”

Jon’s eyes showed confusion, then fear as he
figured out what I was talking about. “I don’t want to drive. I
forgot how to drive.”

“You forgot how to drive?” I couldn’t
believe it. “What kind of moron forgets how to drive a car? How
does that even happen?”

“I don’t know, I just forgot.”

We looked at him for a while, expecting him
to grin and produce the keys. But he seemed genuinely lost. If Jon
were truly possessed by a demon, it must have been a dumb one. I
shook my head and stomped back into the house.

“You have to take us to school, Angie. Jon
forgot how to drive!”

“He forgot…oh, lord, he must be in shock,
too! Let me get the keys.”

Angie came out and everyone piled into her
minivan. “I guess this means I’ll be picking all of you up. Jon, I
want you to stay after school with Dr. Parrish today. I’ll get
Kelly and Travis first, and you last. Mark has some things that
Chris needs, so this driving arrangement might work out for the
best, at least for today.”

“Cool,” I said. “I get to see Jon’s
classes.”

“I forgot all my classes,” said Jon. “Where
do I go when I get to school?”

“You forgot your classes?” I was
exasperated. “You must have hit your head in the cave after we
left.”

“Yeah,” said Travis. “Maybe that’s why
you’re actin’ so weird.”

Jon thought about it. “Yes,” he said. “I hit
my head after you left.”

Angie started up the minivan and looked
first at Travis in the rear view mirror,

then at Jon. She smiled hesitantly. “Jon,
honey, don’t you think we should go to the doctor this morning,
instead of school?”

Jon nearly panicked at the question. He
looked my way. “No. They won’t let me do magic unless I go to
school.”

“Okay. So about that head injury. Would you
happen to know if Chris also hit his head in the cave?”

***

Traffic was congested on the way to school
and Angie grew weary of stopping and going every inch of the way. I
know because I was in and out of her mind a lot during the drive.
Still very sad, Angie leaned her head on the driver’s side window
as she waited for the cars in front of us to move again. She
thought about Chris and how he’d filled her life with tenderness
and love. And how, with the addition of the children (namely us),
she had finally achieved the one goal in life she coveted above all
else. With the help of her willing husband, Angie now had a family
of her own. That made me feel really good inside. I even heard her
think the A-word again.

Chris had never been a particularly brave
man and he wasn’t driven by financial success. He was a
schoolteacher, which most likely meant they’d never be rich. But
for Angie, their relationship was much more than that. For her it
was strongly personal. Chris had something inside him that no other
man had ever displayed to her. He had the subtle ability to
emotionally move her, heart and soul, and she loved him deeply.
Angie had been proud and happy with her simple life—until Pandora’s
Cave ruined everything.

Sooner or later she had to face the truth.
Something had happened to change her man, and it wasn’t just the
cave. Chris no longer acted like Chris, not in the slightest. Angie
tried to see some of the old personality traits in him, but after
only two days she knew there weren’t any left. Where he had once
been her best friend and lover, now he was more like a boarder in
her basement who didn’t pay rent, never slept, and grouched at her
whenever she went down to see him. He still looked like Chris, but
his voice was different and his personality was, well…disturbed.
She didn’t want to admit what she really felt was wrong with him,
but it finally came out in her thoughts. Chris might be insane. She
forced the idea out of her mind, but I knew it would come back to
haunt her.

Angie sat up again and glanced in the
mirror. Travis and I had taken the captain’s seats, but Jon had
chosen to sit alone in the back of the van. She studied Jon for a
moment and realized that he wasn’t the same person anymore, either.
What could have happened in that cave to make two well-adjusted
people become so strangely different? Had they really been struck
in the head as Jon suggested? Or was it something more sinister?
Angie sadly shook her head. She had no answers for her own
questions. Neither did I.

Traffic began to move along at a regular
pace again. Angie looked up and saw an old man standing over a
recycling box on the side of the road sifting through the trash. He
had white hair, a tan, leathery face, and wore glasses with clear
frames that seemed to add to his age. Beside him was a red,
three-wheeled bicycle with a large basket mounted on the front and
two more baskets on the back. In the front basket was a black trash
bag filled to the top with aluminum cans.

Angie smiled. “Hey, kids, it’s Doug One. I
haven’t seen him for years. Wave to him.”

Angie gave the man a friendly honk as she
rode by. He looked up and waved, but the distraction nearly sent
him stumbling over his bicycle into a ditch. Somehow Doug One
caught himself and went back to rummaging through the trash.

“Who’s Doug One?” I asked, leaving Angie’s
mind and offering a half-hearted wave to the old man.

“Why’s he pickin’ up trash?” asked
Travis.

“Doug One doesn’t pick up trash,” said
Angie. “Doug Four picks up trash. Doug One only picks up aluminum
cans.”

“Doug Four?” That got me. “How many Dougs
are there?”

“Seven,” said Angie. “They each pick up
something different. And they give out chewing gum to kids.”

“Gum? They must be pretty cool,” said
Travis. “Are they really all named Doug?”

“I think so,” said Angie.
“I remember my grandfather said they used to ride bikes around
picking up stuff in the area when he was a little kid. He said they
all lived in the same house, and their neighbors called it the
House of Seven Dougs. It’s like they’ve
always
been old. I don’t know much
else about them.”

ANGIE

After dropping off Kelly and Travis at their
respective schools, Angie drove Jon to the high school and went
with him to the main office. She explained to the principal, Mr.
Dillon, about the caving incident and about Jon’s possible head
injury. Dillon was a short man, barely taller than Angie. But she
discovered that what he lacked in stature, he made up for with a
take-charge attitude and a loud voice.

“I understand,” said Dillon agreeably. “Dr.
Parrish told us all about it. Has Jon seen a doctor?”

“I’m taking him to one today, but he
insisted on coming to school. Except for his memory he seems
perfectly fine. I guess he needs to be around his friends.”

“He should stay out of caves from now on,
too, if you want my opinion. They all should. Anton Edwards called
in sick today, and so did Chris, though they both waited until this
morning to contact us. Please remind Chris the next time he needs a
sub to call our secretary the night before. And if he can’t get
here himself, he can email the lesson plans to us.”

“Chris called in? I’m surprised he
remembered. He’s acting very strangely, Mr. Dillon. So is Jon, for
that matter.”

“What do you mean?”

“Jon speaks with an British accent now. And
he seems to have some minor memory loss. He forgot how to drive,
which is why I had to bring him today. And he’s forgotten what
classes he takes. But Chris….” Her voice trailed off sadly. “I
think he’s in shock. He started working on some project in the
basement. Nothing else seems to matter and I don’t think he’s slept
at all.”

Dillon studied her. “I’m sorry to hear that
about Chris. I hope his condition doesn’t last long; we need him.
As for Jon, if his injury isn’t too severe, I suspect he’ll
probably remember things once he gets back into his schedule. I’ll
assign a student to show him where his classes are each day until
he’s reoriented. Let me know if there’s anything we can do for
him.”

BRANDON

Brandon Cole considered Jon Bishop to be his
closest friend, so he wasn’t surprised when Mr. Dillon chose him to
guide Jon around the school. Ordinarily, it would have been cool,
since he and Jon hung out anyway. But Jon didn’t even recognize
him, not at all. In fact, he didn’t seem to know anybody, including
the love of his life, Maria Sanchez! Brandon knew a little about
amnesia, but this was the first time he’d ever experienced it. And
the British accent, man! That was strange! With what Brandon knew
about memory loss, picking up foreign accents didn’t seem to
fit.

By lunch Maria had gotten pretty frustrated
with Jon, but Brandon convinced her to stop by Dr. Parrish’s room
before chemistry class and talk with him again. He was sure Maria
was the key to Jon’s memory. Maria was one of the hottest girls in
school and no boy could spend time with her and not have his memory
jogged. When Maria met them by the door to Parrish’s room, Brandon
stepped aside to let them talk.

“Jon, do you want to come over to my place
after school?” asked Maria, taking his hand. “I think we need to
get reacquainted.”

“I can’t. I have much work to do….”

“Stop it!” Maria cut him off. “You said that
ten times at lunch! And stop that stupid accent, you don’t talk
like that! I want my old Jon back. Two days ago you said you loved
me more than anything. Ever since the cave you don’t even remember
my name.”

“Your name is Maria.”

“Not bad, only three tries. Look, call me
tonight…if you still want to. I’ve got to go to class.” She hurried
off and left Jon standing at the doorway. He looked blankly at
Brandon, who nudged him into the room and directed him to their lab
table in the back.

Brandon traded troubled looks with Dr.
Parrish as they passed by his desk. Parrish had on a new pair of
glasses and some bandages on his head. Brandon was relieved when
Parrish didn’t ask about Jon’s memory loss. He was tired of
explaining it to everyone, especially when he really didn’t know
anything. Brandon patted Jon on the shoulder and held up the
chemistry textbook.