Released (12 page)

“Maybe… a lot of people can’t handle it, or would rather do it themselves than wait for a demon to kil them and do who knows what with their body.”

“What are you two whispering about?” Taya asked, obviously not catching on.

“Judy, she has bandages on her wrists.”

“John says she is depressed. They lost their son during the last attack.”

“How do you know that?” I tried to shout and whisper at her at the same time.

“John told me. I ran into him walking back to our room after showering. He asked me some questions. Look you two, he seems nice.” She pleaded.

“You mean when you ditched me while I was showering? You were suppose to watch the door while I was in there Taya.”

“Sorry. I wanted to talk to Carter before he got in here for dinner.”

“Thanks a lot, you left me there for sausage neck over there to snoop on.” I almost pointed my finger at Roger, but quickly retracted my hand.

“What?” Max questioned raising his voice.

“Don’t worry. I’m not certain he did anything, he was just creeping me out.”

“Why didn’t you tel me Abs?”

“Cause I didn’t want you to freak out. Look there goes Carter, why don’t you go with him before John catches up with him.”

“Fine. Just promise me you are going to be careful.”

“I promise.”

Max cupped his hand to my face and then quickly but casualy left the room after Carter, heading for the courtyard I guessed. I saw Taya’s expression looking at where Carter and Norah had just left the room and sighed loudly at her.

“Taya, snap out of it. Now is not the time to be jealous.”

“What? I’m not jealous. I know he is just using her for information.”

“Whatever, let’s go back to the room.”

Making our way out of the room and into the halway I saw out of the corner of my eye Judy sitting alone. She was curled up into an armchair holding a steaming cup of something.

“Judy?”

“Oh, yes, hi dear. Do you need something?” Her eyes were kind and did not hold the faint madness that I found in John’s eyes.

“No, um, I just was wondering if you were ok.”

“Ok as can be expected.” There was awkward silence, but I truly felt sorry for the lady. She had just lost her son and was obviously have great difficulty dealing with her grief.

“See Abby, she’s ok,” Taya said as she puled at my hand. I hesitated for a moment, trying to think of something to say but nothing came to mind. Judy just sat there, holding a cup in hand and taking smal sips of the steaming liquid.

As we walked back into the halway, I thought I faintly heard Judy say be careful, but I wasn’t certain. When we made it back to the room, I had to listen to a ful account of Carter’s conversation with Norah and how Taya didn’t think Norah was pretty at al.

“I mean she dresses like a total prude. Did you see that shirt she was wearing? It’s the middle of summer!” I wasn’t realy listening, but tried to time my mhm’s and uhuh’s at the correct time until she eventualy talked herself to sleep. To pass the time I packed up al of our bags and even stole the bars of soap John had given us for good measure. Then I sat on the floor by my cot and cleaned my shotgun. Realizing that the last time I had done it was before we left home. The familiar procedure was therapeutic and brought back memories of my father teaching me. He taught me how to shoot, how to aim, and even timed me on my speed for assembly.

Even though Taya was in the room with me, sleeping in her cot, I felt utterly alone as hot tears burned my eyes. Every burning drop that I had been holding back, came pouring out and I silently wept while reassembling my shotgun.

When the water works had finaly stopped and I regained control of my emotions, it was pretty much impossible to sleep. I looked at my watch and it was almost one in the morning and neither of the guys were back yet. I tried to be patient and decided I would try the smal radio that Charlie had given me. I puled it out of my bag and turned it on only to hear static on every station. Feeling frustrated and afraid for the guys I fought the urge to throw something against the wal.

I was realy starting to get worried and wanted to go look for them, but I didn’t want to leave Taya alone, so I decided to wake her. I crossed the room to where she was sleeping, and shook her shoulder, probably a little harder than I had meant to, but I was anxious and worried.

“Taya you gotta wake up.”

“What? Why, what’s going on?” Her lids were stil heavy over her eyes and dark streaks ran down her face. I guess I wasn’t the only one, who felt the need to cry that night.

“They aren’t back yet. We need to go find them.”

“What time is it?”

“Almost one. Carter and Max should have been back ages ok. We need to go.”

At the thought of Carter being missing Taya leaped out of bed and sprang into action. She was ready to go even before I was.

“You got everything?” I asked almost out of breath just from the rush of anxiety that was coursing through me. Taya nodded her head and latched Carter’s bag onto her back. I heaped my duffel bag onto mine, it felt awkward but at least it wasn’t heavy.

We stepped gingerly out into the dark halway. It was total darkness except for a faint glow emitting from a room at the end of the hal.

“Wait, Abby.” Taya tugged at my arm and puled me against a wal. “Isn’t that the room they were guarding? Maybe we shouldn’t go in there, what if they are just outside talking with Norah stil?”

I could tel Taya didn’t realy believe what she was saying, that she was just afraid of what we were going to find in that room.

“Taya, look around you. This place is a crypt, there are no lights anywhere else, except that room. If you are too scared then take this stuff to the Bronco and wait for us there, but I am going in there and getting my brother and Max.”

I tried to stay light on my feet as I made my way down the hal. When I got to the door I could hear voices muffled, but not wel enough to make anything out. I swalowed my fear and leaned my face onto the crack of the open door. I was expecting another office or room of some sort, but instead it was a lit stairwel, leading down into what must have been a basement. I looked back as the sliver of light from the door iluminated the halway. I saw Taya stil struggling to decide what she was going to do, and then she silently made a quick jog to my side.

“Ok, let’s do this.”

I thought about it for a moment, and decided we had better leave our bags behind, so we deposited them along the wal just outside the doorway. If we needed to make a quick escape we could grab them on the run. I worried that the door might creek so I opened it just enough so that we could slip in. I took my knife out, even though I favored my shotgun, but I knew we were in close quarters in a basement and I didn’t want to risk hurting the guys.

Taya had puled out the smal handgun Carter had given her and when I noticed she stil had the safety on, I switched it off and handed her the knife. Her hands trembled and I could tel that as brave as she was trying to be, she was terrified.

We both held our breath as we walked slowly down the first stairwel, making the voices grow slightly louder with each step. At the landing of the second flight of stairs there was another door that was partialy ajar. The instant I saw the familiar pattern of Max’s blue plaid shirt I bolted down the steps and flew through the doorway with Taya on my heels.

The scene that lay before us was nothing short of terrifying. The room looked to be a makeshift jail. Max and Carter were up against a wal, their faces bloodied and bruised and Norah was laying on the floor weeping. She had a firm grip on a bloody towel that was wrapped around her forearm. A ripple of fear roled through me as I watched what they were doing. John’s two goons Roger and Jerry were standing over her with smiles on their smug faces. Roger grabbed a smal bucket near Norah’s feet and slid it to the demon that quickly slammed its muzzle into it drinking up whatever was in it.

“Wel look what we have here,” John said as he smiled at Taya and me.

I quickly shoved the handgun into my pants and puled my shotgun from off my back and cocked it. “Yes, what do we have here?” I asked with complete disgust in my voice.

“Abby, Taya, get out of here!” Max shouted. I saw Carter look up and realized he hadn’t seen us come in because one of his eyes was nearly swolen shut. Blood was smeared over both their faces and the sight of them made a tidal wave of rage flow through me.

“No, I think they’l be staying,” John said as he took two steps toward us and that’s when I saw it. As John walked toward us I could clearly see what was locked behind the bars in the cel behind him. It was a giant demon, much like the one that Taya’s mother had hit with her car.

It was twice as big as any hound we had ever seen. It looked like a giant wolf and its black eyes bore into my soul. The sight of it terrified me and it took a moment for me to force my eyes to look away. Crimson blood dripped from its muzzle as it snarled at Roger and Jerry who stood nearby. The demon limped around in its cage. One of its legs appeared to be broken, but the creature continued to put its ful weight down with every step, sending the echo of bones cracking with every movement.

“You look confused,” John said sounding like the situation was completely normal. “I thought your brother would understand what we are doing here, but obviously he was not as enlightened as I thought he was.” John waved his gun around and I saw Max put his arm protectively over Carter. I wanted to run to them and find out what happened, but I couldn’t. I needed to think of something clever and quick to get us out of this.

“Wel, why don’t you enlighten me then?” I said as I took a step further into the room not taking my aim off of John.

“Wel, my dear, frankly it’s quite uncomfortable to talk with a gun pointed at me, why don’t you put that away, so we can be more civilized.”

“Not a chance.”

John then nodded over to Roger and Jerry who both puled out their guns, each pointing one at Taya and me and the other at Max and Carter.

“You see, we desire the same thing, do we not? We al want to rid the world of these demons, do we not? As you can see, we have this specimen here. He’s quite resilient, damn thing won’t tel us what we want to know.”

“What is there to know? Just kil it and be done with it?”

“Ahh, but we don’t want to kil it. If we do that we can’t figure out its weaknesses.” The demon growled and slammed its giant claw against the bars of the cage and John laughed at it. Taya stifled a scream as the demon’s growl echoed off the cement wals.

“I think you’re pissing it off,” I said as I looked down at Norah who was stil cowering at Roger’s feet. “What did you do to her?”

“Nothing that I haven’t done to myself or anyone else here for that matter. We al have sacrifices to make, and it was her turn.”

“Go! Just get out of here!” Carter shouted this time as blood trickled out of a split lip. Jerry took two quick strides and punched him sending Carter faling to the floor.

“What the hel, jerk! He didn’t do anything!” Max grabbed Carter’s body from off the floor and helped him stand up. I wanted to start crying, but I had to be strong. I thought back on something my father had told me once and tried to colect the strength and courage to do what I knew I needed to do. It was up to me to save them and I had to be wiling to do anything to accomplish that. I swalowed back the lump in my throat and steadied my feet as I prepared myself.

Lowering the hand that held the shotgun I puled the gun out of my waistband, aiming and puling the trigger in one fel sweep. The bulet tore through the side of Jerry’s head and he staggered only for an instant before faling to the floor. His body landed against the cage bars and the demon quickly slid its massive arm to thrash at Jerry’s lifeless body.

“Maybe I was wrong about you,” John said sounding slightly amused.

“Max you and Carter get over here now!” I shouted as I held my shotgun and handgun pointed at the two remaining men. I wasn’t sure if I could fire the both of them at the same time, but I sure as hel wasn’t afraid to try.

Taya who had remained silent during the whole scene quickly grabbed the handgun from me then ran to help Max get Carter as he struggled to find his footing.

Taya slid under Carter’s body and guided him out of the room. Somehow her scrawny figure had found the strength to carry his near dead weight out the room and up the stairs.

Max stayed behind with me and his presence by my side filed me with strength that I so desperately needed.

“Let her go,” I said as calmly but as sternly as I could, trying to enunciate each word firmly.

“She can leave, she paid her dues for now.” Roger yanked her hair and Norah screamed in pain as her head was thrust upward.

“You people have lost your freaking minds!”

“Why is that? Because we feel that each of our lives are worth losing to gain the greater good? If you could save everyone, just by kiling her, you wouldn’t do that?” John pointed to me and Max shook his head.

“No, I wouldn’t. What you people are doing is wrong and you know it. You realy think you can keep that thing here, torturing it and feeding it to keep it alive and not have to pay the consequences? These are friggin’ demons from hel, you realy think that anything you can do to it wil compare to what it went through in hel?” Max shouted.

John’s expression faltered for a moment, but he quickly regained his composure. “Boy, you have no idea of what we have already learned.” Just then the demon thrust its arm between the bars catching Roger on his shoulder and puled him firmly against the bars. Roger’s screams were quickly halted when the demon stuck its long snout out and clamped down firmly on Roger’s skul.

John whirled and started unloading his gun into the demon as wel as into what was left of Roger and I knew this was our chance. Max and I bolted for Norah. He scooped her up and we ran for the stairs. John was cursing as he ran out of bulets and he quickly snagged Roger’s gun that lay on the cold cement floor. As we made our way to the top of the stairs I heard the loud clatter of the metal bars clang against the concrete.