Evil Agreement (22 page)

Aaron suddenly received a flash image of Ron. He could see
Ron sitting on a chair massaging his legs and wincing with pain. Somehow Aaron
could feel the same pain in his own legs. He began to rub his own legs.
Korie
was talking to him but her voice seemed faded and
weak. Aaron was concentrating on the image of Ron and his suffering.

Aaron’s mind began to focus on Ron’s hands. His mind flashed
a message to those hands that seemed to ignite a healing sensation.

Ron was also seeing Aaron in his mind. The two men were
mentally joined as if they were one. Aaron wanted Ron to pass his hands over
his legs but not to touch them. Ron did just that. As he did, the burning
sensation was lifted away. Ron stood up. His legs felt as they did before his
encounter with the “FBI” man. He slowly walked towards the stage. He felt a
strong urge to play some music.

Aaron had fallen asleep.

Korie
turned the car radio down as
she headed along the dark highway.

***

Samuel was in his bedroom. He had closed the bedroom door and
locked it. He now called for Moloch.

Samuel pulled back the braided rug that covered the center of
the floor in his room. He had painted a pentagram inside of a circle on the
well-worn wooden floor. He turned the light off in his room and drawn the shade
closed. The room was totally dark. The darkness felt comfortable to Samuel. He
awaited Moloch by standing and facing the pentagram, with his arms down to his
side, with his hands held slightly forward, palm side up.

Inside the pentagram a small swirl of spinning light began
rotating just above the floor. The spinning light swirled upward and grew in
size until it reached the ceiling. The whirlwind of light filled the entire
circle surrounding the pentagram. A shape, now familiar to Samuel, began to
form inside of the pentagram. This shape became more solid in appearance in a
matter of moments. The shape also emitted an eerie glow that seemed to ebb back
and forth between green and yellow.

Samuel marveled at this apparition from the nether world
which was now putting in a personal appearance in his bedroom. Samuel’s face
reflected back the pulsating light emitted by the form now standing before him.

“
Upuaut
, the time for our master to
join you here on earth is rapidly approaching. Everything must be ready,” said
Moloch.

“We shall be ready,” said Samuel.

“He will be pleased to learn of your efforts.”

“Thank you.”

“My sister was caught trying to run away with a
non-believer.”

“I know. The use of your powers to destroy the young
non-believer was interesting. We have given you many powers and you will need
them all to serve our Master.”

“What do you want me to do with my unfaithful sister?”

“Save her for later. She is to be one of His concubines. She
will learn to serve, for her body and soul will belong to Him.”
 
 

Samuel smiled slightly.

“The male Powell and his girl friend are somewhere in the
area. They are going to come here, soon. Should we seize him?”

“No. He must participate of his own free will. That is the
way.”

“He will join our coven, then?”

“Yes, as it was foretold.”

“Does he have powers?” asked Samuel.

“Yes, he does. But your powers are greater. You have ten
other coven members with special powers to call upon. His powers shall not be a
problem.”

“What about his girlfriend?”

“She is of no consequence in this. If she gets in your way,
destroy her.”

Moloch began to fade into a swirling mass of changing light.
The swirl of light began to compress upon itself, until the light collapsed
into the center of the pentagram with a snapping sound. Samuel’s ears popped
from the sudden change in air pressure in the room.

***

Kelley had regained control over the muscles in her body. For
the past hour or so, she screamed at the top of her lungs. She had to stop, her
throat ached and was dry.

She strained against the clamps and chains that held her, but
they were still secure. Her wrists were sore from the chaffing caused by the
edges of the clamps. Her hair was becoming mated from the perspiration she had
worked up. She began to worry about dehydration. Then worst thoughts entered
her mind.

Maybe they’re not coming back at all. Maybe they’re just
going to wait for me to die here. No food, no water, just this fucking
darkness,
she thought.

Suddenly she could feel something moving down her right arm.
Its touch was light but noticeable. It was an insect of some kind, she was
sure. It stopped half way up her arm. Its tiny legs moved from side to side as
if trying to decide which way to go. It resumed moving up her arm. Soon it was
at her shoulder.

Kelley shook her body as much as she could to try and shake
the insect off. It didn’t work. She turned her head to the right and tried
blowing against her shoulder to blow the insect off. The insect simply moved
out of the way of her blowing.

It began to move again. This time she could feel it walking
on her hair. It moved in a slow and probing fashion, slowly to the top right
side of her head, and then slowly it stepped onto her forehead. Kelley
screamed, and shook her head back and forth, to try and shake the insect off.
By now she was sure it was some kind of spider. She stopped and stayed
motionless for a few moments.

Was it gone? Did it fall off?
she thought.
Please,
her mind pleaded. She was crying.

The spider wasn’t dislodged at all. It had held on. It began
to move again. It slowly crawled down the right side of her face. Kelley kept
her eyes and mouth closed tight. The spider now moved down to her neck. Kelley
felt this was her chance. She turned her head and chin down to the right,
against her neck, in an effort to crush the spider.

She missed!

The spider moved down her neck until it reached the top of
her tee shirt. Its tiny legs probed the edges of the shirt.

The spider moved to the center of her shirt where it found
the shirt was slightly raised. The spider went under the fabric.

Moments later the spider bit Kelley. Its bite sent a new wave
of fear into an already panicked mind.

What kind of spider is it? “Oh God...Please somebody help
me,” whimpered Kelley.

Other spiders, dozens of them, moved confidently about the
darkened chamber. One by one, they each began a journey in search of food.

22

Korie
pulled the car off the
highway at the exit marked Town of Sutton.
She pulled into an all night Sunoco gas station. Aaron got out of the car and
began to pump gas into the car.

“
Fill’er
up, ma’am?” asked Aaron.

“Yes, and please wash the windows while you’re at it. We
seemed to have driven through a fog bank of bugs.”

“I can handle that.”

Korie
climbed out of the car. She
stretched her back by placing her hands on her lower back, and pushing her hips
forward. The move was not missed by Aaron.

“I have got to use the bathroom. I’ll pay for the gas and
then, I’ll see if I can get directions to this Mother Nature’s we were told
about.”

“Fine, I’ll just wait in the car.”

Korie
headed off to the gas station
where a young woman sat behind a counter which allowed her a complete view of
the entire array of fuel pumps.

Aaron could see the woman and
Korie
talking.
Korie
headed to the bathroom at the rear of
the store. Aaron finished pumping the gas. He replaced the gas cap and got back
inside of the car. He sat there in the dark for a couple of minutes. Only the
overhead lights of the gas station provided illumination.

Aaron noticed headlights reflecting in the rearview mirror.
The other car was leaving the interstate, coming down the road past the gas
station. Aaron began to experience a feeling of fear—it was a sort of ‘
deja
vu’ for him. This sensation was exactly the same
feeling he had experienced before, while he and
Korie
were at
Mojo’s
.

The car slowed down as it approached the gas station but did
not pull in. Instead, it slowed down and came to a stop alongside the gas station
lot. This car was parallel to Aaron’s car. Aaron saw the car was occupied by
one, lone driver.

The son of a bitch is looking at me,
thought Aaron.

Aaron could feel an icy cold sensation begin to seize him. He
shuddered and unthinkingly felt the need to blow into his hands. It had to be
nearly eighty degrees on this hot humid summer night, yet Aaron felt chills
that made him feel as if it was thirty degrees with a strong northeast wind. He
was now chilled to the bone.

A woman’s voice spoke to him.

“You are much more powerful than he. He’s just testing your
powers. Go on and let him think you are terrified. You can do this. Give him
back a message of fear and weakness. Just think back to your childhood of the
time you were chased by that big dog. You remember it. He chased you up a tree,
and you were terrified he would come up the tree to get you. That feeling is
still with you. Find it again and send it to him.”

Aaron didn’t recognize the woman’s voice, but she seemed to
connect with Aaron. He closed his eyes and searched his memory banks and
quickly pulled back into focus that long ago, seemingly lost terror she had
directed him to. His mind replayed the moment from his youth. Aaron could feel
the fear building up inside of him.

When the childhood fear peaked he commanded his mind to
embrace the feeling, and then send it out to the man in the waiting car.

With that, his own mind sent a flash to the mind of the man
sitting in the idling car.

Aaron opened his eyes and focused upon the silhouette in the
car. The car was at least a hundred feet away, but somehow Aaron could see the
man seemed to be moving inside of the car.

Did he just raise his hand to touch his temples?
thought Aaron. He couldn’t be sure. The car now began to move away. The
taillights soon disappeared down the road.

Aaron was still staring intently at the car as it faded from
his view, when the driver’s door opened and
Korie
slid into the car.

“Did anything interesting happen while I was gone?”

“Uh no, why are you asking that?”

“Because, Aaron Powell. You have that same look on you face
like you had back at
Mojo’s
tonight. I figured
something had to have happened. Am I right?”

“No, I don’t think so,” said Aaron. “I’m just very tired,
that’s all.”

It was the first time he had ever lied to her. He didn’t know
why he did,
it just came out that way,
he thought.

Korie
looked at him suspiciously,
but that lasted for only the briefest of moments.

“Well, anyway. I’ve got directions to Mother Nature’s.”

“What is it, or who is it, I should ask?” said Aaron.

“You’ll see when we get there. It’s only about five miles
down this road.”

She put the car in gear and pulled out of the gas station.
Aaron meanwhile looked out the open car window. Warm summer air blew inside the
car bringing the sweet smell of cow manure, freshly spread in the farm fields
that lined both sides of the road which paralleled the nearby Winooski River.

 
Aaron’s eyes searched
for signs of the mysterious car he had seen earlier. It was not to be found.

In less than twenty minutes they pulled into the darkened,
gravel parking lot of a bed and breakfast inn. The neon roadside sign announced
the place to be, is Mother Nature’s Bed and Breakfast Inn. In smaller,
unlighted letters beneath the lit sign, one could make out an additional
message. This message announced that the place was also the home of Mother
Nature’s Curiosity Shop. Further, beneath the large neon sign was a smaller
neon sign that seemed to be malfunctioning. It flashed “Vacancy” at irregular
intervals.

Korie
got out of the car first and
then Aaron. They both looked over the exterior of the place. It appeared to be
a little long in the tooth. There were no lights in any of the windows. In fact
there were no other cars in the parking lot.

“Not a good sign,” whispered Aaron.

“I know!” whispered back
Korie
.

Just then, a woman’s voice spoke to them from the shadows of
the long front porch.

“She
ain’t
much to look at but
she’s comfortable and the price is right.”

Aaron recognized the voice as the one, which had spoken to
him back at the gas station.

“Before you come on up, you may want to pull that car around
back. Sutton folks are too curious, if you ask me. Go on now.”

They still couldn’t see the person.

“Help me with the bags,” said
Korie
.

Korie
and Aaron retrieved their
bags from the trunk.
Korie
drove the car around to
the back, locked the doors, and ran down the gravel driveway to the front.
Aaron and their bags were nowhere to be seen.

“Up here, we’re up here,” said Aaron from the deep shadows of
the porch.

He stepped to the spindled railing so
Korie
could see him with the help of the weak light reflecting from the roadside
sign. There were no streetlights along the road. The Inn was located just north
of the center of town. The closest streetlight was a couple hundred yards to
the south.

Korie
climbed up the front steps
and stepped into the darkness of the porch. Aaron reached for her hand and led
her to the far end of the porch.

As they neared the end of the porch,
Korie
could hear the faint sound of someone swinging on a porch swing. The swing
creaked ever so slightly from its gentle motion.
Korie’s
eyes began to adjust to the darkness. She could see the outline of someone
sitting on the old porch swing.

“Sit next to me dear. I won’t bite,” said the old woman.

“Okay,” said
Korie
.

“I was just telling your Aaron that I’ve been expecting you
two for a couple of days now.”

“Expecting us? I don’t get it,” said
Korie
as she sat down on the swing.

“Aaron, please bring
Korie
and me
some of the ice tea I made. It’s in the refrigerator in the kitchen. Just go in
the front door and head straight down the hall, last door on your left. There
are glasses in the cupboard, over the kitchen counter, to the left of the
sink.”

“Sure,” said Aaron as he headed off in search of the kitchen
and ice tea.

The old woman took
Korie’s
hands in
hers. The old woman’s hands seemed cool to the touch. Her grip was surprisingly
strong. The woman stopped swinging the porch swing. She turned slightly to look
at
Korie
.

“Do you have any idea why you’re here in Sutton?” asked the
old woman.

“Well, everything’s happened so fast. I guess I’m with Aaron,
because I care about him.”

“Caring about him won’t do dear,” interrupted the woman.

“If you mean, do I love him, I guess I ...I guess I do,” said
Korie
.

“Good, because he will need your love if he is to survive.
Now go on dear, you were going to tell me why you’re here.”

“It appears Aaron is a descendant of a family that’s been
persecuted by an evil group of people from this town. They’re supposed to be
devil worshippers or something. Anyway, Aaron wanted to come to Sutton, to see
for himself if all this is true.”

“And what about the diary?” asked the woman.

“How did you know about that?” asked
Korie
.

“I know a great deal.”

Pausing,
Korie
said, “Just what did
you mean when you said if he was to survive?”

“Aaron is in a great deal of danger. What he does, indeed
what he freely chooses to do, will affect the fate of this world for
generations to follow! The forces of evil are expecting him. They are going to
use all of their powers to bring him into their ranks. He is the missing piece
in their plan to bring Moloch to life, human form, so he can prepare the way
for Lucifer.”

“What you’re talking about, it seems so ...unbelievable. It
almost sounds like you’re talking about the end of the world.”

The old woman released
Korie’s
hands and resumed swinging the porch swing.

Korie’s
mind was now racing with
all sorts of questions.

Meanwhile, in the house, Aaron had located the pitcher of ice
tea, and found drinking glasses in the cupboard, where the old woman said he
would. He looked around the kitchen for a tray. He spotted a small tray sitting
on top of the refrigerator and put the pitcher of ice tea and glasses on it. He
picked the tray up, and was about to turn off the kitchen light, when he
noticed a small picture hanging over the wall switch. The picture was only
three inches by five inches and was set inside a dark, old, wooden frame. The
picture was of a young woman, perhaps in her early twenties standing next to a
young child. The child was a girl of no more than six or seven years old. Their
clothes, although simple in design, suggested the picture was taken sometime
during the nineteen twenties. Neither person was smiling.

Aaron felt a sense of familiarity with the women in the
picture. He looked more closely at the photo. The people in the picture were
standing in front of a large house of some kind. The bushes in front of the
house were in bloom. They looked like forsythia bushes but Aaron couldn’t be
sure.

I know that woman,
he thought to himself.

His eyes began to take in more of the picture’s detail. Aaron
could see a number on the house, but couldn’t quite make it out. The front
entrance, included wide stone steps leading up to a large porch, much like the
one at this Inn. The entrance consisted of two large side-by-side doors with an
arched window overhead.

Something in the bushes drew his attention.

It looks like there is someone hiding in the bushes,
he thought.

It seemed to Aaron there was a faint, almost ghostly shape
standing in the shadows of the bushes directly behind the two people.

As he tried to focus his eyes even more keenly on this image,
it faded from sight.

Try as he might, Aaron could no longer see the mysterious
shape in the bushes.

He decided to turn out the light and bring the ice tea
outside to
Korie
and the old woman.

I didn’t even ask her name,
thought Aaron as he walked
slowly down the hall toward the front porch.

***

Reverend Mitchell was not pleased with the way things had
turned out. His anger had been festering ever since Moloch had removed him as
coven leader, and replaced him with Samuel Porter.

The Reverend was a small man in stature. Envy and hatred
swelled inside of him to the point he believed he would just about explode.

As he had every night since Samuel was placed in charge of
the coven, he paced the floor in his bedroom. Back and forth he went. As was
his habit when he was angry, he repeatedly smacked his right fist inside of his
left hand, in a gesture of explosive anger.

“Damn that little fucker,” he shouted.

Smack, was the sound, as he again slammed his fist into his
open hand.

“I should be the leader, not him. I’m the one who has made
the sacrifices for years, who has put up with the bullshit around here, who has
protected the coven from those who would destroy it. What has that little,
pimple-faced, son of a bitch done? He killed one interloper. Big fucking deal.
I’ve killed over a dozen myself.”

The Reverend kicked a small table over. The table had a small
crystal bowl on top of it, which shattered into several pieces.

“It should be me who brings Moloch to human form, and who
greets Lucifer when he returns in triumph. Damn!”

The Reverend was working himself into a serious sweat.

His devil spirit alter ego,
Zeeka
,
was equally angered by the turn of events. Moloch had become Lucifer’s
favorite.
Zeeka
once served at the left hand of
Lucifer, as his most trusted lieutenant. His position of prominence was a
tribute to the misery he had been able to bring about on earth.
Zeeka
was deposed in favor of Moloch, who had gained favor
with Lucifer when he presented him with plans for something called a Great War.
This Great War idea was to help hasten the time when Lucifer would be invited
to again walk the earth and rule over all that lived upon it. How ironic that
his human alter ego was now likewise deposed by
Zeeka’s
despised competitor.
Zeeka
was a devil wronged, and
also a devil totally corrupted by jealousy and envy. He was the perfect match
for the Reverend. Together they would find a way to regain their rightful
position.