My Demon (34 page)

Feb 11 1987. 10am

Lily started having pains today. The baby’s not due for a week, but the hospital told us to go in.

Feb 11 1987. 4:38pm

We have a daughter! Both Lily and I cried and the nurse congratulated us on having a baby girl. They gave her to us swaddled up in a hospital blanket and she lay in my arms silent, just looking around. Lily wants to call her Alexandra. I think she’s picked a beautiful name.

Feb 24 1987. 3:56am

Why don’t they warn you about the crying? She’s so happy all day long, but cries all night long. We’re taking turns sleeping, but her cry is so plaintive I can’t sleep anyway.

Alex wiped a tear from her eye and looked up to find Clive standing next to the table. He appeared to be unhappy or perhaps worried. He didn’t matter anymore, not to her. She turned back to the diary.

“My father,” she said, “is within these pages. I want to find out why he left me and Mum. I want to understand Harry as best I can. Check this out...” She put the diary to one side, Clive’s eyes following. Alex reached into the shoebox and pulled out the family portrait. “Look, my father. That’s Harry,” she beamed at Clive. “My dad.” She ran a finger over his face, tracing the contours of his chin.

Clive gave a short smile in return and sat beside her, still watching the journal.

“I had forgotten all about Harry, blocked him from my memory. But everything flooded back. Now when I close my eyes I see him. I can even hear him call my name. He called me Alex.” Her face wistful, she stared over at Clive.

“I should read the diary first babydoll, you know, make sure nothing hurts you too bad.” Clive reached for the notebook without waiting for an answer.

Alex who until then, had been far away with her thoughts, shuffling through a multitude of events, previously unremembered images and sounds, came to and grabbed the notebook. She held it against her chest, suddenly aware of the demon’s worry and the absence of his electric smile. His skin rippled, and for the first time, Alex didn’t feel any fear at seeing his other face.

“What don’t you want me to read?” She began flipping through, speed reading the entries for 1989. The demon’s hands twitched, and she wondered if he planned to snatch the notebook from her. “No, I think I want to find later dates, much later.” Alex flashed past pages of her father’s neat handwriting until near the end, the pages became blank. She turned back slowly now, savoring the feeling of playing with Clive for once. She got to the last page of writing and read the words.

“Don’t read it Alex. He was messed up at the time. Worse than you are now. Harry didn’t know what he was saying.”

Alex finished the page. She closed the notebook and held it tight in her hands, the blood draining from her face. For a long time, she sat like this, staring at Clive, her knuckles white as she clasped the journal. Her injured arm throbbed, matching the beat of her heart as her grip tightened.

Finally she spoke, “All lies.” Her words came out quiet, small. “That’s what he said, that it was all lies.”

Clive pondered the words for a moment, and then said, “What do you suppose he meant by that?”

“He mentions you.”

“How could he mean me? He’s no doubt referring to someone at the mental hospital. Clive is a popular name.”

“He says you lied to him. About everything.” Alex glanced back down at the notebook. “My God,” she said, covering her mouth as she realized the enormity of her father’s last words. So many deaths, all wrong. Jeremy, her mother…

“It’s not true,” Clive insisted. Leaning forward he tried to pull the notebook from her grasp. “Let me prove it…”

“No, let go. Don’t you understand, I’ve done some terrible things!” Her teeth started chattering, the shock of the truth chilling her. She put the journal down, out of Clive’s reach and zipped Harry’s jacket closed. Still shivering, Alex slid her hands into her pockets. Inside she found the smooth polished handle of the switchblade. “I know what I have to do now.” Her face set—unemotional, she pulled the knife out. “He had a plan for you. A way he was going to deal with you.”

“He was insane. Talking mumbo-jumbo.” His temper was flaring, and for a moment his other face flickered over his features.

“Was he?” Alex stared back at Clive. “He says a demon tried to guilt him into murder. Tried to use his ‘abandonment’ of his wife and child. Told lies about what happened to them.” With a press of the button, she released the blade.

“And you believe the ramblings of a madman? Do you know how many delusionals see devils and demons?” Clive leaned forward, still intent on trying to snatch the diary. Alex moved it further away.

“One more death to set me free. Those were
his
words, the last words in the notebook.”

“Don’t Alex, don’t believe him. Please, you don’t understand!”

“Don’t understand what? That I’m a murderess and the killing was all for nothing?” she hissed. “It was all lies.” She gazed around the pub at the drinkers. Several Podis were in the pub now. Why here? Were they following her? Or was Clive conjuring more evidence to try and sway her opinion? The blue tint of their smoke faded until only cigarette smoke drifted around the room. “You charmed me or something, didn’t you? Did you put a spell on me?”

Clive remained stone-faced.

“You may as well tell me now.”

“I didn’t cast a spell, more a bewitching. But once I got you going, it was all you. I sat back and enjoyed the killing. Oh, and the Podis are real, but they’re harmless, they latch on in a symbiotic manner. They get a place to live and give increased brain usage to the host. There’s no spawning, the Podis can’t do that here. They treat this world as a holiday destination, stay a little while and then go back.” He smirked, his untwisting of the truth visibly unsettling her.

“I don’t understand. I was what… a sideshow to you?”

“I told you we were bored in our dimension.”

Alex tried to figure out this new information. A deep crimson blush grew on her cheeks. The sound of her heart beat loudly in her ears, her back straightened and her muscles tensed. Under the table, the blade flicked in and out, in time to the rhythms of her body.

“I’m guessing a lot of what you’ve told me is lies.”

Clive shrugged.

Alex flicked the knife into position and secured the blade.

“I’m also guessing you can die.”

Before the demon had a chance to puff out of her dimension, Alex thrust the blade into his chest, hoping to hit his heart. If he had one. She twisted the blade, staring the whole time into his blue eyes. The inane smile faltered and then collapsed into a look of astonishment. “You … you stabbed
me
?”

Alex nodded. “Did you think I would kill myself?” She tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. “It’s your time instead.” She twisted the blade again, enjoying the sound of his pained gasps. She tugged out the knife and stared at the strange viscous black liquid pumping from the wound. Grabbing a napkin off the table, she wiped the blade clean. Clive started fading while at the same time, his blood emptied out and spread down his chest.

“I … I can’t jump.”

“What does that mean, and why do I care?” She debated stabbing him again, but some of the patrons were already keeping an eye on her. No need to make them even more interested. As she checked them out, a hint of smoke leaked from the eyes of a nearby man. He stared at Clive then tipped his glass at her. Her mouth fell open in surprise.

“I can’t get home,” the demon whispered. His hands covered the wound, black blood seeping between his fingers.

“Maybe, if I’m lucky, you’ll actually die.” Alex packed up her father’s belongings and slid out from behind the table. “Goodbye, Clive. It’s been horrible knowing you.”

“Don’t leave me.” He reached out for her. “Don’t let me die alone.” His eyes had turned intensely blue, almost liquid.

Her face set, unable to stop remembering those she’d murdered, she grabbed the box. “Sorry, bub. Got an appointment with a police officer.” Then, almost as an afterthought, she said, “Have a nice life … what’s left of it, anyway.”

Sensing the ghosts of those she loved walking beside her, Alex straightened her shoulders and turned to leave. Outside, rain had started to fall. Perfect, she thought. She’d always hated rain. But today she welcomed the cold drops. She’d changed, grown stronger—
won
. Holding her father’s box close, she stepped out of the pub and into the rain shower.

By Lisa C Hinsley

Lisa C Hinsley’s career has been varied, working as an architectural technician, a pet sitter, a pharmacy supervisor and most recently a carer/companion for elderly ladies, all the while writing when she can. Born in Portsmouth in 1971, Lisa grew up in England, Scotland, and America. She now lives on the Wirral, in northwest England, with her husband, three children, and four cats. Her hope is not to be thought of as the American cat lady, but some things are just inevitable.

Lisa’s novel
The Ultimate Choice
peaked as the 14
^th
overall bestselling sci-fi Kindle book on Amazon.com.
Her novel
What
Alice Sees
was a runner-up in the 2010 UKA Opening Pages Competition and placed in the May 2011 Best Sellers Charts on Arts Council website YouWriteOn. An earlier novel
Coombe’s Wood
finished in the semi-finals of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award 2009 and was awarded runner up in the all-genre Book of the Year Awards 2008 on YouWriteOn. Now listed on Amazon Kindle,
Coombe’s Wood
featured on the top 100 horror chart for over 100 day in the US. Lisa’s novel
The Crocodile
was short-listed in the Undiscovered Authors 2006 competition. Several of Lisa’s short stories and poems have appeared in print publications.

If you enjoyed
The Ultimate Choice
, please let Lisa know at
[email protected]
or leave a review on the book’s page.