The Jake Helman Files Personal Demons (36 page)

9:45 p.m.

Palming the anteroom’s DNA scanner, Jake did not react as the needle pricked the back of his hand. The steel doors parted and he entered Tower’s office. With his jaw set, he passed the miniature Tower and the monitors, then circled the gargantuan desk. Throwing open the doors leading to the atrium, he saw that the overhead lights had been dimmed to simulate nighttime. Lights glowed from beneath the waterfall and from behind bushes, and crickets chirped over invisible speakers. He headed toward the brick structure that housed the Soul Chamber. Pale yellow light spilled out from the open doorway onto the walkway.

Inside the building, with her back to Jake, Kira supported Tower at the viewing window. She held two thick documents with matching blue covers under her left arm. The old man wore a robe and pajamas, and Jake observed his profile: he appeared to have aged twenty years since the previous night, and he raised a portable oxygen mask to his face and took a hit. The spheres of light spun around the chamber, intensifying as Jake approached. The sudden flurry of activity caused Kira and Tower to turn around, and Jake saw that Tower wore his Philippine amulet in plain sight.

“Well, well,” Jake said. “If it ain’t Lady Macbeth and the Picture of Dorian Gray.”

“There you are,” Tower said with a weakened smile. “I wondered where you’d run off to.”

Jake moved closer, the glow of the spheres on his face. “I had a few things to take care of.”

Tower looked at the drum in Jake’s bandaged hand. “Those Biogens were only prototypes, and would have perished soon anyway. You haven’t impacted my deal with Seguera in the least.”

Jake set the drum down on the floor. “Maybe so, but it felt good to kill something. I’ve heard that owners and pets start to resemble each other after a few years. The resemblance between you and these little monstrosities is downright genetic.”

Tower’s eyes twinkled. “We did incorporate some of my DNA into them. They’re the closest things I have to offspring—other than Kira.”

Jake glanced at Kira, who offered him a wicked smile. “I should have known.” And then it occurred to him: when Kira had performed her disgusting act with the Biogen in her bathtub, she had actually been mating with a strain of her own species.

“I never met a woman who lived up to my expectations,” Tower said, “so I had one created for me. Kira was grown from one of my cells. We didn’t even need a whole rib.”

“That’s one way to fuck yourself.”

Tower’s smile faded, and he grasped Kira’s hand with an arthritic claw. “We’ve never consummated our relationship, an unfortunate side effect of DCL-21. But our time is coming. Isn’t it, my dear?”

Kira stared hard at Jake. “Yes, Daddy.”

“She’s the living embodiment of my fantasies,” Tower said. “Surely you appreciated her abilities?”

Jake felt nauseous. Had he screwed Tower’s daughter, or a younger, feminine version of the old man? “She was the best whore I’ve ever had.”

Tower’s face darkened, but Kira’s smile remained unbroken.

“You used her to get at me,” Jake said.

Tower’s narrow lips tightened. “Kira’s the fourth model in her lineage. She has a photographic memory, muscular dexterity, and intensified pheromones.”

Jake recalled Kira’s fragrance. Her genetically enhanced scent had aroused him, not her perfume or some magic spell.

“You couldn’t help yourself,” Tower said. “No one can resist her charms. And she craves me with every DNA strand in her body. I programmed her to desire what only I can give her: true power.”

“What happened to her predecessors?”

Tower’s silence spoke volumes.

Jake turned to Kira. “How does it feel knowing that you’ll wind up on the scrap heap as soon as your sugar daddy here thinks up some new trick that you’re unable to perform?”

Kira smirked. “I’m indispensable.”

“I bet that’s what all the trophy Biogens say.”

Kira’s smile faded. “I run Tower International.”

“You’re a witch.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I did intern with a coven in Massachusetts, but the spells we use to shield the Tower were discovered through Nicholas’s research project. No Wiccan has ever tapped into such power.”

“She’s irreplaceable.” Tower said like a proud parent. “I intend for us to grow old together.”

Jake gestured with his gun. “I’d say you’re way ahead of her on that score.”

“Put that gun away. If you shoot me now, your wife’s soul will never see the light of heaven.”

Jake maintained his grip on the Glock. “Thanks, but I think I’ll hang onto it. It makes me feel better.” He glanced sideways at Kira. “Besides, I could always shoot her.”

Kira’s eyes became slits. “I’ll see your blood turn cold.”

Jake smiled. “That’s just pillow talk.” He faced Tower. “You had the Cipher kill my wife to get me back here, and that solved another problem for you.”

“My Soul Catcher. His carelessness made him a liability. Who better to take the fall for his execution than the vengeful spouse of one of his victims, an ex-cop who’d hunted him while still on the force?”

Jake cocked his head in Kira’s direction. “You deliberately left your security card in my unit for me to find. That was the real purpose behind your late night visit.”

“You weren’t supposed to discover the Biogens,” Kira said. “We just wanted you to have access to my personal computer when the time came for you to learn the Soul Catcher’s identity.”

“You set us both up.”

A satisfied look spread over Kira’s features.

“Those tattoos on his body were as good as a signed confession.”

“One can’t be too obvious when dealing with the police,” Tower said. “The original Soul Catchers had tattoos, too. Mayan symbols, representing the souls they’d absorbed. The more tattoos a priest had, the higher he rose in the sect. Kira merely encouraged our man to be as authentic as possible.”

“What about Russel?”

“Bill’s a capable man. He knows about the Biogens, of course, but not about my other endeavors.”

“I read his file. His travel records over the last year correspond to incidents the media attributed to RAGE. But there is no RAGE, is there? You made them up to discredit the ACCL and paint yourself as a victim. Russel planted evidence that make them appear real.”

Tower raised the oxygen mask to his face and took a hit.

“You say Russel doesn’t know about your other projects, but some of the guards know about the Soul Searchers—”

Exhaling, Tower lowered the oxygen mask. “Why do you think I pay these Keystone Kops top dollar? Every man has his price—and every man becomes expendable eventually. Like Laddock and Birch. Hazard pay is an acceptable business expense.”

Jake gazed through the viewing window at the spheres of light darting around the Soul Chamber like fireflies trapped in ajar. “What’s in store for them?”

Tower took another hit of oxygen. “Let’s just call them my insurance policy.”

Jake looked at his watch. Though his left arm shook, he read the time: 9:58. Two minutes to spare. “You screwed up when you gave the order for that psycho to kill my wife.” Turning in a small circle, he shouted at the ceiling: “Cain!
Come and get it!”

T
ower turned to Kira with a look of excitement. “Cain? Of course! The first killer is the Reaper!” “He had me snatched off the street for a little man-to-demon powwow yesterday,” Jake said.

“I knew he would, but I didn’t expect him to act so fast. That Soul Searcher’s meltdown in the lobby triggered events ahead of schedule, and this heart attack of mine expedited the time table even more.”

Jake narrowed his eyes. “You knew—?”

“I knew that the time would come when I’d need a Judas to betray me for thirty pieces of silver.”

“You didn’t need me to override this spell; you and Elvira here could have done it yourselves.”

“But then I wouldn’t have had the element of surprise on my side, and surprise is an essential factor in every negotiation.”

Jake snorted.
Negotiation?

The lights flickered and dimmed, and the air grew thick.

This is it
.

A seam opened up in the air, three feet above the floor, like a tear in the middle of a piece of paper. Flames shot through it into the room, spread out, and coalesced into the shape of an immense man. The seam closed, the flames burned out, and Cain stretched his pulsating muscles as though he had just made a long car trip. The lights brightened again and the temperature rose. Anticipation filled Tower’s eyes and Kira licked her lips. Inside the Soul Chamber, the spheres of light moved faster. Jake tightened his grip on the Glock.

“AT LAST,”
Cain said, staring down at Tower.

“Welcome to Tower International,” Tower said between oxygen hits.

“OUR MEETING IS LONG OVERDUE. YOU HAVE PLAYED A GOOD GAME. YOU ARE THE FIRST HUMAN BEING TO EXTEND HIS LIFE FOR SO LONG BY UNNATURAL MEANS
.

YOU HAVE BROKEN NEW GROUND.
THE
FUTURE SHOULD PROVE INTERESTING.
WE
LOOK FORWARD TO IT.”

“So do I,” Tower said with a mischievous smile. “You
DON’T LOOK WELL, OLD MAN.”
“I’ll live.”

“NOT LIKELY.”

“Everything is negotiable.”

Cain said nothing.

“We’re both from old, respected families. I’m sure that we can find common ground for discussion.”

“WE’LL HAVE ETERNITY FOR CONVERSATION.”

“I prefer to conduct a dialogue here, in this world.” Tower turned to Jake. “You’re fired.”

Jake waved the Glock in the air. “I think I’ll stick around for the last act. A soul is at stake.”

Tower turned back to Cain. “He’s right, you know. A soul is at stake. Several, in fact.”

“THIRTEEN.”

“I’m glad to see that you follow current events.” Tower swept his right arm toward the viewing window. “Take a look.”

Jake stepped aside as Cain moved forward, and he felt tremendous heat on his face. Kira helped Tower step to the right side of the viewing window. Inside the chamber, the spheres ricocheted off the walls as Cain approached. The demon stopped six feet from the window and gazed at the trapped souls, their light shining on his hellish features.

“I possess something that even your Master doesn’t,” Tower said. “Innocent souls.”

“THERE IS NO SUCH THING.”

Tower shrugged. “Semantics. These souls were on their way up. Hell has never known such purity.”

Jake watched Cain stand motionless, a bad feeling growing in the pit of his stomach.

“I
CAN TAKE THEM ONCE
I’
VE CLAIMED YOUR SOUL
.”

“Who do you think you’re talking to, a neophyte? I’ve done my research. I know some of the rules. These souls are in my possession. They belong to me. You could liberate them, but you could never take them back with you … unless I agree to give them to you.”

Cain’s face showed no sign of emotion.
“WHAT DO

YOU WANT IN RETURN?”

“That should be obvious.”

“ETERNAL LIFE? NEVER.”

“I thought as much. Sooner or later, every soul has to go one way or the other, doesn’t it? And forever is a long time. With my resources, I just might achieve that on my own—if I had a little more time to continue my work.”

“HOW MUCH MORE TIME?”

“A second lifetime should suffice.”

“I’M LISTENING.”

Tower smiled. Jake realized that he had underestimated the old man despite everything he knew about him. His finger tightened on the Glock’s trigger.

“Ms. Thorn?” Tower nodded across the room.

Kira left Tower at the viewing window and crossed the room, glancing at Cain’s lower region. She stopped at the giant metal cylinder and popped the machine’s latches.

I knew it!
Jake thought.

Kira raised the cylinder’s lid like that of a casket. Bright light glowed inside it and she stepped back, revealing the horizontal body of a man. She gestured at the naked figure with a sweeping hand motion, like a hostess on a TV game show. The muscular man appeared to be twenty years old, and he must have been over six feet tall. His wrists and ankles had been clamped to the padded base that he laid upon, and he breathed with the machine’s aid. Sensors attached to his temples and chest allowed the monitors on the wall to display his vital signs.

Jake stepped closer, peering at the face, and a shudder ran through him. Even with its eyes closed, the thing in the cylinder had Tower’s features.

“I’ve had myself cloned several times for organ replacements,” Tower said. “Adult models, grown in pods like this, not infants. You’re looking at a vegetable. A shell waiting for a soul.”

Cain turned from the clone to Tower.
“WHAT ARE YOUR TERMS?”

He’s going for the deal
, Jake thought. Cain planned to betray him, too! His eyes turned to the hatch in the wall. He had to free Sheryl.

“I want a minimum of sixty years in that body,” Tower said. “I want perfect motor function and health as Nicholas Tower Jr., whose DNA will prove that he’s Old Nick’s son. Tower Senior’s documents will confirm that he provided for the care and education of his secret heir; there will be no contest in court. I wish to enjoy life without fear of pain, disease, or incarceration. I want to enjoy my beloved Kira’s body to its fullest. There must be no O.
Henry
twist to spoil my plans.”

Jake’s mind reeled. What kind of diabolical brain hatched such schemes?

“I CAN TRANSFER YOUR MIND AND SOUL AS YOU WISH, AND WE WILL DO NOTHING TO UNDERMINE YOUR WISHES WHILE YOU INHABIT THAT BODY, BUT WE WILL PROVIDE YOU WITH NO ADDITIONAL PROTECTION. YOU WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN HEALTH AND SAFETY, AS YOU ALWAYS HAVE BEEN.”

Tower beamed. “Agreed. Then we have a deal in principle?”

Cain bowed his head and the light faded from his eyes, as if he were communicating with some unseen force. Jake tightened his grip on the Glock. Kira’s breasts rose and fell, her eyes bright with excitement. Then Cain’s eyes glowed again as he looked at Tower.

“AGREED.”