The Suicide Forest (The River Book 5) (17 page)

Steven slowly lifted his head back into a normal position.
The planchette was lying on the ground at his feet.
Why doesn’t he just take
it?
Steven wondered.

“I can’t just take it,” the man said. “You need to give it to
me.”

“If I give it to you, you’ll release my friends?” Steven
asked. “And you’ll leave me alone from now on?”

“Oh, I’ll do more than that,” the man said. “I’ll offer you
my protection. Vohuman will be angry you gave it to me. You’ll be on his
enemies list.”

“You say this is yours?” Steven said, reaching down to grab
the planchette off the ground.

“I commissioned its creation four hundred years ago,” the man
said, “from a very talented fabricator. I wanted a glass that would allow me to
not just
see
markings, but to
know
their consequences. It was very
expensive. It was stolen from me a hundred years ago, and I’ve been searching
for it ever since. When I was taking the boy’s hands, I noticed you had it on
you, and I knew I’d landed a bigger prize than just little Robbie. I doubt
Vohuman knows how beneficial his little trap worked out to be.”

“You can’t take it from me, can you?” Steven asked. “That’s
why all this talking. You need me to give it to you.”

“Exactly correct,” the man said. “Another of its properties
is loyalty to its owner. It apparently thinks that’s you. If you give it to me,
I’m the new owner, and things will be restored. If I were to take it forcibly,
it would shut down on me and become useless, as I suspect it was for the person
who stole it from me.”

“And all this bullshit about being friends?” Steven asked.
“You know I’m going to give it to you because you’re holding my friends. I have
little choice.”

“I don’t know how you found it,” the man said, “but there’s a
couple of other objects I’ve lost over the years. Well, not lost really, I’m
more careful than that. They were stolen from me. I’m hoping you might have a
source for the others. I’d like them all back, if I can get them.”

“I might have a source,” Steven said. “What’s to stop you
from just tracking me to find them?”

“If they were in a place where I could get at them,” the man
said, “I’d have already recovered them. Sure, I’ll track you. Why not. You’re
an interesting fellow. And those two, out there,” he nodded towards the
clearing where Roy and Eliza were still floating, “they’re hoots, the old man
especially.”

“He’s my father,” Steven said.

“Whatever,” the man said. “But wherever you got it, I
couldn’t get in. If you can locate my other objects and bring them to me, we’ll
be good friends.”

“Hardly,” Steven said. “It’s still all by force.”

“So there
are
more objects?” the man said. “More
objects that you don’t know anything about? What they do, who they belong to?
Sounds like it.”

Steven pressed his lips together, remaining silent.

“I’m going to let your friends go,” the man said, “and I’m
going to protect you from Vohuman so you can continue to return to me the items
that are mine. That’s a fair bargain.”

“I’ve always heard that making deals with a demon is a bad
idea,” Steven said.

“People say all kinds of things,” the man said. “I wonder how
many of them are actually friends with a demon?”

“I do have a source,” Steven said. “I don’t know if your
objects are there or not. I don’t consider them mine. If you give me detailed
descriptions of the items you’re after, I’ll look for them. If I find them,
I’ll give them to you.” Steven handed the planchette to the man. “Provided that
once I do so – whether I have the items you want or not – you’ll leave me and
my friends alone.”

“Deal,” the man said, taking the planchette, “provided you
agree to keep the terms secret between the two of us.” He turned the planchette
over and looked through the glass at himself. “Ah,” he said, closing his eyes.
“I’ve missed that. I’m so glad we’ve met, Steven.”

As Steven watched, the bodies of Roy and Eliza slowly moved
towards them and then around their chairs and back into the tent. As they
passed, Steven could see that their eyes were still closed.
I wonder if they
heard any of this
, he thought.

“No,” the man said, “they didn’t. And you won’t be able to tell
them about the deal you’ve made with the devil.”

“Is that what you are?” Steven asked. “The devil?”

“I don’t know,” the man said, standing up. “What would you
call someone who chops up little boys just for the pleasure of a chase?”

“If not the devil,” Steven said, “you’re pure evil.”

“Don’t forget our agreement,” the man said, turning to walk
towards the forest. “I’ll expect you to live up to it.”

“You’ll have to give me descriptions,” Steven said as the man
walked away from him. “I want a complete list before I start looking.”

“And you’ll get it,” the man said, his voice beginning to
fade. “I know where you live.”

Steven watched as the man entered the woods and disappeared.
The sky was beginning to lighten –sunrise was on its way. Steven remained
seated in the camping chair, still angry from his interaction with Aka Manah.
He racked his brain for options, for some way to get out of the deal he’d just
made.

I don’t know what ninety-nine percent of those items at
Eximere do, anyway. They’re useless to me. Returning a few to this demon is no
skin off my back, especially if it keeps us safe.

But try as he might, he still felt wrong. The deal might not
involve any more than a little of his time, but the idea of doing anything to
help the monster that killed Robbie and June made him feel sick. And trapped.

Friendship indeed
, he thought.
I still feel fucked.

The light began to increase. He expected to hear birds
responding to it, then he remembered where he was.

 
Still a while before it’s fully up,
Steven thought.
I’m
not going to wake them. Let them sleep. I can explain all of this later. I’ll
start the coffee.

“Judith,” Steven said, “this is Eliza. Eliza, Judith.”

“Nice to meet you,” Eliza said.

“Yes, isn’t it?” Judith said, eyeing Eliza from top to
bottom.

“And here is the book I borrowed,” Steven said, handing
Varieties
of Demonic Repression
back to her. “There was a deposit.”

“Oh, yes,” she said. “That. I’d almost forgotten. How much
was it?”

“A thousand,” Steven said. “Cash.”

“You’ll have to take a check,” Judith said, reaching into a
handbag by her side. “We don’t keep money like that around the house.”

“Sure,” Steven said.

“I trust you found it useful?” she asked as she looked for
her checkbook and a pen within the handbag.

“I did,” Steven said. “Very useful.”

“And you were able to resolve your problems with the demon?”
she asked.

“Yes,” Steven said, “as resolved as they’re going to be.”

“If only life were like the movies,” Judith said, opening her
checkbook and beginning to write. “There would be a big explosion at the end
and everyone would be fine. I’m guessing you cut a deal.”

“I can’t talk about it,” Steven said.

“Typical demon request,” Judith said, ripping the check off
her checkbook and handing it to Steven. “I’m not surprised.”

“We’re grateful to you,” Steven said. “We would never have
made it through without your guidance. And the book. Although it was completely
wrong about how to deal with it.”

“You have to completely believe you’re fighting against it to
gain any kind of a bargaining advantage,” Judith said. “They can read minds. If
they know you’re about to negotiate, you don’t get much.”

“So you really did us a favor with all the misdirection,” Roy
said. “The mirrors, the amplification, all of that were never going to work. It
was about getting a better deal with the demon.”

“And did you?” Judith asked Steven.

“Everyone’s alive,” Steven said. “I can’t really discuss any
more than that.”

“And that is a good deal with an ancient demon!” Judith said.
“Any deal that leaves you alive is a good deal. So I’ll just say, you’re
welcome!”

“We’ll be going,” Steven said. “No need to call Clara, we
know the way out.”

“It was nice to meet you,” Eliza said, following Steven.

“Tell Dixon hello for me,” Judith said as they walked out of
the sitting room. “Tell him to stop in next time he’s in town.”

“Will do,” Steven answered.

As they marched down the stairs and into the entryway, Roy
turned to Steven and said, “I can’t imagine what Dixon might see in her.”

“She did help us, Dad,” Steven said. “Can you hold your
comments until we’re at least out of her house?”

◊

Steven walked onto the back porch. Eliza was sitting in a
rocking chair, looking out over the beautifully landscaped backyard and the giant
banyan tree. Steven walked over to her and handed her a glass, then sat in a
hanging bench next to her.

“What’s this?” she asked, taking the drink.

“A mojito,” Steven said. “I muddled the mint myself.”

Eliza giggled. “I do like hanging out here with you and Roy,”
she said, sipping the drink through a straw. “And this place,” she said, waving
her arm in the direction of the banyan tree. “It seems I could never get tired
of it. Isn’t it marvelous how it tends itself? No need to mow or clip anything.
Unser did it right.”

Steven sighed and took a sip of his drink. She was right, the
place was intoxicating.

“When do you want to go back?” he asked.

“Never,” she said. “Can’t I just stay here forever?” She
turned to look at Steven and smiled, then laughed. “Maybe Troy can raise
himself? Just pretend I don’t live in California at all?”

“You can stay here as long as you want, as far as I’m
concerned,” he said. “It’s your place as much as ours. None of ours, I guess,
really. We’re all just here as guests.”

“I guess that’s why it feels so wonderful,” Eliza said. “It’s
like were guests at a fabulous hotel, and we can stay as long as we want. And
no other guests around to ruin anything!”

“You’re right,” Steven said. “A hotel that’s full of books
and strange objects.” He paused, thinking about the task he’d soon have to
fulfill, once Aka Manah made his list of items known.

“You really can’t talk about it, can you?” Eliza said.

“Nope,” Steven said. “I agreed I wouldn’t.”

“I feel bad you and Roy had to schlep all that stuff out into
the forest, given that it was never going to work.”

“I think we all underestimated him,” Steven said, “except
Judith. She knew the best we’d be able to do was cut a deal. She made sure we
got as good of a deal as we could get.”

“And you can’t tell me what the deal was?” she asked, knowing
the answer.

“No,” Steven said. “The terms of the deal are a secret
between him and me.”

“Don’t you mean ‘it’ instead of ‘him’?” Eliza said.

“No,” Steven said, “I think it’s a him. When we talked, he
appeared as a man. But really, he’s just evil. A completely evil being.”

“And now you have to live with an arrangement you didn’t want
to make,” she said. “Must be uncomfortable.”

“Not as bad as it could be,” Steven said. “I think I can
honor my end of the deal.”

“But can you trust him to honor his end?” Eliza asked.

“That’s the trouble,” Steven said. “That’s where I feel I
don’t have a choice in the matter. I was forced into the whole thing. He holds
all the cards.”

“Do you think you’ll have your end of the deal completed
quickly?” Eliza asked.

“I really don’t want to talk about it,” Steven said. “I don’t
want to slip up and have something bad happen.”

“Alright, I’ll stop,” Eliza said. “It’s just so intriguing. I
mean, I hate that you’ve been put over a barrel. That I can’t know the details
just makes me want to know all the more.”

“I’m sure I’d feel the same way,” Steven said.

“Has Roy asked about it?” Eliza asked.

“Not much,” Steven said. “He’s been a little jealous ever
since my markings appeared. I suspect he’s similarly jealous that I have some
pact with an entity that he can’t know about, even if it is completely
detrimental to him to know about it. We’ve always shared everything before
this, and he’s used to being in charge. It bothers him when he’s not.”

“He’s a good man,” Eliza said. “I’d trust him with my life. I
do
trust him with my life.”

“Who do you trust?” Roy said, walking onto the porch with an
old fashioned.

“You,” Eliza said. “I’d trust you with my life.”

“Well, thank you,” Roy said. “And I’d trust you with mine.”
He held his glass out to her, and she clinked her glass against his.

“What about you, Steven?” she asked.

“I trust both of you,” Steven said. “I hope you trust me,
even though I can’t talk about the deal.”

“We trust you,” Roy said. “We’ll just have to work around the
problems it’ll cause.”

“What problems?” Steven asked.

“There’s always some problems that come up when there’s
secrets between people,” Roy said. “You just say, ‘it’s part of my demon deal,’
and I’ll know to back off.”

Steven laughed. “I wish it were funny.”

“No,” Roy said. “I know it’s not. I’ve never had to make a
deal like that, so I don’t know. I hope I never have to. Since that plan for
shocking the demon was bogus, I’m afraid we roped you into this whole thing
unnecessarily, Eliza. We didn’t need that ingredient at all.”

“I don’t mind,” Eliza said. “It’s nice to visit with you two
again, regardless. I was telling Steven I feel like I could stay here forever.”

“That’s the problem with this place,” Steven said. “It’s like
heroin. When it’s time to go home, you go through withdrawals.”

“Just tell me one thing,” Roy said, turning to Steven. “Are
you comfortable with the terms? Do you feel one hundred percent confident you
can handle your end of the deal? I need to know if I’m gonna have to step in at
some point.”

“I feel confident,” Steven said. “I can’t see any reason why
I can’t pull it off myself. You’ll just have to take some vague answers from me
sometimes.”

“Alright, I can do that,” Roy said. “And hey – you learned
how to trance.”

“Yes!” Eliza said, raising her glass again. “Here’s to Steven
and trancing!”

“Here here!” Roy said, raising his glass.

“Does this make me a full-fledged member of the club now?” Steven
asked.

“Well, let’s see,” Eliza said. “You’ve got this place here,
Eximere, so you’ve got a worthwhile project. You’ve learned how to trance. And
you’ve got your own deal with the devil. Yes, I’d say you’ve made it to the big
leagues!” She smiled.

“The only thing left to do,” Roy said, “is to talk to Jason.
Bring him into the fold.”

“I’ll do that as soon as I get home,” Steven said. “Although I
don’t think I ever want him to know his father made a deal with a demon. It’s
not something I’m proud of.”

“There’s nothing wrong in what you’ve done here,” Eliza said.
“Not that I can see. You have nothing to be ashamed of.”

“Maybe” Steven said, rising from the bench, troubled. “I hope
so.” He walked off the porch and into the house.

Eliza stared out over the porch handrail, into the slowly
dimming light. “Remember when we sat over there on the other side of that
banyan tree and watched as the marchers came through here?” Eliza asked Roy.

“I do,” Roy said. “I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.”

“As wonderful as this place feels,” Eliza said, “I remember
feeling dread while we sat there, waiting for them to come. I feel the same way
now.”

◊

When Steven returned home from dropping Eliza at the airport
and Roy at his house, there was a message waiting for him. It was from Jason:

“Dad, if you try to reach me and can’t, don’t worry. I’m
going to be out of town for a few days, in fact I’m in the car now, heading south.
I should be back next week. I don’t know if there will be much cell reception
where we’re going. I haven’t heard from you in a while. You haven’t returned
any of the calls I left you. But I don’t want you to worry, I’ve found someone
who is like you and me, and he’s agreed to teach me what I want to know. Turns
out he’s my next door neighbor. I met him last week when I first moved in, and
we’ve become friends. The two of us are taking a trip to Nevada to see someone
there that Michael learned from. He’s going to give us both lessons. Say ‘hi’
to my dad, Michael.”

Steven’s blood ran cold and he felt frozen, waiting for the
voice on the other end. It couldn’t be
that
Michael, could it? Jason had
just moved into a new apartment. Where was it again? He’d told him the address in
an earlier voicemail. He’d moved there with his girlfriend. It was a room in a
house – what was the address? Was it on 34th? Could it be the same Victorian
mansion where he and Roy had met college students last year, as they searched
for Ben’s murderer? Could the next door neighbor be – Michael?

“Hello, Mr. Hall,” the voice came. “Jason’s in good hands.
All the best to Roy.”