Gallows at Twilight (10 page)

‘Whether he killed her,’ Jake murmured.

‘In his half-demon form, he would have been more than capable. When that side of him is in control, Simon is a danger to himself and others. With that in mind, I’ve asked Brag to stay with us. His strength could save lives if Simon gets … out of hand. I’ll do my best to keep the boy calm—I’ll teach him ways in which he can control his nature—but we must be always on our guard. Hard as it may be, we must never for one moment forget what Simon is.’

‘He’s my friend,’ Jake bristled. ‘He’s a good person.’

‘Half of him is certainly that.’ Adam frowned. ‘The other half? Who knows. Now, Brag, Pandora, would you excuse us a moment?’

The troll and the eight-armed woman exchanged glances and moved away.

Jake went to the balcony and took in the view. Surrounding the oasis of the square was a vast, featureless desert: hundreds of miles of yellow sand baking under the merciless red sun. There were no mountains to break up the horizon, no camel tracks to dimple the desert, no sparkle from a distant city. Nothing but sand and sky. Jake saw it as a place of madness, of death.

‘This is the borderland,’ Adam said. ‘They say that under this desert lie forgotten cities. The ancient homes of the old races. Fairies, demons, the Never Seen. Jake, are you all right?’

‘Yeah.’ Jake grasped the balcony rail. ‘It’s just the heat.’

Adam led his son to the shade and they sat down, backs against a cool brick wall.

‘Pandora told me you fought well.’

‘Thanks.’

‘That was her compliment, not mine.’ A rough edge entered Adam’s voice. ‘You scraped through the Demon Father’s defences with the help of your friends. Whatever he’s planning, that kind of weak magic won’t be enough to stop him. I’ve made a decision, Jake.’

Adam turned hard eyes on his son.

‘You can’t go up against him alone. We need help.’

‘What kind of help?’

‘The Hobarron Institute.’

‘No.’

‘Despite what you told him about shutting the place down, Dr Holmwood has continued developing new weap ons. He’s asked us to come in for talks at the Tower.’

‘Dad, we can’t trust him.’

‘We’ve no choice. I’m sorry, son. If you still had that connection to the Witchfinder, then maybe you could face the Demon Father alone, but your magic … ’

Adam shook his head.

‘Don’t I get a say?’ Jake asked.

‘No. Not unless the Oldcraft magic comes back to you. And that’s my final word.’

Jake might have argued further, but at that moment a terrible scream rose up out of the hatchway.

‘Is he all right? Rachel, what happened?’

Adam hobbled into the room. Bending down, he examined Simon’s panic-stricken face.

Jake, Brag, and Pandora crowded into the bedroom. Simon was sitting up in bed, his arms locked around Rachel. Two terrified eyes peeked over her shoulder and stared past Jake, into the lounge.

‘I heard
her
voice!’ Simon cried. ‘She was calling to me. She was
here
.’

‘We were sitting, talking,’ Rachel said. ‘Next minute, he’s screaming about his mother.’

‘Did
you
hear anyone, Rachel?’

‘No. Just Brag and Pandora talking in the lounge.’

‘We were watching TV,’ Pandora said. ‘We heard nothing.’

‘She
was
here!’ Simon barked.

‘OK. Calm down, Simon. Look at me.’ Adam took a silver coin from his pocket and started twirling it between his fingers. The light reflected off the coin and danced in Simon’s eyes. Adam shooed Rachel off the bed and took her place. ‘You’re safe, Simon. No one’s going to hurt you.’

Jake remembered the time when his father had hypnotized
him
, using the same silver coin. He remembered the peace he had felt, as if all his cares and worries had been lifted from his shoulders. But it had been a false peace, and Jake knew that Simon’s doubts and nightmares would soon come back to torment him.

Simon’s face became blank, his breathing steadied.

‘He’s very responsive.’ Adam turned to the others. ‘I think we should continue the hypnotism now. Go deep and find out what he knows about the Demon Father’s plans.’

‘It’s too soon,’ Rachel said, arms folded. ‘Can’t you leave him alone for a bit?’

‘Not if we want to stop the Demon Father. Time is of the essence.’

‘Then let’s vote,’ Jake said. ‘All those for continuing the hypnotism now, raise your hands.’

Adam lifted his. Brag’s meaty fist soon followed.

‘Dr Harker’s a great man,’ the troll said simply.

After a moment’s hesitation, Pandora lifted one of her many hands. ‘I don’t want to see the boy suffer any more than he has already, but Adam’s right—we have to find out what he knows.’

‘OK. Those against.’

Jake and Rachel lifted their hands.

‘Three to two,’ said Adam. ‘I’ll be as gentle as I can.’

Rachel made a disgusted sound and left the room. Jake wanted to go after her but curiosity pinned him to the spot.

Adam returned to Simon’s side. ‘Can you still hear me?’

‘Yes,’ the boy answered in a dull tone.

‘I want you to start by telling me about that night in Hobarron’s Hollow. The night you saved the Demon Father. What do you remember?’

There was no hesitation. ‘I was standing outside the Witchfinder’s tomb. The sound of the explosion was still ringing in my ears … ’

‘The Steerpike Bridge massacre,’ Jake said, filling in a confused Brag Badderson. ‘The Crowden Coven killed seventeen Elders that night.’

‘Shhh,’ Adam hissed. ‘What else, Simon?’

‘Pain. Worst pain I ever felt, burning through my body. And then I heard
his
voice. He called to me. Reached out with his shapeless hand. The Demon Father.
My
father.’

‘He said that you were his son?’

Simon nodded.

‘Then?’

‘POWER!’ His lips curved into a hideous grin. His barrel chest heaved with excitement. ‘I tore the crypt door from its hinges like it was nothing. Threw it aside. I crept into the cavern and waited for my father’s call. And then—more pain. Unbearable. My bones screamed, my skin tore apart.’

‘You transformed into your demon self.’

‘So you say. So you say.’

‘What happened when you were taken to Havlock Grange?’

‘Darkness. All is darkness.’

‘You’re sure you can’t remember anything? Conversations between the Demon Father and Roland Grype? Anything you might have seen. Think—go back.’

‘Darkness. All is darkness.’

Adam sighed and turned to the others. ‘I think they kept him drugged with sleeping spells. He probably doesn’t know much of what’s happened during the past few weeks. I don’t think there’s any point in pushing him further.’

Simon gripped Adam’s shoulder. His smile became ever more wolfish and his eyes blazed.

‘
They
are coming, Dr Harker.’

‘Who? Quickly, tell me.’

‘Dark powers are gathering, drawn together by my father’s outstretched hand. They will assemble in the new coliseum. They will receive their mission from their new leader. Then they will fall like fire from the sky. At their touch, fortresses will burn, prison walls will quake and crumble.’ Simon’s gaze switched to Jake. ‘An old enemy will be released.’

Simon fell back onto the bed. His body shook as if he was being electrocuted. Brag leapt forward to restrain the boy. For a moment, Jake thought that Simon would transform into his demon self. Gradually, however, Simon relaxed, his eyelids drooped and his head slumped to one side.

‘The Demon Father has commanded it, and his servants will obey,’ Simon slurred. ‘ “Kill them all,” he has said, “leave none alive to tell the tale … ”
They will be here soon …
’

Chapter 9

Creatures of the Pit

The roof terrace was the ideal place for a barbecue. Sitting under the shade of a wall, Jake watched Brag Badderson throw great slabs of meat onto a huge grill. Thick pork sausages, juicy beef steaks, and gigantic hamburgers spat and sizzled. Jake hadn’t eaten for almost twenty-four hours; the smell of the food should be making his mouth water, but what Simon had said during his hypnosis had robbed him of his appetite.

Dark powers were on the move. An old enemy was returning.

After breaking the hypnotic trance, Adam had wasted no time in making contact with Dr Holmwood and the Hobarron Institute. Jake could see the logic of the move, but the memory of the Elders trying to sacrifice Rachel and Eddie Rice was still raw.

‘Hey! Anyone up there?’

A head appeared through the terrace hatch.

‘Wow, it’s hotter’n hell out here.’

Simon climbed up onto the roof. He still looked tired and that haunted expression remained fixed around his eyes. He took a seat in the shade next to Jake, reached over and dragged his friend into a rough hug.

‘Thanks, mate.’

‘Don’t mention it,’ Jake grinned.

They drank from a jug of iced lemonade that Jake had brought up from the kitchen and watched Brag flip his burgers. To ease them into more serious subjects, Jake told Simon about the hair-raising journey he and Rachel had taken from Yaga Passage to the borderland. Simon, who had been unconscious when placed into the vine-tentacles by Pandora, showed off his ‘mystery bruises’. They laughed at the thought of him sleeping like a baby as he was flung from one dimension into another.

Eventually the laughter dried up and they drifted into a comfortless silence. It was some time before Jake broke through the awkwardness.

‘Do you want to talk about what happened, Simon? If you don’t I’ll understand—’

‘No, it’s cool.’ Simon spoke with that familiar dry bark of words. ‘Your dad, he told me what I said under hypnosis: dark powers gathering.’ He shrugged. ‘Honestly, Jake, I don’t know what that means. Dr Harker said he’ll help me try to remember … Remember these last few weeks. Remember my mother and what happened to her.’

Simon gazed into the rolling desert landscape.

‘I’m half-demon. Those were the stories your dad heard from the dark creatures—that a child had been born to a woman and a demon. I need to accept what I am. Face it. To do that, I have to find out what happened to my mother.’

‘After you disappeared with the Demon Father, Rachel told us some of the story you told her,’ Jake said. ‘Your memories of what happened to your mum. Simon, if it isn’t too difficult, it might help if we talked about those memories.’

Simon kept his eyes on the glistening horizon. When he spoke, his voice was as dry and as empty as the desert. He told Jake the story of a strange, bleak childhood: how his mother, terrified of her son, had kept him locked in a cellar. Time and again, she had told Simon that he didn’t have a soul—that he was evil. Then, one day, she had opened the cellar door and her scream had cut the air like a knife. After that, there were no more memories until he had come to live in New Town.

‘I think I’d changed,’ Simon said. ‘I think I killed her.’

‘You can’t know that,’ Jake protested. ‘And anyway, I don’t believe you could kill anyone.’

‘I can betray people though, can’t I? By saving my father, I betrayed
you
. Sidney Tinsmouth knew I would. He told me to fight against my nature, but I was too weak. I’m dangerous, Jake, I shouldn’t be here.’

‘We want you here. All of us. We risked our lives to save you, Simon. Anyway, my dad can show you ways to control your … other self.’

At length, Simon gave a reluctant nod. ‘Rachel said she’d practise the exercises with me. But if I changed—if I ever hurt any of you, I swear—’

‘That’s why Brag’s here,’ Jake grinned, trying to lighten the mood. ‘You go all fang-boy on us, Brag is allowed to get busy with his club. Isn’t that right, Brag?’

The troll looked over, his mouth full of half-cooked burger.

‘Huh? Oh, yeah, right. One hairy toe out of line and—
bam
!’ His giant fist slammed the wall and the whole roof terrace shook.

Simon blinked. ‘OK. That’s good. I guess.’ He took a long drink of lemonade. ‘So, Jake, what’s been happening with you?’

‘Not much,’ Jake shrugged. ‘Magic practice, mainly. Course, we’ve had Rachel staying with us. Her dad calls all the time, but she won’t speak to him—can’t say I blame her, he did try to use her as a human sacrifice … It-it’s been really great, having her around.’

‘She’s an amazing girl,’ Simon murmured.

‘She is.’ Jake swallowed hard. ‘Actually, I’ve been thinking of asking her out. You know, on a date. Just have to work up the courage first, I guess.’

Silence, but for the sizzle of meat and the rattle of sand.

‘You
should
ask her out,’ Simon said at last. ‘She’s a great girl.’

And with that, he rose to his feet and disappeared back down the hatchway.

* * *

During the following two weeks, Adam attended several meetings with Dr Gordon Holmwood at the Hobarron Institute. Jake steadfastly refused to accompany his father. He knew that his dad didn’t want to deal with Holmwood, but that it made sense from a practical point of view. With their connections and resources, the Elders might be able to make sense of Simon’s warning and help to unpick the Demon Father’s plans. After a fortnight of sharing information and pooling resources, Jake had to admit that, although much remained hidden, the Institute had at least helped them to track the Demon Father’s movements.

The demon had returned from Madrid the day after Simon’s rescue. Hours later, a new trident symbol had been found burned into a Spanish hillside. The demon had then remained in England for almost a week before flying to Paris. He had stayed in the French capital for only a few hours before travelling back to Havlock Grange. Seconds after his plane departed, the French authorities had found a strange trident shape scorched into the main runway of the Charles de Gaulle airport. Since then, the Demon Father had not strayed from the Grange. He waited there, like a spider in the centre of its web.

For his part, Jake had spent some of the last two weeks practising his magic; focusing on memories of those times when he had felt the Witchfinder’s power. Try as he might, however, his magic remained weak. He didn’t have much time to worry about it, though. Every day he would get up before dawn, strike out across the square, and head for the road back to Yaga Passage and London. He had managed to avoid Mr Murdles’s requests for a magical display by saying that he wanted the show to be a surprise, both for the assembled crowds and Murdles himself.