The Devil Rides Out (40 page)

Simon laid an unsteady hand on the Duke's arm. ‘Is it–is it–quite safe to do this? I mean, mightn't Mocata have another cut at us now we're in the dark and no longer have the protection of the pentacle?'

‘No,' De Richleau answered decisively. ‘He played his last card tonight when he sent the Dark Angel against us and caused Tanith's death. That stupendous operation will have exhausted his magical powers for the time at least. Come over here, all of you, and sit down on the floor in a circle.'

Leading them over to Tanith's feet he arranged them so that Rex and Marie Lou both had their backs to the body and would be spared the sight of any manifestations which might take place about it. He sat facing it himself, with Richard and Simon either side of him; all five of them clasped hands.

Then he told them that they must preserve complete quiet and under no circumstances break the circle they had formed. He warned them too, that if they felt a sudden cold they were not to be frightened by it as they had been of the horrible wind which had swirled so uncannily in that room a few hours before. It would be caused by the ectoplasm which might be drawn from Tanith's body and, he went on to add, if a voice addressed them they were not to answer. He would do any talking which was necessary and they were to remain absolutely still until he gave orders that the circle should be broken up.

They sat there, hand in hand, in silence, while it seemed that an age was passing. The square frame of the window gradually lightened but so very slowly that it was barely perceptible, and if dawn was breaking at last upon the countryside it was shut out from them by the grey, ghostly fog.

The cones of incense burned slowly, giving a strange, acrid smell, mixed with some sickly eastern perfume. From their position in the circle Richard and Simon could see the faint wreaths of smoke curling up for a few inches above the tiny points of light to disappear above, lost in the darkness. Tanith's body lay still and motionless, a shadowy outline upon the thin mat of makeshift bedding.

De Richleau had closed his eyes and bowed his head upon his chest. Once more he was practising that rhythmic, inaudible Raja Yoga breathing, which has such power to recruit strength or to send it forth, and he was using it now while he concentrated on calling the spirit of Tanith to him.

Richard watched the body with curious expectancy. His experience of the last few hours had been too recent for him to collate his thoughts, and while he had so sturdily rejected the idea of Black Magic the night before he would more or less have accepted the fact of Spiritualism. It was a much more general modern belief, and this business as far as he could see, except in a few minor particulars such as the incense compounded with blood, was very similar to the spiritualistic séances of which he had often heard. The only real difference being that, in this instance, they had a newly dead body to operate on and therefore were far more likely to get results. As time wore on, however, he became doubtful, for if their vigil had lasted many hours this one, now that he was utterly weary, seemed like a succession of nights.

It was Simon who first became aware that something was happening. He was watching the seven cones of incense intently, and it seemed to him that the one which was farthest from him, set at Tanith's head, gave out a greater amount of smoke than the rest. Then he realised that he could see the cone more clearly and the eddying curls of aromatic vapour which it sent up had taken on a bluish hue which the rest had not.

He pressed De Richleau's hand and the Duke raised his head. Richard too had seen it, and as they watched, a faint blue light became definitely perceptible.

It gradually solidified into a ball about two inches in diameter and moved slowly forward from the head until it reached the centre of Tanith's body. There it remained for a while, growing in brightness and intensity until it had become a strong blue light. Then it rose a little and hovered in the air above her, so that by its glow they could clearly see the curves of her figure and her pale, beautiful face, lit by that strange radiance.

Intensely alert now, they sat still and watchful, until the ball of light began to lose colour and diffuse itself over a wider area. The smoke of the incense wreathed up towards it from the seven metal platters, and it seemed to gather this into itself, forming from it the vague outline of a head and shoulders, still cloudy and transparent but, after another few moments, definitely recognisable as an outline of the bust of the figure which lay motionless beneath it.

With pounding hearts they watched for new developments, and now it seemed that the whole process of materialisation was hurried forward in a few seconds. The bust joined itself, by throwing out a shadowy torso, to the hips of the dead body, the face and shoulders solidified until the features
were distinct, and the whole became surrounded by an aureole of light. Upon the strained silence there came the faintest whisper of a voice:

‘You called me. I am here.'

‘Are you in truth, Tanith?' De Richleau asked softly.

‘I am.'

‘Do you acknowledge our Lord Jesus Christ?'

‘I do.'

A sigh of relief escaped De Richleau, for he knew that no impersonating elemental would ever dare to testify in such a manner, and he proceeded quietly:

‘Do you come here of your own free will, or do you wish to depart?'

‘I come because you called, but I am glad to come.'

‘There is one here whose grief for your passing is very great. He does not seek to draw you back, but he wishes to know if it is your desire to help him in the protection of his friends and the destruction of evil for the well-being of the world.'

‘It is my desire.'

‘Will you tell us all that you can of the man Mocata which may prove of help?'

‘I cannot, for I am circumscribed by the Law, but you may ask me what you will and, because you have summoned me, I am bound by your command to answer.'

‘What is he doing now?'

‘Plotting fresh evil against you.'

‘Where is he now?'

‘He is quite near you.'

‘Can you not tell me where?'

‘I do not know. I cannot see distinctly, for he covers himself with a cloak of darkness, but he is still in your neighbourhood.'

‘In the village?'

‘Perhaps.'

‘Where will he be this time tomorrow?'

‘In Paris.'

‘What do you see him doing in Paris?'

‘I see him talking with a man who has lost a portion of his left ear. It is a tall building. They are both very angry.'

‘Will he stay in Paris for long?'

‘No. I see him moving at great speed towards the rising sun.'

‘Where do you see him next?'

‘Under the earth.'

‘Do you mean that he is dead–to us?'

‘No. He is in a stone-flagged vault beneath a building which is very
very
old. The place radiates evil. The red vibrations are so powerful that I cannot see what he does there. The light which surrounds me now protects me from such sights.'

‘What is he planning now?'

‘To draw me back.'

‘Do you mean that he is endeavouring to restore your soul to your body?'

‘Yes. He is already bitterly regretting that in his anger against you he risked the severance of the two. He could force me to be of great service to him on your plane but he cannot do so on this.'

‘But is it possible for him to bring you back–permanently?'

‘Yes. If he acts at once. While the moon is still in her dark quarter.'

‘Is it your wish to return?'

‘No, unless I were free of him–but I have no choice. My soul is in pawn until the coming of the new moon. After that I shall pass on unless he has succeeded.'

‘How will he set about this thing?'

‘There is only one way. The full performance of the Black Mass.'

‘You mean with sacrifice of a Christian child?'

‘Yes. It is the age-old law, a soul for a soul. That is the only way and the soul of a baptised child will be accepted in exchange for mine. Then if my body remains uninjured I shall be compelled to return to it.'

‘What are—'

The Duke's next question was cut short by Rex, who could stand the strain no longer. He did not know that De Richleau was only conversing with Tanith's Astral body and thought that he had succeeded in restoring the corpse which lay behind him, at least to temporary life again.

‘Tanith,' he cried, breaking the circle and flinging himself round. ‘Tanith!'

In a fraction of time the vision disintegrated and disappeared. His eyes blazing with anger, De Richleau sprang to his feet.

‘You fool!' he thundered. ‘You stupid fool.' In the pale light of dawn which was now at last just filtering through the fog, he glared at Rex. Then, as they stood there, angry recriminations about to burst from their lips, the whole party were arrested in their every movement and remained transfixed.

A shrill, clear cry had cut like a knife into the heavy, incense-laden atmosphere, coming from the room above.

‘That's Fleur,' gasped Marie Lou. ‘My precious, what is it?'

In an instant, she was dashing across the room to the little door in the bookshelves which led to the staircase up to the nursery. Yet Richard was before her.

In two bounds he had reached the door and was fumbling for the catch. His trembling fingers found it. He gave a violent jerk. The little metal ring which served to open it came away in his hand.

Precious moments were lost as they clawed at the bookbacks. At last it swung free. Richard pushed Marie Lou through ahead of him and followed, pressing at her heels. The others stumbled up the old stone stairs in frantic haste behind them.

They reached the night nursery. Rex ran to the window. It was wide open. The grey mist blanketed the garden outside. Marie Lou dashed to the cot. The sheets were tumbled. The imprint of a little body lay there fresh and warm–but Fleur was gone.

‘Here's the way they went,' cried Rex. ‘There's a ladder under this window.'

‘Then for God's sake get after him,' Richard shouted, racing across the room. ‘If that damn door hadn't stuck we'd have caught him red-handed, he can't have got far.'

Rex was already on the terrace below, Simon shinned down the ladder and Richard flung his leg over the sill of the window to follow.

Marie Lou was left alone with De Richleau in the nursery. She stared at him with round, tearless eyes, utterly overcome by this new calamity. The Duke stared back, shaken to the very depths by this appalling thing which he had brought upon his friends. He wanted most desperately to comfort and console her, but realised how hopelessly inadequate anything that he could say would be. The thought of that child having been seized by the Satanist to be offered up in some ghastly sacrifice, was utterly unbearable.

‘Princess,' he managed to stammer. ‘Princess.' But further words would not come, and for once in his life he found himself powerless to deal with a situation.

Marie Lou just stood there motionless and staring, held rigid by such extreme distress that she could no longer think coherently.

With a tremendous effort De Richleau pulled himself together. He knew that he had earned any opprobrium that she and Richard might choose to heap upon him for having used their house as a refuge, stated that no harm could befall them if they followed his instructions, and yet been the means of perhaps causing the death of the child whom they both idolised. But it was no time to offer himself for the whipping-post now. They must act and quickly.

‘Where is nurse?' he shot out hoarsely.

‘In–in her bedroom.' Marie Lou turned to a door at the end of the room which stood ajar.

‘It's extraordinary that she should not have woken with all this noise,' De Richleau strode over and thrust it open.

In Fleur's nursery a greyness blurred the outlines of the furniture and shadowed the corners of the room, but in the nurse's bedroom, the curtains being drawn, it was still completely dark.

The Duke jerked on the electric light and saw at once that Fleur's nanny was lying peacefully asleep in bed. He walked over and touched her swiftly on the shoulder. ‘Wake up,' he said, ‘wake up!'

She did not stir, and Marie Lou, who had followed him into the room, peered at the woman's face anxiously, then cried on a louder note: ‘Wake up, nanny! Wake up!'

De Richleau shook the nurse roughly now, but her head rolled helplessly upon her shoulders and her eyes remained tightly shut.

‘She's been drugged, I suppose,' Marie Lou said miserably.

‘I don't think so.' The Duke bent over and sniffed. ‘There is no smell of chloroform or anything here. It's more likely that Mocata plunged her into a deep hypnotic sleep directly he arrived. Best leave her,' he added after a moment. ‘She'll wake in due course, and obviously she cannot tell us anything if she has been in a heavy induced sleep all the time.'

They returned to the nursery and the Duke switched on the lights there to make a thorough examination. Almost at once his eye fell on a paper which lay at the foot of Fleur's empty cot. He snatched it up and quickly scanned the close, typewritten lines.

Please do not worry about the little girl. She will be returned to you tomorrow morning providing that certain conditions are complied with. These are as follows:

In this exceptional case I have been compelled to resort to unusual methods which bring me within the scope of the law. I have no doubt, therefore, that one of you will suggest calling in the police to trace the child. Any such action might embarrass my operations and therefore you are not to even consider such a proceeding. You cannot doubt by now that I have ways and means of informing myself regarding all your actions and, in the event of your disobeying my injunction in this respect, I shall immediately take steps which will ensure that you never recover the child alive.