"Almost twelve."
"Very grown up for your age."
"Thank you," Penny said gravely.
Ahead, at a cross street, a roaring river of wind moved from east to west and swept up so much snow that it almost looked as if the Avenue of the Americas terminated there, in a solid white wall. Rebecca slowed down, switched the headlights to high beam, drove through the wall and out the other side.
"I love your father," she told Penny, and she realized she hadn"t yet told Jack. In fact, this was the first time in twenty years, the first time since the death of her grandfather, that she had admitted loving anyone. Saying those words was easier than she had thought it would be. "I love him, and he loves me."
"That"s fabulous," Penny said, grinning.
Rebecca smiled. "It is rather fabulous, isn"t it?"
"Will you get married?"
"I suspect we will."
"Double fabulous."
"Triple."
"After the wedding, I"ll call you Mom instead of Rebecca-if that"s all right."
Rebecca was surprised by the tears that suddenly rose in her eyes, and she swallowed the lump in her throat and said, "I"d like that."
Penny sighed and slumped down in her seat. "I was worried about Daddy. I was afraid that witchdoctor would kill him. But now that I know about you and him* well, that"s one more thing he has to live for. I think it"ll help. I think it"s real important that he"s got not just me and Davey but you to come home to. I"m still afraid for him, but I"m not so afraid as I was."
"He"ll be all right," Rebecca said. "You"ll see. He"ll be just fine. We"ll all come through this just fine."
A moment later, when she glanced at Penny, she saw that the girl was asleep.
She drove on through the whirling snow.
Softly, she said, "Come home to me, Jack. By G.o.d, you"d better come home to me."
IV.
Jack told Carver Hampton everything beginning with the call from Lavelle on the pay phone in front of Rada Rada, and concluding with the rescue by Burt and Leo in their Jeep, the trip to the garage for new cars, and the decision to split up and keep the kids safely on the move.
Hampton was visibly shocked and distressed. He sat very still and rigid throughout the story, not even once moving to sip his brandy. Then, when Jack finished, Hampton blinked and shuddered and downed his entire gla.s.sful of Remy Martin in one long swallow.
"And so you see," Jack said, "when you said these things came from h.e.l.l, maybe some people might"ve laughed at you, but not me. I don"t have any trouble believing you, even though I"m not too sure how they made the trip."
After sitting rigidly for long minutes, Hampton suddenly couldn"t keep still. He got up and paced. "I know something of the ritual he must have used. It would only work for a master, a Bocor Bocor of the first rank. The ancient G.o.ds wouldn"t have answered a less powerful sorcerer. To do this thing, the of the first rank. The ancient G.o.ds wouldn"t have answered a less powerful sorcerer. To do this thing, the Bocor Bocor must first dig a pit in the earth. It"s shaped somewhat like a meteor crater, sloping to a depth of two or three feet. The must first dig a pit in the earth. It"s shaped somewhat like a meteor crater, sloping to a depth of two or three feet. The Bocor Bocor recites certain chants* uses certain herbs* And he pours three types of blood into the hole-cat, rat, and human. As he sings a final and very long incantation, the bottom of the pit is miraculously transformed. In a sense* in a way that is impossible to explain or understand, the pit becomes far deeper than two or three feet; it interfaces with the Gates of h.e.l.l and becomes a sort of highway between this world and the Underworld. Heat rises from the pit, as does the stench of h.e.l.l, and the bottom of it appears to become molten. When the recites certain chants* uses certain herbs* And he pours three types of blood into the hole-cat, rat, and human. As he sings a final and very long incantation, the bottom of the pit is miraculously transformed. In a sense* in a way that is impossible to explain or understand, the pit becomes far deeper than two or three feet; it interfaces with the Gates of h.e.l.l and becomes a sort of highway between this world and the Underworld. Heat rises from the pit, as does the stench of h.e.l.l, and the bottom of it appears to become molten. When the Bocor Bocor finally summons the ent.i.ties he wants, they pa.s.s out through the Gates and then up through the bottom of the pit. On their way, these spiritual beings acquire physical bodies, golem bodies composed of the earth through which they pa.s.s; clay bodies that are nevertheless flexible and fully animated and finally summons the ent.i.ties he wants, they pa.s.s out through the Gates and then up through the bottom of the pit. On their way, these spiritual beings acquire physical bodies, golem bodies composed of the earth through which they pa.s.s; clay bodies that are nevertheless flexible and fully animated and alive alive. From your vivid descriptions of the creatures you"ve seen tonight, I"d say they were the incarnations of minor demons and of evil men, once mortal, who were condemned to h.e.l.l and are its lowest residents. Major demons and the ancient evil G.o.ds themselves would be considerably larger, more vicious, more powerful, and infinitely more hideous in appearance."
"Oh, these d.a.m.ned things were plenty hideous enough," Jack a.s.sured him.
"But, supposedly, there are many Ancient Ones whose physical forms are so repulsive that the mere act of looking at them results in instant death for he who sees," Hampton said, pacing.
Jack sipped his brandy. He needed it.
"Furthermore," Hampton said, "the small size of these beasts would seem to support my belief that the Gates are currently open only a crack. The gap is too narrow to allow the major demons and the dark G.o.ds to slip out."
"Thank G.o.d for that."
"Yes," Carver Hampton agreed. "Thank all all the benevolent G.o.ds for that." the benevolent G.o.ds for that."
V.
Penny and Davey were still asleep. The night was lonely without their company.
The windshield wipers flogged the snow off the gla.s.s.
The wind was so fierce that it rocked the sedan and forced Rebecca to grip the steering wheel more firmly than she had done before.
Then something made a noise beneath the car. Thump, thump Thump, thump. It knocked against the undercarriage hard enough to startle her, though not loud enough to wake the kids.
And again. Thump, thump Thump, thump.
She glanced in the rearview mirror, trying to see if she"d run over anything. But the car"s back window was partially frosted, limiting her view, and the tires churned up plumes of snow so thick that they cast everything behind the car into obscurity.
She nervously scanned the lighted instrument panel in the dashboard, but she couldn"t see any indication of trouble. Oil, fuel, alternator, battery-all seemed in good shape; no warning lights, no plunging needles on the gauges. The car continued to purr along through the blizzard. Apparently, the disconcerting noise hadn"t been related to a mechanical problem.
She drove half a block without a recurrence of the sound, then an entire block, then another one. She began to relax.
Okay, okay, she told herself. Don"t be so d.a.m.ned jumpy. Stay calm and be cool. That"s what the situation calls for. Nothing"s wrong now, and nothing"s going to go go wrong, either. I"m fine. The kids are fine. The car"s fine. wrong, either. I"m fine. The kids are fine. The car"s fine.
Thump-thump-thump.
VI.
The gas flames licked the ceramic logs.
The blown-gla.s.s lamps glowed softly, and the candles flickered, and the special darkness of the night pressed against the windows.
"Why wouldn"t those creatures bite me? Why can"t Lavelle"s sorcery harm me?"
"There can be only one answer," Hampton said. "A Bocor Bocor has no power whatsoever to harm a righteous man. The righteous are well-armored." has no power whatsoever to harm a righteous man. The righteous are well-armored."
"What"s that supposed to mean?"
"Just what I said. You"re righteous, virtuous. You"re a man whose soul bears the stains of only the most minor sins."
"You"ve got to be kidding."
"No. By the manner in which you"ve led your life, you"ve earned immunity to the dark powers, immunity to the curses and charms and spells of sorcerers like Lavelle. You cannot be touched."
"That"s just plain ridiculous," Jack said, feeling uncomfortable in the role of a righteous man.
"Otherwise, Lavelle would have had you murdered by now."
"I"m no angel."
"I didn"t say you were. Not a saint, either. Just a righteous man. That"s good enough."
"Nonsense. I"m not righteous or-"
"If you thought of yourself as righteous, that would be a sin-a sin of self self-righteousness. Smugness, an unshakable conviction of your own moral superiority, a self-satisfied blindness to your own faults-none of those qualities is descriptive of you."
"You"re beginning to embarra.s.s me," Jack said.
"You see? You aren"t even guilty of the sin of excessive pride."
Jack held up his brandy. "What about this? I drink."
"To excess?"
"No. But I swear and curse. I sure do my own share of that. I take the Lord"s name in vain."
"A very minor sin."
"I don"t attend church."
"Church-going has nothing to do with righteousness. The only thing that really counts is how you treat your fellow human beings. Listen, let"s pin this down; let"s be absolutely sure this is why Lavelle can"t touch you. Have you ever stolen from anyone?"
"No."
"Have you ever cheated someone in a financial transaction?"
"I"ve always looked out for my own interests, been aggressive in that regard, but I don"t believe I"ve ever cheated anyone."
"In your official capacity, have you ever accepted a bribe?"
"No. You can"t be a good cop if you"ve got your hand out."
"Are you a gossiper, a slanderer?"
"No. But forget about that small stuff." He leaned forward in his armchair and locked eyes with Hampton and said, "What about murder? I"ve killed two men. Can I kill two men and still be righteous? I don"t think so. That strains your thesis more than a little bit."
Hampton looked stunned but only for a moment. He blinked and said, "Oh. I see. You mean that you killed them in the line of duty."
"Duty is a cheap excuse, isn"t it? Murder is murder. Right?"
"What crimes were these men guilty of?"
"The first was a murderer himself. He robbed a series of liquor stores and always shot the clerks. The second was a rapist. Twenty-two rapes in six months."
"When you killed these men, was it necessary? Could you have apprehended them without resorting to a gun?"
"In both cases they started shooting first."
Hampton smiled, and the hard lines of his battered face softened. "Self-defense isn"t a sin, Lieutenant."
"Yeah? Then why"d I feel so dirty after I pulled the trigger? Both times. I felt soiled. Sick. Once in a while, I still have a nightmare about those men, bodies torn apart by bullets from my own revolver*"
"Only a righteous man, a very virtuous man, would feel remorse over the killing of two vicious animals like the men you shot down."
Jack shook his head. He shifted in his chair, uncomfortable with this new vision of himself. "I"ve always seen myself as a fairly average, ordinary guy. No worse and no better than most people. I figure I"m just about as open to temptation, just about as corrupt as the next joe. And in spite of everything you"ve said, I still still see myself that way." see myself that way."
"And you always will," Hampton said. "Humility is part of being a righteous man. But the point is, to deal with Lavelle, you don"t have to believe believe you"re really a righteous man; you just have to you"re really a righteous man; you just have to be be one." one."
"Fornication," Jack said in desperation. "That"s a sin."
"Fornication is a sin only if it is obsessive, adulterous, or an act of rape. An obsession is sinful because it violates the moral precept "All things in moderation." Are you obsessed with s.e.x?"
"I like it a lot."
"Obsessed?"
"No."
"Adultery is a sin because it is a violation of the marriage vows, a betrayal of trust, and a conscious cruelty," Hampton said. "When your wife was alive, did you ever cheat on her?"
"Of course not. I was in love with Linda."
"Before your marriage or after your wife"s death, did you ever go to bed with somebody else"s wife? No? Then you aren"t guilty of either form of adultery, and I know you"re incapable of rape."
"I just can"t buy this righteousness stuff, this idea that I"m one of the chosen or something. It makes me queasy. Look, I didn"t cheat on Linda, but while we were married I saw other women who turned me on, and I fantasized, and I wanted wanted them, even if I didn"t do anything about it. My them, even if I didn"t do anything about it. My thoughts thoughts weren"t pure." weren"t pure."
"Sin isn"t in the thought but in the deed."
"I am not not a saintly character," Jack said adamantly. a saintly character," Jack said adamantly.
"As I told you, in order to find and stop Lavelle, you don"t need to believe believe-you only need to be be."
VII.
Rebecca listened to the car with growing dread. Now, there were other sounds coming from the undercarriage, not just the odd thumping, but rattling and clanking and grating noises, as well. Nothing loud. But worrisome.
We"re only safe as long as we keep moving.
She held her breath, expecting the engine to go dead at any moment.
Instead, the noises stopped again. She drove four blocks with only the normal sounds of the car and the overlaid moan and hiss of the storm wind.
But she didn"t relax. She knew something was wrong, and she was sure it would start acting up again. Indeed, the silence, the antic.i.p.ation, was almost worse than the strange noises.
VIII.