Evil in Me, page 13
Adam was dead. Ruby is not.
And that revelation unlocked a host of memories lost to the fire. I am a sheid, I cannot possess the dead … so was expelled. That is all.
More memories flooded in, flashes of his past all jumbled together, it was as though his mind had been released, was becoming his own again. And this too surprised him, gave him hope that perhaps this spell, this potion, might be blocking Lord Sheelbeth in some manner. A wave of excitement shot through Beel. Has the old man, the wizard, somehow set me free?
Ruby clutched her head, let out a moan. “What’s wrong with me?”
Beel barely heard her, his thoughts racing, his hopes rising. And just as he began to believe there might be some chance of escape, he heard Lord Sheelbeth.
“Beel,” she called, her voice muffled and so very far away, but there nonetheless, and all Beel’s hopes crumbled.
“The ring … it is tainted … I am blind!” Lord Sheelbeth’s words echoed from afar, and this time Beel noticed the strain in her voice, as though it took all her will to be heard, every word sounding as though through teeth clenched in pain.
“Beel! Hear me…” Her voice faded for a moment, then came back. “… must … remove … the blood.”
So, it is blood. But whose?
“Scrub … the ring” Lord Sheelbeth demanded. “Do it … now!”
Beel realized her words no longer carried any weight, that he felt no compulsion to obey like some puppet. Why, they were just words now. The blood, it was like some barrier, some shield. The spark of hope returned and so did the question. Am I free?
He heard birds in the pines above. Can I? Dare I? He knew well the risks; the pain of fire so fresh that the smell of smoldering flesh still lingered in his mind.
He nudged Ruby to look up, and he saw them—a flock of blue jays dancing about on the tree limbs. He could hear the joy in their calls, feel their freedom as they leapt from branch to branch. They were as dangling fruit before a starving man, and, like a starving man he grabbed for them, for this chance however slim, doing his trick, sliding out of Ruby’s body, her soul. It was an easy thing, a feat he’d performed a thousand times before.
He spotted a large jay cawing proudly and reached for it, letting go of Ruby as he began to drift upward—a translucent spirit, light as smoke. It is time to fly, he thought. So far away that Lord Sheelbeth will never find me. Only, that didn’t happen, no, instead he felt a tug, like some shackle about his ankle; it began pulling him down, sucking him into the ring.
“No!” he cried, clawing desperately at the air, only to find himself sliding further and further into the ring. Suddenly he could hear Lord Sheelbeth’s voice again, hear the worms.
“Beel! What are you doing? No! You will stop this. Return to me now! The flame! Remember the flame!”
With sudden horror, Beel realized his folly, understood that the woman, for whatever reason, was his only safe harbor. He grabbed for her, flailing for her soul, using all his tricks to pull himself back into her.
Ruby let out a cry. “Leave me alone!” She pushed him away, not physically, but with her mind. It was as a though he’d been kicked, knocking him back. Beel slid further into the ring. He had always relied on stealth, sneaking into a soul when one was asleep or distracted. He knew it to be nearly impossible to enter a mind when one was aware of him, actually fighting him, but there was fire and unbearable pain awaiting him should he fail, so he pushed, pressed, pried with all that he was, trying to force himself into her soul.
Let me in! he demanded. You must let me in!
Ruby clasped her hands against her ears, doubled over and screamed; he could feel her heart drumming with terror.
Again, the ring tugged at him, drawing him ever downward into its trap. Again, he clawed at Ruby’s very soul, wailing at her.
There came a soul-numbing shriek from Lord Sheelbeth. “You will burn!”
Ruby swooned, falling face-forward into the dirt. Beel seized the moment, hooking onto her mind and sliding into her soul. Then, all at once, he was within, the pull of the ring gone. Ruby’s hitching breath the only sound.
Ruby rolled onto her back, trembling, panting, and staring skyward, tears streaming down her face.
Beel watched the jay fly away. I will never be free. Such a fool to even dream of such.
From somewhere far, “You will burn!”
I will, Beel thought, unless, unless. He tried to press out the fear and focus. What had the wizard said, there at the last? That he could help Ruby? Could remove the ring? Yes! The magic book! He has it. And if he can remove the ring from Ruby, and I am within Ruby, am one with her, then perhaps the ring will be removed from me as well. He grimaced within, knowing that wanting something to be true, no matter how bad, did not make it true. Surely, if there is a spell to bind me to this ring, then there must be one to unbind me.
He watched the birds, his heart breaking. God, Father Above, why do you hate me so? What is it I have ever done to you?
The big jay lit upon a branch just above them, cawing as though taunting him.
I will get that book, will find what secrets it holds. Then, Lord Sheelbeth, then we will see who spends eternity in the flame!
We need to go back, Beel said, speaking so that Ruby could hear him.
She shook her head as though from some buzzing bug.
Ruby, listen … you are in grave danger. We both are.
“Get the fuck out of my head!”
We do not have long. We must work together. Now stand up, it is time to go. Beel came forward, exerting himself; it was a simple thing, he just envisioned himself as his host, and he became them. He pushed her to stand. She started up, then suddenly he was knocked back.
“Get out!” she shouted, clutching her head.
Beel wondered how she could’ve done that, knowing she should be his to command at this point. He regathered himself and came forward again, this time ready, but so was she, shoving him back. He pushed and she pushed, causing her to fall over. Ruby rolled back and forth on the sand, growling at him through clenched teeth.
Do as I command! he cried.
“Fuck you, asshole!” Again, he was rebuffed, pushed back, but this time he stayed back, overwhelmed by the fortitude of Ruby’s will. He realized that the spell must’ve brought this woman round to herself. Even so, most souls, human or animal, tended to be fairly easy for him to dominate, maybe not always right away, but with time there were few Beel couldn’t take some measure of control over. The trouble was, he had no idea how much time he had.
Ruby, listen—
“No!” she shouted. “Don’t wanna hear your bullshit! You’re the goddamn Devil!” And with that she grabbed the ring and began twisting, tugging. “Let go of me!” she cried. Beel could feel the pain as she tried to tear the ring loose of her flesh. Then, to Beel’s horror, a chunk of the waxy blood crumbled away in her hand and suddenly he heard them—the worms.
Stop! he screamed, rushing forward, this time so suddenly and forcefully that he was able to tug her hand from the ring. He held it up so they could both see that most of the clotted blood was now gone from the ring.
He shuddered, and the shudder went through Ruby as well. Look! he shouted within her. The blood. You’re wiping off the blood! The old man put it on to protect you. Can you not see that? If you wipe it off, you will break his spell, will let her in, the demon, the true demon. Listen, do you not hear them?
The singing intensified and a chill rolled through her. She began to tremble. “What is that?”
That is Hell coming for both of us.
“Stop it!” She covered her ears, clenching her eyes closed, trying to shut it all out, to withdraw as far within herself as she could. “Make it stop!”
“Beel,” Lord Sheelbeth called, her voice sounding closer now. “You have forgotten who you are again. It is time for you to come home. Remember, I am your savior. You owe me. You owe me, Beel.”
Beel jumped to Ruby’s feet, scrambled up the embankment, and started up the trail, heading for the trailer, the wizard, expecting to be pulled back into the ring with every step.
“Beel,” Lord Sheelbeth called, her voice sounding cold, detached, yet Beel could hear the mounting fury. “Stop! Stop right now or I will have to kill her, the woman. Do not make me do this. We need her.”
Kill the woman? What was she talking about? And it struck Beel, yes, of course, if Ruby dies, then he’ll be ejected from her body. And just like with Adam, he would be pulled back into the ring, back to Lord Sheelbeth, back to the flame. Then another question: But how … how can she kill her?
It was the worms that answered, their voices rising, somewhere Lord Sheelbeth joining them. It was a spell, Beel was sure of it, the strain evident in her voice.
Beel thought he felt the ring twitch, Ruby too. They caught a slight spark from within the eye, then it bit her.
“Ow!” Ruby cried, clutching her hand as heat erupted from the bite. Her finger began to turn black. “What the fuck?”
The heat slowly coursed up her arm, into her chest, her heart, and Beel knew then it was over for her—for them. But the heat moved on, settling in her gut.
Ruby shuttered, convulsed slightly, clutching her stomach. “Oh, God. I feel sick.”
She burped, gagged, then let loose a long belch, a foul odor escaping her lips.
“Aww, yuck!” she cried and doubled over, spitting and hacking. “What the fuck was that?”
Beel could only wonder at what terrible thing Lord Sheelbeth had just done to them—some poisonous spell, a curse? He glanced again at the ring, the eye was dead once more, but he was horrified at how little of the waxy blood still remained.
Voices came to them, but this time from without.
The sky had grown cloudy, as though about to rain. They scanned the deepening shadows and spotted two men in the woods, far up at the top of the hill, heading their way.
“Cops!” Ruby hissed, and before Beel could react, dashed off, running back along the trail, keeping low. They heard more voices ahead. “Fuck,” Ruby said, and slid back down to the little creek, following it until it came to a large cement drainpipe that emptied into a small pond. She ducked into some bushes and squatted there with her arms tight around her legs as though hoping it would all just go away.
We cannot stay here, Beel said.
“Piss off,” she hissed.
You have no reason to trust me. But you must. We are bound for now and have to work together … or we will both end up in a hell you cannot imagine.
She just sat there staring into the dark drainpipe, watching the water spill out.
The demon said she will kill you to get to me. You heard her yourself.
“I don’t know what I heard. Fucking going crazy.”
No … you are not crazy. Do you hear me? You are not crazy.
For the first time, Ruby seemed to drop her guard a little. She sucked in a deep hitching breath. “I’m not crazy.”
No. Everything you have heard is real … but so is the danger. I want out of your head as much as you want me out. But we need help.
“Not gonna kill Mr. Rosenfeld.”
Only the demon wants to kill the wizard. I am seeking his help. I am trying to show you that I am trapped just like you. That the potion, the blood the old man put on the ring, it has—
Lord Sheelbeth’s voice cut through. “I give you but this one last chance, Beel. Cleanse the ring. Do it now. Prove to me you know yourself and I will spare you the flame. Do it now!”
A moan came from the pipe. Ruby stared into the dark culvert.
“You have been warned,” Lord Sheelbeth said.
Another moan.
Ruby stood up.
Shuffling echoed from the pipe; something was heading toward them.
Ruby backed away.
“The taint is upon you. You can run, but never hide. Evil will find you.”
A woman emerged from the drainpipe, sniffing the air. She was stooped, carrying a bundle wrapped tightly in her arms. Her clothes were muddy tatters, rotting, as though she’d been lying beneath the water for many years. Her hair was matted to her skull, her flesh gray and translucent and dripping from her bones; Beel could see every black vein beneath her skin.
“Return to me now, Beel!” Lord Sheelbeth cried. “Scrub the ring and all is forgiven.”
Ruby let out a weak cry and the woman’s empty sockets found them. She grimaced, nodded, and held out her bundle for Ruby to see—two infants swaddled together, both of their skulls bashed in.
Ruby fell back another step, stumbled, and the infants sat up, setting their own hollow sockets on her.
The woman started toward them, clacking her teeth, her feet making but the lightest ripples across the water as she came for Ruby.
The taint, Beel thought, suddenly understanding that Lord Sheelbeth hadn’t poisoned Ruby, but marked her.
Ruby took off, dashing through the bushes, found the trail and started to run, made it only a few yards before colliding head-on into a large bulk of a man.
Eduardo.
He caught her arm. “Gotcha, you freak!”
“Let go!” Ruby yelled, trying to wrench loose.
Eduardo shook her, hard, snapping her back and forth, his face full of rage. “You done crossed the wrong line with me!” He twisted her arm up behind her back, then gave it good jerk.
Pain exploded in Ruby’s shoulder, and her pain became Beel’s pain.
“I told you to stay away from Hugo. Made it clear what would happen if you touched him! Didn’t I?”
Ruby snarled something unintelligible.
Eduardo popped the side of her head with his open palm. “Didn’t I?” He shoved her forward, back up the trail, toward the police. “You’re going to jail, real jail, prison. They’re gonna send you away for…”
The dead woman with her dead babies stood blocking their way. She cocked her head left, then right, the bones popping in her neck. She held her babies up, proudly showing them off. One of them opened its mouth and a leech oozed out along with a gush of brown bile. The woman dropped them, only they didn’t fall, but floated beside her, all three of them staring with sad empty sockets.
Eduardo let out a cry.
The woman began clacking her teeth and started toward them, the babies drifting along with her.
Eduardo shoved Ruby at the woman and stumbled back.
Run, Ruby, Beel cried. Run!
Ruby didn’t run, seemed incapable of running. Beel pushed forward, seized control, and took off, running directly toward the ghoul.
“No!” Ruby screamed, trying to wrestle back dominance.
It is but a shade, Ruby! A ghost. It cannot harm you.
And before she could stop him, they ran directly into the woman’s open arms.
Ruby screamed again, but they drove through the ghost, parting the apparition like smoke, catching nothing more than a cold breeze and the smell of dead fish.
“Carlos!” Eduardo bellowed. “Wade! Guys! Over here. Hurry!” Eduardo’s wide eyes jigged back and forth between Ruby and the ghost, but he couldn’t seem to move.
“Where you at?” one of the cops cried. Beel heard them closing in.
Run! Beel cried, and this time Ruby ran, leaving the ghosts, Eduardo, and the approaching police behind.
Ruby leapt across the creek and scrambled up the far bank. She crashed through the underbrush, came out of the woods and up onto the street. She didn’t stop, but crossed into an adjoining yard, leapt over a chain-link fence, through a small garden, and came out on the next street over. She saw a cop car speed through a nearby intersection and ducked down. She heard more police yelling somewhere just up the block.
“Shit, I’m screwed,” she said, looking up and down the street. That’s when Beel spotted a black Cadillac with a large dent heading toward them.
The wizard, he said.
“What?”
Beel pushed Ruby up and this time Ruby didn’t resist, but waved to the old man.
The Cadillac zipped up to them, coming to a quick stop.
Mr. Rosenfeld rolled down the window. “Get in!” he said, “Hurry, before they see us. Get in!”
“Beel!” Lord Sheelbeth cried. “Stop, stop now! You know not what you do! Hear me. Scrub the ring, scrub the ring and I will grant you your freedom. I promise you this, Beel. Freedom!”
Beel couldn’t remember Lord Sheelbeth ever sounding so desperate, and it gave him hope.
Ruby opened the door, got in, and the car sped away.
ANGEL BLOOD
“You must do something, Wizard,” Ruby said. But Josh knew it wasn’t Ruby speaking. Not only because her voice took on a slightly deeper tone, as well as an odd speech pattern, but simply because he knew what was within her.
Mr. Rosenfeld clutched the wheel, weaving, squinting into the late-afternoon haze as he searched for a place to turn off. It was taking all his effort just to keep the big Cadillac on the road. His eyes were bad, his reflexes shot, he knew he needed to pull over before he drove them into a ditch.
“Hurry, the blood, it is almost gone. Soon she will take us.”
Josh shuddered, wondered just who she was. Another demon? Were there layers of them? His brother, Rabbi Reuben, had spoken of such, but his brother had spoken of many things. Why didn’t I pay better attention?
“Josh, please do something!”
That, Mr. Rosenfeld knew, was Ruby, and the fear and confusion in her voice cut to his core. Stupid old man, why couldn’t you keep it together. You did this to her. You! The one person in your life that seemed to truly give a damn about you, and you couldn’t even keep her safe. He blinked, trying to clear the tears from his vision, trying to stay on the road. Stupid old man.
He spotted a dirt road and turned off, going just far enough that they wouldn’t be seen from the highway. He cut the engine, grabbed the bag next to him, unbuckled it, and yanked out the chalice. “Here, give me your hand.”
Ruby did, clutching her wrist with her other hand, trying to stop the trembling.
