“I believe this demon is an energetic manifestation of a particularly nasty boogeyman born from Latin American folklore. A pishtaco. It is said to lure children into trouble or into the wilderness so that he can devour their fat. He craves it like an addict craves a drug or drink. It was once present in this realm in physical form, which is how it committed the atrocities it once did. I believe it had a hand to play in the death of those children on Haynesville Woods Avenue.”
Jackie’s head twitched at the mention of her street, but she didn’t say a word.
“At some point, this demon must have gone too far and encountered a Good that it could not overcome, which defeated and then drove it into a purgatory In Between the Earthly Realm and The Before. But it has been brought back, likely by a wicked practitioner, maybe a Shaman since we are dealing with Latin American origins. It is said that a skilled practitioner could connect or help another connect with and then manipulate entities stuck in the cracks of the afterlife—the seams where fallen souls are imprisoned alongside the soulless.”
“Purgatory,” Michael said.
Martha nodded. “If this Alphabet King is such a practitioner, we are in for a fight. But something tells me he is not. I believe I would have sensed it. Something tells me he is an agent of another more deeply embedded master. Either way, this ABCs believes he has called this demon into his service. Its energy merges with him in the same way Clay can amalgamate with Evan’s Geist.”
Martha paused for a minute and took a drink of water.
“How can you know this?” Clay asked.
“I have been studying demonology for some time. Those associated with the Catholic Church have published several frank and useful volumes on the topic.” She scoffed. “The damned thing even has a Wikipedia page.”
Michael, lost in thought for a moment, spoke up. “You said it had been trapped between the Earth Realm and Before or something like that. What did you mean?”
“If Heaven is The Beyond, then Hell is The Before. In Between, along the seams between the two, there are metaphysical purgatories, not just for those waiting to be granted passage to The Beyond, but also where the condemned are pulled in to await dissolution into The Before—an eternal Hell where the energetic bonds of their souls are torn apart then condemned to relive the horrible echoes from their past, set in a repeating pattern of spiritual self-destruction.
“If the condemned do not pass into The Before, they can be brought back from their purgatory to the Earthly Realm over and over to repeat evil deeds. Each reliving adding the weight of torment, not just to themselves, but also pinning its victims down in the agony of their worst memories. It is the same in death as it is in life. You can manifest a positive future by focusing on that, or you can bring the pain and regret from the past into your now, creating your own living hell. A hell that can be used against you. A hell that you take with you when you die.”
“So, this Shaman summoned a demon back from The Before,” Clay said.
“No. Once you have passed into The Beyond or The Before, you cannot come back as far as I know. Its metaphysical energy was pulled from a hellish purgatory known as the Ocean of Tar. In this form, it can act as a succubus does, a psychic vampire of sorts that can either empower or feed upon the psychological energy of others. Fear, regret, sadness, anger, lust, greed. Any corruptible emotion or desire.”
“How do we fight this?” Clay asked.
“Evan. His metaphysical energy has been waiting within the seams In Between The Beyond and The Before. In Between the purgatory of the damned and the purgatory of the decent. He inhabits the In Between. This is where die Wächtergeiste exist as well. Burdened with the task of guarding the seams, guarding the In Between. This is where Evan encountered them. This boogeyman is no match for die Wächtergeiste—an ancient warrior energy with the ability to work through the Geist of a good man standing against evil in the Earthly Realm, protecting the ones he loves. Die Wächtergeiste cannot act directly against the demon because it escaped their enclave. They also cannot act against the living, which is why they need Evan. He is their proxy.”
“And I am Evan’s proxy,” Clay said.
Martha nodded. “Given that, and with the help of Evan’s Geist, it now falls upon us to act on the behalf of die Wächtergeiste. If we do not find a way, then...” Martha shuddered. “I dare not think of the consequences. I would imagine that if one demon can be pulled from the Ocean of Tar, then many more can be liberated and then unleashed upon the Earthly Realm. It would mean the fall of existence as we know it.”
Clay looked up, his expression hardening as Martha continued with fierce eyes, orange flecks rotating more intensely now. “Not only do we need to save Elena, but I believe, and so does Evan, that we have been brought together here and now to destroy the abomination who calls himself The Alphabet King. We must sever his connection with the pishtaco.” Martha gave a dry spat after saying the names. “The fate of the Earthly Realm depends upon the outcome. He must be obliterated in every way imaginable. We must drive his demon back to its purgatory, back to the Ocean of Tar.”
They sat in silence, burdened with the weight of enlightenment, the sway and hum and ticks of the SUV distracting them for a moment.
“You see,” Martha drew in a deep breath. Here goes. “Evan believes he sensed a darkness that would be encroaching upon Jackie and Elena, and now he moves along the seams of the Earthly Realm and the In Between so he can manifest when he must.”
Martha brought her focus to Jackie. “And while we are airing things out. Back at the hospital, Evan gave me the impression he knew about Luke.”
Jackie turned her head a little, eyes dark, and didn’t respond at first. “Luke assaulted me in the parking lot of the gym. I kneed him in the crotch to defend myself. What does this have to do with anything?”
“I’m not sure but it seemed an important link to Evan. He made it clear he had observed the whole thing. Was Luke involved with this ABCs?”
“Not that I’m aware of, but pretty much everyone knows Luke had been battling a drug dependency. Evan tried to help,” Jackie said, her tone disconnected.
Michael patted his pockets, then pulled out the flip phone. “Mark, are you there?”
“Yeah,” the voice said.
Michael ignored hushed questions. “Jackie, do you know Luke’s last name?”
“I...” She shook her head.
The flip phone spoke. “I already got his name from the roster on the gym’s website. Running a check on him now. Caucasian male, age 40—”
“Skip the bio,” Michael said. “Is he involved with ABCs?”
“Was.”
“Was?” Michael asked.
“Yeah, he had been tagged for paying ABCs several visits. But he’s dead. Along with another man, someone shot and killed him a few months ago—a woman defending herself from assault and possible kidnapping.”
Jackie turned and looked at the phone in horror, then she shook her head, making it clear to Michael he should not explain.
“Okay. Stay on the line with us. Do what you can.”
“Okay,” the flip phone said before being returned to Michael’s pocket.
“This Luke could have led Evan to ABCs, where he discovered the man’s connection with the demon,” Martha said. “Evan’s prescience compelled him to stay so he could lie in wait and be there to protect you when the threat came to fruition. Now he understands that the accident, the rescue by Clay, and the resulting attack are all parts of a catalyst set in motion by higher powers with the overall intention of destroying this self-declared king.”
“How can you understand how the spirit of a dead man feels?” Jackie asked, calmer now. “How can you understand what he’s thinking, if that’s a better word.”
Softening her tone, Martha replied. “Each time Evan’s Geist is present, there is a deeper psychic connection that occurs between us, and in this way, understanding occurs. Think of it as mental osmosis. It is similar with the pishtaco. Insight accompanies the presence. Evan feels certain that his involvement is not just self-imposed but that he has been kept here to help, through Clay.” Martha paused for a moment. “And perhaps through me too. Not only do we have to save Elena, but we must destroy this man and drive this demon back to purgatory. If we are to prevail, you all must keep this purpose in mind above all others. It will be what saves you. It will be what saves dear sweet little Elena.” Martha sat back, drawing in a deep breath, exhausted. Her eyes widened and her chest expanded as the orange light faded from her eyes, then she collapsed into the seat with the look of someone who had drifted off into a nap.
Jackie turned like she wanted to speak but Michael touched her arm and shook his head.
