Chapter 20

By Saturday afternoon, Sean and Jerry had gathered and exhausted all the leads they’d unearthed to find Lisa. They hadn’t had any luck, even with help from the Sentinel Guards. She had vanished.

“We can’t do anymore today.” Sean tossed his notebook onto his desk, drained and frustrated. “I need a break. I promised my grandmother I’d visit her.”

“A break will do us both good,” Jerry agreed. “My wife wants to take the kids to the beach while the weather is still nice. She’ll be happy if I go with them. And a happy wife is an ‘attentive’ wife.” Jerry wiggled his eyebrows and grinned. He whistled as he tossed his keys in the air and caught them while he walked to his car.

Sean envied Jerry’s happy relationship. He and his wife had been married for twenty years, and had four kids. Sean wished he would find someone to love. Catlyn’s freckled face popped into his mind. He growled with frustration. Ethically, he couldn’t date her until he solved her murdered friend’s case. It gave him a new motivation to catch the Iron Maiden Killer.

The drive to Temecula took less time for a Saturday afternoon than he expected. As he approached his grandmother’s house, he frowned, piqued at the unknown motorcycle parked in the driveway. They’d made arrangements for him to come today for more training. Why would someone else be here? Dahlyah waited on the front porch. As soon as he turned off the engine, she shifted into her large, winged form and flew through the window. A moment later, Granny Eileen opened the door for him.

When he entered the house, a woman with super short, light brown hair and brown eyes rose from the couch. Her body looked toned and athletic. She smiled at him, and wrinkles crinkled at the corners of her eyes and mouth, making him revise his first estimate of her age upward to late forties.

“Sean, this is my good friend, Jade Lowery,” Eileen said.

“It’s so nice to meet you.” As Sean shook Jade’s hand, he noticed she stood only a couple inches shorter than his 5 foot 11 inches. He’d heard of her through Charlie and various cases, but he hadn’t met her. “Charlie speaks highly of you. He enjoys working with you. Thank you for your help in trying to locate Lisa Moon.”

“Have you found her yet?”

Sean shook his head. He raised a questioning eyebrow at his grandmother.

Granny Eileen grinned, a twinkle in her eye. “She’s here to help with your lessons, my boy.” Before he could question her further, she led them to her back patio, where she poured them each a glass of iced tea.

A fountain murmured in one corner, and the wind chimes sang in the breeze, providing a serene setting. Sean leaned back in his chair and tried to relax. How can a woman involved in personal security help me learn magical skills?

“Eileen tells me your witch-sight has opened.” Jade put her glass on the table. She sat at the edge of her seat, looking ready to leap up and fight at a moment’s notice. Her eyes roved the yard as if she were searching for enemies. “What have you seen?”

Sean told them about the people transmuting in the club, the various dragons, and how his neighbor had morphed. “I’ve also seen light orbs that resolved into what I imagine are pixies.”

“Your neighbor is a fae,” Jade said. “They aren’t to be confused with fairies, who tend to be mischievous brats. The fae could be good or bad, just like humans. I suspect your neighbor is on our side. The people in the club are demons, who are all evil. They originate in the lower dimensions, and they are soldiers for their daemon masters.”

Sean frowned. She’d pronounced the second word as day-mons. “Aren’t demons and daemons the same thing?”

Jade shook her head. “No. Although they come from the same world, demons are lower-level beings. They are capable of easily crossing the portals between our dimension and theirs. Most people can’t see them for what they are. Some species are able to appear to be human when they choose. Their only job and desire is to cause mayhem and trouble. They can’t possess humans. But they can manipulate a person’s mind, causing them to do stupid things they’d never do otherwise.”

“What about causing people to riot, push someone in front of semi-trucks, or kill their loved ones?”

Both Eileen and Jade gave him sharp looks.

“We’ve had an epidemic of those types of crimes lately.” He shuddered as he remembered the bite on the Holcomb baby’s arm. The poor child hadn’t survived. “People are seeing strange creatures immediately before committing the crime. You mean they could be telling the truth, and demons had coerced them?”

Jade and Eileen shared a look before Jade nodded to him. She resettled in her chair, curling one leg under her. Even then, she appeared more ready for action than relaxed. “It’s likely, especially with what you describe. Although humans are quite capable of doing evil and making bad decisions on their own without help from demons.

“Now daemons, on the other hand, are the royalty and leaders of the demon world. They can, and do, possess humans. It’s the only way possible for them to survive in this dimension. The higher ranking they are, the more problems they have crossing the boundary into our world—thank the Goddess. Otherwise, we’d be their slaves.

“We would consider their world a hell, but to them, it’s home. Like warlords and greedy people here, they want more than they have. Their objective is to conquer and control this world. If they do, their next step is to reach for the worlds in the next higher dimension. They will never be satisfied, and it’s why we have to keep them from overtaking our world.”

Sean made another notation in his notepad. “Right, got it. Demons: soldiers, daemons: generals. How do we kill them? Do I need to go see Father Burcher and get some holy water?”

Both Jade and Eileen broke into a fit a laughter. Sean looked between them, confused.

“Doesn’t that stop them? How about reciting the Lord’s prayer or Christ’s name?”

Eileen wiped the tears from her eyes. “You’ve been watching too many television shows, Sean. This isn’t ‘Supernatural’ or ‘Charmed’. The beings from the lower dimensions, commonly called demons, predate the Judeo-Christian-Islam religions by thousands of years, if not hundreds of thousands of years. Holy water and prayers just pisses them off. Although, Supernatural did get one thing right. Salt does create a boundary evil can’t cross. It also eliminates negative energy.”

“Your witch-sight allows you to differentiate friend from foe.” Jade leaned forward and removed a dagger from the sheath she wore behind her back on her belt. Symbols covered the bone handle, and creamy white moonstones adorned the cross-guard and pommel. She eased the blade from the case, revealing not metal, but a clear-crystal blade.

“This,” she said, “will kill a demon. The blade is specially created with magic, making it super strong and unbreakable. It has been dipped in an herbal solution toxic to demons. The moonstones hold moonlight, which banishes the demons back to their dimension. This one is mine.”

His grandmother rummaged in a bag by her side he hadn’t noticed and pulled out a similar knife. She laid it on the table in front of him. “This was your grandfather’s. I want you to have it.”

As Sean examined it, her meaning sank in. “Wait, if this was my grandfather’s, does that mean he fought demons? You want me to fight demons?”

“Yes, to both.” Sadness flitted across her face. “You might say it’s the family business. One your father has tried to forget he was once part of. When a demon killed your grandfather, it devastated your dad. He refused to continue the fight. He left our organization and wouldn’t let me teach you. Magic flows in your veins, Grandson, just like it does mine, and Jade’s. The Gods have called us to fight a holy battle that has been going on for tens of thousands of years.”

The light glinted off the moonstone settings and seemed to wink at him. He used his witch-sight to look at it. A dazzling white light shone from the dagger. It called to him. His fingers itched to pick it up.

“Take it,” his grandmother urged. “You don’t have to decide on anything else today. But now you can see the world as it truly is, you’ll need protection beyond what your amulet can provide. The supernatural beings will sense you can see them, and those who are evil won’t like it. They’ll try to kill you. Your gun won’t harm them. Please, Sean, for my sake, take the dagger.”

Sean reached out and touched the knife. Energy zinged from it up his fingertips and through his body. It didn’t hurt. It made him feel alive. “I’ll take it, just for you, Granny. But I have to think about the other stuff. It’s a lot to process.” He looped the sheath onto his belt and adjusted it behind his back. He slid his shirt over it. Warmth seeped into his skin.

When he left a while later, his grandmother patted his cheek. “I know you’ll do the right thing, Sean. Call me if you have any questions.”

Sean promised he would. Warmth crept up his back, reminding him of the unusual weapon he now wore.

When he arrived home, he pulled out his grandfather’s dagger. As he examined it, moonlight fell on it, and pulses of electricity tugged at him. He wondered how it worked against a demon, and if it was sharp. Pulling a blank sheet of paper from his notebook, he sliced down. The paper parted like butter, and Sean gaped at the blade’s sharpness. He thought of Michael and the missing girl and growled with suppressed anger. He glanced down and squeezed his eyes shut against the dazzling white light shining from the crystal blade. It seemed the blade didn’t like Michael either.

He wasn’t sure what he’d decide to do, but he’d become a cop to protect people. Wouldn’t fighting demons protect them even more?

Sean’s knuckles whitened from his tight grip on the steering wheel. The only reason the captain would call him to investigate a murder on his day off was if it was another Iron Maiden killing.

Sean drove north on the 91-freeway out of Orange County and into San Bernardino County. Instead of going surfing on his rare Monday off, he’d searched the internet for information about demons. The little he could find on demons was completely different from what he’d learned from his Granny and Jade. Now that he knew about daemons, his instincts were telling him the Iron Maiden Killer was somehow connected to a daemon. A shudder rolled through him. It took a special kind of monster to willingly summon a daemon. As far as he was concerned, Michael Drogger fit that description.

“Do you think the victim is our missing person?” Jerry asked from the passenger seat.

Sean shrugged. “I hope not, but it’s probable. Drogger disappeared the same night Lisa did.”

Jerry gaped at him. “You haven’t been following Michael Drogger again, have you? The chief warned you to stay away from him after the last murder. Do you want a restraining order placed against you?”

“He’s our prime suspect,” Sean grumbled as he switched lanes to move around a car poking along in the fast lane. “I’m going to do my job regardless of what Thomas Drogger says or how rich he is. Money shouldn’t determine how we do our jobs.”

“If you piss off the Drogger family, they have the power to get you fired.” Jerry glanced over and grinned. “I’ve finally trained you to be a good partner. I don’t want to deal with another newbie.”

“Old man, you and I are equals,” Sean sputtered. “We’re the same rank. The only seniority you have over me is your advanced age. In fact, I do most of the work in this team.”

“See, I’ve trained you well.”

Sean rolled his eyes and focused on the traffic. Lourdes had only been working on this case with him for the last year. Captain Green had assigned him a new partner after his old one had blown his knee, chasing a suspect.

They rode in silence. Sean hoped and prayed the victim wouldn’t turn out to be Catlyn’s friend Lisa. If this murder was the work of the Iron Maiden killer, it didn’t bode well. The only other times there had been more than one killing in a month had been the initial killing spree and another a year later. Then, they’d discovered three victims.

Guilt and regret filled him as images from the first gruesome crime scenes assailed him. After nearly three years, Sean wasn’t any closer to catching the killer. He was sure Michael was behind it, but he simply hadn’t found the evidence to prove it. Now he knew more about his heritage, he wondered if his certainty was related to his Granny Eileen’s “sight.” Sean’s chest tightened. Heat washed his face. Michael had been paying far too much attention to Catlyn lately. He cringed at the thought of one day finding her mutilated body.

Sean turned into the parking lot of the dilapidated warehouse, two hours shy of leaving Anaheim. The rundown industrial area, far from residences, seemed a perfect place to torture someone for days without anyone noticing.

Brian met Sean and Jerry at the warehouse door, plastic booties and face masks in hand. “I don’t know how it could get any worse, but it is. You haven’t eaten recently, have you?”

Sean scowled and shook his head. After putting on the protective clothing, he followed Brian through the maze of trash and machinery of the abandoned manufacturing plant. Yet another business lost to the constant outflow of products produced overseas. They passed several places where homeless people had squatted. The stench of death grew as they traversed deeper into the building.

Brian pushed past the plastic sheets hanging over a wide doorway. Sean stepped through, and even though he thought he’d prepared himself, he gagged. Brian’s question about eating now made sense.

All the bodies they’d found before had been intact, albeit, gruesome. Like the others, this corpse had been skinned and hung from two meat hooks piercing its shoulder blades. Unlike the others, this one lacked a right arm and left leg. The little skin remaining was blackened as if had been burned. A terrified scream froze the features in what remained of the mutilated face. A hank of long, black hair stuck to the skull.

Another woman.

He closed his eyes. Catlyn’s friend Lisa had long, black hair. Perhaps, if the Gods were kind, this wouldn’t be her.

“What’s that?” Sean pointed to the mess lying on the floor, along the line of the circle and beside one of the star points.

“The victim’s arm.” Brian’s face screwed up in disgust. “Well, what’s left of it. It’s been gnawed on. Something ate the flesh off of it. Same thing with the leg.” He gestured to where it lay directly opposite the arm. “I told you it was worse. We need to catch the sick bastards before they do this again.”

“No argument here.” Sean paced the outside of the circle, sensing ghostly figures marching around it, swinging smoking censors, and chanting.

He stopped in front of the leg and switched on his witch-sight. He grimaced at the phantom image of a beast—unlike any seen on this earth—crouched over the leg, ripping off the flesh and devouring it. It had a dog-like head, except for the four eyes and knobby horns on top. The squat, muscled body sported six legs and two barbed tails. He gazed across the circle to the arm and saw the ghostly image of a similar creature.

Demons.

Sean walked to the edge of the circle, and the crystal blade he wore all the time now warmed his back. He suspected it did that when in the presence of demons or their ilk. He’d lay odds the unknown substance in the blood was demon blood.

“Hey, Sean!” Brian called. “You need to see this.” He stood in the corner over a pile of rags.

Dread crept up Sean’s spine as he hurried over. “What is it?”

Brian crouched and picked up a woman’s blouse. “Clothes. The victims, I’m betting.” He dug in the pile and pulled out a wallet, frowning. The perpetrators had never left clues or evidence before. He opened the wallet and read the identification. “Lisa Moon, she lived in the city of Orange.”

Sean bowed his head and groaned. They’d been too late to save her.

“Wait a minute,” Brian continued. “I recognize the name. I saw a missing persons report on her a few days ago.”

Jerry examined the driver’s license and the wallet’s other contents. His eyes held a haunted look before his professional mask dropped into place. Jerry put the wallet into an evidence bag while Brian tapped furiously on his tablet.

“What are you doing reading missing persons reports?” Sean asked.

“Trying to get a head start. It was getting close to the time for another murder. Ah, here it is. You won’t believe who filed the report. Catlyn Hennessey. She seems involved in this.”

“Not in the way you think.”

Brian looked up at Sean. “Your name is on this, too. Why?”

“Michael Drogger has been taking a special interest in Catlyn, stalking her, in fact. Lisa was her friend, and Catlyn reported her missing.”

Brian’s gaze shifted between Sean and Jerry, perplexed. “That’s two of her friends and clients we’ve found murdered by this guy, and you don’t think she’s involved.”

“I’ve talked to her at length.” Sean waved at the gore. “She isn’t capable of this violence. She’s being taunted. And so are we. I don’t know why she’s caught the attention of Michael Drogger, but she has.”

Jerry’s lips pursed as he studied the crime scene. “I’ll dig into the other victim’s background again and see if there’s any connection to her. It seems odd the last two victims knew her, but the others didn’t, especially if Drogger is taking an interest in her. Maybe they went to the same coffee shop or grocery store. This may be the break we’ve been looking for. Brian, check Lisa’s movements over the past few weeks. Pay attention if she crossed paths with Michael Drogger.”

“Will do.” Brian bagged the clothes.

Sean walked the perimeter of the circle. Using his witch-sight, he tried sensing who had been in the circle with the victim besides the beastly demons. Nothing registered on his psychic alarm system. As he turned to leave, a deep, nasty laugh filled his mind. “Too late. You’ll be too late. I am almost here.” The voice dripped with evil.

The amulet his grandmother gave him blazed on his chest, and the voice disappeared. His body shook like an earthquake. If the voice had been a daemon’s, then he needed to do everything he could to stop it from entering his world. He’d start by visiting the person he’d bet his life—and his career—was responsible for summoning it.

“I’m going to visit our prime suspect,” he told Jerry. “Do you want to come with me or ride back with Brian?”

Jerry wrinkled his nose. “I hate the Red Orchid. I’ll go back with Brian and go over the background checks again with this new focus.”