Chapter 10

Sabrina did not have any trouble getting into Aristide's apartment. Roxanne had given her keys, as well as told her where to find all tapes together to take to Julia.

As Roxanne had promised, Aristide was gone. Evidently, staying inside was too boring for him.

Quickly she put the tapes in her bag, then all the papers she could find.

She had to take Roxanne with her. She had promised her that. And carrying a trunk would not arise any suspicions. Those trucks were fashionable enough.

It was just heavy and bulky...

Fitting the small wheels under it was arduous work, as she didn't have any help. Finally she was done. Tired, she wiped the perspiration from her forehead while still holding the screwdriver.

"Not bad, beautiful" Aristide said behind her.

Sabrina turned quickly.

"I knew that you two were doing something behind my back."

Sabrina didn't move. "Think fast, or you are dead." she told herself.

Aristide caught her by the hair while taking out his knife "You are going to tell me all about it."

She went limp as he pulled her up. Then, halfway, she shot up, and stabbed him right under the sternum with her screwdriver. It went right in.

He struggled and tried to hit her with his own knife. But she twisted, and he missed. She kept pushing the screwdriver into his heat until only the handle showed.

She was spattered with blood as she pulled away from the dying Aristide.

"How am I going to wash this off?" She wondered "I might have to borrow one of her dresses..."

Then the blood turned to dust, and was gone...

And so was Aristide. All that was left of him were his bones.

"You have been planting these bugs in my house?" Kira accused Tammy.

"I swear to you, Sister..." Tammy protested.

"You have. Who else would?"

Tammy was shaken. Was this woman Sister Kira? The one she loved and respected?

"What were you looking for?" Kira's face was contorted with anger "And why?"

Tammy shook her head, trying not to cry.

"Megan Graham, isn't it? She told you to."

Tammy nodded.

"Of course" she said, looking at the twin punctures. "I should have expected that."

"She...she forced me." Tammy said tearfully. "She and Angelique..."

"Well, I can fix that." Kira had regained her composure. She was again the Sister Kira everybody knew. The one with the beautiful smile.

She put her hand to Tammy's throat. "In the name of Jesus Christ, I bid you unclean spirit to depart and trouble this servant of God no more.

The wounds closed and disappeared. The hand of the Petofis was powerful enough for that.

"You are free now. Sister" Kira said.

"Oh, Sister Kira...you are a saint... a real saint..."

"Get up, Sister." Kindness and trust would work better than threats or torture. "Just tell me what they wanted to do."

Tammy sniffled "Megan wants to destroy you. She says that you are a danger to her..."

Angelique studied the doll. The puncture wounds had disappeared and Tammy was on her own.

"Well, I hope this works" she said to herself, while slipping the small noose around the doll's neck.

She hadn't used those dolls that way for so long...at times she hated them...

But there was no other way to beat Kira.

She tightened the noose.

Tammy screamed, pulling her hands to her throat. Then she couldn't scream. She just gasped with eyes bulging.

"What's the matter?" Kira looked at the exposed throat. A black mark was appearing there.

Angelique. She had found out that they had lost control of Tammy and wanted to silence her.

Kira put her hand on the throat and began fighting the invisible noose.

Something was fighting the noose. Angelique felt it. Just as something had been fighting her attempt to heal Dr. Anderson.

She couldn't take off the noose yet. It had to look convincing. If Kira didn't believe in Tammy's story, she would kill her.

"I hope she's not seriously hurt." she thought "I wish I had one tenth her courage."

"It's giving" Kira said between clenched teeth. "the knot is slipping."

Tammy made noises down at the throat.

"There...you are free now."

Tammy breathed hard, then turned around and vomited.

"It is all right." Kira reassured her "I fought her off and she can't do anything else to you."

She better find out what Tammy knew. In fact, she'd better tap her subconscious memories. she would need all the information she could get her hands on to deal with Angelique.

Grandfather Andreas could tell how hard it was to deal with Angelique. And when dusk came, she would have to deal with Megan, too.

Angelique slipped off the noose. Tammy would be all right, now. Already the welt around the neck was disappearing.

"Good luck, Tammy." she thought "and be careful. You are on your own now."

"Just rest for a while. Don't get up."

"Angelique..."

"I know" she paused then added "I can defeat her. But I will need your help for that."

"I will do whatever it takes."

With Megan's leash gone, Tammy said those words sincerely. The hand on her was burning. Everything swirled around her...

Tammy was a good receptive subject - Kira thought - she had the qualities to make an excellent assassin.

...Angelique would be destroyed...so would Megan...- Tammy thought, as if in a haze ...They should be, both of them...

But Megan had done something else...something that Sister Kira should know about...

But the feeling left her as soon as it came.

"You will have to come to me to...to a certain place. You have to have faith in me, no matter what I do or say."

The children were there, playing, keeping watch over Sebastian. And so was Buffy. Kira smiled at them, and Buffy smiled back.

Buffy had her uses, even if she would never make an assassin. Kira thought absentmindedly.

"Kill! Kill!" she heard one of the children say.

She knitted her brow. When the children got excited in play, sometimes they gave it away. She would do something about that.

Later. Now she had to tap Tammy's mind.

Tammy looked at Buffy. Yes, there she was, taking care of the children, as always.

They went into the cottage.

"Hello, Sebastian" Kira said "bring me my stuff. I will need it now."

"Stuff?" Tammy's nostrils flared involuntarily.

"Don't strain yourself." Kira said solicitously to Tammy. "Lie down."

She took out her journal and began rereading it. She had made notes about a case like Tammy's and she wanted to recheck them while Sebastian got her things ready.

Sebastian looked at the two of them. There was something screwy going on. But what, he could not put his finger on it.

"Tammy, I need to know what's in your mind."

Tammy nodded.

"You've been in Megan's office. I need the floor plan."

Tammy nodded again, and tried to think through the haze.

"Neither Megan nor Angelique will hurt you again. I will help you remember. I will bring you something.

That was the moment she had been waiting for...where did that thought come from? Tammy tried to remember...remember... When Kira destroyed Megan...when Megan destroyed Kira...

"Here it is." Sebastian gave Kira the box.

"You can go now." Kira opened the box She took out a "matryoshka" doll, a mirror, a small crystal, a tablet with some esoteric signs.

Tammy's nostrils flared. Those signs...

She got half up.

"Don't strain yourself" Kira insisted.

Suddenly Tammy understood. Here was what she had come for. Proof that Kira was practicing magic... and that notebook of hers.

She knew why Angelique had made as if she tried to strangle her. She knew that there was another line to Megan than Kira hadn't broken. She had come to nail Kira to the wall, and she was going to do it.

But how to get it out? And what about the man? He was going to be a problem.

Kira took out a ritual knife and laid it down.

That was enough. Tammy hit Kira in the windpipe and caught the knife.

"Uh?" Sebastian turned.

"You move and I cut her throat." Tammy said quickly, holding the knife just over Kira's carotid.

"Kill her for all I care." Sebastian said quickly. "but I have to warn you..."

"Sebastian, remember Aristide." Kira said.

Sebastian understood and did not warn Tammy about the children.

"If he moves you get it." Tammy said. She moved away, pulling Kira with her. "Just put all the stuff back in the box."

"Aristide..." Kira said again.

"You can come with me if you want..." She judged that Sebastian was not there willingly.

"No. I can't do that." Sebastian added the journal to the box. She was going to get killed by the children, and he couldn't do a thing about it. Roxanne...

"Sebastian.." Kira insisted.

Tammy hit her on the head, and dropped her unconscious body.

"There, that is better. I got enough on her. Are you sure you don't want to escape?

And maybe the children wouldn't hurt her. They would do it to him. But had Kira set them to kill anyone who came out of the cottage alone? He wished that he could remember what Kira had told him.

"Do you want me to tie you up? It would make things easier for you."

"There will be no need. I'll just hit myself on the head."

"Well, good luck."

Tammy went to the door. "She will get herself killed." Sebastian thought. he wished he could get the courage to scream, to warn her...

The children were there, waiting for her. They looked silently at her. And Buffy waved at her.

And, as Tammy waved back, wondering what to tell Buffy, Tommie grabbed her legs.

"Tommie, don't" she bent down.

And another child grabbed her hand, trying to pull her down.

"Kids! Stop that!" she said.

"That's enough, Tommie!" Buffy got up "She doesn't want to play."

Two more children jumped on her.

"Stop that, children! It isn't funny!" Buffy said.

Tammy stumbled, tried to get up.

The children drew out their wooden swords.

"What are you doing?" Buffy tried to pull them away.

When she did that, the children fell on her too, hitting her with their play swords.

Tammy rolled away and hit the door of the cottage, while still trying to pull the children away.

"Kids!" Buffy screamed "Don't!...don't!

Blood spurted out of Buffy's neck The children were now all over her, kicking, strangling, cutting. Buffy screamed and spat blood.

Tammy somehow managed to keep them away. Yet she was bleeding too. She pushed the door of the cottage

Sebastian's hand grabbed her.

"I got her car keys. We can run for it while they are busy." he said.

"Buffy" Tammy said.

"It is too late for her. But this may save us. Run!"