Chapter 10 – Into The Abyss
Jack was deeply engrossed in typing something on the computer in Ben's office when the door to the office opened. He looked up and took off his horn-rimmed glasses. Lydia had entered, her face set in stone. Something serious had happened. She crossed the room and gazed out the window at the waterfall. He walked over and put a hand on her shoulder. "You could always back down, sis," he advised.
She turned and looked up at him, fear etched into her face. "I can't refuse a challenge. Not this one. This is why I'm here." Her self-control broke at that moment. She bit her lip and started to tremble. "Gods, what if I..."
He embraced his sister fiercely. She needed his strength now. "You won't fail. I know you'll come through all right."
She trembled in his arms for a minute, then got a hold of her emotions. She straightened, and he released her. "I thought you were going to have a drink," she remarked, noticing the stack of papers and the laptop on the desk.
"I started to. Then I remembered Dad. He started drinking again when he couldn't handle something. It's not the answer. Besides, I think you're right. This night isn't over yet."
"You're going to make Audrey a fine husband someday," she teased and ruffled his hair. Then she got serious. "If something does happen to me, you should know that you're the executor of my estate. Instructions for my funeral and division of assets are in my home computer under your name. If it happens, tell Robin that I went out in a blaze of glory. And you... you marry that girl and raise a bunch of kids."
The blood drained from his face. She was not expecting to come out alive. "All right. I want you to do something for me," he grasped her slim shoulders. "Come back. I need you. Who else is going to keep me out of trouble?" They laughed.
"Of course, little brother. You won't get rid of me this easily," she assured him as she opened the door. Standing in the threshold was Catherine Martell. The two women eyed each other warily, like two cats fighting over territory. "Mrs. Martell," she nodded.
"Good hunting, sis," Jack called as Lydia strode out the door, pushing past the older woman with a glare.
Catherine sauntered into the room and looked around. "Well, you've certainly made yourself at home here," she observed drily. Ben's possessions had been cleared off the desktop, except a picture of Audrey.
"Sylvia took everything away before Johnny started throwing things around the room. He's still upset about Ben's death. What brings you here?"
"I'll get to the point. You think you've won, don't you?"
He looked askance at her, not following her train of thought. "Well, it would appear so. Look, it wasn't personal. I didn't even know you were involved."
"Oh, of course not," she sneered, then her face softened. "When you burst in here today and outfoxed Jerry, I saw the Packard in you, my boy."
Jack stood, stunned. "Am I supposed to take that as a compliment, MOTHER?" His voice was laced with sarcasm.
It was Catherine's turn to recoil, but she quickly recovered her composure. "So you know. When did you find out?"
"You need a birth certificate to get a driver's license. My father told me in a rare moment of sobriety when I turned sixteen. He built that fancy house by the mill, and screwed the Packard's eighteen-year-old daughter as well."
"Jack, I had to give you up. My parents insisted. Your father married Maureen Pulaski, and they decided to raise you as her own son. I rebelled against them by marrying Pete. I tried to reach out to you after she died."
"Bullshit. You tried to take me away from my father. Do you think a nine-year-old boy wouldn't understand when his father started talking about that bitch on the hill wanting custody of him? Do you know why he fought you? He'd already lost one child."
"There was no hidden agenda. I just wanted to see you grow up under the best possible circumstances," she explained.
"I'm sure you that's how you rationalized it. The only member of your family that didn't have a hidden agenda was Pete. Henry Wheeler may not have been much of a father, but he and Ben were more than adequate."
"Ah, yes, Benjamin Horne. I was wondering when we'd get to him," Catherine sat on the sofa and smiled viciously. "Why do you think he took such an interest in you? Out of the goodness of his heart? He didn't have a compassionate bone in his body. He took you under his wing to get back at me."
Jack remembered the years he spent learning the business with Ben. He realized, unfortunately, that she was right. "I really don't care what Ben's motives were. I'm grateful to him for giving me what my father couldn't."
"How noble," she retorted caustically. "Your father was a good-looking drunk who charmed a rich young woman into his bed. The funny thing is, I can see history repeating itself. One has to ask themselves, what ARE your motives behind your courtship of poor little Audrey Horne?"
At that, the anger that Jack had been trying to hold back exploded in his brain. "My relationship with Audrey," he said slowly and forcefully, "is none of your damned business."
"You're wrong. It is my business. Speaking of businesses, you should sell me controlling interest in the Great Northern."
He laughed in her face. "Go to hell," he whispered.
"How do you think people would react to the name on your birth certificate? What about your sister, the product of Henry's liaison with another rich young woman?"
He shook his head in denial. "Once she stopped laughing, she wouldn't care."
"But," she sprang the trap, "what about Audrey? I'm sure she'd be very interested in hearing that her lover was the son of the woman who ruined her father."
"That's blackmail. You wouldn't blackmail your own son. Not even you could stoop that low."
"I have no son," she stated. "Here's the deal. Sell me the hotel. The Hornes will be provided for. I'll even give Sylvia a job as a maid." Her laughter echoed through the room.
"No way, Catherine. I've been threatened by worse than you, and I stood up to them. You see, I don't back away from a fight. It's something I inherited from you. Now, get out of my hotel, before I have you forcibly removed."
"Very well," she snapped, as she turned on her heel and strode toward the door. She put her hand on the knob, then turned to face him. "Remember this, Jack. You made your choice. Remember it when Audrey finds out exactly who you are, and turns her back on you."
"GET OUT!"
She strode toward the door, pausing as she opened it. "You're not half the man that Ben was. You never will be." She walked out of the office and slammed the door.
Jack sat hard in Ben's chair and put his head in his hands, emotionally spent. Damn, it was just like her to throw the past back in his face after so many years trying to outrun it. He remembered when his real mother died, and Catherine descended on their small house like a tornado. She was very friendly and consoling, but Dad threw her out. He realized, of course, what she wanted. She wanted custody and would stop at nothing. After she left, Jack recalled, Mr. Johnson from next door brought over a bottle of cheap bourbon. It was the first time that Jack had ever seen his father drink, but it would not be the last. It was ten years before he could escape the hell that his father dragged him down into. But, that was all in the past. This was now, and the present didn't look so great, either.
Hawk picked Lydia up at ten o'clock at the front door of the Great Northern. Harry, Major Briggs, and Annie were following them in a second Bronco. They drove in silence to Glastonbury Grove. When they arrived, she gave them final instructions on their roles.
"Okay, folks. Listen up. Annie, are you sure you're going to be okay going into the Black Lodge again?" she asked.
"Well, if it's to save Dale, I can do it," the girl declared without hesitation. Her face showed a stern resolve that had not been present before.
Lydia pulled out her bag, and removed another dark stone on a silk cord from her bag and handed it to Annie. "Good girl. Now, remember, show no fear. This thing lives off fear. Show lots of love, that'll protect you. When I tell you to, run over to Dale, and put the other stone over his head. It's nuumite, and it's a powerful protection against psychic attack. If you get scared, just do what I told you before." Annie nodded.
"Major Briggs," Lydia turned her attention to the older man, "you're going to anchor me, like we did yesterday. Only this is going to be harder, since I'll be physically in the Black Lodge. One of the things that I learned was that Cooper didn't have a strong enough hook back into this world."
"You can count on me," he answered.
"Harry, you stay with Garland. If he tells you that there's trouble, pull him out of the trance, okay?" Harry nodded.
"Hawk, your part is the most critical. You've got to keep me in line. Now, I know you've never done anything like this before. Just follow my lead. Also," she lowered her voice and moved closer to him, "you have to guard Annie. If something happens to me, get her out of there. Cooper, too, if you can."
"They'll get Annie over my dead body," he pledged, quietly and intensely. She kissed him, noticing that he had an odor of sage clinging to his clothes. She took his hand.
"Did a little bit of preparation on your own?"
He gave her a nod. "I went to visit Grandma. She made some comment about a foxhole conversion, but she took care of me."
She chuckled aloud. "Good. Mary's wise. Every little bit helps." She removed her raincoat, and the others saw her outfit for the first time. Briggs, Harry and Annie looked at her in shock. Hawk was unfazed. Next, she pulled out the object that Jack had brought her. It was silver, with an end that came to an arrow point, and tipped with a head with three faces wearing something that resembled a crown.
"What is that?" Annie asked, staring at the strange object.
Lydia held it up. "It's a phurba, a Tibetan power dart. Dale gave it to me before he left San Francisco. It is supposed to remove obstacles and dispel darkness. The thing on the end is a dorji, the Buddhist symbol for a thunderbolt. I had a feeling that I'd need it after Bob paid me a visit in Earle's cabin, so I had Jack bring it when he came back. Because it's connected to Dale, I'm going to use it to try to find him," she stuck the dart into her belt. "Are we ready?" she asked them.
Briggs settled down on a fallen log and counted backwards from 100. Harry shook Hawk's hand, and kissed Lydia and Annie on the cheek. He sat on the log next to Briggs. She paused until he reached 80, then stood outside the circle of sycamores, hands in the air. Hawk and Annie stood behind her.
Lydia drew her knife and drew a pentagram in the air in front of the circle, then cut an archway into the circle. She motioned the others to come inside. "Okay folks, let's lock and load. Anybody wants to back out, this is your last chance," She explained, looking at Annie. The girl nodded once, but stood her ground.
Hawk grasped Lydia's shoulder, turned her around, and kissed her soundly. "That's my answer," he replied.
Lydia moved into the center of the circle, where the pool of oil stood. "Be ready to follow me." She raised her arms, with the knife still in her right hand. "Hail, Guardians of the Crossroads, who guard the ways between the worlds! I am flesh and I am spirit. I stand before you in this place of power, and I summon you on this way." A red mist begin to form, as energy began to coalesce. "The way is long. The way is old. The way is the path of power. I walk the path of power between the worlds, and I shall speak the way." Lydia's voice rose on the upsurge of power. The knife blade began to glow. Annie stepped back, and Hawk grabbed her arm to steady her. "The locks of time are broken, and the reaches of space are breached! As it was in the days of old, it shall be again! Hear me, and let the seal be broken!" She lifted the glowing knife and cut the palm of her left hand. Drops of blood dripped into the oil slick, which started to bubble ominiously. Her attention was on the now visible red curtains on the other side of the circle. Hawk took Annie's hand. Lydia pointed her knife at the curtains, and in an unearthly voice spoke the final words of the spell. "I SPEAK THE WAY, AND THE WAY IS OPEN!"
What happened next was a blur. There was a visible flash of blue light. Lydia screamed "NOW!" She stepped into the center of the oil patch and grabbed Hawk's other hand. Simultaneously, Major Briggs sat up and shouted "Garmonbozia!" The three of them disappeared into light.
When their optic nerves recovered from the flash, they found themselves at the end of a long hallway of red curtains. "Okay," Hawk asked, looking around, "what now?"
Lydia flashed a sardonic smile. "I don't know. I'm making this up as I go along." She pushed aside the nearest curtain It opened into a room with a three black leather chairs, a gold-colored torchiere lamp, and a statue of the Venus de Milo. "Ugh, who's their decorator?" she smirked. She turned to the younger woman. "Annie, does any of this look familiar? It doesn't to me."
"Yes. That's the trouble. All of the rooms are the same. I forget which one I was in, or where Dale is." She shook her head. Her eyes were wide, and she was clutching the onyx pendant. Her aura was glowing blue. Annie pointed down the hallway, and started walking. Lydia and Hawk exchanged looks, then followed.
A man stepped out from between the curtains, surprising them. Annie suppressed a scream. "Leland Palmer," Hawk said, mystified. His eyes had no pupils in them. He stood directly in front of Lydia and stared at her with his blank, white eyes.
"I didn't kill anybody," he pleaded.
Lydia regarded him for a second, then said in a cold voice, "I don't care. Take me to Bob." Leland held the curtains open to the room that he came from. The three of them entered, and Leland vanished as quickly as he came.
It was the same room, or else decorated the same way. Everything in here was white, red, and black, Lydia mused. The colors of the Goddess, maiden, mother, and crone. She turned to look at the Venus statue with a strange expression on her face. Annie joined her. Hawk, who was facing away from the two women, started suddenly and put a hand on Lydia's arm and pointed. The curtains to the right of them opened. Out came a bruised and scarred Dale Cooper, followed by Laura Palmer.
Annie cried out and took two steps toward Cooper. Lydia automatically put out her left arm to restrained her. "Hold it, kid. Let's wait and see what else shows up." Annie's eyes locked with Dale's unseeing ones. It was like he was in a trance.
Suddenly, the curtains opened again, and another Cooper, with the same injuries, walked into the room from the left. A fourth person was entering the room. It was a dwarf with bugged-out eyes and wearing a cheap red leisure suit. The dwarf half-walked, half-danced over to Lydia. "Welcome to the Waiting Room," he said in a strange broken-up voice. "You wanted Cooper. You must choose which Cooper you want."
The two Dales stood side by side. She tried to use the Sight to look at them, but they were both shielded against her. The shields were better than her own. Mary had said that everything would be amplified in here. So much for that idea. The question of which Cooper was which would be decided on prior knowledge. Hawk and Annie were both known to the false Dale. So, that left only her, and the knowledge of their past relationship. She regarded both Coopers. "I will ask you three questions. The one who answers correctly will be the one that we seek," she instructed them both. "First, what is the name of my cat?"
"Artemis," they replied in unison.
She was taken aback. She paused to collect herself. "Second, what happened to the girl who lived next door when you were growing up?"
"Marie drowned in a boating accident," they responded simultaneously.
"Damn!" she swore under her breath. Then, she hit on a trick question. Something that the false Dale would know, but the real one wouldn't. A part of her life that happened after he had faded from it. "What," she asked, "is the name of my brother?"
"You don't have a brother," answered the Dale on her left. Simultaneously, the Dale on her right replied, "Jack."
Lydia pointed to the Dale to her left and declared, "That one, Annie!" The girl took two steps forward, then froze as the Dale to the right abruptly changed into Bob. She glanced back at Lydia, and ran toward the real Dale.
Bob looked at his host and pointed his finger. "Through the darkness of futures past, the magician longs to see, one chants out between two worlds, fire, walk with me!" Suddenly, Cooper was ringed in fire. Annie stopped short at the wall of flame and screamed, and Hawk ran to her side, knife drawn. The real Cooper appeared unaffected by the activity.
Bob glowered at Annie and Hawk. "Well, well, well. Two of my old friends," he said as he walked toward them. He abruptly changed into Windom Earle and said, "Queen Annie, how nice to see you again. I'm glad that you came back. I've missed you." She cowered against Hawk. Earle then addressed Hawk, "I should have killed you when I had the chance." The deputy gave a challenging stare to the Earle, who then turned to Lydia. "If it isn't my old friend. Good of you to finally come. I know what you're afraid of," he teased in a singsong voice.
She glared at him. "Shut up and release Cooper, demon," she ordered. He snapped his fingers. Her stomach lurched as the floor fell away. She hurtled upward at an alarming rate. She shut her eyes as she caromed closer to the ceiling.
"Up, up and away," he sang, mocking her. "I thought all witches flew. But, then of course, you don't have your broom."
"Lydia!" Hawk called. "Don't give him power over you!"
That was enough to slap Lydia out of her panic. She focused and concentrated. "It's just an illusion," she repeated. She stopped flying upwards, and slowly descended. After what seemed an eternity, her feet touched the floor again. She let out a breath and faced Earle. "Nice little parlor trick," she snapped.
Earle guffawed. "Oh, that didn't impress you? How about this? If you give me your soul, I'll let Dale live."
Lydia stood as stiff as the statue. She looked from Dale, to Earle, to Annie and Hawk, then back to Earle. "Go back to whatever hell you came from," she replied calmly. Annie cried out, and Hawk looked stunned, then relieved. She held up her left hand to silence the younger woman.
Earle abruptly changed into Bob and started to laugh. "Then, he will die, witch!" he said as he moved menacingly toward Dale.
Lydia immediately strengthened her Shields. Not a moment too soon, because Bob aimed a power bolt right at her. She dodged it, and it deflected off the floor. She looked up in surprise at how powerful it was. She then followed up with one of her own. Bob deflected it easily. Lydia's eyes widened, but she made an effort to hide her surprise. Keeping a good poker face was half of the battle, she thought. She dodged another of Bob's bolts. She decided to try a small psychic dart, since his shields were countering a direct attack. Lydia reached into her sleeve and pulled out a silver dart. She threw the dart at his head, and Bob staggered back, as if wounded. A direct hit! A few more ought to work. If he doesn't have anything else up his sleeve. As Jack would say, here's hoping.
Annie watched the battle from behind the chairs, with Hawk at her side. The battle between Lydia and Bob was heating up. Annie knew that she had to get the crystal to Dale somehow, but the wall of flame was still around him. Hawk was gripping the arm of the chair hard enough to make his fingers turn white, and was muttering something under his breath. They saw her take a hit and spin down into a crouch. He started to stand, but a wave from Lydia seemed to make him think better of it. She turned her attention to Dale. He seemed to have come out of whatever trance he was in, and was looking at them with fear and concern. Something came to her. She looked at the fire surrounding him. If she could throw it over the flames, maybe he could catch it. If only she could get the right opportunity...
Lydia was beginning to feel like she was out of her league. Her confidence in her own abilities was flagging, and she was becoming fatigued. Bob was drawing on a seemingly endless supply of psychic armaments. He fired another bolt at her. As she staggered away, she noticed Annie looking at her from behind the chairs. Annie nodded her head to the right, away from where Dale was being held prisoner. She acknowledged with a quick nod of her own. She broke off and ran to the right, drawing attention away from Annie. The younger woman came out from behind the chair and made a break toward Dale. Annie threw the crystal on the run, calling out to Cooper as she did. The pendant cleared the flame wall, and Dale got enough height to his jump to reach out and grab it. He put it around his neck and the flames disappeared. As he did, a ball of light escaped from Bob and went directly into Cooper's forehead, between his eyebrows. Dale staggered backwards, then recovered his balance. He turned to Annie and gave her the thumbs up.
Hawk watched the ongoing battle with a growing sense of danger. Something unpleasant was tugging at the back of his mind. It wasn't just concern for Lydia, although that was part of it. Coop caught the pendant that Annie threw to him, and both parts of him merged into one. The thought that was pulling at him burst into his consciousness. SHAPESHIFTER! He unsheathed his knife and threw it in one swift motion. He watched in horror as his knife flew in slow motion toward Bob. It was almost as if it was going through water, and not air. Where Bob had stood a moment before, an owl flew. His throw, which would have been on target, flew harmlessly under the owl. The clatter of the knife on the floor was a death knell in his heart. If there was one thing he feared, it failure. Any law enforcement officer feared making the mistake that caused harm to someone. Hawk had taken his best shot. All he could do now was watch, powerless to help the woman he loved.
Bob noticed the surge in his power, and the part of him that held Cooper's soul escape, as the flames died. It was almost a blessing that Cooper had freed himself. Now, without the energy expenditure of keeping him prisoner, he could defeat the witch permanently. He shifted into his owl form as a knife passed beneath him. The owl screeched and dove straight for the opponent who was standing helplessly below.
Lydia, tired as she was, didn't see the change until it was too late. She raised her left arm to ward off the attack as Hawk's cast went low. As she did, the owl's talons raked her arm from elbow to wrist, cutting deeply into her flesh. There was blinding pain, and blood spurted. She screamed and dropped her knife. She spun around and collapsed to her knees, holding her left arm. As she went down, the phurba fell from her belt and skittered across the floor, landing under the chair.
The Major cried out, waking Harry from a doze. "Something just happened," Briggs informed him as he struggled to wake up.
"Are you still connected?" he asked tentatively.
"No. There is a problem. I must go in there, Sheriff. "
Harry looked at Briggs. "Major, she asked you to stay here."
"Harry, I'm going in," he rose from the log. "If we don't come out, get Mary Red Eagle and the Log Lady." Briggs walked down to the circle. He felt around for Lydia's gate, then entered. He disappeared behind the red curtains. Harry felt helpless. The last time he had felt this way was-well, it was the last time he was here, waiting for Cooper to emerge.
In his suite at the Great Northern, Jack was awakened by a felt a sharp pain in his left arm from the elbow to the wrist. He sat up in bed and grabbed his arm. He must have dozed off at some point, because it was three A.M. Something was wrong. Lydia was in trouble. He got out of bed and quickly started to dress. A knock at the door interrupted him. "What now?" he muttered as he staggered to the door. He opened it to see the decrepit waiter standing in the door. "I didn't order room service," he snapped.
"Coffee?" the old man asked.
"I didn't order any. You have the wrong room, Pops."
"I'm so sorry," the man turned, then looked back. "Remain here. More will be revealed." He shambled away down the hall.
"More will be revealed?" Jack repeated, as realization dawned in his mind. "Oh, God." He went back into the room, locked the door, and bolted all of the windows. It may not help, he thought, but it's a start. He finished dressing, just in case.
The Log Lady stared into a bowl full of burnt engine oil in her cabin. It smelled like hell, literally. However, it was what she needed to do the job. Reflected in the oil she saw the battle in the Black Lodge, and Lydia's collapse. Her log screamed in pain. Margaret then put her hands on the log and sent it a message. She knew that there was another person whose spirit was trapped by wood, and that this woman had to help the others. She sent her will into the wood in a silent plea. Help them, she thought. They will not escape otherwise.
Annie froze in the middle of the floor when she saw the owl. She had the presence of mind to clutch her pendant and transfer her fear to it. Hawk yelled something and ran over to Lydia, who had crumpled on the floor clutching her arm. He knelt next to her, protecting her as he examined her bleeding arm. The little man stood up from behind the other chair and extended his arm. The owl landed on it, and shifted back into Bob. "Wow, Bob, wow!" said the dwarf, with an amazed expression on his face.
He stood and locked eyes with Annie. She was paralyzed with fear. Her protective shielding flamed with blue fire in her aura. "Blessed Mother, help me!" she prayed under her breath. Bob licked his lips in anticipation as he walked purposefully toward her.
Dale stood in the middle of the room. He saw Lydia go down, and Bob start after Annie. A cold rage welled up inside him. Not Annie. Not Caroline. Never again.
"Why do you resist me?" Bob asked Annie as he moved closer to her. "I'm not a stranger. I am the dark side of your soul. Let me in. Give me your soul. Submission is your salvation, the fire you must walk through. Accept my embrace. Come to me."
He realized that Bob was trying to feed off her fear. With that same thought came the awareness that he, too, wanted to kill. He wanted the rush of emotions that came from killing. "NO!" he cried out, the word ripped from his throat. "I will not allow this," he said. Cooper didn't know whether he said it to Bob or to himself. Dale turned to look at Lydia, who was crumpled on the floor in Hawk's arms, bleeding profusely. He looked at Annie, who was standing vulnerably in the center of the room. It was true, the worst form of torture was to watch someone you love die. He wanted revenge. Revenge for Annie, for Caroline, for Lydia, and for himself. His conscience screamed that this was not the way, but he ignored it. What was important now was to make the thing in front of him suffer as much as he had. Dale had never understood Windom's need for vengeance until now. He broke into a sprint, and cross-checked Bob like a defensive tackle on a football team. There was blinding pain in his dislocated shoulder. He ignored that, too. The momentum carried the two of them over the chairs, and Dale came up in a fighter's stance that he had first learned in a gym at the FBI Academy. He swung with his right hand, landing as many punches as he could.
Annie turned around and started over toward Hawk and Lydia. As she ran, she noticed something glittering in the lamplight underneath the chair. It was the phurba. It had fallen out of Lydia's belt. She bent to pick it up. As she did, she felt an incredible sense of peace and protection wash over her. She crossed the room and knelt beside the the others. Lydia was barely conscious. Hawk had removed his jacket and had covered her with it. Annie took off her sweater and handed it to him. He put it under her bleeding arm, to elevate it.
"Okay, I'm going to try something," Annie whispered. "If it doesn't work, I'll need you to get me out of trouble fast."
"What are you planning?" he asked.
Lydia tried to push herself up with her right arm. "Annie..."
Hawk put a finger to her lips. "Don't try to talk. Save your strength. We may need it."
There was a bright flash of light. Dale flew across the room and over the back of the chair, dazed. "Bob must have gotten tired of toying with him," Annie guessed. She turned and stood up from her crouch in a graceful movement, still holding the phurba.
In that space of time, Bob started toward her again. She walked forward, deliberately blocking his access to Lydia and Hawk. They locked eyes. "Annie, no!" Dale called out. She ignored him as she advanced.
"Want to play with fire, little girl? Want to play with Bob?" he sneered as he turned back to her.
She froze. Then, as quickly as the fear came, it was replaced by love. Love and pity for the creature that stood before her, which had used her lover's form to try to rape and kill her. It was such a simple solution, she thought as she stood her ground. Simple, but not easy. It was the hardest thing that she had ever done. "I forgive you," she said. "I know that it is your fear that drives you, just as you feed off our fear."
"Annie!" Dale warned. She saw him move out of the corner of her eye. She held up her left hand to signal him to stop.
"Coop, let her go," came Hawk's voice from behind. "She knows what she's doing."
"Dale, trust this," came Lydia's weaker voice.
This was all happening in the background of her awareness. Annie felt another presence overlaying her own, the essence of compassion. She held out her hand to the long-haired man and saw that her arm was glowing with a light blue aura. "I do not fear you anymore. You have abused my body, mind, and soul. Yet I am stronger than you, for I have survived. I don't fear death, because I know that God will welcome me home. You have taken my lover's soul, tortured him, and done unspeakable things in his name. I forgive you for all of this. Of my own free will, without coercion, I offer you my soul. Not for you to rule over or to consume, but to love unconditionally. As my friend said earlier," she looked back at Lydia in Hawk's arms, "love is the law. I offer you forgiveness. I offer you compassion. All I ask is that my friends walk out of here alive and unharmed."
She paused and looked back at the others. Dale's face changed from shock to understanding, and Lydia managed a thumbs up. Hawk, shook his head in disbelief. He muttered, "Grandma, you were right all along." Turning again to Bob, she smiled at him.
Bob stood still as Annie stood in front of him, at war with himself. No one in his long existence had said those words to him. No one had come to him willingly. Was this the truth that Mike had discovered, causing him to sacrifice his arm? An innocent soul was in front of him for the taking, yet he hesitated. His nature, and the experience of ten thousand years took over. Behind her, he saw his previous host cross the room to kneel beside the others. He reached forward and touched the woman's forehead. He could feel the beginning of the power surge that happened when he killed. Yet, something was different. The absolute love in her soul was corrupting his own. It became clear to him that, should he continue, her love would change what he was. He would no longer be the Guardian of the Threshold. Bob was caught in a dilemma. Mike had cut off his arm to avoid this choice. If he did not feed on her soul, he would lose power. Yet, if he did, he would lose the very essence of what he was. He would no longer be Bob.
He felt the tacit presence of Earle. The voice that belonged to the other soul that he held screamed at him, "Take her, you fool! She escaped us twice. She will not again." Earle forced him to reach out and begin the soul-eating process again.
Bob reasserted his primacy. "No. If I take her soul, it would destroy us." He could see Cooper being restrained by the Indian deputy. From his possession of Cooper's body, he knew that the young man would be fighting to get to her side. "I will not allow the forces of love to dominate."
Earle cried out again, "But I can and will take her soul. I've done it before, and I can again!" He reached out again for Annie, who stood in a trance in front of him.
Annie saw Bob shift into Windom Earle and reach out to her, wanted to take her soul. She didn't flinch. She felt nothing but compassion for this poor, twisted being who depended on fear to survive. The blue glow intensified, and she knew exactly what to do. She lifted the phurba in her right hand up to Earle's forehead. Earle shifted again, into the form of Larry. Annie remained still and filled with compassion. She focused the source of the blue glow through the phurba and into Bob/Larry's forehead. A look of pain, then utter surprise crossed his face and he shifted back to Bob. For a moment, she saw that he was finally, after thousands of years, at peace. And then another look of pain crossed his face. Blood dripped out of the corners of his mouth. He fell forward, landing with a thud in front of Annie. Standing directly behind him was Laura, Hawk's throwing knife embedded to the hilt in his back. He writhed in pain, then stopped. Bob was dead.
The two women stood face-to-face with each other. "I couldn't let it happen. I fought him my whole life. I could not let him harm one more person," Laura explained, looking down at the prone figure on the ground. From a distance, Annie heard a gasp, and a wave of protective energy hit her. Someone grabbed her from behind and pulled her back, just as a shockwave of energy exploded through the Black Lodge. She looked up, and Hawk had his arms around her. The full force of the shockwave hit Laura Palmer and encompassed her. She stood unharmed and absorbed all of the evil from Bob's soul. "I'll see you again in twenty-five years," she predicted and promptly vanished.
Bob's corpse spontaneously combusted into a ball of fire. Cooper ran up from behind them and pulled them back to where Lydia was lying behind the sofa.
"We've got to get out of here!" Cooper yelled over the roar of the firestorm. The red curtains were starting to catch fire. The Black Lodge was self-destructing with the death of Bob.
"How?" Hawk asked. "Lydia, are you still linked to Briggs?"
"I am here," came a deep bass voice from behind them. Major Briggs pushed aside the curtains to enter the room. "I know the way out. Follow me."
Hawk bent over and put his arms underneath Lydia. "Hold on to my neck with your right arm," he directed. She cried out in pain as he lifted her. Cooper tucked her bloody left arm in and covered her with the jacket. "Major, get us out of here!" he yelled.
They followed him closely, first Hawk and Lydia, then Annie, and Cooper bringing up the rear. As they neared the end of the hall, they were stopped by a brilliant white light. The giant stood in front of them, waving frantically. "You forgot something," he said to Cooper.
Dale paused. "Chet and Phil," he uttered as he turned around. He left them and ran back into the firestorm. "Desmond! Jefferies! Where are you? We have to get out!"
"Dale, no! Come back!" Annie called as Hawk carried Lydia out of the Black Lodge. "No," she sobbed. Hawk reached back from behind the curtain to pull her out.
He ran headlong through the flaming curtains, looking behind every one of them for his friends. They were nowhere to be found. "Chet! Phil!" he called out. He pulled aside the curtain in one room to find the dwarf sitting in a chair. "Where are they?"
"When you see me again, it won't be me," the dwarf babbled. "They are safe. You leave now."
"I'm not going until they do," he replied.
The curtains in front of him erupted in flame. "You leave," the dwarf said. "I will take all of your garmonbozia."
Dale looked from the dwarf to the curtains. Behind the dwarf, the giant was waving him in a different direction.
"Follow me," the giant ordered. He followed. They arrived back at the gateway.
"DALE!" Annie screamed as she saw him through the rapidly closing gate. It was only about a foot in diameter now. "Take my hand!" She extended her hand through. He grasped her hand at the wrist, but she wasn't strong enough to pull him through. "Help me, Sheriff!" she ordered. Dale was taken aback by the almost commanding tone in her voice. A pair of hands went around Annie's waist. "Pull!" she directed. Dale felt himself rise, and felt pressure in his ears, like in an airplane during takeoff. He was sucked through as the gate narrowed.
When Bob exploded in flame, Josie realized that there was not much time to accomplish what she had been called to do by the Log Lady. She ran to a room, and motioned for the occupants to follow her. Desmond hesitated, but Jefferies was hopeful.
"Come on!" Josie insisted. "There isn't much time. You will be trapped here forever!" That got Chet moving. They quickly followed her through the burning Lodge, dodging flaming curtains as they ran. She reached the portal, but there was barely an opening. Cooper had just gone through.
"No!" Jefferies yelled in desperation.
Josie panicked. The two men wouldn't get out, and neither would she. To her surprise, Mrs. Tremond approached the portal.
"They must leave, or else be destroyed. I will help you," she said. "Take her hands," the old woman ordered. They complied. She placed her right hand on Josie's forehead. The three of them faded, until there was barely a shimmer. "Josie, remember, you do not belong outside. You are dead," called the woman as the threesome disappeared through the portal to Glastonbury Grove. As they left, the Black Lodge was consumed by the flames of fear, conquered by love and compassion.
Dale blinked in the pre-dawn darkness. After the constant brightness and strobe lights of the Black Lodge, moonlight was almost like sensory deprivation. As his eyes adjusted to the night, he saw Harry and Major Briggs giving Lydia first aid. She was bravely trying not to cry out in pain. Hawk was holding her in his arms, a world of hurt and concern in his face. Harry said something about a tourniquet, and there was the sound of cloth ripping. He looked up. Annie was still holding his hand. He embraced her tightly, not wanting to let her go again. Someone was calling for him to help. Dale began to walk over to the patch of ground where Hawk had laid Lydia. Something wasn't quite right. A brilliant white light cast a long shadow in front of him. Cooper turned to look back in the direction of the sycamore grove, which was the source of light. Coming out of the light was Josie Packard, leading Philip Jefferies and Chester Desmond by the hand. "Oh, my God. Harry..." he started.
Truman looked up from his triage on Lydia. "Josie," he was awestruck. "How?" He walked toward her and held out his hands.
"I had to lead them out. They did not belong in there," she explained. "They would have been trapped." She released the two FBI agents gently, and turned back to him. "Harry, we never got the chance to say goodbye." Sorrow made her voice tremble.
"I know," Harry replied, his voice choked with emotion, "I love you. I always will. There will never be another woman in my life like you."
She gave him a secretive smile. "Put me behind you. I loved you, but it's time for me to go. I'm dead. Let me go." She reached out an ethereal hand to him. "Goodbye, Harry." He took her hand, but his hand closed on air. She faded out into a bright cloud, and the white light disappeared with her. Josie had redeemed herself by her action of saving Desmond and Jefferies.
Truman stood in the circle of sycamore trees for a moment longer. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned. It was Hawk. The two friends embraced tightly, sharing their grief. "She came back," Harry murmured. "She said that she loved me." He felt the black hole in his own soul that had been there since she died, begin to heal.
"Hawk! She wants you!" Annie called as Lydia moaned. His friend spun around and ran to the woman's side.
"We've got to get her to the hospital." Harry observed, the leadership that came with the office of Sheriff taking over. "We can't wait for an ambulance. Okay, here's what we're going to do. Coop, you and Hawk get her into the back seat of car one. Hawk, are you up to driving?"
"Sure, Harry," he was holding Lydia's hand tightly.
"Take the Major and these two," he jerked a thumb at Desmond and Jefferies, "to the hospital in the other car."
"No way. I'm taking her. I have to."
He hesitated. Harry knew firsthand what it was like to watch someone he loved die, and he wanted to spare his friend that grief. On the other hand, if there was something he could have done to prevent Josie's death he would have done it, no matter what the cost. He handed the keys to him. "Okay, but take it easy until you get to the main road, then go like hell."
"Got it," he affirmed with a look of gratitude. "Thanks for understanding." He clapped Harry on the shoulder.
"Okay, Hawk," Cooper interrupted as he crawled into the back, wincing from the pain in his shoulder. "You lift her up. I'll get her settled." He found the car blanket and the Sheriff's first-aid kit. Hawk murmured something to Lydia, and she put her right arm around his neck. He picked her up gently and laid her in the back seat. Cooper put her head in his lap and adjusted her position so he could reach the tourniquet on her arm. Annie climbed into the front seat and stretched the car blanket out over the other woman. Harry watched the three of them work almost as a unit. They had shared something in the Black Lodge that he would never be a part of. He felt left out.
"Harry, we should leave as well," came Major Briggs' voice, cutting through his daze. "If it helps you," the older man said, "Josie turned to the light at the last. I know you loved her, but she's at peace now."
"I know that, Major. I just don't know if I am."