Chapter 3

He had been impatient with Redwolf, Barnabas realized. He hadn't paid much attention to the last list of grievances and demands. Of course, with Redwolf, you had to take those with a grain of salt. If you did not watch Redwolf, he could bargain the clothes off your back.

But that wasn't the reason who he had been so impatient. It was Willie, who had not yet talked to him.

He knew that Willie had more important business to attend to. Louella had a right to his undivided attention now.

But still, the reality of it...

He didn't want to lose Willie. Not after what the two of them had gone through. They knew the worst about each other and could live with it. He couldn't say the same of anyone else. Julia... with Julia it had been different. There had been love at first, and then bitterness. And the others, the others who didn't know him so well as Willie, never could...

He loved Willie. Willie had chosen to look upon him as father, and he had chosen to look upon Willie as a son.

But sons eventually move away to start families of their own...

There was a soft rap on the door. Enough to tell him that Willie had come at last.

"Sorry it took so long" Willie said.

"Don't apologize. You took as long as you needed. I imagine that the two of you had plenty to talk about."

"Yes. We had" Willie gulped. "We decided to give it another try."

"Good for you."

"And I am now a patient of Julia's She says that with her help I will be able to deal with my feelings without having to hit Louella Or anybody else."

"It isn't going to be easy for you. But you will make it."

"I hope I do. I want children and I don't want this hanging over my head."

Barnabas nodded to that.

"What about you?" Willie said with concern.

"About me?"

"Are you going to be all right?"

"Why shouldn't I? Louella's a good housekeeper and I like having her around, but I won't be heartbroken if she goes off with you."

"This isn't what I meant."

Barnabas bit his lip. Could he talk about it without making him guilty for preferring his wife to him?"

"I missed you, Willie, this past month. But I found out that I could still live with your absence."

Willie nodded. His face had subtly changed since he had seen him last. Barnabas studied the face, fondly.

"I think that being cut off from me did you good." he continued "Like it or not, you had become too dependent on me. You have gotten over it now, and I like the change."

"I see" Willie pulled out a chair and sat down "then you won't mind if I tell you something?"

"Not at all." he repressed a sigh as he realized what Willie would say.

"As you said, I had become dependent on you. It wasn't only that I fancied myself as your son. I fancied myself a child. I don't think that you would have minded an adult son."

"No, I would not."

"I have come a long way, but I still got a lot of growing up to do."

"And you want to make sure that you don't become dependent on me again?" Barnabas finished the thought for him.

Willie looked up at him in surprise "You know?"

"I have been doing some thinking, too. I had plenty of opportunity for it."

"So you won't mind...?"

"If you don't see me so often? No. I will miss you, but I can live with it."

Willie got up and shook Barnabas' hand. "So it's all right with you?"

"Yes. Just drop in once in a while to let me know how you are doing."

Julia looked a the reclining body with dismay. How much longer did she have to do this? Barnabas was right. It was just torture, pure and simple.

It might be for Chris' benefit, but still she had no wish to see again the body arching in pain, she didn't want to hear any more muffled screams. She didn't care to see Roxanne Drew again...

But Roxanne was there, urging her on to another session.

She looked at Chris. It only it were Chris... If she had been looking at Chris' eyes, she would be free of this.

But those were not Chris' eyes. They were Tom's. And nothing short of what she was doing would set Chris free.

Roxanne threw the switch and Julia looked away.

"Keep looking at him, doctor." Roxanne said. "we have to know when Tom leaves."

The body stiffened in pain, as it always did. The muffled screams came, and the eyes rolled upward, showing the whites.

Julia watched impotently. She couldn't stand this any longer...

Then the current stopped. The body relaxed and the defiant stare returned to Tom's eyes.

"Not today, it seems." Julia said.

Then Roxanne threw the switch again. There was a look of outraged surprise in Tom's eyes before the pain claimed all his consciousness.

"Roxanne!" Julia protested.

A mist was now coming out of the body from the ears, the nose, and the eyes.

"We finally did it." Roxanne said as she raised the voltage to speed up Tom's exit.

Julia raced to Chris' side, hoping that the body wasn't too damaged. She could see Tom take shape slowly by Chris' side. Quickly, Julia pulled out her protective amulet and faced him.

Tom was now free of Chris' tortured body. He could not reenter it without excruciating pain. He could not fight Julia.

Julia quickly sealed all of Chris bodily openings to keep Tom from entering again, the nodded to Roxanne to turn off the current.

The body relaxed, and this time, when the eyes came back to normal, they were Chris' eyes.

Tom stared at them with hatred. He could not enter Chris again. He couldn't touch Julia, and Roxanne was too formidable to try anything on her.

Then Julia read the service for exorcism.

Roger's palms were a crisscross of scars and burns. It was a wonder that there was still skin on them.

"Why do we have to do it?" Roger asked plaintively while Derek tried to salve the worst of his wounds.

Derek sensed that Roger was straining to free himself of his mental hold. Maybe he should bite him again...

He didn't. Anyone as abused as Roger had a right to gripe. Sure, was a nut with homicidal tendencies. Still, that was no reason to abuse him so.

"We are doing this for Carolyn, aren't we?" Roger insisted "we are protecting her."

Derek nodded. That was what Nicholas had told him. Or rather, that they were protecting Carolyn's child. The two were not the same...

"Maybe we should do something about Quentin."

"Quentin?"

"Billy Graham framed Nixon. And Quentin has not yet broken free of those people."

Derek managed not to look startled.

"They want to do to Carolyn what they did to Nixon. I can fee that she is in danger."

"I know that."

"This hurts" Roger flinched as Derek touched one of his burns, more painfully that he meant to. "But if that was we can help Carolyn, it is worth it."

Vicky chewed her fingernails slowly.

"We cannot go on like this." she said, more to herself than to Nicholas "up to now she forgets about her "nightmares". But if she were to realize that it is always the same one, she might know the truth about it. And even is she doesn't remember, if she keeps having them night after nigh, she'll start asking questions. She's not stupid. She already thinks that her pains are too strong for a normal pregnancy."

"Her doctor is under control. I sent Derek to him."

"She can switch doctors. And she might do it too fast for you to fix it."

"So what we can do?"

"We could have the child take over the body."

Nicholas looked startled "the child?" he said with astonishment.

"His personality is strong enough to handle it."

"But how? Who could help us?"

"We have Roger, Derek, and Taft. Surely that should be enough."

Nicholas shook his head "Derek is breaking free of me. I can feel it."

"So let's use him one last time, and then wipe his memory. Keep enough control to have him giving innocuous reports to the sheriff. Do the same with Roger. As for Taft, you can handle him yourself."

"That was Roxanne" Sebastian said, after he hung up the phone "she wanted to know how you were doing.?"

"What did you tell her?" Angelique asked.

"I did not mention your scrying. For some reason this upsets her. I cannot understand why. She should be glad you are keeping tabs on what the enemy is doing."

"Thanks. I know that it wasn't easy for you to lie to her."

"I am afraid." Sebastian admitted.

"You are right in being afraid. This is a very dangerous thing, with dangerous people...if they are people at all."

"No." Sebastian shook his head "I am afraid of Roxanne."

"You fear her?"

"I was never afraid of her before. When she hurt Maggie I was angry, but not afraid. But now... Why does she still insist that I be mean to you? Sure, she has past grievances, but you are an ally. It weakens her to seek revenge... She seems to be out of control. And she seems to be a stranger ..."

"She has changed, hasn't she?"

"Yes. When she started with the chains, and the collar, I thought that she was angry with you, but that it would pass, and would go back to be the Roxie I knew. But she just stayed this way...I can get glimpses of the old Roxie, but most of the time she seems a cruel stranger..."

"She needs to be ruthless to face the enemy we are facing. And when you embrace ruthlessness it is difficult to go back...I know. But I know that it can be done, if someone believes in you."

"Thanks. I'll try to remember that."