Chapter Nine

The overhead trees that had once seemed to be shielding the group from harm suddenly became a new source of terror. Large branches broke off without warning, hurling down on them with the potential to kill, especially if the branch caught someone at the right angle.

TJ stopped and pulled out a huge crucifix. He motioned the others toward him, and then indicated for everyone to take the hand of the person beside them. He had just begun to speak in Latin when an overhead branch broke off. The next thing Peter knew, Kermit was flying through the air towards TJ. Peter reacted with automatic reflexes, pulling Jody away at the same time.

Kermit caught TJ in the gut, casting both men to the ground, buried under the weight of the fallen limb from an ancient pine tree. As Peter scrambled to his knees in the aftermath, all he could hear was Kermit grunting in pain when the deadly branch hit him.

Jody had a hand on Peter's shoulder. "Oh God, Peter, are they all right?"

Before he could answer her, he saw TJ start to move and he called out a warning, "Don't move, TJ, Kermit is caught under that limb with you. Hold on until we know how badly hurt he is."

"He... is fine. Definitely pissed off, but fine," Kermit grumbled in his usual manner, but his words were clipped and spoken through clenched teeth. "Just get this goddamned limb off of me."

With Jody and Peter working together, they managed to pull the large limb away. Kermit got to his knees, cursing all the way, and he cradled his left arm carefully.

"How bad is it?" Peter asked, helping Kermit up with his one good arm.

"Broken," Kermit replied tersely, "What do we do now?"

With Kermit up, TJ could move without restriction. He got to his feet, and looked around, carefully examining their position.

"Everyone, away from the trees now!" he ordered.

Even as he spoke, limbs began hurtling down around them, acting much like wooden spears zeroing in on human targets. The wind was whipping up so much debris that it was hard to tell which way they were going as they tried to escape.

"Peeetteerrrrrrrr..."

Unconsciously, Peter's hand went to his neck and covered the heated skin. He stopped in his tracks, despite his fear, and looked back toward the voice. Both TJ and Kermit were beside him and followed Peter's gaze. What they saw made all three draw in a quick breath.

Looming behind them was a bodiless head, free-floating in the dark, but it wasn't just a head without a body. The head was a grotesque caricature of human anatomy: the mouth a yawning hole filled with squirming maggots and blood-red tears flowed from its eyes.

Peter could only assume it was an accurate depiction of a demon from hell, having nothing but his brief exposure at the Gables the previous weekend to go by. If the visage was designed to scare the shit out of all of them, the demon definitely succeeded.

The mouth of the figure opened again, and spoke Peter's name in the same long drawn out manner Peter had heard before. "Peeetteerrrrrrrr..."

The word made Peter's skin crawl, especially the throbbing area at his neck, and it mesmerized him into a sort of awkward paralysis. He heard Kermit calling his name, even felt him shaking his arm, but Peter was caught in a demonic spell.

Peter felt Kermit pulling him away, even as the demon was calling his name again, causing him to take a step towards it. "Peeetteerrrrrrrr..."

He fought with all he had, but he couldn't stop himself. The spell was shattered a moment later when a shot rang out, and the apparition disappeared in a screaming explosion. Peter collapsed to his knees, taking Kermit down with him. Gasping, Peter turned his head to see TJ standing beside them, his gun still aimed toward where the ghostly figure had once been.

Kermit was growling in pain as he cradled his arm. TJ took a few steps and knelt beside them.

"Did you – did you kill it?" Peter asked breathlessly.

"No," TJ said as his head dipped down for a moment. "I knew when I fired that it wasn't the demon itself, but a projection. Still, I had to try, if only to show the demon we weren't afraid of it," he paused, then whispered, "Or maybe it was to prove that fact to myself."

Peter's breath caught and he glanced around in a panic. "Where's Jody?"

TJ's head swivelled back to where he'd last seen her. Standing, he cursed and took off running. Peter craned his head around, and cursed when he, too, saw Jody's still form lying at the edge of the tree line.

Kermit wiped at a cut above his right eyebrow and looked up. "What? What's going on?"

Peter pulled himself to his feet with his gaze riveted on TJ kneeling at Jody's side. At least, she was moving again. "Trouble. More trouble."

"Ah, dammit," Kermit muttered, as he tried to get to his feet and failed.

Peter put a hand under Kermit's good arm and helped him stand. By the time they got to Jody and TJ, she was sitting up, but still looked pretty woozy.

"How is she?" Peter asked.

"Lucky, very lucky. She added another knot to the back of her head instead of spear through her heart."

Peter was confused until TJ pulled a wooden spike from the tree trunk with great difficulty. "This apparently was headed straight at her chest when she dived to avoid it. She hit her head on this tree, but at least, she's alive."

Peter knelt beside her and brought a knuckle under Jody's chin, raising it so he could look into her uneven gaze. "You okay, partner?"

She went to nod, then grimaced in pain. "Yeah... yeah, I'll be fine. We can go – "

Kermit interrupted her as he sat beside her, leaning against the tree trunk she'd hit her head on. "You might be ready to go, doll face, but I'm not. Let's just take a moment to catch our breath," he said with a grumpy tone. "Especially now that things seem to have quieted down."

Peter gave him an appreciative nod, then sat down on the other side of her. TJ's use of a silver bullet seemed to have done more than blasted away the demon's image, but also sent the rest of the apparitions and other creatures of the night back into hiding. Now, the night was oddly silent.

TJ squatted down and pulled some gauze pads out of his bag. "Here, use these. You are all cut and bleeding," he said as he passed them out.

"So are you," Jody said, her speech still muddled from her impact with the tree trunk.

"Yeah, but I'm going to do something about Kermit's arm first."

Peter watched TJ work, but also noticed the way the man's gaze kept a protective vigilance on their area, always ready for the first sign of attack. Peter closed his eyes and leaned his head back as he held his bleeding shoulder, knowing TJ would warn them of any danger.

He hoped there would be a brief respite from their battles with the dark forces. But he wasn't holding his breath waiting for it to happen either.

oOoOoOoOo

Holding on to each other for physical and moral support, the ragtag crew made their way up the driveway of the house where Marilyn was staying. Right before they got to the front door, Marilyn flung the door open and came hurtling through on a dead run.

Kermit recognized the panicked look to his sister's expression and knew what it took to put it there. It was there with her husband's unexpected death. It was also there the night he first arrived at the Gables to help her with the strange goings on. Marilyn was one of the strongest personalities he'd ever known. A single mother raising two kids while still grieving the loss of her husband had to be strong. If she was rattled, then what TJ had predicted must be happening.

He began to jog towards her, carefully guarding his broken limb as much as possible. "Marilyn, what is it?"

"It's Mitch," she answered in a breathless rush, her words coming faster the further she went with her explanation until she finally had to stop for air. A quick gasp and she continued, "She's gone. She was here a few minutes ago. I fell asleep in the chair beside her as she slept. When I woke up, she was gone. Oh God, Kermit, I think they have her! They have her!"

"Slow down, Marilyn, we'll find her, but first tell me what's been going on."

Marilyn ran a hand through her hair before it came to rest over her throat. "She's been acting more and more strange, withdrawn, almost as if she was being brainwashed in some way. I don't how. I didn't see or hear anything."

Kermit glanced to TJ, who nodded. "Children are much more susceptible to following their orders than adults."

Kermit took his sister into a one-armed embrace and hugged her tightly.

She whispered into his shoulder, "Thank you for coming. I don't know what I'd do without you. Come on, we have to find her before she gets too far away."

She pulled back, preparing to take him in tow with her, when she noticed his injury for the first time. "Kermit, what happened to your arm? My God, your face... you're bleeding. All of you are bleeding," she said, looking around with renewed fear and concern. "What happened?"

Kermit closed his eyes, seeking a fast, concise answer, except nothing but illogical, rambling statements came to mind. Finally, he said, "It's a long story. Come on, let's get moving. Mitch needs us."

He started to step away and Marilyn grabbed his hand. "Kermit, are you sure? You could stay here and I'll go after her."

Kermit shook his head and put his hand to her cheek. "There's no way I'm letting you go out there alone after what we've just been through."

He paused to brush away some blood dripping into his eye. "Come on, Mitch doesn't have time for idle chitchat."

"Wait a sec, Kermit," TJ interrupted. "Marilyn, do you know if there's any kerosene lanterns on the premises? Something non-mechanical we can use for lighting?"

Marilyn nodded rapidly. "Yes, yes, in the garage. There's all kinds of camping equipment in there. I'll show you."

The group followed her. Marilyn, TJ, and Jody were soon involved with the lanterns while Kermit's attention went to a locked gun case. Peter was leaning against a dark green Suburban parked in the garage, but he was close enough to talk to Kermit without the others hearing them.

"Do you really think more guns will help against what we're facing?" he asked quietly.

Kermit shrugged. "Couldn't hurt," he paused as he looked to Marilyn. "Do you have a key for this case?"

Marilyn's gaze darted outside as she sighed, obviously thinking these delays were keeping her from her daughter. "Kermit, please... we've got to – "

Kermit put a hand on her arm. "Marilyn, these people know how to deal with this sort of mumbo jumbo. We don't. We need to trust them to do what's best. If they say they need a few minutes to prepare, then they need it. A good soldier knows when to attack and when to lie low."

Marilyn bit her lip as she rung her hands, fighting back threatening tears. Finally, she nodded. She looked at Kermit. "Yes, the ring they gave me has keys to everything, even the gun case."

She reached into her pocket for the key ring.

"Everything? Including this Suburban?"

Puzzled, she nodded. Kermit smiled and reached a hand out for the keys. He unlocked the gun case, indicating for Peter to open it, then he opened the driver's door and climbed inside, cursing under his breath as he jostled his broken arm. The makeshift split they had rigged on the way to the house wasn't providing enough support, but he'd deal with that when he had more time.

The others stopped their activities, pausing as Kermit inserted the key and started the engine. "Good people, your transportation awaits."

"Just a sec," TJ said as he opened the rear door and started loading equipment into the back.

Peter picked up a shotgun with his good hand. "Do you still want this?"

Kermit nodded as he slipped out of the driver's seat, allowing the engine to idle on its own. "I'd prefer it with silver buckshot, but I'll take what I can get."

TJ grinned, "Give me another moment and I'll have your shells loaded with silver... at least enough to make a difference. Come on, Jody, we've got some work to do and we have to move fast."

He pointed to a box of shells above Marilyn's head. "Marilyn, if you'll grab those shells and show us into the kitchen, I'd appreciate it. Once we're set, you can see what first aid you can provide for Peter and your brother in the short time we have to work."

She did as ordered, following them out of the garage. TJ held the door open for her, "By the way, my name is Thomas Jefferson Kincaid. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"You think TJ can pull this off?" Peter asked after they entered the house. He leaned against the idling vehicle, hugging his shoulder closely.

Kermit shrugged, and then flinched, masking the reaction by reaching into the Suburban and shutting off its engine. "I certainly hope so, but we'll go out with a bang if he doesn't."

He smiled with a menacing grin as he finished speaking, then he bent down to pick up a small box at the bottom of the weapons case. It was marked with all kinds of warnings, the most predominant being 'explosives'.

"What in the world? You're kidding me, right? Dynamite here?" Peter started.

"It must be ancient," Kermit said, hefting the heavy package with one hand, "Used to be, you could keep a small amount on a farm to clear tree stumps and the like."

"Is it safe?" Peter asked.

"Is anything we've been doing for the last day safe?" Kermit replied sarcastically. "But I'm taking it with us anyway."

Peter nodded, closing his eyes as his head went back against the window of the car behind him. Kermit thought Peter was more pale than he'd seen him since the apartment. Then again, he thought, I'm probably not looking my best either.

Marilyn came back into the garage with her hands loaded. She carried a first aid kit, a large dish towel, and wood slats.

Kermit sighed with a degree of feigned disgust an older brother reserves only for a doting younger sister. She shook her head at him and he allowed her to set his arm, using the dish towel as an arm sling and the slats for better support for the brace. Though she worked quietly and efficiently, Kermit could tell she was barely keeping herself together.

Marilyn had just finished when Jody and TJ swept back into the garage to join them, their arms full of miscellaneous paraphernalia. "We're all set, Kermit," TJ said breathlessly.

"You drive, TJ," Kermit ordered as he slid into the back seat. "It's time to get this show on the road."

oOoOoOoOo