Chapter 8
"Bill, where's Eddie and Beverly?" Georgie asked.
His eyes opened wide when Georgie said that. Bill didn't know what to tell him; Beverly was running errands and Eddie was well... missing. Bill, Mike, Stanley, Ben, and Richie let go of Georgie and looked at him; unsure about what to tell him. Finally, Bill figured out what to tell Georgie, but didn't know how he would react.
"Beverly's on h-h-her way. She's just r-r-running a few errands, but she'll be here. Eddie is well um... m-m-missing." he said.
"Missing?! But how?" Georgie asked alarmed.
"You see, Eddie was the first one to a-a-arrive at the wellhouse. When we got there, we s-s-suspected that he went inside, so we w-w-went in and s-s-searched the place. We heard Eddie's curfew watch in a room up-up-upstairs, so we went up there and h-h-headed for the source. When we got to the s-s-source, we found you un-un-unconscious, but Eddie was n-n-no where to be found. The only thing we found was his a-a-asthma kit, inhaler, and c-c-curfew watch on the g-g-ground next to you." Bill explained.
"Georgie, when Pennywise asked if you had any friends, did tell him about Eddie?" Mike asked.
"No. I mentioned Bill, but no one else." Georgie answered.
The boys looked at each other; confused and wondering how this "supposed demon" could've known about Eddie. For a few moments, the boys remained silent until Georgie looked up at them.
"So Eddie's going to die without his inhaler or asthma kit, isn't he?" he asked.
Bill, Ben, Mike, Stanley, and Richie flinched when he said that and looked at each other; cringing at the possible truth that would be the answer. Georgie took from the facial expressions and body language as an answer and looked away from Bill in disbelief and...confused. Mike put his hand on Georgie's shoulder for comfort.
"Don't worry Georgie, I know it's a lot for you to take in, but we'll find him. Eddie's not going to die." he assured.
"Its not that its just... I thought it was just a dream." Georgie spoke.
"What do you mean?" Bill asked.
"While I was "possessed", I kept seeing flashes of Eddie in my head; memories of him from over the years, but on the day you found me... I woke up and I saw myself behind Eddie with a blade to his throat. I couldn't control myself, I couldn't stop myself, I just felt so helpless and weak." Georgie explained.
"Do you r-r-remember saying any w-w-weird things to Eddie?" Bill asked.
"No, I blacked out multiple times during the altercation. The last time I blacked out, I remember Eddie standing still and I opened his mouth. That's when I blacked out completely." Georgie finished.
Bill, Ben, Mike, and Stanley stared at him in shock. They couldn't believe that Georgie would remember all this but Richie was furious. It almost looked like he wanted to grab Georgie and force more answers out of him, but before he could, someone walked into the room. Ben was the first one to look and was horrified by what he saw.
"BEVERLY?! Oh my God what happened to your face?!" he gasped.
Everyone looked and was horrified to see Beverly with bruises on her face, scraps on her arms and legs and a black eye on her right eye. Bill, Ben, Richie, Stanley, and Mike rushed to her aid, but Georgie was forced to stay behind due to the IV in his arm. However, he was able watch from his bed. Bill, Ben, Richie, Mike, and Stanley examined Beverly and could see that she had gotten into a scuffle. Beverly's clothes were covered in dirt. her hair was a bit frizzy, there were scraps, bruises, and cuts all over her arms and legs, there was a black eye on her right eye, and on the back of her head, it was clear that something had hit her head; from the mark on her head that had been treated by doctors. Beverly was rubbing her head in pain. She felt dizzy, she could feel burning and sharp cuts all over her arms and legs, and she could see that the boys were being too protective and over-reacting
"B-B-Beverly, wh-wh-what h-h-happened?" Bill asked.
"Was it Bower's?! I swear to God if it was him, I am going to break his hand." Ben threatened.
"It wasn't Bower's, Ben I promise." Beverly assured.
"Then who did it?" Stanley asked.
Beverly looked away for a few moments, unsure about what to tell them. The boys watched anxiously as they waited for her to tell the truth. Finally, Beverly looked at the guys; her expression was scared, but her eyes truthful.
"It was Eddie, he did this to me." she said.
"WHAT?!" the guys said shocked.
"But how? Why would he... no... no I refuse to believe it." Richie said.
"It's true Richie. Eddie did this to me and he did this to Greta too." Beverly said sternly.
"Wait what?!" Richie asked.
Beverly looked away for a bit, then her expression changed to a serious and scared glance.
"I had just arrived at the pharmacy. When I went in, an isle of the pharmacy looked like a fight had broke out. A shelf was broken, stuff was on the ground, stuff from another shelf had been moved, and I saw Greta on a chair; crying and shaking. I approached her, asked what had happened and this is what Greta told me..." she begin.
Flashback
"Your friend is crazy!" she screamed.
"What?" Beverly said confused.
Greta stood up and approached her dangerously close.
"Your friend came in here, attacked me, and then stole something from the shelf!" she shouted.
"Look, I don't know what Ale told you, but we're not..." Beverly begin.
"I'm not talking about Ale, i'm talking about Eddie." Greta said.
"What?!" Beverly said in disbelief.
"He came in here, attacked me, and then stole something from the shelf. He's lucky I didn't call the cops!" Greta shouted.
"You must be mistaken Greta, Eddie wouldn't hurt anyone." Beverly defended.
"Then why did he come in here all dirty, injured, and had glowing eyes?! I don't know what happened between you and him, but something occurred." Greta said enraged.
"Greta that's enough!" Mr. Keene shouted.
He came out from the back; holding rubbing alcohol and small white towels. Greta glared at Beverly, before heading back to the chair and sat down. Beverly looked at Mr. Keene.
"Mr. Keene, what happened?" she asked.
He signed when Beverly said that. Mr. Keene looked at Greta; unsure about what to tell Beverly. After a few moments of silence, opening the bottle, and soaking the white towel with it, Mr. Keene glanced at his daughter.
"Greta, tell Beverly what you told me." he said.
She hesitated for a few moments, then her glare changed to a scared and frightened look.
"Eddie came in here, but he didn't approach me, he went to the medicine isle. He was muttering and whispering about something." Greta begin.
"Did you hear what he was saying?" Beverly asked.
"Well no, of course not, but his muttering, it sounded so weird. I went to the isle to see if he needed help, but when I saw Eddie; he was dirty, smelled and looked terrible. He had a cast on his right arm, he had an ice pack on his head, and he was covered in dirty water and sewage stains. When I approached Eddie, I heard this deep growl coming from him." Greta continued.
"What did it sound like?" Beverly asked.
"It sounded like... an animal growl, but it wasn't any animal I had heard. Anyway, that's when I heard the words "Back off" from him." Greta explained.
"He said that?! In what way?" Beverly asked.
"A threatening way; like, he wanted you to leave him alone. I got angry and well... I said some mean things to him, then he looked at me and I will never forget that look; he looked angry, enraged and his eyes were glowing." Greta continued.
"They were glowing?! Beverly said surprised.
"Like hellfire and the devil; that's when Eddie came at me and this time he was really pissed. He roared like... like a lion, but it didn't sound like it. When Eddie said the words "I said back off", he pushed me to the wall; I felt like a feather when he did that. I flew and hit the wall; causing the shelf to break. When I hit the ground, stuff fell on me." Greta finished.
"When I heard the commotion, I came out here and found Eddie standing over Greta in pain. He was clinching his arm and when I called out his name, he turned to me and panicked. Eddie grabbed the pills and limped out of the store. I chased after him, but I decided to help my daughter." Mr. Keene added.
"What kind of pills were they?" Beverly asked.
"They were pain meds. The kind of medicine you would need to numb pain." Mr. Keene answered.
"Can they effect Eddie's asthma?" Beverly asked.
"No, they can't." Mr. Keene said relieved.
"So, Eddie wasn't looking for anything for his asthma?" Beverly asked confused.
"No, not that I could see. By the way, your friend owes me $2.99." Mr. Keene said.
"Mr. Keene, I am so sorry. I don't know what came over Eddie, but I promise i'll find him and make sure he apologizes to you and Greta." Beverly promised.
"Thank you Beverly, but you don't have to apologize, it's Eddie that has to. If you find him and bring him here to apologize, the next purchase you make will be on the house." Mr. Keene smiled.
"Thank you. By the way, do you know where Eddie went?" Beverly asked.
"Yes, he went that way to the right." Mr. Keene said.
"Alright, thanks Mr. Keene." Beverly said thankful.
She ran out of the pharmacy and looked to her right. Beverly could see that beyond the crowd of people walking, she could see Eddie walking into the forest. Beverly ran after him while calling out his name. She ran down the street, through the bridge, and ran to the the direction to the river. As Beverly slowed down to catch her breath, she realized that she had lost Eddie. Beverly looked around for a bit before she was hit in the back of her head by a bottle. She fell to the ground; hurt and in pain. Beverly got up while rubbing her head and looked to see Eddie right behind her with a broken beer bottle in his hand. He looked the same as what Greta had described; he was dirty, he had a cast on his right arm, a ice pack was barely on his head, his eyes were glowing, and he looked... angry. Beverly had never seen him like this; her eyes wide with terror when she saw his glowing eyes that she could see hellfire in them.
"E-Eddie?" Beverly stammered.
He bared his teeth when she said that. The last thing Pennywise needed was another person saying his host's name, but on top of that was another of his intended victims. Pennywise thought about what to do; either possess Beverly (since he didn't need Eddie anymore) or let her go and risk telling the police about this, but Richie was supposed to be his next target, not Beverly plus even if Pennywise did possess her, her dad wasn't here to experience his own daughter killing him. Pennywise knew that the only choice he had was to let her go, but he also decided to toy with her. Beverly could see hesitation in Eddie's eyes; almost as if he's pleading for help, but something else was making him stop. Then, Beverly could hear a growl just as Greta had described it; a unexplained growl that couldn't be described as a lion or any other animal.
"I am not Eddie; he is gone. I am controlling his soul. He's mine!" he snarled.
Beverly stared in horror when she heard this. Eddie's voice was deep and raspy; almost as if a different person was speaking.
"But if you must know who I am, i'll tell you. My name is Pennywise." he smirked.
Suddenly, Beverly was turned around and a hand was on her throat. She gasped for air and stared in horror at Pennywise's devilish smirk and glowing eyes. He dropped the broken beer bottle and there was a medium rock besides Beverly, but not before she could hear Pennywise's demonic laugh.
"You shouldn't have followed me into the woods Bevy. It's not safe for little girls to be out here all alone." he smiled.
"Let... him... go!" Beverly ordered.
"Never! He is mine! I will let him go when I want to!" Pennywise roared.
Beverly glared at him, but then look to the side to see a rock on the ground. Beverly could grab it,but look to see if Pennywise was having the same thought. She grabbed the rock and looked at Pennywise; feeling regretful about the decision she was making.
"Eddie, if you can hear me in there, i'm sorry." Beverly said.
Before Pennywise could fully understand what she meant, he felt a sharp rock hit his head. Pennywise screeched and got off of Beverly in pain. He rubbed his head and looked to see where Beverly went. She got up and ran towards the hill, but stopped and turned around. Beverly watched as Pennywise tried to recover from the rock hit, but deep down, Beverly wanted to help him (only because she wanted to help Eddie). Beverly grabbed the broken beer bottle for protection, then Pennywise looked at her with enraged eyes.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you. You don't want to hurt your precious friend now do you?" he sneered.
"Let him go." Beverly demanded.
"Never!" Pennywise roared.
He leaped at Beverly and shoved her to the nearby tree. Pennywise's hand was on her throat and Beverly stared at him with a unknown feeling of anger and hatred.
"Between you and me, I don't think Bev and Benny would be very pleased to see me attacking you now would they?" Pennywise smiled.
Beverly's stomach dropped when he said that. How did he know her grandparents? Beverly had never mentioned or talked about them for years. From what she could remember, Bev and Benny had been killed in a car accident when Beverly's father and aunt were 5 years old, so not only did she never get the chance to meet her grandparents, she never got the chance to know them either.
"How... how did you..." Beverly stuttered.
"That's not important... not yet at least." Pennywise smiled.
"What do you mean?" Beverly asked.
"You'll know soon enough, but now, I need to figure out how to silence you." Pennywise sneered.
Beverly bashed him with her head; Pennywise dropped her, backed up, and rubbed his head in pain. Beverly coughed up a bit and got up, but Pennywise recovered quickly and leaped at her. He got on top of her and angerly punched her in the face multiple times with his only good arm. Beverly kicked him off and Pennywise landed on the dirt ground; clutching his arm in pain. Beverly got up and got out a cross that was a gift from Mike. She got a bit close to Pennywise; prepared to fight back if he attacks.
"It's over Pennywise, come out of him now!" Beverly demanded.
He looked at her enraged, but was terrified when he saw the Jesus Christ cross. Pennywise's eyes wided as Beverly got a bit closer to him and he felt a strong pain throughout his body. It was the kind of pain a demon would feel if they were being forced out of their host's body by a exorcism. The more Beverly got closer to Pennywise, the more pain he was feeling. Suddenly, Beverly was hit by another glass bottle and collapsed to the ground. Pennywise looked to see that Henry was right behind her with a broken beer bottle in his hand. Beverly was still holding the cross and just looking at it made Pennywise feel more pain than ever.
"Get rid of the cross now!" he ordered.
Henry nodded and approached Beverly. He grabbed the cross from her hand and threw it to the west part of the forest; the pain finally disappearing from Pennywise. He got up and started sweeping the dirt off his with his one good hand.
"Dad was right, this was a bad idea. Three people have seen me and one of them had the guts to follow me." Pennywise snarled.
"I would've gotten the pain meds for you master." Henry spoke.
"No you would've been seen as well. This was a risk I was willing to take." Pennywise said.
"Master, do you want me to get the girl and put her in the chambers with the other one?" Henry asked.
"No, leave her here. We're too far from the border anyway." Pennywise signed.
"But master, she's going to tell the cops about this." Henry protested
"No she won't and besides what is she going to tell them?... Perhaps I can use this as an advantage." Pennywise assured.
"How?" Henry asked.
"Between you and me Henry, I should've realized this sooner, but Beverly can't go to the cops, but she can go to her friends." Pennywise explained.
"So then, you can lure the kid you need out right?" Henry guessed.
"Exactly! Now come Henry, lets go before Beverly wakes up." Pennywise hurried.
"Yes master." Henry obeyed.
Pennywise headed to the river with Henry following him, then they disappeared into the forest. Beverly woke up with blurry vision, felt pain on the back of her head, and got up. She looked around and realized that Pennywise and his accomplice were already gone. Beverly rubbed her head, turned around and headed to the nearest hospital.
Back at the Hospital
"I can't believe this." Ben said.
The boys were astonished from what they had just heard. None of them could believe that Eddie would just go to the pharmacy, attack Greta, steal pain meds, and then attack Beverly just for wanting to help. Georgie was mostly disturbed to hear that Pennywise would do and say sinister things. Beverly looked away for a bit.
"When I got to the hospital, the doctors rushed over and started treating me. They asked me what had happened and all I could tell them was that I was attacked by a group of street kids had attacked me and I fought back. That's when your parents came Bill and told me that Georgie had woke up, then I came here. Speaking of which." Beverly finished.
She walked over to Georgie and gave him a big hug.
"Are you okay?" Beverly asked.
"I'm fine, but are you okay?" Georgie asked.
Beverly let go of him and gave him a warm smile.
"I'm fine Georgie. I'm just fine." she assured.