Part 7: Time to say goodbye
“So,” Grant said, getting back to his feet, “what now, Cutter?”
“That’s not my name anymore, Grant, is it? Call me Lilith.”
“You gave yourself that name, Luv. I was always quite fond of Cutter. Sort of dressed up that story a bit, yeah?”
“Not all of it. Not the part where you left me on my own for centuries.”
I climbed back to my feet, watching the two staring each other down. She looked at him with pure hatred in her expression, but her eyes betrayed her. Behind that slim wall of disgust there was something so warm behind her gaze; something I imagine maybe even she was not aware of. He regarded her with a far more somber and melancholy expression. Given the fact that I was now the lone human in the room, I couldn’t help but think she may make an example of me soon enough, just to make a point. With that in mind, I remained a quiet spectator to their heated discussion, rather than bringing unwanted attention to myself.
“So, with the legacy of the Orchid family having ended,” Grant said, cutting his eyes to the body at the desk before gazing back at the woman in red, “what’s next?”
She just answered his question with a wide smile, before walking softly towards the door on her right. Only moments after she pulled the door open, a familiar face strolled in from the next room over; a face with vibrant red hair hanging on each side of it, flowing over each shoulder. Though I had no doubt we would be seeing Ashley again, I was hoping we could deal with one problem before leaping headfirst into the next. Of course, it would seem both were hand in hand from the beginning; a fact that took far too long to sink through my thick skull.
“Are you ready to come home now, boys?” She said with more arrogance in her tone than the emotionless voice we had heard multiple times before.
“Not so fast, hon,” Cutter said, laying a hand on the redhead’s arm, “I thought I might give him something of an ultimatum.”
“This was not what we agreed upon, he belongs with…”
“Cool it, sweetheart. This is my rodeo now.”
She stared into Grant’s eyes with that maniacal smile reaching across her face again, while she strolled around the desk to look at him, face to face.
“No, he’s mine!” Ashley screamed, causing her hair to violently blow out to the sides and into the air above her head, “we had an accord!”
“Not yet! Cutter barked, spinning in place to glare at her associate, “He’s all yours when I’m done with him.”
With that, Ash settled back down, allowing her hair to obey the laws of gravity once more.
“So, Lucy…can you die?” Cutter asked, tracing her fingers across his face.
“Everything dies, Luv.”
As the two spoke, Grant cut his eyes to meet mine, only for a second before turning back to the woman in red. In that briefest of moments, I felt my consciousness being thrust to somewhere else, where I found myself sitting in a room I couldn’t quite make out. It was not dissimilar from how details were clouded in the place between the bridge and the house I was still certain we would lose our lives in, though it felt far less malicious than the other place had.
Seconds later, Grant appeared next to me, the haze faded, and I realized we were once more sitting together in the deserted bar we had left behind so long ago.
“Beer?” Grant asked, suddenly standing behind the counter again, though I hadn’t noticed him moving.
Of course, I knew these events were not truly taking place, but a beer did sound absolutely amazing. I gave a nod, still unable to quite convince my tongue to do its job, while absentmindedly accepting a cigarette along with my freshly poured draft.
“It’s a lot to take in…I know, mate,” he said, lighting up his smoke before handing me the lighter.
“What’s happening, man?”
“This place? Nah, this doesn’t matter. What’s important is what I have to say, and I’m sorry, mate, I’m so sorry, but it’s not gonna be easy to hear. Just hang in there, yeah?”
“Grant, we’re gonna be ok, right?”
“Not this time, brother. I suspect this is the end of the road for us, well, for me anyway.”
“No! You can’t, I mean, surely…”
I tried to argue against what he was saying, but my mind couldn’t translate my erratic thoughts into words, even if this was all in my head. Regardless of my frantic stuttering, Grant just laid his hand on my arm, giving me a look that was somewhere between compassion and understanding. It was enough for me to stick a fork in my argument and just let him speak. I still chugged down half of the imaginary beer, while puffing away on my cigarette as though it was providing much-needed oxygen to lungs that had been lost to the sea. Real or not, the combination of the two convinced my racing heart to settle down a little.
“She’s currently giving me a choice; to surrender myself freely to the force behind the building, or to die right here and now.”
“Can’t you fight her!? I mean, you stopped her before, right? Surely you can…”
“I can’t. Not now; not with the redhead nearby. She hasn’t stripped me down completely; not like when we were in that damned place, but I can’t hope to battle against Lilith like this; not with how powerful she’s grown.”
“But, surely she’s not strong enough to kill you either, right?”
“She has a weapon; one that is designed for that very thing: a blade forged from the Holy Grail itself. It’s a God killer, mate. Even at my full strength, I’d be buggered if she was able to stick me with it.”
I felt my whole body sink; becoming more and more lifeless with every word he spoke. I couldn’t bear the thought of losing him, but I also couldn’t help but fear that this would be the end of me too.
“Don’t fret, mate. You’ll make it out of this alright, I’ve already seen to that. You still have the key I gave you, right?”
I groped at my pocket, to feel the small key still held within. I gave my friend a nod, unable to look into his eyes. The shame of my moment of fear about my own fate festered within me like cancer.
“She’s holding the dagger to my heart right now, but there is much she does not understand. I’m agreeing to her terms, with one simple addendum of my own: she is to release Brandon right away. Though I have agreed to accompany the two back to that building; to surrender myself to its will, I will not be following through with that promise.”
His lips formed that all too familiar, mischievous grin. For a moment, I allowed the twinkle in his eye to release me from my self-pitying, but that was short-lived when he confessed to me what he truly had planned.
“Ok, Brandon has been set free. I can feel it; feel him re-entering the world. He is…yes, he’s at your house; right where he was taken from. Alright, mate, here’s the deal. As soon as we get back, you run to the closest door, as quickly as you can. Slide the key in, turn it, and close it shut behind you, you get me?”
“Yeah, um, I got you, but…”
“Do not look back.”
“Grant, what are you planning? What does she not understand?”
He smiled again, giving me that almost frustrating look that just screams, “I know something you don’t know!”
“There’s something I never shared with her; a detail about our bond I never revealed. We are linked, she and I. Though I cared deeply for her, I never quite trusted her, so I put a failsafe in place for if she ever did choose to betray me.”
“Huh?”
“Basically, if she ends my life, she too will die. Of course, even if it were not for that, the death of an angel is no small thing, mate. Reckon it’ll take out the both of them, as well as Orchids little mansion. Might even seal off Alberson bridge for good. No telling really.”
It was almost frustrating how nonchalantly he was talking about his demise, as though it was nothing more than what he wanted for breakfast we were discussing. I still tried to fight against it; bargaining that there has to be another way, but he wouldn’t hear it.
“Michael, it’s ok, brother. If this works out, you and Brandon need never fear that sinister building again. I can’t say how much this will hurt it, but I’m sure it won’t finish it off. Still, I see no reason why it would seek you or Brandon out once I’m gone.”
“Grant, please…”
“Mate,” he said, once more laying his hand on my arm, “this is our last conversation, my dearest friend. Don’t let this goodbye be any more painful than it has to be, yeah?”
My whole body was trembling as I started into his quivering and glassy eyes. Though I knew I wasn’t exactly in a real and tangible place at the time, I felt the tears stream down my face, as I wrapped my fingers across the back of his hand.
“Is there really no other way?” I asked, barely holding myself together.
“Not this time, brother.”
He smiled far more sincerely than his normal, carefree, and mischievous smirk, before walking from behind the counter to face me one last time.
“Goodbye, Michael.” He said, laying his hand on my shoulder.
“Goodbye, mate,” I replied, attempting to smile back at him through the pain in my chest.
“Yeah, still sounds weird when you say it.”
He laughed, inspiring me to follow suit, though there was no levity behind my hollow chuckles. I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him close to me. I felt him hold me tightly as I allowed the tears to flow as freely as they desired, now that my face was hidden from his view.
“This is it, mate,” he spoke directly into my ear, causing that spike to ram deeper into my chest, “run, Michael. Run and don’t look back!”
As soon as the words left his lips, I found myself back in that elegant office, with Ashley glaring at me from behind the desk, and Lilith with the dagger held to Grant’s chest. I wasn’t prepared for how quickly it happened. I had only just become aware of the feet I stood on, when my friend pushed his body forwards, impaling himself on the blade, right down to the hilt. Ash and Cutter both screamed out in a maddening wail that damn near made my stomach flip, leaving me almost frozen in place; terrified to move a muscle.
“RUN, MICHAEL!” I heard call out from the recesses of my cluttered mind, finally reminding me I was in control of my body.
I sprinted to the door we had entered through, fumbling to slide the key into the lock. When I finally succeeded, I turned it, as well as the knob it protruded from. After I swung the door ajar, I betrayed my friend’s final request, turning in place to look upon him this one last time. Every muscle in my body twitched as I watched the light breach from cracks that had formed across every inch of his flesh, while the entities who had brought us to this still shrieked in shared anguish. It wasn’t their sounds that awakened the torment in my soul, but the agonizing scream coming from the mouth of my dearest friend.
“GO!” He squealed in a manner that suggested his pain was reaching its climax.
As I forced my trembling legs through the opening, I took one last glance at what I was leaving behind. I held the doorknob tightly as I stared on from the other side, pulling the key free from the knob before swinging it shut once and for all the second the closest friend I ever had exploded from the inside out. The wails and shrieks fell silent as I dropped to the floor in front of the backdoor to the deserted tavern. My eyes still burned from the near blinding light that breached from within my friend, while the ringing in my ears from the devastating explosion I bore witness to for mere milliseconds would linger for some time after my sight cleared up.
I know neither how long I sat upon the wooden floor of the empty bar, nor how long I cried out against the agony of losing Grant, but the pain in my chest would not let up, no matter how many tears I shed, nor how loudly I screamed. Even when I allowed my anguished body to take a break from it all, I wouldn’t arise from that spot on the floor until some time later; after the sun receded from the sky beyond the window, hiding my surroundings behind the curtain of night.
Epilogue: You’re not done yet, kid.
It took a while for me to emerge from the bar to find my truck still parked out front. When I freed my phone from the center console to find the battery almost depleted, I saw that I had several missed calls from Brandon. He was far more aware of the bizarre events we had encountered this time, but I promised I would tell him everything when I got back home. Truthfully, I can’t say if I had yet decided whether or not I would indeed tell him everything, but I knew I couldn’t hide it all away from him anymore. If nothing else, he seemed to have no memory of anything he had experienced after his girlfriend took him back to her place. I would think those to be memories best lost to potential brain fog.
Though I was thrilled to hear he had indeed been returned to the world he belonged to, I was in no rush to return to my pleasant home by the beach just yet. I decided to rent a hotel room close to the bar for a few days, just to attempt to get my mind right before getting back on the road. Not only was I in desperate need of a shower and a change of clothes, but I hoped to just be secluded for a time. It wasn’t until the third day after my arrival back in the real world that I felt compelled to return to the old pub my friend used to do business in. Given the fact that I possessed the key now, I assumed I could come and go as I pleased.
When I walked into the otherwise vacant bar, I had to fight once more against the tears welling up. I had no doubt this would be a condition I may suffer from for quite some time, but I could only hope it would get easier with time. I ran my fingers across the surface of the counter as I strolled behind it to help myself to a refreshing draft, taking a seat on that same barstool and lighting up a smoke after it was poured. I puffed away while continuing my battle against my burning eyes as I reflected on the good times Grant and I had shared. Even when we faced the most horrific things, we still found reasons to laugh in the face of it.
It wasn’t until I allowed myself to share a chuckle with the visual image of my friend’s goofy grin, that I became aware of the strange glow emitting from somewhere behind me. I slowly spun the stool I was propped on to see the backdoor that led to so many strange and unusual places, having swung open, with a bright aura flowing from another place beyond the one I sat in. Being somewhat unsure what to make of it, I just gazed at the entrance to somewhere else, still sipping on my refreshing pint.
Once both my beverage and my smoke reached their end, I had already decided to walk through the opening in the rear wall. I groped at my pocket again, to assure myself that the key my friend entrusted me with still remained before I passed through into the unknown. Though I was well aware that this could be a trap, possibly set in motion by the very entities Grant had hoped to put an end to, I somehow knew this place to be one I should not fear. I could sense that it meant me no harm if that makes sense.
Once my eyes adjusted to the light, I realized I was standing on a long pier that overlooked a gorgeous beach, with the shimmering ocean in the distance. As I glanced from one side to the other, I could see not the slightest trace of anyone else around, with the exception of a lone individual at the end of the pier. As I paced towards the man, the sounds of the waves crashing against the wooden support beams sent my mind back to the home I shared with my friend and business partner.
Though I had no idea of the identity of the man I approached, not what his intentions with me may be, I couldn’t help but allow a smile to reach across my lips. The ocean breeze drifted through my hair more vigorously as I neared the guy who I could now see was fishing over the railing, and I found myself growing more and more curious about what was going on here.
“Hello, Michael,” he said in a worn, but pleasant voice.
“Hello,” I replied, unsure of what else to say.
“S’pose you might be wonderin’ what’s goin’ on here, huh?” He said in an accent that sounded somewhere between country and cajun, to my less than worldly ears anyway.
“It crossed my mind,” I replied as I stopped beside the stranger.
Now that I could fully take in the man I shared the pier with, he looked to be maybe in his late fifties or early sixties. He was about the same height as me, with thick and wavy white and grey hair being tousled by the wind, a thick mustache that almost hung to his lower lip, and dark skin that looked to have spent a lot of time under the very sun that shone down upon us. He looked as though he was in pretty solid physical shape, with his muscled arms bulging beneath the rolled-up sleeves of his blue and white striped shirt, which was unbuttoned about halfway down his chest. He stood barefoot on the wooden planks, with military green shorts hanging just below his knees.
He reminded me of several of our regular customers at the bar back home; that laid-back attitude of enjoying retirement, and living the good life for a while. For a moment, I even considered he could very well be exactly that, but there was no evidence to support that theory, other than the fact he apparently enjoyed life at the beach.
“So, what’s next for you, kid?” He asked, reeling in his fishing line, “what’s yer plans from here on out?”
“Um, I’m not sure.” I was somewhat unsure of what he was referring to, but given the fact I was led here through the back door of my late friend’s bar, I had to believe it had to do with Grant.
“Hmmm,” he replied, holding out the bare hook, before casting it out into the ocean once more, “Lilith might be outta the picture, but the buildin’s still there. That bother you at all?”
“I mean, yeah, but what can I do?” I said, more speaking aloud my inner frustration than addressing the stranger before me, “I’m just a person! Just some random asshole! I don’t have any power. I wouldn’t stand a chance against that place! Hell, even Grant almost died there, and he was…”
“I know who Grant was, and there ain’t no such thing as ‘just a person’. Ain’t never met no-one who wasn’t unique in one way or another.”
His voice was deep but friendly. Time-worn and scratchy, but warm and somehow comforting.
“All I’m askin’ is what would you be willin’ to do if there was a way to free yourself and Brandon from that place, once and for all?”
“I mean, I suppose I’d do whatever I could, but…”
“What if I were to tell you, you might even be able to get your buddy, Grant back?”
I was dumbfounded; lost for words by what he was saying. Yes, I knew that sinister building still held on to a part of me, but was he really suggesting that Grant could still be alive?
“His body, well, the shell he was wearin’ was destroyed by a weapon of immense power,” the man said while idly tugging his fishing pole, “in essence, yeah, Lucifer fell that day, but not all of him. Not completely, anyway.”
I still couldn’t find words to make any of this fully register. I just stared at the man as he casually talked about things that were well above my understanding.
“Y’see, if you were hit by a truck tomorrow, your body might die, but your soul would be split between what comes next for you, and what’s left in that place; pretty much what your friend is experiencing now. ‘Course, unlike how this’d work for you; where your soul would still move on, a little less than what it was, but mostly unaware of what’s missing, it’s very different from what an angel would go through.”
I wanted to ask questions regarding every single little thing he said, but I could already feel my pulse quickening from the implications of his words.
“Short story long, if you was able to put an end to that place, not only would you rebuild your own sorta broken soul, but you might could restore your friend too.”
“Could he really come back? Like, be whole again?”
“Not completely at first; not the same as he was before, but an angel can restore itself if even a particle remains, even one who has long since fallen.”
He made a very strange expression as he spoke those words. There was something almost melancholy behind his eyes, but there was something else too. The smile he wore seemed like he was hiding a secret behind it, but I could very well have been reading too much into it. I could only vaguely make out his lips behind that thick mustache as it was. Regardless of my lack of fully understanding all of what he told me, even the slightest glimmer of hope of bringing Grant home was enough for me to have made my mind up before I even knew I had. Though I had so many more questions, I pushed those to the side for the time being. Only one thing needed to be asked:
“What do I have to do?”
“Ain’t rightly sure just yet,” he said, reeling in his fishing line again, grimacing when looking upon the still vacant hook, “still a work in progress, so to speak. Just had to be sure you was interested in lendin’ a hand, one last time.”
He gave me that strange smile again, raisng one eyebrow higher than the other. I could tell there was so much he wasn’t telling me, but I was certain I wasn’t remotely capable of understanding most of what he may be hiding. There was still one question that felt as though it would burn me up from the inside out if I didn’t ask it:
“Who are you?”
“Just think of me as an invested third party,” he replied with a chuckle.
“But, like, what is all of this to you? I don’t mean any disrespect or anything, but what is your role in all of this?”
I almost felt like an asshole for suddenly feeling compelled to practically interrogate this guy, but I just knew he was hiding something from me. Even if it was something that was far above my paygrade or ability to even conceive, I needed to know more if I was going to just blindly put my faith in some stranger who had no luck with fishing.
He just studied me for a moment, leaning his fishing pole against the railing, while propping one elbow on the ledge. The look in his bright green eyes damn near convinced me he had more than just a work in progress worked out already, but that only frustrated me more. It felt as though he was dangling the possibility of getting Grant back in front of me, just like he hoped to convince some absent-minded fish to latch onto his bait.
“That building is a stain, kid. A damned blemish on an otherwise beautiful landscape. I’ve come to understand it’s been around for far longer than maybe even I have, and that ain’t no small thing,” he began to gaze off while he spoke, drinking in the gorgeous scenery that surrounded us, “more folks it’s swallowed up, the fatter and more powerful it’s grown. S’pose I didn’t never pay it no mind when it was small, y’know? All kinds of nasty things out there, son. Can’t wipe ‘em all away, but this ‘n’s gone too far. Gotten too big for its britches, though I don’t suppose it’s got no reason to wear nothin’ like that. Hell, it may well swallow this world whole if we don’t put an end to it soon.”
“How the hell can I even hope to put something like that to an end?” I asked, suddenly feeling my brief moment of hope sinking to the pit of my stomach.
I almost jumped when the man laid a weathered hand on my shoulder, but the twinkle in his eye almost reminded me of the look Grant would get when he was up to something.
“Everythin’ has a weakness, kid. You ain’t got no idea what you’re capable of, son, but you will be soon enough. You gimme some time to come up with something, and I’ll be in touch.”
He clapped me on the shoulder before recommending I return to my home for the time being. Yes, I was eager to get to work, even if I was fully unprepared for the task at hand, but just the glimmer of hope his words had provided me with was enough for now. Regardless of when, whatever the strange man has in store for me would come to fruition, I followed his recommendation and returned to my home by the beach.
I felt more exhilarated than I realized I would be when Brandon met me at the front door, well, where the front door used to be anyway. Our house had returned to the way it was before Ashley transformed it into a scale replica of the place she came from, but the gaping hole from where Grant had made a new exit was still there. Brandon had placed a tarp over it for the time being and had already made some arrangements to have it repaired, but not everything can get fixed overnight, I suppose. Though we still have a lot to talk about, it feels so good to have at least one of my closest friends by my side again.
I don’t know where the next chapter in my story will find me, but I most certainly have my hopes for how it’ll all turn out. I can’t say whether or not we have a chance of succeeding, but perhaps all is not lost; not yet anyway. I’m still unsure of the identity of the man on the pier. I have some theories, but nothing I’m willing to think out loud. I do believe he’s here to help though. Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m about to let my guard down; not until I’m sure he can be trusted.
Again, I thank you for hearing me out on one more long-winded tale, and I hope I have wonderful news to greet you with at our next meeting, should there be one. There is still a dark cloud looming overhead, my friends. Perhaps I will manage to brave the oncoming storm and see the light on the other side of it, but if not; should you never hear from me again, please know I went down fighting, just as Grant did. Whichever way my story ends; be it for better or worse, I may yet see you again, brother.