Superstition

Chapter Seven

As the morning turned into the afternoon it became her job to wake the old dude up and give him an ultimatum.
— Sir, Sir! Excuse me! This is not a place to sleep, if you are going to sleep please do it in another place. Otherwise, order something.
— Oh, yes, yes, sorry!— Ulises sleepily said
He looked up at her and the white light of the place blinded him for a second and burned an after-image in his retinas that stayed for a few seconds. The image was the silhouette of the girl and something else. He blinked rapidly and tried to focus his eyes looking at her again. She looked tired and pale, her Asian eyes had big black bags under them and she emanated a cold aura.
— I just want a half-and-half with a medialuna.
As she walked away, he kept staring at the obvious presence hovering above her. He thought for a second and wrote down a couple of runes on a napkin and took salt from the table and discreetly poured it on the floor In front of him.
When the girl came to him, he spoke the words of Mimir, that sounded like gibberish to the girl, but forced the hidden being to show itself to Ulises on a flash of light that was disguised in the blinking of the fluorescent lights.
— Oh, I apologize. I'm still kind of asleep. By the way, which is the cheapest hotel around here that I can rent for the night?— Ulises distractedly said
— There is one, pretty good actually, not far from the obelisk.— She said as she drew a rudimentary map on a napkin and wrote the name of the place.
— Thank you very much. By the way, revenge is never something easy neither should it be.
— What are you talking about? What do you mean? Do I know you?— She asked looking over her shoulder.
— No, you don't know me, but anyway is just what my horoscope said to me today, weird isn't it? Too specific.
— What's your sign? — He asked
— I'ma Leo.
— Cool the same as I.— He lied.— So the advice applies to you too. Have you done something in retribution to someone?— He asked in a comedic tone
— Yeah, probably, I'm a very vindictive person, you won't like to cross me on one of my bad days.— She answered with the same playful tone.
— I bet on it, you look like a tough girl. But in all seriousness, revenge is a double edge sword. How is that saying about graves?
— ”Before embarking on a journey of revenge, first you must dig two graves”— She quoted with a lost stare.— Yes, I know the saying, pretty ominous.
— Ominous but true, everything comes at a price, sometimes costing everything.
— Hey Carolina! I need you here for a moment please!— Yelled the girl in the register, breaking the environment of meditation and introspection.
When it was time to pay the bill, Ulises tipped well and gave her the napkin with the runes on it.
— What are these symbols?
— Some protective runes, just in case.
— Are you a sorcerer?— She asked mockingly.
— In a way I am.— He answered in the same tone as he left.— I'll go to your recommended hotel, have a nice day, bye, bye.
Devenna was worried like never before. Her son was in what could be his deathbed and her husband was having an emotional crisis travelling to some ass-of-the-world place. But fortunately, his grand-something was keeping her company, the old lady's presence was very comforting. She wasn't sure what it was but the chubby old lady kept the environment warm and homelike, Baba granny even sounded like a British cartoon nanny.
The phone rang and it was Ulises, he asked her how she and their son were holding on, he sounded calm as always. It was uncomfortable for her, how quickly he could calm her with his voice. The paradoxical situation made her smile. After a while, they were up to date with each other's lives and he asked to talk to his Baba.
— Hello dear, how is Buenos Aires?
— Pretty good, I can't complain. I had an encounter with an entity, I fought it off with the Egyptian box of bone dust you gave me. But I didn't feed Ammit or anything, it didn't feel correct, the ghost was more tragic than evil.
— Oh, son, you are so warm-hearted, remember that Ammit is unreasonable but deserving of respect and also remember never use it close to any dog or a cat, they are guardians.
— I know, I know, I read the book you gave me. Tell me please how is everything really going on in there? Is my kid safe?
— I've covered him with every protection symbol, amulet, spell and talismans I have. He looks like a rich gipsy. A hospital is never a good place for a soulless body to be in. They are not attached to the earth energy currents.
— I know, just hold there for a while. Tell me, how did Davenna allow you to dress my kid with all of that?— He asked with authentic curiosity.
— Oh, well, I used an Irish glamour spell on her, so she sees me as the apotheosis of sweetness old lady. I wanted her to be more relaxed and gave her a couple of marijuana teas.
— I don't feel comfortable with you putting spells or drugging my wife, and from where in Hell did you get the marijuana? None of your plants was of cannabis
— Well boy, it's what I know to do, you can't ask the elm tree to grow pears. And the marijuana was a gift from one of Adrian’ friends. I think I scared him.
— Anyway, please try to restrain your weirdness, and keep an eye of Adrian’ friend. There is a girl who will probably visit soon and she needs to process a lot.
— I'll do my best, anything else you need?— She talked in a way that didn't make Ulises feel comfortable and made him smile at the same time.
— Yes, I've met a girl haunted by a revenge demon. I'm pretty sure she is Chinese. What should I do?
— Try Nordic magic, it's the best against them in my experience.
— I did, I know. I meant to ask if I should get involved or should I continue with my journey?
— I can't tell you what to do, you have to do what your conscience dictates, but be careful, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. You can't help everyone.
— Ha! pretty funny play of words. Anyway, please give my Davenna all my love, thank you for everything really.
— You are a most welcome son, remember that blood is thicker than water.
— I still don't know how much blood we share, but I appreciate you helping me Baba, have a nice day, bye-bye.
— Bye-bye, dear.
Later that night Ulises felt restless, so he decided to take a walk, buy some cheap ingredients in a drugstore and a supermarket. While in there, he saw a poster with a devil's image on it. He saw the red face, the horns, and the goatee and asked himself how would he deal when meeting him. Adrian could be in any of the hundreds of underworlds, but unfortunately, the Christian influence is too strong in South America.
— “How will the devil look like?”— He thought.— Probably the red one with horns, or maybe the seductive mistress of corruption, or even maybe the angelic blond being. The Bible doesn't dedicate enough space to the Devil, but fortunately, Milton wrote a pretty detailed fanfiction that made its way into the collective unconscious, describing Lucifer as the most beautiful of the angels. He would much rather find that than the possible giant snake he pictures in his mind.