Charlotte Gaspel: Demons and Ghosts

XXV: I Know Your Works

Steven Gideon Ledger looks at his red phone on the wall. Sitting in his armchair, he shuffles his foot nervously with his legs crossed wondering why Charlotte still hasn't shown up. Danny is chewing on a pencil he was supposed to draw with, but the eraser on the end is already in his stomach from stress. From inside they hear the sound of rain crashing against the roof, but it is interrupted by the sounds of knocking emanating from the door, and they both know that worry can be postponed.

Steven opens the door cautiously and sees her, soaking wet and with a crack of thunder behind her announcing her arrival.

"Are you all right? What did you do?" Steven asks uneasily.

Charlotte looks at him with the coldest face she has ever made in her entire existence.

"I went for a walk," she said as she walked into the kitchen. "I feel better now, but I need you to answer me two things."

"Tell me."

"Do you have any ink for painting fabric?" Charlotte asked as she opened drawers in the kitchen.

"The question offends," he replied haughtily. "What color do you need?"

"Red. I want to change the color of my sweater. Orange is too bright and childish."

"In the cupboard there is a metal box with all kinds of things I use for clothes. Do you want me to show you?"

"No need," she told him, climbing up on a bench, taking the little bottles, "I used to dye old clothes to sell them as new when my parents needed money. Ah, yes. The next question is: Have you ever made one of those magic contracts before?" she asked without stopping what she was doing.

"Oh!" exclaimed Steven, as he remembered something. "I'm glad you asked. Magical, unbreakable contracts have always appealed to me. I made one for a girl one day to see if it worked. The contract said that if she didn't sleep with me that night the skin on her hands would peel off like rotten fruit. In the end I was able to prove that it did work, because I stayed at the bar all night watching her until she was taken to the hospital. But that's not the important thing. The important thing is that I made The Coffin sign a contract too."

"What?!" Charlotte reacted, completely intrigued.

"The idea was that I would have full security from him in exchange for my services. I know you don't need a contract for that, but I wanted to make sure I wouldn't get stabbed in the back."

"Is that all?" she asked impatiently.

"No. If you're thinking of taking them down, I should warn you that the boss, Mr. Clement, asked me to make him completely immune to black magic."

"And that can't be reversed?"

"No. And I was lucky to fulfill that whim, because I had to give him another amulet that I had for some time that acted as a shield against the attacks of the dark arts. It was a gift from a friend in Germany who was also in that world."

"What kind of amulet is it?"

"It's like a metal brooch in the shape of an armadillo. Don't even try to take it off. As perfectionist as he is, I think he put it inside his skin."

"Does it have any other advantages?"

"He also demanded that I summon a demon to make a deal with him, but he wouldn't let me know what he asked for."

"Did you summon a demon?" she asked in surprise.

"Yes. I've been working on that spell for years. It is by far the most powerful. You know, any creation of satan is capable of fulfilling any material wish to anyone on the condition that they surrender to them. Without souls, demons cannot live. It is like their food."