GAME ON - GoM 2

14

At the old sawmill, they found an ambulance, a cruiser, Graham's Jeep and Bass' truck. Ollie came to meet them from behind the barn as they got out of the Hilux.

"That way," he said to Alex and Thames, pointing at the right of the barn. He turned to Claire. "You shouldn't go, baby. Or you'll be having nightmares for weeks."

Claire tried to argue, but Alex's hand on her shoulder anticipated her. "Ollie's right, kiddo. Stay here."

"I'm going back to the station," Ollie said. "Come with me."

Thames met Claire's eyes and smiled. "Do as they say, child. It's for your own good."

Claire rolled her eyes, huffing, but stayed with Ollie when the other two headed for the track behind the barn.

It took them a few minutes to find Bass, Graham and two paramedics. They talked five steps away from the body of a seventy-year-old man, lying on the grass, covered in blood. All of them looked relieved at seeing Alex and Thames there, and watched them approach the body without a word.

Thames stopped to look up to his left, toward the lake. Alex saw him frown, as if listening to a distant voice.

"It's close," he murmured, glancing at her. "The Cross."

"Yeah. Straight that way." She nodded to the lake, invisible from where they were. "Past this woods, across the road."

A tight smile pursed his lips as he nodded too. "I'd like to see the place. Maybe Father Jason can give me the ride later." He sighed and crouched down to inspect the body.

Alex crouched down too. The rib cage had been torn open, exposing all the inside. The priest kept his voice low, so only Alex could hear him.

"They're right, the heart's missing. You told me you'd hurt two of the demons last night, right?" Thames arched his eyebrows. "They need a human heart and some fresh blood to heal."

She met his eyes with a shocked scowl. "You men this man's dead because of—?"

"No, Alex. It's demons we're dealing with. If not to get a heart to heal their fellas, they would've killed him 'cause they were bored or 'cause they ran out of booze. Because that's what demons do. We're game for them. So don't you dare blame yourself with every kill around you. Else, guilt will paralyze you and you won't be able to fight them. Which would end up with a whole lot more victims."

Alex forced herself to hold his bright eyes and let his warm voice and his words act on her. Thames waited a moment and straightened up. She did too, and they joined the others.

"Old Peterson lived alone," Graham said. "So nobody noticed he was gone. Actually, nobody would have, for days, had Jack not found him."

"Can we take him?" asked one of the medics, impatient.

Graham nodded and waited for the men to be some steps away. "We need to do that seal thing as of yesterday, Father. We cannot have those sons of bitches raiding town and snatching people from their beds in the wee hours."

"What? You know who did this?" asked Bass.

The others ignored him. "We're doing it in two days," Thames said.

"You mean next Wednesday?" asked Alex.

"Yes. According to John's gospel, it's the day when Jesus promised the coming of the Holy Spirit. We're inviting parishioners to join us to marking the town with an ancient symbol to welcome the Holy Spirit and protect Bold Peak."

"That's a good one," said Graham.

"Guys, can you tell what the hell's going on?" Bass asked.

"Dave, please explain it to Bass," Alex said. "We're gonna need to patrol the town limits until we have the seal working."

"And you can't patrol? Are you taking the night off?"

Alex's face darkened at Graham's reproach. She stepped up to poke the sheriff's chest. "No, you moron. I'm gonna be getting ready to fight those bastards, so you guys don't need to die trying."

As usual, Graham showed off his pair and scowled back at her. "Oh, well, sorry I'm not a mind-reader, young lady."

Thames rested his hands on their shoulders. "Easy, my friends. This isn't easy for any of us. And right now, what we need the most is standing together."

Both of them looked away, grunting.

Alex breathed deep and glanced at Graham. "Sorry," she muttered.

Her apology defused him, and he nodded with a quick shrug. "I'm sorry too. We're all on edge about this. So you do what you gotta do. I'll set a patrol here at the southern line."