Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
Chamuel looked deranged. Dried pasty white foam and blood lined Its lips.
Its eyes were dilated and darting around wildly, but Its limbs were fully formed.
The abomination had obviously gone away to heal after the battle with Uriel.
It paused and stared hard at Jennifer for a long moment.
It seemed surprised and a little confused that she was alive.
With a flick of Its fingers, the door of the cage slammed shut with all of us inside. Then, It smiled.
“How lovely of you to pay a visit to my humble abode,” Chamuel purred, waving Its arms in welcome as It eyed us with crazed delight. “Saves me the trouble of hunting you down and killing you. Travelling can be so tiresome. This is wonderful!”
It was not wonderful. Not even a little bit. As powerful as we all were, opening a cage that had been magically enchanted by Hemah millions of years ago would be next to impossible. It didn’t matter how much we believed. I knew that in my gut. Apparently, so did Candy Vargo.
“We’re fucked,” Candy muttered under her breath.
Shitty Ritchie crawled up my body and settled himself on my shoulder. He leaned in and whispered in my ear. “If Cheese Dick gets close enough, there’s a chance Shitty Ritchie can eat It.”
I nodded without saying anything. It was a long shot, but I’d take any shot we could get.
Hell, given the chance, I’d even be willing to take a crack at eating Cheese Dick.
I was pretty sure any of us would go for it right now.
The thought was repulsive, but dying in cage without saving my daughter was far worse.
“I must straighten up a bit,” Chamuel announced with a laugh that was shrill and lacked any humor whatsoever. “Terrible to murder people in a messy house! Just won’t do. No, it will not do. No, no, no, NO.”
“Names have power, right?” Jennifer whispered as Chamuel paced the cave in fury and agitation. It was so busy dusting the bone pyramids, It seemed to have forgotten we were here.
That wasn’t a bad thing. It gave us a little more time to plan. Plan what? I had no idea…
“Yes, names have power,” I replied. “I don’t know how much, but Goober said they did.”
“That fucker would know,” Candy muttered. “You think you can kill Cheese Dick, Jennifer?”
Jennifer didn’t answer at first. When she finally did, I gulped and started to make peace with the fact that we were all about to bite it.
“I don’t have to kill It,” she said softly. “I simply have to love It.”
“I repeat,” Candy Vargo said. “We’re fucked.”
“Shitty Ritchie is feeling pukey,” he grunted with a gag.
I quickly took the little freak off of my shoulder and set him on the ground. I would not go down without a fight. But I definitely didn’t want to go down covered in vomit.
Tim took Jennifer’s hands then pressed his forehead to hers. “I believe in you, child of mine. You’re blessed with more than I, or anyone here, could imagine. Follow your heart. Your compassion is the key to your power. I love you to the moon and back.”
She kissed his cheek and smiled at her BFF who had miraculously turned out to be her father. Life could be so beautifully strange. I just hoped we got a lot more life to live—both strange and beautiful.
At this point, it was very much up in the air.
Candy Vargo was stressed to the max. Forget about the toothpicks.
She had the cardboard box in her mouth. Shitty Ritchie was a greenish hue and drooling.
Tim was serene. It was clear he had full confidence in his daughter.
Gideon was emotionless and still—looked like a predator about to pounce.
He clocked every move Chamuel made. I didn’t know what I was.
My body went from hot to icy cold. My stomach was woozy and my brain raced.
“If we could get Chamuel to open the cage, we might have a chance,” I whispered, feeling frantic. “I’m so freaking wound up, I’m pretty sure I could rip Its head off with my bare hands. Don’t you guys think It will open the cage to murder us?”
Jennifer touched my shoulder. A feeling of calm immediately washed over me.
She smiled. “There won’t be any need for that, Daisy. Trust me, girlfriend. I swear it on my silicone knockers.” Her words were vintage Jennifer, but there was something very unusual about the delivery. Just like Shitty Ritchie, she was different than she used to be.
I stared at her in amazement. Jennifer, my Botox loving buddy, the gal who had a cocktail at noon because it was five o’clock somewhere was far more than I’d ever imagined. Her eyes held wisdom beyond her years. Her voice was steady and sure. Her body was relaxed and open to possibilities.
Candy stared as well. “Maybe, we’re not fucked. I’ll bet five bucks that we’re not gonna be pushin’ up any grass today.”
“Only five bucks?” Jennifer inquired with a chuckle and a raised brow.
Her double dose of Botox had finally worn off.
Candy Vargo blanched. “Fuck. I said that out loud?”
“You did,” I confirmed.
“Fine. I’m gonna amend that amount to five million. Better?” she asked Jennifer.
“Much,” Jennifer replied with a grin then turned all business. “Everyone back away from me,” she instructed. “No one will come to my aid. No matter what happens, I’m gonna handle it. There are five-million buckaroos on the line.” She winked at Candy.
Candy winked back.
“Okay,” I said, still feeling a little unsure but backed up as requested.
All five of us—Gideon, Tim, Candy Vargo, Shitty Ritchie and I pressed our ourselves against the back of the cage and waited. I was relieved that the bars didn’t shock the crap out of us.
“Do or die time,” Gideon said softly.
“I prefer do,” I told him.
Chamuel hadn’t even noticed us talking. It was muttering to itself and rearranging the bone piles like Its life depended on it.
When Jennifer was satisfied that we were as far from her as possible, she stepped close to the door of the cage. “Chamuel,” she called out.
The being froze. Slowly, Its head lifted and turned to Jennifer with an expression of abject shock and confusion on Its face.
“What did you say?” It hissed venomously.
Jennifer didn’t flinch. She didn’t back away. She stood her ground and faced the horrible entity who’d tried to end her.
“Chamuel,” she repeated gently. “It’s okay. You’re safe now. Come to me, Chamuel.”
Chamuel screamed and pressed both Its palms to Its temples. Its body began to tremble and It went from pacing to sprinting around the cavern like It was on fire. “NO,” It shrieked. “NO, NO, NO.”
“It’s okay, Chamuel. There’s nothing to be afraid of. Not anymore,” Jennifer said in a tone so soothing, I believed her.
It didn’t matter if I believed her. Chamuel needed to believe her. That hadn’t happened yet.
“Fucker is whacked,” Candy Vargo whispered.
“Ya think?” I whispered back.
“HOW?” Chamuel bellowed at Jennifer as It came to an abrupt stop about three feet from where Jennifer stood. “How do you know my name? What sorcery is this?”
Jennifer didn’t answer. She simply held her arms out between the bars of the cage and stayed calm.
“You are CHEATING,” It snarled. “I will kill you. I should have ended you earlier. I will NOT make that mistake twice.”
Chamuel charged the cage. Jennifer was ready.
I was not. Swallowing my scream was one of the hardest things I’d ever done. Keeping my promise to Jennifer to stay back was making my entire body itch. I couldn’t even imagine how Tim felt.
Chamuel hit the cage with an explosive thud.
The whole cave shuddered on impact. Zamirs fell from the ceiling and scampered away in terror.
Without a shred of hesitation, Jennifer wrapped her arms around Chamuel and held the abomination tight.
She whispered soothing words and refused to let go as Chamuel fought like a trapped animal to get free.
“I forgive you, Chamuel,” Jennifer told It.
“It’s okay. Everything will be okay now.
I’ve got you.” She continued to hold tight.
Chamuel continued to fight. “It’s not your fault.
I forgive you. It’s time to let go. I’ll take your weight.
I promise. Let me take the burden from you. You’ve carried it for too long.”
Chamuel’s body quaked and convulsed like It was dying. The shrieks that came from It were animalistic and filled with a dark despair.
Jennifer didn’t let go. If anything, she held on tighter.
“You don’t have to carry it alone anymore, Chamuel,” she whispered lovingly. “It’s okay. You never stood a chance. It was taken from you. It’s not your fault, my friend. Let me relieve the burden. I love you. You’re worth being loved. You’ve waited for so long. I’m here now.”
Sobs came next. Weeping like I’d never witnessed. Chamuel was breaking before our eyes It wasn’t surface level. It came from somewhere so deeply personal that I felt like I shouldn’t watch.
“Let me be your home, Chamuel,” Jennifer whispered in a thick voice.
It was clear she was crying too. Hell, I was crying. Even Candy Vargo swiped was sniffling. The scene was heartbreaking and terrifying at the same time, but something was happening…
Chamuel stopped fighting. The minute Its body stilled the cage began to dissolve. It came down in pieces and turned to rancid black dust as it hit the stone floor. Jennifer pulled Chamuel even closer. The emotionally wrecked and broken being rested Its head on Jennifer’s strong shoulder.
“I’m so sorry,” Chamuel choked out, wrapping Its arms around Jennifer. “I’m so sorry.”
“I forgive you, Chamuel,” Jennifer repeated. “Your pain is no longer yours to carry, my friend. I will carry it with you. Let me lighten the load.”
“Why? Why would you do that?” Chamuel asked, truly confused.
“Because in the beginning, you would have done the same for me,” she said, stepping back and then placing both of her hands on Chamuel’s tearstained cheeks. “You were never given the opportunity to be the beautiful person you were meant to me. Hemah and Uriel stole that from you.”
“It’s too late now,” Chamuel said hollowly.