Old Wounds

"How's he?"

"Stable, good."

"All right, let him rest."

Hans could hear indistinct conversation. He slowly opened his eyelids. Bright lights hanging from the ceiling. Smell of medicines everywhere. No doubt it was a hospital cabin. He looked at himself and found his hand plastered on his chest.

He looked to his right and saw the cabbie. He was sitting on a couch. Had he brought him here? How long has he been here? What did he have to do with it?

Memories started flooding into his brain. Memories of last night's exorcism which had gone wrong. His head ached. He put up his right hand and massaged his head. The demon, it was the toughest he had ever fought. But the cabbie, he looked at the cabbie. His eyes were closed.

The cabbie just punched through the demon and imprisoned it into the amulet. No ordinary taxi driver could do it. Even he was facing trouble. There was more to him than met the eye. Until he gets another clue to who he really is, he needed to be really careful.

His throat was scorched in thirst. He tried to reach the bedside table, cautiously, without making any sound. But suddenly, something fell on the floor, and the cabbie woke up. Hans quickly rolled his hand back and acted feign.

"Hey, old man," the cabbie walked by his side and said, "How're you feeling."

Hans decided not to say anything. So, he kept his eyes shut and maintained his breathing as steady as possible.

"I know. I've been watching you."

"Shit!" Hans thought, "What does he mean by he's been watching me?"

"I know you tried to take the glass 'cause you were thirsty."

"Oh!" Hans was relived, "He doesn't meaning anything else."

Then he opened his eyes, "Why are you here?"

"Well, you weren't exactly in a condition to walk away from that situation," he shook his shoulder.

"What situation?" Hans croaked.

"Well, the windows blasted. I thought maybe you were attacked. So, I went inside to see what's up. Then it seemed like a bomb or something went off," he said, "Wait, are you a police guy? Those, who uh…work with bomb disarming?"

"Smug bastard!" Hans thought, "Acting like you don't even know what you saw," but he didn't say it.

"Anyway, you were in a bad shape, so I brought you here."

"Hey, uh…did you see any other… body over there?" Hans asked.

"Don't know," he guessed, " Don't care."

"How can you not care?"

"Well, if I brought you to hospital, you would pay me my fare. But they wouldn't pay me as they were dead," the cabbie answered straight.

"So, it's all about money to you?" Hans answered angrily, "Take my wallet. It's over there."

"Life hasn't been kind to me," he didn't show any intention of taking the money, "Anyway, I will stay until you get cured."

"What does it matter to you anyway?"

"Well, some people came," The cabbie said, "Wanted to talk to you. I said, later. They might come back."

Then he gave pressure on his next words, "They looked MEAN."

"I can take care of myself."

"Not with one arm broken."

Hans sighed, "So, what shall it be?"

"Sit back, relax and get cured," he stood up, "I'll go buy some food. The name's Kent."

Then he left without any more words.

Hans laid back for a while. At this moment, he didn't seem much dangerous, like before. But he couldn't take any chances. In his eyes, this guy, Kent whoever…was guilty until proven innocent.

Suddenly, those bloodshot eyes again appeared before his sight. Oh, those red eyes!

That's it! He thought. He tried to get down from the bed, but his broken arm hurt like hell. But he thought, he couldn't just be in the safeguard of a dangerous man as this.

He pushed himself down from the bed. He found his usual robe from the bedside table. He tried, but couldn't get rid of these hospital gowns. So, he wore the black robes over the gowns. He tucked the wallet in his pocket and came out of the cabin.

He slowly came across the hallway. He wasn't unfamiliar with hospital wards but this time it was feeling a but awkward. Like everyone was looking at him in a weird glance.

He was passing by the reception and the receptionist called, "Excuse, me mister…!"

"Uh, it's…Hans," then he remembered that he might nit be registered under his name, "It's Kent!"

"I…" the receptionist checked the register, "Can't find either Hans of any Kent up here. Can you please try again?"

"Well, I was the last to be registered."

"Well, the last registered name I can find is…Fred."

"Oh, it's uh…my middle name."

"Is that so?" she asked, "Mr. Hans Fred Kent?"

He couldn't answer. Dammit cabbie! He walked out quickly. A question raised in his mind. But he couldn't piece them together. He looked around, he was still in Oakville. The hospital he was in was the ""

He looked around the streets, it was afternoon. There wasn't much people in the streets, ambient light had filled the streets being reflected on the windows. A light flare hit his eyes being reflected on a display bar.

He looked at it and he was almost shocked by a thousand volts. It was an amulet. THE amulet. The same one he used the last night. How did it end up here?

He pushed the sliding door and entered the antique shop. He started looking here and there to find the amulet.

"Good evening, sir!" The feeble old man at the counter greeted him, "How may I be of your service?"

"Uh…" Hans rubbed off sweat from his face, "I'm looking…for…"

"An antique?"

"Yeah, I…", he looked around.

"For your grandkid?"

"No…uh, for a friend, something of a…locket, like…" his eyes caught a glimpse of the amulet, "Yes! Something like that!"

"Oh…" the old man smiled and brought it down, "That?"

"Don't," Hans brought out a handkerchief and snatched the amulet from his hand, wrapping it at the same time, "Touch that!"

"Oh," clearly the old fella was surprised.

He felt embarrassed, "I'm sorry, it's just, uh…I liked it a lot, and I don't want it…to get any scratch…"

"I understand," the old guy shook his head, "Just yesterday, a young man came and sold it. Said, it belonged to his grandmother."

That prick! Hans thought. He even knows about the whole grandma business!

He asked, "How much for it?"

"Well, he sold it off for three bucks, so…"

Hans took out four bucks and stuffed it in his hand, "Keep the change."

"Have a good day!" the old man looked surprised with the extra cash in his hand.

He came out with the amulet in his pocket, his whole body started to feel dizzy, his fractured hand started to weigh a ton, like all the energy was drained out of his body.

He touched the amulet, and even through the handkerchief his hand became chill and numb. It was radiating pure evil. No doubt this was the right amulet.

As he came in front of the hospital, he saw the taxi parked in the sideways. He decided to take a peek. So, he looked inside the cab, but Jake was not there. He pulled the door and it opened without protest, it was unlocked. He was surprised to find it like this. This means, Jake is already at the hospital.

He sat on the back seat and kept the amulet on the driving seat. Then something came to his mind and he opened the dashboard. He found exactly what he was looking for, the license papers.

"Jacob…Fredericks, age 21 years…hmm…" Hans set the pieces together, "I'm meeting a ghost from the past. But the question is, why NOW?"

He sat back on his seat, waiting for Jake to come face to face, "Kent…no, Jake, now I know your true identity."

Not even a minute passed and some shadows appeared on the windows. Hans thought if Jake had brought some goons to beat him up.

The door opened. It wasn't Jake, a rather middle-aged man with a noble looking beard and a walking stick, styled with gold plated designs. Must be from a  rich family. He was almost the same age as Hans.

"May I welcome myself inside?" He asked permission but didn't wait for Hans' approval.

"Excuse me!" he greeted, "Frank Gunner! Nice to meet you."

"Hans Hendrick," Hans answered, "At your service."

"And I'm happy to accept your service."

"What service?" he asked, "Did you come while I was unconscious?"

"Yes, but then you were in a rather…bad condition. And your servant…"

"He's not my servant," Hans corrected him.

"Whatever, he didn't allow me to stay there," Frank said, "Anyway, let's talk business."

"What business?"

"Well, as for beginning, I know you are an EXORCIST. I called your friend William."

"And?"

"And I know you capture demons, for one."

"How…how do you know that?" Hans noticed that one of his guards had sat on the front seat. Thank God, he didn't sit on the driver's seat, or he would have found the amulet. He said, "Even Will doesn't know that!"

"I know, cause I practiced some of these…rituals myself," he answered, "You know, I was a young man then. I only hungered for powers, didn't know the consequences."

"And?" Hans asked, "Did you get it?"

"Yes," he replied, "But as I grew older, I could understand that REAL power of a man remains within…his family."

"Where're you getting at?"

"Well, I did some dark works. But then I locked them up in my basement and made sure no one finds out about them. But, evil attached on my family. It affected my girl severely. She started sleep-walking and other staff. At times, she started speaking to herself. She started being bullied at her school. Then one day, her teacher called me, said she'd attacked one of those bullies. I saw it, it was…horrible. I had to take her back from the school, then started teaching her at home. But one day, her tutors also disagreed to come. I asked them why. They said…they were afraid of the drawings she made."

"Drawings?" Hans asked, "What drawings?"

Frank gave him a sheet of papers from his coat pockets. Hans looked at them, they were animals, but he's never seen them. Because, they were not from the living world. These were DEMONS.

"Some days ago, there was an earthquake, which caused the basement door to be blocked by debris…the room where I practiced my rituals. From that night, her sleepwalking increased. She used to walk up to that door and bang her head on it. Both me and my wife saw this. Then, I understood what happened. Each night, she went to the basement and did things, I don't wanna speak of them. I can't understand, I closed the door so perfectly. Still, how did she…anyway, a few days later, I heard a loud explosion and I went down. I saw that the debris from the door had fallen apart and the way was revealed. The whole was filled with the scent of woodrose, her favorite flowers. As soon as I hurried down there, I was hit by an energy barrier, a surge of pure…chaotic energy. I understood, she did some serious evil stuff that I never could. She started laughing like a maniac. She ACTUALLY laughed first in a long time. It gave me creeps. Believe me, that was NOT her…not my sweet daughter, Ada!" he lowered his voice.

"So…" Hans spoke, "Now what? You want me to exorcise out whatever it is…that have possessed your daughter?"

"Please…save my daughter," his voice was filled with despair, "I'll give you whatever you want."

"First, you need to tell me what you think have happened to your daughter."

"Well, from all my years researching occult," Frank said, "I could at least figure out that she wasn't  radiating a human aura anymore."

"WHAT?"

"Yes, the aura, has a similarity with a…demon."

"I never heard of such a case where a person's aura is completely molded by the demon's aura while possessed," Hams said, "There will be a tinsy bit of human part, unless…"

"Unless what?" Frank asked.

"Unless, she IS turned into a demon?"

"My God!" Frank gasped, "Is that even possible?"

"According to old legends, it IS…" Hans answered, "Though the book containing its secrets are lost."

"Can you turn her back to normal?"

"Well, let me give a clear," Hans said, "and HONEST advice. I don't have any idea what could possibly happen. I cannot guarantee her 100% safety…"

"You must!" Frank insisted.

"And if I CAN'T?"

"Well," Frank cooled down, "Then do what you think is best. Clearly you're the expert here…"

"Well, do you have any other information for me?"

"Actually, I do…" Frank seemed to remember something, "The night I found her like that," he shuddered, "She wasn't alone."

"What do you mean?"

"She was surrounded," Frank said, "By demons, a lot of them…It was like, they were paying homage to her!"

"What?" Hans winked, "Firstly, your daughter turns out to be a DEMON, well…technically, it's almost impossible for a human to turn into a demon OVERNIGHT! I supposed she turned into a weakling, but NO! She has morphed into something that even other demons fear? Other…freaking…DEMONS?"

"Sadly, yes," Frank shook his head, "That's what I'm trying to tell you…she can bend the wills of other demons."

"Oh, now you are threatening me?" Hans sneered, "That she might come after me, and feed me to her pet dogs?"

"It's not a threatening, but a warning," Frank corrected him, "As a friend."

"No thanks, friend," Hans spoke boldly, "I can take care of my own ass…maybe it's time you should learn to take care of yours too…"

"Let's not get violent here," Frank extended his hand to Hans, "Why don't we make a deal? You free my daughter of her pains, in return I will give you the thing you really need…and if any unpleasant things occur to change your decision, then you'll find me here."

Then he opened the door and left, so did all his bodyguards.

Hans was about to give a sigh of relied, then he find something in his palm. Frank had stuck a card in his fist while shaking his hand. It was not any business card. Just the name and address was written on it "Ocean drive, Los Angeles". That man was giving him creeps.

The card was cold, the mere touch of it gave him shivers. How was it so cold, even in this summer? Was it the air-conditioning of the car? The air inside the car was, damp, like an old closet, closed for several years, and it was chilly.

He looked at the card for a few seconds, like it hypnotized him, he tried to sense something…any sign of evil. But he got none.

The air was freezing his ears and fingers. If he would be waiting for Jake like this, then he would surely catch a hypothermia. He stretched his arm to turn off the air-cooler.

Suddenly a shadow moved behind the car. Looking at it made Hans look behind with a,  but he couldn't see anyone.

"Who's there?" Hans asked, "Jake! Is that you?"

No answer, but the damp smell in the air increases. Hans covered his nose with hand, but the smell seemed to be increasing and penetrating inside his lungs like knives.

A mild roar was heard from his left window. He looked at the window and saw a shadow, emerging from the dark. He quickly lowered his head under the seat, hoping the creature wouldn't notice him.

The roar intensified, so did the smell. Hans dared to lift his head a bit and had a small gaze on the wind screen and noticed a blood-red eye. For a split second, he thought it was Jake, they had such similarity. But then, he saw razor sharp, pointy teeth, with furs on the face. It looked straight at him. With an inhuman howl, it lounged on the window.

The glass shattered and an inhuman hand with enormous claws shot in, covered with furs here and there, like it had been rotten for a few months. It dug its claws into the seat and clawed out the sponge and cottons. It missed his nose by an inch.

He gasped and tried to get out of the way. But the hand clawed in the air again, missed and growled in frustration. He searched his pockets for holy water, cross, anything. But nothing came in touch. That brat cabbie must have removed those when he brought him to the hospital.

Suddenly, the clawed hand smashed on his left arm, breaking the plaster and dug its claws into the arm. Blood gouged out, as Hans screamed out of pain, trying to free himself. But the grip only got stronger. The beast seemed to get crazier by the scent of blood, cornering its prey.

All of a sudden, the hand flew out of the window. Hans gasped for a breath, as he tried to stop the bleeding. He tore a piece of cloth from his robe and pushed it in the wound.

Then he looked out the window, witnessing a fearsome battle between Jake and the monster. It was at least seven to eight feet tall, with rotted skin, fused over its white bones, with blood shot eyes, two on each side of its stretched-out long nose, over its slender jaw full of fangs. It had a long slithering tail full of thorns like porcupine. It made him think, so this is what hellhounds look like.

He looked in wonder as Jake was almost overpowering the beast. But he was surprised to see that during fighting, it was like Jake was talking to someone. More like, someone was guiding him to make the next move. But only tactics won't work in this battle.

The hound was slowly learning his moves. Suddenly, Jake missed a blow and the hound hit om his shoulder and threw him on the roof of the cab. The heavy body fell and screamed. Hans came out of the cab and saw what was wrong. The hound had pinned him on the roof with its tail over his back. Blood sprinkling out, Jake tried to grab hold on something.

Hans thought of helping him, but nothing came to his mind. He could only pray for him at that moment, but he doubted praying would help here.

Then he saw Jake trying to grab the amulet kept on the driving seat, by extending his hand inside the window. He couldn't understand what Jake would possibly do with it. But he saw him saying, "I'm trying!" to someone.

It suddenly came to tell his guts that Jake might do something which could save them both only if he gets his hands on the amulet. So, he ran towards the car but the tail suddenly moved from Jake's back and hit him in the chest. Luckily, it mostly hit him on the hand with plaster, so it saved him from being fatally hit. But it flew him in the air a few meters.

But that split second gave Jake an open window to snatch the amulet. As soon as he gripped the amulet, a tense humming started and particles started gathering around his hand. The beast turned its head over at him, and saw the thing was fully formed into a two meter long razor sharp scythe with pitch-black curved edged blade. For a whole second it loomed at the edge, like hypnotized by it. In the meantime, the scythe moved at blinding speed, slashing the air along with the hound's neck,  which flew in the air and dropped in a litter bin.

"And that's a home run!" Jake announced.

"How…how did you do that?" Hans croaked.

The black scythe disappeared from Jake's hand, so did the red glow from his eyes, "Hey, old man! You okay?"

Hans groaned.

"Mam, that's a lot of blood!" he came running at him, "Stay still, I'm gonna take you to the hospital."

"No, not…the hospital!" Hans gave him the card, "Take me to this location."

"Alright, alright! Just…keep calm!"