Raven Stole the Moon (36 page)

R
OBERT SAT ON
the beach for quite a while, reviewing the successes and failures of his life. Mostly failures, it seemed to him. A failure to assess situations adequately, that’s the crux of the problem. An inability to see things from more than one side. One of the tenets of business school. You have to look at problems from as many sides as possible. Put yourself into other people’s shoes. That’s the other thing, and the most important thing in terms of negotiating. Find out what the other side wants and don’t give it to them easy. Give them things they don’t want cheap and make them pay for the things they do want. Supply and demand. Whether or not that applies to personal relationships, Robert didn’t know. And that was mostly why he was mad. Because he had never thought about it.

The smell of burning wood hung in the air, and Robert could see Eddie tending the fire inside. Robert was pretty hungry, but he would be damned if he was going back into that house. Not with that adulterer. He’d wait out here for the shaman guy to get back. Robert hoped Livingstone would be back by nightfall.

As the evening arrived, the air got cooler and Robert felt a chill. He leaned his back against a large piece of gnarled driftwood and pulled his windbreaker up around his ears. He’d have to give up and go inside soon. But he wanted Livingstone to get back first. He could save himself a little integrity that way. And if Jenna was with him, great. Robert thought he could get a little time in before they saw Eddie, and Robert could explain things. Tell her that he loved her.

Off in the distance, down the beach, Robert saw a figure and was relieved. That would be Livingstone, back at last. As the figure approached, Robert got up and brushed the sand off his jeans. He walked to the water’s edge and picked up a couple of flat stones and skipped them through the waves.

When he looked up again, the figure was close enough that Robert could see it wasn’t Livingstone. It was someone else. A man. He looked like a local by his outfit: a flannel shirt and a red baseball cap.

“Hello, neighbor,” the man called out, a hint of a hick accent.

Robert waved back. “Evening.”

The man stopped about fifteen feet away from Robert and turned to the water.

“Beautiful night tonight,” he said, taking a deep breath of air and admiring the surroundings.

“Beautiful.”

“Nights like these and I know why I love this place so much. Except for the mosquitoes.”

Robert laughed. The mosquitoes were pretty big, but for some reason mosquitoes didn’t bother Robert much. Must have been all the vitamin B he took.

“See that dark area out there?” The man pointed to a dark spot out in the water. “That there’s a school of chums. Makes me want to grab my nets and head on out.”

“You’re a fisherman?” Robert asked.

“You could say that,” the man said, smiling.

The man stared out at the water for a few moments. A bird called out from the distant hills.

“You’re waiting for David?” the man asked, not looking at Robert. Robert was a little surprised.

“How did you know?”

The man laughed.

“He sent me to get you. Said to me, ‘Go get Robert and bring him here.’ ”

“Huh. That’s strange. How did you know I was Robert?”

“Well, now, how do you think? He described me to you. He said for you to come alone. Leave Eddie here to tend the fire.”

“That’s strange,” Robert said, looking the man over. “Eddie’s up in the house; I’ll go tell him we’re going.”

Robert turned and headed up toward the house, but the man stopped him.

“No need. We’ll be back quick.”

Robert looked at the man and realized that something seemed weird about him. He kept pulling at the bill of his hat, like it didn’t fit his head. And he kept turning around and looking out at the water.

“I’d better tell him. He might get worried. It’ll just take a second.” Again, Robert headed toward the house. The man followed, staying back a bit.

“How far away is it?” Robert asked the man.

“Not far. Just around the bend.”

They took a few more steps.

“You know,” the man said, “your wife is waiting there with your son. If we don’t hurry, we’ll miss them.”

Robert stopped and turned.

“Bobby?”

“He’s a good boy. You raised him well.”

Robert stared at the man. What was he talking about? Jenna waiting with Bobby. Robert finally realized what was so strange about the guy. He had really dark eyes. Practically black.

“Bobby’s dead.”

“Well, now,” the man said, chuckling, “that all depends on what you mean by ‘dead,’ doesn’t it?”

The man smiled up at Robert, and Robert saw that his teeth were a mess. All crooked and brown. Still, though, the man was nice enough. He came to help out Livingstone. Robert didn’t know why he was giving the guy a hard time. It was no biggie, really. He’d just go see what was up and be back before dark. He took a step toward the man, who held out his hand to Robert.

“That’s it, Robert, come with me. You’ll be surprised how big Bobby is.”

“But Bobby’s dead.”

“Is he?”

Robert was confused for some reason. It didn’t make sense to him. The man kept talking about Bobby like Bobby was alive. But he died. Didn’t he? He couldn’t remember really. It all happened so long ago. There was a fog in Robert’s head. A fog that didn’t let him remember. He could have sworn something happened. Something. But he gave up. It wasn’t worth fighting against. It would come back to him. He’d go with the old man and find Bobby and ask him. He took the old man’s hand and started back toward the beach.

E
DDIE SAW THE
whole thing from the house. Robert and the stranger were only about twenty yards from the door when they stopped to talk. And at first, Eddie didn’t think anything of it. But then, when Robert took the stranger’s hand and they began to walk away, the stranger flashed a look up at Eddie and Eddie realized what was going on. He knew that the stranger was a kushtaka.

Eddie ran to the fireplace and grabbed the hot poker. He remembered David saying that the kushtaka can’t stand metal, and he hoped it was true. He ran out the door and down the hill with the hot poker.

When he reached the two men, he called out. They turned. Robert was genuinely surprised to see Eddie.

“Eddie, I’m going with this man to see Jenna and Bobby.”

The man smiled at Eddie. “You can come, too, Eddie.”

Eddie grabbed Robert’s arm.

“No, thanks. You should stay with me, Robert.”

But the man didn’t let go of Robert’s hand.

“Robert’s coming with me. You can come, too, if you like.”

Their eyes met and Eddie felt a little strange. A little light-headed, a little sleepy.

“You can come, too,” the old man repeated. But the voice that came out wasn’t the old man’s. It was Jenna’s.

Eddie fought against it. He felt the fingers pulling at him. Something urging him to follow. But he couldn’t. He wouldn’t. David said to stay in the house. He had to fight it. They were tricking him. Using Jenna’s voice to trick him. He had the metal. Now he must use it. He lifted his arm. It was heavy. So heavy he could barely raise it. He struggled to lift it, and then he swung the hot poker, hitting the stranger on the side of his neck.

The scream was horrifying. It wasn’t a human scream and it wasn’t an animal scream. It was something else. A sound that seemed to freeze in the air, eclipsing all other sounds, coming from all around them, crushing them into the ground. The stranger let go of Robert and recoiled. Robert and Eddie, free from the spell, watched as the stranger, holding his hands to his neck, changed in front of them, hair sprouting from its face, arms collapsing into its chest, the sound of bone cracking as its legs seemed to retreat into its body, its mouth open, its neck disappearing; it was only three feet tall now, standing on a pile of the clothes it previously wore, but its teeth and eyes seemed huge. They were the same size as when it was a man, and now the teeth looked fierce and the eyes were devil’s eyes and the tongue was that of a demon.

Eddie swung the poker at the creature, but it easily dodged out of the way. Eddie swung again and missed. The creature circled around him, scampering on the ground so fast Eddie could hardly follow it.

“Run!” he yelled to Robert, and they took off. But it was too fast for them. The creature shot up the hill and across their path and then it came straight for Eddie, leaping at his face with its claws extended. Eddie batted at it and clipped its side so it tumbled to the ground, but before Eddie could turn to face it, the creature leapt at him
again
, this time hitting its target and sinking its teeth into Eddie’s thigh.

Eddie screamed and fell to the ground, dropping the poker. He felt the teeth dig deeper into his leg. If he could reach the poker . . . It was just out of his grasp, only a few inches, but the ripping pain in his leg held him back. Robert turned and saw that Eddie was in trouble. They were only a few feet from the house. Robert could make it. He could get inside and slam the door. But what about Eddie? He had to help him. He hesitated.

“Help me,” Eddie pleaded, looking up at Robert, his good arm outstretched on the ground, falling short of the metal baton that could save him. “Please.”

Robert didn’t know why he hesitated. He knew that he had to help Eddie, and he knew that he ultimately would. But still, there was a flash in his mind of self-preservation. A thought of every man for himself. And that thought froze him in place. It froze him until the kushtaka pulled its teeth from Eddie’s flesh and looked up at Robert. Then reflex took over, and in one swift movement Robert picked up the poker and swung it at the creature like a golf club, hitting it square across the head and sending it hurling twenty feet away. Robert quickly helped Eddie into the house and slammed the door shut after them.

They sprawled on the floor, exhausted. Robert helped Eddie slip off his jeans so he could see the wound. It was a deep bite, but it wasn’t life-threatening. Robert took off his shirt and held it to the wound to stop the bleeding. Then he went into the kitchen to get a bowl of warm water so he could clean it.

When he came back into the living room, his heart almost stopped. The old man was there, again, outside the glass, looking in. He was naked, holding a pile of clothes in one arm. The man put his free hand to his head and touched a huge, bleeding gash on his forehead. The wound that Robert had inflicted. He smiled and looked up at Robert.

“Come with me, Robert,” he said, through the glass. “It’s not far. Jenna and Bobby are there.”

Robert helped Eddie up onto a chair, and as he soaked the washcloth in the warm water, he realized his hands were shaking. Eddie saw it, too.

“David said we’d be safe in here,” Eddie said.

Robert nodded and glanced toward the door. The man was still there, smiling. He slowly and deliberately put on each article of clothing until he was fully dressed. Robert gritted his teeth and focused his attention on Eddie’s leg. His heart was pounding and his hands were shaking and that creepy guy outside wasn’t helping things.

Robert cleaned the wound and found some bandages in the bathroom. Then he and Eddie sat by the fire and watched the man in flannel standing outside. The man didn’t move; he stood beyond the glass, looking in, smiling at Robert and Eddie.

I
N THE NIGHT
David built a fire and drank of the devil’s club. The devil’s club root can only be found in the Alaskan wilderness and has been used for centuries by the native people as a source of strength and nourishment. Peeled and boiled in water, the root makes a strong tea that shamans drink when fasting to give them energy. Later, David bathed himself in the icy water of a brook, another ritual that provides strength for a shaman. Then he slept by the fire until morning.

In his dreams, a wild dog came to him and led him down a narrow path, through thickets of salmonberry bushes, to the mouth of a stream that fed into the ocean. Along the bank of the stream, David could see a hollow, just above the waterline, covered with moss and grasses. David knew what this hollow was. The dog vanished and David woke from his sleep.

David thanked the dog spirit for giving him a vision in the night, and he danced around the last embers of the fire to show the dog spirit that his help was appreciated. He vowed to pay proper homage to the dog spirit when he finished his journey. Then David set off into the woods.

The path was there. The berry bushes were as he had seen them in his dream. And soon David stood at the stream with the hollow. He had arrived at the home of the kushtaka.

David was sure that the kushtaka knew he was looking for them. The fire burning back at his house would alert them that something was going on. A fire that burned for many days was a way to give light to the path of someone who has ventured into the other world. Still, the kushtaka would not know David had already found them. He had made himself invisible by having no thoughts or judgments about the world around him. The kushtaka can see into a man’s mind, find his fears, and play into them. But if you have no thoughts to read, the kushtaka do not know you are there until they have seen you.

David stepped into the stream and lifted the grasses that covered the hollow. A small hole disappeared into the dark soil. The opening was very narrow, and David could barely crawl on his knees and elbows. He carried a knife in one hand and a small flashlight in the other; he tied his backpack to his ankle to drag behind him. He knew the backpack could slow up his retreat if he ran into trouble, but he might need some of the things that were inside. Headfirst, he worked his way into the hollow.

The soil was damp and the rotten smell in the narrow passage was almost overpowering. David could hardly breathe. Once fully inside the tunnel, David felt trapped. He was much larger than an otter and the tunnel was very tight. It took all of his will not to have a panic attack.

Finally, after what seemed like an interminable distance but was really only about twenty feet, the tunnel opened up into a larger passage. Now David could crawl along comfortably, and his travel was much faster. The air was thick and heavy and smelled slightly chemical. After another twenty or thirty feet, the tunnel seemed to stop. David scanned the walls with his flashlight. Damn, a dead end. He didn’t want to have to back all the way out.