The Awakening Read online

  Katarina took a breath and put her head in her hands.

  “Sorry,” she mumbled. “I don’t know. I don’t remember ever having that conversation with anyone.”

  They sat quietly, each lost in their own thoughts.

  “How did they know?” she asked quietly. “How did they know I called Harry? How did they know what we were looking for and that we’d found it? For that matter, how did they know what the video would show so they could trot out the fake phone call?”

  “I don’t think it’s Harry,” Liam said.

  “Me either,” Katarina said, shaking her head.

  Both of them suddenly looked at their phones, then each other.

  “You don’t think...”

  Liam cut her off before she could say anything else. Getting out of the truck, he rummaged around in the bed and returned with a rusting metal tool box. Powering off the phones, he removed the battery and SIM card from his and the disposable she’d bought, then sat staring at her iPhone. It was sealed with no way to disable it.

  She recognized his dilemma and mimed the use of a hammer. He nodded and stepped back out of the cab, dropping the phone on the pavement. With a hammer from the tool box, he smashed it until the case split open and he could remove the battery. Everything was tossed into the metal box and placed in the bed of the truck.

  “We were stupid,” he said, back in the cab. “Even after Jimmy tells us he accessed our phones and used the cameras to get a look at you...”

  “Do we warn Harry and Vance?”

  Liam thought before shaking his head.

  “They’re both sharp. Wouldn’t surprise me if they aren’t already having the same conversation we just did. What really worries me is what you saw. The demon inside the US Attorney. Why have they targeted you?”

  “And why not just kill me? Why go to all this trouble?”

  “This all started with the money you took from the plane. Right?”

  “Yes.”

  “So, girl takes cartel’s cash. Cartel finds out and sends bad guy to get it back. Bad guy does a bad thing and girl is blamed. Bad guy still wants the money. Up until that point, this was pretty straightforward.”

  “If you say so.”

  “Sorry. Didn’t mean that the way it sounded. Anyway, now we’re at the point where you and Baldwin grab up the Retriever, who is apparently being tracked by the FBI. He ends up dead. Suddenly, the US Attorney is all over this case. Turning up the heat and producing fake evidence to counter proof that you couldn’t have killed your husband. What’s the one commonality?”

  “Demons,” Katarina breathed.

  Liam nodded and began ticking off names on his fingers.

  “Pettigrew. The Retriever. The US Attorney. All demons.”

  “Like I said, why not just kill me?”

  “Maybe they can’t.”

  “What? Of course, they can. I’m not some immortal superhero.”

  “Could’ve fooled me last night,” he said with a grin.

  She gave him a look and he faked a pout.

  “Maybe there’s something bigger in the works and they don’t want the murder of an FBI agent drawing attention.”

  “My murder, no matter how public and spectacular, wouldn’t ever brush the US Attorney’s office,” Katarina said.

  “But it would Pettigrew. Think about it for a minute. They’ve got a goddamn FBI Special Agent in Charge. Between him and the US Attorney, that’s one hell of a lot of power. Power that can be used to start, or stop, investigations. To steer them. To protect their allies and destroy their enemies. All without leaving any pesky little bodies on the ground in the process. So, why risk a whole planeload of agents arriving from DC to dig into the murder of one of his people? Especially when all they have to do is frame her for a crime and send her to prison.”

  “I still don’t get it, though. If they’re all demons, that means the Retriever must have told them about the money I stole. Why not just use that? Maybe I’d get probation, but that’s almost certainly some prison time.”

  “It’s always the money,” Liam said softly.

  “What?”

  “Something my partner likes to say. It’s always the money. And maybe it’s that simple. You said Zophiel told you that the demons’ goal is to gain enough power to destroy us. Well, what’s money if it isn’t power?”

  “This isn’t ever going to stop,” Katarina said, burying her face in her hands. “They’ll just keep coming and coming.”

  “Unless we stop them.”

  He reached out and started the engine and she looked up.

  “Where are we going?”

  “To find a Catholic church.”

  Thirty-Nine

  It took several tries before they found a Catholic church that wasn’t locked up tight. The priest, who looked old enough to have been around for some of the events in the Bible, was outside the rectory, enjoying the evening air. He was perched on a straight-backed lawn chair with a rickety table at his elbow. It held an ashtray and a glass of red wine. He watched them approach through a wreath of smoke from a fat cigar.

  “Good evening, Father,” Liam said.

  “Beautiful one at that. What can I do for you two young people?”

  “It’s kind of an odd request,” Katarina said with a smile.

  “Young lady, I’ve been a servant of God for more years than I can remember. One thing I learned early on is that there is nothing but odd requests.”

  He barked a laugh and took a sip of the wine.

  “We need an exorcist,” Liam said.

  The priest paused with his cigar in midair.

  “Told you it was odd,” Katarina said.

  “That you did, young lady. That you did. And why would you need an exorcist? Neither of you seem to be in distress, so is it for a friend or family member?”

  “An... associate,” she said.

  “Ahhh. Very well. And what has led you to believe your associate is possessed?”

  “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Katarina answered.

  He didn’t say anything, just sat there puffing on the cigar.

  “Please, Father. We need help,” Liam said.

  He slowly put his cigar down before taking another sip of wine.

  “I’m sorry,” he finally said. “The only priests who are versed in exorcisms are at the Vatican. There is a formal process by which you may request their assistance, but it is rare for them to respond.”

  “You don’t understand,” Katarina said. “We need help now. There’s no time to go through an application process.”

  “I’m sorry, my child,” he said, slowly getting to his feet and collecting the cigar and wine glass. “I’m unable to help you. I’ve been told the Vatican has a website where you can inquire about assistance, and I’m sure young people such as yourselves will understand how to do that on a computer. Now, I must beg you a good evening.”

  He turned and began to stiffly shuffle toward the rectory door.

  “I see demons!” Katarina called. “Inside people. I see them!”

  The priest came to a stop, his back going stiff. It seemed to take forever for him to turn around to face them. He peered at Katarina with narrowed eyes and a skeptical look on his face.

  “How is it you can see them, young lady?”

  “I don’t know. A man I’d just met showed me some horrible things. Creatures. Demons. Told me they’re coming to destroy our world.”

  He slowly moved back to stand in front of her, peering up into her eyes.

  “Showed you?”

  “Showed me! And did something so I could see them. I know it sounds crazy, but I’m telling---”

  “This man. What was his name?”

  “Zophiel. I don’t know his first name.”

  The priest’s eyes opened wide. Slowly, he extended a trembling hand and took Katarina’s in his.

  “Come with me.”

  He turned and began leading her toward the rectory. She glanced at Liam
, but he just shrugged and followed. Going inside, the priest took them to a small library with old, dusty books lining the walls. Several minutes of searching and he lifted down a leather-bound tome that nearly toppled him over under its weight. Liam quickly took it and placed it on a scarred wooden desk.

  The priest nodded his thanks and gently lowered his frail frame into a chair. Opening the book’s cover, he carefully flipped age-yellowed pages until he found what he was looking for.

  “Is this the man?” he asked, turning the book around to face Katarina.

  She stared in amazement at a drawing of Zophiel. He was depicted as a powerful, bare chested warrior, battling the denizens of hell with a flaming sword as they tried to climb out of a pit, but the face was the pipe-smoking man who’d visited her.

  “Oh, my God,” she breathed, her head swimming. “That’s him. But how?”

  “How old is that book, Father?” Liam asked.

  “The book is less than fifty years old. But the depiction dates back to eight-hundred AD.”

  Liam and Katarina shared a shocked look.

  “Zophiel is one of the seven Archangels, my dear,” the priest continued. “He is also the Watchman of God.”

  Katarina couldn’t tear her eyes from the page, nor could she speak.

  “There is a prophecy related to the book of Revelations. As the end of days approaches, God shall command Zophiel to raise an army to battle the coming evil. They shall be given the gift of sight, to see evil so that they may fight it. If they are victorious, Satan shall be banished to the abyss for all eternity.”

  “And if they fail?” Katarina asked when he didn’t continue.

  “Then the end of days shall come about as written in Revelations.”

  The library was as quiet as a tomb. Katarina shuddered, looking up and meeting the old priest’s rheumy eyes.

  “I can see them,” she whispered. “They’re here. And they’re trying to kill me.”

  “This is why you need an exorcist?” he asked.

  She nodded and Liam cleared his throat.

  “If a human is possessed and an exorcism is successful, will the human still be there? Able to remember what happened while they were possessed?”

  “That is my understanding,” the priest said. “But I have never personally witnessed the ritual, nor the aftermath, so I cannot say for certain.”

  “I’m in trouble, Father,” Katarina said. “Bad trouble. I’ve been accused of horrible things I didn’t do. My only way out is for the truth to be known, and the one man who can reveal the truth is possessed. That’s why we need an exorcist.”

  “What of Zophiel? He can cast out the demon.”

  “He left,” Katarina said. “Told me he had other things to do and I wouldn’t see him for a while. I don’t know when that will be, and I can’t wait. They will win if the truth isn’t told, and told soon.”

  The old man took a long, slow breath.

  “I was not just putting you off when I said you’d have to contact the Vatican directly. But there is someone here in Seattle that may be able to help. He is a friend of mine. Rabbi Rabinowitz.”

  “Rabbi?” Liam blurted in surprise. “But I thought---”

  He was cut off when the priest began a cackling laugh.

  “My dear child. You’ve seen too many movies. Exorcism is not the exclusive territory of the Roman Catholic Church. Every major religion has some form of it. Now, help me to my feet and I will call the Rabbi and tell him you are on your way.”

  Forty

  Rabbi Rabinowitz was expecting them, waiting in his open front door. His home was less than a mile from Liam’s and he was familiar with the neighborhood as it was part of the route he followed on his morning runs. They were quickly ushered inside, where they declined an offer of refreshments.

  “Father Declan says you’re a special person,” the Rabbi said once they were seated in his living room.

  “I don’t feel very special,” Katarina said, smiling.

  “Those who truly are, rarely do,” he said, eyes twinkling.

  He was an old man, even older than the priest. Despite the pleasant weather, he wore a long-sleeved shirt. From time to time, as his arm moved, Liam caught a glimpse of a severely faded tattoo on the inside of his wrist. The Rabbi didn’t miss the younger man’s interest.

  “Auschwitz,” he said, looking directly at Liam and pulling up his sleeve. “I was only four at the time.”

  “I’m sorry,” Liam apologized. “I didn’t mean---”

  “It is nothing, young man. I once thought of having it removed but have kept it as a reminder that true evil actually does walk the face of the earth.”

  Katarina frowned in thought, hesitated a moment, then plunged ahead.

  “The Nazis. Were they...”

  “Demons?” he prompted when she didn’t finish her question.

  She nodded.

  “I do not know. Not for sure. I do not have your ability to see them. But I have always suspected that to be the case. Now, let us not get sidetracked. You went to Father Declan seeking help with a demonic possession. Tell me about it.”

  Katarina spoke for close to half an hour, explaining everything to the Rabbi. She carefully edited her story to exclude information about the stolen money.

  “So, Rabbi,” she said when the story was finished. “Can you help me?”

  With a grunt, he hefted a large, well-worn book from the table at his side.

  “I started doing some research when the good father called that you were on the way,” he explained.

  Settling back, he flipped it open and they could see it was written in Hebrew. They remained quiet as he read for several minutes.

  “As I remembered,” he said, closing the book and looking up. “This is not good. Not good at all.”

  “Rabbi?” Liam asked in concern.

  “Saul,” he said. “Please, call me Saul. Anyway... no. First, what do you know of demonic possession?”

  Liam and Katarina glanced at each other before shaking their heads.

  “I think it’s safe to say that other than the demons I can see, all either of us know is what’s been popularized in movies.”

  “Pfffft,” Saul said, flapping his hand in the air. “Garbage! Very well. Bear with me as I explain. The most common form of possession is by a wandering spirit. No one truly understands what they are or where they came from, but they are here.

  “Every now and then, one of them will decide to enter a human. In many cases, it seems as if they do this solely for their own amusement, but their presence is harmful to the possessed and those around them. These spirits are the cause of almost all exorcisms throughout history.”

  “Almost all?” Katarina asked.

  “Then there are demons. The spawn of evil. Some say they were once souls who were damned for heinous sins and over time evolved. Again, no one knows. But they are far more powerful and dangerous than a wandering spirit. And when they possess a mortal body, it is not for amusement. There is a goal.

  “They can also be extremely difficult to dislodge once they have taken up residence. In fact, in all of history, there are only five documented cases of a demon being successfully cast out of a host by a mortal. The problem is that demons do not give up easily. And when they are eventually forced out, they are quite violent on the way.”

  “Violent?” Liam asked, shuddering as he remembered the demon leaving the man he’d killed in the alley.

  “According to the handful of accounts that exist, a demon takes on physical form as it leaves the body, either through exorcism or if the possessed mortal flesh is violently killed. The texts tell us the beast is angry at being forced out. More commonly, though, such as when the possessed dies of accident or natural causes, they emerge in spiritual form in search of another mortal to invade.”

  “I’ve seen the physical form,” she breathed. “Tell me about the spiritual.”

  Saul looked at her and shrugged dramatically.

  “Your
guess is as good as mine. The last documented expulsion of a demon was in Salem, Massachusetts in the late sixteen-hundreds. A few years prior to the Witch Trials. The exorcist, along with several others, were horrifically killed.”

  It went quiet in the room, only the steady ticking of an old grandfather clock breaking the silence.

  “Father Declan showed us an ancient drawing of Zophiel, wielding a flaming sword. What do you know about that?” Katarina asked.

  “There are multiple interpretations of flaming swords, depending upon the religion. It is commonly accepted as a weapon with unequaled power that can only be wielded by the divine.”

  She stared at the old Rabbi with a look of bewilderment on her face.

  “Meh,” Saul said, shrugging. “Do you believe everything you read?”

  Katarina shook her head as if to clear it.

  “Will you help me?” she asked.

  “I will,” he said, smiling at her before turning back to Liam. “But I would feel much better if there was enough firepower to protect us. Just in case.”

  Liam gave him a funny look but didn’t say anything.

  “Surprised a Rabbi wants you to bring a gun?” he asked, eyes dancing.

  “A little,” Liam admitted.

  Saul held his eyes for a long moment then leaned to the side and raised the tail of his shirt. A holstered pistol, a Colt 1911 model in .45 caliber with the bluing mostly worn off was on his belt.

  “When the American army freed us from the camp, there was a young Rabbi with them. He was there not as a spiritual leader, but as a soldier. This is the gun he gave me that day. I do not know why he chose me for this gift, but I have never been, nor will I ever be without it again.”

  “Can guns stop these things?” Katarina asked.

  Saul put his shirt back into place, once again concealing the weapon.

  “I have no idea. However, if they are not in spiritual form, I cannot imagine otherwise. After all, we are not talking about some indestructible, magical creature from the movies. The laws of physics should still apply.”