“Who did this?” Randon asked, apparently uninterested in a more tactful approach. “Did you see someone take a human form?”
“No. That’s just it. I didn’t.”
“Then what was it?” Randon shook him by the collar. “Answer me!”
“The devil would be the best answer,” the man said. “Fact is, no one appeared. There was a heavy wind, a funnel of some sort that surrounded us. Then, this eerie voice told me to run. I grabbed that young athlete’s arm and tried to pull her and another kid with me but it was as if I had hold of a rope in a tug-of-war with an army of soldiers who refused to go down as defeated men. I could only pull so far before I was yanked back in and eventually that same voice gave me one last chance to save myself.”
“What voice?”
“I told you already, it may have belonged to the devil.” He stared up at her. “It sure didn’t belong to a human.”
“How do you know?”
“Damn it, Pageant! We don’t have time for this. We already know we aren’t dealing with a human here.”
“You’re the one who asked what he looked like,” she reminded him.
Pageant understood Randon didn’t have patience for this, but at the same time, any information was better than no information at all.
“Did ‘the voice’ say anything to you? Did he mention why he was killing those people or say something that would lead you to believe he had a particular motive?”
The man’s head jolted forward and back. As if he were programmed to respond to only that precise question, he said, “You are the reason, Detective Pageant Keen. Certain skill sets were collected from some, personality traits from others. Now, there’s only one task left on the list.”
Randon pushed her behind him. The wolves came forward.
Pageant tried to push him aside, but Randon stood his ground. “What is that task, Sir?”
His body began to spasm. He looked as if he were having an epileptic seizure.
“Sir!” Randon’s grip tightened. He shook him again. “What is that task?”
“He will take possession of one human life form.” More violent spasms rocked through the man’s body and he foamed at the mouth. Through the lime green froth, he said, “To take ownership of one more body that will forever belong to the extortionists. He wants you, Detective Keen. He will settle for no one else and people will die by the hundreds until he gets what he wants.”
Chapter Twenty
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“Yes you are,” Randon said, dragging her away from the dead man in her yard. Pointing at the wolves, he said, “After we cross the line, come back and take care of this.”
A dark gray wolf with streaks of white across his head nodded just like a human might.
“I won’t go, Randon.” She folded her arms across her chest. “If hundreds of people will die because of me, I’ll stay right here and let him have me.”
“And then what, Pageant?” Oh God, he was furious. Did she really believe he would let her sacrifice herself for these people? “Do you really want to spend the rest of eternity walking around in a zombie state while the extortionist uses your body to manipulate and kill others? Do you want your face on wanted posters? Hmm? Do you want those you’ve known in this town and others to think you’ve turned into a killer?”
“I can’t let others die!”
“You have no control over what this monster does, Pageant. Whether he uses your body or someone else’s, he will kill again. You can’t stop him. In fact, my guess is, when one of the extortionists takes a body, they’re only further empowered.”
Pageant covered her mouth for a second. “Oh my God, Randon. That’s it.”
“What?” He framed her face and held her steady. His gaze bore into hers. “Tell me.”
His pack inched closer with their ears pricked.
“We can’t stop him unless he takes a body.” She grabbed hold of his forearms. “Let him have me and then stake my heart.”
“Are you out of your mind?” His voice shook. He focused on her tight expression and easily saw she was dead serious. More importantly, he could feel that determination.