Page 50 of Outside the Veil
“I was going to say, ‘in a much more limited way’ if you’d let me finish.”
“Your pardon.”
“The stories talk about three types of manifestations. The first is the malevolent presence on the wind you felt. The second is human. Or rather, when it takes possession of a human. Wendigo-psychosis, it’s called sometimes. And the third is a huge, shambling, hominid form, anywhere from eight to twenty feet high. Accounts are a bit vague.”
Finn rested his head in Diego’s lap. “It was monstrous. Hard to determine when one is hanging head down. But I wouldn’t venture to say it reached treetop height.”
“Small favors, I suppose,” Diego murmured, scanning yet another site. “There’s an odd way to destroy it mentioned here, pouring hot wax down its throat to melt its ice heart. I only see that once, though, so I doubt it’s accurate. Getting close enoughto find out, I think, would be suicide. The only other way…” He stopped to lean back in his chair.
“Tell me, Diego!” Finn rose on his knees to take his face between his hands. “Whatever the price, tell me! I’ll do anything to rid you of this fell beast.”
“You wait until it possesses a human body.” Diego swallowed hard. “Then you strangle the victim and burn the corpse.”
“Ah.” Finn subsided back to the floor. “Almost anything.”
Diego stared at the screen without seeing it. “Finn…” He reached over to squeeze Finn’s shoulder. “If it does manage to…take what it wants, I need you to make me a promise.”
“You can’t ask this of me.”
“I know it’s horrible, but what else can we do? If it possesses me, you have to kill me. You can’t leave me trapped, living in that thing’s head, watching it murder people and devour them.”
“I’ll…” Finn jerked away from him and stalked to the far side of the room. He scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck, shoulders hunched. “If I can find no other way, if I truly have no other choice, I will end your torment. My solemn promise.” He whirled back around, eyes blazing. “But there is always another way. I will not lose you. Not like that.”
Hands clasped behind his back, he paced the room. “We will listen and watch. It will give something away as it grows more desperate. It will… Diego, where are you going?”
“It’s getting dark. I want to make sure all the doors and windows are locked.”
“I have told you and told you…” Finn turned him and traced a finger along his nose. “It cannot come in.”
“I know. But it’ll make me feel better.”
Finn helped him check the locks without any further protest. They finished in the great room, and Diego pulled the heavy drapes shut for good measure. He was trying to decide if heshould suggest they have some dinner when Finn’s head jerked up, nostrils flared.
“It’s here.”
The scratch at the door sent an ice spike through Diego’s heart. He turned on all the outside lights as he had before but there were no retreating footsteps this time. The scratching persisted, followed by a soft whimpering.
“Maybe it’s just a dog.”
“No.” One corner of Finn’s mouth twitched up in a bitter smile. “No, I can feel it. I hear it. It is cold hunger and yearning. Oh, gods…” Finn wrapped his arms around his middle and sank into a crouch. “So empty…the agony of such emptiness…”
“Don’t listen to it.” Diego knelt beside him to hold him tight. “Can’t you shut it out?” The door thumped against the deadbolt as the scratching grew to a scraping of heavy claws on wood. “What if it claws through the door?”
A sudden wind picked up and howled around the house, rattling the windows and thumping against the walls. The temperature inside the house plunged. Diego clutched Finn closer to share his heat.
“For the last time,” Finn spoke through his teeth, as if the effort caused him pain. “It. Can. Not. Come. In.” He took Diego’s upper arms and set him back. Something odd shone in his eyes. “Watch.”
“Finn, what…”
He rose, stalked to the door, and threw it open.
“No! Finn, don’t!”
The wind slammed through the doorway, forcing Finn back a step. He steadied and faced the dark, arms flung wide. “Here I am! You wish to destroy me? All that stands in the way of your triumph? Then do your worst!”
“Finn! Close the damn door!”
The wind subsided. The sudden quiet sent chills up Diego’s spine. From the front of the house, an eerie howl split the air, a sound filled with frustrated rage.
