Nine
It was well past noon when Star West stirred. Slimy stone greeted her as she lay on the hard concrete floor, trying to remember the events that had led up to this. “Bastard!” Star muttered getting to her feet, her fingers touching the melon-sized lump that had formed on the back of her head.
Thor got off the couch and moved closer, “in Sam’s defense you did start it.” The comment earned him a killer glare. Star pushed the door but it held fast, she gave Thor a questioning look. “We’re just trying to help you.” He said answering her unspoken question.
“Help me?” She spat back, “by knocking me out and keeping me locked up like an animal, how is that helping me Thor?”
Thor pressed his face against the bars, “you’re not well Star...”
Star rolled her eyes, “I haven’t got time for this.” She brought her hands up, palms outward like she had done when the doors to the ballroom had yielded to her but the cell door didn’t open.
Thor saw surprise rip across her pretty face and stepped back, “it’s been blessed Star, it’s escape proof.”
Just like that the girl in front of him changed. An expression of pure rage transformed her features, made her resemble a snarling monster. Star ripped at his clothes screaming like a woman possessed. Thor pulled away and Star hurled herself at the bars, hissing at him. “You have no idea what you’re playing with.” She told him in a voice not her own, it was deeper like a man’s but was inhuman. “My master will come for me.”
“We’re counting on it.” Thor said sadly before resuming his Virgil on the couch.
***
Sam cursed and sat on the floor. He’d been yelling his self hoarse for a good three hours and still no Emily. He’d been blundering around this damned hotel hoping for something that would give a hint as to what happened, again, nothing.
The rooms that were still accessibly gave no clue as to what had befell the citizens of this town. Perhaps he should look elsewhere, maybe Main street, yet Sam felt in his bones that the epicenter was the hotel. It had emanated from here.
“You’re wasting time Sam.” Emily said. She appeared beside him so suddenly he nearly had a heart attack.
“Jeez!” He breathed holding his thumping chest.
“Leave Sam, now, while you still can.”
“That thing is going to come here and take your souls Emily, tell what happened so I can put them to rest.”
“There’s no resolving what happened here Sam. It was...”
“You were there.”
Emily nodded, “when I died I was unable to go to the light. My murderer still walked the earth. Going on with his life after he had ruined mine. I was governed by revenge Sam, but not even watching my murderer die of cancer, saved me. I felt cheated, that the world owed me a death. I’ve been stuck here ever since. I saw what happened that night, and was powerless to stop it.”
“Then don’t let history repeat itself Emily. We can help them find peace, just tell me.”
Emily studied him for a long moment before letting out a sigh. “It was December 23rd, a Christmas ball was being held in the newly built ballroom.” She began, “I watched them all arrive, the women in their elegant ballgowns, laughing and talking. They looked so happy...” she trailed off, lost in pity and grief and Sam knew enough not to push.
Emily flashed him an embarrassed smile, “the music was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard, it wafted through the hotel like fresh lavender.” As if on clue music reached Sam’s ears. “It was a truly magical night...”
Sparks seemed to fly from Emily’s hand and Sam was transported back in time. He was in the ballroom but instead of it being dark and burnt it was alive with music, laughter, and people. Sam smiled despite himself as Edgar the Minister floated past, swirling with a young woman.
Sam found himself mesmerized by the grandeur of the domed ballroom, by the finery of the clothes, the shimmering of champagne as it was poured, it was all like something out of a movie.
As he turned a flash of lightning lit up the ballroom. The guests gasped with awe and stared up at the glass domed ceiling. “This was the moment magic turned to nightmare.” Emily’s somber voice in his ear made Sam jump. Around him time slowed to a stop. The party goers locked into place, frozen smiles on their lips. The music still played despite the musicians that had ceased to play and now resembled statues. Thunder rumbled blotting out the haunting melody.
Sam followed Emily’s eyes and saw a bell hop. He was young , unshaven and looked out of place among the revelers, his red uniform soiled and unloved. As he watched the young bell hop took out a small flask from his trouser pocket and slipped its contents into the champagne fountain. “He’s spiking the punch.” Sam gasped as the young man quickly made his exit.
“The guests were busy watching the weather to notice.” Emily said, “it was like the heavens themselves had conspired against them.”
“Why would he do it?” Sam pondered distractedly. Maybe it was a joke, or he had a falling out with his employers, maybe whatever he had poured in the champagne was just meant to upset stomachs?
Another bolt of lightning restarted time, only this time the room seemed to have grown darker and colder. The temperature plummeted faster than belief. Sam started to shiver and clouds of foggy breath floated from his mouth. “What the...?” A man standing a few feet away from him dropped his champagne flute, blood burst from his mouth, spraying the woman closet with crimson. She screamed and suddenly the whole ballroom had turned into a nightmare.
The guests dropped like flies, writhing in agony on the bloody floor. Others stamped on the dying trying to get out of this god forsaken room, but the doors slammed closed, locking the party goers in with death.
Sam could only stare, transfixed at how quick things had changed. “What happened...?” He breathed at Emily as fear stricken man in a suit ran straight through him.
“The poison took half an hour to spread through the guests, I just sped it up given that time is of the essence.
“The bell hop killed all these people?” Sam uttered with horror, “why?”
A shadow hung over the huge room, it crept slowly but surely over the walls extinguishing the light as it went, soon the ballroom was plunged into darkness that was only alleviated by the storm raging outside.
The screaming increased until a ball of flame seemed to erupt out of the last candelabra. Sam felt the heat against his skin as the fire ball raged over the party goers heads. The flickering orange flames transformed into a face that howled at them before the flames spiraled outwards and started to devour the walls of the ballroom.
Sam ducked and tried to roll of harms way but the fire moved like water, it enveloped him before he could react.
***
“Bored.”
Thor sighed and rose to the bait. “As soon as Sam comes back...”
“Aw, who’s a good little soldier,” Star interrupted, I never knew you followed so well. I should have bought you a leash.”
Thor gritted his teeth. He knew what she was up to and promised himself not to engage, but after two hours of Star’s constant taunts Thor was finding it hard to ignore as well.
“It’s not going to work Star. You’re staying in there till Sam gets back and that’s that.”
Something flashed in her eyes and they both knew that she had him exactly where she wanted. “Since you two are so cozy with each other perhaps it’s Sam you should be fucking.”
The air went from the room.
“I’m sorry,” Star laughed on seeing his shocked expression, “I know such a thing shouldn’t be brought up in polite conversation but lets face it Thor, you’re as damaged as I am.” Pain so acute that it actually hurt to breathe flooded Thor because he knew she was right. Even in her messed up state, he still loved her, wanted her, needed her, how fucked up did that make him?
Throwing her a killer look Thor ascended the stone steps and slammed the door the basement shut. Leaning against the burnt wall he could hear her laughing.
“I know what happened.” Sam came stumbling out the basement, “you okay?”
Thor nodded, “I just needed to stretch my legs.”
“That thing, the Guardian or whatever,” Sam hurriedly continued, “it hasn’t just been sitting on its behind waiting for Star. It’s been enslaving people to do its bidding.”
“How do you mean?”
“It got the bell hop here to poison the ballroom. That’s how they died.”
“How did he manage that?”
“Emily says it promised the bell hop wealth beyond his wildest dreams.”
“So it lures you with promises, gets you to kill for it then...what?”
“The bell hop died in the flames.” Sam clarified. “Emily showed me how it all went down. The fire spread through the town. The Guardian’s been mass murdering, creating his own source of food. Leaving it to mature like wine before reaping.” Sam explained with excitement, he frowned at Thor’s distant look. “What is it?”
“Move!” Thor tugged on his arm and Sam staggered forwards, narrowly missing the basement door as it exploded off its hinges. Star stood in its wake, eyes glowing like rubies.
Sam pushed Thor away and sprang at his sister. Star swattered him away before spreeing him into the far wall. It gave with a thud of plaster as the two siblings disappeared from view. Thor followed through the cloud of plaster to see brother and sister taring into each other. They had gone through the wall and into the hotel’s chapel. Thor thought it strange for a hotel to have its own private chapel but now wasn’t the time to dwell on it.
Sam was bleeding.
Thor grabbed Star from behind and pushed her away. In his mind he saw Star’s moves before she made them so managed to stay ahead of the curve and out of her reach. Sam gained his feet and charged at his sister. The two punched and kicked at each other.
The earth beneath the hotel started to shake and the remains of the hotel started to crumble around them. A feeling Thor had never experienced before gripped him and he understood why he had been so reluctance to enter the hotel. For the first time Thor saw beyond a few minutes and knew what he had to do, why fate had brought him here, had brought him back to Star.
He would like to say that in that clarifying moment he wasn’t scared, but he’d be lying. Thor was terrified. With a deep breath he shut his eyes and stepped forward.
Into the path of a dark hurricane.