Mitchell was out in the car, parked surreptitiously down the street. He was listening in via short-wave radio, ready to offer assistance if needed.
Gravedigger stood outside her target’s house, noting that every room appeared to be dark. It would certainly make her work easier if no one was home so she quickly began her task. She moved around the brownstone, examining all possible entrances. When she found a window that rattled enticingly, she set to work and quickly forced it open.
Crawling inside, she crept for a moment in darkness, letting her eyes adjust to the gloom. She was in a study of some kind and the faintly cloying odor of the air was at once familiar and repulsive. It was a mix of human sweat and opium, both of which she’d become sensitive to during her youth. Though she’d never gone for drugs of any kind — aside from occasional bits of alcohol — the crowd she’d run with had tried to persuade her to visit various opium dens with them.
Goldstein had described the book to her and she half-hoped that Meeks had left it lying around for her to find. Remove the threat he posed with the tome, she reasoned, and then she could take her time dealing with its owner.
Moving slowly through the home, Charity couldn’t help but be impressed by its opulence. The throw rugs alone were worth more than her entire wardrobe!
She was surprised to find a woman in the bedroom. The girl was lying nude on her side, her breathing slow and deep. Gravedigger approached her, nudging the woman’s foot. The girl grunted but made no move to wake up.
Assuming that the woman was drugged, Gravedigger turned away from her and resumed her search. She found weapons, perverse items designed for sexual use and a treasure trove of jewels, urns and small statues… but she found no sign of The Necronomicon.
As she glanced at a grandfather clock and took note of the fact that she’d been in the house for over an hour, Charity gave a little sigh of annoyance. This was going to be a wasted evening and she was certain that Goldstein would use this opportunity to show that she’d be better off taking his advice in the future.
It was at that exact moment that she noticed something that had escaped her: a small door set into the wall, hidden by the grandfather clock.
Beneath her mask, Charity’s lips broke into a grin. She rushed forward, using all of her muscle to shove the massive timekeeping device out of the way. It was definitely a doorway, with a small depression where a hand would go. She inserted her fingers carefully and found a clasp. After squeezing it, the door swung open with a creak, revealing a set of stairs that led to a hidden basement.
The smells that drifted out of the gloom were a mixture of wet earth, burning incense and human sweat. Gravedigger drew one of her swords and crept down the stairs. For the first time, she wished she had a partner in this — if Meeks returned home, he’d easily see that the hidden door had been found. He could lock Charity inside, without hope of escape.
Downstairs, Gravedigger felt along the wall until she found a switch. With a flip, electric bulbs came on, bathing the room in yellow-tinged light.
The floor was bare earth and was damp. There were three pieces of furniture in the room: two folding chairs and a cot covered by a bloodstained sheet. Gravedigger’s attention, however, was focused on the room’s sole occupant.
A human figure lay huddled on the floor, their face turned towards the wall and covered by their arms. They were nude and from the shape of the slender form, it was obviously female. Charity wondered suddenly if the drugged woman upstairs was intended to eventually join this poor woman down here in the basement.
The woman’s back was crisscrossed with scars, some of them relatively fresh. It was obvious that someone had whipped her terribly and as she shivered fearfully in the light, Gravedigger’s heart went out to her.
“Don’t be afraid,” she said, trying to sound as soothing as possible. She sheathed her sword, knowing that its appearance would clash with her intent. “I’m here to help you.”
The woman spun about, showing her face for the first time. Charity felt bile rise to the top of her throat and she jerked back in revulsion. Where there should have been eyes was nothing but smooth skin. The nose was nothing more two small slits in the vast landscape of her face and the mouth was wide and filled with sharpened teeth.
Gravedigger reacted on instinct, raising her right hand. She fired a crossbow bolt that struck home in the woman’s throat. Blood spurted from the wound but the female merely reached up and snapped off the end of the bolt. She then threw herself at Gravedigger.
Charity felt the woman’s bulk slam into her and she barely had time to throw up an arm in defense. She managed to keep the snapping jaws from her face but the woman was surprisingly strong.
A momentary burst of fear rushed through Charity but she quickly silenced it. She had until October 31, 1939. Until then, she was invulnerable.
A terrible pain ripped through her shoulder as the monster stabbed at her with its claw-like nails.
Thoughts of invulnerability vanished in the haze of combat and Gravedigger renewed her actions, pushing back on the creature’s throat. She grabbed hold of the broken crossbow bolt and began to twist it, eliciting a howl of outraged agony from her opponent.
Suddenly freed by the monster’s desire to retreat, Gravedigger was able to finally draw her weapons. She unsheathed her sword once more, mentally telling herself to never again put it away unless she was 100 % sure it was safe. A curved dagger also appeared in her other hand and she brandished both weapons with obvious skill.
The blind creature hissed like a cat, sniffing the air. Her nasal slits opened and closed as she sucked in air. She seemed to sense that her intended prey was now armed and as such, she crept around Gravedigger, keeping her distance.
“If you can understand me,” Gravedigger said, her voice as steely as the blades she wielded, “I don’t want to kill you. Surrender and I’ll do whatever I can to reverse what’s been done to you.”
The woman paused, as if digesting Gravedigger’s words. Whether or not she truly understood was a moot point as she lunged forward, teeth snapping at the air.
Gravedigger struck expertly — her knife swept up, catching her foe between the breasts, where Gravedigger dug the blade deep. Her sword then came down, decapitating the horrible monster in one fell swoop.
Splattered with blood, Gravedigger stepped back, letting the corpse hit the soft earthen floor. After putting her weapons away, she immediately began looking around the room once more, convinced that this locked room had to be more than a mere prison: the naked woman-thing was a guard of some sort. But what was she protecting?
Kneeling, Charity began poking at the earth. Since there was nothing to be seen above ground, could there be something beneath?
After scooping out several small holes, Gravedigger suddenly yanked her fingers back. Something was moving in the dirt! After forcing her hand back into the ground, she felt her fingers close around something slimy and undulating. She yanked it up into the light, revealing a horrible white worm, one end open with a sucking mouth. The creature was as blind as the woman who had guarded it.
Gravedigger shoved it into a pouch on her belt, shivering at the thought of carrying the disgusting creature on her person. It wasn’t that she was squeamish about bugs or snakes but something about this thing was unnatural. Further digging showed that there were more of the things, many in various stages of development.
“It’s a nursery,” she realized with a start. Meeks was cultivating these… things.
Realizing that she’d spent too much time on this affair, Gravedigger sprinted up the stairs, not bothering to turn off the lights. Meeks would know she’d been there when he discovered the corpse, regardless. Despite that, she did shove the clock back into place, covering up the doorway.