"So the work isn’t cursed?" Samantha asked. "I can’t believe Satan would create something like that and not have it be something incredibly evil."
Gray looked at her. "In addition to all the histories included in the tome, there are also magical spells. These are mostly exorcisms but it’s been rumored for centuries that the missing eight pages contained spells of summoning, rituals that would allow mortal men to summon entities of great power and bind them."
"And do they? Eun wondered aloud. He reached for one of the pages and held it up before his eyes. The writing looked like gibberish to him but he couldn’t deny that there was a tingling sensation in his fingertips whenever they made contact with the paper.
"Yes. They do."
Morgan exhaled loudly and when everyone turned to look at him, he shrugged. "I just don’t see what the big deal is. So we found some old papers that have magic spells written on them. So what? We’re not actually going to act like we believe in this stuff, are we?"
"What about the Scanlon case?" Samantha reminded him. "Mr. Scanlon comes to us and hires us to track down Wilma Nero, who happens to have an alien creature living behind her eyes? And I run into a man who turns his walking stick into a lion, right in front of me? Who’s to say what’s real and what’s not? Besides, it’s obvious the Chief believes in it and that’s good enough for me."
"Thank you, Samantha." Gray took back the page that Eun had been holding. He took all eight pages and put them back into order. "I have every reason to believe that these pages have been used to summon a demonic entity. Unfortunately, without these pages, whomever has done so is in a world of trouble. The spells that are used to bind the demon must be performed on a regular basis or else the hold begins to weaken. Likewise, the demon cannot be banished without the words on these pages."
Morgan tapped his chin thoughtfully. "So somebody sent us these pages to screw somebody else over?"
"Possibly. Or they may have wanted us to use the spells contained on these pages to banish the demon in question."
"But where do we go from here? We don’t know who sent the pages or who might have summoned these things, assuming that they have." Morgan stood up. "Looks to me like we’re at a dead end."
"Not necessarily. There are actually two clues here and they both bear investigating. Firstly, the envelope itself is oversized to accommodate the size of the papers." Gray lifted up the envelope and turned it so that the backside of it was facing his aides. "Look closely at the bottom here. You’ll note that someone recently wrote some numbers down. The imprint went through the paper that was used and onto the envelope. It’s a local phone number. I took the liberty of checking with the operator before this meeting began. It’s the phone number of an importer named Malcolm Goodwill. I’d like for Samantha and Eun to pay him a visit."
"Will do, Chief," Eun piped up. "Should we tell him why we’re there?"
"No. Go under the pretense of wanting to buy some something that would remind you of home. Given your ethnic background, it won’t surprise him that you’d be looking for hard-to-find items that the usual stores here wouldn’t stock. He runs his business from his home so you may also get the opportunity to learn about his personal life."
Morgan began to grin. "And what about you and me, Chief? What angle are we taking?"
"We’re going to visit a man named Harry Nance."
"Nance? I know him. Small-time numbers runner. A real small fish in the big Sovereign pond."
"He might be a bigger fish than you think." Gray tapped the papers. "Because he’s the man who sent us this envelope."
Chapter II
The Black Heart of Malcolm Goodwill
Harry Nance’s apartment was never particularly well kept but now it looked like a tornado had descended upon it. The mattress had been ripped off the bed and sliced apart while every drawer and cabinet had been opened and rifled through.
The black-clad ninja had finally admitted defeat and Goodwill had banished them back to his home. He remained behind, however, sitting on Harry’s couch, in the middle of the mess. He’d hoped that something would occur to him, some clue as to where Harry might have stashed the pages.
A chill took hold of the room as the temperature dropped some twenty degrees in the space of mere seconds. Goodwill glanced down to see that his breath was now visible, emerging from his mouth in tiny clouds of carbon dioxide. Goodwill took out a cigar and lit it, using the expensive smoke as a calming influence.
A humanoid figure took shape beside him. The smell of cinnamon filled Goodwill’s nostrils, overwhelming even the acrid odor of his cigar. He kept his eyes straight ahead, however, refusing to turn and look at her.
"Do you have something for me to do?" a feminine voice said and Goodwill felt his resolve weakening. When he’d summoned this demon, he’d expected almost anything besides what he’d gotten. A female with a seductive voice and a body to kill for… but a face that was so horrid that even one glance meant that you’d forever see it when you closed your eyes at night. Her name was Sazar and she was a blood demon, one who relished sex and death in equal amounts. "I grow tired of walking invisibly at your side."
"It’s what I want of you. If people see you, it’s going to cause problems."
A soft foot began to rub against his leg. "Don’t you like me, Malcolm?"
"Of course I do. But now isn’t the time." Goodwill stood up, taking a long drag on his cigar.
"I need to eat," the demon said petulantly. "I haven’t killed in days. Why didn’t you let me sup on Harry Nance? You wasted all that blood."
Goodwill didn’t answer at first. He had kept her at bay because he’d sensed his hold on her was slipping. He needed the stolen pages from the Codex Gigas to renew his power. Without it, she could easily slip her bonds and turn on him. He wondered if she could tell that her leash was growing ever longer. "I’ll let you feast this evening," he said. "Now be gone!"
Sazar rose from the couch and rubbed his shoulders. He could smell her soft skin and a part of him yearned to take her. But the thought of her face was too much for him and slowed the rush of blood that she always brought on. "There are other things I hunger for as well. Can you promise to satisfy those desires as well?" she teased.
"Of course. With relish." Goodwill reached up to squeeze her hand. A knock at the door made him pause and he quietly hissed. "Vanish. Now."
Sazar withdrew her hands but he could hear the challenge in her voice. "One of these days you’ll recognize my power, Malcolm. I’m not your toy."
Goodwill ignored her, walking toward the door and peering through the peephole. A skinny young brunette was standing there, wearing a threadbare green dress. Her hair was soaked from the morning rain.
"Harry? You in there?" she asked. She knocked again. "Let me in if you are. I’m drenched to the bone."
A girlfriend, Goodwill mused. There was always the chance she might know something. He’d have to silence her afterward, though. He couldn’t run the risk of her talking to the cops or telling anyone about the things he’d be quizzing her over. He cast one glance over his shouler to make sure that Sazar was invisible and then he opened the door, reaching out quickly to grab the girl and yank her inside. "Come in, my dear."