American Monsters

“No,” she muttered.

Milo glanced at her. “What?”

“Nothing,” she said, and immediately the pain started.

She whacked her closed fist against the dash. Milo didn’t say anything, but he looked displeased.

“Got another one,” she said through clenched teeth. “That way.”

“South.”

“Yeah.”

“So we’re letting your folks get away again?”

“It’s not my choice, Milo. Like you said, Astaroth’s the boss, and when the boss tells you to do a job you do the job, or you’re put through a hell of a lot of pain.”

Milo nodded, and when they came to the next off-ramp they left the highway. Immediately, the pain went away.

“Who is it?” Milo asked.

She closed her eyes, pushed her irritation to one side, and focused. A face and a name swam into her thoughts.

“Your old buddy,” she said. “Elias Mauk. I have to collect his offering.”

Milo grunted. “This ought to be fun.”

It was torture, to deviate from their mission when her parents were so close, but they got to where they were going by nightfall, and Amber fired up the iPad to find out where exactly that was. Apparently, they were just outside of Senoia, Georgia. From what she could see, their immediate surroundings consisted mostly of trees.

They got out. The air was sweet with the scent of pine. Amber shifted and the smell got even sharper.

“Now where?” Milo asked.

“Not sure,” she said. “When I’m miles away, I know exactly which direction to go in, but when I’m this close it all goes kinda vague. What do you say we follow the path?”

It was little more than a trail through the trees, and Amber led the way. They heard shouts in the distance and knew they were going in the right direction.

They came to a clearing. Elias Mauk stood with his back to them. He wore a faded boiler suit and a grubby baseball cap, and he was looking up the hill at a cabin surrounded by moaning, groaning, shuffling dead people. Amber waited for Milo to get in position, and then she shifted and stepped out.

“Hello, Elias.”

Mauk whirled, eyes widening. His hand went to the claw hammer in his belt, but Milo was suddenly behind him, gun pressed to his head.

Mauk froze.

“So good to see you again,” Amber said, smiling brightly. “The last time we spoke was, like, ages ago. Remember that? Remember when you broke all my fingers? You remember?”

Wary of the gun to his head, Mauk sneered. “Yeah,” he said, in that hoarse voice of his. “I remember.”

Amber took the hammer from his belt. “This is it, isn’t it? This is the one you used? It definitely looks like the one you used to break my fingers, but what do I know? I’m no hammer expert. I barely know how to use one.” She held it up. “This is the end you hammer with, right?”

Without waiting for an answer, she ducked down and swung the hammer into his right knee. Mauk howled, clutching his leg even as he collapsed. His cap fell off and he rolled over it.

“Yep,” said Amber, “that’s the end you hammer with.”

“You little bitch!” Mauk yelled. “I’ll beat your head in! I’ll crack your skull like an egg!”

“Like this?” she asked, and tapped the hammer off his forehead, right on the band of burnt skin that ran around his skull. He rolled back, hands alternating between his head and knee, like he couldn’t decide which hurt more. Eventually, he settled on his head.

“I don’t like being called names, Elias. Don’t do it again, you understand me?”

He glared up at her.

“You can’t kill me,” he said. “You tried shooting me and I got right back up again, didn’t I?”

“Technically, it was Milo who shot you,” Amber said.

Mauk switched his gaze to Milo. “Traitor. We used to be partners.”

“I don’t remember anything about that,” said Milo, “but I doubt it’s true. Even when I was a bad guy, you would have annoyed me.”

Mauk barked a laugh. “And what are you now – a hero? That’s laughable! Laughable!”

Amber nodded. “Laughable, he says.”

“Repeated it, too,” said Milo.

“So you just know he meant it.”

Mauk glared at them both, but the hammer and the gun kept his retorts unspoken. He got up slowly, and they didn’t move to stop him. “So that’s why you’re here, is it?” he asked, straightening. “You want a little revenge? What are you gonna do – you gonna break my fingers now? Maybe my toes, too?”

Amber made a face. “I do not want to see your feet, Elias. That’s gross. Feet are the worst part of the human body. We’re not here to get revenge on you. This isn’t personal. It’s business. I see you looking around as I’m talking. First of all, that’s very rude. Second, are you expecting someone?”

Mauk smiled. “You could say that.”

“And you think the arrival of this person will, what, save you? So obviously it’s someone pretty scary, am I right?”

Mauk’s smile grew wider.

Amber’s matched it. “You’re not waiting for the Shining Demon’s representative, are you?”

Mauk’s smile faltered. “How did you know?”

“Because that’s why we’re here. You’re talking to Astaroth’s new representative.”

“Bullshit.”

“Afraid not.”