MOON FALL (50 page)

Even with Minerva leading, two more hours passed before
they found the front gate of St. Gertrude's. In the distance,
John heard chanting, and as be looked up at the twin gargoyles
on the gateposts, memories suddenly flooded his mind. Memories
of Halloween night, 1972.

First, the five of them, John, Winky, Paul, Doug and Beano,
boldly walking through the gate, then skulking along the shadowy
bushes toward the school building. Suddenly, a scream
-
Greg's
scream-
pierced the night. They halted in their tracks
at the base of the steps and, shocked, glanced at one another,
then, as one, turned and ran across the lawn toward the gate,
toward Greg.

But the gate was blocked by a half-dozen black-cowled figures.
The tallest held Greg's limp body in his arms.

John ran at the tall one, intent on tackling him and rescuing
his brother, but the other figures stepped forward, blocking his
way. The man had laughed in a deep, rich voice as strong hands
clamped onto John's arms. The figures grabbed the other boys,
too, harshly ordering them to be quiet. They spoke in feminine
voices
and John remembered wondering h
ow normal women
could be so powerful. Then a silver needle flashed in the moonlight,
and be felt a sharp pain in his arm. His knees buckled
and the world spun away.

He and the others woke in a dark, dankly cold room. They
were all there, including Greg. John felt his way to his brother,
following the sound of his moans. Groggy himself, he tried to
revive Greg, but h
e wouldn't do more than groan feebly. One
by one, the other boys began to talk, then move, exploring the
room w
ith their hands. He remembered h
earing Doug Buckman
call out in a slurry voice that he'd found a door, but that it was
locked.

A few minutes later, the door was unlocked and the tall man
stepped in, the revolver in his band fanning across the boys.
Flanking him were the robed women, one holding a bright
lantern that cast swinging shadows on the stone walls.

"Take the young one and prepare him for the ceremony,"
the man
said, as two of the women stepped forward and pulled
Greg from John's weak grasp. The leader locked his dark eyes
on John's. "It will h
urt you more, I think, if we allow you to
live." He'd laughed again and disappeared from the room, his
followers behind him. Again they were locked away in darkness.

Time passed slowly, but finally, three of the women, one
holdi
ng the gun, returned and took Win
ky out of the room
.
They came again and again until John, the last, was finally led
across a vast chamber and up a flight of stairs, into a doctor's
examination room. W
in
ky, Paul, Beano and Doug were there,
sitting on straight
-backed chairs, staring straight ahead as if
they weren't even aware be was there.

The women restrained him and the man gave him another
injection. That was when
h
e thought he h
ad died ... but
h
e
hadn't. And while
h
e struggled in vain to move, even to breathe,
as h
e felt his heart slow down, the man stared into their eyes
and told them the story of their camping trip to Witch Falls.
He told them that Greg h
ad fallen into the water and drowned.

''My God,"
h
e whispered, turning to face Minerva and Paul.
''It was
Dashwood
."

"What?" Paul asked, without taking his eyes from the gatepost
gargoyles.

''I know
h
ow to find the basement."

Minerva stared at the sky. "It's late. They may have already
moved your son. John, check the basement, but be careful. And
quick. Paul and I will go to the chapel and prepare for what
will come at midnight. Meet us on the north side as soon as
you can."

He nodded, then drew his pistol and ran toward the school
building.

His duty as bridegroom-in-effigy long completed, Richard
Das
h
wood had gone into a small anteroom located behind the
chancel of the chapel, to prepare himself for the midnight
ceremony. In the chapel, the women continued to build power
through the sacred chants, power that would be channeled
through him at midnight, when be called the Beast into this
world.

His timing had been off in regard to Kelly Reed. When he
was forced to break off the revenant contact to initiate the
novice, he had known Kelly was near the abbey, but now he
had neither the time nor the energy to search her out. The other
girl would serve in her st
ead, and after the ceremonies, h
e
would track the Reed girl down and dispose of her. He smiled
to himself. He would bring her to Lucy and they would take
their time killing her; that would give the Mother Superior
great pleasure.

He sipped brandy from a snifter and closed his eyes, reliving
the taking of the novice; then someone rapped urgently on the
door. He looked around, but before
h
e could ask who it was,
the door opened and Sister Regina peered in, her face a pale
mask of worry.

''What is it, Sister?"

"Doctor, it's the boy."

''Come in and shut the door." He set the snifter down and
gazed at her as she stood before him. ''What about the boy?"

"
I
-
I'm afraid he's escaped," she stammered, fear growing
in her eyes.

''How?"

''The window in the bathroom by your office. He said he
was sick, and-"

Dashwood stood, drawing himself to his full height. ''What
about the girl and Bibiana?"

"They're ready. Basil-Bob is guarding them."

He nodded. "I'm very disappointed in you, Regina."

She lowered her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"You will be flogged for this."

"I know," she replied softly.

"Go quietly into the church and fetch three of the girls from
the back row to help search for him. Then go back to the
infirmary and guard the sacrifices yourself. Do you think you
can do that without fouling things up?"

''Yes, Doctor."

''Good. Apprise Boullan of the situation. Tell him to use any
means short of death to recapture the boy. We need to bring
him and the others into the chapel in exactly fifteen minutes."

"What if we don't find him?"

He studied her. "Then you will answer to Mother Lucy, and
she will be far more seve
re in her punishment than I
."

Regina fled the room and Dashwood followed, walking out
into the night. Of the three sacrifices, the male was the least
important. It was not a gift for the Beast, but a sacrifice that
was more truly for the orchards and for Lucy's pleasure. The
ceremony could continue without him, but Lucy would be
enraged, and Regina wasn't the only one who would suffer her
fury. She couldn't punish him, as she would anyone else, but
she was a vindictive bitch, fully capable of making his life
miserable.

"Damn it." He walked into the dark cemetery, his eyes
darting among the moonlit gravestones, hoping to see movement.
First Kelly Reed escaped, then Sara Hawthorne, and now
the boy. The sisters were getting very sloppy, and he and Lucy
would have to do something about it. More new blood, perhaps.

A twig cracked and be turned to see Marybeth Tingler, in
her red robes, picking her way around the gravestones.

''Doctor Dashwood?"

"Yes?" He moved to join her. "What are you doing out
here? You're supposed to be inside."

"
I-I
know, but I thought I should tell you something."

''And what would that be?"

"I think I saw her. Miss Hawthorne, I mean."

He took her shoulders. "Where?"

''In there." She nodded toward the chapel.

"When?"

"When we were ... during my initiation. She was in the
second pew from the front, on the right." She hesitated. "I'm
not positive, though."

''Why did you take so long to tell me?"

''It was the first time I could get away without being
noticed."

He kissed her forehead chastely, then let go of her shoulders.
"Thank you, Marybeth
-
I
mean, Sister Mary Elmo. I won't
forget this." He smiled
beneficently
. "Go back inside now,
and try not to draw attention to yourself. I'll take care of
everything." He drew a small notepad from a pocket in the
robe and wrote a short note to Lucy, apprising her only of Mark
Lawson's disappearance. "Give this to Lucy when you can,"
he said, folding the paper and handing it to her.

"Yes, Doctor."

Still smiling to himself, he watched her disappear into the
chapel, where the chanting was rising to monumental proportions
as midnight approached. When he wrote the note about
Mark, he considered alerting Lucy, but the thought of surprising
her had been far more appealing. There was a chance, too, that
the girl was wrong, but he doubted it; he didn't believe Sara
had been able to leave the grounds, and what better place for the
prey to hide than under the hunter's nose? It required courage,
something he admired.

He strode across the lawn to the school building and down
stairs
to the infirmary, where he found a cowed-looking Sister
Regina watching the two female sacrifices like the proverbial
hawk. He told her the procession would begin shortly, boy or
no boy, then went into his office and prepared a syringe of mild
but fast-acting tranquilizer to jab Sara with when the procession
began.

Kelly Reed hadn't moved from her hiding place in the bushes
on the north side of the chapel. Once she was safely hidden,
s
h
e didn't know what else to do. People had come and gone
constantly, and she'd seen several robed figures prowling the
grounds, perhaps looking for her. She had little doubt that Mark
was here, perhaps in the chapel, and that he needed her help,
but what could she do?

She rested her elbows on her knees, her brow on her hands.
Hot, silent tears cascaded down her cheeks, and she gave up
trying to stop them.

''Kelly."

Thinking she only imagined Minerva's whisper, she lifted
h
er
h
ead. Minerva stood before her and Kelly flinched, thinking
of the revenant. Then she realized that she could barely see her
in the darkness. "You're real," she whispered.

Minerva folded herself down in the bushes next to Kelly.
''This is Father Paul," she murmured.

Startled, Kelly saw the blond man who stood in the shadows.
He joined them, kneeling on the ground, and for an instant,
Kelly thought he had a hunchback, then realized it was a knapsack
when he swung it onto the ground.

"He's a Catholic priest, Kelly, not like Dashwood."

"I was here on a night like this many years ago," he told
her. "I'm here to help save Mark."

"What are
you
doing here?" Minerva asked, and Kelly
quickly explained about the phantom of Mark that had led her
into the woods.

Minerva nodded."Have you seen anyone coming or going
since you've been here?"

''Yes. Some of them are prowling around like they're looking
for someone. Dashwood and Boullan are both out. Dashwood
just went into the school building. Minerva, what's going on?"

''At midnight, they call their god into this world to feast on
human flesh."

"Satan," added the priest.

"It's an evil force, whatever its name," Minerva said.
"Father Paul and I are going to try to banish it before another
innocent is killed."

''What should I do?" Kelly asked.

"It's not safe for you to leave, so for now, stay here with
us. Sheriff Lawson will join us soon, hopefully, with Mark. I
believe Sara is here, too. You've seen no sign of her?"

Kelly shook her head. Within the chapel, the voices rose to
frenzied levels.