Post by StoryGirl83 on Aug 27, 2008 23:11:55 GMT -5
Chapter Twelve – Confronting Gary
A little while later, Wyatt’s car pulled into the parking lot near Gary’s dorm. The three occupants exited the car. Chris carried the two potions in a bag slung on his shoulder.
Wyatt stepped around his car and looked at Kali. “Can we get to his dorm room?”
“No problem,” Kali grinned. “I’m his girlfriend, remember. I can get in.”
Wyatt raised an eyebrow at his brother and inclined his head toward Kali. “Remind me not to cross you.”
“Huh?” Kali frowned. “What are you talking about?”
Chris rolled his eyes and chuckled.
Kali frowned deeper as she looked between the two brothers. Focusing on Chris she asked, “What’s he talking about?”
Chris shrugged.
Kali looked between the two brothers and sighed. “Fine. Let’s go.” She walked toward the dorm followed closely by Chris and Wyatt.
A few minutes later they reached the hall to Gary’s room. Kali stopped in front of Gary’s door and looked at it.
Wyatt and Chris stopped a few feet behind her. They waited for her to decide what to do.
Kali sighed. “I guess there is nothing else to do.” She knocked on the door and waited.
She didn’t have to wait long as Gary’s voice sounded miserable through the door. “Go away.”
Kali squared her shoulders back. “Gary, it’s Kali. We need to talk.”
There was silence for several seconds. Then, the sound of footsteps was heard. Wyatt and Chris looked at each other.
“Looks like he is coming,” Chris said unnecessarily.
The door opened and Gary looked out at them, a frown etched on his face. “Who are they, Kal?”
Kali indicated Wyatt with her hand, “Wyatt Halliwell and,” she nodded in Chris direction, “his brother, Chris.”
Gary didn’t look impressed. “Hello.”
Chris looked at Gary speculatively.
Wyatt raised questioning eyebrows at Kali.
Kali ignored him and looked at Gary. “Can we come in?”
Gary frowned, deeper. “Do they know about earlier?”
Kali nodded. “I think they can help.”
“They can’t,” Gary informed her, grimly. “No one can.”
“How about you let us try?” Chris offered.
Gary shrugged and stepped aside letting the three in. He stood out of the way as first Kali, then Wyatt, and finally Chris entered the room. Once they were in the room, he closed the door behind them.
Kali glanced around the room. She saw the pictures on the desk and started toward it.
Seeing her, Gary called out, “Wait.” When she stopped and looked at him, he asked, “Why are you here, Kali?”
So many reasons. I just don’t understand, she thought as she looked at him. So many questions, but all she said was, “The library. Ring a bell?”
Gary sighed. “You don’t understand what’s going on.”
“No,” Kali admitted, “I don’t.” She took in a shaky breath. Why, Gary? “You tried to kill someone, Gary. Explain that to me.”
Gary sat down hard on his bed. His head slouched down in his hands; he sighed. “It started just after I graduated high school. I’m good at sports, but not good enough for a scholarship. I had other scholarships, but it was going to be tight. Then everything fell through the roof.”
Gary looked up at them. Kali watched him quietly. Chris leaned against the wall, watching wearily. Wyatt stood next to him, silent.
Taking them all in, Gary pushed forward. “It was about three weeks before I started school. My dad was driving my younger sister, Arie, to a friend’s house. The car was T-boned by a distracted driver, a woman with two screaming toddlers in the back seat. Ironically she was already headed to the hospital. No one died, but Dad wasn’t going to leave the hospital any time soon. He lost his job and even with help from the lady’s insurance medical bills were astronomical. College was no longer an option.”
Kali frowned, confused, “But you came.”
Gary nodded. “That’s when I met him. He offered me a lot of help with my father’s bills, with putting food on the table at home, and even athletics scholarship so I could still go to school. All he wanted in return was a little favor.”
“Some favor,” Kali retorted sarcastically.
Gary shook his head. “I didn’t know. He didn’t tell me, said it would be a few years in the future before he asked anyway, so no use telling me now. Said maybe he’d change his mind.”
Kali squeezed her eyes shut. You idiot, Gary. You don’t make deals with demons, even if you don’t know they are demons.
“Exactly who is ‘he’?” Chris asked a little impatient.
“Galskaper,” Gary informed him. Just the one name, never another, never knowing if it was first, last, or only.
Chris blinked. “If that doesn’t sound like a demon’s name, I don’t know what does.”
“Definitely demon,” Wyatt agreed, though his reasoning was based more on the actions than the name.
“Demon?” Gary gulped and looked at the three other occupants of the room. His eyes settled on Kali. “Why doesn’t this scare you, Kal?”
Kali glanced over at Wyatt and Chris. “I grew up with those two. Not much will.”
Gary eyed her suspiciously. “So they’re, like, your brothers or something.”
Kali looked at Wyatt and Chris, then back at Gary. She shrugged. “Honorary. They’re actually my neighbors across the street.”
Gary held out his hand and a fireball formed in it.
Wyatt and Chris stared at is cautiously.
Gary looked down at the fireball in his hand. “You said witches don’t do this.” He looked up. “What is it then? And who does this?”
“It’s a fireball,” Chris informed him, “and the power is demonic.”
“How do you know?” Gary stared at him bewildered. “I mean, how can you be sure?”
Chris hesitated before answering. Finally, he replied. “Let’s just say I’ve had a little experience around these kinds of things.”
“Doesn’t mean you can fix my problem,” Gary denied. “I tried to get out of it.” He looked over at Kali. “He threatened Arie.”
Arie, Wyatt thought remembering what Gary had said earlier, the sister that was in the accident. “Your sister.”
Gary nodded. “He said he’d kill her if I didn’t kill that guy from the library.”
“Mark.”
A shudder sigh ran through Gary’s body at the sound of the name on Kali’s lips. “Is that his name? I didn’t know.”
Wyatt shook his head in disgust. “What exactly did this guy tell you?”
Gary looked up, misery in his eyes. “He said that he needed my help eliminating a threat.”
Kali gave him an odd look. “Mark doesn’t even know how to control his powers. How is he a threat?”
Gary shook his head, sighing. “He said something about a prophesy.”
Chris groaned before whining. “Another prophesy?”
Gary frowned, confused. “Another prophesy?”
Wyatt grinned. “Chris is just annoyed because I have a prophesy and he doesn’t.”
“Their family has a lot of prophesies,” Kali added, grinning as well, “and now Mark does, too.”
Gary shook his head. “I don’t think it was specific to him, because he talked about someone else being in charge of taking care of the other.” He paused before nervously asking, “Can you protect Arie?”
Wyatt inclined his head. “Can you get her here?”
Gary nodded. “My family lives in town.”
Wyatt looked at a portable phone in its stand on an end table. He walked over and picked it up. He tossed it across the room toward Gary’s bed.
It seemed like it was going to overshoot, so Chris used a slight movement of his hand, slowing the phone with a telekinetic pull.
Gary gaped at them and down at the phone now on the bed next to him. “How . . ?”
“Call your sister,” Wyatt instructed him, ignoring the question, “and get her here. Tell her to be very careful. I don’t trust demons.”
Gary picked up the phone and looked at it. Finally, he nodded.
Wyatt looked at Chris. “We need to call with our new info.” He turned to Kali. “Do you want to join us or stay here?”
Kali didn’t hesitate. “I think I’ll pick up Arie if she’s okay with that. No sense putting innocent in any extra danger.”
Makes sense, Wyatt thought as he nodded. “Be careful, Kal.” Wyatt sent a warning look at Gary before he headed out of the room with his brother.
Behind them Gary started dialing his home phone number.