He fixed me with his gaze again.
"Let me try it this way. Are you going to shake my hand, or am I going to rip your heart out?"
Since he put it that way ... I mean, for a minute there, when he lost his temper and started shouting, he sounded just like Garkin. It gave credibility to his claim of friendship with my ex-teacher. I took his extended hand and shook it cautiously.
"I'm.... My name is Skeeve."
His grip was cold, but firm. So firm in fact that I found it impossible to reclaim my hand as rapidly as I would have liked.
"Pleased ta meetcha, kid. I'm Aahz."
"Oz?"
"No relation."
"No relation to what?" I asked, but he was examining the room again.
"Well, there's certainly nothing here to arouse the greedy side of his fellow beings. Early primitive, enduring, but not particularly sought after."
"We like it," I said, rather stiffly. Now that I was over being scared, I didn't like the sneer in his voice. The hut wasn't much and I certainly wasn't overly fond of it, but I resented his criticism.
"Don't get your back up, kid." Aahz said easily. "I'm looking for a motive, that's all."
"Motive?"
"A reason for someone to off old Garkin. I'm not big on vengeance, but he was a drinking buddy of mine and it's got my curiosity up."
He broke off his inspection of the room to address me directly.
"How about you, kid? Can you think of anything? Any milkmaids he's seduced or farmers he's cheated? You've got an interest in this too, you know. You might be the next target."
"But the guy who did it is dead." I gestured to the charred lump by the door. "Doesn't that finish it?"
"Wake up, kid. Didn't you see the gold cloak? That was a professional assassin. Somebody hired him, and that somebody would hire another one."
A chill ran down my spine. I hadn't really thought of that. I began to search my memory for a clue.
"Well... he said Isstvan sent him."
"What's an Isstvan?"
"I don't... wait a minute. What do you mean, I might be the next target?"
"Neat, huh?" Aahz was holding up the gold cloak. "Lined, and completely reversible. Always wondered how come no one noticed them until they were ready to pounce."
"Aahz...."
"Hmmm? Oh, didn't mean to scare you. It's just if someone's declared open season on magicians in general or Garkin specifically, you might have some.... Hello, what's this?"
"What's what?" I asked, trying to get a look at what he had found.
"This," he said, holding his prize aloft. "It seems I'm not the only demon about."
It was a head, apparently the assassin's. It was badly charred, with bone showing in several places. My natural revulsion at the sight was compounded by several obvious features. The chin and ears of the head were unnaturally pointed, and there were two short, blunt, horns protruding from the forehead.
"A devil!" I exclaimed in horror.
"A what? Oh, a Deveel. No, it's not from Deva, it's from Imper. An Imp. Didn't Garkin teach you anything?"
"Come again?" I asked, but Aahz was busy scowling at the head.
"The question is, who would be crass enough to hire an Imp for an assassin? The only one I can think of is Isstvan, but that's impossible."
"But that's who did it. Don't you remember? I told you...."
"I thought you said 'Isstvan.' "
"I did! Wait a minute. What did you say?"
"I said Isstvan. Can't you tell the difference?"
"No," I admitted.
"Hmmm... must be too subtle for the human ear to detect. Oh, well. No matter. This changes everything. If Isstvan is'up to his old tricks there's no time to lose. Hey! Wait a minute. What's this?"
"It's a crossbow," I observed.
"With heat-seeking armor-piercing quarrels? Is that the norm in this world?"
"Heat-seeking...."
"Never mind, kid. I didn't think so. Well, that tears it. I'd better check this out quick."
He began to stride into the pentagram. I suddenly realized he was preparing to leave.
"Hey! Wait a minute! What's going on?"
"It would take too long to explain, kid. Maybe I'll see you again sometime."
"But you said I might be a target!"
"Yeah, well, that's the way it crumbles. Tell ya what.
Start running and maybe they won't find you until it's over."
My head was awhirl. Things were happening far too fast for clear thought. I still didn't know what or who the demon was or if I should trust him, but I did know one thing. He was the nearest thing to an ally I had in a situation where I was clearly outclassed.
"Couldn't you help me?"
"No time. I've got to move."
"Couldn't I come with you?"
"You'd just get in the way, maybe even get me killed."
"But without you. I'll be killed!"
I was getting desperate, but Aahz was unimpressed.
"Probably not. Tell ya what, kid. I've really got to get going, but just to show you I think you'll survive, I'll show you a little trick you might use sometime. You see all this crud Garkin used to bring me across the barrier? Well, it's not necessary. Watch close and I'll show you how we do it when our apprentices aren't watching."
I wanted to shout, to make him stop and listen to me, but he had already started. He spread his arms at shoulder height, looked heavenward, took a deep breath, then clapped his hands.
Nothing happened.
Chapter Three:
"The only thing more reliable than magick is one's friends!"
-MACBETH
AAHZ scowled and repeated the gesture, a bit quicker this time.
The scene remained unchanged.
I decided something was wrong.
"Is something wrong?" I asked politely.
"You'd better believe there's something wrong," Aahz snarled. "It's not working."
"Are you sure you're doing it right?"
"Yes, I'm sure I'm doing it right, just like I've been sure the last fifty times I did it!"
He was starting to sound annoyed.
"Can you...."
"Look, kid. If I knew what was wrong, I'd have fixed it already. Now, just shut up and let me think!"
He sank down to sit cross-legged in the center of the pentagram where he began sketching vague patterns in the floor as he mumbled darkly to himself. I wasn't sure if he was trying some alternate incantation or was simply thinking hard, but decided it would be unwise to ask. Instead, I used the time to organize my scrambled thoughts.
I still wasn't sure if Aahz was a threat to me or if he was my only possible salvation from a greater threat. I mean, by this time I was pretty sure he was kidding about ripping my heart out, but that's the sort of thing one wants to be very sure of. One thing I had learned for certain, there was more to this magik stuff than floating feathers around.
"That's got to be it!"
Aahz was on his feet again, glaring at Garkin's body.
"That ill-begot son of a wombat!"
"What's a wombat?" I asked, then immediately wished I hadn't. The mental image that sprang into my mind was so horrifying I was sure I didn't want details. I needn't have worried. Aahz was not about to take time to answer me.
"Well, it's a pretty crummy joke. That's all I have to say."
"Um.... What are you talking about, Aahz?"
"I'm talking about Garkin! He did this to me. If I thought it would go this far, I would have turned him into a goat-fish when I had the chance."
"Aahz.... I still don't...."
I stopped. He had ceased his ranting and was looking at me. I shrank back reflexively before I recognized the snarl as his smile. I liked it better when he was raving.
"I'm sorry, Skeeve," he purred. "I guess I haven't been very clear."
I was growing more uneasy by the minute. I wasn't used to having people, much less demons, being nice to me.