In The Dark: The Last Mage Book II: The Last Mage, #2

By Jeff Brown

      In the months since Carter Nash, the Last Mage, stopped the demons from unleashing Hell on Earth, things have changed in the town of McLain, Mississippi. The number of supernatural events has grown and Carter has dealt with them all. He has settled into a relationship with the town's mayor and life is as good as he thinks it can be for an immortal Mage living with a mortal.

      Then things changed. A late-night call offering him a large sum of money for a meeting turns into a revelation that vampires actually exist and a quest to aide the vampire nation in its very survival. The situation makes sense to him and he agrees to the offer.

            Once he's left town to being that quest, strange things start happening in McLain. Without the presence of the Mage, the few that know the truth about him band together to face this new threat. As they learn more, they discover that something entirely unexpected has come to McLain and only the return of the Mage can keep it from destroying the town and then infecting the world.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jeff Brown
• Release date: Nov 30, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393001416

Jeff Brown

Jeff Brown is the author of more than 40 works of fiction. Based in the Deep South, his stories all have a connection to the area.

Book preview

In The Dark

CHAPTER ONE

The summer of 1988 had been pretty rough on Carter Nash, the last Mage, but it was drawing to a close and cooler temperatures were right around the corner. It wouldn’t only cool off the air; it would cool off the minds of the people in McLain, Mississippi and that would definitely make his life a little easier. The heat got to them and brought out the worst, pushing them to do things they typically would never even consider. Of course, some of them were really stupid and did things that only Carter was able to save them from.

He’d seen people trying strange spells to produce rain, lower the temperature, alter their bodies, and a number of other ridiculous things. Mostly, all those supposed spells would only open that person to a world of trouble, sometimes more than one world. One person in particular, a morbidly obese high school girl had grown tired of constant ridicule and abuse, found a spell that would supposedly remove weight, body mass, but it just began to slowly remove her from the physical plane of existence. Her mother, also morbidly obese, fortunately had enough sense to realize something was going on and had the girl’s father, a short, rail-thin man, contact Carter for help. That had involved projecting his spirit to another plane and confronting a multi-dimensional entity that was seeking a physical form that would allow it access to even more dimensions.

That had taken quite a bit out of him and the incessant heat and sticky humidity in their home without air conditioning hadn’t helped at all. He’d been in the South for a while, but he hadn’t yet adapted to the climate. He was still a Northerner at heart and sometimes missed his original home in Chicago, but there were things about McLain that kept him there.

One of those was the claim that he’d laid on the town and surrounding areas to prevent a powerful demon from taking control and opening a portal that would unleash the denizens of Hell on an unsuspecting world. The other was beside him in bed on a rather warm  night in late August.

Sara Berkley was the town’s mayor and had been for quite a while. She’d been the town’s first and only divorced and still single mayor. It was her dedication to the town and her charm, her personality, that won her the position and she’d lived up to the ideals set forth by the town’s charter. Nearly everyone seemed to adore her, but she’d always been a little aloof when it came to personal relationships. She had a few friends, female friends, and rarely had much to do with the male population outside of official business. There had been speculation that she stayed away from relationship because she was a lesbian, but that was far from the truth. Carter had heard the rumor a time or two, but he hadn’t believed it at all after meeting her when she’d called to have a violent spirit cleansed from her home. That meeting had been all that was necessary to prove the rumor to be unfounded.

Their relationship stemmed from that incident and had done nothing but grow. In fact, for the longest time, she’d been the only one in the town that had known the truth about him. Most took him for a simple bookstore owner with a bit of money, but his identity had been publicly revealed less than a year earlier. That had done wonders for his store, Second Chance Books, and he’d become accepted by the community. He’d worried that the loss of anonymity would’ve had a detrimental effect on his relationship with Sara, but it had grown instead.

Shortly before the beginning of that summer, when they each knew the other was fully committed to the relationship, Sara had invited him to move in with her and he had done so quickly and without reservation. The small house he’d been renting felt almost claustrophobic and Sara’s spacious home was much better. Despite the underlying morality of the town, nothing was ever said about their living arrangements. They seemed to be above reproach, no matter what they did. She was the mayor and he was the Mage, the savior of the town. That counted for more than he ever would’ve imagined.

There had been other changes to the town, people departing and arriving, changing the dynamic of the community somewhat.  The biggest change, as far as Carter was concerned, had to do with the former business holdings of Nathan Reed. With his demise and all the appropriate paperwork in place, the holdings had transferred to Elena Woods, but she hadn’t wanted those businesses. After just a few months, she’d sold the businesses to Carter. He hadn’t really wanted them, but he felt that they still had a connection to the town and owning them would give him more power and strength. He just didn’t have time to run them properly and had hired another local, Kristen Geller, to manage them. So far, she’d done an excellent job and he hadn’t been needed to do anything with them.

A big surprise had been with Melissa Selman. She’d gone to meetings in Nashville and had acquired a deal for her original music, but it had fallen through after a few months. She’d been devastated by that, the failure of her dream, but she wouldn’t give up on that dream and had started working on more songs almost immediately.

A bigger surprise had happened around the same time. Angela Sones, the chief librarian, and Scott Kelly, the owner of the town’s largest sporting goods store, had begun a relationship and married near the end of March. With a business opportunity in Florida, Scott had closed up shop and the couple had left McLain. Shortly after that, a new librarian had been hired, a younger woman named Erica Chase, and she had started changing things around. She was younger and extremely attractive, fitting in nicely with the community, and she had drawn more attention to the library than Angela had in the years she’d been in charge.

Carter had also purchased the gift shop property at the back of the parking lot adjacent to the bookstore with the intention of creating his own sort of sanctum there and relocating from the loft in the store to that building as his office, but it just didn’t feel right. He’d barely started thinking about remodeling it when he decided that it was better left vacant. He just felt that it would be sort of a dishonor to Joan Gilmour who had been brutally killed inside the building. He had checked carefully and there were no tormented spirits remaining inside, but it still wasn’t the right thing to do. Besides, people knew where his office was located and that made him easier to find, though that wasn’t always what he wanted. It was just something he had to live with.

He was sound asleep, a uniquely dreamless sleep, and that was unusual for him. There were forces in the universe that he seemed to constantly attract. He knew there were things taking place around the world, things that he was in no position to deal with, but they manifested in his dreams on a regular basis. The only thing that seemed to keep them at bay was Sara. He didn’t really understand that, but he didn’t argue with it.

He was snuggled against her, facing each other, their arms randomly intertwined. Her head rested against his upper chest with her mass of thick, curly brown hair under his chin. They were under a thin, pale blue sheet, just enough to keep the cool air blowing across the bed from the nearby air conditioning vent from being too much. His muscular left arm was lying across her upper arm, almost concealing the soft roundness of her lean, pert left breast that had slipped from beneath the sheet.

They were comfortable and resting well. Then, the phone resting on a small wooden stand beside the bed on Sara’s side began to ring shrilly. Carter roused almost instantly, a reaction that had served him well over the years, and was immediately thankful that Sara had gone with a phone purchased from a store rather than the one the phone company provided. Its high ring was more of a rapid chirping than the pain-inducing bell that came with the company’s phone.

He suppressed a groan as he slowly opened his eyes, narrowly, glaring through the dim light filtering through the curtain over the window in the wall across from him, and slowly rolled forward, trying not to wake Sara, and reached over her as the phone continued to ring. He looked at the clock beside the phone and saw that it was nearly three in the morning. As he moved, she shifted, rolling onto her back and absently pulling the sheet higher and tighter around her as he reached across and picked up the cream-colored cordless phone. He pulled it to him then rolled onto his back before he thumbed the button that accepted the call.

Once he did, he held the phone to his ear and said gruffly, This had better be good.

Mr. Nash, the smooth, baritone voice spoke without any trace of an accent. My name is Erik Braddock and I represent a group that would like to contract your services.

Carte groaned and said, I have office hours. Call me then.

I’m afraid I cannot do that, Braddock replied. It’s urgent that I speak with you tomorrow evening. I would like to schedule an appointment for nine-thirty.

Nine-thirty? Carter frowned, his eyes almost closing. That’s pretty late. What’s this about?

I’m afraid I can’t explain that, he replied. But I am prepared to offer you five thousand dollars for the meeting alone, for you to listen to my offer. I expect it will take no longer than half an hour.

Five grand for thirty minutes? he said, his frown deepening a bit in confusion. That’s one hell of an offer. What’s the catch?

No catch, Braddock replied. A sincere offer. And there will be a larger offer for your services.

Fine, Carter said and heaved a tired sigh. We’ll meet in my office at the bookstore. I guess you know where that is.

Yes, Braddock said. I will be there promptly at nine-thirty. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me and I apologize for waking you.

It’s okay, Carter said. Tomorrow at nine-thirty.

Braddock didn’t reply, just disconnected the call.

Carter placed the phone on the table on his side of them and fell back to the thick, firm pillow with a sigh and closed his eyes. He had no idea who Erik Braddock was or why he would want to meet with a Mage, but he couldn’t deny the exorbitant fee. He didn’t really need the money, but it couldn’t hurt. Five thousand would keep the bookstore afloat for at least two months if business suddenly died off.

He doubted that would happen, though. Business had actually never been better since he’d made a few changes shortly after the first of the year. After everything that had happened, he felt that some changes were in order and it had been one customer that had given him the incentive to make one big change that had proven to be nearly as profitable as the store as it had been before.

The customer was a high school senior named Jon Marlin. He was a tall skinny guy, a real nerd, but he had been enthusiastic about his idea. He’d been pushing for a while, telling Carter that he believed the addition of comic books and gaming would be a great thing for the community and would bring in a lot of money. Carter hadn’t believed him at first, but he finally agreed to add a comic section and to carry a few gaming supplies to get Jon to stop talking about it. After two months, the new comic and gaming section had proven so profitable that he’d expanded it and hired Jon part-time to handle it. The kid was definitely a nerd, but he knew his stuff when it came to comics and gaming. He also had a healthy appreciation for science fiction and fantasy literature, giving him a little more to do at the store. He was definitely a help to his assistant, Leigh Callahan, and that took more of the load off him.

He heaved another sigh, wondering why he’d started thinking about the kid, and tried to go back to sleep. As he did, Sara shifted closer to him, slithering beneath the silky sheet, and draped an arm across his broad chest as she snuggled against him.

What was that? she asked, her mellifluous voice a bit ragged with the remains of sleep and a dry throat.

He slid his left arm around her, gently caressing her bare back, and said, A new client. Strange. I don’t know what to make of it.

What do you mean? she asked and looked at his face, frowning.

He drew in a slow breath and said, Guy wants to meet at my office tonight at nine-thirty. I don’t get that. But he did offer five grand just for the meeting.

She shrugged lightly, her breasts rubbing smoothly against his chest, Maybe he’s from out of town and he can’t get here before that.

Carter shook his head and said, I don’t know. I guess it’s possible.

You want me to go with you?

Nah, he said and half-smiled. I think I can handle it.

She patted his chest and said, Yeah, I think you might.

He shook his head and said, Go back to sleep.

Yes, sir, she said and smiled as she snuggled more tightly against him.

CHAPTER TWO

That’s awesome, Melissa Selman said, grinning as she looked at her new musical partner, Jared Brock seated across the room at the back of her store, the makeshift recording studio she’d built with a little help from Carter Nash and his unique powers.

Jared was a bit taller than Melissa, a fairly big guy that wasn’t in the greatest shape with short, unruly, dark hair and soft features, but he was a fantastic musician and she was thrilled that he’d agreed to work with her on the project of recording several more of her original songs.  Though she played guitar, he was much better, more of a lead player where she was best at strumming an acoustic. He also played bass and keyboards. The only thing missing was a drummer, but Jared was also proficient with musical technology and had programmed a drum machine that would work for the demo they were recording, at least until they could find an actual drummer.

He’d just finished a blistering solo for the song titled Remind Me I’m Yours and Melissa couldn’t have been happier with it. She still wasn’t quite adept at operating the digital recording system Jared had brought into the studio when the project began, but he’d been patient with her and set everything up so that she only had to push a single button to start the recording and another to stop it.

He was seated on a high stool, surrounded on three sides by old office cubicle partitions that had been in the back for a couple of years with some added acoustical padding, with his guitar, an old Fender Telecaster, slung over his neck on a wide black leather strap. He pulled it off and set it on a black metal stand beside the chair then stood up slowly.

He wore faded jeans and an old concert t-shirt with dingy white tennis shoes.

As he started slowly toward her, he held his hands out at his sides and said, That’s all I’ve got. It’s almost four in the morning and I have to be at the store by noon.

Right, she nodded and stepped back from the old folding table that served as the control desk. I’m sorry to keep you so long, but I think that was the best solo yet.

Thanks, he said and rounded the table, his attention focused on the recording system. Now, let’s get this saved and we’re out of here.

He worked at the console for a moment then nodded and stepped back, That’s it. We’ll get the next two in a couple of days then start the mixdown. Hopefully, we’ll have at least four songs ready to go in about a week.

That would be awesome, she said and smiled. One more and we’ll be ready to start shopping.

I guess, he shrugged. I’m still not really sure about the solo on ‘Kindling’ though.

She nodded and her smile faded as she said, I don’t know. I think it’s pretty good.

Maybe, he replied and stepped back. But I think I can do better.

Always the perfectionist, she shook her head, smirking. We’ll look at it next time. How about that?

That’ll work, he said and took a step back. Now, let’s go home.

Right, she said and moved to follow him. I could use some sleep.

A few moments later, they were outside the building, standing on the wide sidewalk of the deserted Main Street, with only two vehicles parked at the curb, her late model black Toyota and his older model dark blue Dodge pickup. After once again saying their farewells and also promising to talk soon about the next phase of the recording project, they climbed into their vehicles and left the downtown area. Melissa knew that Jared lived on the edge of town, barely outside the city limits, and it would take him five minutes or so to get home. She lived on the north side, just a few houses away from the town’s mayor that was also the current residence of Carter Nash.

She owed Carter a great deal. Though she hadn’t asked for it, he’d offered her the money she needed to renovate the back room and had agreed to provide funds for duplication of her finished product, the demo that she would eventually send to record labels. He also had contacts in the music industry and had promised to get her in touch with the right ones when the time came, but she thought that was pretty far off. There was a lot of work left to do on the demo, despite what Jared claimed.

She left the radio off as she drove across the darkened and practically lifeless town. Even months after the intended invasion, people were still afraid of the night and were vigilant when it came to strangers. Most of them were still leery of people they’d known for years, but Melissa couldn’t help that. She knew that Carter was there to protect the town and nothing could really happen without his knowledge. She had no fear of driving in the dark and, since she was drawing closer to his location, she felt even more confident in her ability.

She liked the silence late at night, especially after having spent the previous several hours in a musical environment. It helped her relax and wind down, letting her go easily and quickly to sleep once she made it to bed. Thankfully, the following day was Saturday and she didn’t have to open the store. There was very little call for office furniture and supplies on the weekends and she’d learned long ago that Saturday was just a day of wasted time, effort, and expenses. She would’ve planned to spend the day working in the studio if Jared had been available. He’d been hired a few months earlier as a teacher at the music store beside Carter’s bookstore and a number of his students, being high school kids, were mostly available for lessons on Saturday, but none of them wanted to start early in the morning. He would work from noon until about six then have Sunday off, which he would usually spend nursing a hangover. He was a man of routine and he would be practically useless in the studio with a hangover. He’d tried it once before and it hadn’t worked at all. Melissa sort of understood his position, but she thought he needed help.

He’d been a performing musician for a number of years, traveling as a sideman with a large number of well-known acts, but that had ended months earlier. Part of it had been the drinking that had affected his performance, which was brought on by the pressures of the road. The other part was that he was just tired of being constantly away from home. He and Ben Young, the owner of the store, had been friends for a long time and, when Ben made the offer, Jared had jumped at it. The pay wasn’t quite as good, but he knew he would be able to survive. Melissa just hoped that being home and having less stress to deal with had a profound effect on him and would curtail his drinking before long.

She didn’t let herself get too lost in thought as she drove, keeping a careful eye on the road in front of her. The car’s headlights cut a bright swath through the darkness between the widely spaced streetlights, but the sides of the streets remained mostly in the dark. She was familiar with the surroundings and didn’t really need to pay much attention as she passed houses and businesses that she saw every day.

Soon, she turned onto her street and let out a tired sigh as she realized she was only a few blocks from home. She slowed down, knowing that the street curved a bit to the right near the end of the first block, and she never knew when one of her neighbors would park along the curb rather than in their driveway. She didn’t want to deal with an accident at that time of night.

She hit the brakes as she rounded the curve and saw something in the road. She couldn’t tell who or what it was until the car fully swung around and the headlights fell on it.

Lying in the street, curled almost into a ball, was the naked form of a woman.

Melissa gasped and stared for a second before putting the car in park and shoving the door open. She leapt from the car and rushed to the woman’s side, crouching beside her. For an instant, she thought the woman was dead. Her back was to Melissa and her shoulders moved slowly as she drew in a breath. Melissa leaned closer and carefully placed a hand on the woman’s shoulder.

What happened? Melissa asked as calmly as she could though her heart was racing and her mouth hung open, dark hair falling over her shoulders.

The woman moaned and turned her head slowly then mumbled softly, Help me.

Okay, Melissa nodded and looked at the houses around them, all completely dark. I’ll have to go to my house and call an ambulance.

No hospital, she said and tried to shake her head. Just help me.

Can you move? Melissa asked. I’ll take you to my house.

I can try, she said and started trying to move.

Melissa slid her hands under the woman’s arms and lifted with everything she had. The woman was four or five inches shorter than Melissa but was a little larger. She wasn’t fat, but she did have a little meat on her bones. It took a moment, but Melissa finally had her standing and she shifted her hand to the woman’s soft waist and pulled her left arm over her shoulders. She leaned against Melissa and they walked slowly to the car, to the passenger’s side. Melissa had to let go of her arm to open the door, but once it was open she carefully eased the naked woman to the seat then leaned over to lift her feet into the car.

As she then closed the door, Melissa felt something sticky on her hands and, as she hurried around the front of the car, she looked down and saw that her hands were coated in blood. She grimaced at the sight, but knew that something bad had happened. She had no idea why the woman didn’t want to go to the hospital, but she would do as she was asked until she reached her limits.

Before getting in the car, she reached in and popped the trunk with a knuckle of her right hand then trotted to the back and found an old rag that she used to wipe most of the blood from her hands then slammed the trunk, climbed in the car, and sped toward her house. She was afraid to find out exactly what had happened, but she was going to help the best she could.

As she pulled into the driveway of her modest home, Melissa glanced at the woman and frowned. She thought she recognized her, but couldn’t be sure. She needed better lighting and a direct look at her face. It was strange that the woman was completely naked and had nothing with her, no identification or money, but that wasn’t important.

She stopped under the carport with the passenger’s door even with the kitchen door, shut off the engine, and rushed from the car. She first unlocked the kitchen door then opened the car door and helped the woman stand once again. She leaned heavily against Melissa, but she walked evenly once she was in a standing position.

Melissa took her into the house and to the bathroom. She sat her on the closed lid of the toilet, made sure she wasn’t going to fall, then looked around for something to use. The linen closet in the corner of the small room provided a few old towels and washcloths and the medicine cabinet behind the mirror above the sink held a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and the cabinet below the sink had a plastic first aid kit. She pulled all those out then knelt in front of the woman.

It was a little disconcerting for her to be so close to a naked woman,