The Blood Gardener (The Dark River Book 2) Read online

  “Is that what people do? Buy things from them?”

  “Yes,” Monkey replied. “That’s what they do from me. My wares are benign, of course. Most of the time. Unless something goes wrong. The stuff Eva and The Blood Gardener make are much more nefarious. In the case of Mazlo, the worst.”

  “So he’s a specialist? Like Yann? Yann’s specialty was torture.”

  “The Blood Gardener’s a generalist,” Monkey answered. “People up top like to say things like ‘the devil made me do it,’ when in reality, it was one of Mazlo’s creations.”

  “Like a demon?”

  “No, nothing like that,” Monkey replied. “Small, subtle things, like your spiders, but they’re capable of turning a normal mind into something sick. Someone who’s willing to commit genocide, that kind of thing.”

  “Genocide? Like what, Hitler? Stalin?”

  “Like that. Most people aren’t evil, aren’t bent toward atrocity, although in the case of Hitler or Stalin who can say. People in the Belly have agendas; their work requires evil as an ingredient. To get people to do horrendous things, it helps to infect them. The Blood Gardener makes infecting agents, he grows them. That’s how he got his name, his reputation.”

  “So let me be sure I have this right,” Derick said. “The spiders were made by Mazlo, most likely for someone else’s use. He’s not the one who infected the woman who was killed, he just made the spiders.”

  “That would be my guess,” Monkey replied. “Like me. I make things; agents, fertilizers, new strains of plants. Other people buy them from me and use them. I’m only in it for the research.”

  Derick turned to face Monkey. “If he’s in the Belly, I’ll find him.”

  “You’re crazy!”

  Derick walked out of the lab and into Monkey’s house proper. Kera was watching A slide the rings off a metal puzzle.

  “How are you two getting along?” Derick asked.

  “He’s very intelligent,” Kera replied, staring glowingly at A. “He does puzzles quite well.”

  She thinks I’m simple, A thought to Derick. Am I supposed to like her?

  She’s your mother’s sister, Derick replied to A. Your aunt. You don’t have to like her if you don’t want to, but she seems nice.

  She smells funny.

  Now you’re just making stuff up, Derick replied.

  “You two are talking, aren’t you?” she asked, looking at Derick for an answer. He was glad she didn’t see A roll his eyes.

  “Yes, we were,” Derick replied.

  She turned back to A. “Will you talk to me?”

  I don’t want to talk to her, A said to Derick. I hardly know her.

  Up to you, Derick replied. But a simple ‘hello’ wouldn’t kill you.

  A turned to look at Kera. Hello, he thought.

  “Amazing!” Kera said. She focused intently on A; Derick guessed she was trying to communicate back. She peered at A, as though she could beam a thought into his skull.

  I’m not going to keep doing this, A said to Derick.

  “Time to leave,” Derick said. “There’s some research I need to do, and I should escort you back to the surface.”

  “Alright,” she said as she stood, abandoning her silent communication attempt with A. “It was nice to meet you, A. If there was a way you could come live with me in the real world, I’d take you in.”

  I don’t have to go with her, do I? A asked.

  No, Derick replied. You couldn’t even if you wanted to.

  I don’t want to.

  Well then, it’s settled, Derick replied. Once I return, we’re going back to The Mouth.

  A looked enthused. To see Eva? Or to explore?

  “Oh, look, he wants to come with me!” Kera said, smiling sweetly at Derick and then back down at A.

  Urgh, A said to Derick, forcing a smile back.

  - - -

  Derick walked from the bedroom to the cramped living room/kitchen, watching as Kera regained her senses and rose from the cushion. She slowly stood and rubbed at the back of her neck.

  “Sorry it’s not more comfortable,” Derick said.

  “Not at all what I was expecting,” she replied. “A seems sweet.”

  Derick hid a smile. “He’s different, that’s for sure.”

  “And Monkey, too. Both of them were very accommodating.”

  “Keep in mind they’re both acquaintances of mine,” Derick replied. “Don’t assume others in the Dark River are as accommodating.”

  “I don’t have any intention of ever going back,” Kera replied. “I just wanted to see Anna’s child, that’s all.”

  “Not your cup of tea?”

  “No,” she said, rubbing her neck. “The smell, the noises…” She shivered as though a goose had walked over her grave. “The darkness started to feel like a substance we were walking through. I can still feel it now, like it’s sticking to me. Such a creepy place. And the rushing…”

  “Oh, you tried it?” he asked without considering how embarrassed he would feel when she replied.

  “It’s not for me. No, I’m not going back.”

  He felt relived. “Now that you’ve seen A, what about helping us out?”

  “With Anna’s DNA?” Kera asked.

  “Yes. Monkey thinks he can decode more about A if he had it.”

  “You held up your end of the bargain,” Kera said. “I’ll hold up mine. Give me a day to get it; I’ll have to travel to my mother’s place. Meet me at the same coffee shop, tomorrow night?”

  “Can do.” He saw her go for the door, and he reached out to stop her. She turned to him expectantly, unsure of his motives. He held up a can of deet.

  “I’ll walk you back to your car,” he said. “But I should spray you first. Otherwise you’ll be eaten alive.”

  The edge of her mouth curled upward slightly. “Sure, spray me.”

  “Put your hands over your face,” he said, and she raised them, covering herself. He began to spray, making sure her arms and legs were well anointed. “This stuff stings if it gets in your eyes.” He stopped, lowering the can, and she lowered her hands.

  “Wouldn’t want it in my eyes,” she said, reaching for the door handle. He watched as she stepped down, and he followed her as they walked over the forest carpet to their parked cars a hundred yards away.

  - - -

  Derick helped A over the edge of the hole that formed the entrance to The Mouth. The spongy surface under their feet reminded him of walking on a giant tongue, and as they made their way to the sealed entrance, he had the distinct impression of entering a throat.

  This time, the wall of gore and cartilage opened before he could raise his hand to press against it.

  They know you now, A thought.

  Yes, Derick thought back, feeling the diamonds in his palms begin to heat. They know me.

  Walking through the opening and into the tunnel, Derick watched for eyes in the distance, and saw them blinking but not moving. On previous visits, the creatures those eyes belonged to had emerged from the sides and challenged his entrance. Now they remained motionless, preferring not to engage with the man whose markings could summon fire. He and A passed uncontested.

  They don’t come out anymore, A said.

  No, they don’t.

  They’re scared of you, like Eva was scared.

  So it would seem, Derick replied. They walked until they came to a branch in the pathway. Why don’t we start with Eva? We could use some direction. I don’t want to wander around down here anymore than we have to.

  He felt A scuttle a little closer to him as they progressed down the tunnel, stopping at the spot where Eva’s cave was normally carved from the side of the passage. The wall in front of them looked like the rest of the Belly; flesh and cartilage, moist with oozing blood.

  “Eva!” Derick called. “Open up. We want to talk to you.”

  The wall collapsed into the floor, revealing Eva, who slid rapidly along the ground until she was a few feet from them.
Derick could see her sisters in the distance, propped up in flesh cones, still and unmoving.

  “You came back!” she said, looking from Derick to A. “And you brought my child! More nursing?”

  “No, we’re not here for that,” Derick replied. “I want to ask you a few questions.”

  She partially turned from him, sliding along the floor. “Why should I help you?”

  Derick raised his hand, feeling the heat on his skin as he thought about the diamonds, becoming angry. Eva cringed.

  “Who’s there?” came a voice from the rear of the room. “An interloper!”

  “Interloper indeed,” Eva replied, calling back to one of the figures in the flesh cones. “It’s your lover, my dear.”

  Derick, confused, kept his hand raised as he followed after Eva, stepping a few feet into her chamber. He heard the wall close behind him, sealing them in.

  “You’re not alone this time?” he asked Eva.

  “I’m never alone,” Eva replied, turning to face him. “Margot is able to talk, that’s all. Come on over, Margot. Say hello to your benefactor.”

  One of the flesh cones from the back of the room began to move, sliding slowly and haltingly, as though it had barely enough energy to progress. It stopped several feet behind Eva. Derick could see the upper half of a woman hanging from the top of the cone; her hair was bloody and matted to her head, and her flesh was rotten and falling from her bones.

  “An interloper!” the creaky voice called from behind Eva. “Cast him out!”

  “Now, why should we do that, Margot?” Eva asked without turning. “He might have more to offer you. Or one of your sisters.”

  “Beware your whoredoms!” Margot cried weakly. “You’ll dig us in deeper!”

  Derick decided to ignore Margot and pursue what he’d come to get. “I’m looking for Mazlo,” he said to Eva. “The Blood Gardener.”

  There was a brief silence, then Margot began to laugh, weakly.

  “I told you he was virile,” Eva called back to Margot over her shoulder while giving Derick an approving sizing-up. “Do you believe me now?”

  Derick raised his hand again, exposing the diamonds to both Eva and Margot. “If you know where he is, tell me.”

  Eva cringed again at the sight, as though she was a vampire accosted with a cross.

  “You didn’t tell me he was cursed!” Margot spat angrily.

  “I didn’t know when I milked him,” Eva replied, then turned back to Derick. “That little fact came as a second emergence.”

  “Resurrected with cursed issue!” Margot moaned. “You have destroyed me, Eva!” Derick could see Margot twisting within her cone, flaps of flesh waving in the wind, clinging to a skeletal frame.

  “She’s given to dramatic overreaction,” Eva said to Derick. “Ignore her.”

  A loud wail came from Margot, piercing through the small chamber. A didn’t wince, but Derick found the sound excruciating.

  “Tell her to shut up,” Derick said to Eva, his palm open, the heat from the diamonds beginning to radiate.

  “Margot!” Eva called over her shoulder. “Cease, unless you want to get us all killed!”

  “I’m better off dead!” Margot called back. “Brought back by impious seed!”

  Eva turned to face her sister. “Think of it as a different flavor. A chance to live for a while with a slightly different experience. You’re always complaining of being bored. Take advantage of this one.”

  Margot turned away and wailed again.

  “Shut up!” Derick commanded, stepping forward past Eva, his hand raised. “Be silent!”

  The wail stopped, and Margot slowly slid away from them, returning to the safety of the other women in the back.

  “I’m sorry about her, really,” Eva said. “She’s a bit of a purist. She’ll be fine.”

  “The Blood Gardener,” Derick repeated, turning back to Eva. “Do you know where he is, or not?”

  “When you first arrived here, I told you that you shouldn’t go farther down that tunnel. You still shouldn’t. You’re far too innocent and naïve. Let me nurse the child for a while. I’m sure you’ve noticed the benefits of my breast milk. You can stay and relax, and then you can go back out The Mouth.”

  “Is he farther down this passageway?” Derick asked. “In the Belly?”

  “Trust me, you don’t want to go down there.”

  “I want you to stop telling me what I want. Answer my question.” He raised his hand again.

  “Alright!” she cried, recoiling. “Yes, he’s farther down. Take the left tunnel at the five-way, then look for the bone archway on the far right, past the houses. You’ll never make it down the passageway looking like that. You’ll be detected.”

  “They know about me?” Derick asked.

  “Most are bought and owned by LeFever these days,” she replied. “But I doubt Mazlo is. He’s always been an independent, and he’s way too old to be interested in aligning himself with LeFever. Why are you trying to find him? He’s an unusual one to see. There’s other ancients down there who are more direct, better suited to your brand of violence.”

  “Something he made is killing people I know, in the real world,” Derick replied.

  “Ah, a Gardener construction,” Eva mused. “The best. You’re lucky.”

  “Lower the wall, Eva. We’ll be on our way.”

  “If you make your way to him, would you do me a favor?”

  “What is that?”

  “Put in a good word for me? I’ve been on his list for decades now. He’s very hard to get an apprenticeship with, but there’s no one better.”

  “Provided you haven’t been lying to me, I’ll see what I can do.”

  “Oh, no lies,” Eva said, smiling. “Omissions, certainly, but one can never explain it all, not completely.”

  “Uh huh,” Derick said, turning, waiting for Eva to lower the wall. “What’s the most important omission you’ve made, Eva?”

  “The Blood Gardener may not be as impressed by your markings as I am,” she replied calmly. “I would love to nurse the child again, so please be careful if you decide to threaten him.”

  Chapter Six

  Derick and A continued down the tunnel, now venturing into territory they’d never seen. Knowing that Yann had come from the Belly, Derick had been satisfied to follow Eva’s advice and not go deeper, past her cave. Now he was determined to find Mazlo. He had a passing interest in helping Hauer, who he suspected would fall to the same fate as poor Mrs. Kessig if he didn’t find some answers. But truth be told, he was more intrigued by The Blood Gardener himself: his reputation, and how intimidated Monkey and Eva seemed to be of him.

  A sensible person would take the warnings seriously, he thought.

  As he traversed the dark and dripping tunnel, he had the sense that more chambers were just behind the walls they were passing, hidden in the same manner as Eva’s, and if he were to stop and insist that they open, he would discover more oddities. He decided to press on and reach their destination as quickly as possible. He reached into his pocket, feeling for a trapweed seed, and tossed it into his mouth, tasting the bitterness as it popped between his teeth. He concentrated on his face, imagining the form he wanted it to take. He couldn’t feel it shift.

  How do I look? he asked A.

  Like Mister Change, A replied, using the name he’d given Derick’s disguise.

  After a minute more of walking, the tunnel suddenly turned and opened into a junction. Four smaller tunnels opened ahead of them, each shooting off in different directions. Several people came out of one of the tunnels and turned to enter another without stopping to look at them. Derick chose the left tunnel in accordance with Eva’s instructions, and they made their way deeper into the Belly.

  After several minutes of walking, they emerged into a large chamber. Structures rose out of the ground in front of them like small houses, made of dark slate. Each had its own shape and character but all were roughly the same size. There were spaces
between each that acted as paths.

  She said far right, Derick thought to A, past the houses. Let’s head in that direction.

  Fifty yards in front of them was the furthest-right house, and he led the child to it, passing down the pathway at its side. Derick noticed the strange makeup of the building: a short one-story affair, more like a shed than a proper house. It wasn’t made of the flesh and cartilage that composed the rest of the Belly; it had a flat sheen to it, like polished stone. A grabbed at his side, and Derick turned his attention to a cloaked figure that stood in the pathway ahead of them, drifting over the ground without causing movement under its robe. It approached them and then passed by, as though they were just two people out on the street, each headed to their own destination. Derick reached up to place his hand over his nose after the figure passed; the waft of air in its wake was foul.

  At the next intersection of paths, he turned to look to the left, seeing row after row of houses. Figures moved, crossing the paths, some shambling mounds, others thin and skeleton-like. Ahead of them an indistinct, wispy figure glided, casting a chill as it approached. Derick and A stepped aside, allowing the ghostly form to pass. Derick heard A’s teeth chattering, and he looked down at the boy, who had his arms wrapped around himself, trying to keep warm.

  Let’s keep moving, Derick said, picking up his pace and moving farther down the path between the houses. Try not to look at these creatures.

  Don’t need to look, A replied. I can feel them. They feel bad.

  He kept his head down, trying to follow his own advice, looking up only to ensure he didn’t run into someone. Soon they had passed a dozen buildings, and more appeared ahead of them.

  What is all this? A asked. All these houses?

  I don’t know, Derick replied. Eva had better not been lying.

  There’s more paths to the right now, A said, pointing down an alley as they reached the next intersection.

  Derick turned right, walking until they came to the farthest path, and then turned left and resumed their search. More figures passed them in the narrow walkways, and he kept his head down and held his breath as each one went by.