Season 3 Episode 5: The Hierophant

Jade – Ashley McAnelly
Amazing Andy – Jimmy Ferrer
Detective – Nate Dufort
Efrain – Nelson Abrigo
Roz – Jessica McEvoy
Sam – Nichole Goodnight

[SFX: performance music for acrobats(circus will do in a pinch)]

Amazing Andy is easy to find. He has another show booked at the convention center that I can make in time to help Corey tonight. Apparently the hypnotism is only one segment of a larger show that includes acrobats and other magicians, though Andy made sure to shake everyone’s hands upon entry. I say shake hands, but really he shook at the wrist, and sometimes pulled the person closer. I don’t know a lot about hypnotism but I feel like it’s the first step to putting someone under. I stay out of line until Andy goes in, when the show is about to start. Ducking in after the line, there’s a good size crowd, though not a full house; mostly families with little kids that are still full of wonder and not bored with such parlor tricks yet.

I miss that wonder of the world. Now most days I wonder how many customers I’ll have, and if the rage will finally turn me into an empty shell. Oh, and pepper on if I’ll fail Sam again. That’s a new, fun one. I guess in some aspect also if I’ll fail the coven. That’s one I hadn’t considered in a very, very long time. Most of my adult years were spent on finding a way to burn it down. My, how times change.

That burn-it-all-down attitude comes to mind with tasks like this. As I sit and wait for Andy to come on stage, to see exactly who I’m dealing with, I mull over just swallowing him down like I do all the other miscreants who have the misfortune of crossing paths with me. I could use the energy boost as well, what with all the coven stress and now the truth of my mother weighing me down. Not to mention my deadbeat dad deciding to darken my doorstep earlier this evening. I could have gone my whole life without ever seeing him again and been just fine. But I won’t be a coward for the simple fact that I left him locked in my shop. I’m not about to avoid my own sanctum just to avoid him. I should have kicked him out while I had the chance.

The stage goes dark as Andy and the stage crew set up his props and equipment. A large screen serving as a backdrop lights the stage. A very abstract pattern of colors and shapes move across the screen, as an introduction comes over the speakers.

“Good evening ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages. Are you ready to have your mind expanded? Do you think you are up for the challenge to let go of what you think is possible, and embrace the impossible? Let’s embark on a journey of adventure and see where we go!”

The lights come up and Andy walks out onto the stage. He’s dressed in a nice black and white suit with white gloves and a monocle rimmed with a green neon light decorating one eye. A few dancers in black sweat pants and black t-shirts come out and perform. They also wear neon lights, strung either on a mask on their face or linked to their arms and legs.

Andy comes closer to the edge of the stage.

“I am the Amazing Andy, and with me is my mesmer troupe! Please give them a loud round of applause, the louder the crowd the better the performance.”

Mesmer troupe? I’ll have to mention this to Silas. I wonder if his stage name is trademarked. It would be funny to start a fight over that.

I don’t pay attention to the dancers, I pay attention to Andy, and his effect on the audience. The children look captured by the dance, big smiles on their faces, and some adults also look like they’re paying attention, but a few adults look slack-faced. Either they’re bored and spaced out in their own head, or Andy’s already setting them up to be open to suggestions for hypnotism, or hell, worse case scenario, they are already hypnotized. Guess we will see how far this act goes.

The dancers stop, the music turns into a new tune and Andy starts his movements across the stage.

“Who would like to join me for the adventure? Any volunteers?”

I thought it would be like pulling teeth to get volunteers to hop on stage to help him, but as he asks for volunteers from the crowd, one hand passing across the stage, a little twinkle from some reflective surface on his suit, or perhaps hidden mirror, acts like a beacon. With that twinkle of light several people stand.

How far down the rabbit hole does he take this trick?

As people clear out to go upstage, I see a familiar face. Lieutenant Shaw sits in the audience with who must be his wife and children, the whole family watching the participants head up on stage. The good lieutenant who was in charge of the investigation on my shop when Cass and Eric dropped from a cloud of smoke in my store. He knows I have a knack for finding trouble and getting rid of it, though exactly how I get rid of it, he hasn’t figured out yet. From Roz vouching for me and what dirt he was able to dig up on me, he thinks I can be an asset. Although he hasn’t called on my help yet. I don’t blame him, when all I have to offer are answers by means no court will permit.

But this could be fun.

I move into the now empty seat behind the lieutenant while Andy transitions to the next bit. I don’t say a word, but I press my energy onto him, suggesting to him to turn around. When he finally does, his face is cast in shadow but I know he can see mine by the glow from the stagelight.

“Hello, lieutenant. You look like you’re off duty, but would you like to do some good tonight?”

“Jade. Surprised to see you here.”

“I’m here to help a client stop an abuser.”

“As you said and can see, I am off duty with my family tonight.”

“But if we let the Amazing Andy go tonight, he may move on to another town and do the same thing.”

He looks at the stage then back at me.

“What has he done?”

I give him the shortest version of Corey’s claim that I can. He shakes his head.

“Jade, absolutely none of that will hold up in court.”

“Which is why Corey came to me instead of you. But I’m just telling you, I’m confronting him tonight about it. Just thought you may want to back me up.”

“No off duty cop wants trouble.”

“No one wants trouble, period, but trouble will find them if it wants.”

“(Sigh) And just how exactly do you plan for all this to go down?”

Oh, good. I do believe the good lieutenant will give some help.

“In a way that you can actually take him in.”

[Intro Roll In]

I wait until the show is over and the Amazing Andy is making his way to his car before I make my move. The parking lot is far from empty, but the rows and rows of vehicles play to my advantage to help me sneak up on him. He is actually shorter than he looks onstage. I’d have the pleasure of looking down on him and towering a bit over him. Perfect.

But he’s not alone. I recognize one of the women from the audience tonight trailing him, and another man carrying a box. Innocent-looking enough, but they still have that vacant stare on their faces, like robots waiting for commands. This might be a bit easier than I thought.

I push my energy out to all three to assess the situation. I haven’t ever played in a hypnotist’s backyard, so I am curious to see what turns up. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if hypnotists need some metaphysical ability to entrance people. We’re fixing to find out.

I taste their souls, their living energy. The man with the box tastes sweet, full of optimism and life. The woman like a strong whiskey; she’s seen some shit but came out the other side the better for it. Andy is surprisingly sweet as well, but a bittersweet. A need for life tainted by the corruption that comes from being willing to play dirty to get what you want. I’ve tasted it plenty of times before, but not as strong as he tastes.

But their living energy is just that. There is no magic to any of them, though I do find it curious that I only feel Andy’s emotional energy. The man and woman are as blank on the inside as their faces on the outside. Living bodies, but no one’s home. I wonder how that can be? If Andy actually cooperates, I might have the chance to ask him before shit hits the fan.

“The Amazing Andy, looks like you’re not the run of the mill hypnotist.”

He turns, startled, but once he sees me, he sighs in relief and smiles. He takes me for a fan, or he just isn’t intimidated by a woman. That’s his first mistake.

“Appreciate the feedback, miss. I do try to put on a show along with my sessions on stage.”

“Sessions? I see, you respect the will and wishes of your volunteers then. At first I was afraid they were plants, people working for you who know the act. Still wondering if my fears are unfounded.”

I look at the man and woman who have stopped on either side of him. He gives them a glance too and a nervous chuckle before turning back to me.

“I can assure you, they are not plants in the way that you mean. Tonight was my first time hypnotizing the entire crowd, and it’s safe to say the effect hasn’t worn off yet.”

“So you’re using them to be your errand flunkies, like you did with Corey?”

The surprise slips on his face for a second before he can recover.

“Who’s Corey?”

“Another one of your audience catches, who came to me with no memory of doing things but clearly being up and about. I’m curious, do you have to give them specific details before letting them go for extended periods of time, or is there a trigger you’re able to pull from a distance?”

I see in his eyes the temptation to tell me, to spill all, to prove he is the genuine article. So eager to be validated. I wonder just how many times someone called him a fake, and if it was someone near and dear to him.

“I have no idea who you’re talking about. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to get these things into my car and let these lovely people go home.”

So he’s taking the clueless route. Interesting.

“Of course. I should have known that you wouldn’t know who he was. He claims he was hypnotized into shoplifting, but I saw your show tonight – there’s no way you could have actually taken over his mind to make him do anything.”

I turn to leave, knowing the thorn I threw in his side would fester. Sure enough, I didn’t even make it a car’s length away before I hear his footsteps pounding behind me.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. If you actually saw the show, you saw all of those people on the stage. They were under my control, my power.”

He skids to a stop in front of me, cutting my steps off. His face is flushed from anger, eyes wild with it.

I cast a deliberate glance back at the two audience members who followed him, their faces still blank.

“I saw folks pretending to be animals and acting like fools. There’s no skill in that. People act like fools already. All you did was gently direct their foolishness into something entertaining. That’s not real magic, and it can’t possibly have the lasting effects that Corey claims to have experienced. He’s clearly lying to get out of a theft charge, and you’re the one he’s trying to throw under the bus.”

(unsure) “Right. He’s clearly lying.”

“I’m sorry to have bothered you. It’s obvious from the act I saw tonight that you had nothing to do with his behavior.”

I watch the rage flit through his eyes again, and know I’ve caught him. He can’t stand not getting credit for what he deems to be his own brilliance.

“I didn’t do anything to that guy, but it doesn’t mean I couldn’t. If I wanted to, I could. I have the abilities.”

I roll my eyes at him, making the gesture as exaggerated as possible. I want to make sure he’s good and pissed off.

“I’m sure you could, sweety.”

His face contorts in anger, and he huffs back at me. His hand flies towards me, and I wince, expecting a flash of pain, but none comes. Instead, I feel his warm grip tightening around my wrist, fingers directly over my pulse. With that touch he pushes…something into me. This is unlike anything I’ve felt used as an attack of energy before. It’s not an attack of power, like a witch or demon would use. There’s less flow to it, as if he’s pushing a straight rod up my arm, solid. It does not pour over me but stabs into me. Very focused, more direct. Is this…pure intention? Pure will? I’ve felt determination in someone before, but for it to be used as a weapon?

Perfect. I can see how it would probably work on most other people.

Unfortunately for him, I am not most other people.

I meet his will with my crashing force, sending his intention back into his body and filling him the rest of the way with my own. I watch as the realization hits his eyes; he’s fucked with the wrong person, and his comeuppance is here.

“What… what are you?”

“I am your nightmare come to life. I know what you think you can do, but I can do it better, faster, and longer. You are beneath me in every possible way. And now, you’re done.”

He drops to his knees, our hands still clasped together. I push the power I sent into him further, feeling the bonds that tie him to the unfortunate souls behind me. The thread is thin, like a delicate necklace, and it snaps easily at my touch. The thread lingers a moment, waiting for me to take control of it. Interesting. I can break a bond and take it for myself. I wonder if this is true for more magical situations, but for now i don’t grab that thread. I let it fall away. Seconds later, I hear the man and woman begin to wake up from their empty shells, muttering in confusion.

“Put everything down and leave. Now.”

I don’t look back at them, but I hear the sound of the box dropping to the pavement, and their footsteps moving quickly away.

I smile at Andy and keep eye contact as I hear footsteps actually moving our way. The good lieutenant steps into the light of the lampposts and looks down at the less-than-Amazing Andy.

“Did this man put his hands on you?”

With one last pulse of energy, I release Andy’s hand. He slumps further down, head hanging.

“That he did, sir, and so I moved to protect myself.”

“What did you do to him?”

“I just made sure he couldn’t run. He’ll be fine once he gains some energy back.”

The good lieutenant stares at me as if he’s still deciding whether or not to trust me.

“Look, I did less harm to him than a laser does.”

“I believe you, but I still don’t like it.”

“How are you gonna handle this when you’re off duty?”

“I just saw this man lay his hands on you in a threatening manner and you defended yourself. I’ve got this, Jade. Go back and tell your source it’s being taken care of.”

I squat down over Andy, who is barely conscious.

“You’re lucky the good lieutenant was here to stop me. I would have swallowed you down until there was nothing left. If I catch you hypnotizing anyone else outside of the entertainment of the show, I’ll find you again. Now, go with the officer and be a good boy.”

I stand back up and smooth out my skirt. Again, the lieutenant stares with accusation on his face.

“What? It’s not like you have any authority to stop him from hypnotizing anyone again.”

“That doesn’t mean you had to threaten his life.”

“Who said anything about his life? I can break his ability to hypnotize.”

The lieutenant’s gaze softens only a bit. Can’t blame him for that one, as that’s not confirmed truth, but he doesn’t need to know that.He nods and moves to detain Andy.

“You sure you don’t need me to come with you to give a statement?”

“Was gonna ask you to come in the morning since it’s late. Why? Is there someone or something you’re avoiding at home?”

As a matter of fact there is, but that’s none of his business.

“I’ll come down before I open in the morning. You’ll be back in your suit by then? it’s weird to see you in a flannel.”

“(Chuckles) Good night, Jade. And good job.”

“What good job? You know I just gave you more of a headache than any good.”

“True, though I will say, if your murder case had made it to court that judge was prepared to let the witchcraft admissible as evidence. Too bad the accused spontaneously combusted in her cell.”

“Oh, that’s right. I forgot about that.”

I give him my blank stare back. No twitch of fear or emotion, just my resolve that he’s not getting anything else out of me.

That was another reason why I stayed away from him, because I’m sure he thought I was to blame. Technically, I didn’t do it. I just happened to be there and ready to menace her until she gave me what I wanted. Marbas did the actual killing to shut her up before I could get any details.

But, of course, I can’t tell him any of that.

“Good night, Lieutenant.”

I turn to the West and start walking. The convention center is less than a mile back to the store, but I walk slowly. I am so not ready to face Efrain, but I also won’t let him keep me out of my own home. I shouldn’t have let him stay there, but I can’t go back and undo that now. Can just hope he lets me kick him out once I get back. I doubt he goes quietly, but my level of not caring is at an all time high.

I finally make it down the hill to my back door. I briefly debate whether or not to just go up to my apartment and deal with him in the morning, but I decide I don’t want to be arguing with him in front of my morning crowd. The things I do for my customers.

[SFX: Jade unlocks the back door, opening and closing it behind her]

Ah, he helped himself to some coffee. Of course he did. The old fart sits by the window, his mug shining in the moonlight as he lifts it to his mouth.

I fling my keys onto the counter.

“Okay, if it’s cash you need, I don’t have much.”

“(Chuckles) I get by just fine, Jade. Have for years. You look like you’ve been doing pretty well yourself.”

“You’re not here to catch up like it’s just been a few weeks. Cut to the chase. Why are you here? Why now?”

He sits his mug down on the table and runs his finger around the edge of it.

“I was sent here.”

“What, by God? I think if he was going to send you, he would have sent you the moment you left.”

“I left because He called me to do his work.”

“BULLSHIT! You left because you were a coward! You left because you weren’t ready to be a father.”

“I did not come here to argue with you, Jade.”

“Well then be prepared to be sorely disappointed.”

[SFX: Chair scooting across the floor as Efrain stands up]

“If yelling and screaming and kicking and hitting at me would make you feel better, go right ahead. I’m not going anywhere. Not until He reveals to me the next sign.”

“So it has nothing to do with me, right? You didn’t come home out of some need to reconcile with your daughter?”

“(sigh) I should have known she wasn’t telling the truth.”

“Who? What do you mean?”

“Your mother. She used to write to me and let me know how things were going. She always reassured me that you understood. That you knew the important work I did.”

“She didn’t write to you. Why would she after you left us?”

“Because she knew I had to, and she knew I loved you both very much.”

“You’re lying.”

He bends down to reach into a bag I didn’t realize he brought in, and when he rises back up he holds out to me a stack of papers. Some are envelopes, some are stray folded pieces of paper. Instinctively I reach for them, wanting to confirm this statement that just cannot be true. But I can see from his outreached hand her handwriting on the front of an envelope. That’s enough for me to want to smack the whole stack out of his hands and let each piece of paper burn.

“Why would she hide it from me?”

“Probably for the same reason she reassured me you understood. Do you remember when you started hating me? Was it truly as soon as I left?”

“I’m not walking down memory lane for you.”

“You might do it for yourself then. Hatred is a terrible poison to slowly die from.”

“I don’t need advice from you.”

“(condescendingly) No, surely not me. All that Allbright stubbornness leaves no way for sentiment.”

“I’ll answer your question if you answer mine.”

He sits back down and motions for me to join him. I go behind the counter and pour myself some coffee before joining him. With lots of milk and sugar. Tonight’s been bitter enough.

“When…when did you hear the news?”

“Which news? That you had graduated from elementary school? Had your first accident with your powers?”

“You know what news I’m talking about.”

“(exhales loudly) Beattie sent me the letter a few weeks after, but I wouldn’t receive it for a few more months in December.”

“That was a great Christmas present. You had the letter and I had the emptiness.”

“The letter meant nothing. It told me nothing helpful.”

“Right, her death meant nothing to you. That tracks.”

“No, you misunderstand. Your aunt is wrong. She’s not dead.”
I stare holes through him.

“Don’t play with me, old man. Do you know something?”

“I know ever since we bonded I have always felt her. Distance and time did not change that. But I felt something the day of her disappearance, something latched and leeched on to our connection.”

“So she’s alive?”

“She is what she needs to be.”

[SFX: fist slam on the table]

“Don’t fuck with me! Is she or is she not alive?”

“She is not dead, but that does not mean she is not lost.”

“So why even give me any god damn hope?”

“Do not take the Lord’s name in vain.”

“Why? What did He ever do for me? I called for His help, you know? The day she died, the days after. I prayed like Aunt Beattie told me, and then someone else answered.”

It’s his turn to stare wide-eyed at me.

“Your aunt told me about that phase as well, but that she brought you back to His Grace.”

“She pulled me out of Hell, that doesn’t mean she could lift me up to heaven.”

“No, you’re right, it is on you to keep your faith and your relationship with Him.”

“I have no relationship with Him. I called on him when a life was on the line, here in my own store, and I was forsaken. That man not only died but his soul was torn to shreds to feed evil. If God will forsake his children because they are disobedient then what kind of God is that?”

“A Father who does not reward disobedience with affection.”

“Is that why you never came home?”

“I told you – my purpose is to follow His path, wherever it leads me.”

“Then why did you have a family? Why break the hearts of those who loved you by letting them in your life, if this was always your intended path!”

“It wasn’t that clear! Like you I rebelled against the calling, until I almost couldn’t hear it anymore. And then I found your mother, and she helped to quell my denial. We both found our paths forward. They were just separate. She understood that, and supported me.”

“But what about me–no. No, I will not let you pull me down. I am not that little girl you left to watch you walk away. I’m done entertaining this talk. I told myself if you ever darkened my doorstep I wouldn’t be so desperate for answers, and I’ve already blown that to hell. But I’m righting us now. The only question I have for you is why are you here?”

“I’ve already told you–”

“If you say God told you, one more time–”

“If he would have sent me only to Fort Smith, I would have stayed only where he told me. I would not have come here and done this to you. I know you have a life without me. I know it was hard when your mother was lost, and the road was harder still to bring you back from the Devil’s grasp. But you did it, Jade. You came out of the darkest places anyone could ever be, and you’ve thrived. But I came back because this is where he told me to come. I don’t know if that means he wants me to reconcile with you and finally be done, or if there is work to be had at this store. I have to wait for the next sign.”

Thrived? How is this thriving? The words dance in my head but I won’t say them aloud. But that six-year-old girl who watched him board that bus and never come home is still inside me, and her voice will not stop until I ask her question.

“You really wouldn’t have to come for a visit?”

“I would have watched from afar, like I’ve done. I would have passed by, maybe sat in front of your window on the bench outside, never coming in. Let you pass by me without raising my head or saying a word, to know you are still safe. I’ve always kept an eye on you. I’m penniless, but not without means.”

I turn away from him and stare out the window, out into the night over the river. My head and my heart are not in the same place on this one. My thoughts and emotions rage inside me until it’s nothing but humming chaos.

But finally a decision comes to me.

“How long do signs from Him usually take?”

Efrain shrugs.

“Could be as soon as I get where I’m going, could be weeks. But whatever it is, it will come inside this store. On my honor, this is the truth.”

“Then let the Lord bring your truth to pass as soon as He will. You can sit in my store every day waiting on this sign, but do not feel like you have to talk to me. I won’t feel the need to talk to you. As far as I’m concerned, you are just another customer needing my help, letting you walk your path.”

He smiles and nods.

“Thank you, Jade. Is it okay if I sleep in the storage room? I see the cot is still in there.”

“Knock yourself out.”

My aunt says I’m as stubborn as my mother, but I see the resolve in Efrain’s eyes. The truth he’s given me tonight is hard to swallow in some ways, but in others, I understand exactly what he means. He’s doing what he has always done, no more or less. He’s dedicated himself to this path, to do the higher good, no matter what loved ones it hurts. I hate that I know what that dedication means, and I hate him still. He chose it over us. He chose the calling over his own wife and child. That devotion to a deity, I will never know. I’ve seen Hell, and it will most likely be the place I return when it’s all said and done. But that will not stop me from allowing him to be what he always has been. He’s not asking me to change, I’m not asking him.

But I’m also too suspicious of others to trust even his genuine words. I grab my deck from beneath the counter as Efrain makes himself comfortable in the storage room.

[SFX: shuffling cards]

I ask the cards one simple question. Is he lying?

[SFX: swipe of the card as she pulls it from the top of the deck]

The Hermit. Of course it is. The one time I need a clear yes or no, they deny me. Well, guess I’ll find out one way or another. I may get more than I asked for, but isn’t it always that way?

This episode was written by Ashley McAnelly and Morgan Valko

Featuring the voice talents of Ashley McAnelly, Nate DuFort, Jimmy Ferrer, and Nelson Abrigo

Theme song by ThaArsonist

Outro song by Athan of The Grotto Podcast

Produced by Scott Thomas