Dark Silence

30 days (2)

“And what was it?” Darnell was kind of half-listening, thinking over the ways of refusing this case.

“Our experts came to the conclusion that when she was 7, she somehow managed to summon a demon.”

“Oh, wow,” Darnell raised his eyebrows. “Being 7 years old? Not even a minion?”

“Exactly,” Cyril nodded. “Looks like she demanded either something impossible or incorrectly phrased, and the demon deceived her. He took the payment but didn’t fulfill the terms of the contract, just putting several spells on her. One was removed. But there is still something remaining that doesn’t allow her to reveal which demon that had been. It seems that she doesn’t remember what has happened to her.”

“I see, I see,” the man interlocked his fingers in front of himself and looked attentively at the girl. She frowned back at him. “What was the payment he took?”

“Her voice,” answered Cyril.

“Oh,” pronounced Darnell sadly. “And what is the point of the case?”

“Madeleine needs protection. A week ago an unidentified entity attacked her in the St. Stylianos Orphanage.”

“Does she live in this orphanage?” surprised Darnell gloomily.

“Yes, just like you used to. When the Agency found out about her connection with some demon, it took her into its care and appointed her there. The boss charged you to figure out which demon deceived her, and to see justice done,” Cyril spread his hands triumphantly. “Besides, she is your full responsibility now for providing her with the maximum level of security.”

“What?! Mine?! A mute child is my responsibility?!” Darnell was shocked. “No, that won’t do.”

“Yes, that will,” the demon laughed out, “the boss said that this is your last chance to retrieve your reputation in the Agency.”

“No. No, and no!” Darnell stood up abruptly. “I’ll go to him, this is nonsense!” He went past his table and rushed to the door.

“It would not be wise to do that!” Cyril called after him. “Boss is still terribly enraged with you after Friday.”

“I don’t give a s**t!” snapped Darnell in response and suddenly gagged with anger that flowed over him.

“Oh, you’ve lost your temper and got mad!” Cyril nearly jumped. “Come on, show me, at last, your other entity, I’m so curious about this!” He turned his chair around and sat on it facing its back. He put his chin on its back looking at Darnell with pure interest.

“You, motherf…” Darnell caught himself remembering that there was Madeleine sitting in the room.

He was standing, grasping the door handle, and trying to calm down. He lost his temper in a blink of an eye, and if things kept going this way, nothing good would happen. Darnell started to count in his mind. He slowly breathed in and out several times. When he felt that rage burning him from inside almost backed away, the man pulled the handle and left the room accompanied by the shouting of the disappointed demon who was deprived of performance.

Darnell dashed like a whirl through the open space, passing by the co-workers gathering home. He broke into the office of his boss without knocking. Darnell made it the last moment, as the boss was already putting on his black greatcoat ready to leave.

“Mister Ewing, this is ridiculous,” he said right off the bat, “this new case…”

“Look who’s here,” his boss interrupted him. He was the elderly man who didn’t lose an air of military bearing and precision of movements. “This is Darnell O’Dell in the flesh. Showed up at the end of the working day.”

“I’m sorry, this will not happen again,” he dismissed with his typical excuse. “I came in regards to the case of the girl…”

“A-a-ah, Cyril has already acquainted you with Madeleine,” a mocking sparkle flickered in the boss’s brown eyes. “I’m really happy that you’ve agreed to take this case. It will do you good.”

“Agreed?! I didn’t agree, I don’t want to work on it! I can’t take responsibility for the child, you know that…”

“Yes, I do know!” growled Ewing at him taking a brief-case. “If you don’t want to correct yourself in an easy way, we’ll have to do this by force.” He frowned at his shocked interlocutor. “I attached the list of restrictions to the case. The violation of any of them will be punished by the penalties. Besides, if the girl complains about you, you will be immediately suspended from the Agency with the impossibility to reinstate. You have 30 days to find the demon, starting today.”

“How many days?! Are you kidding me?! The Agency was… for how long, for a year?.. looking for this demon, and didn’t succeed! And I must cope alone with this within a  month?” Darnell’s mouth immediately dried when he imagined the prospects. “This is the real derision! I can correct myself alone, without any overseer!”

Ewing went to the door without a word, so Darnell had to back off and leave the room allowing his boss to go out from the office.

“But… maybe… there is something…” he mumbled after Ewing. The boss stopped and turned to him.

“Get out to work!!!” he shouted so loud that two ladies who were going home got scared and ran back at their working places. “You’ve got a month! That’s it! Don’t even dare to come to me without that demon! And remember: he must be alive!”

Ewing went down the hall in concise steps, leaving Darnell standing with the open mouth. After recovering himself, he shuffled off back to his office. When he opened the door, he found out that Cyril and Madeleine were still in there. The demon was trying by all means to entertain the girl, but she looked at all his gimmicks and tricks with an absolutely indifferent stare. 

“I heard how the boss yelled at you!” stated Cyril seeing Darnell.

“Well done,” answered the man with a snarl, sitting heavily in his chair and taking the folder again.

“So, I’m out of here,” Cyril stood up lively and headed to the exit.

“What do you mean - out?” Darnell exclaimed in despair.

“It’s the end of the working day, time for me to leave.” He turned back standing at the doors and waved a farewell. “Good luck in clearing things up here!”

When the door locked after the demon, an oppressive silence hung in the room. Darnell risked to look at the girl - it seemed she tried to bore a hole in him.

“What?” he dropped in an irritated manner. Madeleine frowned. “Stop bending your eyebrows at me,” he grumbled, opening the folder. “I’ll clear the situation up for you: I’m not a babysitter. And the fact that I’ve got this case of yours doesn’t gladden me at all. So I don’t give a hoot about your discontent. Got it?”

Madeleine defiantly crossed her hands on her chest and turned her back.

“She’ll grow up into such a b***h,” thought Darnell going deep into the documentary materials.

“Well, what we’ve got here…” he rubbed his eyes that were still aching. “A-ha, here’s the list of instructions and limitations Ewing was talking about. No staying without the runic protection… mm-hm… to feed, to give drink, good that there’s no need to water… to take care of blah-blah… Wow, there is a bank card of the ADA Agency!” Darnell shoved his hand into one of the files and took out a credit card. “At least they didn’t hang you completely on me,” he said to the girl. “What else do we have in here… The main restrictions: no… What?! No drinking of alcohol, no smoking, and no swearing?! For each complaint from the client, there will be financial penalties?” Darnell gasped. “Who do they think they are to decide whether I can smoke or not?! Those motherf-f-f… that’s bullsh-h-h… Urgh!”

Darnell slammed the folder and rubbed his face again. After sitting for a minute, burrowing his face into his palms, he glanced at Madeleine through the fingers. She was still phlegmatically watching him.

“So what, you will rat me out for any slip-up?” he asked. The girl nodded. “Maybe we can make a deal?” he put hands on the table and hardly managed an apologetic smile. Madeleine shook her head. “Guh, Jesus… listen, it’s up to you, but I can’t give up smoking right now. Besides, I need to cope with your case in just a month. If I try to drop it, I’ll be in absolutely inadequate condition. Is that what you want?

The girl took thought. She swung her foot and then decidedly opened the bag and took out a cheap tablet from it. Darnell watched Madeleine writing something carefully on it in a graphics editor with a stylus. When she finished, she turned the device with its screen to the man. He bent over the table trying to get a view of it.

“What… what is it written here? Give me that,” he grabbed the tablet and sat back. “Damn, you have terrible handwriting! Piho… oh, that is “fine”, “Fine, but you will not…” what’s that, “snnlc?..” ah, “smoke, you will not smoke in front of me.” Okay, agree, children shouldn’t breathe with the cigarette smoke.” He sighed, giving the tablet back to the girl. “And all these torments will last for the whole month, what did I do to deserve this?!”