Cujo’s right boot shot out over a sharp cliff’s edge. He barely caught his balance, using a nearby egg to keep him from dropping about one hundred feet straight down. Under his touch, the egg was like a giant ball of leather, and just as cold. His gasp and the rocks broken free by the near fatal fall striking the ground below echoed throughout a massive cavern.

  A cavern, as far as his night vision would allow, packed and blanketed, with pulsating eggs.

  “Ya okay down there, Pops? We got some rope.”

  Cujo, eyes wide, heart bashing itself against his ribs, managed, “Get down here. All of you.”

  “What’s up?” That was Benny.

  “Just…get your asses down here. Now.”

  It took them a bit, but soon enough the team gathered near the edges of the cliff overlooking the cavern.

  “Damn,” Benny said. “Someone was a busy lil devil, eh?”

  “What the hell are we gonna do about this?” Maze gestured at the sprawling view of devil eggs. “Not like we brought a flamethrower to burn the fucker—”

  Behind them, the subtle squelching grew louder.

  Something mewled.

  “Uh,” Benny said. “What the hell was that?”

  Everyone turned in unison, guns at the ready.

  “Goddamn,” Ellen muttered.

  Claws wriggled out the side of an egg directly in front of them. White ooze, at least through the night visor, pooled around the base on the floor. Strings of God knew what spilled out and splashed into the ooze.

  A watery substance glutted out of the slit while the claws pried the egg open from the inside. Tearing, like peeling the shell off a hardboiled egg, or opening a turtle egg, drove a spike into Cujo’s brain. It struck the fear gland, or whatever produced fear, and refused to budge. He gaped as the thing inside the egg worked its way out. Like any newborn creature, it fought to live.

  Finally, it ripped the thin, leathery egg open and spilled out onto the ground. Its loud mewling stopped Cujo’s breathing for a moment or two. Furless, it writhed on the ground, gasping at the air. Its small, goat-like mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. Its claws grasped at nothing. So meek, that creature. Cujo could crush its narrow head under his boot if he wished. Indeed, it grasped like any newborn. Even human. It wished to suckle on its mother’s teat. To be fed, as all infants longed for. Still, it needed to die. It needed…

  He stopped himself from killing the baby devil, however. Every instinct, but one, told him he should. And that final instinct was something like fatherhood. A term he wasn’t at all comfortable with and should’ve been years ago. He never had a child of his own, but the countless soldiers he trained…they were his legacy. Even if he tried not to think of them as such, right then, in the cavern of the Jersey Devil, he found himself thinking that they were all his children in some way or another.

  Kids. He always got stuck on the kids.

  They were all innocent. Hate is taught. Instincts, however, were not. Still, if the newborn devils had a mother who cared…

  Mother.

  Cujo turned, gaze sweeping over the vastness of the cavern. What laid all the eggs? What kind of monster could even live through it all and continue?

  “I’ve deployed a new drone,” Reece said through his ear pod. “Larger and faster and upgraded with better seeking tech. I’ll be searching for ways out of there.”

  “Thanks, Reece,” Cujo said, still scanning the egg laden cavern.

  “Christ,” Maze said, sounding disgusted. “The hell we gonna do with this thing?”

  The infant devil’s mewl echoed through the cavern. Cujo squinted, watching…listening. Waiting.

  “Boss?” Benny said. “We kinda need—”

  From somewhere in the dark cavern, something very large roared. The very sound shook Cujo’s guts.

  He faced his team. “Hide.”

  They glanced at each other as though he’d gone mad.

  “Now,” he said, trying to keep his voice low.

  They flocked to the right, where, what appeared to be the mouth of a narrow tunnel waited. Cujo spared a glance over his shoulder, but so far there was no sign of the monster from the depths of the cavern. He joined his team, crouching as deep as possible into the narrow space, which proved to be a tunnel after all.

  One Cujo would never be able to force himself through. Too damn narrow. He’d—

  Another roar rocked the air (and Cujo’s guts), this time followed by a low hiss. Cujo’s grip on his AC-900 tightened, eyes wide and shifting back and forth in their sockets. Nerves jacked to the max. Not a good sign. He needed to calm down.

  You’re acting like a goddamn scared little private in Basic, he thought. Breathe. Think. Overcome.

  He breathed. He thought and…

  It rose up over the edge of the cliff. A monstrosity Cujo couldn’t grasp at first. A beast so large and out of imagination, all he could do was gape at it in sheer terror. A real devil. Perhaps…the Devil…

  Made sense. They could be in Hell right now, for all Cujo knew. What was Hell, but darkness and infinite horrors?

  All those eggs…

  He couldn’t stop shivering.

  The creature, ten times larger than the twenty-foot yetis they took down less than a couple of months ago, resembled the smaller devils. Kind of. Its head would be more goat-like if not for how distorted it was. Like it had been beaten out of shape by a ruthless hammer. Its eyes glared white and when it opened its mouth, a long, dark green tongue slithered out and licked the mewling infant.

  At least with the night visor he didn’t have to see what everything really looked like, color-wise, anyway. Ah, but he could imagine that green tongue being black and those eyes glowing crimson. The fur wasn’t white but pitch black.

  A smell like rotting chicken liver filled his nostrils. It took all his resolve not to cough or puke.

  The monster’s long, pointy teeth gleamed dark green through the visor.

  The mewling infant latched onto Mother’s tongue with its long claws. What happened next happened so fast Cujo barely had time to register it.

  The long tongue wrapped around the infant devil like a tentacle and yanked it into the mother’s gaping maw. There…and gone.

  It didn’t even cry.

  The mother devil sniffed the other eggs, large nostrils flaring, and snorted. It groaned and began lowering itself away from the cliff so—

  Beside Cujo, Benny sneezed.

  Cujo shot a glance at the guy and quickly returned his attention to the mother of devils. She did not pause in her descent which sent a stream of relief through Cujo. They might be well equipped but taking down something so big…he wasn’t so sure.

  Once the mother disappeared, Cujo counted to twenty and punched Benny in the arm.

  “Ow,” Benny said in a whisper. “The hell?”

  “Almost twenty years in the military and you don’t know how to hold a goddamn sneeze?” Cujo punched him again.

  “Hey,” Benny said, rubbing his arm. “That’s child abuse, ya know?”

  Cujo gritted his teeth, managed a breath. “You—”

  Something hot wrapped around his middle and yanked him out of the narrow tunnel. He ping-ponged against various eggs before being hoisted into the air upside down.

  Cujo swung in mid-air trying to find his equilibrium, though to no avail.

  Gravelly chittering broke the silence.

  Cujo swung back and forth. Dangling in the air like a ragdoll. He told himself to calm down. But that was all in vain when the mother of devils arose from the depth of the cavern and stared at him face to face. Her hot breath, reeking of dead things, buffeted his face. It was her long tongue that held him.

  “Damn,” he managed as her mouth opened. “You’re one ugly bitch.”

  She reared a bit, as though understanding what he just said, and roared the force of gale winds. He rocked in her tongue’s grip.

  Stowing his fear, he pointed the AC-900 into her mouth and said, “Boom.”

  He squeezed the trigger.

  The twenty-round burst pulverized the inside of her mouth and throat. Blood sprayed, covering him in crimson. The monstrosity squealed. But the damn tongue didn’t release him. It flung him about like some mighty kraken. Its cries blasted into Cujo and shot off the cavern wall time and again until fading.

  He shot it again and, finally, the tongue unfurled and dropped him. Cujo managed to tuck up like a pill bug before crashing onto the rocky ground.

  The monster gurgled out a scream. Blood sprayed in every direction, splattering Cujo. He struggled to stand, tripped over an egg, about went sprawling. Then Benny was there. Maze too. They helped him back to the narrow tunnel. Cujo sagged against the wall, heart thundering. Everything hurt. Even his damn hair hurt.

  The mother of devils thrashed, clawing at her blood smeared face.

  “Jesus,” Ellen said. “We need to shut it up before—”

  Through all the screaming, something else shrieked. Higher in pitch than the mother. Which was the only way Cujo could separate the two.

  “Uh-oh,” Benny said.

  “They sound pissed,” Maze said.

  “Should I shut her up?” Luna asked, lifting her M32 grenade launcher.

  Cujo nodded. “Aim for the head.”

  Luna stepped away from the tunnel, pointed the M32 at the giant, screaming beast—

  It came out of nowhere and plowed into her, striking Luna so hard she slammed into and through a couple of eggs. White goop splashed the air, obscuring Cujo’s vision.

  A devil, twice as large as the others, body as broad as a gorilla, turned toward the team. Its horns curled like a ram. Much like its mother, the head and face were misshapen to the point (but not quite) of the unlikeliness of a goat. It stamped a hoof on the ground, snorted like a bull about to charge.

  “Ah, hell,” Maze said.

  Cujo straightened. “Fire!”

  The cavern exploded in gunfire so loud Cujo’s ears, once more, rang.

  Note to self, he thought while the large bull-like devil began to buckle, bring ear plugs next time.

  The AC-900 clicked, magazine dry. Cujo ejected the spent mag and slid a fresh one in just as the devil crumpled to the ground in a pool of white. Blood, in other words.

  “Luna?” Cujo shouted, ears still ringing like mad.

  He ran, jumped over the dead devil and found her wrestling with one of the infant monsters. Unlike the other one, this creature had a tail, which wrapped around Luna’s neck. Cujo drew his knife, grabbed the slimy scruff of neck, and buried the blade into the side of its furless head. It made the weakest of whines. He wiped the knife off on his pants, returned it to the sheath, and knelt beside Luna.

  She yanked the tail off her, coughing and rubbing her throat. He helped her to her feet, and she sagged into him for a second or two before standing firm. In his ears, she croaked, “Thanks.”

  Cujo opened his mouth to ask if she’d be okay when the mother’s screaming stopped. He spun just in time to be greeted by one of her massive claws.

  Luckily, only the back struck him and not the actual claw, otherwise he’d be sliced to pieces. The force flung him through the air and onto an egg about twenty feet away. The egg creaked then collapsed under him, spewing foul ooze and liquid everywhere.

  He rolled onto his side. Pain staggered his strength, leaving him shivering in the egg mess. He fought the pain. He knew of no other way. And so, he tried to stand…and failed.

  A couple of explosions rocked him but…

  Gray creeped around the edges of his vision.

  Old ghosts…

  ELEVEN

  Cujo woke sometime later in a tunnel that smelled like old, filthy socks. He gagged, and shifted his position.

  Luna, leaning against the same lumpy wall he did, smiled at him. A long cut adorned her otherwise smooth forehead and she had the twilight sign of a black eye.

  “Hey,” she said. “You’re alive.”

  Cujo grunted, winced when he tried to move. After a bit, he resigned himself to simply sitting. “Is she dead?”

  She nodded. “I think so. Shot four at its head. Disappeared below before I got a good look, though. Pretty sure she’s dancing with her brethren in Hell.”

  “Okay.” He glanced around. “Where is everyone?”

  He noted how his boots touched the opposite wall of the tunnel and his heart stuttered. They were in the narrow tunnel. The one he swore he’d never enter.

  Because, of course he was. Sigh…

  “Benny and Wade are making sure nothing is stalking us. Maze and Ellen are scouting up the tunnel.”

  “Lovely,” he said, trying to dump proverbial water om his sparking nerves and sore muscles. His entire body felt like a giant bruise. “Any word from Reece while I was out?”

  “Not yet.” Luna adjusted a bit, grimacing. “This isn’t exactly how I thought it’d be, joining the team.”

  His eyebrows rose. “Oh? And how’d you think it’d be? Sunshine and roses?”

  She chuckled. “No. Just…never thought we’d be stuck in a tunnel in the middle of nowhere New Jersey.”

  “Good times, eh?” He patted her knee. “You’re doing just fine.”

  They smiled at each other for a heartbeat.

  “Boss,” Benny blared into his ear.

  He cringed, pressing the throat mic. “Yeah?”

  “Oh, good,” Benny blurted. “You’re not dead!”

  Cujo rolled his eyes. “What do you want, jackass?”

  “Heeyyy…”

  “Jesus Christ,” Cujo said, already annoyed. “Spit it out.”

  A pause, then Benny said, “Lots of noises coming from this end. I think we really pissed ’em off.”

  “Well,” Cujo said. “We killed their mother, so…”

  “Yeah. Well, Luna did. We should give them to her as an offering and beat feet out of this shit stain.”

  “Fuck you,” Luna said, shooting a glare at Cujo.

  He laughed, wincing at the darts of pain. How he’d be able to fight was beyond him.

  “Get back here,” Cujo ordered Benny. “Maze. You and Ellen wait for us there.”

  “Roger that, Boss,” Benny said.

  “Ten-four, Pops.”

  Cujo stood, legs quivering. The tunnel might be narrow, but at least it was tall enough to stand. He managed a step and swayed into one of the walls. Rage flashed through him. Never in his life had he felt so damn weak. So worthless.

  So…old…

  C’mon, a voice boomed inside him. You’re only sixty. Hell, Sarge was pushing seventy, for shit sake.

  Ah. Yes. Sergeant Clifton. Hard as nails, stubborn old bastard. He loved to humiliate Cujo during their first tour together. It was during their second tour when Cujo got to see both the legend and the real old man behind it all.

  They were dug in deep, taking heavy enemy fire. The entire platoon was either in pieces or screaming in bloody agony around them. Sarge had a nasty shoulder wound, but he didn’t appear to notice.

  “Not gonna make it, kid. They got us pinned right the fuck down.”

  Cujo, scared beyond words, managed to nod.

  Sarge smiled. While the bullets pummeled the dirt and dust exploded into the air, the old man smiled for the first time since Cujo had known him.

  “Ya got the right stuff, Aaron. Sorry I led ya into this mess. Maybe ya’ll go on to be a great leader too.”

  All Cujo could do was smile back.

  The old man disappeared and the hard as nails Sergeant re-emerged. His light blue eyes held Cujo’s gaze for a moment.

  “Crawl through ’em, kid. Only dead bodies now. Not them. They died for ya. Hide under ’em. Do what ya got to survive. Got me?”

  Cujo opened his mouth, but Sarge was up and out of the hole before he could respond.

  Sarge’s roar erupted through the gunfire. The sound of a beast. A legend.

  A hero.

  Cujo did just as he was ordered and crawled through the remains of his fallen platoon. Not only his but a few others too. He did it and it took him godless hours. Eventually, though, he emerged from the carrion unscathed.

  “You okay?” Luna asked now, concern creeping over her face.

  Cujo blinked. “Yeah. Just…banged up a bit.”

  Behind him, Benny said, “Wade and I’ll keep watch on our asses. I don’t think they’ve figured it out yet, though.”

  “We’d be dead, otherwise,” Cujo said.

  “Meh,” Benny said. “I could take ’em.”

  Cujo shuffled along behind Luna. The aches and pains threatened to cripple him at any second but, thankfully, didn’t. The more he moved, the easier it got, however. Not all roses, but as well as one could hope. A little relief was better than none, right?

  Sure…

  With a glance over his shoulder, Cujo confirmed Benny and Wade did just as Benny said. They walked backward facing down the tunnel, guns ready. Unlike most, they knew what to do before Cujo had to tell them. Did him good to know they knew their roles without having to bark orders.

  The tunnel was too narrow to really see around Luna, so Cujo stared at either wall for most of the walk.

  “You’re all grannies,” Maze said. Her voice literally lit up the tunnel with good vibes. Cujo smiled and rested against the nearest wall. “About time ya stop playin’ the victim.” A pause. “Pops, you look like hammered shit.”

  He waved a hand at her. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. How’s everything?”

  She smiled a bit and nodded up the tunnel. “So far, so good.”

  Behind them, a faint shriek.

  “Let’s move,” Cujo said. “Don’t want to be stuck in this rock tube when they figure out where we are.”

  “Same,” Ellen said.

  They trudged onward up the narrow tunnel, Cujo keeping his mild claustrophobia mostly in check. Every so often, a faint shriek would bounce along the rocky walls. Other than that though, they continued without incident. The scuff of their boots on the rock floor and breathing carried farther than Cujo liked. Nothing to be done about it, though. He imagined even a pin drop would echo in the tunnel. Something about the ragged, rocky walls, he assumed.

  No one talked, which suited Cujo just fine. The quieter they were, the less likely to draw attention.

 

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