by CC Dragon
She smiled. “It’s not debatable. She’s real. She’s never going to be happy. But it’s worse this time.”
“Do you know why?” I asked.
She nodded. “Demons. Her vengeance had to be fueled or energized. What did anyone alive have to do with her life or death?”
“I need to contain her but I don’t know how. I’d like to move her along to an afterlife but she seems to flat out resist that,” I explained.
“I will help you. I’m going to die soon,” she said.
“You’re the key?” I asked.
“No, I’m nothing to her, really. But when I die, she will show and shriek. Then Death will come,” she replied.
“I can try to pull the demons off her and Death will take her?” I asked.
The woman nodded. “If you can’t, get someone who can.”
“I can but a possessed ghost is weird,” I admitted.
“You can do it. Human or ghost. Simple enough. Death will take us both.”
Gunner shrugged. “Works for me.”
“We’re just going to wait until you die and get that call?” I asked.
She shook her head. “I’m going to die within the hour. If you need help, call it.”
I mentally summoned an extra angel but I didn’t want anyone else at risk. “I’m good. But shouldn’t you try to stay alive?”
“I’m ninety and my congestive heart failure is beyond help. I don’t want to fight anymore. I had a good life. I don’t want to suffer or be in and out of a hospital anymore. I’ve signed the DNR long before this banshee returned. I can feel the pressure, I’ve dealt with this for over a decade. I might be ambitious, but I certainly won’t last the night.”
“Is there anything you want? Food or something you want to see?” she asked.
She shook her head. “I’ve made my peace with this world.”
“When you feel ready, I can summon Death so he’s prepared for the stunt we’re going to pull on this ghost,” I said.
“Help me into bed. It’ll be quick,” she said.
Gunner and I helped the frail woman who wheezed and gasped for air over just a few steps. She pointed to the bedside table and I retrieved her inhaler.
She shook her head. “Bible.”
I handed her the book and she put it to her chest. “I’m ready. Close the door so we’re not interrupted.”
Gunner got the door.
I saw the woman’s breathing slow until her chest barely lifted.
“Death, we’ve got a plan now. Death. I need you here to help. Collect souls,” I said firmly.
A young teen appeared and Gunner jumped.
I hid my shock better but Death had never appeared a kid before.
“Well?” The attitude from Death was the same but seemed worse coming from a teen in a snotty tone.
“She should be on your list,” I said.
Death looked at the old woman and nodded. The inner calm and maturity was not matching the youth.
“That’s so sad,” I said.
“Children die, too.” Death shrugged. “It’s not easy and not my choice.”
“I know. The banshee should be here and I’ll pull the demons, you grab the clean soul. Does that work for you?” I asked.
“I’m just supposed to wait around?” Death asked.
“You can make it quicker, she’s very resigned to her fate. Barely breathing,” I said.
Death stood over the old woman and stared into her eyes. The life slowly drained from her.
In the corner of the room, a shriek made Gunner and I turn. The banshee floated, screaming so loud the air in the room vibrated with sorrow.
“Can the rest of the nursing home hear her?” Gunner asked.
Chapter Fourteen
With my one good arm, I reached out at the banshee and focused. The demons inside were stubborn but not invited. It was using the poor soul to make trouble and spread fear. LeeAnn had a fear of the afterlife and resentment toward the living for her short time on Earth but she had no desire to harm people. She wasn’t killing them.
“You’re weak,” the banshee sneered.
“You’re dead,” I replied. “LeeAnn, you can fight these demons. Force them out of you and leave this endless cycle. Heaven is so much better.”
“Why was my life so short? So hard?” LeeAnn cried out.
The demons fed on her pain and their strength built, sucking my energy.
“Only God can answer that,” I replied.
“How can he know what we suffer here?” LeeAnn looked at Anna. “Disease and pain.”
“Jesus walked the Earth as a human. Ask him for mercy. He might remember some pain here. You were young, whatever you did wrong in your short life probably had something to do with immaturity. Own your mistakes and be free,” I said.
Mentioning God and Jesus triggered something in the demons and they’d recoiled deeper into LeeAnn.
“Get out of her. She’s not yours yet. She’s going for judgment, not selling her soul,” I commanded the demons.
Anna’s ghost moved toward LeeAnn and hugged her ancestor. That was the final straw that broke the demon hold. They fled at the pure love and I reached into the ghosts again to be sure. The feeling was free and much easier.
“Go to hell and stay trapped under the weight of your own failure,” I told the demon.
It disappeared but I had no idea where it actually went. Luckily, it didn’t target Gunner or me.
Death held out its hands to the ghosts. Anna went. LeeAnn looked unsure.
“It’s the only way to get peace. You can’t change that death will happen in your family,” I said.
“I like watching them die,” she said.
“It made you feel alive again but Heaven is much better. Try it,” I advised.
“Why would you live here then, if Heaven is better?” LeeAnn wasn’t going to blindly trust.
“I’ve been there but I don’t make the rules of life and death. Where you’re going, you’ll get those answers because you’re dead—now you can know. I’ll visit and someday I’ll get all of those answers,” I promised.
“I’ll haunt you if you’re lying,” LeeAnn said.
“Good luck.” I smiled and nodded to Death.
The trio disappeared and I fell back in the guest chair in the corner.
“You okay?” Gunner asked.
I nodded. “Exhausted. Get a staff member so Anna’s not left like this.”
Gunner went for help.
I checked my phone and had four texts from Paul.
Paul: Slight problem with the construction. You might want to return when possible.
Paul: FYI, called in Ivy. Greg not responding.
Paul: Working on containment but could use your help.
Paul: are you okay?
I called him. “What’s going on?”
The background noise made it impossible to hear him.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” I said and hung up.
Gunner returned with staff.
“We need to go,” I said.
“Would you like us to call the family or do you want to?” the staff member asked.
“You can. I have another person I need to see,” I said.
Gunner helped me to the car. “Who?”
“Paul, back to the mansion. Something happened,” I said.
Gunner got on the phone with Matt while I pulled my spray bottle of holy water out and spritzed myself and Gunner for protection.
“I’m good,” Gunner said.
“Me too, just a precaution. I’m tired,” I admitted.
“Matt is trying to get Greg over to help. He’s even calling the monks to see...”
“What is it?” I asked. “Paul’s texts didn’t specify and I couldn’t hear him.”
“You don’t have a feeling?” he asked.
I pushed through the fatigue and asked what info he’d gotten from Matt. “Did Frankie contact Matt?”
“Something breached the ceili
ng. Not sure if they broke in or something broke through,” Gunner explained.
I sighed. “The haunted objects got out once before from under the stairs but the evil spirits had remained contained in the attic since I’d moved in. I can’t believe they got out on their own. But they have been more restless with the construction.”
“Maybe we should take you to Mary Lou’s until we get the monks on it. It’s a big job,” Gunner said.
“It’s my house. I have the most authority. I need some help but I have to do it,” I replied.
My beautiful mansion had lights blinking in and out on the second floor. It’d never looked truly haunted before but now it did. I shook my head and walked inside.
Frankie, Paul, Darla, and Ivy were on the second floor using Holy Water and prayers to try and contain the horde of ghosts that were free.
“What happened?” I asked my brother.
“One of the guys cut an opening for the exhaust fan in the new bathroom. It’s code and all. Some of the boards or firewall must’ve been loose and it went up into the attic. The guy was knocked off the ladder and it was insane,” Frankie shouted.
“I warned you about the attic,” I said.
He nodded. “We thought we had firewall and space to work. There is a fan in your bathroom.”
Now wasn’t the time to debate construction protocols. Any breach of the attic space and the ghosts could escape. They were loose and making a mess.
“Death!” I shouted.
Death appeared wearing Anna’s body, so weird. I shuddered but nodded. “Souls. They’ve been avoiding you. Either they go back in the attic or they go for judgement.”
The ghosts began to flee and Death swept around the house, splintering into a group of angels enveloping the dead.
A couple were sporting red eyes and I used Holy Water and my own frustration to pull the demons free and cast them from my home.
“De,” Frankie said. “Out of Holy Water.”
A red-eyed ghost charged my brother and he was growing tired. I mentally grabbed the demon and pulled it toward me. The ghost veered off and Death took it, sparing Frankie.
The demon didn’t stop but flew over my head. I looked up and the demons were swirling around my ceiling—regrouping for another attack. I prayed for backup because I couldn’t handle that many alone.
Then I heard the door open and the monks arrived, chanting in unison. Religious stuff always made the demons recoil. With the new support, I found an energy reserve and tried to control the demons and fling them out of my home.
One demon was stronger than most and seemed determined to come at me.
For a split second, I missed Gran. I called my angels to deal with the ceiling and trap the evil. As I stood up to try and contain the evil, I saw Gran and Eddie appear as well as the trio of angels.
Amy pulled me to the ground and the demon and angels clashed over me. There were sparks and a bright light.
“This is my house, I want you out now!” I shouted.
The demons scattered but immediately my world went dark.
When I was able to open my eyes again, Gran and Eddie stood over me, looking worried. I couldn’t tell exactly where we were but it felt as fluffy as a cloud. We had to be in heaven.
“Am I dead?” I asked.
Gran shook her head. “No, but you took a hit. Go back or you’ll end up dead.”
I felt peaceful and happy. No pain. No stress. No fatigue or worries.
“Go,” Eddie said.
“It’s so restful and nice here,” I said.
“Go,” Gran snapped.
“Are the demons still there?” I asked.
“De, Frankie is,” Eddie said.
I closed my eyes and felt the pain and the weakness consume me again. Waking up in my room, I saw Paul and knew I’d made the right choice.
“Thank God,” Paul said.
“I’m okay.” I sat up to see a monk blessing the plywood covering the hole Frankie had made.
Death stood over me as well. “You’re not on my list. But you were hiding a lot of souls.”
“Gran was hiding them. I never added to the attic. I was waiting until I was strong enough to manage to sort them out. Clearly, there were demons among the dead. Did you get them all?” I asked.
“No, but enough. I’ll be back someday to strip your attic and whatever you have under your stairs. You’ve sucked up a lot of my time this week but this helps my count,” Death replied.
“You have a count? Wow, glad I don’t. Thanks.” I looked around as Death vanished. “Where’s Ivy?”
“She needed a drink. She thought she killed you,” Frankie said.
“Why would she think that? Go get her. Tell her I’m fine. We need her around, she’s a good grounding force.” I stood up slowly.
Paul put a hand on my back and I leaned on him.
Frankie turned to face me. “Ivy felt the pull of Eli. She was attracted to the power in him. In you. She needs to work on her boundaries and grow her inner strength—at least that’s what one of the monks said.”
“And Greg?” I asked him.
“We texted, he never showed up.” Frankie shrugged.
“I knew organized religion will limit the cases he could work on. I’m glad the monks rebel more. That church will control Greg instead of letting him follow what he’s really called to do. Be careful, Frankie. I don’t want you to follow me any more than I want Greg to follow the Pope. You need to trust yourself and do what you’re good at,” I said.
Frankie nodded and smiled at Darla.
“But I don’t want you to cut yourselves off from me either. You’ll both be vulnerable targets. Thanks for the help, Darla,” I said.
“Any time. I’ll get Ivy and tell her you’re fine,” Darla replied.
Paul kissed my head. “You need to rest.”
Frankie hugged me as well. “Sorry, De. We thought we had the same sort of space as above your bathroom already there. That shouldn’t have broken directly into the attic but it was like opening a freezer.”
“I get it. The changes probably stirred them up and the spirits tried to escape. That’s a lot of ghosts pushing on wood. Between your work and their efforts, the physical barrier gave. But if you’re going to flip haunted homes, you’re going to face pissed off spirits and demons. Good practice.” I smiled.
“Rest,” Paul said.
I nudged him. “I’m fine. Starving, actually. I never got dinner. Solved the banshee case. That’s exhausting and then almost dying on top of it made me hungry. I want dessert first and then pizza and French fries—the curly.”
“Anything you want.” Paul hugged me. “You’re sure you’re not pregnant? Sounds like craving food to me,” Frankie teased.
Epilogue
After I got my cast off and had a week to rest, I drove out to the MacLands place alone. It was important to me to check up on them. They were reclusive and not thrilled with me but I’d managed to do what they wanted.
Mrs. Butch walked out. “Morning.”
“Good morning. How’s your husband?” I asked.
“Getting better. Thank you for helping. I hope we don’t lose anyone else,” she said.
I nodded. “Me too. But the banshee won’t be a problem. I handed her over to the angel of Death.”
“That’ll stop a ghost? They can’t visit?” Mrs. Butch asked.
“Normally yes, if they choose. However, once she’s gone through reorientation and is in Heaven—no one really wants to leave. She can blame her family and friends, the people who were alive when she was. Plus, the pure joy of being there, I doubt she’ll worry about the living anymore. But in five years, I’ll check on her and make sure she doesn’t bother your kids,” I said.
Mrs. Butch nodded. “Thanks. You can go to Heaven?”
“I live on two different planes of existence at times. I wish I could say it makes sense. You know, not many people can see ghosts. If most of your family has seen the banshee, it’s not because you�
��re targeted but you’re all gifted. Look at it as a good thing,” I advised.
She smiled. “Might help. Thanks.”
I headed for my car. For once, there wasn’t a murder. The death had been accidental but not necessarily supernatural. The injury too, though Eli probably was pushing things. I had one more stop to make and I could enjoy my restored bedroom.
I drove to the private Catholic hospital where Eli was being treated in the psychiatric ward. Paul warned me Eli would be released to the parish care soon.
I signed in as a consulting psychologist; state certifications still meant something.
His room was nothing like my vision. It was a normal hospital room, except that Eli was in soft restraints.
“Deanna Oscar,” he said.
“Eli. Can’t wear your collar in here?” I teased.
His eyes went red.
“Your little friends don’t like it. Do they? They don’t like me either but that’s okay.” I nodded.
“You took some of my friends away,” Eli replied in his normal voice.
“I can take out more but you seem to invite them in. Very bad priest,” I said.
He smiled as his eyes returned normal. “I need to know what my congregation suffers. I’ll be closer to my people that way.”
“Your people? That’s a load of crap. Why did you infect a banshee with a demon?” I asked.
“Why not?” Eli shrugged.
“To distract me?” I asked.
“All about you, of course it must all be about you.” Eli nodded with a mocking expression on his face.
“You were after Ivy. You had Greg fooled. It’s not just about me. You should’ve stayed in Europe,” I said.
He shook his head. “The power here is so much better.”
“Better than the Vatican?” I laughed. “I’m sure the power and the religious focus must be a million times stronger there.”
“The dark power. The mixed powers. All the religions coexisting and clashing in one place. So rare and intoxicating. The dark takes over at times. You should try it, let it take over you. You’d be more powerful if you let the demons in,” he advised.
I shook my head. “No. I’m stronger sticking to the right side of things. Leave me alone and my friends. I hope the church can cleanse you but I won’t waste any more time on you as long as you keep away from me.”