The Demon Within

by Robert L. Bryan

  “What’s the reason?” Finn asked.

  “Because it happened!”

  There was silence inside the vehicle for the first ten miles on the New York State Thruway.

  “The Mid-Hudson Forensic Psychiatric Center. They call it a hospital,” Nancy chuckled sarcastically. “Have you ever been to a facility for the criminally insane, Finn?”

  “No, I haven’t”

  Nancy sighed. “Well, I know exactly what your expectations are – hellish scenes of cages and restraints, the better to keep us safe from the Hannibal Lecters of the world.”

  “I don’t know if I’d put it quite that way,” Finn opined.

  “Oh, it’s OK,” Nancy continued. “It is hellish, but not because the patients are restrained. Quite the opposite. I was shocked at the amount of freedom patients have, even the violent ones. Charlie has been assaulted several times for absolutely no reason other than the fact that violent crazy people are allowed to roam freely around the facility.”

  “Have you done anything?”

  “I had a meeting with the facility administrator to demand to know how he was going to ensure my son’s safety.”

  “What did he say?”

  “The administrator said they were currently testing innovative tactics to curb violent behavior, such as music, water beds, playground swings, and the use of humor.”

  “The use of humor?” Finn questioned

  “I guess they tell the patients jokes. Keep them laughing and they won’t attack anyone. Can you believe this? Nancy’s disgust was obvious.

  “I guess there’s not much you can do.”

  “Oh, I was given a choice,” Nancy snarled. “The administrator said I could choose to have Charlie placed in solitary confinement.” She took a deep breath. “Some choice, huh. Leave Charlie at the mercy of violent crazies or lock him away alone.” Nancy reached over and placed her left hand on Finn’s right forearm. Her voice now slightly quivering. “Finn, my boy is slow, but he is not insane and he is not a murderer. If I don’t get him out of this place soon, he will be insane.”

  Finn was relieved to find the dry overcast conditions still holding seventy miles north of the city. When Nancy pointed to the two o'clock position, Finn laid eyes on the facility for the first time. It was stunning. The building was a classic mansion of red brick and white columns, but as he got closer, Finn could see the facility decaying and weathering with age, but it was still an imposing structure. Five minutes inside the asylum was enough for Finn to recognize the ironic contradiction. This asylum was no place to seek asylum, at least not in the traditional sense of the word. An asylum should be a place of refuge from the storms that hurt the mind. a place of love and sanctuary. Finn couldn't help but feel the bare walls and bare floors reflecting the real identity of the institution, a place devoid of hope and love. Then there were the windowless rooms, the lack of real light, the doors without handles, all symbols of a metaphor for emotional indifference.

  Finn found the huge visiting room as cold and unwelcoming as every room he passed through. He noted that the staff seemed to fit the atmosphere perfectly. No one smiled or provided any greetings, even when Nancy was signing in at the main reception desk. If not for the white uniforms, Finn would be hard pressed to distinguish patents from staff.

  Finn followed Nancy to an empty table in the corner of the room. “Sit,” she said while easing into the adjacent chair. “They’ll bring Charlie out in a minute.”

  Sitting at the table to Finn’s right, an old lady rocked back and forth. In her gnarled hands was the figurine of a horse, likely the only thing the old man, probably her husband, had gotten past hospital security. The old man gave his wife a child’s sippy cup filled with juice, and no one was going to get it away from her until she completely drained the juice. The old woman appeared disappointed that her drink was gone, but she seemed happy to return to stroking the horse. She turned and spoke with the voice of a petulant child, "Finders keepers, losers weepers!" Then she turned back to the horse and stroked it again.

  Finn found the scene incredibly depressing. He looked away from the old woman’s table just in time to hear Nancy announce, “Here he comes!”

  From across the room Finn observed one of the emotionless looking staff members escorting a tall, stocky young man. His round face under short brown hair was beaming. At that moment he looked like the happiest person in the world.

  “Mommy!” Charlie blurted as he met Nancy in the warmest embrace Finn had ever seen.

  “How’s my boy?” Nancy’s voice was trembling

  “Am I coming home with you today, mommy?”

  “Not today, Charlie. Just a little while longer.”

  Charlie seemed to lose the energy in his body. “Oh, I want to go home. I don’t like it here.”

  “I know, baby,” Nancy consoled. “Just a little while longer.”

  Nancy welcomed the opportunity to change the subject. “Hey, Charlie. I brought a friend with me today to see you. This is Finn.”

  Finn extended his hand. “Nice to meet you, Charlie.”

  “Hello, Finn,” Charlie smiled.

  For the next thirty minutes Finn took Charlie through his entire life, from school, memories of his dad, high school graduation, his job, and his friends. Charlie really did seem like a gentle soul. Finn could not picture this boy hurting an insect, no less butchering three people in the woods.

  Finn felt it was important to develop a rapport with Charlie, but he knew it was time to move into talking about his friends and the night of the murders.

  "When did you meet Andre Rosick?" Finn thought he noted a confused look on Charlie's face. "Just do your best if you don't remember exactly when."

  "Oh, that's OK," Charlie smiled. "I've been asked that question so many times. I met Drago the first day I started my job."

  "And that was about two and a half years ago, correct?" Finn clarified.

  "That's correct."

  "Why was Andre called Drago?"

  Charlie shrugged. "I don't know. I never asked him."

  "How often would you hang out with your friend, Drago?"

  "Every weekend, and sometimes during the week." Charlie smiled toward Nancy. "Mom didn't like me staying out on a work night."

  "What would you do with Drago?"

  "Lots of fun things. We would go to the movies and sometimes play pool."

  "Anything else?" Finn probed

  "Yeah," Charlie continued. "Drago liked scary things. We would do scary things that were fun."

  "What kinds of scary things?" Finn asked.

  "Like Halloween scary," Charlie replied. "Ghosts, monsters, demons. That kind of stuff."

  "Where would you do this scary stuff?" Finn continued.

  "Mostly when we went to church."

  "Church?" There was obvious surprise in Finn's voice.

  "Yeah, it was church. But it wasn't like mass me and mom went to at St. Joan of Arc."

  "Where was this church?" Finn asked

  "In the city somewhere," Charlie responded. "I'm not sure what street. Drago was always with me."

  Finn pressed on. "What was church like that made it fun and scary?"

  "It was fun. We wore masks, and people wore robes and hoods. It was just like Halloween."

  Finn referenced the other two murder victims. "Did Christian and Armando go to church too.?"

  "Yeah, I met them at church, but they didn't hang out with me and Drago outside of Church."

  Finn took a deep breath. He knew he was getting to the most important part of his interview. "Charlie, on the night the very bad thing happened, why did you go into those woods with Drago?

  Charlie's relaxed demeanor seemed to abandon him. "We went there to have fun," he answered in a nervous tone.

  "Was that the first time you were in those woods?"

  "Yes."

  "Did you know where you were?"

  "Not really," Charlie replied. "Drago just said we were in some park."

  "And
Christian and Armando were with you?"

  "Yes."

  "What did Drago say you were going to do in the woods?" Finn asked.

  "Drago said we were going to have scary fun like at church - with monsters and demons."

  "Why didn't you just have the fun at church? Finn continued. "Why go to the woods?"

  Charlie shrugged. "Drago said the priest at church didn't want to have too much scary fun, so we would have to go somewhere else to have fun alone."

  Finn sighed and continued. "What happened when you got into those woods?"

  Charlie stopped making eye contact. "We came to this area with no trees, and Drago drew the scary symbol in the dirt."

  "What symbol?"

  "The same scary symbol they had at church."

  "What did the scary symbol look like?" Finn asked.

  Charlie seemed to become more uncomfortable with each new probe. "A star."

  "Like a star on the American flag?"

  Charlie shook his head and looked down. "No, not like that. It was different."

  Finn was disappointed in himself. If he were a real investigator, he would now be showing Charlie all types of symbols, including the pentagram that had been drawn into the dirt at the murder site. Instead, he had nothing to display. "OK," Finn continued. "What happened after Drago drew the scary symbol?"

  "We all drank wine, and then we began singing the scary song."

  "What was the scary song?"

  Charlie shook his head at a faster speed. "I don't know. It sounded like the same song they sang at church, but it was in a different language. Drago, Christian and Armando sang, I just sort of hummed along with the tune."

  "Do you know what the purpose of the scary song was?"

  "Drago said it was a song to call monsters and demons to us."

  "What happened next, Charlie?"

  Charlie took a deep breath and bit his lip. "We were standing in a circle around the scary symbol. We were singing for about ten minutes, but I had to go to the bathroom really bad, so I went into the trees to pee. While I was peeing, I could see in the clearing that the demons arrived."

  Finn sat back in his chair. "You saw demons?"

  "Yeah, they flew into the clearing."

  "They flew?"

  "Well, I didn't actually see them fly," Charlie admitted, "but how else would they get there."

  "How may demons were there?"

  "Two."

  "What did they look like?"

  "Like demons," Charlie responded.

  "What did their faces look like?"

  "Like horrible, scary demons."

  "What did you see next?"

  Charlies eyes were moist. "The demons killed my friends with a big knife."

  "Did you do anything?"

  "I was too scared," Charlie said. "I stayed hiding behind the tree until the demons left."

  "Did the demons ever say anything?"

  "Yeah." Charlie perked up momentarily. "One demon called out the other demon's name."

  "And what was that name?"

  "Mormo."

  "What happened next?"

  "The demons left.?"

  "Did they fly away?"

  "No," Charlie said. "They ran down the trail."

  "What did you do then?"

  "I went into the clearing and picked up the big knife."

  “Then what did you do?”

  “I laid down next to Drago.”

  “Why?”

  “I thought he might just be sleeping, and I would be there if he woke up.”

  “How long did you lay there?”

  “A long time – until it became light again.”

  “Why did you decide to get up?”

  “When the teenagers came.”

  “What did the teenagers do?”

  "I don't know. They ran away." Charlie looked at Nancy. "I don't want to talk about this anymore."

  "That's OK, Charlie," Finn closed his notepad. "I'm done."

  Charlie did not react to Finn's statement, but continued addressing Nancy. "Can I come home with you today?"

  Nancy grabbed Charlie's hand. "I'm sorry, honey, not today - soon."

  Charlie's eyes were filling up. "I don't like it here. I want to go home!"

  The last thing Finn wanted was to be a part of this gut wrenching scene. "Nancy, spend as much time with Charlie as you can. I'll be outside."

  "Where will I meet you, Finn?"

  Finn thought for a moment. "If the weather is still good, I'll be in the row of benches outside the front entrance." Finn stood up. "It was nice talking to you, Charlie. I hope to see you again." Finn extended his hand, but Charlie did not return the gesture, and instead stared down at the table."

  "Charlie!" Nancy scolded. "Where are your manners. Shake hands with Mr. Delaney."

  Charlie extended his hand, but maintained his focus on the table.

  The sky was still overcast, but it didn't have that feel of impending rain. Finn planted himself on a bench and took in the local scenery. He had to admit that the shrubbery, trees, and quiet created a very peaceful, attractive environment. Finn paged through his notes, not really looking for anything in particular. He stopped on the third page, took out his pen and circled one word - MORMO. Finn brought up Google on his iPhone and searched for MORMO. "Oh my God!" he said out loud when he clicked on the first response.

  Mormo is the demon known as King of the ghouls. He is a demon derived from a spirit of ancient Greek culture, which punished bad children. In addition, he was a consort of Hecate, the Greek goddess of the underworld and witchcraft.

  Finn looked up at the passing clouds. It didn't seem like Charlie was the type of young man who was capable of cutting people's throats, but what did he know. What was more confusing to him now was how Charlie could possibly have known the name of a demon. If he did commit the murders, he was dumb enough to sit there in the blood, holding the knife waiting for the police, and to tell a fantastic story of demons swooping in and doing the deed, yet sharp enough to have the name of one of the demons. It didn't make sense.

  It was so nice on that bench, Finn began to doze off. He didn't know how long he was snoozing when he was aroused by a familiar voice.

  "Are you ready, Finn?"

  Finn shot up from the bench to face Nancy's smiling face.

  "You really looked comfortable," she commented.

  Finn ignored his slumber session as they walked toward the parking lot.

  Nancy shook her head. "Every time I see him, it's heartbreaking."

  "He seems like a good kid," Finn commented.

  "Good, bad, or indifferent," Nancy declared. "He did not commit those murders. He's not capable of it."

  Finn stopped on the sidewalk. "Nancy, you're not saying that you believe demons swooped in and did it, are you?"

  "Of course not," she answered with a tinge of annoyance. "I don't know who did it, but I know Charlie didn't do it."

  There was silence for the rest of the walk to the Camry. When they were both seated in the car, Nancy grabbed Finn's right hand before he started the ignition. "What are you going to do now?"

  Finn pushed the ignition button. "I'm gonna do what you hired me to do. I'm gonna take a look at that church."

  Chapter 6: The Church

  May 5th

  It was past 10AM and the desk across the office was still empty. As usual there had been no call from Gladys warning of her tardiness. What else was new? Finn snickered. Maybe she really was dead this time. He shook his head and reminded himself he wasn’t being nice as he opened his case folder. The sound of the street entrance door opening echoed up the stairs and into the office. Eureka! Gladys had arrived and would make her was up the stairs in approximately ten minutes. Finn tapped his fingers on the open folder and pondered what course of action to take. Basically, he had wasted a whole day of surveillance on Joe Wesson, and it was his own fault that the day was a bust. He folded his hands on the desk as he considered that it wasn’t really his fault, it was all ca
used by that jerk cop Rocco Gentile. Wherever the fault lay, Finn had a problem. He wasn’t savvy enough yet to know if it was still appropriate for him to bill the client for a surveillance that he was at least partially responsible for ruining.

  Finn’s concentration was broken by his iPhone. Out of the corner of his eye he could see that there was a new post in one of the Facebook groups he belonged to. Finn picked up his phone and saw that the post was from someone in the group formed for his police academy recruit company. He tapped the screen and waited for the post to load. Five seconds later he was staring at the following post from Rocco G.

  Hey guys – guess what recently retired member of our company with a bum knee was sighted having fun in a notorious male cruising location in Cunningham Park.

  “I don’t believe this,” Finn said out loud. He began furiously typing on the phone. He desperately needed to stay ahead of this. When he finished typing, he tapped the screen and watched his post appear.

  FINN D. – For everyone’s information, I am a private investigator and was performing a surveillance when I ran into Rocco G.

  No sooner did his post display, Finn realized he had made a huge mistake. These were cops in this group, akin to sharks circling a wounded fish in the water. They could smell blood. The posts began arriving fast and furious.

  JOEY F. – Hey Finn. Glad to hear you’re doing well. Stay safe out there and practice safe sex.

  YANKS FAN 1 – Be proud, brother.

  FREDDY MAC – I wish I had known this while we were classmates. I always thought you were hot. DM me!!!!

  KENNY BAGS: Since you’re hanging out near those baseball fields, are you pitching or catching. LOL!!!

  That was all Finn could tolerate at the moment. His right thumb wiped the page clean and he put the phone back on the desk. He took a deep breath. This was actually very funny, but he felt like crying rather than laughing.

  “Whew! I don’t how much longer I can take these stairs.” Gladys had entered the office. “Can’t you get one of those chair lifts installed for me?”

  “Yeah, sure,” Finn remarked as he hit the stairs. “It will be in tomorrow?”