by David Clark
Edward stood there helpless over his lifeless body as the paramedics administered aid. He heard one of them mention it appeared he suffered a severe cardiac event before one of them began CPR. The other took off and returned with a gurney. Edward helped them load him on the gurney and then rush to the ambulance.
The sirens wailed as Sheriff Tillingsly was rushed to the hospital. The last remaining paramedic crew was tending to the many people injured. They attempted to check Father Murray several times, but he brushed them off each time.
Edward stood in the middle of the chaotic scene of light and sounds as people rushed around. He felt numb to all of it though, like he was watching it all from the outside.
Father Murray brushed off another try to tend to several scratches across his face. He approached Edward very agitated. “You can’t just freeze like that. Lewis could have died. We both could have.” His tone of voice snapped Edward back to the here and now. A heavy disdain for himself settled on his shoulders. It was fueled by the disappointment he felt in himself and that coming from everyone else that passed him. He was supposed to know how to handle these situations. Or was he? Edward tried to explain. “I had no control over it. That thing took me someplace else. It took me back to the day someone killed my parents.”
“Took you some place? What the hell are you talking about?” He turned and walked away from him.
“I couldn’t see you or the sheriff. I was some place dark and silent. It was just me and it.”
“I told you this the first day. You have to be strong in your convictions. It detected weakness in you and took advantage of it. That is why he went after you and not Lewis or me. You were the weak link he could exploit, and he did.” He walked away again, shaking his head. “This is my fault. You are not ready for this.”
“That is what it said, too,” Edward said.
“See, that is what I am talking about. It knows.”
Following a few feet behind the Father, Edward said, “It was more than that. Something about trying to tell me the truth.” Edward struggled to remember the details. Like a dream he woke up in the middle of, he remembered a few feelings and words, but specific details dissipated from his mind.
“What truth can that thing possibly offer you? Think about it. The Devil and his minions are creatures of lies and promises. Scripture teaches us that. I don’t want to hear anything else about it. WE have a disaster to clean up.”
Edward remembered one vague detail he felt compelled to share. “It said something about a child opening something.”
At first Father Murray ignored what Edward said, but hesitated for a second and asked, “What did it say about a child?”
Edward tried to remember more details, but he could only come up with disjointed phrases. “Something about an opening and a child playing with something like a Ouija board.”
Father Murray looked around at the people leaning against cars and sitting on the ground. His attention focused on Charlotte Reynolds, sitting on the back step of the remaining ambulance. The medics were tending to what looked like a bite wound on her face. Father Murray walked toward her, quicker than before. He approached Carol Reynolds, her mother, who was standing beside her, and placed his reassuring hand on her shoulder. “How is everyone doing over here?” he asked.
Carol turned toward the Father and Edward, tears streaming down her face. “We are ok. Once they are done here, we will head to the hospital, so they can stitch her up.”
“How are you holding up Carol?” Father Murray asked.
“I am a mess. What happened here? I have never seen so many, and they were aggressive. They chased us down.” At that moment, Edward ignored the fearful look in her eyes and caught sight of the claw marks on her arms. These were all real injuries, not like the flames that engulfed Kevin Kirkland. There was real pain and damage here.
“I am not sure Carol, but trust in me. We will protect you,” Father Murray said in that consoling tone of voice he had used many times to comfort people in times of need for the last several decades. Edward thought there must be magic in that tone. They did not protect anyone tonight, but Carol ignored all the pain her and her family had suffered and accepted his promise. “Thank you, Father.”
“Before you take Charlotte, I need to talk to her for a few minutes, if that is ok?”
Carol did not question why and agreed. “Of course.”
Father Murray took off his large black brimmed hat and settled on the step next to Charlotte. “I thought you would have given it a good upper cut before it got you.”
A smirk showed on the young girls face as she replied, “I got a few good blows in.”
“That’s my girl. Can you tell me what happened?”
“I was asleep when they appeared. These are not like the ones we usually see. Those pay no attention to us. These were here, in our world… and they ran after us, yelling and growling the whole time.”
Not finding any helpful details, Father Murray probed further. “What about before you went to sleep? Did you notice anything, or did something happen?”
The girl’s body language changed, and she stared at a spot on the ground in front of her.
“Come on, Charlotte. Can you tell us anything that might help us?” Father Murray said as he looked at Edward.
“We just watched a movie. She went home, and I went to bed.”
Father Murray had the look of a man who knew he was just lied to. Before he could try another question, Edward jumped in. “Sarah, my daughter. Is that who you were watching a movie with?”
“Yes, Mr. Meyer. We were just watching a movie. We didn’t mean to cause any problems,” Charlotte said with a quiver in her voice.
“What did you do?” her mother asked.
“Sarah showed me a book. She said it was THE book. We didn’t read anything out loud.”
Father Murray mouthed “the book” in Edward’s direction. “It is important that you answer me very truthfully. Did you read anything at all? Even just to yourself?”
“No. I just looked at the outside and flipped through it.”
Father Murray looked up at her mother as he said, “Thank you. Everything is going to be ok.”
He got up and put his hat back on.
“Come, Edward. We need to go talk to your daughter.” Father Murray sprinted toward his Caddy.
31
Father Murray sped down the dark country roads with reckless abandon. Edward’s mind raced just as fast, searching for answers. Sarah had never had the book or the cross. Even if she did, how would she even know what to do? Then he remembered. When he rushed out to meet Father Murray, the book and cross were not where he left them. Had she taken them when she went to Charlotte’s? That was the only explanation.
“Edward, what is it?”
“Huh?”
“What’s wrong? You yelled ‘Jesus’.”
Edward was unaware of the utterance. It must have been a subconscious reaction to the realization. “Sarah must have grabbed the book before heading to Charlotte’s. I noticed when I came to meet you it was not where I left it.” Edward was not sure if he could let his priest down any more than he already did, but he had now proven that wrong. “I am sorry. I know I shouldn’t have let it out of my sight.”
“Don’t be silly. You were at home. How could you have known?” His words were meant to reassure Edward, but his tone told a different story. “The important thing now is to find out which page she read from.” Edward then heard Father Murray say under his breath, “I think I already know.”
As they sped through town, the streets were vacant. The siren wailed and the red lights flashed. Edward struggled with his thoughts, trying to piece together what he was shown and what he saw. The line separating both was rather fuzzy. The word “portal” repeated in his head several times.
“It said someone opened a portal. A portal to where?” Edward asked.
“Where? I don’t know. No one does. Here is a way to think of it… or how I think of i
t. The common thought in the church about possession is you have to invite and accept the demonic spirit. The portal is a doorway opened to accept or invite them in. Whether it is a doorway to some spiritual place…” Father Murray yanked the wheel to the left and then back again. The tires squealed in response, trying to maintain traction on the road surface. “Damn deer, the spirits must be spooking them. Anyways… we are not sure if it’s specific to some realm or just a general doorway to all spirits. What I know is every time one is opened, nothing good comes through, and we need to close it.”
“There is a page for that?” Edward asked. He hoped for a simple “yes”.
“More than one page. We will have to try many things and we may need help. Until then we will have our hands full.”
“Wait, help? Help from who?” Edward asked.
“The Church has people I can call who specialize in this kind of thing. But I am hoping we can act quickly enough that won’t be necessary. We have to close the portal, and fast. That will limit how many creatures come through. GOD knows, we will have our hands full dealing with what already has.”
Edward’s mind pictured the swirling disk of black with creatures coming through it. “Why don’t we force them back through or open another portal to push them back through?”
Father Murray glared at Edward and said, “No! Clear that thought out of your mind.”
Father Murray swerved his Caddy onto Edward’s driveway. In just moments it came to a stop in front of the door. Both men exited and raced through the spirits encircling the farmhouse. Edward noticed a few red entities in the grouping, but continued in without a word to Father Murray. He continued up the stairs to wake Sarah, while Father Murray stayed in the living room. Edward returned moments later with a sleepy teenager following behind him asking, “Dad, why did you wake me?”
Father Murray spoke before Edward could answer his daughter. “Sarah darling, we need to talk to you, and you need to be very truthful. You are not in any trouble. Tonight, when you were with Charlotte, what did you guys do?”
The look of someone wide awake and trapped replaced the sleepy look in Sarah’s eyes. “We watched a movie, why?” she said.
“Sarah, you need to tell us the truth,” Edward pleaded. Father Murray waved his hand in Edward’s direction. Edward gave him a curt node.
“Sarah, a demonic portal opened behind Charlotte’s house tonight. Several creatures came through. One bit her on the face. Others attacked her mother. I need you to tell me what page you read from tonight when you were there.”
Sarah dropped and sat on the bottom step of the stairs. She buried her head in her knees and sobbed.
Father Murray stepped forward and very sternly, as if giving a sermon, said, “Everyone will be ok, and you aren’t in any trouble. You had no way of knowing what could happen, but I need to know what page you read from so your father and I can stop it before someone else is hurt.”
“I am sorry. I had no idea. Everyone at school knows who I am, and they have all heard the legend of the cross and book. I get asked everyday if I have ever seen it. I didn’t mean any harm. Just wanted to show it off.”
“That is fine, but the page. I need to know the page.”
Father Murray extended his hand toward Edward. Edward pulled the book out of his pocket and gave it to Father Murray. He knelt in front of Sarah and presented the book. “The page, Sarah. Please?”
She took the book and flipped through several pages. About two thirds through the book she spun it around and pointed to a page.
Father Murray glanced the page and dipped his head. Without moving he said, “Thank you. You can go back upstairs. Your father and I will handle this.”
Sarah stood up, tears streaming down her cheeks. Guilt filled her eyes. In between sobs, she said “Daddy, I am sorry. I am really sorry.”
Edward said, “It’s ok. Go on back to bed.” Edward was not sure if everything was ok. He was trying to shield his daughter from what this was. From the body language of Father Murray, he sensed things were a long way from being ok.
After a few moments of silence between them, Father Murray stood up and walked toward the kitchen. “I will need some coffee,” he said while pulling a familiar flask out of his pocket. “I suggest you have some too.”
Edward followed him into the kitchen. He took his familiar seat at the table while Edward prepared the base for their liquid courage. Edward delivered the steaming hot cups of caffeine to the table and Father Murray opened the flask and poured a generous amount into his coffee. Father Murray extended it over Edward’s cup and paused for Edward to nod permission.
“So now what?” Edward asked.
“It is not Sarah’s fault. What she read was in Latin. I am sure it sounded fancy and impressive to her, but she didn’t know what the words meant.”
“What did they mean?”
“She asked Satan to grant her the power to open a doorway for his army of darkness.”
Edward had just picked up his coffee cup when Father Murray explained the prayer. He dropped it the inch back to the table. It landed with a thud. Coffee sloshed over the edge and onto the table. “Why would a prayer like that be in the book?” he asked.
Father Murray sighed and sat back. “Well, do you want to complex or simple answer?”
“Just an answer.”
“In all conflicts, there are two sides. The dark and the light. Good and Evil. At some point someone on the side of the light always considers trying to harness the powers of the dark to aid them. There are several prayers or readings in the book that attempt to do that. They were enticed by the power they perceived to exist.”
Edward bluntly asked, “My relatives were Devil worshipers?”
“Absolutely not. Your family is one of the most prestigious and religious families in the world. They tried to use these dark passages to aid them in their duties. How can I explain it? It is like someone who is against violence and guns, resorting to violence to further their cause.” Father Murray thought about it for a second and then said, “That didn’t help clear it up, did it? Just understand your family is an honorable family. They understand the responsibility of their duty and the power that exists on both sides. Along the way, they made a few bad decisions about how to use those powers to fulfill their duties.”
“So, what do we do? I assume there is a page that counters this spell.”
“Not exactly. I need to call someone. This is above both you and me. I tried once before and failed. I won’t take that chance again.”
Father Murray’s final word crossed into Edward’s ears as a loud vibration built inside. The room around him faded to black. There was no chill or tingling forewarning him of the presence, but in just moments he was back in a familiar vacant place, and he was not alone. That same presence was in there with him.
A voice boomed through the blackness. “Remember what I showed you.”
The black void gave way to the scene of his parents lying on the floor in the kitchen. Their arms were moving, pointing toward the table, pointing toward Father Murray. He was on his knees weeping.
“Search for the truth, Edward. Search for the truth.”
“Edward. Edward, can you hear me?” The image of his kitchen cleared, and he was once again sitting at the table across from Father Murray.
Edward responded, “Yes, Father. I can now. It was here again.”
“You must block him out of your mind. Strengthen the conviction of your faith. I will help you learn to battle it.”
As Father Murray explained, Edward’s mind pondered what it was just shown. The phrase still echoing deep in his thoughts forced a question to the surface. Edward exploded, interrupting Father Murray. “Why were you here the night my parents were killed?”
Father Murray was taken aback by the question. Edward considered the possibility he wasn’t there, and the creature was showing him a false story. The expression in the eyes of the person sitting across from him said something different.
“That was the worst day of my life, in so many ways.” He took a tentative sip of coffee, his hands shaking the entire time. “I didn’t know you saw me.”
“Why were you here?”
“We were trying to save you and your mother, but were too late. Your father… your father rushed in before I got there.”
Father Murray’s words contradicted the story he’d been told. They told him it was a break in, and the cops believed his parents heard a sound and went downstairs to check it out. When they walked into the kitchen, they startled the burglar and he killed them before they had a chance. There was obviously more to the story, and Edward wanted to know it all. He demanded, “Tell me what happened. Not the story you all told me about a burglar. Tell me the truth.”
Father Murray swallowed and took a deep breath. “You should know the truth, but let me say I am so sorry. I didn’t understand as much as I do now. We were in the middle of an extremely bad and violent period of spiritual activities. Your father and I were trying everything we could to keep things under control and some days we did, and others were not so good. We were desperate and tried something. Just once. We thought we could keep it controlled, but it got away from us.”
“What did?”
“We were out in the pasture just on the edge of your property. One of the creatures took off toward the house. Remember I told you they’re drawn by the energy of the book and cross. Your father left the cross inside, and this one was going for it. I heard your mother scream before your father reached the porch. Then I heard your father screaming prayers and commands. I entered the backdoor just as your father fell to the floor. The book and cross both crashed on the floor and slid toward me.”
“What did Father?” Edward questioned, louder this time, insisting on an answer.
“Before I could do anything it was gone. Your parents were dead, and you were standing in the kitchen doorway. We called Lewis earlier when we headed out into the pasture to deal with it.”