The Demonic: A Supernatural Horror Novel

by Lee Mountford

  ‘We… want,’ the old woman started to say, her words slow and laboured, a strain to get out. Her lips did not move. ‘Your… family.’

  Danni kicked her legs out, trying to catch the woman in the gut. Trying to fight free. However, her feet just glided through air where the woman’s body should have been. Danni then brought her hands up to try to pull the old hag’s hands away, to stop the strangulation, but found only her own throat to touch.

  As if the old woman wasn’t even there.

  And yet, Danni was suspended in the air, and the life was being choked from her. She could see the vile woman before her, but could not physically touch her. That twisted grin returned.

  Danni felt something else, too. Another smaller set of hands grabbed her wrist. She looked down and saw Leah standing beside her. The poor girl looked absolutely terrified, but she began to pull at Danni.

  ‘Let her go,’ the girl yelled and pulled again. ‘Let my mom go!’

  Danni saw blotches of light spring up in her vision as she desperately tried to gulp in some air. Her head hurt terribly, and she started to feel dizzy and light-headed. She felt Leah move, stepping in closer, and then her daughter grabbed Danni tight around the waist. There shouldn’t have been room between Danni and the old woman, but Leah and the hag seemed to be occupying the same space somehow. Leah again heaved and let out a primal scream.

  Then, Danni felt her body fall to the side, suddenly breaking free of the iron-like grip. She dropped to the floor in a tangled mess with her daughter and quickly began to suck in deep, desperate breaths. As Danni tried to orientate herself, she looked up to where the old woman had been only moments ago.

  She was there no longer.

  They both heard a menacing cackle that slowly faded out to nothing.

  Leah wrapped her hands around Danni and hugged her tightly. The girl began to sob, loudly.

  ‘I’m so proud of you,’ Danni said, once she had enough air back into her lungs to do so. Her vision had come into focus again, but her head still throbbed, and her throat felt raw.

  ‘I was so scared,’ Leah said, burying her face into Danni’s chest.

  ‘I know you were, sweetie,’ Danni answered, getting to her feet. They stood together, and Danni cupped Leah’s cheek, looking directly into her daughter’s wet eyes. ‘I know you were scared. But you saved me, hun, scared or not.’

  ‘I don’t know if I can do this.’

  ‘Yes, you can,’ Danni said. ‘Look at what you just did. You saved me. I know it’s terrifying, and I know it feels easier to just turn and run away—trust me, I know all about that—but what you did took courage. You stood up to what was scaring you. That gives you power. You saved me, so what say we go and save your brother, too?’

  Leah took a moment. She still sobbed, and still clung to Danni, but Danni could see a slow change come over the girl. The crying eased, and her breathing deepened. Leah closed her eyes and took a few more breaths.

  Then, she opened her eyes again. The fear was still there, but so, too, was a measure of resolve.

  ‘Okay,’ she said. ‘Let’s go get Alex. And Dad.’

  Danni nodded, again proud of her girl.

  But Danni had her doubts. Leah obviously wanted to help her father, but Danni just couldn’t see how they could. Saving Alex would be hard enough, but she had no idea if she could pull Jon back to sanity. And, the fact that her focus was solely on their son meant she was, consciously or subconsciously, already at peace leaving her husband behind.

  24

  LEAH’S MOTHER led her up the stairs, taking slow and steady steps. The treads creaked beneath them as they ascended.

  Leah’s heart was pumping so fast it felt like it was going to beat its way through her chest cavity. She had never experienced prolonged fear like this and was on the cusp of losing the slim grip she had on her sanity.

  But her mother had been right.

  After she had seen that old woman throw Danni against the wall, Leah was sure her mother was going to die. Right in front of her eyes. And then that demon would turn its attentions to her.

  She had seen the desperation on her mother’s face while fear had frozen Leah to the spot. The thought of her mom—the woman who had birthed and raised her—dying right then and there scared her more than anything else she had experienced this weekend. And it also brought with it a surge of anger. In an instant, Leah had grabbed hold of that anger and used it, refusing to just lie down and let things happen to them.

  She had acted.

  And, it turned out, saved her mother’s life.

  She was still scared, terrified, but her mother was right; she had stood up to the thing that scared her, and she had stared it down. That didn’t make it any less scary, but it gave her the confidence to go on. To keep trying.

  And now, Alex needed her.

  She had always been there for him before and never let him down in her life. She would not start now. They reached the top of the stairs and paused on the landing. Leah peered into the darkness of the corridor, trying to make out whatever might be lurking in the shadows.

  ‘Alex?’ her mother called out, making Leah jump. It seemed any notion of stealth had now been totally discarded.

  There was no reply.

  So they moved down the corridor, farther into the dark while checking each room as they went. They peeked into the bathroom, and Leah shuddered as she remembered the previous night—showering as that horrible man watched her.

  Thankfully, the bathroom was empty. As was the first spare room. Then they came to the master bedroom, the one that belonged to Leah’s grandfather. A man she had never known.

  ‘Alex,’ Danni called again, and Leah managed not to jump this time. Yet again, there was no reply.

  Leah found that curious.

  Only a little while earlier as they stood outside, her mother swore she heard Alex’s crutches as he moved through the house somewhere. So, if he could no longer yell for help, did that mean something had happened to him?

  Her thoughts ran to the incident downstairs as well. One moment, the old woman had been standing outside then, after they were both distracted, she appeared inside, and attacked. Although, it wasn’t the attack that concerned her at the moment, it was the distraction.

  The trickery.

  Suddenly, they heard it again—click, click, click. It sounded close. Close enough to be in the room before them.

  Danni pushed the bedroom door open and stepped inside.

  It felt wrong to Leah.

  ‘No,’ she whispered.

  ‘What is it?’ Danni asked

  ‘It’s a trick,’ she said. ‘This whole thing is a trap.’ The door then suddenly slammed shut between them, confirming her fears.

  Leah heard her mother bang on the other side, and Leah followed suit. She pushed at the door, but it was stuck fast, not yielding even a fraction.

  ‘Leah,’ she heard her mother call from inside the bedroom. ‘Are you okay?’

  ‘I think so,’ Leah said, feeling a growing sense of panic. Being beside her mother gave her extra strength, extra conviction and courage, but now… now she was alone.

  Her mother’s banging stopped.

  ‘Mom?’ Leah yelled and kicked at the door. Then, she heard something that made her body lock up.

  Breathing.

  Slow, laboured breathing.

  She turned her head and looked back down the dark corridor to the landing at the top of the stairs.

  She saw him there.

  His head was high enough to almost touch the ceiling. His jaw hung loose; the skin torn and ravaged.

  It was the same man, the same thing, from the previous night. The one who had watched her in the shower with that wild, predatory expression. His breathing quickened, as if growing excited.

  ‘Mom?’ Leah managed to squeak out. ‘I need help.’

  DANNI HEARD her daughter’s words, but she could do nothing to help. The door would not budge.

  And, only moments aft
er it had slammed shut, she heard something.

  Click, click, click.

  Even before she turned to look, Danni knew deep down that it wasn’t Alex. He had never been in the house—she had been tricked and lured here.

  But something else was in the room with her.

  She heard a voice. ‘Dannielle.’

  It was little more than a whisper, but dripped with vile intent. Danni already knew who it belonged to. She turned to see her father standing in the middle of the room.

  She was gripped by fear and unable to move. Outside, she could hear Leah screaming and kicking at the door. But then the banging stopped, and Leah uttered the words that broke though some of the fear that held Danni in place.

  ‘I need help.’

  Danni pulled her hands up behind her back and grabbed the door handle, yanking at it to no avail. Whatever force was holding it closed was not going to release it.

  Her father laughed and slowly began to move towards her. He didn’t walk, just moved forward, with that taunting, diabolical smile etched in place.

  Danni’s breath locked in her throat, and she tightened up. At the same time, she heard her daughter scream.

  ‘No, stay away from me!’

  Her father stopped, inches from her face. She could feel that intense cold again, and smell that disgusting stench.

  The stench of the dead.

  ‘My… sweet… Danielle. Come… to… dear… old… dad.’

  ‘Leave me alone,’ Danni said.

  He started to laugh.

  THIS WAS THE TORTURE, the true evil, that the ancient thing was capable of.

  The pain of seeing his wife slip away from him and take her own life had been terrible. Losing himself to it was worse. What he did to Danni that terrible night tore him up inside, in ways that were unimaginable. The ultimate horror, and the ultimate shame, in one vile experience.

  But, he knew now the true, malevolent power that the thing had. Simply turning people mad and taking their lives was not enough.

  Lives were finite.

  This was eternal.

  It would own and control whatever was left of Arthur for the rest of time. And it would force him, again and again, to live out vile acts against innocent people.

  But this?

  This was to be the worst of it. He knew that the thing had no intention of letting Danielle and her family die just yet.

  It would hurt them, break them, and totally destroy them. And, after it eventually took their lives, and made him take his own daughter’s life, their nightmare would begin anew. More terrible than ever before, and it would be everlasting. They would be forced to experience taking an innocent life.

  ‘Give me back my son,’ he heard his daughter say. ‘Where is he?’

  Arthur’s hand rose up—he had no choice in the matter—and caressed her cheek. A voice came from the space he inhabited, but it was not his own.

  He had no voice any longer.

  ‘With… his… father. And… our… master. Where… it… likes… to… dwell.’

  Laughter now. Again, not from Arthur, but from the form he was a part of.

  He prayed.

  Arthur had never been a religious man in life, and now that he had seen a small glimpse of other, nightmarish places in death, he knew there was no God. There couldn’t be. But he prayed, regardless, to something, anything that might be listening.

  Let my daughter find the strength to save herself.

  Then he turned his desperation to Danielle, willing his thoughts to be heard by her. He spoke again, the vile message of the demon coming through him.

  ‘We… will… be… together… forever.’

  He swept up a pale thumb and ran it over her lower lip. Danielle was shaking. She closed her eyes, and tears spilled down her face. He was causing this fear, and pain, and anguish, and he would continue to do so until she was too weak to fight back any longer.

  Then it would own her.

  Please, find a way to fight this. You are stronger than we were, Danielle. Find something to fuel your fight.

  They both heard screams erupt from the hallway. Terrible, horrified screams from the young girl.

  Danielle opened her eyes.

  ‘No more,’ she said, in an oddly restrained voice. Though unnervingly calm, a storm of emotion seemed to bubble below the surface. ‘I’m tired of being scared of you. Of this place. Fuck you. You won’t beat me. You hear? Fuck you!’

  She was now screaming.

  She then flung herself forward with a roar, and Arthur felt her actually pass through his form. He whipped round, or rather he was turned, and saw that Danielle was equally surprised, but was no longer pinned into a corner. As the young girl’s cries continued from outside, Danielle's surprise was quickly replaced by a look of determination. She clenched her fists together.

  Then she acted.

  She reached her hand out, grabbed one of the bottles of scotch that stood on the nightstand, and hurled it towards him. It broke against the door. Arthur felt himself smiling and laughing. Danielle grabbed a fuller bottle next and hurled that too, desperate in her attempts to fend him off. That bottle hit the jamb of the door and erupted, spilling alcohol directly below him.

  It was all useless, he knew that, but at least Danielle was fighting. Then, she grabbed whatever else she could: clothes, an old book, more bottles of alcohol, an entire drawer, and hurled those, too, cursing as she did so.

  ‘Fuck you,’ she screamed, and threw more that she could find. ‘Fuck you. Fuck you. Fuck you.’

  Danielle kept going, then grabbed the bedside lamp. Even though it was still connected to the electrical socket, she threw it as well, the cord long enough to let the lamp glide through the air and meet its target. Like everything else, it, too, passed through Arthur and struck the wall behind, smashing the glass shade and dropping to the floor. It bounced off the now wet timber floorboards, and the bulb smashed as well.

  Arthur noticed a small blue flash from the prongs of the lamp beneath the smashed bulb, and small sparks spat to the floor.

  A floor that was now soaked with alcohol.

  Danielle was still throwing whatever she could and swearing her mantra of fuck you, over and over again while she was doing it, and it took a while for her to realise what was happening. The alcohol, and the clothes and other rubbish, caught light. The flames were small at first, but quickly began to spread, fuelled by the alcohol.

  It may have just been luck, but this gave Arthur hope. She had stumbled upon the one thing he knew could help her.

  Fire.

  Arthur’s connection to that thing made him privy to some of its knowledge, fears, and memories. He didn’t understand how it worked, but he knew that fire, somehow, was able to affect the demon’s hold. Just as it had years ago, when the townspeople of Bishops Hill had burned the farm to the ground. They had, completely by accident, stripped the vile monster of some of its power and control, and it had taken time for that power to rebuild.

  However, help though it could, he knew that fire would never really hurt it, or kill it, since you can’t kill the unkillable. But, perhaps, it could be used to give Danielle time.

  Give her a chance.

  The room glowed as the fire took hold, burning through the clothes and other items piled on the floor. It even began to crawl up the wall, following the trail of running scotch up to the impact point of one of the bottles.

  Arthur watched the flames. Somewhere far away he suddenly felt the demon’s anger and despair. As the fire grew, it started to cloud things for the monster, Arthur could sense. He then felt his consciousness start to blur and knew he was being removed from this room, probably to be sent back to that hellish place.

  It both terrified him and thrilled him. Perhaps Danielle could survive, if only for a little longer.

  Arthur lifted up his head to look again at his daughter, for what might be the last-ever time. He was filled with a profound sadness at the misery he’d caused her in life. Whether in
tentional or not, he’d still played a part in it. He hadn’t been strong enough for her. But, he was also proud to see her showing the fight and resolve he had lacked.

  Things became even more unclear, and he was almost too late in realising something; when he had lifted his head to look at his daughter, he had done so of his own volition. It hadn’t just happened to him, it wasn’t the actions of a puppet master, he had done it himself. Arthur realised that if the fire had severed the link, it had somehow given him some control.

  If only for a brief time.

  ‘Danielle,’ he called, once more feeling his own voice, however disembodied it was. ‘Use the fire. Use the fire to—’

  But that was all he managed to get out before he was gone and sent back to that hell.

  25

  DANNI WASN’T sure what the hell had just happened, but she did know she now had an opportunity to get out.

  The fire that she’d inadvertently started was taking over the door, almost covering it completely, so she ran over, fighting through the flames, and grabbed the metal door handle.

  It was hot and burned her hand. She cried out in pain, but didn’t let go. Instead, she pulled at it and the door, thankfully, swung open. Danni then rushed out into the hallway and saw Leah rising to her feet.

  The girl looked horrified and was wheezing. Her eyes were bloodshot.

  ‘What happened?’ Danni asked, grabbing hold of her daughter.

  ‘That man,’ she said through strained breaths. ‘He was here, and he attacked me. He started to choke me, and then… I… I don’t know. He was just gone.’

  Danni didn’t have time to try to figure out what had happened. They still needed get Alex, and now the bedroom behind them was spreading its fire. She grabbed her daughter’s hand and pulled her along the hallway, heading quickly down the stairs.

  ‘We need to go,’ Danni told her.