Stolen Dreams - A Mary O'Reilly Paranormal Mystery - Book Fourteen

by Terri Reid

She shook her head. “Not like it was in the early days,” she said wistfully. “Then it was a masterpiece.”

  She studied him for a moment. “But you aren’t here to listen to me reminisce, are you?” she asked. “Are you looking for someone?”

  “It’s a long story,” he admitted. “But perhaps if you will allow me to introduce you to my friends, we might be able to share it with you and engage your help.”

  “Of course,” she said.

  Ian stepped to the side of her and looked across the cemetery. Mary and Mike were studying the gravestones in a small section that was separated from the others.

  “Oh, that’s the section where they buried all those poor dears,” Sister Maria said.

  “The unwed mothers?” Ian asked.

  She nodded slowly. “Perhaps they were unwed,” she replied. “But didn’t Jesus himself say to the scribes and the Pharisees ‘He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone?’” She smiled up at him. “I’m sure that took them off their high horses.”

  “Aye, he did,” Ian replied.

  “I wonder when we moved away from saving souls to judging them?” she asked him quietly and then she glided in front of him towards Mary and Mike. “Come. Introduce me to your friends.”

  Chapter Thirty-nine

  “Ian, take a look…” Mary paused as she turned towards Ian and saw the ghost by his side. “Oh, I’m sorry; I didn’t realize you had someone with you.”

  “Sister Maria, I’d like you to meet my friends Mary and Michael,” Ian said. “Mary, Mike, this is Sister Maria. She’s been here for about 150 years.”

  “Nice to meet you, Sister,” Mary said. “Mike was just commenting that this would be a peaceful place to rest. Have you found it so?”

  “Well, for the most part, yes,” she said. “But I was quite distressed when we started this whole business with the girls. That’s not what this convent was meant for. We were meant to teach and serve. This new business had nothing to do with that.”

  “Actually, we’re here because of that business,” Mary said. “There is a woman whose baby was taken away from her when she was here. She was never able to find the little girl, never able to make sure she had a good life. She can’t…” She paused, trying to phrase things correctly. “She can’t rest until she is sure her daughter is fine.”

  Sister Maria met Mary’s eyes and smiled. “I understand not being able to rest,” she said gently. “And although mine is just an occasional visit to a place I loved dearly in my life, I have seen the souls of those who wander, searching for rest but not being able to find it.”

  She turned to Mike. “Have we met before?” she asked. “You seem very familiar.”

  Mike smiled at her. “I think we have the same employer,” he replied and then his smile widened as she realized who he was.

  “Angels walking the earth with humans,” she said, shaking her head in awe. Turning to Mary she added, “You must be an exceptional person to keep the company of angels.”

  “Well, I have a special job to do,” she explained. “And Mike helps me with some of the issues we encounter.”

  “Why are you out here in the cemetery and not in the offices?” Sister Maria asked.

  Mary shook her head. “The Mother Superior is not very comfortable divulging information from a past they would sooner forget,” she said. “She was not very welcoming.”

  Sister Maria chuckled softly. “Now that was very diplomatically put, but there must be some other way to get the information you are seeking,” she said, nodding approvingly, and then she slowly looked around the cemetery. “Now I just wonder…”

  “What?” Mary asked.

  “If the old passageway from the cemetery to the convent is still viable,” she said.

  “Old passageway?” Ian repeated.

  “Yes, it’s just this way,” Sister Maria said, gliding down the concrete walkway to a large sepulcher in the middle of the cemetery.

  “But this is a crypt,” Mary said.

  Sister Maria smiled and shook her head. “We wanted everyone to think it was a crypt,” she explained. “But it was an emergency exit in case of fire or attack.”

  “Attack?” Ian asked. “What kind of attack?”

  “Well, the Indians were mostly friendly and had moved across the Mississippi,” she said. “But the government often went back on their word, so we had to be prepared in case there was an uprising.”

  She carefully examined the area around the front of the sepulcher. “Ah, there it is,” she said.

  “What?” Ian asked, peering over her shoulder.

  “That rosette,” she said. “Grab hold of it and turn it slightly to the left.”

  Ian did as he was directed and the rosette moved, revealing a small indentation in the stonework that held a key.

  “It’s still there,” Sister Maria cried, clapping her hands with excitement. “Please see if it will still fit.”

  Ian inserted the key and slowly turned it. The latch on the metal gate barring the door clicked open and Ian pulled the gate open. He reached in and turned the doorknob on the heavy wooden door at the opening, and the latch slid easily open.

  “Well, I’ll be,” he said, pushing the door wider. He looked inside and saw the door and the doorjamb were nearly glued together with a thick layer of spider webs. “So, that’s as far as I’ll be going.”

  Mary looked around and saw an abandoned hoe sitting against the fence. “Here, we can use this and break down the web,” she suggested.

  “It’s not the web I’m worried about,” Ian said. “It’s the number and size of the spiders who have made this place their home.”

  “Come now,” Sister Maria said. “Enough time wasted. Take hold of that equipment and breech the crypt.”

  “Yes, Ma’am,” Ian said sheepishly and grabbed hold of the hoe and furiously beat away the sticky, silky strands of webbing. When the entrance was finally open, he stepped back and smiled at Mary. “Ladies first.”

  Chapter Forty

  Mary started to step forward, but Ian stopped her. “Just kidding, love,” he said with a wink. “I’ll go in first.”

  She watched as he stepped through the open doorway into the darkness and disappeared. “Ian,” she called softly as she followed him in. “Are you okay?”

  She was immediately assailed by the pungent scent of rotting vegetation, moist earth and mold. The interior walls were stone and were covered by a coating of green moss. The ground was dirt, powdery and dry like walking across talcum powder. She could see Ian’s footprints imprinted in the soft ground and wondered how long it had been since someone else, someone human, had walked here.

  “It’s a wee bit like home,” Ian commented dryly over his shoulder as he examined the stonework on the wall. “Nothing like a dark, damp, musty stone corridor to make you homesick.”

  Smiling, she came up next to him. “Well, don’t get too emotional,” she teased. “I didn’t bring my purse, so I don’t have a hankie to dry your tears.”

  He grinned at her. “Well, I’ll just have to suck it up then.”

  She stepped alongside him, pulled out a flashlight she did have in her jacket pocket, and shone it down the long, narrow corridor.

  “You have a flashlight, but you don’t have a hankie?” Ian asked.

  Mary smiled. “Well, you have to have your priorities,” she quipped as she slowly moved the beam over the stonework. “How safe do you think it is?”

  “It looks solid and well-made,” he replied. “And I don’t see any evidence of accumulating moisture to make me think the stones are loose or the mortar has deteriorated.”

  Mary nodded. “Okay then,” she said, stepping forward.

  “Hold on there,” Ian exclaimed, grabbing on to her shoulder and pulling her back. “You’re not going down this path until I’ve had a look-see.”

  “But—” she began.

  “No,” he replied, his voice firm. “If the damn thing falls in on me, I might get a concus
sion or a broken arm. But you’ve got a wee one you’re protecting and you’ll not take the risk. I’ll walk the path, ensure it’s safe and then come back and get you.”

  “But what if something happens down there and you can’t let me know?” she asked.

  He smiled reassuringly at her. “Don’t worry; I’ll be fine.”

  She huffed with frustration. She knew he was right about leaving her behind, but she didn’t have to like it. “Did you download the walkie-talkie app last night?” she asked. “This would be the perfect time to test it out.”

  “Aye,” he said, pulling out his phone. “I’ve got it here.”

  They both opened the app, accessed the same channel, and Mary held her phone up to her mouth. “Testing, one, two, three,” she said.

  Ian, with his phone to his ear, nodded. “You came in loud and clear,” he said. “Now, you wait here and I’ll call if there are any issues.”

  “Wait! Check how many bars you have,” Mary insisted.

  Ian looked at his phone. “I have one bar,” he said, with a casual shrug. “Plenty to call.

  “Unless you lose it as you go farther into the tunnel,” Mary argued. “I still don’t like this idea. I want Mike to go with you.”

  Ian shook his head. “No, he’s staying with you,” he insisted.

  “Really?” Mary argued. “Let’s weigh the odds between this hundred-year-old tunnel collapsing and a demon showing up in a church cemetery. Either Mike goes with you, or I do.”

  “Mary, I don’t like this idea,” Mike said, appearing next to Ian. “We don’t know that something won’t show up.”

  Mary shook her head. “If it does, I’ll deal with it,” she replied. “And the longer we stand here and argue, the less likely are our chances of getting the information from the convent. Besides, you both are only going to be a short distance away. I’ll call if I need you.”

  Resigned, Mike turned to Ian. “I’ll go with you,” he said grudgingly. “As long as you kill any spiders we meet along the way.”

  “Fine,” Ian replied, knowing he wasn’t going to win the argument. “As long as you go first.”

  Mike smiled. “Deal.”

  Mary watched them disappear into the darkness and tried to suppress a tremor of fear when the beam from the flashlight disappeared in the distance. She looked around the dark, enclosed area, and her heart accelerated slightly. She hadn’t wanted either of them to think that she was nervous about being left alone for the first time since her encounter with the demon. But the truth was, she was slightly terrified.

  “Don’t worry, my dear,” Sister Maria said, appearing next to her. “You’re safe here.”

  “How did you know?” Mary asked and then felt the same feeling of dread she had felt just before entering the dining room. She looked at the sweet nun’s face, studied her eyes and saw something change. “You’re not Sister Maria.”

  “Hello again, Mary O’Reilly,” the deep voice resonated throughout the small space. “I told you we would meet again.”

  Chapter Forty-one

  Mary turned towards the doorway back to the cemetery, but before she could take a step, the door slammed shut, leaving her standing in the dark. She felt panic well in her breast as her breathing became shallow and she backed away from the demon. She instinctively placed her arms over her belly, protecting her unborn child.

  “Frightened?” the demon asked, a smile widening on its face causing the sweet nun to have a macabre, almost clown-like look. “I like it when you’re frightened.”

  She took an unsteady breath and then remembered what Mike had mentioned. Closing her eyes, she earnestly offered up a prayer of protection. When she opened her eyes, she was alone in the crypt. “Thank you, Heavenly Father,” she gasped and leaned back against the bracken-covered wall, trying to catch her breath.

  Less than a moment later Mike appeared next to her, his eyes wide and his body positioned for fighting. He stood in front of her and surveyed the area. “Where is he?” he demanded.

  “Gone,” she whispered. “I think.” She took a deep breath and focused on her intuition to determine if she still felt the uneasiness she had felt just before she had encountered him. She searched her feelings and then finally shook her head. “Gone,” she said, her voice stronger. “At least for now.”

  Mike turned to her. “Are you okay?” he asked.

  She nodded slowly. “Okay, that was both creepy and weird. He took the appearance of Sister Maria and then I could see it wasn’t her,” she said. “I feel like I’m in the middle of one of those summertime horror movies, and I’ve got to say I don’t like it.”

  “Mary, I’m so…” Mike began, but the sound of someone running down the corridor towards them interrupted him.

  “Mary!” Ian yelled. “Mary, answer me!”

  “I’m fine, Ian,” she called out. “I’m okay.”

  He appeared from the dark corridor, slightly panting and with a sheen of sweat on his forehead. He bent over slightly, his hands on his knees. “Thank God,” he gasped. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been as frightened in my life. I’m so sorry. I never even thought…”

  “How did you know?” she asked.

  “Well, Mike suddenly disappearing from in front of me was the first clue,” he said, catching his breath. “But then I…I felt it. It was the most overwhelming feeling of evil. It’s like the fear is instinctual, rather than cognitive.”

  Mary nodded. “Yes, exactly, like you want to run away, but your feet are frozen,” she said. “I’m sure it’s exactly what they mean when they say ‘deer in the headlights.’”

  Ian straightened and walked over to her. “I’m such a dolt,” he said, shaking his head. “To leave you here, unprotected. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  “Ian, this is not your fault,” she insisted. “I forced both of you to leave me alone. It was my call. Besides, it was better this time.”

  “Better?” Mike asked.

  “I remembered to pray, and it worked,” she said. “Almost immediately.”

  Mike paused for a moment and studied her. “Tell me about what happened,” he said, his voice filled with misgiving.

  “Okay,” Mary replied slowly, wondering what Mike was worried about. “It appeared next to me, looking like Sister Maria, and told me that I didn’t have to fear. I wondered how she knew that I was afraid—”

  “So, you were afraid first?” Mike asked. “Before the Sister appeared?”

  “Yes, once you and Ian disappeared down the corridor, I thought about being alone here in this little room away from everyone, and I kind of spooked myself,” she said.

  “Which is when it arrived,” Mike stated.

  “Yes, looking like Sister Maria,” she said. “Then I looked into its eyes and knew it wasn’t the Sister. The feeling of fear increased, and it smiled and reminded me that it had said we’d meet again.”

  “Then what?” Ian asked.

  “I freaked a little,” she admitted, “and tried to run, but it closed the door on me. So, I backed up against the wall. Only then did I remember to pray, and then it left immediately.”

  “Did it leave because of the prayer or because it knew Mike would be coming?” Ian asked.

  “What do you mean?” Mary asked.

  “Well, angels and demons have a long and storied history of being combatants with the angels generally coming out on top,” Ian said. “So, as soon as Mike was on his way, it left, just like it did in the dining room.”

  “Are you saying my prayers don’t work?” she asked.

  He shook his head. “No, not that at all,” he added. “I just wonder if they work that quickly. I’m thinking that most demons would continue to challenge you as long as they could, break you down, even though you’ve prayed. I think they want to see if you are resolute in your faith, or only mouthing something you’ve heard.”

  “And if you’re not resolute?” she asked.

  Ian shrugged. “Well, if you don’t have the faith to fig
ht a demon,” he said, “then it eventually wins. Faith is basically your sword of protection.” He paused and looked at the tall, powerful angel standing next to them and shook his head. “Actually, Mike is your sword of protection. But for most people, they need to rely on faith.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Mike said. “Mary’s faith is strong.”

  “Aye, it is,” Ian agreed. “But now, with the babe, her first instinct is to protect, not to fight. So, if the demon can take advantage of those first few moments…”

  “He gains the upper hand,” Mike finished.

  Mary didn’t like the feeling of unease that was growing inside her. Her faith was strong enough to fight the demon, and besides, once she prayed, Mike would come. “Why are we worrying?” she asked. “There’s no place on earth that I would go where Mike couldn’t.”

  Ian breathed a slow sigh of relief. “Aye, you’ve got a point,” he agreed. “But I’m still feeling anxious about the whole thing.”

  “Well, you shouldn’t,” she replied decisively, walking away from them towards the corridor. “But this time, I’m going with you.”

  Chapter Forty-two

  The corridor was narrow and damp, but the ground was dry and the walls seemed to be solid. The pathway sloped slightly, giving Mary the impression they must be traveling under the small, mounded, flower gardens that surrounded the convent.

  “How far did you get?” Mary asked as they passed the five minute mark and the path turned towards the right.

  “I had just turned here when Mike disappeared,” Ian said.

  Mary stopped, looked back and shook her head. They had been walking at a good pace for those five minutes, so they had traveled nearly a third of a mile. “Wow, that was quite a run,” she said.

  “It was my effort at the six-minute mile,” he replied with a shrug. “It’s amazing how fast you can run when you think someone’s life is in danger.”

  “Well, thank you,” she said. “I really appreciate the effort.”