The Invocation

by Carl Alves

  That little nugget of information gave Jake relief, but Kenna could still get in the line of fire.

  “Stay back, Kenna.” Jake motioned with his hand. “Where’s my mom?”

  “Don’t you worry about her,” Cotter replied. “She’s tucked away nice and safe.”

  “Leave my mom out of this,” Kenna said.

  Jake gritted his teeth. “Stay back. This is dangerous.”

  With obvious reluctance, Kenna took a few steps back and to the side. She still wasn’t far away enough for Jake’s liking, but he couldn’t afford to take his eyes off Cotter.

  “This is between you and me, Cotter. You obviously didn’t come here for my sister. You don’t know Mark and couldn’t have been aware that we would be summoning Mia. I’m the one you want. Well, here I am. There’s no need to involve anyone else.”

  Cotter smirked. “Yeah, I may not be able to do anything to Kenna, but I wouldn’t mind taking out this fat lawyer or that skinny bitch from beyond the grave. I’ve killed almost a dozen people since I’ve been back including a cop just the other night. I’m having the fucking time of my life.”

  “Leave them alone.” Jake took a couple of steps forward. “Let’s settle this like men. I gave you a ridiculous beatdown last night. I know that must be eating away at you. You want revenge. Well, here I am. No cage. No referee. No rules. Just me and you.”

  “Yeah, that’s all well and good, but I ain’t playing your game.” Cotter pulled out a gun from his jacket.

  From behind him, Kenna screamed.

  Cotter laughed. “You don’t look so tough anymore. You think you’re some kind of bad ass. Well, I told you I was going to put you six feet under. I may be many things, but I ain’t a liar.”

  There was no time to think. It was all instinct and reaction. Still about ten feet away from Cotter, Jake charged at him like he was shooting in for a takedown. He dove left at the last moment, anticipating Cotter’s reaction.

  Cotter pulled the trigger just as Jake dove left. The bullet sailed past him. A moment later, he heard a scream. There was no time to look back. This time he shot in at Cotter’s legs, grabbed both of them, and began to take him down. As Cotter was falling, he smashed Jake on the forehead with the butt of the gun. Things went momentarily black for Jake. He opened his eyes quickly, trying his damndest to not let consciousness ebb from him.

  He continued to try to take Cotter down but got smashed once more by the butt of the gun. Blood flowed freely down his forehead and into his eyes and mouth. Despite that, he managed to drive Cotter to the ground.

  Mia ran toward them and jumped on top of Cotter. She grabbed his gun, but he swatted her away with his free hand. Cotter pointed the weapon at Jake. Although Jake wasn’t able to get the leverage he wanted, he punched Cotter’s throat, causing him to gag and gasp for air.

  Mia jumped on top of him once more and bit his hand.

  Cotter screamed. “You fucking cunt.”

  Jake grabbed Cotter’s throat with one hand and landed an elbow to the bridge of his nose.

  Mia ripped the gun from his hand. It went flying and bounced off the ground. This created a mad scramble for the pistol. Cotter and Jake fought each other, trying to reach it. In the process, Cotter slammed Jake’s face into the coffee table, the blow splitting his face open.

  Dazed and bleeding like a slaughtered pig, Jake crawled toward the gun, but before he or Cotter could reach it, Mia clasped the gun. He wasn’t sure what kind of experience Mia had with firearms, but she didn’t seem confident in her grip of the weapon. Before she had a chance to fire it, Cotter punched her in the gut, causing Mia to double over. Cotter ripped the gun from her hand. He was about to turn the weapon on her, when Jake found his legs, lunged forward, and slugged Cotter in the jaw. A backhand from Cotter sent Jake reeling to the floor. Cotter fired the pistol. His reaction time slowed by the blows to the head, Jake could not escape the path of the bullet. Blinding pain seared through him as the bullet tore through his right shoulder. He couldn’t tell if it was a clean wound or if the bullet was still lodged in him. All he knew was that he never experienced pain this intense, including when he had appendicitis.

  Jake found himself on the wrong end of the barrel of the gun as it stared straight at him. He tried to move, but his body wasn’t in the mood to listen.

  Out of nowhere, Kenna ran at Cotter and jumped on his back. Like a fury, she scratched at his eyes. Cotter flailed at her with his arms and eventually tossed her aside. Undeterred, Kenna jumped onto his back again. This time she pulled his hair. Blinded by pain, his vision blurred from all the blood, Jake had never been prouder of his sister. She was a fighter. No doubt about it.

  Inspired by watching Kenna fight as if she was possessed, Jake shook his head, blood flying in all directions. He got to his feet, took two steps forward and landed a side kick to Cotter’s head that knocked him off his feet. Kenna, who had still been pulling at Cotter’s hair, went crashing to the floor. From his vantage point, his sister looked to take a hard fall. Cotter slid along the floor and knocked into Mark Saleski. It was the first that Jake had seen of Mark since the conflict began. Lying in a pool of blood, he must have been shot when Cotter fired his shot.

  Mark was wincing in pain but still alive.

  Jake went to get Cotter. The gun had fallen out of his hand. Jake had to capitalize on this momentary advantage. He grabbed Cotter’s shoulders. “You son of a bitch.” He slugged him once, twice, three times in the face. He expected Cotter to fight back, but, instead, he just moaned. Something was wrong. Cotter never gave up. Even when he was taking a beating, he still had some smart retort to offer. Jake dropped him and turned around. That’s when he saw an evil glint in Mark’s eyes. Jake gritted his teeth. Cotter must have switched bodies when they made contact.

  Cotter, now in Mark’s body, went for the gun. Just as his hand clutched the weapon, Jake gave him a soccer kick to the abdomen. Cotter got to his feet, and Jake punched him twice in the face.

  “Hold him, Jake,” Mia shouted.

  Jake did as instructed, grabbing him by the waist. Cotter tried to break free, but he had made a huge, calculated mistake. Having switched over to Mark’s body, presumably to use the element of surprise against Jake, he took possession of a wounded man. Now that Jake had a good grip on him, he was not about to let Cotter get free.

  Mia grabbed Cotter’s hands and held them tight. “With the power of earth and water, set you free.”

  Cotter snarled. “What are you doing?” He tried to break away from Jake’s grip, but Jake squeezed harder. There was no way in hell he was going to let him loose.

  Mia stared into Cotter’s eyes. “With the power of earth and water, set you free.”

  Cotter shook his head. “No!”

  This time Jake repeated along with her, “With the power of earth and water, set you free.”

  Kenna stood alongside them and chanted, “With the power of earth and water, set you free.”

  A misty funnel formed in the office. It resembled a twister as it began sucking things into it. The surrounding air filled with mist. Anything that was loose began to swirl in this funnel.

  Cotter gave a horrific moan. They continued to chant as the room became a chaotic scene. A loud boom sounded, and everything became still.

  Cotter’s head slumped forward. He no longer struggled. Still, Jake would not let go. Cotter was the master of trickery, and Jake wasn’t about to be duped by him again.

  “Is he gone?” Kenna asked. “And are you still Mia?”

  Mia nodded. “Cotter’s no longer here. Mark, it’s Mia. Are you there?”

  There was no response. Jake still held tight just in case.

  “Mark, please come back to me. It’s Mia.”

  Still nothing.

  “I love you, Mark. I always have.”

  Mark raised his head. “Mia?”

  Mia smiled. “Yes, it’s me.”

  Jake finally felt confident enough to loosen his grip. Due to Mark’s l
eg injury, Jake supported his weight.

  “What’s going on?” Mark had a look of wide-eyed confusion. “What happened?”

  “Cotter took possession of you, but he’s gone now,” Mia said. “He’s gone and he won’t come back.”

  “Thank God.” Mark took a deep breath. “Thank God. I’ve missed you, Mia.” Mark’s shoulders sagged. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t there for you back then. If I had been, things could have been different. For both of us. You wouldn’t have died. We would have gotten married. All of it because I wasn’t there for you.”

  Mia gently touched his face. “It's okay, Mark.”

  “I’ve been living with this ever since. Can you find it within yourself to forgive me?”

  “There’s nothing to forgive,” Mia said. “But to set your soul at ease, I do forgive you. I have to leave. You and Jake need medical attention, not to mention that I don’t belong here.”

  Mark nodded. “I know.”

  Mia gave Kenna a hug. “Thank you for being a friend to me when I needed one. And thank you for being brave in the face of danger.”

  Kenna began to sob. “I wish none of this had happened, but I’m glad I became your friend.”

  Mia moved over to Jake. Still supporting Mark, he felt as if he was going to pass out any moment now. The pain in his shoulder turned into numbness. His blood loss had been substantial. Still, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction.

  “Jake, I owe you an eternal debt of gratitude. The courage you displayed today is beyond compare. You could have easily dismissed your sister’s assertions as a child’s imagination, but you stood by her. I see greatness in your future.” Mia gave him a peck on the cheek. “And please express my gratitude to June for allowing me to use her body. I’m sure I would have liked her if I had the chance to get to know her.”

  Mia held Mark’s hands and gently kissed his lips. It weirded Jake out since she was in June’s body. He reminded himself that it wasn’t June. It was Mia.

  “I’ll miss you, Mark.” Mia slowly walked away. As she did, she chanted some words under her breath. Jake couldn’t make out what she was saying. His eyes closed, and he swayed, having a hard time keeping himself standing.

  Suddenly Mia stopped walking. She rapidly shook her head and blinked several times. She had a dazed look on her face.

  “Mia?” Mark asked.

  There was no response.

  “June, is that you?” Jake asked.

  When she did not respond, he was pretty certain it was June. Mark had come to quickly after Cotter left, but he had only been in Mark’s body for about a minute. Mia had occupied June for much longer, so her recovery wouldn’t be so quick.

  “What’s going on?” June mumbled incoherently

  Kenna tugged at June’s arm. “Mark and Jake both have both been shot. Everything’s okay now. Cotter’s gone for good. We need to get them to a hospital.”

  “Make sure she’s okay.” Jake raced out to look for his mom. He found her tied to a chair in the basement. He unbound and ungagged her.

  His mom broke out into hysterics, so he did his best to calm her and tell her that the danger was over, and the situation was under control. He briefly tried to explain what had happened but didn’t have time to answer all her questions. He had not heard any police arriving yet, but he couldn’t count on that happening with the gun shots.

  He returned with his mom upstairs. June was sitting on the sofa. She still looked dazed but more coherent than she had before.

  Jake took out his cell phone and dialed 911, telling them two people had been shot.

  Kenna filled June and her mom in on everything that had happened.

  When Kenna finished, June said, “What are we going to do with this guy Cotter had been possessing? We’re in no condition to get him out of here, and he won’t know a thing about what happened?”

  Jake shook his head. “There’s nothing to do. Listen, before the police and ambulances arrive, this is our story…”

  Chapter XXXIX

  When the dust settled, Jake had managed to escape relatively unscathed. He had been treated for his bullet wound, and received thirty-two stitches on his head and face, but was able to leave the hospital a day later. He considered himself lucky. Things had gone much worse for Mark Saleski. Mark had spent twelve days in the hospital, part of the time in the intensive care unit. He was touch and go for a while. Besides the bullet wound to his leg and the loss of blood, he had developed an infection.

  The story they went with to the police was that an unknown assailant, who turned out to be a man from the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia named Tom Wentworth, attacked them at Jake’s home. They had no idea who this man was or why he attacked them. The reason they had been in Mark’s office to begin with was to see if he would agree to represent Adam Fallon in his criminal trial. When they learned his mom was in danger, they rushed over to the house. The police had questioned why he had not called 911 when he received the text, and he told them he though the assailant might kill his mom if they had. The assailant had shot Jake and Mark before they were able to subdue him. Since they couldn’t hustle Tom Wentworth out of the house, they had no choice but to let him take the fall. The truth was not an option. However, they declined to press charges against the man. Thus far, the case against Tom Wentworth was pending and the police had not decided whether or not to press charges against him.

  There had been a fair bit of media attention to the story. Jake did his best to protect Kenna from it and tried to say as little as possible. Not that he was in any shape to fight, but Jake had been offered a half-dozen fight opportunities, including a couple from bigger organizations. Apparently, his beat down of a malevolent spirit, combined with the new fame he garnered, made him a hot commodity. He didn’t care about those things. He just wanted to put this behind him, get back to training, and continue to explore his relationship with June. This whole ordeal had brought them closer. Now that she was a permanent fixture in his life, he couldn’t be happier.

  Today, Mark was finally being released from the hospital. Jake, June, and Kenna were going to be his welcoming committee. His kids apparently had other commitments and his soon to be ex-wife didn’t want to have anything to do with him, all of which saddened Jake.

  When they arrived at his hospital room, Mark was sporting a cane.

  June smiled. “You look distinguished with that cane.”

  “I feel like a broken down old man. I have a lot of rehab ahead of me. Believe me, I plan on ditching this cane before long.”

  Jake patted his back. “Well, I’m doing rehab for my shoulder. We can work out together. Then when you’re all mended, I can teach you how to fight in case Cotter ever comes back.”

  “Sorry I couldn’t have been more help to you that day.”

  “Hey, man, you got shot in the leg,” Jake said. “Trust me. You helped us plenty.”

  “Not to mention, we had an assist from the spirit world,” June said. “Mia’s something else. Too bad I never got a chance to meet her in person.”

  Mark nodded. “She was something. If there’s such a thing as a soul mate, then she was mine. That’s probably why none of my relationships have been able to work since then.”

  Kenna stared at Jake. “See. I told you so.”

  Mark frowned. “What are you guys talking about?”

  Jake rolled his eyes. “Kenna has many theories about relationships that are beyond her years.”

  Mark nodded. “I see. Kenna’s pretty sharp. She just might have things figured out. I would listen to her if I were you.”

  Jake smiled. “Yeah, she is pretty sharp.”

  “Well, at least something good has come out of this whole ordeal,” Mark said.

  “Oh, yeah?” Jake asked.

  “I was inspired by the story you concocted when this all went down with the police. I decided to give Adam Fallon a call at the prison. After speaking to him on the phone, I will now be his attorney.”

  Jake’s b
rows rose. “Really? You think you’ll be able to get him off on those charges?”

  “I can’t promise anything,” Mark said. “But without sounding immodest, I am pretty capable in the court room. I have a few tricks up my sleeve. Not to mention, based on what I know about the situation, I’ll have a better chance of representing him than any other attorney he might go with. And I’ll take his case free of charge. As far as Tom Wentworth goes, with none of us willing to testify against him, they won’t have much of a case.”

  “That’s great,” Jake said. “Hopefully you can right some of the wrong that Cotter did. Unfortunately, we can’t do anything about the people he killed, but these innocent people he possessed shouldn’t be imprisoned because of what he did.”

  “It will give me something to look forward to as I do my rehab. I need something to give me purpose.”

  Kenna hugged Mark. “Thank you for agreeing to meet us that first time. When you saw we were a bunch of kids, you could have left, but you didn’t. You’re a good guy.”

  After the hospital staff discharged Mark, Jake drove him home. They walked Mark to his house.

  “Thank you for being here for me.” Mark lowered himself so that he was face to face with Kenna. “And the next time you talk to Mia, say hi for me.”

  “I will,” Kenna said.

  ***

  Later that evening, when Jake and June were together in her basement, he said, “This whole ordeal has taught me something.”

  “What’s that, Mr. Introspective?” June asked.

  “Always treasure what you value most in life and let those people know what you think of them because you never know if you might lose them. I love you, June.”

  June leaned in and kissed him tenderly on the lips. “And I love you. You know, we just might make a deep thinker of you yet.”

  “Don’t count on it. Another thing I learned from all of this is that I’m a simple guy and I like my problems simple.”

  ***

  At the school playground, Kenna gave her friends a recap of picking up Mark at the hospital.

  “I still can’t believe you did all of this without us,” Cordy said. “We should have been there.”