Unholy Ground

by Christine Pope

  “Yes.” Whitcomb glanced over at Audrey, expression softening. “I truly didn’t know.”

  “I believe you,” she said. “It’s all right. And…and we forgive you.”

  He smiled. Now he was barely more than a man-shaped mist, wavering there in the air before he disappeared. Throat strangely tight, she looked over at Michael.

  “He’s gone,” he said softly. “We banished the demon that destroyed his life and stole his body, and so he no longer had a reason to remain here. He’s moved on.”

  “Will he be with Alice now?” Audrey wasn’t sure why such an outcome felt so important to her, but despite everything he’d done, she wanted some kind of happiness for the man who had been her great-great-grandfather.

  “That probably depends on Alice,” Michael said. He bent and kissed her gently on the cheek. “Now, though, we need to destroy that portal. Belial is probably going to lick his wounds for a while, but there’s no point in leaving him that kind of opening.”

  Of course. She nodded, and they went hand in hand into the house, whose front door was, luckily, unlocked. The place was decorated with heavy antiques in dark wood, with thick red velvet curtains at the tiny-paned windows.

  Just the sort of place where a demon would hang out, Audrey thought, and felt her lips twitch a little, even though she also felt so tired, she wasn’t sure she would make it up the stairs.

  But she did, mostly because they couldn’t find any sign of a portal on the ground floor, which meant it had to be upstairs somewhere.

  Sure enough, there on the floor of the huge master bedroom was an equally oversized circle, scribbled all around with the same sort of symbols and figures she’d seen in the portal in the Glendora house, although not quite as orderly and neat. Maybe Belial had been in a hurry when he drew it up.

  Luckily, though, it was all done in chalk and not in paint. They stole a couple of pillowcases off the bed, wetted them in the bathroom sink, and then carefully wiped down every square inch of the stone floor until all trace of the portal was gone.

  Afterward, Audrey got up and rubbed her back. “Is that it?”

  “I think so,” Michael replied. “Let’s check the other rooms.”

  They peered in the three other bedrooms on this floor — all of which were empty — but didn’t find any sign of another portal. Hand in hand, they went back down the stairs and closed the door behind them. The pond was still again now, with no sign at all that a demon had met his doom there just a few minutes earlier.

  And overhead, the sun had started to peek out from behind the clouds, and the faintest of breezes caught at Audrey’s hair. Far away, a bird began to sing.

  Michael looked at her and smiled. “This part of the world will start to come to life again now that he’s gone.”

  She nodded, her heart curiously full. They moved among the trees, following the path they’d taken to get here. As they went, the sun came out all the way, blazing down on the once-gray woods. Audrey paused to take off her jacket and drape it over an arm, almost overheated now that the day had grown sunny.

  They came out in the same place where they’d entered the forest, and began to make their way back to the fence. As they got closer to it, though, Audrey’s eyes narrowed. Was that…?

  “Oh, hell,” Michael muttered.

  Parked next to the fence was an official-looking SUV. A man in a tan uniform and a black jacket waited there, arms crossed. Face impassive, the man watched them climb back through the fence. Once they were close enough, he spoke.

  “Hi, there,” he said. “I’m afraid you’re both under arrest.”

  Chapter 17

  It could have been worse. Michael found a lawyer to fast-track their case, saying that he and Audrey needed to be back in California as soon as it was feasible, and they got off with a thousand-dollar fine each, probation…and a strongly worded hint that they wouldn’t be welcome in Litchfield County any time soon.

  “I can’t believe I have a record now,” Audrey said as their jet began to taxi down the runway at Logan.

  “A misdemeanor,” Michael told her.

  “What if it keeps me from getting into the doctoral program at UA?”

  “It won’t.”

  She cocked an eyebrow at him. “You seem very sure of that.”

  “I am.” He reached over and laid his hand on hers, then gave her fingers a slight squeeze. “Look at it this way — you might have been arrested for trespassing, but you were trespassing in a spot that’s known for its paranormal activity. People have been complaining for years about how Dudleytown has been locked away from the world, how it’s impossible to get in there and do any real investigating. Anyone on the admissions committee is probably going to see you as a crusader for supernatural causes, not someone who engages in petty mischief just for the hell of it.”

  “Well, when you put it that way….” She leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek — very quick, since it was a crowded flight and not the kind of place you’d want to engage in extended public displays of affection. “I guess all I can do is hope for the best.”

  Michael thought that sounded like a very good idea. They would leave what had happened in Connecticut behind them, and look forward to forging a new life together.

  “One thing, though….”

  “What?” Michael glanced at the older woman who occupied the aisle seat in their row, but she already had earbuds in and her eyes closed; it seemed pretty obvious that she had no intention of doing anything except sleeping her way through the flight.

  Audrey obviously had noticed his concern, so she lowered her voice a little, even though she probably didn’t have much to worry about when it came to eavesdroppers. “How did you know it was him?”

  Although she hadn’t used any names, Michael knew exactly who she was talking about. “Process of elimination. He was very strong, so he had to be one of the seven ‘devils.’ And only two of them are known for their lecherous natures. It was a toss-up between those two, so I went with my gut.”

  “Who was the other one it could have been?”

  Names had power, and he wouldn’t utter it here where there was even the remotest possibility of being overheard. “I’ll tell you later.”

  She seemed to get the hint, because she settled against her seat and nodded. “What happens to the trust now that he’s gone?”

  “Honestly, I don’t know. Maybe it will all fall apart, since he was the driving force behind it. Or not. I have a feeling the remaining trustees will try to lie low, simply because they probably will realize that if we knew who he was, then there’s a good chance we know who all of them are. And since they’ve been doing their best to blend in and not be noticed, the last thing they’ll want is to do anything that might attract attention to them.”

  Or at least, that was what he hoped. It bothered him to know that there were half-demons and descendants of demons out there somewhere, mixing with regular society, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. Taking out Belial was one thing; Michael knew the demon was responsible for the deaths of Colin Turner and Susan Loomis…or Eleanor Ogilvie…and also the force behind the destruction of Audrey’s house. There were also probably legions of other crimes that could be laid at his feet. But Michael didn’t know anything about what crimes the trustees or their families might or might not have committed, and so there didn’t seem to be much point in trying to hunt them down.

  And, to tell the truth, he was tired. Right now, he just wanted to go back to Pasadena with Audrey, then spend a few months trying to be normal people before they packed up for their move to Tucson. He looked over at her; she was gazing out the window, her expression thoughtful.

  “Are you okay?”

  A small smile touched her lips, and she turned back toward him. “Define ‘okay.’ I think I am, but it just feels strange to know that Jeffrey Whitcomb was my great-great-grandfather. It’s as if some part of me suddenly isn’t me, which I know is silly. After all, my grandmother never tal
ked that much about her family, except to say that her own mother moved to California in the 1940s sometime. And I didn’t think much of it, because a lot of my friends’ families were sort of the same way. People came to California to reinvent themselves, after all.” She lifted her shoulders. “On the other hand, I’m glad I met him. And I’m glad he managed to make amends. It makes the whole thing easier, I think.”

  Michael wished he could take her in his arms and hold her for a long while, show her how much he loved her, how proud he was of her for her strength, her grace, her quick thinking. Would he have even come up with the idea to turn the entire pond into a holy font, so to speak? He didn’t know; his body had thrummed with adrenaline, and he’d wanted to reach out and throttle Belial for manhandling Audrey the way he had…while at the same time realizing that there was no way he could have bested the demon in physical combat.

  But they would have plenty of time to hold each other when they got back, time to make love, share breakfast in his bright, sunlit kitchen…to do normal things like go out to dinner and go to the movies or museums or shopping. He wouldn’t pretend to himself that they had rid the world of evil, but they’d removed a small yet significant piece.

  That had to suffice for now.

  “I think we should go on a date when we get home,” he said, and Audrey sent him an amused glance.

  “A date? Aren’t we a little past that?”

  “I don’t think so,” he replied. “I think circumstances prevented us from going on what could formally be called a date. Dinner and a movie?”

  “How…normal!” But she looked pleased by the suggestion, and asked, “Which movie?”

  “I have no idea,” Michael said. “I don’t even know what’s out.”

  “Well, we can check when we get home.” Audrey seemed to think for a moment. “Isn’t there a theater in Old Town Pasadena that serves beer and wine and has those super-comfy reclining seats?”

  “Maybe,” he allowed. He had just the faintest recollection of reading about something like that, although he couldn’t say for sure whether he was thinking of a theater in Pasadena or one someplace else. For the longest time, he’d been focused on his work and not much else. It had seemed the best thing to do.

  After all, he’d never had anyone to share those sorts of activities with.

  But now he would. The two of them would be able to do so many things together, his mind fairly spun with all the possibilities.

  Whatever else happened, neither of them would ever be alone again.

  Rosemary McGuire stood in the middle of Michael’s living room, looking down at the set of keys she held in one hand. “You’re really sure about this?” she asked for about the hundredth time.

  “Yes,” Audrey said firmly. It felt a little strange to be here and realize this house wouldn’t be her home for the next two years, and possibly longer. She’d loved the months she and Michael had spent in this place, the shared meals, the lovemaking, even the quiet hours when they both worked on their laptops in the library. Once she’d thought that no other house besides the one where she’d grown up would feel like home to her, but she knew differently now. A house was four walls and a roof; a home was sharing that same place with the person you loved.

  “Absolutely,” Michael chimed in. Except for the pile of luggage in the entry, it was hard to tell that they were moving out, since they were leaving all of his furniture and books here…or at least, almost all. Some of his most precious volumes had already been shipped ahead to the fully furnished house they would be renting in Tucson. “We know you’ll take care of it as if it were your own.”

  They’d come up with the idea not long after Audrey had been accepted into the doctoral program at the University of Arizona. At first, they’d thought of putting all the furniture in storage and renting out the house, but that seemed like an inordinate amount of work, not to mention expensive, since the cost of storing all Michael’s things would have been almost the same as what they were paying for the rental in Tucson. Then they’d toyed with the idea of hiring someone to manage it as an Airbnb, a notion they’d quickly shot down because both Michael and Audrey were worried about the wear and tear on the place with such a setup.

  But then one day when Rosemary and Audrey had met for lunch — Audrey had been quietly phasing out her counseling practice, and had gone into her office to see one of her patients for their final session — Rosemary poured out her tale of woe. The house next door to hers had been sold, and the new owners were going to basically tear it down and build a new one.

  “That means probably a year of hammering and sawing and God knows what,” she’d moaned over her garden salad. “Do you have any idea what kind of havoc that sort of thing does to crystal vibrations?”

  Honestly, Audrey really didn’t, but she guessed it couldn’t be anything good. She’d made a comforting reply and told Rosemary she didn’t think it could really be that bad…but at the same time, a sudden thought had begun simmering in the back of her mind.

  Luckily, Michael also thought it the perfect solution to their house dilemma.

  “She would take much better care of the place than any renters,” he said to Audrey as they sat outside on the patio, eating freshly grilled burgers and enjoying a mellow early summer evening. “And she can either rent out her own place or just close it up until the construction is done.”

  “The remodel probably won’t last as long as the entire time we’re gone, though,” Audrey pointed out, figuring she might as well poke her own holes in the plan before they broached the idea to Rosemary.

  “True, but it’ll delay the decision for at least a year, maybe more. Didn’t you say her new neighbors are still in the process of getting permits?”

  “That’s what she said. So they probably won’t even start any demolition for at least another month.”

  Michael seemed pleased by her reply and said, “Let’s ask. If she says no, well, we’ll think of something else.”

  But Rosemary had jumped at the chance, thanking them for offering her such a perfect escape from the construction noise. Audrey also had the feeling that Rosemary wouldn’t mind putting those extra ten miles or so between her and her sister Celeste. The two seemed to be fairly close, but from the way Rosemary talked, Celeste tended to expect just a little too much free sisterly babysitting. This way, she couldn’t just drop in with a toddler and leave him with her younger sister while she ran off to Target, or whatever.

  And now it was early August, the heat here in Pasadena nearly as intense as it would be in Tucson, and Audrey’s and Michael’s lives were packed into suitcases or waiting for them in pods at a storage facility in Arizona, and the time had finally come.

  Rosemary threw her arms around Audrey and gave her a brief, fierce hug. “Good luck with everything,” she said after she let go.

  “Thanks,” Audrey replied. The word sounded woefully inadequate, but she hoped her friend would understand. Her gaze strayed to Michael, who stood a few feet away. “I think it’s going to be great.”

  “I know it is,” Rosemary said, her tone emphatic.

  Michael tilted his head. “Is that a psychic flash?”

  “Just a feeling. I think Tucson is going to be really good for you.”

  Audrey went to Michael and put her hand in his. “I think it is, too.”

  For just a second, Rosemary looked a little wistful. Then she seemed to force a smile and said, “If there’s anything else you need — ”

  “Nothing else,” Audrey cut in. “You’re doing us a huge favor. And the door’s always open if you want to come for a visit.”

  “I’d like that.”

  After that exchange, there wasn’t really much left to be said. Audrey and Michael made their goodbyes, then picked up the remaining pieces of their luggage and loaded it into the new CR-V she’d bought with some of her insurance money. Although Michael had made noises about replacing his ancient Land Cruiser, he still hadn’t done anything about it, so the vehicle wo
uld stay in storage until they got back to California.

  A final wave to Rosemary as she stood on the front porch, and then they got in the car, Audrey behind the wheel because the novelty of driving her new car hadn’t quite worn off yet. She looked in the rearview mirror to catch one last glimpse of the big brown house where she’d spent the last six months, and then they headed south to the freeway.

  Once they were eastbound on the 210, Michael reached over and laid a warm hand on her jean-clad leg. “Excited?”

  She nodded. “Yes. It feels…good. As if we’re leaving everything that happened behind us and moving on.”

  “I know what you mean.” He was quiet for a moment. “And despite all that…despite what happened to Project Demon Hunters…I can’t help but be happy about it. Because otherwise, I might never have had you come into my life.”

  How did he always seem to know exactly what she was thinking? At times, Audrey had felt guilty for being so happy when so many others had been hurt or worse, and yet she had to believe that the best way to pay tribute to their sacrifices was to live her best life.

  She knew she was doing that now. Because of the life change she was making…and because of the man who sat beside her.

  Love had won. Love had driven out the shadows, dispelled the demons.

  Love would guide her…now, and all the rest of her days. Her life, with Michael Covenant beside her.

  Amen.

  The End

  Audrey and Michael’s story is now complete, but the adventure is just beginning for Rosemary. Project Demon Hunters continues in Unseen Voices, releasing in October 2019.

  * * *

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  Also by Christine Pope

  PROJECT DEMON HUNTERS

  (Paranormal Romance)

  Unquiet Souls

  Unbound Spirits