The Demon of Mansfeld Manor

by S A Jacobs

  “I have no idea but I think it is in the safe, by the book. Should I go get it?”

  “Absolutely not!” he shouted.

  “Alright, relax.”

  “Seriously, don’t you get it. Right now, whatever he wants is protected by her spells. If you go in and take it out, if you remove it, it isn’t protected anymore and it’s free game. We can go there together. We can look at it and figure out our plan. Only when we are ready can we remove it.”

  “I get it, but I would like to get this done sooner than later.”

  “Jim, I don’t think we have much of a choice in that matter. I will be there as soon as I can.”

  After talking to David, I had time alone. Time to think. My head was awash with every emotion possible. The confrontation with Sam freaked me out. Hearing David say that there was a potential danger for both Kat and me was completely unsettling. However, at that moment there was one nagging thought that I couldn’t let go of: the fact that I knew I saw Kat there, and that I knew I heard her talking to someone.

  It was easy to just believe that my mind had made that up. It was easy to believe that she was there looking for me. Yet, there was something about that memory that wouldn’t let me give into those tempting thoughts. Seeing her at the house was the clearest memory I had. As I closed my eyes and thought back, I could feel it all. Something was off, I was sure of that much. But I had no clue what it was.

  The scariest part of all of this was that as I sat in that hospital bed, I realized I didn’t know who I could trust, if anyone. My mind started to play with me and raise all sorts of absurd questions. I began to twist things to see that everyone from David to Kat could be simply using me to get something. I even began to think that everything I saw of Sam that night wasn’t real. Maybe it was an elaborate ruse set up by both David and Kat.

  Having these doubts about Kat was among the most frustrating feelings I have experienced. It was a doubt which I knew had no real basis other than a feeling. Also, I could not prove or disprove anything. Even if I were to question Kat on it, just asking the question had the potential of sending our relationship spiraling out of control. Maybe Kat was right and this was all in my head. I just didn’t know. I was questioning everything, and I hated it. I wanted so badly to just blindly believe everyone.

  I tried to clear my head by turning on the TV. I caught the cliffhanger of a game show and the commercial break came on. The first ad was for home security system and was clearly targeted to the old paranoid person living alone . But, while watching it, a thought popped into my head. ‘What if I take some precaution and just see what is really going on?’

  I picked up my phone and found the number for one of my old co-workers Cedric. I dialed and waited for him to pick up.

  “Jim, is that you?” he asked.

  “Cedric! You move into my old cube yet?”

  “Of course! You know I always wanted that cube… A desk with a computer screen not in a direct line of sight from the bosses office! So, what’s up, Paul has been telling us you up and moved to the Bahamas or some shit like that.”

  “Not exactly, I am around, just tryin’ to work on this old house I inherited. But hey, I need your help. Remember when you were telling me about the system you rigged up to make sure your kids weren’t breaking into your stash of liquor?”

  “Yeah, it works great too! I busted ‘em, and they still have no clue how I did it!”

  I explained what I was looking for, Cedric agreed to meet me that night and help me out with my little situation. After I hung up the phone, I realized this posed a bit of an issue. Kat would be done with work and with me. I had been in a hospital bed for two days and could hardly push seeing her off. My head started running a list of excuses to use that would allow me to meet Cedric and also run over to the house. I realized that in my attempt to remove any doubt from my head with Kat, I was becoming the one hiding and making up BS excuses.

  The next thing I knew I was texting Kat a lie. I had met with the doctors and cleared to go home. I told her I was beat and that I would prefer her to come over around eight to give me some time to recoup. I felt horrible lying to her like that. In my head, I justified it with needing to put this doubt to rest.

  Once I was released from the hospital, I headed straight over to my old office and texted Cedric. A few minutes later he appeared carrying a laptop bag. He brought the bag over to my truck, unzipped it, and started pulling things out.

  “Here, these are the plain English instructions I wrote out for you.” He handed me a folded sheet of paper. “This is your camera. Like I mentioned, it is motion activated and battery powered. It will not record unless you manually turn it on or it detects motion. Keep in mind, it reads a change in the scene as motion. So, if the room goes from dark to light, it will trigger the camera. Once it is triggered, it records for five minutes.” He handed me a small black box.

  “So how long does the battery last?” I asked.

  “It should give you about four to five days without a recharge. When you need to recharge, just plug it in like a phone, and it will be set in about an hour. It is fully charged now.” He pointed to the battery life indicator.

  “Follow the directions. I made it as easy as possible. This little guy doesn’t need Wi-Fi or anything. It is like a cell phone that only takes video. Everything you need to control it and view it is in the app. You can set all kinds of alerts from it sending you a text message anytime motion is activated to even an alert when the battery is running low.”

  I held up the box to the light, marveling at the size.

  “Oh, the one thing you need to be careful with is making sure it is viewing exactly what you want to see. You can remotely control everything except where you put it. So, test it out and make sure it covers the whole area you want it to before you leave it.”

  I nodded my head. “Got it. Thank you.”

  “Hey Jim, listen. I know I am just doing you a favor here, but I gotta ask, are you okay? I mean you look like hell and something tells me this is a little more serious than watching over a stash of fine bourbon.” He looked genuinely concerned.

  “No, I’m fine.,” I replied. “I just had a couple people on my property, and I need to see what’s going on.”

  “Uh huh. ‘Cause a standard visible camera on your door won’t catch that? Like I said it is none of my business, but you know, people don’t generally get a camera like this unless there is a pretty serious trust issue somewhere. Look, I appreciate the business. I mean this is a nice little payday for me and all. Just watch yourself brother, okay?”

  “I hear ya, I just gotta take care of this and put everything to rest. I’ll be fine.” I handed him a wad of cash.

  “Alright, bro. If you need me, you can find me. But I am not technical support. Means don’t be calling me in the middle of the night because you can’t charge your battery or some shit like that.”

  Cedric left and I sat there for a minute in my truck looking at this tiny camera. It was a stupid idea, but I was tired of letting everyone else have control. One way or another this was all going to end.

  22

  I woke up the next morning in a panic. My head throbbed and I was completely disorientated. As I looked around trying to get my bearings I realized I was home in bed, and Kat was sleeping peacefully next to me. I gently rubbed her shoulder and quickly relaxed. That was until I heard my phone buzzing. I leaned over the side of the bed and picked it up. There were text alerts from the camera I’d set up.

  I looked over at Kat and bit my lip. I slowly got out of bed and walked to the bathroom to see what it was all about. I sat down and logged into the app. There was one video file. I downloaded it, and it began to play.

  The screen was black for a few seconds, then I saw two people walk in with lanterns. The light was blinding the camera to the point you could only see detail right next to the lanterns and then it blurred into shadows revealing only the outlines of the figures.

  The two people moved back
and forth through the room. About two minutes into the video, one of the figures set down the lantern on the floor along with something else. I paused the screen, looking at it. My mouth was wide open, and I was overcome with confusion. I turned off the phone and walked quietly over to my nightstand where I frantically dug into the drawer with my wallet, watch, and everything else I carried with me daily. It had to be here. Finally, I felt the cold metal in my fingers. I wrapped my fingers around the key and ran back to the bathroom.

  I pulled up the video again and paused it at the same point. I looked back and forth from the key in my hand to the screen. It was the exact same key. Somehow, whoever was at the house had this key or an identical copy of it. More disturbing was that they appeared to be looking for the same thing I was.

  I wanted to know what was going on, but I didn’t know even who had the answers. If Kat did, I was not ready to call her out on this. If she didn’t, I didn’t even have a clue what that meant. Despite everything David had told me, I was leaning more to the side of letting them take whatever they wanted. On some level, this whole thing was more than I bargained for, and I just wanted it over.

  I turned off my phone and headed back to my bed to rejoin Kat and hopefully forget any of this for a little longer. I laid down next to her, once again seeing her peacefully lying there. I looked back at the key in my hand and quietly put it back in the drawer. As I lay down, my head spun. I felt in danger. Not just in danger of some supernatural force anymore, but the real danger, from real people. Somehow, this felt worse. In my mind, I tried to connect all the pieces.

  It didn’t add up to me. I was missing something. Why was I the target of Samuel? What could he possibly want from me? But that was the supernatural part. The real part was just as confusing. I mean the money, sure, but that was so tied up with legalities. Someone would have just as good of a chance of taking it before I had it, while it was in trust, as they did now. Somehow, I knew they were all connected. How or why was what I couldn’t figure out.

  I started replaying conversations in my head. Then, as if I was hitting fast-forward on an old cassette deck, I heard David talk about the KGC and about how they were still around today. It was a long shot at best, but I had nothing else to go on. So, I had to investigate the possibility that there was some connection there.

  As my mind ran through all of this, something changed. I was mad and wanted revenge. I wanted to take a stand. For me, for the house, for Kat. No one was going to force me to do or give anything. David could help me with the supernatural, but the KGC? I realized that was my own battle to fight.

  I gently got out of the bed, trying to not wake Kat and stepped out of the bedroom. I opened the closet in my hallway and turned on a light. On the floor, I started moving piles of old shoes, and God knows what else until I uncovered the small safe on the floor. I opened it and grabbed the stack of papers in it. I started flipping through the papers. My passport, title to my truck, and just about every moderately important piece of paper I had. Then, I found what I was looking for. A quick glance at the expiration date told me I wasn’t too late. I took the card and put everything else back in the safe.

  Walking back to the bedroom, I looked at the card. It was my Firearm Owners ID card I had gotten years ago. I never dreamed it would be of any use to me, but today it felt like it was everything I needed.

  I hurriedly got dressed and looked over at Kat. I leaned over her on the bed and kissed her on the forehead. She let out a sigh and stretched as she moved.

  “I’ll be right back baby. I am gonna get you some breakfast.”

  “Uh-huh, goodnight,” she slurred in response.

  Later that day, Kat and I arrived at the hotel David was staying at. We walked into the lobby where we found David pacing back and forth. He looked more out of sorts than ever before. We agreed to talk in his room as that was the only place “safe” enough to have a conversation. We entered his room on the third floor, and it was like walking into a crypt. The curtains were drawn with the only light coming from a small bedside lamp. Kat and I sat on the still made bed while David rolled the room’s office chair over near the bed.

  “Okay, well, are you ready for this?” he asked.

  “We’re here, aren’t we?” I replied.

  David shot me a look of disgust. “Listen, this is serious shit man! I need to know you are really ready for this.”

  “Yes dammit! But what are we doing?” I asked.

  “Okay, okay. Here is what I got. I won’t replay what has been going on or what we talked about because we all know that.” He waved his hands dismissively. “Jim, was there anything else in that room you remember other than the safe?”

  I shrugged my shoulders. “I dunno, some candles and shit. It was kinda like a sitting room.”

  “There is more. Remember that photo you sent me of the Grimoire?”

  “Yeah, what about it?”

  David moved to take his laptop off the desk and opened it up. “See, you were taking a picture of the Grimoire, but what happens every time we take a picture?”

  “For chrissake David, just tell us,” I shot back.

  “Fine, here is the picture you sent.” He showed us the photo on the screen of the computer. “But when you take a picture, you are also taking a snapshot of other things in the room. Granted it is dark and not in focus, but there is more there. So I took that photo, and adjusted some of the contrast and zoomed in behind the book. Look at this.”

  On the screen was a grainy image of the room behind the table. There were a couple sharp angles appearing on the screen which kind of looked like the edge of a picture frame.

  “You know what that is?” He continued without waiting for a response. “I know. I know. Mr. Cranky Pants is not in the mood for questions. So I will tell you exactly what it is. It is a mirror.”

  “Uh, great. Sure there is a mirror in there because I don’t have a couple in my house. Hell, there is one right there in this room. What is your point?” I had no more patience for his cryptic dialog.

  “Not just a mirror. Well, it is a mirror, but I believe it is more. Look at the shape of the corner here. And this looks like a symbol here.” He pointed to the image. “Now, I did a little research. I knew I had seen that before. Here, look at this, really the bottom corner of it.”

  Now the screen showed a hand-drawn image of a shield with some writing on it, but it did appear to be a match.

  “This is a Black Mirror of Lilith!” he declared.

  “I take it, that is a good thing?” I shrugged my shoulders.

  “This drawing, care to guess where it came from?” he asked.

  “I’m gonna just assume it’s from the book that was written based on the book I found in the room,” I replied.

  “See, I knew you were paying attention! Exactly! This mirror was described in that Grimoire. And since I know you have not read it, you will want to know what it is, right? Okay, have you ever seen Snow White? You know, the evil bitch trying to kill off her stepdaughter because she is way hotter? You know, mirror, mirror on the wall?”

  “Of course, I know my princesses!” Kat replied.

  “Good! Because this is that mirror!” David yelled.

  David got this silly look on his face. It was out of place and just plain maddening.

  “What, David?” I couldn’t hide my annoyance.

  “Well, it’s just that…we discussed a theory I had before. This… this gives me reason to believe that my theory is absolutely correct.”

  “Just say it already,” I grumbled.

  “Okay, so there’s only one thing that connects all the dots in my mind on this. Ida, from what we know of her, was tormented forever at the loss of her son. From what I can tell, everything from her motivation to become involved in spiritualism, to all of this, was drawn from that energy. The Mirror of Lilith, well it can show you anything! Past, present, and future. We have all tried to understand how this happened, how you were picked by Ida decades before you were born.”


  “What are you saying?” Kat asked.

  David stood up and started pacing back and forth in the tiny room.

  “Well, I believe you, Jim, are Ida’s son, Samuel Leopold Muller.”

  The room sat silent, aside from the sound of the noisy AC unit.

  “I need a drink.” I stood up and looked out the window to gather my thoughts. “Let me just see if I got this right. Samuel was the bastard child, killed by his not real dad. Ida then decides this mirror will tell her who Samuel will be reincarnated as, and that just happens to be me.”

  “Wow, you got it quite well actually,” David replied giddily.

  “Jesus… Let’s just forget for a second how insane this all is! Let’s assume we live in a world where Disney is reality and mirrors talk, and we live in a place where reincarnation is a thing. Now, we can first thank my lucky stars that I didn’t come back as a pigeon or something, but all of this still begs the question of how the hell do we get rid of Sam!”

  “Well for that, we need to get in that room. I need to see the Grimoire, and we need to use the mirror. While we’re there, we need to find out what Ida has been protecting from Sam in that safe.”

  “Okay, let’s get out there and get the book already,” I said. “The sooner we can end this, the better!”

  “As much as I agree with you, there is one more thing I feel I need to share before head out there,” David said sitting down again.

  “You mean beyond me being some reincarnated kid?” I replied.

  “Unfortunately, yes.” He had a very serious look on his face. “See, there is more to the Mirror of Lilith than simply hanging up the mirror and talking to it. First, a ritual needs to be performed. In addition, the mirror is very specific about where it can be used. In the instructions, it needs to be in a sepulcher of a murdered person.”

  Looking at David, I could tell I didn’t need to ask this question.

  “A sepulcher is essentially a crypt or tomb,” he finished.