Deliver Us From Evil (Demons Beware Book 2)

by mike Evans

  Morty sat forward on his elbows, enthralled in the conversation and waiting for it to grow. He was waiting because he knew more than they gave him credit for. “Not friends, got it, so I can pull off the gloves and you aren’t going to be too offended. Tell me how exactly does a ten-year-old send a demon back to hell? Did you use a Ouija Board, or something else?”

  “We just assisted, Father Joseph and Michaels were the ones in charge. They did the heavy lifting.”

  “Who was this demon in, or what, I am biting my nails to know?”

  “He’d possessed a four-year-old,” James said with no nonsense just the facts.

  “When you deal with these demons, the ones that have ascended from hell, how do you know that they are really demons? How do you know the person isn’t just mentally ill? Do you really know that they are demons?”

  “You have to be kidding me. Do you listen to your words; do you hear what you are saying aloud? Yes, we know that they are demons, we wouldn’t do that to an innocent, it isn’t our-”

  “I’m sorry, James, you said, an innocent, please, what is that?”

  “It’s you, it’s me, it is any human, anyone who is not possessed, not damned,” Billy cut in as he was losing his patience.

  “So, tell me...tell us, all of us, how do you know they’ve been taken? Do they fly around the room, do they spin their heads around in a circle, do snakes come out of their eyes?”

  James looked to Father Michaels watching him walk off stage, envelope in hand and the crest on his letter all too familiar. He knew well that there was someone needing to be sent back to hell. “I believe that you have mythical confused with demons, Mr. Spencer. They can crawl up the wall, their eyes can glow, levitation is even possible, I have seen a four-year-old send a grown man up against the wall.”

  “That is fascinating Father Clapper. Do you mind if I call you James, it would feel so much more personal, do you mind?”

  “Yes thanks, I do.”

  “You do what?”

  “Mind, I know you don’t believe us, you don’t believe in demons, but I assure you I’ve had many things burnt into my soul that haunt me in my sleep.”

  “That’s chilling, Father Parker, so four-year-olds, can we talk about those a little?”

  Billy didn’t like the question and was waiting for him to finish and move on to a new topic unknowing that would be the final subject today. “What can we answer for you about those, they typically don’t possess them, however, it’s happened to children more than once, unfortunately,” Billy explained.

  “Yes, but when you said that you started when you were ten years old, is that because your brother Tony had been taken, he’d become one of them? How is good old Tony nowadays? How is he doing, is he fighting demons as well or is he still possessed? Didn’t he do a little stint in the nuthouse?”

  Billy raised to his feet, as did James, holding out a hand to Morty squeezing it harder than a man of the cloth ought to but nonetheless shook keeping Billy from stepping any closer to the overzealous cocky talk show host. “Until we meet again, Mr. Spencer and thank you again for choosing us to be on the show.”

  Morty winced from the shake and stood to clap for the two priests as they walked off the set.

  Billy and James walked back to their dressing room, hoping that Father Michaels had stopped there and had been patient enough to wait. They assumed it had been their assignment that had come in and both were more than ready and willing to take it on. Father Michaels was pacing back and forth, cigarette hanging from his lips, he tossed the pictures on a table. “He’s back at it again, but this looks so much worse?”

  “So much worse than what?” James asked nervously.

  "Than seventy-three, eighty-one, or eighty-five," Father Michaels said as he plopped down on the visitors' couch. He looked up to the ceiling like he was praying silently.

  “That’s a lot worse than I thought you were going to say. Is it close, or do we need to jump on a plane?” Billy asked.

  “It is your choice boys. You’ve been at this almost exactly as long as I have, except I have been guarded by God and been a member officially since the beginning. The two of you were dumped into this because we needed to rid the demon from your brother. God, please help us and deliver us from evil.”

  "Whoa, slow down Father, what do you mean we can get on a plane or we cannot get on a plane? You just named off every one of the worst things we've ever heard of at least in our time." James said as he tried his best to keep his tone civil, respectful, and not scream aloud.

  “The reason I said it that way is because it is your choice. It is free will, something you forget that God bestowed upon you...upon everyone. You can go, you can stay, you can fight, or you can sit around and wait for hell to-”

  "We aren't running. If there's a job that needs to be done, something here that needs to be accomplished, we are doing it here. We aren't running, we aren't hiding, we sure as hell aren't abandoning the people of this city!" Billy yelled as he slammed his hand down on the counter.

  “Never thought the latter, son. Just read the file, let me know where you are at. They are coming back and we will have to see if they are after anyone we know.”

  Billy walked forward to him concerned. "Do you think they'd come back after Tony; I've never read that they've come after anyone twice before? Is there a chance that you guys didn't fully get rid of it, that not all of it was sent back to hell, is that possible, can that happen?" Billy said almost pleading.

  "We might be going into uncharted waters boys. We can't say yes, we can't say no. We'll find out when we find out. You might want to swing in though, and see how your brother is doing. I'm sure that he is fine, but it won't hurt to see him anyway. Your mother doesn't get to see you often enough, trust me, all she does is ask about you, worry and ask about you."

  “Mother’s worry, it’s what they do,” Billy said.

  “If you are doing the hometown job, then go for it, but go over and see how they are when you are finished. We only get the information after it’s happened. If we can nip it in the bud, then we do. Good luck you two, may God be with you.”

  “He always is, put in a good word with Father Joseph next time you speak to him,” James said.

  "Will do boys, I'd say take it easy on them, but they went to hell for a reason too, go get those demons. You know you guys are the best I have," Michaels did the sign of the cross. He patted each of the boys on the shoulder as he walked out of the dressing room. The boys could hear the opening of his zippo as he walked out.

  “You ready to go do this?” Billy asked already knowing James would rather give up his life, then let just one of those things stay on Earth.

  James and Billy both opened their travel cases. Each had a state of the art video camera. The church had been directed by the Vatican as early as the technology had become available, to begin trying to record the exorcisms, for if they should ever need proof that they would have it. The church was beginning to see that those devout were growing fewer, belief in God was being questioned, and sins were not diminishing, if anything they were getting worse.

  The fact that crack had hit the streets that year and then had exploded across the ghettos of America was disturbing. Those in the suburbs and the other high-end communities had not seen it coming because it had not affected the rich, white, well-off citizens. Not until a congressman's son had thought he was doing something totally different at a party and had overdosed and been found choking on his own vomit, it had gone almost unnoticed. It had made drug dealers more money than they could possibly store in a row of warehouses.

  Billy and James picked what they needed to arm themselves with the tools that Michael had bestowed upon them as well as some innovations they had come up with on their own. They’d been thinking of ways to kill demons since they were ten, by the time they made it through seminary school and graduated to demon removal each had a notebook full of ideas. Father Michaels could only shake his head when he saw the ideas tha
t they had come to him with early on. He’d never had a doubt about the two, but it only concreted it more.

  Chapter 6

  Parkes’ Residence Chicago’s Southside

  Billy looked up at the two-story run-down house. It screamed ghetto and poor, and it felt like home. If they walked in and the father was sitting there lifeless to the world, and drunk at noon on a weekday he wouldn’t be surprised. James snapped his fingers, bringing him back out of his daze. “You with me, Billy? I’m going to need you solid on this one, brother.”

  Billy blinked, backing up and brought up his fists. He took a deep breath when he saw his best friend and partner looking worried for him holding up his hands to try and block the punch. “You scared the hell out of me.”

  “You’re welcome then,” James said with a grin trying to ease things.

  Billy opened his mouth to say something and then realized James was just being a good friend. “Bless you, smart ass. I didn’t mean to go anywhere it was just the house, it reminds me of my mom’s. I started thinking of Tony, and my dad, and it didn’t bring back any good memories. We had plenty of good ones after he was gone, but nonetheless some of those run deep. It changed our lives...forever.”

  “It made your dad leave which I’d say was a blessing. You two probably would have had to kill him if it meant surviving the rest of your preteen years and twenties. That day was the worst one I can remember when your mom needed the hospital and the two of you had to stay across the street.”

  “That couple was great. Ralph treated us like we were his own kids over the years. He taught Tony and I how to drive.”

  “Yeah, and you still don’t own a car,” James said smiling.

  “Who needs it with an L train at your beck and call. It was good for Tony, sent him down the path to be a mechanic, kept him out of trouble. I would've been okay if he didn’t buy a bike, but he has a good head on his shoulders and he’ll be okay. Besides, he has Alecia to keep him level headed until he gets into seminary school.”

  A voice cleared startling the two; neither had noticed the disheveled looking mother and father at the door. The mom instantly put all her faith into the two priest’s arrival. “Are you here to help? Are you here to help our children?” The mother asked.

  “Honey, don’t put too much faith into this. This is for quacks, they need a doctor, we are wasting time.”

  Billy knew that there was always one skeptical parent. Usually the parent who was only going to church because of their spouse’s religion. “Sir, ma’am, we are going to do everything in our power to save your child.”

  “Children,” the woman said.

  James held up a hand not wanting Billy to talk any longer. He could tell that he was already annoyed with the dad. The father had done nothing wrong, they’d had more people than they could believe who had been skeptical, even after seeing their children and loved ones possessed by those of the dark ways. “What do you mean children. The file just gave us the address.”

  “They don’t even know what is going on. That’s it, we are taking the kids to the hospital, now,” he said as he stamped his foot in frustration.

  “We can leave, Mr. Parkes, there’s other places that need our help. We came here because you are Southee’s and you look like better times are hopefully in your future, no offense,” Billy said holding up his hands. “The reason you don’t see this in the news is it is something that you don’t want others to know about. No one is ever proud to say that his or her child had been possessed by a demon. My baby brother, who isn’t so much a baby anymore had it happen, he almost died. We almost died, but we fought back, my mother got help and we got my brother back and sent the demon back to hell where it belongs.”

  When the man opened his mouth to say something the woman brought an elbow across into his gut. “Shut up, Dale, they are here to help. I called, they are going to help and if they save our children, then it is going to be the greatest thing we have ever gotten from the church. Just because you lost your way in the church doesn’t mean that I have. Maybe this will help you find your way back.”

  The man bent down, grabbing at his gut. When Dale came back up he had an opened hand ready for his wife. Billy cleared his throat, “Dale, if you lay a hand on that woman you will have more than demons in your home to be concerned about, abusive fathers and husbands are not something the church sees as a good trait. You might think we are a bunch of quacks, but if you’ve seen what is in my head, then you’d be quiet and open that door with open and thankful arms.”

  Dale kept his hand up for a moment before he began to lower it. “My wife doesn’t have anything to worry about; it’s just that...I’ve never seen anything like this. Lorraine, if this doesn't work, then we take them to the hospital, do we have a deal?”

  She nodded, giving him a hug. “Thank you, Dale, I know it sounds crazy, but I don’t think that they are going to get help at a hospital. We tried taking them to the doctor and all they did was give them pills that didn’t do anything, how they were saying something ignorant about vitamin deficiencies.”

  James walked up getting ready to go in. “You did say children, Mrs. Parkes?”

  “Yes, Hayley and Martyn, they are twins,” Mrs. Parkes said.

  “How old?” Billy asked.

  “Ten, why?”

  “The Shining, great,” James said as he walked up looking inside. “You stay out here, we’ll go in and try and do what we can. Where are they?”

  “We don’t know, they ran up the stairs and disappeared earlier, after they threw Dale from about halfway up the stairs. I’d try going upstairs.”

  “We’ll figure it out. You two stay here, please. Parents have a hard time dealing with things that we have to do to get their loved ones back,” James said.

  “What are you going to do?” Mr. Parkes questioned.

  “Whatever it takes to send that demon back to hell,” James said as he turned around and shut the door to the home turning the lock behind him.

  Billy set down his briefcase pulling out a video camera with a wide angle lens and tripod placing the setup to it in the corner. James did the same and the two could hear laughing. The two of them were unsure where they were and the laughing only grew louder. Billy asked, “So does the fact that they are twins and hence there are two of them creep you out in the least?”

  “I think the fact that they are laughing and we can’t see them is what is creeping me out, James. The fact that the parents are outside of their own home not knowing what we are about to do to their children creeps me out. The fact that the Catholic Church wants us to video record this so that they can show other people creeps me out. I have a lot of things right now that are-”

  “Creeping you out Billy?”

  The girl came to the edge of the steps laughing. “Do you want to come and play with us; do you want to be our friend?”

  “We’d love to talk to you, Hayley; can we talk to you please?”

  “Hayley isn’t here puppet. Go away now while you can. You will not have a choice if you stay here very much longer.”

  “Where is your brother, where is Martyn?”

  She ran a nail down the side of her cheek, cutting it deep. Blood began to run down her face, she held her hand under it dipping her tongue in it before laughing hysterically. She placed a bloodied small hand onto the wall running it along the wall as she disappeared back into the bedrooms.”

  James walked to the windows and door running a line of salt across them, at this point these actions were second nature. Both knelt and the two of them smiled thinking of Father Michaels and how terrified they’d been when he took them on an exorcism of their own. It was the first time that they would be responsible for and would have the weight of the actions taken to set upon their shoulders. They did the sign of the cross, saying cavete daemones.

  “Alright, Billy, do we go find both of them and we send them back to hell or do you want to do this one at a time like we are used to?”

  “I have no idea,
James; I’d like to think if we can get them separated, then maybe we can team up and take the last one out.”

  “Right, but is that going to work?” James asked.

  Billy didn’t answer until he began up the stairs. “We won’t know until we get in there. We can learn, we can know what did and didn’t work next time, but we won’t know a thing if we don’t get out there and get our feet wet. There might be a time where there are three, where there are four, imagine an entire outbreak of these, there’s a lot of things that might happen, but there’s no reason to quit and there is no reason to doubt in what we are able to do. We kick butt and take names.”

  “Solid plan,” James said as he followed him up grabbing a few glass balls filled with holy water from a pouch.

  Two shadows began to make their way around them moving impossibly fast. One began to mock them; it was impossible to know who it was for most demons’ voices sounded the same. “Do you ants like spiders?”