“Talk to him… explain that this is not his wife… not Samantha!” Jesse shouted the words and they were almost lost in the wind, but she understood the sentiment. It filled her with strength that he believed in her.
Closing her eyes, she summoned peace and reached out once again with her mind for the spirit. What she felt made her shrink away… it was corruption, anger, darkness, and a black vindictiveness which left a bitter taste in her mouth. It made her want to run, but she couldn’t. Margie was facing that monster behind the closed door and she had to get him away from her.
“Frank,” she spoke the word but sent all her force behind it, sent it from her mind to his, and she felt him twitch in her head.
“Frank, this woman is not your wife. She was married to Alan, the man you see in the photo.”
A wave of rage hit her and sent her tumbling backward. Jesse clung onto her hand and pulled her back to upright, all the while reciting the prayer.
“Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo et in terra,” he said, his voice calm and so controlled.”
“You should not be here. You are dead and you deserve peace.”
The fury in her mind eased just a little and she thought she heard a plea, a desperation, but then it was gone, and the screams started from behind the door once more.
“Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie, et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris,” Jesse chanted.
“Hold on Margie,” she called, before centering her mind once more and searching for that cold fury that was Frank.
“Frank, listen to me. Your wife died. Leave this plane and go to her. She will be waiting for you and you can have peace.” For a moment Gail felt nothing. It was as if the spirit had gone and a tentative smile curled her lips. Before it could fully form, she was blasted with a wave of decay and fury.
From within the bedroom, they could hear the sound of destruction, as if a tornado had landed there and was ripping the bedroom apart. The rage was a beast within the storm and Frank tore at her mind. Gail pulled away and looked at Jesse.
He nodded and gripped tightly to her hand. They would have to exorcise the spirit and she just hoped that they were strong enough for Margie’s sake.
“Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie, et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut,” Jesse chanted.
Gail put her hand on the door and gathered her intention. She didn’t understand why Frank was here, but she would send him back. “Let Christ’s, God's Word be made flesh. He commands you.”
The wind dropped, and she felt Frank shudder in her mind. He was afraid and that was a good sign.
“Begone from here, evil spirit, begone from this house and let it be filled with the pure light of His love.” Gail knew the words were wrong. She could never remember them in the heat of battle, but Jesse had assured her it didn’t matter. The intention was what mattered and she intended to keep Margie safe.
“Et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. Et ne nos inducas in tentationem, sed libera nos a malo. Amen,” Jesse continued.
Gail could feel Frank in her mind, fighting to stay, and yet he was afraid and he was slipping. The wind had died down… he was getting weaker… it was getting lighter. Frank fought in her mind and he moved away from Margie. The older woman was safe, of that she was sure.
Gail reached inside herself and pooled her power, giving it everything she had. “Begone inventor, and master of all deceit, the enemy of man's salvation. Unclean and evil beast, hear the Lord’s words and be gone."
The house was suddenly so quiet that her voice boomed out. “I cast you out, unclean spirit; in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, begone from these creatures of God.”
From the bedroom they heard the sound of breaking glass. The door slowly creaked open.
Gail felt Frank leave, felt him torn from this realm, and her mind was filled with warmth and love. It was over.
Chapter 18
Gail rushed into the room behind Jesse to a scene of chaos. Broken glass littered the floor. The curtains and pole had been torn from the wall and were strewn on the floor. Pictures, ornaments, and pillows were all tossed aside like detritus after a storm, but all Gail could see was Margie.
She was slumped on the floor near the bed, her knees clasped against her chest. A dark ugly bruise was forming under her left eye and tears were running down her face.
Despite all this, she sat totally still. It looked as if she wasn’t even breathing, and Gail ran to her and dropped to her knees at her side.
Pulling Margie into her arms, she hugged her close. The woman was so cold, icy to the touch, and her body was stiff with fear.
“You’re safe,” Gail whispered into her hair. “He’s gone and you’re safe.”
Slowly she rocked her and rubbed her back until Margie began to relax. At first, her muscles softened and she leaned against Gail. Then she started to wail. It was a low, keening sound of loss and despair, but Gail knew it was the start of healing. She hoped they had gotten rid of Frank in time, that he had been forced from the room before he could do much more than frighten Margie. Even so, she doubted the woman would ever get over the experience.
“Come,” she said, and helped her to her feet.
Margie was awkward with shock and Gail looked around for Jesse. He was staring at the far wall and holding the EMF meter. Gail felt a surge of anger. Why was he worried about that now? Margie was more important and she needed help.
“Jesse,” she called. “A hand, please.”
Jesse turned and looked. There was worry on his face and fear in his light grey eyes. He was staring and she looked past him to the writing on the wall behind him. Something else had been written in blood, but she couldn’t see it past Jesse.
His face cleared and he dropped the meter and rushed to give her a hand.
Together they got Margie out of the room and sat her down on the sofa. Jesse clicked on the lights and went to the kitchen while Gail talked to Margie. It didn’t matter what she said; the words were unimportant. She just kept telling her all would be okay as she rubbed her freezing fingers.
White as a sheet, stiff as a board, and yet shaking like a leaf, with her black eye and tears streaking her face, she looked a broken woman.
Soon Jesse came in with a hot drink. Even as he approached, Gail could smell the brandy with which he had laced the coffee. It would help to chase away the shock a little bit, but the only thing that would really help Margie would be time.
“Here, sip this,” Jesse said as he held out the mug.
Margie looked up and stared at it as if she didn’t quite comprehend what he was doing.
“Drink it,” Gail encouraged.
Margie nodded and robotically took the mug and sipped delicately. Despite the fact that she was shaking, she managed to hold onto the mug.
“Keep drinking,” Gail said, and Margie did as she was told.
Gail kept talking and rubbing her back as gradually the shaking subsided. Bit by bit she drank and then handed the mug back to Jesse. There was still a look of astonishment on her face, but at least a touch of color had returned to her cheeks.
“It’s over,” Gail said, and Margie looked to Gail for confirmation.
“Really, really over?”
“Yes, he’s gone and he will never hurt you again.”
“Gail,” Jesse called.
Gail turned to him and gave him her exasperated look. Couldn’t he see that Margie needed her now?
“Gail, I need to talk to you,” he said with more insistence.
Gail glared at him but turned back to Margie. “Will you be all right for a moment while we see to the room?”
“Yes,” Margie said, but it was scarcely more than a whisper.
Gail followed Jesse back into the bedroom. “What is so important that you had to call me away from her? Can’t you see how much she needs me?”
Jesse nodded and pointed to the wall.
Gail looked up to see the writing. “Is that blood?
” she asked, and Jesse nodded.
Written in blood that dripped down from the letters was,
NOT DEAD
LIAR
CHEATER
YOU WILL DIE BITCH
Gail didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The words sent a chill through her and left a cold spot in her heart, but did they really matter? Annoyance took over the fear and she clenched her jaw to stop the angry words that were waiting there.
“Jesse... she needs me right now, and this...” she waved at the wall, “this doesn’t matter… he’s gone.”
“Has he?” Jesse asked, and his eyes had that infuriating look, the one that said he knew more than she did.
“I felt it,” Gail said, her voice louder than she’d intended. With a glance at the door, she moved closer to Jesse. “I felt him go. You heard him leave.” Once more her hand pointed this time to the broken window and the glass on the floor. “We did it; we sent him away and you should be pleased.”
“It just felt too easy,” Jesse said.
For a moment, Gail felt a nagging doubt tug at her insides. It was an uncomfortable rumble, a rolling of emotion, but she pushed it away and turned to leave the room. “Who’s the one who can feel the spirits?” she asked.
“You can, but I have more experience,” Jesse said.
“Experience at what, Jesse?” Gail said. “Before Seafield House, before I saw the ghosts, you hadn’t seen anything since you were twelve. In my book, I have the most experience, and we need to be helping Margie get over this, not looking for more excitement.” Gail gave him one more glare and then turned and left the room.
Chapter 19
Jesse ran a hand through his short brown hair and bit back a sharp retort. Gail wasn’t being mean, she was frightened, worried for Margie, and quite possibly enraptured.
The spirit hadn’t gone, of that he was sure. Frank was tricky and intelligent. Maybe mean and cunning would be closer to what Jesse felt, but he knew that one single reading of an exorcism wasn’t sending him anywhere, especially when they didn’t understand his motivation.
Margie was still in danger, probably in much more danger because Frank now knew what they were up to. He knew they wanted to be rid of him and he would fight back and Jesse knew that fight would be dirty. For now he would agree with Gail, but they were not leaving this place, not until he found out what Frank was up to, and not until he sent him to hell.
“How long before you’re ready?” Gail asked, as Jesse walked through the house with another bag of broken glass.
“How’s Margie?” he asked.
“She’s fine; she’s safe now.” Gail’s expression was too smug.
“I’ve got a few more things to clear up and a bit more work to secure the window,” Jesse said.
“Why bother? Frank’s gone.” Gail had her hands on her hips and was challenging him.
Jesse bit back an angry response and looked over her shoulder at Margie. She was looking a little better, but she was still in deep shock. Should he get her to the hospital? For a moment it seemed like the perfect solution. She would be safe there for the night and it would give him more time to come up with a resolution for Frank. It would also get Gail away from here and break the spell the ghost had on her. Yet, something told him it was best not to leave. He didn’t know what or why but he trusted his instincts. Maybe it was even one of his spirit guides communicating with him, or maybe it was Frank and he was enraptured too!
“We really do need to make sure we leave a client’s house in good repair,” Jesse said, and walked away before Gail could argue.
He went to the garage and found a sheet of wood. It would suffice to block off the bedroom window. Tomorrow she could get someone out to replace the glass. Keeping himself busy, he cut it to shape and fitted it where Frank had left the room, breaking the glass. Then he picked up all the broken pieces and began the clear up of the bedroom. It wasn’t much, but it gave him time to think. Little by little he was coming up with a plan. He had tried to research Samantha Parsons, but had come up with nothing. He had to find out what had happened to her and if there was any link to Margie.
While he was throwing away the broken glass, he sent a text to an old friend, Mark, asking if he could help him find out what had happened to Samantha. It was late, but if Mark was up he would understand the situation and do all he could to help. As ex-army, Mark was like a magician when it came to finding out about people, and Jesse wondered why he hadn’t thought to ask him before.
With that done, Jesse loitered in the garage, taking as much time as he could away from Gail. He had two reasons for this: one, he wanted to keep out of Margie’s way and give her some space and time to recover without him. Gail was so good at putting her at ease and Gail was female. After what she had been through, the last thing she needed was him blundering about and putting his foot in his mouth. But he had another reason for keeping out of the way…
Gail was too pleased with herself. Frank had surely entered her mind and let her believe that she had done a brilliant job. The danger of this was she wanted to leave. Frank would have planted that suggestion and Jesse knew that if they left, Margie was as good as dead.
Why hadn’t he given her protection against this? It was a rookie mistake and one he would never make again. His hand went to his wrist. On it was a black bracelet imbued with white sage, orgonite, with a silver tree of life symbol, and run through with copper. Each week, he blessed the bracelet and dipped it in Holy Water to cleanse it. As soon as they got out of here he would buy Gail a necklace to match. It would help protect her against being enraptured by a spirit. It was not infallible, but it would help. For now, he would have to drive the spirit from her. It would be easy enough to do, but he had to be ready. As he waited for Mark, he went back to the bungalow for supplies and then returned to the garage to prepare.
It was just short of an hour later when he received a text back from Mark. It contained a file with details about Samantha, and a photograph. Jesse almost dropped the phone as he opened the photo. At least now he had his answer; he knew why Frank was here.
Jesse rushed back into the house to find Gail stood waiting by the door.
“How’s Margie?” he asked.
“She’s fine. We should go.”
“Not yet,” Jesse said, and he walked past her to see Margie was seated in the kitchen with a glass of brandy, untouched before her.
“How are you feeling?” he asked.
“I don’t want to be alone tonight,” she whispered, without looking up at him. He could see her hands were once again clenched tightly in front of her, so tight that her knuckles were white.
“We won’t leave you,” he said, and gently rubbed her shoulder.
At the simple touch, she started to sob, and Jesse’s heart melted. How could he help her? How could he prevent what he knew was coming? Should he send her away?
Before he made that decision he had to deal with Gail, and he was ready.
Chapter 20
“Let’s get out of here,” Gail said, as she came into the kitchen behind Jesse.
The tone of her voice incensed him. It was insensitive and rude, but he had to remember she was not herself. “Come to the garage with me for a moment,” Jesse said, as he squeezed Margie’s shoulder and guided Gail from the room.
She let out a big sigh, letting the world know that this was too much effort for her and that she was not amused. Jesse knew this was not her, knew that Frank must be working on her mind, cajoling and insisting to her that there was no need for them to be here any longer.
“What do you want?” Gail snapped, as they stepped towards the garage.
“Just help me tidy up the equipment and then we can get moving.”
“At last.” She walked ahead of him a little quicker and as she stepped through the door, a bucket of water tipped from above, drenching her as she crossed the threshold.
Jesse came in behind her, chanting a releasing prayer. “Let all who take refuge in You be gl
ad.”
Gail spun around, her face red, her fist raised. “What are you doing?”
Jesse wanted to explain but he could see the look in her eyes. The Holy Water shower had helped, but she was still not herself. “Let them ever sing for joy. Spread Your protection over them that those who love Your name may rejoice in You.”
“Damn it, Jesse, what are you doing?”
He could see her eyes were clearer. The red had left her face and the anger was going. It had been replaced with a look of exhaustion. She was coming down from the spirit’s influence. He reached behind him and grabbed a towel, throwing it to her as he continued the prayer. “Surely, LORD, You bless Gail, the righteous; You surround her with Your favor as with a shield. Amen.”
Gail grabbed the towel and sank to the floor, rubbing her hair as she sat on the concrete.
“How are you?” Jesse asked.
As she toweled her shoulder length brown bob, her eyes flashed up at him. “Was that really necessary?”
“You tell me?”
Gail shrugged. “I don’t know what came over me. I felt so angry and was acting so cruel, and I just couldn’t stop it.”
“It was Frank; he enraptured you.”
“Like what happened to Mark?”
Jesse shuddered as he remembered a time when his best friend Mark had stood on the outside of a safety rail thirty floors up. He had been ready to jump to his death because a ghost had told him to join his love. “Yeah, just like that.”
“How come you aren’t affected?”
“I wear this, remember?” Jesse showed her the bracelet and she smiled.
“Maybe I should get one?”
Jesse laughed. “Don’t worry, I have an idea for a beautiful necklace for you.”
“Not to be a bitch, but maybe you should have thought about that before now,” she said, winking to soften the words.
DarkMan: Ghosts and Haunted Houses (The Spirit Guide Book 3) Page 9
