The Demon in Me

“He must have lied about his name,” Rosa said emphatically. “If he’d given you his true name, this wouldn’t be a problem.”

“She’s right,” Darrak said. “One point for the lady in the muumuu.”

“Darrak’s not your real name?”

“More of a nickname. Sorry, I don’t give out my real name to someone I’ve just met. I’d say you shouldn’t be offended if you hadn’t just tried to use it against me. Now can we end this while we all still have our dignity intact?”

“Mother, let me try,” Malcolm stepped forward.

She nodded. “Very well.”

The college kid, lanky and lean with that angelic face, approached Eden and leaned against her desk. He had a Bible in his hand. The vial of holy water rested on the desk next to him.

He leaned over and looked her directly in the eyes. “Demon, I commit myself to casting ye from this innocent woman’s body.”

Darrak let out a small gasp inside of her. “Shit. This guy’s the real deal.”

He was? This college kid was a genuine exorcist — a true believer — when his mother wasn’t?

“Unclean spirit—” Malcolm dipped his fingers into the bottle of holy water and brought it to Eden’s forehead, before drawing a small cross there. There was a slight burning sensation as it dried.

Darrak must have felt more than a slight burn because he gasped again. “No—”

“Leave this place,” Malcolm continued evenly. “Return to the eternal darkness from which you were spawned and never return.”

Eden inhaled sharply. She felt something then. An unpleasant tightening deep inside of her. Whatever Malcolm was doing was working.

And that’s what she wanted, right?

“Eden—” Darrak didn’t sound happy. “Please, stop this. Don’t let him exorcise me.”

Malcolm then took the small black Bible in his hand and without any warning, pressed it firmly against Eden’s forehead. She shrieked out loud as her chair skidded back a few feet on its wheels to crash against the wall.

“Leave her!” Malcolm raised his voice. “And do not return. I bind ye and cast ye into the pit forevermore.”

The tearing and tightening sensation increased and Eden began to panic. Was this the right decision? Was she going to hurt somebody who — although their presence was more than a bit disconcerting to say the least — hadn’t actually hurt her in any way? Were demons really capable of being good as Darrak claimed? And if so, was she the one being evil by essentially hiring somebody to tear him apart in order to get rid of him — as if she was simply cauterizing an unwanted wart?

“What is your true name, demon?” Malcolm’s pressure on the Bible against her forehead increased. “Tell me. You now look into the face of justice and all that which is good in the world. You shall be incapable of lying to me now.”

“My name…” Darrak began. “It’s… it’s… no. No. Please, Eden, stop this. I’ll do anything. I promise we can fix this in another way!”

Eden gritted her teeth and grabbed Malcolm’s wrist. “Okay, I think that’s enough. Stop it.”

“Mother, restrain her. The demon is forcing her to resist me.” Rosa moved quickly, placing her cane to the side, and kneeled beside Eden’s chair to hold her wrists down against the armrests. Either she was really strong or Eden was suddenly really weak, but it was enough to keep her firmly pinned in place.

“It’ll be okay, honey,” she said. “Just think pleasant thoughts. Pure, virginal thoughts. We’ll get rid of that demon for you just like you asked us to.”

“I’ve changed my mind,” Eden gritted out. “It’s not really a demon.”

Rosa tilted her head to the side. “It’s not?”

“No… I… I had this spicy Mexican food last night. It’s only a bad case of heartburn. I don’t need an exorcism. I need some Pepto-Bismol!”

“Her tongue is forked with lies,” Malcolm growled.

“You’re the one who’s forked.” Eden glared at him. “Now, stop this right now or you’re going to be in big trouble!”

Sure. That sounded insistent enough, didn’t it?

“This exorcism won’t stop until I’m finished.” Malcolm pulled a notebook from his pocket and flipped forward a few pages. “Sancte Michael Archangele, defende nos in praelio et colluctatione, quae nobis adversus principes et potestates…”

“Eden!” Darrak had begun to sound panicked and the pitched tone of his voice, even though she only heard it internally, now held great pain.

“Stop this exorcism right now.” Eden looked directly at Rosa, who was staring back at her with a confused expression.

“She is not entirely human,” Rosa said in a soft voice.

“She’s touched with magic that gives this demon special strength. But I don’t know what it is that makes her different. Be careful, Malcolm.”

Could Rosa sense Eden’s mild psychic abilities? Before she could ask for clarification, Malcolm roughly grabbed a handful of Eden’s hair and pulled her head back around to look at him.

“So the demon is not the only unclean being in the room. Perhaps that’s why he was attracted to your form. You are a minion of Satan as well.”

“Get your hands off me,” Eden growled.

“I can help you,” he insisted. “But I need you lucid enough to break free of the demon’s influence.”

He let go of her hair only to backhand her hard across her face. The pain and shock was enough to knock any thoughts or protests out of her head.

“Malcolm,” Rosa said sharply. “That wasn’t necessary.”

“Mother, please. Let me do my job here.”

There was a knock on the door a moment before Malcolm struck the other side of her face, which left her ears ringing and pain reverberating through her skull as Rosa continued to hold her in place.

Eden looked over and was surprised to see that Ben had returned. He peered through the glass door at them, and his eyes met with Eden’s.

He rattled the handle as he tried to get in, but the door was locked. Then he banged at the door hard with his closed fist.

This probably didn’t look too good, Eden thought absently, both relieved and disturbed that her exorcism had another witness.

The next moment something shattered — it was the door. Ben had wrapped part of his leather jacket over his fist to break the glass, then he reached through to unlock it and let himself in.

“What the hell is going on here?” he demanded.

“Leave us,” Malcolm growled over his shoulder.

“I don’t think so. Let go of her”—Ben unsheathed his gun and pointed it at Malcolm—“right now.”

CHAPTER 6

Malcolm put up his hands and took a few steps away from Eden. “You’re making a grave mistake.”

“I think you’re the one making the mistake. And that goes for you, too, lady. Get the hell away from her.” Ben’s gaze moved to Eden. “Are you okay?”

She felt shaky and cold. She couldn’t feel Darrak’s presence anymore, which disturbed her. Was he gone? Had Malcolm been successful at exorcising him?

“Yes, I’m fine,” she managed after a moment.

Ben narrowed his eyes as he looked at Malcolm and Rosa. “You’re both under arrest for assault.”

“No, wait,” Eden said getting to her feet. “I’m not pressing charges.”

She couldn’t let Ben arrest them. She’d paid the exorcists to come here. They’d only done what she wanted them to do. That is, until she changed her mind.

It was a possessed woman’s prerogative, after all.

“You’re not…” Ben’s forehead was furrowed. “What the hell do you mean? I saw this son of a bitch hit