“Cid and Jesse were possessed by ghosts at the Campbell assessment,” Kiki said. “The ghosts were very upfront, and we knew who they were. Do you know what or who possessed me?” Kiki asked.
Alan shook his head. “There are theories. I became worried about you when your phone calls to me became disturbing. Forgive me, Kiki, but I sought out help. I initially wanted to be told that I was imagining things and you and Cid were just having another spat. I asked for Audrey Stavros’s help. She encouraged me to speak with Father Simon and Father Santos.”
“The big guns,” Kiki said. “I’m impressed.”
Alan wasn’t fooled by Kiki’s tone. He knew she was upset.
“Well, who possessed me?” Kiki asked.
“We don’t know, except it’s related somehow to Atwater. We think that there is a heritage demon involved,” Alan said and pulled out another folder. He slid out the photo of the floor of the media room. “That’s a summoning circle.”
“Wait, I’m confused. Cid schooled us on heritage demons. They don’t possess.”
“You’re right.”
“But…”
“The evidence points to a negative elemental being involved. According to Audrey’s husband’s research, demons are impossible for humans to kill. But they can be killed. If they are, they are given a choice of being a ghost or ceasing to exist.”
“Well, that’s a no brainer. Negative elemental. But two demons?”
“There are documented cases of humans being so evil that, when they die, they are offered the same deal.”
“Why?”
“As a reward for being evil by evil… Don’t quote me, it sounds absurd.”
Kiki jumped up, her face lit up. She fanned her face. “Alan. The reason we aren’t allowed to mess with the ghosts is because it keeps the elemental trapped on the property!”
“Yes.”
“And the reason my men are there is because the elemental needs more power. He’s encouraging the ghosts to kill so there will be fresh meat,” Kiki said. “We have to get them out of there!”
“Hold on,” Alan said, putting a strong arm on Kiki’s. He set a new photo down.
“What’s…”
“Faye trapped the elemental. Cid, Jesse and Sally contained it. Right now, it’s resting inside the Atwater safe behind iron and lead.” Alan set down a photo of the basement floor. “That’s the men. They were trapped there by, let’s say, friends of Faye’s. The men worked all night and are ready to close up the ceiling down there. You can’t be there. It’s too dangerous.”
“But they trapped it.”
“What happens if Bridgeton opens the safe and sets it free?”
Kiki frowned. “Why didn’t I see this coming? You kept asking me why I wanted this job. Wayne was horrified I took a job when twelve crews abandoned it.”
“A heritage demon doesn’t have to be in the same room with you to influence you. It can operate independent of its family. The demon could have been with the family lawyer or been the lawyer, we don’t know. But stop kicking yourself and settle down so we can get a better understanding of who these Atwaters are and what happened at that house to produce a negative elemental.”
“So we need the family histories.”
“And the little comments on what makes a pie good. When I was in law school and preparing for a mock trial, we researched everything from the type of shoelaces worn to the hair gel purchased by the defendant. Believe me, there is something here.”
“But what if there isn’t?” Kiki asked.
“The guys will finish the job, and Father Santos will put the Atwaters on a watch list.”
“You mentioned that Faye has made friends?”
“Two ghosts, who aren’t crazy, have been helping her and the contractors. One of them has written his story down. Cid has Sally reading it. Evidently, the clever ghost wrote it in between the lines and in the margins of a book and hid it in the library. Care to guess at the title?”
“Do I look like Cid?”
“The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells.”
“How clever,” Kiki said.
“She’s only had it since late last night but already has zeroed in on two things. One: Atwater isn’t the family’s real name. And two: there is a hidden staircase in the media room.”
“Well, we can look into the validity of Atwater here,” Kiki said. “Cid will have to check out the stairway. I have a feeling, if it was so important to hide, it has played a part in this horror story.”
“Kiki, because the elemental can possess you so easily, I have to insist that you don’t go back to Walnut Grove House. It took four rivers and three iron bridges to dislodge the creature from you. If you go back, we may never get you back.”
Kiki nodded and sighed. “I’m sorry for being so stubborn. If not for me letting my personal baggage get in the way, my crew would not be in danger.”
“When do you have to give a progress report to Bridgeton?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Well, let’s get this stuff read and recorded before it disappears,” Alan said. “Father Santos warned me that heritage demons are very intuitive. If it senses something is amiss, then we’re cooked.”
Chapter Fifteen
Daniel Sullivan’s Tale Continued
There is no use lying that Jon didn’t warn me something was amiss. I have the luxury of hindsight to confirm he was right. But, at the time, I was very happy in the new role of family provider. I sent more and more money to my mam and da. War had made normal procurement of daily meals near impossible. If you had money, then you could
