Miss Gee raised her hand. “I also saw August. He’s not in the house presently, so I expect he’s possessing Bridgeton.”
“My contractor wanted to sue, but I told him it would be difficult to prove without a witness. Also, we do have a non-disclosure clause,” Kiki said.
Miss Gee put her hands up and turned slowly. “There are two unfamiliar spirits in this house, and…” Her eyes opened wide. She turned to Cid and spat, “You were not supposed to mess with the ghosts!”
“The ghosts in the house,” Cid specified. “These were outside in the grove. You remember the grove, don’t you? I’m sure you also remember your faithful servants, Miss Gee. Did they deserve to be killed, let alone spend their eternity chained?”
“A necessary evil,” Miss Gee said. “They knew their deaths were for a higher purpose.”
“But were they?” Cid questioned.
“Mr. Garrett, you just spoke about honoring love in all forms.”
“Yes.”
“I fell in love with Arnold the moment he was born. His mother was attending a party in this very house and went into labor. I was the only female who wasn’t afraid to help her. The moment he slipped out of his mother into my waiting arms, I knew that all the gold that I had amassed was not as precious as this child. I saw the good inside of him, an innocence that if properly nurtured could influence many. A light in the darkness. Mr. Garrett, I know darkness. I was once tied to a darkness pretending to be a light.”
“The Borgias,” Cid said quietly for Kiki’s benefit.
“Yes. I brought the Borgias to a position of power that should have been a beacon to draw many to the light, but instead, they were merely masquerading. When the last of the direct line died out, I had no more interest in humans. I returned to Hell and the gold I had amassed. That was until I was dragged back by August and his summoning circle. I regret, in my haste to be free of Lucrezia, I did not burn down her home to rid me of the controlling circle. I never saw August as a threat. You see, he is a distant relative of the Borgias. He stated his reasons for calling me as within his rights. I looked at his line and found a vast fertile family. At this time, I was disillusioned by the human race, so I once again agreed to a contract. He would supply me with souls, and I would help him to accumulate his fortune. I resumed my heritage demon role and was quite resigned to make this once again my vocation, but then Arnold was born.”
“When did you find out that August was going to sacrifice Arnold in order to take his youth and replace him?” Cid asked.
“August didn’t like living with a glamour that aged his altered self. You see, because of the nature of the contract he signed, inside he was a man of twenty, but on the outside, he aged. August was too old to attract the women he wanted to bed. So he decided to become Arnold. In order to do so, he had to kill him. I lied and told him he had to do so in battle. August was unnaturally strong from years of being in my acquaintance. I knew if I were to save Arnold, I would have to level the playing field.”
“But how did you convince this supposedly righteous man to join you in murder most foul,” Cid asked.
Arnold looked over at the contractor. “Don’t judge me, young man. Not until you have stood in my shoes can you possibly know what horrors were presented to me had I not complied. Miss Gee gave me a glimpse of the future with August continuing in it. I admit I didn’t want to die. But know this, I also knew I had to stop him from continuing to pray upon our neighbors and possibly spreading his crimes further afield.”
“I’ll leave it for the light,” Cid said. “I will never understand why you two killed six people devoted to Miss Gee, nor two innocents.”
“Who were these innocents?” Miss Gee challenged.
“Jon O’Connor and Daniel Sullivan,” Cid answered.
“We paid their families compensation,” Miss Gee dismissed.
“What a horror you are,” Cid said. “How can anyone put a monetary value on a human life?”
“In my line of work it’s easy,” Miss Gee admitted. She looked long and hard at Kiki before sending telepathically to the contractor, “Is it this easy in yours?”
Kiki turned away.
Faye appeared. “Cid, there is another car approaching.”
Kiki grabbed her stomach. “It’s Bridgeton. August is within him.”
“How do you know this?” Arnold asked.
“I’ll answer that,” Father Santos said, walking out into the hall. “Once you’re possessed, you will always be aware of your possessor. Alan, I suggest you take Kiki out of this house before August uses her. I cannot guarantee her safety if she stays.”
“I can,” Miss Gee said.
Father Santos looked at the creature before him. Did no one else see the abomination of corrupted flesh or smell the sulfur that no perfume could adequately mask. “Miss Pickles, think of your contractors, your boyfriend and of the innocent lives lost already in this house. This is no place for you to be right now.”
“Have we finished speaking about the renovation?” Kiki asked Arnold.
“Yes. I’m satisfied with your work,” Arnold said.
“I’ll send the final invoice. Please remember to get the west foundation wall looked at in the spring,” Kiki said and took Alan’s hand. She started for the front door, changed her mind and headed for the
