“You can’t touch me,” he said, in a weird singsong voice. “I’m full of light. Full of people. It’s much, much better,” he said. “I can show you exactly how good it was.” He looked at the detectives, beaming. “My latest paintings prove it.”
“What is it I’m supposed to look at?” Cayce asked, as Kenneth pulled her into a sitting position, then up onto her feet.
“Let me show you,” he said, “but don’t you cops come any closer.” He wrapped an arm around her neck and, still clutching a needle there, dragged her off to the side of the room, while Richard watched helplessly. Kenneth turned on a small table light. “Look,” he said. “Look. I made it.”
And Richard stared in shock because there was Naomi, her carved-up corpse off to one side and a piece missing from her painted body on the other side. It was hung up near the painting that had been taken from Elena.
“See? I did exactly as you did. Aren’t they perfect?”
Cayce, in a calm, yet sad voice, said, “You did. Elena loved you so much.” Her stomach contents started to climb up into her throat. Nothing was joyous or beautiful at all about what had happened to Naomi’s body. Or to Elena’s masterpiece, which was completely unrecognizable. Instead, Cayce could see the energy of demons as they crawled from the center of Naomi’s skin, the flesh already rotting and decaying. What his human-skin canvases were intended to be wasn’t even visible. Madness had completely taken over Kenneth.
“I know,” he said proudly. “And now Elena’s with me always. That’s why I sent you a piece. So she’d be with you too.”
Cayce closed her eyes, as tears dripped down her cheeks. Then resolutely, determinedly, she stretched out her energy, blending with the bits and pieces of Elena’s energy still left on poor Elena’s masterpiece. Not much there to work with but all objects were energy. Even pieces that had been taken from people who were light themselves. She could hear Heath in the background, as he slipped further away into his own darkness. Meanwhile Kenneth was explaining in that earnest voice of his how he was bringing more light into people’s lives with his work and how Cayce would help him do so much better once they were all together.
She took a deep breath, and she sucked in all the energy she could reach for around her—whether good energy or bad—from the bits left of Elena and Naomi, whatever Heath had too. Then, feeling the energetic power build and grow as she reached for Kenneth, Cayce pulled his energy into her space and away from him. Feeling the power surge into her, … through her.
Let it go right through. Keep pulling, but release it out the other side, Stefan whispered, calm and steady in her head. This needs to happen, but you don’t need this energy. It’s too dark. Too ugly. You need to let it go. Think of a paintbrush, and stroke that energy forward to go around you and to carry on out behind you. Let it all go. Release Elena’s energy, keeping just your memories of her. Release your ex-fiancé. Release Elena’s stepfather, … all those ugly and painful memories. Let them go and the people with it. Most of all, let go of Kenneth and Halo. … They are broken souls. You need to walk free.
The energy pressure built higher and higher inside her. Stefan was helping her, pulling energy—or maybe blocking her from pulling energy?
I’m only protecting the other two in the room. Pull, he urged, pull harder …
She could see Richard’s beloved face in front of her and heard Kenneth’s screams in her head.
Pull hard, then let go, Stefan ordered.
She could feel someone else joining her efforts but not with the pulling …
Dr. Maddy whispered, I’m helping you to let go. This will kill you if you don’t. The brothers are already gone. We need to save you now. Release all this old energy. All the pain. Release the energy from these evil men …
Blindly aware of Kenneth doing some midair dance beside her and Richard moving closer, his hands out to help, … she reached back.
Reach for a future, Dr. Maddy said encouragingly. Let go of the past.
And, with that, she let the tainted energy swoop on past, and she stepped forward, disconnecting from all that had been, collapsing into Richard’s arms.
*
She’ll be okay now, Stefan said quietly. And I realized the connection I was feeling. It was Halo. He was in treatment at one of Dr. Maddy’s centers, where she had asked for my help. He showed such initial progress that the foster care system pulled him out against our wishes. He was a broken soul back then and has declined so much since then. The brothers are both at peace now. Richard, look after Cayce. Stefan’s voice faded from his mind.
Richard cradled Cayce into his arms. “God, I thought I’d lost you,” he whispered, sending an emotional thanks to Stefan.
She sobbed quietly against his shirt. “You cut it damn close,” she whispered.
He kissed her, holding her face close, and kissed her once more. “I made it though,” he said. “That’s what counts.”
She gave him a wistful smile and whispered, “You’re right.” She looked down at Kenneth, then around at Heath. “Are they dead?”
Andy stood over Kenneth, studying the macabre sight of his severely dehydrated body. “This will be fun for the coroner to decipher.” He looked over at her. “Are you okay?”
“I will be,” she answered, not prepared to explain what just happened. As far as she cared, these two dead men could be declared as unexplained causes of death. Something for the medical experts to talk about for years to come. As long as they didn’t try to discuss it with her, she’d be fine.
“Both men are dead. Same dehydration,” Andy said in confusion. “I don’t know what just happened here, but I’m glad whatever the hell happened didn’t affect us. And what
