Father O'Leary lowered the notebook out of frame, then wiped at his watery eyes. "Jared died at that very moment. He'd collapsed in the restraints, so of course we attended to him. Father Bersani confirmed that Jared had no pulse. We did try to revive him. But we then also understood that Jesus had appeared to Jared to rescue him from the demon. His soul was saved by God because Jared had accepted God's divine intervention to end his suffering. He surrendered his life to save himself and his friends."
Conner attempted to strangle the sob that rose from his chest. He gritted his teeth, but the sob ascended against his will. His stifled howl pierced the air like a pained, animalistic wail. For a few aching moments, he didn't realize that Adam had gripped his knee, squeezing as he cried.
Sniffling, Trevor said, "Jared literally"—he forcefully cleared his throat—Jared literally died because of us."
Conner felt a firm hand on his shoulder. A quick glance to the side determined that it was Lou.
A series of memories flashed through Conner's mind, each pulsating with emotion. With his eyes clenched shut, he visualized a lifetime with his friends—school, sports, sleepovers, biking. Everything. He was numb. All physical movement seemed suspended, as if he was incapable of function. But when he felt the seat next to him rise with the absence of weight, he opened his eyes and saw Adam dart from the sofa toward the bathroom.
Conner jumped to his feet, with Trevor on his heels. They followed Adam into the bathroom and shut the door.
"I feel worse," Adam cried. "I feel worse. My whole body hurts. I can't stand that this happened. Why did Jared have to die?"
"You heard what the priest said," Trevor replied. "God saved him. And Jared saved us."
Adam dropped into a squat, pressing his palms against the floor. "I wish we could have saved him from all of this."
Conner knelt down to look Adam in the eye. "Hey, we're going to get through this. Right now, I know it hurts. I'm hurting too. I'm so sad I feel like I'm dying. But we're going to get through this. Together."
Nodding, Adam wiped at his nose.
Trevor crouched and wrapped his arms around the two. "Jared saved us, you guys. He saved us."
They sat on the floor, united in pain and drying their tears.
A knock sounded at the door. "Hey," Stella said. "I'm sorry, guys. But we need to leave soon so we can meet the man with the key."
Conner tilted his head back and ran his hands across his face. "Okay. We'll be out in just a minute."
He looked at Adam and Trevor, then extended his fist to the two. Silently, they bumped fists, and then they each washed their face before stepping out of the room.
* * *
When Trevor parked at the Smiths' house, Conner studied the home. It no longer seemed creepy or haunted or inhabited by a demon. Now it only looked forsaken . . . lonely . . . sad. Just as he was going to comment on his newfound observation, Lou and Stella pulled up in their cars. Soon, they stood in the driveway with Dave and Walter, waiting for the guys to exit Trevor's vehicle.
"Let's go," Adam said as he opened the door.
A tall man approached the group from the sidewalk. As he neared, Conner recognized him as Jared's uncle, a man he'd seen only on a handful of occasions. He kindly acknowledged the guys and then asked, "Who's Lou?"
"I am."
Jared's uncle handed the key to Lou. "You have one hour."
"I understand. One hour is plenty of time. We'll be done by the time you get here."
"Good." Jared's uncle stepped away then abruptly turned. "I don't know what you're looking for, and I don't know why my brother is letting you guys into the house. But whatever the reason, I hope you find what you're looking for, 'cause there won't be another chance. Work crew gets here on Friday to replace the flooring and make repairs."
On the porch, Dave started filming as Lou said, "I'll let you guys go in first. We'll follow you up to Jared's room. Then you decide if you want to inspect the etching on your own or if you want our input or help with anything."
Conner looked at Trevor and Adam, waiting for their agreement or objection, but neither responded. "Okay. Let's get to it."
Lou unlocked the door with a loud click and pushed the door open. He gestured to the foyer. "After you."
Conner walked in the lead, pausing at the bottom of the stairs. Trevor nodded, and Adam cupped Conner's shoulder.
They three ascended the stairs with Dave close behind. At the landing, Conner said, "Jared's room is at the end of the hall. Once we're all in there, we'll move the bed and check out the etching in the floor. You guys can watch until we're done."
Stella replied, "That's fine. We don't want to intrude. We'll wait until you tell us we can join you."
Each step toward the bedroom seemed heavy-footed, but at the same time, Conner felt light on his feet. It was as if the jumble of emotions he felt was represented in his steps. Jared suffered because of what had happened at Lake Bantam, something that had involved all of them. And in the end, Jared died to save them from apparently enduring the same fate. The closer Connor got to the bedroom, the guiltier he felt.
The odor of dirty, piss water reached his nostrils the moment Conner opened the door. Thankfully, the stench had weakened since their last visit to the house.
He flipped the switch, but apparently the bulb had burned out. Glancing over his shoulder, he said, "We won't have enough light."
Dave responded, "There's a light on the camera."
"Well, yeah. But that won't be enough."
Adam pointed at the window. "Let's take that panel off."
"Think we should?" Lou asked.
"Jared's uncle said a crew was going to do repairs. They'll have to fix the window anyway."
"That's true,"
