Haunted

The Waiting Game

Emily slid Amys smudge stick from its hiding place behind the rose bush her mom had planted when she was born. Amy made me keep one outside of her home along with one on her person at all times, just in case they were wrong about the whole demon can’t leave the house thing. But it still hasn’t manifested itself to her yet. 

Now she walks around her house with the smudge stick in my hand, holding it out in front of me like it’s a sword and I’m a master fencer. “En garde!” Emily shouted to no one in particular.

She must have looked like a crazy person, swishing around the room with a smudge stick. If Jack were to come in right now, surely he’d have me institutionalized.

But Emily knew he wouldn’t come in. Jack was at work and hasn’t been inside the house today. She jabbed the knife once more, and she swore she heard a giggle coming from the air above her. “You better not be laughing at me!” She told the child, but I can’t help smiling a tiny smile myself. This morning Emily and Amy started smudging the house. Now that the fun is over, she said to Amy, “Let’s hope that this works. Jack comes home at 8 p.m., cradling a long, slim paper-bag-wrapped package in his arms and a bouquet of flowers. “For you.” He holds it out in front of him.

She peeked inside. “Flowers and wine?”

“It is almost over,” he answered, a mix of nerves and hope in his voice. “If all goes well, we’re going to have more than one reason to celebrate after the smudging, I just got a head start on celebrating.”

Emily tried to smile back at him, but her mouth wouldn’t cooperate. Maybe if the smudging Amy showed me how to do didn’t work all might be lost.

“That’s awfully optimistic of you,” She finally managed to say.

“What can I say? I believe in you.”

Emily blushed under his gaze, and he follows her into the kitchen, where she places the flowers and the wine bottle gingerly on the counter.”There’s something I have to tell you,”

“Okay,”

“There is a child’s spirit here in the house, or there was before the smudging, Aren’t you scared?” She asked softly.

“Of course,” Jack answered.

“You don’t look scared,”

Jack looked up at her and smiled. “I’ve got a pretty good poker face,”

Emily shook her head. If she failed, Jack could end up like Amy’s husband—not just dead, but his spirit tethered to the demon, trapped in a world of torment.

She took a deep breath and said, “Promise me you’ll run if things start to look bad. If it looks like I failed, just get out of here, as quickly as you can. Before the demon can—” The lump in her throat makes it impossible to say the word kill. Instead, she said, “Before it can hurt you.”

“I’m not going to leave you—”

“Just promise. Please.”

“Okay,” Jack finally said, nodding. “I promise.”

“Amy,” Emily said, trying to sound like this isn’t the single weirdest night of her life, “This is my friend Cady, I don’t know if you two know each other,”

Another rumble of thunder. Rain begins splashing against the windows and the roof.

Amy narrows her eyes. “Have we met?” she asks, holding her hand out to shake Cady’s.

“Not exactly,” Cady answered with a trembling smile. It takes her a second to understand what she meant. Cady had never met Amy, but the demon living inside of her had.

 took Amy’s hand and pumps it up and down enthusiastically. Amy leads the way back into the living room. On TV the Halloween is playing signaling that it's midnight. The seconds tick by. Amy sat in the center of the sofa, Jack, and Cady on either side of me, like she’s the meat in the middle of a medium sandwich. I’m standing with a  smudge stick poking me in my back pocket. I reach for it and hope it works like it’s supposed to do. Emily took a deep breath and nodded that I was ready. Jack and Cady hold Amy's arm so she won't be able to get up. She lights the smudge stick then walked over to Amy making sure the smoke surrounded her. You could hear the demon growl deeply from inside of her. "I command you to leave her by the power of God," She kept repeating over and over. Amy jumped up from the couch throwing Cady and Jack back knocking them both out. All of a sudden Emily sees water falling from the ceiling like the water from the top floor bathroom, only her house was a single-story home so where was the water coming from. "Steve I need you and Father Mike! Cady and Jack are knocked out, and the demon has taken over Amy's body," Emily yelled into her phone. The water got harder filling up the house with water. Emily tried to drag Cady and Jack out of the house only to have the front door shut in her face. The demon obviously didn't want anyone to leave. 

It only took a short time before she heard a car screech to a halt out front. Then came a pounding on the front door. It wouldn't open. Emily heard a banging on the window in the living room. Father Mike was waving her away from the area. Next, she sees a big brick flying through the window and Steve climbing through it followed by Father Mike. "I'm sorry the demon has the door sealed shut. I even tried to get Jack and Cady out but it wouldn't let me. I don't even know where the water is coming from," Emily cried. "It's okay we're here now, where is Amy,"

"I'm not sure last I saw her she was in my bedroom,"

"We will hold her while you finish the ritual,"

"But Cady and Jack couldn't hold her down, how will you, she is super strong,"

"Don't worry I've come prepared,"