Page 15 of The Penitentiary (Ghost Seekers Inc. #1)

“What?” I gasped and hurried forward. Where we could see through the bars to the other blocks, this one had a thick metal cover over it, blocking our view.

There was a door that let you inside that had been locked.

The sign said it was closed because the cellblock behind was unstable and derelict.

It warned of crumbling bricks and falling debris.

“Open the door. There is a presence inside,” Connor said and grasped his cross.

Callum, Michelle, and Hugo gripped their Bibles and entered first. I followed right on Callie’s heels and paused, surprised, the same as everyone.

There was nothing wrong with this cellblock at all.

Everything was almost new, apart from the wear and tear the inmates had caused.

There were no broken railings, no rickety stairs, no peeling paint.

The cell doors hung perfectly, just like they were ready to be used.

“This is creepy,” Jack said, and I nodded. He and Phil quickly set up some cameras as the three exorcists got the lay of the land.

“There’s definitely a demon here. I’d say the weaker one because he’s trying to hide his presence. His energy is concentrated on that cell there.” Connor pointed to a cell halfway down on the ground level.

“What number is it?” Harry demanded.

Phil replied, and minutes ticked past. “That belongs to a child murderer, Issac Luz. He murdered fifteen young boys and girls in the nineteen sixties. All children were under the age of five,” Harry informed us.

“A great concentration of evil. I bet it seeped into the cell, and that’s what the demon is drawing power from,” Callum stated.

“Makes sense. Someone like Luz sounds appalling and capable of committing great Sins,” Michelle agreed.

“Leave,” the word hissed through the wing.

“No. We are here in the name of God,” Callum called out.

“God doesn’t exist here.”

“God exists everywhere. Hugo, Callum, are you ready?” Michelle asked.

I watched as they began the opening of the exorcism. I’d seen a couple but sensed this was different. Callie moved closer to them, and I kept pace with her. When the three priests began praying, Connor, Jack, and Callie added their voices.

The demon screamed and cursed them. And it was a tortured noise. The sounds the demon emitted made my skin crawl, but Callie wasn’t fazed.

She kept going, strong in her belief and faith that they were doing what was right.

Callie didn’t even blink and flicked her Holy Water around when it was time.

I’d love to say the exorcism went easily, but it didn’t.

This might have been the weaker demon, but it was still strong.

It took three hours to banish its filthy ass, finally.

Callum and Hugo sank onto the floor. Callum had a cut across his forehead that a flying rock had caused, and Hugo had a bruise on his cheek. Michelle’s arms had been scratched, and Jack was now doctoring them.

“That was the weaker one?” Levi’s voice broke the silence.

“Yeah,” Connor replied.

“God help you with the other one,” Levi said.

“Thanks!” Connor quipped, a little amused.

“I need to bless this place, ensure that the second can’t use this again. The well of evil coming from Luz’s cell is strong. A blessing will begin to remove that,” Callum said, getting to his feet.

“No offence, Father Callum,” Madi stated over the two-way, “but won’t there be a lot of evil in a place like this?”

“Yes, Madi, there will be. But I think it was Luz’s leftover energy that allowed the demons to break through. If we dispel that, it will weaken the second demon slightly,” Callum explained.

“Ah, okay,” Madi said, and the radio fell quiet.

It took another hour before Callum, Hugo, and Michelle were happy to move on. By now, it was approaching the early hours of the morning.

“Do you all want to get some rest?” I suggested.

Head shakes met me in reply. “We all slept on the flights over here, Sunny, thank you,” Michelle said.

“We are strong at the moment, which will worry the second demon. He’ll do everything possible to try and regain the upper hand. With his power source dimmed, he’ll be on the back foot. Naturally, there are other sources, but that one was his initial one, which strengthened him.”

“Where to, Connor?” Hugo asked as we headed back into the hub.

Connor spun around, his eyes closed as he sought the demon. “There, he’s faint, he’s hiding his presence, but I sense him.”

“Fuck,” I moaned. Cellblock blasted eight!

No sooner had we entered than we were under attack. The cameras were still filming here, so those in the command centre had a good view of what was happening.

The cell doors opened and slammed shut at random.

Screams and shrieks assaulted our ears, and the lights flickered on and off.

It was a frightening display of power, and I think I was the only one fuckin’ terrified.

Callie, Jack, and Connor looked interested from their point of view while the exorcists got ready for a fight.

“We banish you from the mortal realm, unclean spirit, child of Satan,” Callum roared.

“In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,” Michelle began saying the Lord’s Prayer. Hugo sprinkled Holy Water and began chanting in Latin. Callum joined him, and then Michelle, once she had finished her prayer.

“It burns!” a male voice howled.

“Shit,” I muttered. A scream sounded right by my ear, and then everything fell silent. I frowned. Had it been banished already?

“I watched you sleep,” an insidious voice whispered closely by my ear.

Rage rose inside me, and I wanted to strangle the creature who’d invaded Callie’s privacy. A red mist descended, and I glared at everyone around me. They should have kept Callie safe.

“Sunny! No! Your anger will feed it!” Callie shrieked and slammed her cross into my head. My thoughts cleared, and I stared at Callie in shock.

“What was that?” I demanded.

“That was the demon messing with your mind, Sunny! You’re vulnerable to it because of your love for Callie. It’s trying to use that against you,” Jack warned.

“Maybe you should leave,” Connor suggested.

“No, I’m not leaving Callie,” I snapped.

“Then get control of your feelings. Or you’ll be the one endangering her,” Connor stated.

I bristled at his words but realised the truth of them. Grabbing tight control of my emotions, I hauled Callie against me and held her. She was my lifeline, and I was her line of defence.

The exorcism dragged on; the demon was wily and strong.

Callum was beginning to tire, and the demon attacked him constantly.

Each time Callum repelled the attempt, his faith in God overrode the demon’s attacks.

I worried for them all; they’d previously exorcised one demon and had been tired from that.

This asshole was hanging on. It had already been six hours; I knew that outside, morning had arrived, and the sun had risen.

“Now! Everyone together,” Connor suddenly cried. Our voices rose, and we chanted the Lord’s Prayer repeatedly. Callum’s voice increased, spewing Latin words with Hugo and Michelle chanting beside him. A tortured scream swept through the cellblock, and all the doors flung open and then crashed shut.

“It’s weakening,” Connor yelled, and we redoubled our efforts. Noises of nails scratching on a chalkboard put my teeth on edge, and a whirlwind of paper appeared from nowhere. I gasped and dragged Callie into my body, as wind swept around us and threw hair into her eyes.

“Die!” the demon shrieked.

“You are banished! In the name of the Lord, I banish you. Leave this earthly plane, foul creature, and return to whence you came,” Hugo roared.

I could feel the energy building from the exorcists. They knew the end was near, and it bolstered all of us. Together, we poured everything into banishing the demon, and suddenly there was a loud snap and a wail of despair. Silence fell, and we looked at each other.

“He’s gone,” a sigh whispered through the cellblock. “Thank you.”

“Well, the ghosts are still here,” Callie said weakly.

“Where’s the other dame?” Dutch demanded, and we laughed.

“Let’s get some rest,” Connor said.

“Go ahead. I need to bless this, Hugo and Michelle, please offer aid,” Callum stated.

“Is he really gone?” Callie questioned.

“I don’t sense him,” Connor replied.

If the demon magnet didn’t feel him, then I’d take Connor’s word. The sun was high in the sky when we exited the prison.

“Huh,” Jack said under his breath, blinking into the brightness.

“What time is it?” I asked.

“It’s eleven in the morning. The second exorcism took eight hours,” Levi said, coming closer to us.

“Damn,” I muttered.

“Everyone, head to bed. Get some rest.” Callie yawned and stumbled towards the RV. I wasn’t far behind her.