6

Joseph offered the couch for the three of them. Stephen moved as though his bones were made of papier-mâché. Bruised everywhere, he needed an extra hand to keep from collapsing on the carpet.

The house had the giant cow skull above the front windows. Four shelves of nineteenth-century books stood to the right of the back door. The walls were painted white, except Kailie’s room, and the curtains were of red velvet. Kailie’s room was completely lavender, curtains and all. The only symbols of light in the house were a few candles in each room. That was very unusual for Joseph. Usually, on both sides of the couch, there would be a reading lamp.

“Had to get rid of the old lamp, honey,” Joseph insisted. “Bulbs burned out within the last night… So, what is it we should discuss?”

Kailie stared at him in disbelief. How the hell can he not know?!

“It’s about me, Joseph,” Stephen cut in. “They came across Bethesda the other day.”

Joseph nodded. “Yes, I had a feeling something went on, as you can tell from outside. Why do you think I keep that skull up? Hmm? For fun?! No, sir, and no, ma’am!”

Kailie slammed her hands down on her knees. The sound made James jump. Both Joseph and Stephen turned their gazes on her. James held her hand, gently, but Kailie slid hers away. He never saw her look so furious.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she pointed. “About Stephen? All the facts of Bethesda? That you were a reverend, for God’s sake!”

Joseph looked down and nodded. Taking her fingers, lightly, he had a look of sadness in his eyes. “Please don’t blaspheme, my dear. Remember what I taught you.”

Kailie scoffed, standing up with a start. “You taught me to always tell the truth, no matter how shocking or painful it may be. A giant chapter in your life was kept from me, as you were teaching me right from wrong! I had to find out from this man---a total stranger---about who you really were and are!” Angry tears were appearing around her eyes.

Joseph shook his head. “I know. I apologize. But you have to understand, for the time being, it was best to keep you away from that world.”

James eyed Joseph and Stephen. “What world, sir?”

Stephen took Kailie’s hand and rubbed her fingers. “The world of the Old Ones… Kana’s world.”

For the next hour, Stephen told them of his experience the other night. He told them about the choice he was given by Kana. He spoke of Kana’s description of Hell, and what more he witnessed. His details made his stomach turn to knots as he spoke. His skin was becoming white, as the perfect reaction. Kailie rubbed his hands to calm him, as he continued speaking. Joseph’s eyes never left Stephen’s. All the while, the winds howled at the house, sending the outside smells toward them.

When Stephen finished, Joseph nodded in understanding. He turned to Kailie, giving her a matter-of-fact look. He never said it, but she was familiar with the behavior. I told you so. Joseph was never one to gloat, though, especially, with this matter.

Inhaling, he finally spoke, looking from Kailie to James, and back and forth. “Everything is connected, my dear. Everything happens for a reason. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you spending your life looking over your shoulder. Take it from someone who knows. That’s no way to live.”

James held Kailie’s hand, gently urging her to sit down. Giving in, she embraced James with one arm, holding Stephen’s hand with the other.

“So,” James concluded. “You’ve actually seen him?”

Joseph shook his head. “Kana, physically, hasn’t stepped foot around me. His fear for the cow skull makes death appear too great to him.” He pointed at the large skull above the windows. His hands are red and shiny with sweat.

“What?” James joked. “Makes death too real?”

“Precisely,” Joseph nodded. “Don’t you know what that is?” He pointed to Stephen’s pendent. It was turning midnight blue. He unhooked it and handed it to Joseph.

#

“Yes, Kailie, there’s a lot more to the story than what I used to tell you. Two hundred years ago, there was a young woman who lived in present-day Bethesda. For the most part, she kept to herself. She did what her parents told her, did her chores, and was taught many languages. Spanish was always her favorite to learn. So her grandfather, in the end, stuck with that. It’s how they ended up communicating.

“One day, she was walking back home after buying food from the market, when she came across a young man, wounded in the middle of the street. A wagon had apparently tipped over on him and his horses disappeared. Eager to help him, he claimed he couldn’t thank her enough… Well, her generosity got the best of her, soon enough. Before her eyes, he began to transform.

“His face started melting, and his original clothes peeled off. What, then, was revealed to her was an old man, she guessed, around eighty. Long, thin, white hair, a thin, wrinkled face, and blackness where his eyes were supposed to be.

“Terrified, she began running the other direction. Ten feet were all it took. She never felt a hand, but she was pushed, hard, into the ground. All the while, the winds were picking up. It was so cold, she couldn’t feel her face. Flipping her on her back, she stared into those eyes… Eyes of blackness. He drifted closer to her. Not walking, but drifting. His fingers slowly spread across her stomach. His gaze never left her. Frozen, she forgot how to breathe.

“‘You will have a child,’ he told her. His hands never touched her stomach, but a white light was between them. ‘You will call him Kana. I will return when he arrives.’ A white loop appeared around her neck as he spoke. It slowly began making its shape into an upright oval.”

Joseph pointed to Stephen’s pendent. His hand was shaking.

“What is that, then?” James asked.

Joseph looked down onto the carpet, then, back at his company. Kailie’s eyes were wide, James was nervously tapping his right index finger, and Stephen couldn’t take his hand away from the necklace. Taking a deep breath, he continued the conversation.

“This, which you wear around your neck, is Kana’s soul… He was born to a human, so, that’s the only explanation for the soul existing at all. When his body withered away from its physical form, our Lord, as you might have figured, wouldn’t accept him. Lucifer couldn’t take him because his reign wasn’t, and still isn’t, finished. So, for safe keeping, after Kana was born, he stole his soul right out of him, and kept it safe… For only a number of decades.”

Joseph exhaled, stretching his arms and legs. Kailie’s gaze never left him.

“During World War II, a few friends of mine claimed they found many valuable things beneath the ground. Jewels that didn’t look to be from Earth. When the friend gave this very ‘jewel’ to me, I immediately went to a dealer to see what it was. He couldn’t tell me, but he swore it looked familiar.”

He walked over to the bookshelf and handed them a book from the 1920s. He found a book called Jewels and Matter Within by Ivan Mason. Flipping through pages, Joseph was in a daze. When he found what he was looking for, he pointed straight on the picture. It was a replica of Stephen’s necklace; same size, same color.

“Alma del Diablo,” he concluded. “Soul of the Devil… That’s what they called it. Nobody could explain it, but whoever was in possession of this pendent had bad luck happen to them.” He scoffed. “I guess ‘bad luck’ is an understatement.” He closed the book and put it back on the shelf.

It was Kailie’s turn to exhale. She couldn’t remember the last time it happened, or the last time she blinked. It was like she was hypnotized, listening to Joseph’s tale. She didn’t dare look around the room. Frozen in her spot, she stared at the floor.

“Why is he here, then?” James asked. His fingers stopped tapping, but his leg was shaking.

“It’s like I said,” Stephen answered. “He wants a new body to live in.” His face was pale and breathing was the hardest goal for him to achieve.

Joseph nodded. “Parasito! He cannot survive on his own for too long. But once within a body, he’ll become stronger.”

He stared at the pendent around Stephen’s neck. It was like he was watching it, keeping an eye on it. It’s going to float away… Back to Him. It was turning black as his concentration hardened. A piece of the demon was testing him, he was sure of it. Who shall I pick? it teased. He didn’t know, or he didn’t want to know. It didn’t matter to him. All Joseph knew was he had to keep his granddaughter safe. The other night could, just as easily, have been her, no doubt in his mind.

“What should we do?” Kailie asked.

James shook his head. “What can we do?”

Stephen stood up, his legs stiff. Kailie thought he was carved from a tree, they were so stiff. He walked over to Joseph and patted his back. Kailie knew they had history: at least, seventeen years! Kailie could respect that. What she still didn’t understand, though, was why. Why didn’t he tell me? Why did Stephen go to him in the first place?

“Do you know who this woman is, Stephen?” Joseph asked. When Stephen shook his head, Joseph continued. “Have you ever wondered why Kana stayed on the street you lived on? Why he chose your family?” His eyes wouldn’t leave the pendent as he spoke. “Where you came to have that necklace?”

“No, sir,” Stephen answered. He looked over at Kailie and James, who both continued to stare within the conversation. Joseph gently grabbed Stephen’s sleeve and urged Kailie and James to come closer. They were on their knees now, barely touching Joseph’s face.

Joseph sighed. He looked around the space they were in, as if trying to find something more. Twiddling his thumbs and blinking a few beats at a time, Kailie knew what that meant: he knew what had to be said, but he just didn’t know how to say it. It was the same behavior he had the day Kailie came home to the news of her parents’ deaths. Choosing his words carefully, he did his best not to frighten her.

“The woman who gave birth to Kana was your grandmother’s grandmother.”

No laughs, no snickers, no eye movement came from Joseph’s body. Kailie knew he was serious. He looked at Stephen in the eyes when he made the statement. Gooseflesh broke out on Kailie’s arms. She watched Stephen’s eyes widen, but he didn’t speak… Or he felt he couldn’t. Kailie never thought it was possible to stay this still without speaking. Even when her parents died, Kailie spent the whole night crying. But Joseph remained silent as she shed her sorrows. She remembered crying as he held her, his body completely relaxed. His heartbeat and breathing were normal, his voice was calm, and he had a steady rhythm with his hands stroking her back.

Joseph stood up, after a few minutes, and began making a fire. Nobody said a word as he worked. Kailie kept looking at Stephen’s face. It seemed she was guarding him, but from what? Would he do something foolish? She couldn’t tell. Reaching for his hand, she felt his fingers. They were ice-cold. What was she to say at this time, anyway?