18

It was his name. “Williams” scratched across the cement. In the moonlight, it looked like it was painted. Sure enough, the very name that went into infamy after the forbidden birth. The birth considered an abomination of all else. The writing grew into Kailie’s sight as blood. The permanent marking of his deeds. His cursed family for centuries to come. “Williams”. It was strange how it looked so plain from a distance. No one, in their right mind, would have suspected a thing.

Forever damned, his family will be.

She could do something, though. There was a plan, after all. No way did she come here blind. Sitting on the cold, hard grass near the stone, she thought through the plan over and over. She heard the distant callings of an owl. Such a peaceful sound, she knew. It was much more soothing than any howls of dogs.

Still staring at the headstone, she barely heard distant footsteps rushing behind her. They crunched on the grass and a few leaves. They ended, after only seconds, when a gentle hand touched her shoulder. She knew who it was and didn’t feel any urge to turn around.

“This is it, huh?” James asked. His voice was calm and understanding.

Kailie nodded, responding to his gesture with her hand.

“We have to wait for him,” Kailie instructed. More footsteps were approaching as she spoke. Miriam had calmed down a bit, but her breathing was still heavy. “Do you still have the ‘special weapon’, Michael?”

“Yes, I do.”

Kailie remembered counting five seconds after he spoke when fog began to rise from the ground. It was becoming thicker every second, as she rose to her feet. He was coming. She could feel it.

“Stephen, please be all right,” she whispered. Out loud, she replied, “Run! Run now! Michael, keep it steady and handy.”

The three of them spread in different directions. Kailie didn’t know who went where, but she stayed at the grave. He wanted her. No one else.

The fog was a lot thicker now. She couldn’t see anything in front or around her. All she could do was stand and listen. Listen for him. Listen for anyone. Hope that they would be all right when this was over. She was in a cloud and felt like she would hover away with him, if the time came.

Then, a voice sounded as if it was right next to her. It wasn’t Stephen’s. It wasn’t James’s. It was a female voice. One that she hadn’t heard in fifteen years.

“Kailie,” she whispered. Her mother. “You are strong and you are smart. Your father, grandfather, and I are so proud of you. Don’t be afraid.”

Tears flowed down her face. Her mother’s voice was so calm and smooth. She had never raised her voice to her or anyone else she knew of. Like cream, so gentle. And Kailie knew it wasn’t in her head. She was speaking to her as though she were still alive. Still with her, right next to her.

“I won’t let you down,” Kailie whispered.

She started walking through the fog. She didn’t know exactly where she was going, but she was no longer afraid. They were with her. That’s all she needed to know.

As she walked, she could hear a tongue click around her. Nothing could be seen, still, but a dark, shady figure formed into the fog. It was Stephen’s height and girth. His hair, his clothing, his skin. Slowly, it was being formed like paint being poured into a then-lifeless picture. His skin became milky, his hair filled with his color. But his eyes weren’t his. They were blank and lifeless, staring at her.

“Kana,” she said.

Stephen’s head nodded. “Yes, Kailie. You are a hard one to track, I must say.”

She scoffed, raising her eyebrows. “What can I say? I’ve had a good trainer.”

A loud laugh burst from his mouth. Loud, almost screeching. With any other human, they would have had their eyes rolled in the backs of their heads. But not this being. This… demon. His teeth were the sharpest Kailie had ever seen. They reminded her of stalactites she saw when she was five in New Mexico. Only much sharper. These could probably cut through anything.

“Oh, your grandfather knew a lot, I’ll give him that,” he sniffed. “Knew too much, though. Too much for his own wellbeing.”

He was coming into better focus, now. Stephen’s face looked drained of any possible life left. It was like he was being sucked dry by his tormentor. His skin was cracked around his cheeks and the blue veins could be seen even at a far distance.

Too much liquid for their own good.

Kailie shook her head. Don’t let him get to you. Not now. Walking closer to him, she felt like she was, more likely, floating toward him. His smile grew wider as she came closer. He wanted her near him. Slowly, she moved to his right ear. His hair tickled her face as the wind blew slowly around them.

“You can’t have them,” she whispered. “You can’t have Stephen. No estoy asustado de ti. Dejame en paz.”

When she moved away from his ear, His look was angry. He tried not to let it phase him, but she could tell he was effected. She could see the tiniest movements of his skin begin to rush. He closed his eyes, his lips trembling.

“That doesn’t work on me, anymore,” he urged out.

Kailie chuckled. You sure about that? Out loud, she yelled, “Guys, now!”

From random three directions, they attacked. James tackled Kana to the ground. Screams burst from them as they wrestled on the grass. He could now feel physical pain. Being in a human body can do that to you. Blood appeared on his nails when he scratched James. James knew he wouldn’t want to hurt him too bad.

Remember the plan, Kailie thought. She was so helpless.

A whaling scream was heard as Miriam charged toward them. He was weaker now, because of that phrase. She figured the woman could use a break from the previous encounter. Kana growled and hissed at them as they attempted to hold him down. He was a lot stronger, now, and squirmed all over the ground.

“No estoy asustado de ti! Dejame en paz!” she chanted louder. He was getting weaker. But his mind was still intact. Slowly, he grabbed at Miriam’s hair and pulled it ferociously. She screamed in pain, clawing at his face to stop. No words passed from her lips, but there was no need. Slowly, she was being lifted off of him.

He punched James in the nose, and by reflex, he backed away from him. He didn’t give up, though. When Kana was busy with Miriam, he jumped on him from behind, this time, holding the chain of the necklace. The pendent matched Kana’s eyes from Stephen’s description.

“Filthy b***h!” Kana bellowed. Stephen’s face was red and his fingernails were caked in dry blood. They were as long as Kailie’s fingers. He grabbed a hold of Miriam’s head, and before Kailie could do anything to help her, he twisted her neck all the way around her body. The snap was loud, louder than she thought it would have been. Miriam’s eyes twitched for a few seconds as her breathing was slowing. She choked on her final breaths, and then, her head rested on the cold, hard grass.

“No!” James screamed. He pulled on the chain of the pendent hard against his neck. Kana choked, reaching for James’s hands. They were flailing around his head, as he attempted for another neck. “Michael, hurry!”

Michael ran toward them, watching James and Kana wrestle. He knew he couldn’t do anything until that pendent was out of Kana’s reach. Saying that phrase, he knew, wasn’t enough. They all knew that. But he also understood that having himself near the situation was a comfort to the two of them.

“No estoy asustado de ti! Dejame en paz!”

That final chant was all it took. The pendent yanked off of Stephen’s skin and flew toward Kailie’s feet.

“No!” Kana said. “That belongs to me!”

“Kailie!” Michael called.

She grabbed the pendent and ran toward him, Kana chasing her. She could hear his hissing and snarling behind her. But he was getting weaker every second. He was becoming hoarse. When she glanced behind her, a part of Stephen’s face seemed to be melting. It wasn’t just his face; his body was slowly shrinking to Stephen’s normal size.

Handing the pendent to over to Michael, he quickly opened the canteen. He started whispering something, but she couldn’t understand what it was. She heard, “Patri”, and could take a guess about the theme of the phrase. Kailie gave her own phrase one more try.

“No estoy asustado de ti. Dejame en paz!”

A surge of power, then, burst out of Stephen’s body. It was long and white, too bright for them to see. It spread, like a star, in all directions. Kailie pulled James toward her and they ducked for cover as the brightness increased. Kailie saw that it sliced through trees, and even a few tombstones. It would slice through flesh in no time. The sound was similar to lightning bolts in a storm.

James didn’t have to tell her, but he did anyway. “Keep your heads down!”

Kailie didn’t budge and Michael made a small nod.

The wind loudly blew everything around them. Kailie’s hair reminded her of spider webs, it blew so hard. A storm was coming. That’s what others would think. Were supposed to think. Glancing over, she saw that the wind was turning into swirls, much like a tornado. Only, it was a lot smaller. Swirling, the wind picked up random objects like any other storm would. It was the shortest one lived, though. All of about forty five seconds. Next, it exploded around them, bursting as it flew.

When it calmed enough, the three of them rose from the ground and stared. Kana hovered before them, weak and old. His now-silver hair blew in the wind. His eyes were still full of the darkness they knew him by. Kailie couldn’t find Stephen anywhere. In the corner of her eye, she saw that Michael held the pendent in one hand, the canteen in the other. He was threatening him. Kailie knew that. She let out an impatient sigh.

“Just do it!” she hissed.

Slowly, the water moved out of the container. Kana flew at Michael, growling, trying to stop him. But it had already touched the pendent. The jewel let off a little smoke in Kana’s face. He jerked backward, holding his chest. Tiny blisters appeared on it. He screeched in pain, clawing at them.

Michael poured more holy water on the pendent. Soon, blisters were not only on Kana’s chest. They grew all over his arms and legs, even a few on his face. They were growing bigger and bigger as they stared.

“May you all be damned!” he screamed.

He withered into the whiteness slowly but surely. Soon, they couldn’t see his face, much less his body, anymore. The whiteness was becoming brighter as they stared. There was nothing left of him as he disintegrated into ash. Gray and white. When it was all ash, it exploded all over the gravesite. Nothing but dust particles were found in the area, however. The sky turned to a soft midnight blue. Stars brightened it and the moon slightly hid behind thin clouds.

Slowly, raising their bodies, James and Kailie hugged and cried to each other. They were silent sobs, but sobs, nonetheless. Their sighs were relieved. So relieved that they almost missed Michael’s message.

“Kailie, James!” he said. “Look!”

Floating slowly down to the ground was a figure. Slim, about six feet tall, Kailie knew who it was. Her smile grew large across her face.

“Stephen!”

He softly landed on his back, in the now-soft, moist grass. There wasn’t a mark on him. His skin was the smoothest she had seen in years. Opening his eyes, he gazed at her, smiling. His arm slowly moved in her direction, gesturing for her hand. She politely answered, shaking her hand.

“Welcome back,” she whispered. She tried holding back some tears.

He nodded, then pointed toward the sky. What she saw made her jaw drop.

Her parents, and her grandfather, smiled at her from the upper clouds. Their figments were a bit gray, like drawings, but it was them. Their figments were a little thin, but she could see them as plainly as she could Stephen. James and Michael joined around them and they too couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

No sound came from her, but her mother mouthed “We love you” at Kailie.

“They do very much, Kailie,” Stephen replied. His voice was soft but strong. Compared to his physical state, it was the strongest feature he had.

“I know,” Kailie returned. She smiled at the sky, knowing there was nothing more to fear.

They slowly raised Stephen up, embraced each other, and then, started making plans for Miriam. She deserved to join the rest of the family, Kailie figured. And that she did.