Devil at the Vatican (BL)

Chapter 13

Cecil came with dinner that night—creamed turnips and peas—and a glass of cold holy water. While Elio ate and gazed out the window at the distant gardens, back in his regular room, Cecil also brought a wash basin and a night gown.

The moonlight glided across the tops of the fields and shimmered against the fountain's spray. Guards' footsteps carried the lullaby of a quiet nightshift. Elio could only imagine how much extra security Oliver put in place since his arrival.

"You are to leave at first light, sir," Cecil said from behind him. "I recommend you wash and sleep soon."

Elio nodded. He touched his necklace, memorizing every bend and groove.

"Cecil," Elio called, turning around.

"Yes, sir?"

"How is my father?"

"Mr. Ellsworth has high hopes for the treatment of your affliction at the Vatican," Cecil stated matter-of-factly.

Remembering Petru's words about Sophia's dire condition, Elio asked again, "How is he...really?"

Cecil sighed as his shoulders relaxed. "He is an old rich white man whose possessed mulatto son violated a man on his front lawn and killed his maid. Mr. Ellsworth is a bit weary."

"Do you know how I came to be? My mother doesn't seem like the type to be the plaything of someone as old as him. Even at my conception, he had to be in his 60's."

"I suspect you'll find out everything you need at the end of your journey, young man."

It was a strange answer. And with that, Cecil departed.

Elio jumped up but decided not to pursue him. He had so many questions, yet no one seemed willing to answer. It seemed like everyone knew a piece of the puzzle but did not want to share until after he figured it out himself.

Whatever this thing was, he was confident he would understand it. Sophia and Oliver had secrets that they could not keep hidden for long. The answers lurked in Elio's curse.

Elio washed himself and dressed for bed. As he laid in bed that night, waiting for dawn, he made a promise to himself. "I will kill whatever you are demon and send you back to hell where you cannot hurt another soul. I won't be your pawn. I will tame you and use the will of God to master your wickedness. If I fail, I will go to hell with you."

These priests... they are charlatans. They will only damn you.

Elio shook his head and placed his hands over his ears. "Quiet, you wicked thing."

Go and see for yourself... The voice trailed off. It was barely a whisper and very distinguishably foreign to his own. Though the beast still spoke to him, Elio was not disheartened by it. He knew that these thoughts were not his own. They did not consume him as before. This was a good first step.

Still, he decided to humor himself with a nighttime stroll through the house. His room was no longer locked after all. With the blessed jewelry and priests in the house, he was no longer a deadly threat to others. Besides, even if he opened the windows, the smell of the goat's death still clung to the walls.

Elio opened his bedroom door and was a bit pleased to find no guards waiting outside to stop him. The opulence of the hallway was shadowed by the eeriness of the empty night. Darkness swelled in corners. There were few lanterns scattered about, dimly lit to provide just enough light for navigation.

When Elio made it to a T-junction in the hallway, he rounded the corner on the right and kept going. This corridor had a full wall of large arched windows overlooking the front lawn. Moonlight glazed the dark carved wood and paintings. Elio stood in the middle of the hallway for a few minutes, overlooking the guards outside make their rounds.