Maryn

Chapter 4 - Ghosts of the Past

I sat on the steps outside, watching as Mr. Henry was wheeled away into the back of an ambulance while Matthew spoke with the police. My hand throbbed in pain underneath my makeshift cloth bandage. Yet another t-shirt ruined. I didn't know how I would explain the cause of the burn to the paramedics, but thankfully they had tended to Matthew first.

They had patched up the small cut on his forehead. Apparently, Mr. Henry hit him over the head with a lamp. Luckily it wasn't a serious injury.

Matthew finished his conversation with the authorities and walked over. His posture was stiff and cold, and his shadow lingered over me.

"Is he going to be alright?" I asked.

"I don't know." Matthew crossed his arms and glared at me. "Do you have any idea what could've happened back there? Why didn't you listen to me?"

I stared, absolutely dumbfounded.

"You don't understand, Matthew. Caranneth was there. I had him, after eight fucking years. What was I supposed to do, let him escape? Besides, he would've killed that man if I didn't do anything." My blood was starting to boil.

"You lack the knowledge and the training to perform an exorcism!"

"I help you all the time!"

"It's not the same, Maryn. You wouldn't be able to get the demons to leave someone's body without me weakening them. Just as I'm unable to fight them off the way you do. We're a team."

My body was shaking with anger. I kept replaying the scenes in my head. That damned shadow disappearing before the bullet hit was stuck on repeat. All I could think about was how Caranneth escaped. Who knows how much longer it will be before I find him again.

"Maryn..."

"What if an opportunity was right in front of you, one that you had been waiting years for? An opportunity that could right a wrong from your past. Wouldn't you do everything in your power to make sure that it didn't slip away?" I asked, looking up with desperation.

Matthew sighed, his eyes softening from anger to disappointment. I lowered my guard as I finally realized what I'd done.

"Not at the cost of someone's life."

~~~~~~

The drive home was dead silent, but my mind was anything but. The images racing around in my skull made it impossible to think. It was a series of screams and cries, and I wanted to bash my head against a wall to make it stop.

I stared out the window, focusing my gaze on the road. It was a blurred image, one that put me into a trance as I watched. The screams started to fade into a muffled noise, and my eyelids were heavy. Eventually I gave into the exhaustion.

"Get out of my head!" Julia screamed.

Her voice was raspy and frayed. She was down on the floor, clutching her head and pulling at her hair as she rocked back and forth.

My heart pounded in my head and my chest heaved. At the same time, my body was numb. Like what I witnessed was only a nightmare. In an attempt to steady myself, I leaned against the dresser.

"She's mine, Mahrynir," Caranneth whispered. His voice was in my head, echoing off the walls of my skull.

"No. Stay the hell away from her," I muttered.

His gravelly laugh faded into silence.

I slowly approached Julia's trembling form. She didn't look up. Her eyes were squeezed shut as tears streamed down her pale, sickly skin.