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That night it wasn’t the golem that woke me; it was the demons whispering from the attic. I tried to ignore them. I tried to protect myself and Paul and go back to sleep.
Finally, I climbed out of bed and did what I shouldn’t do. Waiting for Frankie and Darla was smarter, but it also made me seem weaker.
Clutching my bottle of Holy Water in one hand, I pulled down the ladder with my other. I climbed up and felt the angels fill in around me. They blocked any attempts at escape.
“Most of the dead who refused to cross over had the good sense to leave with Death today. Now if you want to fight one-on-one, I’ll get to you. This is your eviction notice—my attic is no longer your home. You demons, waiting to see how it all plays out...I don’t like that. I want you dead.” I exploded the bottle of Holy Water into a mist.
The demons fled but the dead weren’t impacted—obviously, they were already dead so I hadn’t really threatened them as much directly. The angels and I snatched up the demons and the angels absorbed them. Some struggles turned into a battle. There were too many for the angels to handle; they were reaching their limit. I grabbed one dark shadow that seemed to crumple but as I went to toss it into my own Guardian angel, it twisted around and tried to bite me with sharp fangs dripping with black goo.
Demons bite? When did that happen? What sort of demons were these?
I mentally bound the mouth and the arms and tossed it at a warrior angel who spun in a glowing light trying to consume the darkness. Finally, a sword sliced through the demon’s flesh. The demon shrieked but continued to struggle.
Suddenly a window blew open and the hand of the golem reached inside. The golem grabbed the demon and it vanished. That wasn’t helpful, but at least the demon was gone. I turned to face the next problem.
As if it was coordinated, Gran and Death both turned up right then.
“Deanna, stop,” Gran demanded.
“Deal with your dead person. We’re hunting demons,” I said.
Death made the same offer to the dead and took a couple more souls.
Gran ignored everyone else. “You’re using up too much energy. You can’t do it like this. Not now.”
“Then why didn’t you have me do it before?” I asked.
“Please, let’s go and talk.” Gran touched my arm.
I closed my eyes and projected myself to her cottage in Heaven. I sat in her comfy chair. When I tried to get up, my arms nearly gave out.
“Too much, big sis.” Eddie handed me a cup of tea.
“Tea? They have tea in Heaven?” I asked.
Eddie smiled. “We have everything. I pretty much live...well, subsist on Dr. Pepper. It’s awesome.”
“Go clean out the demons in the attic while you’re so caffeinated,” I teased.
“Can’t. Gran is mad, too. You need to let people help you. Letting Death clear out the dead was one thing but going after the demons alone? You could’ve hurt yourself,” he said.
“I was fine.” I shrugged.
“Stand up,” Eddie said.
I slowly tried to get up and my knees locked. “Maybe not.”
“You could power through like that before but that’s taking energy away from the kiddo. And going after a bunch of demons? Come on. You wouldn’t do that alone before,” he pointed out.
I rolled my eyes. “I had an army of angels. I wasn’t trying to get them all, just thin the herd of the weak ones.”
Gran returned and a chair appeared next to mine. She sat and held my hand.
“Never again,” she warned.
Death appeared. “I got all but three of the dead. Your old friend is stubborn,” he said to Gran.
Death, while in Heaven, looked like a beautiful silver angel with a scroll in one hand and sword in the other.
“Thanks,” I said.
“No, this is your fault, De. Angels have no free will. You made the choice, so they had to follow you. He didn’t choose to help. Don’t do that again,” Gran scolded.
“I’m sorry, I won’t.” I put my hand on my stomach. “I wanted to get them out of there while I’m strong. While it’s early.”
Death put a hand on my shoulder. “Telling you you’re not on the list wasn’t intended to make you reckless.”
“The baby is okay,” I said.
Death nodded. “You need to take more care. We’ll get them all soon, but fighting isn’t always the answer for every soul.”
“Just the demons,” I replied.
“Go home. To your bed and your husband.” Gran squeezed my hand.
I nodded. “Do I need to lock down the attic?”
“The golem did that. Creating him is not the move I would’ve made but clearly Paul understands the level of security you need on your own property. I would just find out who else had a hand in making it, that kind of power so close—you must know and be sure they are on your side. Golems are only loyal to their creators. Finish your tea,” Gran said.
I drank the tea and felt a lot better. Standing slowly, I hugged my brother and closed my eyes.
When I opened them again, I was in my bedroom. I looked up and felt the attic was calm. Fatigue set in but I had to walk over to the window. I spotted the golem watching the house and I studied him, trying to feel out who made him. The golem bowed his head.
Then I heard Ivy’s dog barking like it was possessed. I down to the grass and Ivy’s dog was charging the golem. Ivy and Brody chased the little bitch. Tish and Pearl both hated the golem. I wasn’t going to make any enemy of that big creature yet but people were trying to protect me and the baby. That meant I wasn’t getting the full story all of the time. I needed to push more and trust animal instincts.
Slipping into bed, I snuggled up to my husband and took my lesson in humility. I wasn’t going to screw up my baby’s life. I’d rather fight a demon every day than do anything that harmed her.
The next morning, I slept in. At first, I thought the attic battle might’ve been a dream but I felt the drain on my body.
I made myself some breakfast and Ivy came in. “Fresh smoothies in the fridge. We can move the cleansings to the afternoons if you want.”
“It’s okay, I think I just have to adjust.” I actually poured myself a smoothie and sipped while I cooked.
“Hungry? Good. Remember, tonight is the housewarming party. Darla and Frankie are doing the final closing on a property this morning so they’re not coming here during the day. What do you need from me?” she asked.
“I don’t remember any of that.” I shook my head. “They’ve bought a few properties. Are they sure they’re living in this one?”
Ivy laughed. “Yes, the others sold off quickly after rehab. This one doesn’t need much so they can live in it, spruce it up, and find others that they can buy for cheap and flip for more profit. Flipping houses is a gamble but your brother is good at construction and she knows real estate. Clearly, they are good at what they do.”
“But they’d stay at other places, too. I’m not imagining that?” I asked.
“No, they’d test them out. Check for hauntings. I mean, it’s New Orleans. Lots of stuff is haunted but if it’s a friendly ghost or a threat, it’s good to know. But this is real. They’re going to live there for a while, anyway. You don’t want a party?” she asked.
“I didn’t say that. I just feel like so much is changing so fast.” I rubbed my forehead.
“Baby brain.” Ivy giggled. “Cute. Don’t worry, I’m having the party catered. Show up at six o’clock and I think Paul got Frankie and Darla a gift for the new place. I’m going early to help set up if you want to ride over with me,” Ivy offered.
“I’ll have Paul pick me up,” I replied.
“Okay. Well, you have today off then. Rest. Eat. Good stuff tonight. Barbecue ribs and Cajun chicken and all the sides. Just to make a mess of their carpets,” Ivy teased.
“I thought they put in hardwood floors,” I said.
“See, you remember some stuff. It’s all good. But shower and put on something nicer than sweats.” Ivy nodded. “Need anything?”
“No, I’m fine. Go party plan or find me more nanny options. Wait, no. I want to hear about Brody.” I pointed at the kitchen table. “Get some coffee and spill it.”
Ivy blushed. “We talked. He heard about what Greg did and I think he realized how out of control Eli made people. To get a priest to kill someone. To get me to leave a great man and run off around the world. I feel like I’m on parole, but I have a chance to get my man back.”
“Wow, I’m so glad. I mean, before it seemed like it was all over.” I put my food down and sat.
“Gay boy drama. Sometimes you just need to grovel, but Brody was serious. He really loved me and I hurt him. I can’t believe I let anyone come between me and him. Or you and me. Or me and Greg.”
I put down the fork and grabbed Ivy’s hand. “Easy. Eli had us all fooled for some length of time. He was the Jim Jones of New Orleans and the Church gave him more credibility. Be glad we all made it out alive and no one is in prison. Brody got hurt but so did you. So did all of us. Sometimes the biggest danger isn’t the demons, it’s the human who likes the power that comes with them.”
“Oh, I like that. I’m going to text him that you said that and you’re happy about the reconciliation. He didn’t want to wear you out at dinner. He wanted to see Greg was okay and smooth that over,” she said.
I smiled. “You two have all the time in the world to put this back together. The garden is still there for a wedding, but you might have a golem in the pictures.” I started eating again.
“No, we’ll do it at the Long and Big Easy. That’s where it really belongs.” She winked and kept on texting. “Speaking of which, I’m going to swing by there. The new assistant manager is good and he’ll handle things tonight.”
“Don’t mind me. I’ll just rest and be ready.” I texted Paul to pick me up for the party as long as he had the gift.
Alone in my house, I felt a bit weird. After breakfast, I managed to go to bed but couldn’t fully fall asleep. Even with the angels and golem, I felt like I’d overdone it last night. I set the alarm on my phone so I’d wake up with time to shower and dress up a bit.
“Eddie, what should I do?” I asked.
My dead brother appeared, lying next to me in the bed. “You could come to Heaven and sleep there. Pretty darn safe and more energizing. But don’t you dare go to that attic alone or Gran will flip out.”
“I’m not going to go there alone, I promise. I’m not fighting any of that today. I need to recover. You guys were right.” I smiled.
He took my hand and soon I was sleeping on a cloud.
This was a total dream. I knew it wasn’t real. My body was in my bed, but the atmosphere felt so healing and serene. I watched the people I loved from above. Paul was working, Greg too, working and helping patients. Ivy was at the bar, checking on things. Then she went to lunch with Brody.
Matt was working in his office at the police station and Gunner was helping Frankie set up for the party. It was odd that I could see everyone so clearly, as if watching a movie. This wasn’t at all how my visions normally were. Something was wrong. It was wrong. I sat up on the cloud and saw my body lying in the bed, a dark mist hovering where Eddie should be.
“Amy!” I called.
The angel threw a flaming sword through the mist my brother had transformed into and yanked me straight off the cloud...