Chapter Sixteen

In the far corner of the room, bubbles swirled in a thin blue mist as if they were trying to move undetected. Inside the mass of blue, a smaller white circle of motion spun faster than the blue bubbles. Cayce looked at Harri and pointed. Then she moved to the piano bench and sat beside Hank.

“I think Bach’s ‘Minuet in G’ is working, Hank,” she whispered, tipping her head toward the corner. Hank took a quick glance and continued playing with his right hand. With the other, he patted the left side of the bench, reminding Cayce she was sitting in Sara’s spot.

Harri picked up her camcorder, aimed it at the blue swirl, and pressed record. The blue bubbles became more visible, moving toward the piano. As Hank played with light, playful strokes, the mist moved closer until only a foot or two away from the piano.

Cayce could do nothing but stare in amazement as the blue engulfed her and Hank. She hoped Harri was capturing this fantasy. If so, it would be the most dazzling piece of paranormal footage she and her sister had ever recorded. Without thinking, she put her arm through Hank’s left arm. He tightened on her arm to signal he was there for her. Turning her head in every direction, she could not help but smile. In the midst of a swirling sea of aqua, they were surrounded by what seemed like hundreds of spherical fish with slanted eyes and tiny mouths, each bubble fish keeping time to Hank’s playful notes. In the middle of the sea, a tiny ripple of white twirled like the ballerinas that once stood on top of the music boxes she and Harri had as children, special gifts their dad had given each girl.

Harri looked at Teesh and saw tender, pleasant joy in her wrinkled face. Teesh had her hands over her open mouth, her eyes twinkling behind the moistness that was testament to her experiencing a childhood friend. Sara was trapped between memory and reality, a replay few people experience.

Then it happened.

First, the bubbles began moving about erratically as if disturbed. The slants of their tiny eyes darted in every direction, and Harri was sure the eyes were circling around their little heads, or was it the bubbles completely circling in an effort to see behind, in front, and to each side? They encompassed the little white mist, keeping her in the center so tightly she could no longer twirl, even as they spun out of control. Their swirling became more violent, like a severe tornado. The whole room shook; the chandelier swung so hard a few crystal prisms popped off and landed on the floor. One fell in Teesh’s lap, making her jump.

The blades on the two oversized fans hanging on either end of the ceiling stopped abruptly and then turned the opposite direction, whirring louder and louder, threatening to chop up whatever or whoever was beneath them if they fell. Charlie covered his eyes and rocked forward and backward. Harri and Teesh hugged him, putting their bodies tight against him to shelter him from the terrifying happenings. The camcorder flew off Harri’s lap and landed at her feet, but she made no attempt to retrieve it.

Hank stopped playing and grabbed Cayce in a bear hug to prevent her from being cast off the bench as it vibrated and then levitated, rising at least five feet off the floor.

What happened next proved to be the shocking conclusion to the horrific scene. A large, dark fog appeared on the walkway that looked down from the second story. It moved stealthily toward the stairs, making its own whirring sound like a mass of huge, nasty, black flies beating their wings in rapid succession. Then the beating turned to deep bass, drumming more like a cave full of bats than tiny flies as the black mass moved down the stairs and approached the dazed onlookers.

The blue tornado moved in front of the piano as if seeking Hank’s protection, but Hank and Cayce remained afloat on the bench. Harri saw Hank look behind him, and she caught a glimpse of Sara’s face in the midst of the slanted dark eyes surrounding her. Her eyes, her only feature showing, were crystal blue, surrounded by flopping dark curls and an aqua blue bow; the little girl was being tossed about in the protective funnel like a rag doll caught in a hurricane.

Charlie peeked through his fingers and then covered his eyes again. He tried to escape from his protectors, but Harri and Teesh held him tight.

“Charlie not like black fog!” he shrieked. “Charlie not like black fog!” The little man continued to yell, getting louder and louder as if building up his immunity and his bravery.

The black mass gave off a deep, sadistic laugh, the laugh of a devil, as it drew closer and closer to the piano. But it wasn’t Hank and Cayce it was after. It headed for the blue bubbles and Sara. The bubbles darted away from the piano toward the door.

“Charlie not like black fog!” Charlie bellowed, a deep-throated bellow of a person highly agitated. He was easily heard over the roar of the devil twister, causing Harri to shake and lose her grip.

Charlie broke free and darted for the door ahead of the bubbles. He threw open the door, but did not run through. Instead, he allowed Sara and her protectors to rush through the door. Charlie slammed the door shut behind them and stood in front of it, arms folded, blocking the demon’s path.

Hank jumped from the elevated bench, clutching Cayce, letting go only after she stood securely on the floor. He ran toward Charlie to help him, both to protect Charlie and to keep the fog from going after Sara. But just before Hank reached Charlie, the little man pulled a small bag from his pocket, opened it, and slung the contents into the black mass hovering near him. The drumming stopped, and a deep, booming voice howled and faded away, gradually slipping into nothingness and ending as a whisper of mist like the breath of a man who steps into freezing night air. Then it disappeared.

The fan blades slowed, the chandelier steadied, the room stopped shaking, and the piano bench fell to the floor, breaking a leg off as it landed with a thud. The floor in front of the door was covered with a fine mist of glitter.

“Gold dust!” Cayce blurted out.

No one spoke for what seemed an eternity. Teesh hugged her purse for comfort and stared at Charlie, the hero of the hour. Hank walked over to Cayce and put his arm around her even though she no longer appeared frightened. Charlie walked slowly, as if nothing had happened, back to the sofa and took his place between Teesh and Harri, giving his protectors a reassuring smile. Everything was calm until…

Rap! Rap! Rap! Rap! Rap!