CHAPTER 3: CHILLS DOWN THE SPINE

The scare was tremendous; everyone thought Yelena was in her room because no one had seen her leave the room, go down the stairs, and pass through the living room to reach the bathroom. Even Alextrov and Walter, who were skeptics, got a big fright and looked at each other. After this encounter, the lights immediately came back on, almost as if the devil had played a trick, or at least that's what Esteban thought in his mind. He didn't say anything, but his eyes widened as if he had held his words. This gesture was noticed by everyone present.

With a smile on her weakened face, Yelena walks to her door and opens it, now with the lights on. Both priests and the doctor can see the appearance of the second floor of the house. It consists of a slightly long hallway, at the end of which there is a window. With the lights off, the atmosphere becomes eerie as the lack of sunlight fills the corridor with darkness. Now it is possible to even see a small trapdoor in the ceiling, leading to the attic of the house.

After observing the hallway, their gaze turns to Yelena's room, where there is a crucifix on one wall. Although the light had returned, the only source of illumination in the room was a small window, allowing the passage of the dim light from outside. Despite it being 2:30 PM, the atmosphere felt like nighttime. Inside her room, there was a small bed against the wall near the window, a desk with a Bible and some engineering textbooks. As they entered the room, they could see a large wardrobe, which was open and filled with disheveled clothes inside, as if someone had been searching for something but hadn't found it.

The atmosphere was quite intimate due to the poor lighting and the messiness of her room. As if that weren't enough, the rain beat against the window, creating a rhythmic sound that spread throughout the room, making it even more sinister. Apart from the injuries resulting from the fainting episodes and her weakened appearance, Yelena showed no signs of demonic possession. Father Taylor asked her to lie down on her bed and begin praying, pleading for God's mercy and the expulsion of the evil entity.

In the meantime, Taylor and Esteban began preparing the room for the exorcism. They placed candles throughout the room, creating a dim light. Then, two vessels were placed on the desk—one containing incense and the other containing myrrh. Taylor went to his briefcase and took out a black-covered Bible written in Latin. Along with it, he retrieved a book called Rituale Romanum. Taylor turned to Esteban, handed him the Bible, and requested that Psalm 23 be opened. He then closed the curtains and the door of the room. At this moment, the entire room was illuminated solely by the candlelight, and the fragrances of incense and myrrh filled the air. Everyone present fell silent, and the only voice heard was that of Father Taylor, the one in charge of the exorcism.

"Dear Yelena, the moments that follow will be crucial for the expulsion of the entity. You may experience strong pain and fainting, but stay strong and keep your thoughts focused solely on God."

"By the power granted to me, in the name of the Holy Trinity and the Church, I will commence the ritual of exorcism. Let all those present not falter before the power of the enemy."

Next, Taylor asked Esteban to read Psalm 23. After the reading, Taylor began reciting phrases in Latin, which were taken from the book Rituale Romanum.

"Regna terrae, cantate deo, psállite dómino, tribuite virtutem deo Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus…"

As the session progressed, Yelena experienced several fainting episodes, complained of headaches, and writhed fiercely on her bed. Walter, witnessing everything with his own eyes, began to grow increasingly angry and wanted to free the girl from all suffering, claiming that she only had problems in her brain and that it wasn't the work of a creature or entity. Supporting his opinion, Alextrov expressed the same sentiment, leading to their expulsion from the room. From outside, grunts and screams could be heard emanating from the room, but all their efforts would be in vain. They descended to the living room and sat on the sofa.

"It seems that my visit today will be of no use. I won't be able to diagnose her after all the stress she's going through. I'll have to come back tomorrow to check everything. However, I'll wait until the end of this ritual so that I can assess her blood pressure and make sure she's alright. After all, I don't want her to go from here to tomorrow and end up dead." - Walter said to Alextrov.

Nodding in agreement, Alextrov went to the cabinet and started preparing some coffee to supposedly calm everyone's nerves. From the lower floor, no sounds could be heard coming from the room, but after 4 hours, they finally heard the door of the room opening and noises coming from the stairs. It was Taylor and Esteban descending the stairs. Both of them were sweaty and had a tired look on their faces.

"For today, the ritual has concluded. Yelena is resting now. Please go upstairs and check on her." - said Taylor, heading towards the door and opening it before stepping outside.

"There's no need to worry, gentlemen. Yelena will be fine; she is in good hands. Father Taylor is highly renowned here in the United States, and I came directly from Spain to assist in this case as well. Although you may not believe in demonic powers, I assure you that they are real. I have witnessed their actions firsthand in the various wars I have been involved in and the people I have lost. Faith in the One who can change everything has been able to rebuild people in the face of such atrocities. Don't worry; the DEVIL will not go unpunished!" - Esteban said in a tired and drawn-out manner, alternating between English and Spanish in some words, likely due to his fatigue.

"I fought in the war and witnessed numerous deaths, including the loss of my father during the Great War. However, I still believe that it was the human malice and greed that brought misery to this world. Through my studies in psychiatry, I have seen that this illness is becoming more common due to the stressful period we have experienced in recent years. The illness can be derived from post-traumatic stress or even schizophrenia, which can cause fainting and periods of mental instability, as exhibited by Yelena," - Walter retorted in a serious tone.

After this exchange of words and a piercing look, silence fell upon the residence, with the only audible sound being the rain hitting the windows and the roof of the house. Subsequently, Fathers Esteban and Taylor made their way back to the Cathedral of New Orleans, located in the French Quarter. After closing the door, Alextrov and Walter went to Yelena's room to check on her condition following the ritual.

Upon entering the room, the lights were on, and Yelena was lying there sound asleep. Walter measured her blood pressure and noticed that it was perfectly fine. Yelena did not have a fever, her blood pressure was normal, and she had no new injuries. Walter prescribed some medication for her headaches and advised her to rest and drink plenty of water. He decided to leave her alone to avoid disturbing her with any noise.

As they left the room, Mikhail and Anna checked one last time to ensure their daughter was okay and closed the door. It was already around 6:30 PM, the sun had set, and the rain continued to fall. After a long and tumultuous day, it was time for Walter to return home and get some rest. But before leaving, he confirmed that he would come back the next morning to further investigate the girl, as she should be fully recovered from today's events. He agreed to be at their house by 8:00 AM on the following day, the 16th. Bid farewell to everyone, Walter got into his car, parked in the family's garage, and started to drive away. Before crossing the gate and entering the street, Walter glanced at the rearview mirror to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything. However, this act would lead to deep regret, as he happened to look at Yelena's bedroom window and saw the girl staring directly at him, as if she knew he was looking at her through the rearview mirror. Her eyes were wide open, and she had a macabre smile on her face, staring intensely at him.

Filled with a chilling sensation down his spine, Walter slowly turned his gaze forward and continued driving as if he hadn't seen anything at all.

Meanwhile, Alextrov and his parents had a silent dinner. No one was in the mood to speak; they simply looked at each other and continued eating in silence, with the only sound being the rain outside. Several hours passed, and Alextrov was sleeping on the living room sofa when his parents woke him up.

"We're going to the pharmacy to buy some medication. It's almost 10 PM, and the pharmacy will be closing soon, so we need to go quickly. Keep an eye on your sister; she's sleeping upstairs." - said Anna Morosova.

Getting up from the sofa, Alextrov made his way to the bathroom to wash his face. As he did so, he could hear the sound of the car starting and leaving the garage. After washing his face, he went to the refrigerator and had some water. His nap on the sofa had left him with a slight neck cramp, so he decided to stretch a bit and ended up closing his eyes for a few seconds. When he opened them again, the house was completely dark, as if the power had gone out again. Unable to see properly, he grabbed an old flashlight that was stored on the kitchen counter. As he turned on the flashlight, he immediately heard noises coming from the upstairs, almost like footsteps. Fearing that there might be an intruder in his house, Alextrov began making his way towards the second floor. When he pointed the flashlight towards the staircase, he couldn't see anything but darkness on the upper floor.

Climbing the stairs slowly, as they creaked under his weight, Alextrov reached the second floor and approached his sister's room. In order not to wake her by knocking on the door, he opened it slowly. To his surprise, his sister wasn't sleeping in the room. Overwhelmed by fear, Alextrov turned around, afraid that she might be behind him, but this time with a knife. However, there was nothing behind him. He quickly descended the stairs and searched the house but found nothing. While scanning the house, he caught sight of a figure through one of the windows that faced the backyard. Hurrying outside, he searched for footprints and the figure but found absolutely nothing.

Desperate and unsure of what to do, he saw the lights turning on inside the house and a shadow moving around. Running, Alextrov entered the house and began checking every room, finally finding his sister in the bathroom.

"Oh my goodness, I mean, where were you? I looked for you everywhere and couldn't find you." - Alextrov said, scolding her.

"Sorry, I saw that the lights had gone out, and I needed to use the bathroom. You probably didn't see me pass because of that. I apologize." - Yelena said, while seemingly chewing on something.

However, Alextrov noticed something peculiar. Yelena had some spider webs on her hand, and at one point, as she chewed, a spider leg emerged from her mouth and got stuck on her lip. Overwhelmed by a chilling sensation down his spine and a shiver, Alextrov swallowed his dry saliva, shaking his head and asking her to go to her room. Yelena obeyed and went back to bed.

With the arrival of his parents, Alextrov went to his room and slept, but not before putting brass knuckles on his hand and glancing at a box, similar to a Thermal Case, that was behind his wardrobe.

(Frightening scare, honestly, I hope Yelena never finds this; things would completely spiral out of control.) - Thought Alextrov, looking at the box.

Alextrov had a restless night of sleep, with unsettling nightmares and waking up several times due to the thunderstorms. However, he managed to sleep until the next morning when something unexpected would happen and stir up the day.

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Continued in the next chapter...