Page 106 of Deliver us from Evil

“Yeah?” With the phone shining ahead, he’s a starkly contrasted silhouette. The beam of light from the cell isn’t as powerful as a flashlight, but it chases away the shadows long enough for Apollo to pick out a few shapes in the darkness.

Stairs.

Plastic flooring.

As soon as he reaches the ground, he points the light across the room.

“Mother of God,” Zach murmurs.

“Nope,” Cass says, sounding like he’s about to get sick. “Try, Father of Hell.”

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Apollo

Iwonder if they can see how much I’m shaking? I’m holding Cass’s phone as tight as I can, but there’s nothing I can do about the way the light shimmies and shakes all over the place.

If my brothers weren’t all standing there at the top of the stairs, I wouldn’t even have thought about setting foot down here.

Yeah, it’s just a basement, but comeon.

It’s as much a basement as we’re a bunch of friends.

Every inch of this place is dripping sinister and oozing malevolence. I suddenly wish I had some kind of biblical training so I could exorcise this place and be done.

But instead I have to creep around and look for a damn light.

I find it, eventually. It takes me a lot longer than it should have, but that’s because I can’t stop looking at everything else in here.

The bed.

The teeny tiny little toilet.

The camera on its stand.

Especiallythe camera.

But I can’t think electronics right now. This isn’t the time to veer off on a tangent.

As soon as I spot the string for the light, I tug it.

Light blooms, but the way that swinging lightbulb makes the shadows dance and weave is giving me the heebie-jeebies.

“Okay, guys, it’s safe!” I call up.

I don’t dare turn my back, because I know how that ends. So I just back up a little as I wait for them to join me.

But they don’t.

And when I finally have enough courage to look behind me, I see the terror on each of those three faces.

Crap.

Why the hell did I have to choose this moment to be so damn stupid?

“Really?” I purse my lips. “Just me then?”

“You’re doing so well, buddy!” Cass calls out. “Just keep going.”

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