Page 31 of Malum Discordiae

“No, it wasn’t. But . . . I think it’s all tied together.”

“O-o-o-okay. Hold on a second. I’m going to put you on speaker so Dev can hear.” I heard a clatter on the other end.

“Hey, Padre,” Dev said.

“Hey, boss. Okay. So, the other day when Harper came by the estate to drop off her research on the history of the place, I saw something in her printouts that really shocked me. I didn’t say anything at the time because I didn’t know what to make of it, and we ended up talking about something else and then I didn’t have a chance. Anyway, the deep dive she did into the priest from the Moon Call Coven massacre? That sheet with the picture of the priest involved that everyone was always so careful about not naming or sharing? It was a photo of my grandfather. Dougal McGuire.”

“But your last name’s Chase,” Hanlen said.

“Yeah. I legally changed it in my twenties. After everything that happened with the exorcism and the excommunication, I figured it was for the best. I went to my mother’s maiden name so I could effectively distance myself from the Order and my father. You know we don’t have the best relationship, even though I know we can call on him if we need him. He may be a crappy dad, but he’s an excellent priest. It’s really too bad we can’t just use Duncan.”

“Wow, Pax. I’m so sorry,” Hanlen said.

“It’s honestly okay. My mom was the rock in that relationship. When we lost her, I knew it was inevitable that things between my dad and me would fall apart. But that’s not what this is about.”

“What exactlyisthis about? Because the things I dug up today kind of blew my mind. I’m not sure I can handle much more,” Hanlen confessed.

“As the write-up said, Grandda was the priest present at the massacre thirty-plus years ago. But unlike the theories, Duncan—Father McLeod—told me that Grandda actually saved lives that day. He didn’t kill anybody. Seems the Moon Call Coven was in the habit of sacrificing children. Newborns and infants predominantly. When Duncan told me the story, something from my demonologist training came back to me. Back in the day, black magic covens used to boil baby fat and then mix it with herbs and crushed crystals to rub onto the skin. They believed it gave them power and allowed them to commune more easily with their dark patrons.”

“Jesus,” Hanlen said, just as Dev gasped.

“Merde.”

“You can say that again. Anyway, one of the young coven members who’d left thefamily—and I use that term loosely—contacted the Church about what was going on at the estate. She didn’t feel comfortable going to the police because she had been involved, but when she broke free of them, she felt she needed to do something. She told Grandda that they had a big sacrifice planned for the night of the blood moon, and he took it upon himself to go and break it up. It was stupid—”

“And reckless,” Hanlen interrupted.

“Yes, and reckless, but that was Grandda. If he thought there was even a snowball’s chance in hell of doing some good, he’d do it. Consequences be damned.”

“I see where you get it from,” Dev said, and I smiled.

“Anyway, from what Duncan told me, when Grandda got there, the ritual had already started. They had an infant on an altar, a big copper tub behind it, and their black priest was ready to murder the poor thing. Duncan told me that Grandda said that when he walked in, psychokinesis was in full effect. Things were levitating, there was an unnatural breeze in the room, the sound of a marching band could be heard coming from everywhere and nowhere, and the smell was something straight out of a defunct butcher shop. He said the place had all the earmarks of a demon infestation. I won’t go into detail on the stories that Duncan told me Grandda told him, but suffice it to say it was something I hope we never encounter—though I fear we already may have sampled some of it.”

“Why do you say that?” Dev asked.

I took a deep breath and leaned against the nearest building, letting my head fall back and bending a knee to prop one of my Chucks on the brick behind me. “Because I am now convinced that our inhuman spirit, the one we keep encountering at the mansion, the one that attacked me and Sky and Aaron, is the same one the coven worshipped back in their day—and maybe even before since we know the property was handed down through a family.”

“So, what happened after Father McGuire got there?” Hanlen asked.

“Duncan told me that he went in spiritual guns blazing,” I laughed. “Grandda was a demonologist, as well, and a well-recognized one. He traveled all over the country and did a lot of work with Ed and Lorraine Warren—I’m sure you’ve heard of them.”

“Uh, yeah. Who hasn’t heard of the most famous paranormal researchers in quite possibly the world?” Dev said.

“Wait. Aren’t they the ones from that movie about the doll?” Hanlen asked.

Dev laughed. “Yes, babe. And countless other horror books and movies. They were very, very real. Hollywood just dramatized their experiences for the big screen.”

“Wow,” Hanlen said, and she actually sounded impressed. “Padre’s family ran in famous circles.” She laughed. “What happened then?”

I continued. “Duncan said that Grandda was able to beat back some of the evil, enough to make it to the altar. When he disrupted their circle and rite, it caused all sorts of havoc. Apparently, the dark things they’d conjured and called didn’t take too kindly to not getting what they had been promised in the time they were promised it and started attacking the coven members. Duncan told me that Grandda said it was a bloodbath. If they weren’t being attacked by things he couldn’t see, then they started attacking each other. Killing one another. He barely got away unscathed. But he didn’t leave before he did one very important thing.”

“He saved the child,” Hanlen breathed.

“He saved the child,” I echoed.

“I think you should pick up Sky and come over to the plantation. Right now,” Hanlen said. “We have a whole lot to discuss.”

“That’s what I figured,” I said. “She’s actually still at my place. At least, I hope she is. I convinced her to spend the night because of her injury and what happened at Lamour. She was sleeping when I went to the church. I’ll pick her up, and we’ll see you in a few. You might as well call the rest of the team in, too. It’d probably be best to only tell these stories once and then form a game plan for the rest of this investigation. Because I don’t think we’ve seen the worst of it, and that’s saying a lot.”

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