Soul Guardian

The house was dark, there were things creeping around in the basement and the hallways were so long and narrow that he was pretty sure if he gained another pound he would get stuck. There was also the matter of the writing on the wall that had greeted them once the realtor left.

Bael had heard of poltergeists before. He understood that angry spirits sometimes lingered in the world of the living instead of moving on. But it had never occurred to him that one might have dyslexia. Unless of course the spirit in question really wanted them to “TEG OUT.”

Maybe it was the residual occult energies from the triple homicide or the lost souls wandering through the kitchen, but it felt like home. It had a certain hellish vibe that Bael hadn’t realized he missed.

Now that the house was bought and paid for all that was left was moving all of their stuff out of the old place. Usually that required hundreds of cardboard boxes, a rental van, several fights and possibly a divorce. All Bael needed was a couple pieces of chalk.

“Alright, I’m done on my end.” Bael called into the summoning circle he had marked on the living room floor. “How are things on your end?”

“Everything worth taking is stacked up and ready to go.” Maharet shouted back from the other side. “Start the chant in three, two...”

With a cloud of smoke and crackling of electricity their belongings jumped from the old house to the new one. Bael’s joy turned to annoyance when he noticed that his favorite chair was nowhere to be seen. “Where’s my recliner?” He called into the circle.

“It didn’t go with the sofa.” Maharet shouted back.

Bael glanced at the black leather monstrosity she had called a couch. “What does that have to do with anything?”

Her answer mystified him. He didn’t know what Feng Shui was or why it was important, but he knew that if it was keeping him away from his favorite recliner he didn’t like it. Not one bit.

***

The next door neighbors were having an argument of their own. Julia Stein had noticed that the for sale sign was gone. “Looks like someone finally bought the murder house.” She observed as she sipped her stevia sweetened fair trade cold brew coffee.

“I hope they don’t scare easy.” Her husband Jim said with a hearty laugh. “I wonder if the husband plays poker.” He had been trying to get a poker night together since they moved. “Maybe he even hunts.” Jim said wistfully.

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He had been dying of boredom since Julia insisted they move to the suburbs and “escape the fast paced city life.” Of course, he had liked that fast paced city life but he had given it up for the good of his family. He also missed the week long hunting trips with his buddies and bar hopping. It was a good thing he had married Julia though because after the wedding his friends had stopped coming by. Without her he would have been stuck all alone.

“Well I hope they’re sophisticated.” Julia shot back. “Maybe the wife will go yoga with me or help start a book club.”

“Good luck with that.” Jim snorted. Julia’s book clubs had always been an excuse for her and her friends to drink wine and complain about their husbands.

As an unforeseen consequence of attending too many book clubs Julia now had an almost Pavlovian response to literature. She couldn’t so much as look at a paperback without her fingers reaching for a corkscrew.

Julia hunted through their wine rack for something good enough that they wouldn’t seem cheap but not so nice that they would miss it. “We should bring over a bottle to welcome them to the neighborhood.”

“Why bother? They won’t be staying long. Nobody has managed to spend a night in that house since the murders.” Jim snapped his newspaper for emphasis. “Not to be a pessimist, but why don’t we wait until tomorrow morning to bring that wine over?”

Julia looked from the wine to her husband with annoyance. He was probably right, but she didn’t have to tell him that.

***

The girls collapsed on the couch when they got home. It had been a long drive but Maharet couldn’t teleport without Bael and she didn’t think it was safe to send Six through the portal alone. They had fallen asleep in the back seat of the SUV on the way over but for some reason they didn’t feel any more rested.

(It was a well observed phenomena that sleep garnered during road trips didn’t count.)

“What’s with the bear?” Maharet asked, pointing to the teddy bear backpack sitting in what she couldn’t help but notice was a brand new recliner. “Is it possessed?”

“Nope.” Bael said. “It’s just a perfectly normal backpack.”

“Now that I highly doubt.” Maharet picked up the backpack for inspection. She locked eyes with the fluffy bear. “Reveal your secrets.” She demanded in a low menacing voice. Of course, the bear had no secrets to reveal. Not to be deterred she called on her most powerful magics but even they fell short.

“Sometimes a backpack is just a backpack.” Bael said. “I thought Six could use it when she goes to school. For books and things.” He explained helpfully. “The cashier thought we should name him Sam.”

“I knew a Samael once.” Maharet reminisced before she handed the backpack over to Six who without reservations strapped it on. The child jumped up and down making the legs of the bear wiggle and wave.

“Thanks Bael!” Six said, running over to give her new foster father a peck on the cheek. “He’s perfect.”

“Well I’m glad you like him.” Bael said, his heart melting a little bit from the show of affection. “Keep him with you whenever you leave the house, he’ll keep you safe.”

Maharet raised an eyebrow at that last comment but didn’t say anything. Bael had done something to the bear but whatever it was the enchantment was too subtle for her to ferret out. It really was maddening though how he kept his plans and schemes to himself.

Of course, Maharet wasn’t sure what annoyed her more, that Bael was keeping secrets from her or that she hadn’t been able to figure them out on her own. She watched Six play with the bear, happy and oblivious. What was Bael up to?