"What plan do you have? Don't bring up your grandma now."
He said with a quiet voice.
"No. Not grandma's, but original plan."
"What is it?"
"Exorcism."
"Are you powerful enough to perform an exorcism of the whole town?"
I asked him.
"No. Not like that. There are several techniques that lead to exorcism. I am also talking about such technique. It's called communication."
"And what is the process?"
"Well, first I need to put talismans around this hatch to ensure that ghosts or evil spirits can't come inside."
"Okay"
We put the talismans around the hatch.
"Claire, i think we should rest before going to the next step. Cause it will be an exhausting process and our condition isn't very good."
"Then—let's sleep for now."
We decided to sleep. But both of us couldn't close the eyes until dawn. After a certain time we embraced each other and fell asleep like it was the last time we could stay together like this.
IN THE EVENING
"Claire— wake up."
"Yeahhh"
"Get up. We don't have time."
I woke up and saw.
"Why is a pentagram formed here."
"I made it. That's the second step."
There was pentagram made with red color. Then— I noticed.
"Steve, why is an arm covered by cloth and what's with that blood on the cloth."
"Well— i was... Having pain... Then I saw... That a wooden stick pierced my arm."
Steve said while hesitating as if he was trying to hide something.
"Don't tell me, you used blood while making it."
"..."
There was no reply.
The pentagram. It was made of blood. Blood of Steve. How could anyone do this? When they know it will hurt their loved ones.
"So, that's why you didn't say anything about next step till now."
He replied with down voice.
"If I told you beforehand, you would've stopped me."
"Steve! How could you do this. Did you not even think about me once? While doing something like this."
"Claire— calm down."
"How could I calm down. When there is so much blood of you."
"It's necessary to this. Atleast here."
My hands trembled as I stared at the blood covering the floor. I couldn't stop the tears from falling.
"Claire— don't cry. Don't cry."
He came close to me and wiped the tears through his hands and said.
"Claire— Jonathon is waiting for his parents. Shouldn't we try to head out of here as soon as possible to meet our son?"
He smiled while wiping my tears from my face.
I replied with eyes full of tears.
"O... Okay, I will let it go this time. But... if it happens again. I won't let it go."
"Okay sweetheart. That's the last time I do this."
Then he started putting the candles in the pentagram each edge.
"Claire— I will sit in the middle of it. You stay out of the circle."
He continued.
"If something starts happening to me. There is white powder. Wait..."
He goes into the bag and gave me a pouch of white powder. And said.
"If something starts happening to me or the candles start blowing out or flickering take the powder and throw at me. The connection between me and the spirit world will break."
"Is it something dangerous?"
"Na. I was just taking precautions. If something goes wrong."
He said that but I didn't believe in that.
Then he sat in the middle of that.
There was nothing for some time. But after a certain time candles starts flickering.
"What is this happening? Pow...
Powder."
Candles start to blow out.
"Haah"
I picked the powder and threw at Steve.
"Steve!"
He fell on the ground.
I run towards him.
I shouted.
"Steve!"
I shook him... Nothing happened.
I took the water and splashed it on him.
He moves slightly.
My life came back in my body.
"Thank God. You are alive"
My hands were trembling. As if I lost him.
"Claire..."
He said.
"Y... yeah, Steve."
"We... We need to go somewhere."
He said with his half conscious self.
"You should rest first. We can go afterwards."
"No..."
He said and fall unconscious.
NEXT DAY MORNING
Steve woke up.
"Haa."
"S... Steve."
"Yeah."
I hugged him tightly.
"Claire, I need to show you somethings."
"What?"
"The answers. The answers I got from the spirit."
"What are these?"
"First, there's something in the hatch we didn't saw till now. "
"What?"
"See"
He pointed at the direction of pile of garbage.
"Garbage?"
"No, It's what behind the garbage."
"Wait. I go there and see it." I said.
I reached there. And started to siding garbage from there.
There i saw what Steve meant.
"There's a hatch."
It was a hatch. We were already in a hatch but there is another hatch that goes more down in it.
"Yeah. Let's see what's inside."
"Claire—There's a machine here."
We went there and saw a steam heating system.
"What is it doing here? How did it fit in the hatch." Steve said.
"That's not the main question. The question is who will fit this size of machine in a ghost town."
It was worth thinking.
"Yeahh. You are right."
"Let's go."Steve said.
"Where?"
"You, did you already forget what I told you?"
"You mean, answers?"
We goes upward to the ground. It was day time.
The monsters were nowhere to be seen.
"Steve— Where are all the monsters gone?"
"They disappears at the day."
Steve started guiding me to a location without telling anything about it.
I couldn't contain my curiosity and asked him.
"Steve— where are we going?"
"You will know in a few minutes."
After walking several minutes. We reached a house. It's condition was far better than other houses.
"Is it the thing you wanted to show me?"
"No, it's inside."
"Ok"
I tried to enter in it. But...
"Here's not a single door to enter in the house."
"Go prone. Move under the deck."
I didn't ask such thing in my years of being married until now. But the situation made me curious.
"Do the spirits talk to you about everything?"
"No, they don't talk they just give directions."
IN CURRENT TIME
We entered the house and saw...
Claire paused.
Nicolas asked curiously.
"Saw what?"
"I guess you should also see for yourself first."
Claire stands from the chair and moved to a place where a door was present to the basement.
She held a lantern and started heading into it.
"This is where you will know. What we saw?"
Sierra and Nicolas followed claire.
"See."
Nicolas and Sierra were shocked.
"W... What is it?"***