The next evening, with everyone gathered in the living room, Eric gathered his thoughts for a moment, pensive. “We still don’t know how this spirit got in this house.” He took a deep breath and let out a slow exhale. He turned to Robert. “Bring in your equipment and let’s show them what we found. Then, after that, we’re gonna turn it over to Colleen to do a cleansing.”
Robert brought in a laptop and set it on the coffee table.
“First, we’re gonna run some EVPs.” He pulled up the master audio graph. “Just to reiterate, they’re electronic voice phenomena, where disembodied voices or sounds are recorded but not heard with the naked ear.”
Nathan and Josslyn nodded, then looked at the graph on the monitor with the black background and a straight white line. Robert pressed Play and they listened to the sounds while David interpreted and described a low guttural growl followed by a brief chuckle. Next, all but Josslyn and Nathan heard a brief whispering sound that came across as a short hiss.
After that, an inhuman voice said, “Where’s the baby?”
Josslyn drew back from the monitor, appalled. Hairs stood on the back of Nathan’s neck.
“As I explained last night,” Colleen said, “it’s just its way of scaring you by instilling fear, the same way some preachers at the Sunday pulpit instill the fear of God with threats of eternal judgment and hellfire. Don’t let it scare you. It’s just playing one of its sick games.”
Robert pulled up a video viewer. “Now, we’re gonna show you some evidence we caught on video.” He played a video file. “Watch here in this region, right here.” He pointed to a specific area on the monitor.
Nathan and Josslyn observed a shadow glide down the second-floor hallway.
Robert showed them a second video file. “You’ll see something go across.”
A formless, black mass floated across the green grid projected on the living room wall.
Josslyn squirmed in her seat, unnerved. “I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
Nathan sat up straight, almost rigid. “It takes a lot to scare me, and I’m a big guy, but this . . . this is just beyond words.”
“This particular evil spirit is a shadow demon,” Colleen said, “which was conjured up by some young, dark-haired guy in his early thirties. I can see that he has a tattoo on each hand, that of a septagram on one hand and that of a pentagram on the other—”
“Wait. From what you just said, I recognize the guy,” Nathan signed, “from that dream I told you about that I had a few months back. I was lying naked on a big bed in a dark room. Thirty people in dark robes stood at the foot of the bed in a semi-circle, some of whom were familiar faces like neighbors and other people walking by. I got the feeling that the guy with the tattoos was the leader.”
“According to the visions that I’ve seen,” Colleen said, “and some impressions that I’ve been receiving since beginning this investigation here, this is what happened. . .
“That guy in black had trespassed upon the property one day.”
“By any chance, would you know who this guy was?” Nathan signed.
“He was an aimless drifter. He scoped the grounds for a few weeks. Then, around Halloween, he along with five others sneaked in through the back. The sliding glass door was unlocked. They brought black candles and crystal rocks, a Ouija board, incense, a Satan bible and other items pertaining to the dark arts. They put on black robes with hoods pulled over their heads. One member drew a large pentagram with chalk on the floor in the den.
“Then they chanted an incantation as each member praised and worshipped the devil. The leader wanted to show them something. He said he’d been practicing for weeks and believed Halloween night was the night to demonstrate the master’s power, as he had put it. I sense that he was a show-off with a lot of pride.
“He stood in the middle of the pentagram while chanting. The others stood in a circle. They saw a dark mass rise from the floor. It appeared to be about five feet tall. Then it suddenly lunged toward the leader and shoved him with such force that he was knocked off his feet and flew across the room and slammed into one wall.
“The rest of the group got very scared. I can actually hear screaming as I speak. They ran out of the den and out the back.
“The guy in black who was left behind begged this entity not to hurt him, and he promised to leave the premises. He just took off running and none of them ever came back.”
Josslyn sat on the couch as her mind absorbed all of this. “So, none of the previous homeowners had anything to do with devil worship or bringing this entity into this house?”
“No,” Colleen said. “They were just as much victims of the demonic haunting as you are. The conjuring of this preternatural, which is a spiritual or supernatural being that exists beyond the natural realm—a shadow demon in this particular case—happened that Halloween night, five months before the first family moved into this house in March 2010.”
“I see. The guy who was responsible for all this, where is he now? Is he still around? In the neighborhood, I mean?”
“No, I don’t sense his presence. Not nearby, at least. The impression I’m getting is that he moved to another state.
“In fact, there are two demons,” Colleen continued, “one of which is the shadow demon that I’ve spoken of. The other is one of the thrones, principalities, or dominions—the type mentioned in the Bible. This one comes and goes as it pleases. There is nothing to stop it from doing whatever it wants. Demons have free will just like humans. Understand that they are not only evil spirits, but they are fallen angels who fell from the grace of God eons ago, long before the world was made. By nature, they are preternatural. Now the spiritual battle lines have been drawn between these demons and your family, and the battle has begun for your souls here in this house.”
Josslyn nodded in understanding. “Well, our consolation lies in the fact that these evil spirits have already been judged by the Lord, and they’ve been cursed, too. They know their final doom is certain.”
“Correct. This is why they hate the fact that humans—true believers—are saved by God’s grace through the salvation of Christ. They also hate that some of us will stand in judgment of them. It irks them. God did for us what Satan wanted done for him. We were created in God’s image after His likeness, plus He loves us more. He always forgives us for our sins whereas the devil and his angels sinned only once and have never been forgiven. Instead, they’ve been condemned to eternal punishment which will be in the lake of fire, their final destination.”
“Interestingly, though,” Colleen concluded, “the lake of fire is right in Israel, the apple of God’s eye, His own inheritance, His most prized treasure, which they hate more than any other nation in the world. Now, the old Heaven, the old Earth and the old Jerusalem have been marred and tainted by the devil and humans’ sins. It’s for that reason why Heaven and Earth shall pass away. They also know about a new Heaven, a new Earth and a new Jerusalem, which they will never, ever get to see nor get a chance to tarnish, because they will be locked away forever in that place of torment prepared for the devil and his angels. But they will know about it. The bottom line is that the Word of God shall stand forever. In Jesus’s name, amen.”
“Amen,” everyone said, while Nathan and Josslyn signed.
Josslyn's emotions swelled with admiration for the team. “I just want to tell you that I’m so glad we came across your website which mentions a a psychic medium with a PhD in demonology in your organization. That’s why we chose you. After all, we are believers.”
“And, you know that unbelievers don’t believe in any of this,” Colleen said. “That’s because they don’t believe in the spiritual realm.” She smiled and took Josslyn’s hands in her own. “I speak on behalf of all of us here when I say we appreciate your trust in us.” Then, she fell forward. She stretched out her arms to help break her fall and rolled to her side.
“You all right?” Eric asked. He bent over and grabbed her arm to help her to her feet.
“I was shoved from behind.” She sat up. “I’m all right, thanks.” She smoothed the front of her shirt and dusted off her jeans.
As Nathan took a step toward her, a section of the hardwood floor panel collapsed and his foot punctured the floor. The hole broke open and his leg went through. “Help!” he signed. “I'm being pulled! I can feel hands on my leg!”
“You’re coming down with us to hell!” the hearing people heard the demon say.
The crew grabbed Nathan and struggled to pull him up from the floor.
Josslyn ran across the room and snatched a wooden cross from one wall. She clutched it in one hand, and with her free hand, recited the Lord’s Prayer in sign. The upper half of the cross snapped back at a forty-five-degree angle.
Colleen reached in her bag and withdrew a silver cross, which she handed to Josslyn. She hung onto the cross with one hand and lifted it before her. “Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle!” she signed with the other hand. “Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the enemy who roams the Earth, seeking the ruin of souls!” She felt a burning sensation across her face. Three scratch marks appeared and thin trickles of blood oozed on that side of her face. Her boldness grew even more. “The Lord rebuke thee, Satan! We cast thee forth in the mighty name of Jesus!”
Colleen prayed. “Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in—”
A corner table flew from behind and slammed into her back, which knocked her to the ground,.
Robert ran toward Colleen and tripped. He felt his right ankle crack; he writhed in pain and spewed expletives.
“Stop this insanity!” Colleen shouted as she struggled to get to her feet. “I command thee in the mighty name of Jesus Christ!”
A table lamp rose and barreled toward her. She ducked in time. It flew into a wall and shattered upon impact. “I curse your works in the name of Jesus!”
Barbara felt her hair pulled with such force that it jerked her head back and she fell backward. She screamed in surprise. She scrambled to an upright position and headed for the front door. At the door, she realized it was locked. She twisted and turned the knob to try to open the door, but to no avail.
Eric was hoisted in mid-air and flung against the wall where he slumped to the ground, disoriented.
Robert went to a standing floor lamp in one corner of the room to turn on the light. When he turned the switch, the light flashed and sparks flew. Electrical currents ran through his body. He yelped in pain and surprise and tore himself away from the lamp. He struggled for air, doubled over in pain and shock, then collapsed on the floor.
David fell face-first on the floor as he was shoved from behind with incredible force.
Nathan stood with rolled-up white eyes and mouth agape. “Be still and know that I am the god of this world,” a voice said from his mouth. “Thou shalt bow down thyself to me for I am a jealous god and thou shalt have no other gods before me.”
An oversized mirror popped off the wall and flew toward Josslyn. She sidestepped in time. The mirror slammed into another wall and shattered.
Chaos ensued. Clanging sounds erupted in the kitchen. Pots and pans flew into the dining room.
Nathan sauntered toward Josslyn and gestured for her to come to him. She saw that he appeared as her father.
“Baby, come to me,” he verbalized with gray, chapped lips. Then, he transformed to the image of her mother. “I got you, babe,” he said in a dead voice. The sight of Nathan filled Josslyn with antipathy.
“Get thee behind me, Satan!” Josslyn signed. “The Lord rebuke thee! We cast ye forth in the mighty name of Jesus!”
The floorboards creaked and groaned. One side of the house shuddered. Stucco splintered and plaster fell from the ceiling. The ceiling bucked and lowered itself. Walls cracked and fragments of plaster fell to the floor. Solar panels broke apart and slid off the roof. Parts of the roof caved in.
People screamed and ran.
Josslyn fell on her knees and prayed with fervent ardor. “Lord, I beseech thee in the mighty name and spirit of Jesus! Please help us and protect us from this evil which attempts to prevail against us as if it were barging against the gates of Heaven! I humbly pray in the name and precious blood of the Lamb! Amen!”
A brilliant, dazzling light, which reflected the Lord’s glory, appeared near the ceiling above Josslyn and the crew. It expanded as it grew brighter.
Josslyn repeated the prayer.
Nathan’s appearance returned to normal.
Eric became less disoriented.
David helped lift up Robert from the floor and walked with him to the couch as Robert hobbled on one foot, breathless. Robert sat on the couch and exhaled a tired sigh.
Colleen and Barbara huddled together and held hands as they watched Josslyn pray in earnest.
The crew heard guttural groans of anger as the evil spirits were forced out of the house.
A few windows burst from within and shards of broken glass flew outward.
Demonic howls cried out.
The holy light shone throughout the house for what seemed an eternity. The brilliance diminished within the next thirty seconds, then faded out.
Everyone stood quiet for a few minutes. They gazed around the dark living room and sensed that the house felt lighter.
Josslyn went to Nathan and saw that he was back to being his normal self. She turned to Colleen. “Are they gone?”
“Yes, I can sense that they’re finally gone for good.”
They all clapped and cheered and gave one another hugs.