[Chapter 300: The Monster in the Room]
Ed and Lorraine's faces turned pale.
Though they were renowned Exorcists themselves, they appeared fragile when confronted with true power.
"I suggest that once this is over, you get rid of these things," Daniel said.
He turned to them. "Burn them, melt them down, or find a place that can truly contain them. Don't keep them at home like ticking time bombs."
Ed glanced at the room full of collectibles, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. After all, these were the fruits of a lifetime's work. But recalling the previous prophecy and the power Daniel had displayed, he clenched his teeth. "Alright. Once we get through this, we'll take care of them."
Daniel nodded and then began inspecting the collection room.
With his Spiritual Sense fully engaged, he even employed the Spiritual Perception Technique, yet found no trace of the nun.
"She is not here," he concluded.
He left the basement and made another round throughout the villa, upstairs and downstairs.
The result was the same.
There was some dark energy in the house, leaking from the collection room, but no residue of demonic energy at Valak's level.
...
The three returned and sat down in the living room.
"Mr. Cross, are you sure it's not here?" Lorraine asked uneasily.
"It's very cunning, or maybe... the time hasn't come yet," Daniel replied, leaning back on the sofa, fingers lightly tapping his knee.
He recalled the plot of The Conjuring 2.
In the film, Valak's real target -- its gateway -- wasn't in the U.S. It lay across the ocean, in Enfield, England. There, a family endured unspeakable torment. The Warrens were targeted by Valak because they intervened in that case, nearly losing their lives.
Since it had to be dealt with, they had to go to the source.
"Have you been following any foreign news lately? Or has the Church given you new assignments?" Daniel asked suddenly.
Ed paused.
"Not recently. We've been too preoccupied with that prophecy -- turning down all other jobs."
Daniel considered this a moment, then said, "Look into something."
"Look into what?"
"A family named Hodgson." His tone was certain. "It should be in the UK. Or possibly here in the U.S. A single mother with four children. Watch closely for a girl named Janet."
"Hodgson?" Ed looked puzzled. "Who is that? Does it have anything to do with the nun?"
"It has everything to do with it." Daniel stood. "The nun's true form is there. If we want to survive -- if we want to break that death prophecy -- we have to take the initiative and go find it."
Although Lorraine didn't understand why, her spiritual intuition told her Daniel was right.
"I'll contact my friends in the Church right now." Ed asked no more questions, grabbed his phone, and headed toward the study.
Daniel walked to the window and stared out at the gloomy sky. Since Valak wanted a game, they would go to its home turf and root it out completely.
...
Less than half an hour later, Ed hung up and hurried back into the living room.
"I found it," he said urgently.
"It's not in the UK -- it's right here in Enfield, Connecticut. Coincidentally, the town is also named Enfield. A single mother, Peggy Hodgson, with two daughters and two sons. The local police have already responded; furniture has reportedly been moving on its own, in plain sight."
Daniel stood, straightened his cuffs. "Let's go."
Without delay, the three departed.
...
Enfield wasn't far.
After a few hours on the road, they reached the somewhat rundown neighborhood.
The sky was gray, with a steady drizzle.
At the street's end stood an old two-story wooden house, paint peeling, a creaky swing swaying in the wind.
The car rolled to a stop.
Daniel didn't immediately get out.
He rolled down the window, narrowed his eyes, and bathed the house with his Spiritual Sense like a rising tide.
Under the Spiritual Perception Technique, the house was wrapped in a layer of grayish-black mist. A stale, cold aura hung in the air -- thick with resentment and stubbornness.
"Something's not right," Daniel whispered.
Ed unbuckled his seatbelt. "What is it, Mr. Cross? Did you detect something?"
"The dark energy is heavy," Daniel said, eyeing a closed second-floor window. "But this aura... it's too 'tainted,' yet not 'evil' enough."
If it were Valak itself -- one of Solomon's seventy-two pillars -- the aura wouldn't be so weak.
Lorraine's face was pale, her hand gripping the crucifix on her chest. "Maybe it's hiding?"
"Two possibilities," Daniel said as he opened the car door, stepping onto the wet concrete. "Either it hasn't truly descended yet and this is just an outpost. Or it's so deeply hidden that even the original residents don't sense its presence."
Ed and Lorraine exchanged a grave look.
...
They approached the door, and Ed pressed the doorbell.
After a long pause, the door cracked open.
A haggard middle-aged woman with sunken eyes peered out. She held a cigarette; her gaze was wary and exhausted.
"Who are you? Reporters? I told you to stop bothering us!"
Peggy Hodgson's voice was raspy, tinged with hysteria on the verge of breaking.
"Ms. Hodgson, I'm Ed Warren, and this is my wife Lorraine," Ed said gently, producing a Church letter of introduction. "We were sent to help you."
Peggy hesitated; the wariness faded but was replaced by embarrassment. She looked at their tidy clothes -- and then at Daniel's expensive tailored suit.
"The Church?" Peggy nervously pinched her shirt hem. "I don't have money to pay you. My husband left with someone else, and I'm raising four kids alone. I can't even fix the pipes..."
Daniel stood silently. He'd already received a check from the Warrens. He wasn't here to take money from this family.
"Ms. Hodgson, please rest assured," Ed smiled, cutting in. "This is a Church commission and completely free. We just want to help the children."
"Free?" Peggy's eyes welled with tears. She tossed away her cigarette and covered her face with her hands. "Thank God... come in, please."
She pulled the door open and ushered them inside.
Daniel stepped into the house.
A stale smell of mold and dampness hit him instantly. The light was dim; the furniture old but kept relatively tidy. Still, the cold, clammy feeling was stronger inside than outside.
Daniel's gaze swept the living room and rested on a worn brown leather armchair. The chair faced the TV, with a clear indentation as if someone had just been sitting there.
"The children are all upstairs, too scared to come down," Peggy said, closing the door, her voice trembling. "The beds vibrate on their own, chairs slide across the floor. Janet... my second daughter, Janet, even makes the sound of a man's voice."
Daniel didn't respond.
He stepped toward the armchair, extended his hand over it -- without touching. An extremely stubborn, obsessive presence clung to it.
*****
https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.
https://discord.gg/HjHHhUXPn7.