Chapter 15
San Diablo’s Greatwater mansion is a once-stately mansion that had fallen into serious disrepair through neglect before my husband and his partner in real estate, Bernie Dorsey, had bought it as an investment property.
Now, it’s fallen into serious disrepair through the antics of that bitch Lilith who’d been hell-bent on not only walking the earth herself, but on planting her boyfriend in my first husband.
Built during the Hollywood heyday by a legendary film producer who’d spared no expense.
The place was massive, with a huge entrance hall illuminated by floor to ceiling windows that commanded a stunning view.
The house itself was settled at the top of one of San Diablo’s many hills, and the view was epic, encompassing both St. Mary’s Cathedral and the San Diablo cemetery, not to mention the ocean beyond.
There was even a spiral staircase that led from the main balcony down to that cemetery.
Because who doesn’t want direct access to where the dead sleeps?
Theophilus Monroe definitely did, as he was the later resident who had the set of stairs installed.
A relative of the town’s founder, Theophilus was a bit of a bad apple, as he dabbled in the black arts and made all sorts of revisions to the place.
I hadn’t been back here since we returned from Rome, and now I walked through the place assessing the damage.
The battered staircase, the crumbling balcony, the gouged wooden floors and popped up tiles.
Scorch marks scarred the walls and ceiling, and windows were cracked and covered with plastic sheeting.
I took it all in, and though the condition was horrible, I was even more glad that I decided to come today. Waiting for a delivery was the least I could do, especially since I felt somewhat obligated. All of this damage was the result of demons, after all.
Allie and Mindy were with me, and Mindy hadn’t been here since that horrible day when we’d foolishly believed the safe room that had been constructed to guard against demons would be strong enough to protect us from the likes of Lilith.
We’d been wrong, as the condition of the house clearly attested.
“Whoa,” Mindy said as she looked around the entrance hall. “I guess the safe room looks even worse, huh?”
“You were there,” Allie said.
Mindy nodded, hugging herself. “I think I blocked most of it.”
“Are you okay being here?” I asked gently. “It’s all safe now.”
The moment the words were out of my mouth, I wanted to call them back. Lilith was behind all the trouble that had damaged so much of this beautiful mansion. And now Lilith was back in action again. Could I really say that any place was safe?
“I’m okay, Aunt Kate. It’s all good.” She looked toward Allie. “Is the upstairs a mess?”
“Is it?” Allie asked, her eyes on me.
The truth was, I didn’t know. “Why don’t we go find out?” I glanced at my watch. “I’ve got at least half an hour before the delivery’s supposed to come. Let’s go check out the damage in the rest of the place.”
I crossed the entryway to the massive staircase that led up to the second floor, Allie and Mindy following behind me and whispering among themselves. I could hear them as we climbed the stairs.
It’s kind of creepy, but it’s also kind of cool!
I know, right? Can you imagine all the Hollywood parties?
And that freaky black arts guy? He probably had séances!
I smiled to myself. I wasn’t sure if I should be pleased or disturbed that these two girls thought the creepy mansion that had been almost destroyed by a powerful demon was cool, but I decided to go with pleased.
It proved they were resilient, and that was a much better assessment than that they were crazy.
“Are you coming on Thursday?” I heard Mindy ask Allie.
I resisted the urge to turn and look at them. Instead I continued my eavesdropping as we walked along the landing toward the ballroom that opened off a set of double doors in the middle of the hallway.
“Are you kidding?” Allie said. “Of course I am. You’re starring in the freaking musical.”
Thursday was the preview for friends and family, Friday was their day off, and Saturday evening was the grand opening of the community musical in which Mindy had the starring role of The Baker’s Wife in Into the Woods.
I listened as they continued talking, Allie telling Mindy how excited she was for her, and Mindy telling Allie that she couldn’t wait for her best friend and family to be there for the preview and opening night. “My dad’s even coming on Saturday. Can you believe it?”
Despite the fact that Paul was coming to town—something that Laura was not going to be happy about—I couldn’t help but smile.
There’d been a period when there’d been a rift between these girls.
Allie had made the cheerleading squad, and Mindy had not.
For a while, I’d feared that the easement between our houses would never get used again.
Then, fortunately, we realized that Mindy was a miniature Celine Dion.
She excelled in the choir, got parts in the school musicals, and generally found her way again.
Mindy had been a little jealous of Allie and cheerleading, and Allie was a little jealous of Mindy and singing. It all evened out in the wash.
Now, though, I had to wonder. Would the fact that Allie was anointed with some sort of special Demon-Hunting skills change the dynamic again?
As far as I knew, Allie had yet to tell her bestie the situation.
Which meant that right now, they were pretty much on an even keel as far as Mindy was concerned—both ordinary teenage girls learning how to fight.
But I couldn’t help but wonder how that revelation would change their friendship.
I hoped it didn’t, but I knew better than to believe the road would be easy.
I paused in front of the double doors and waited until the girls were paying attention. “Have either of you been in here yet?”
They looked at each other and shook their heads. “It’s a great room,” I said, then pushed the doors open with bold ceremony. “Ta-da!”
“Wow,” Allie said, with just the amount of enthusiasm that I’ve been hoping for. “It’s huge.” She glanced around the empty room, which, I was glad to see, had sustained no damage during Lilith’s temper tantrum.
In truth, the room wasn’t completely empty. There were tables with knocked-over chairs surrounding them. There were even a couple of mattresses on the floor, though they were out of place in a ballroom. Most likely this place had been a refuge for vagrants over the years.
The room was cavernous, and in the back it opened on to a small staging area for food preparation. A set of stairs connected that service area to a basement tunnel that provided access to the kitchen on the far side of the house.
I explored that back area as the girls stayed in the main room practicing their forms and kicks. When I returned, Allie had executed a perfect spinning back-kick, and Mindy had dodged it like a pro.
“Bravo,” I cheered, impressed with how far they’d come in their training. I made a mental note to ask Laura when Cutter would be back. Not only did I want him to start working with the girls again, but I needed to schedule a time for the self-defense class I’d started for the neighborhood women.
“Allie!” I called, realizing that she’d switched from practicing kicks and was about to send the knife she now habitually carried toward the far wall.
She looked at me, her eyes wide. “What? The wall’s a mess.”
I walked over to the wall and pressed my hand against it. “The plaster’s in perfect condition. All it needs is a new coat of paint, and you are not leaving dents and holes in it. Stuart would ground us both.”
“Fine.” She exhaled in a huff. “Whatever.”
I forced myself not to smile, but I couldn’t help but wonder how many other mothers had this conversation with their teenage daughters.
“What about one of those mattresses?” Mindy asked.
“Yeah,” Allie said. “We could line them up on the wall, and make a whole area for practice.”
We hadn’t brought Mindy a stiletto back from Italy, but Laura had bought one for her daughter while we were over there. She’d ordered it off the internet. Laura was all about ordering things off the internet.
“Fine.” Honestly, I was happy to keep them occupied while I went down to deal with the delivery. I glanced at my watch. “Hurry and I’ll help you set up. And don’t miss the mattresses when you throw.”
“God, Mom. We’re not lame. We’ve been practicing, remember?”
I remembered Eliza being blown away by Allie recently landing a knife throw right in a demon’s eye. So, yeah. I supposed she could hit a mattress. I hoped Mindy’s skills were at least half as good.
I started to help, but my phone chimed with a text as the girls rushed to the mattresses. I paused to pull out my phone as they each grabbed an end of the top mattress and pulled it aside.
The moment I glanced at the screen, an ear-piercing scream shook the room. Immediately I looked up, only to see that the scream had come from Mindy, who was backing away from the stick-thin, bearded man who had risen from the middle of the pile of mattresses.
“I’ve got him,” Allie said, hauling back and readying her knife to throw.
“Stop!” I called. “Are you sure he’s a demon?”
“Mom!” But her shoulders dropped, and I knew that she wasn’t yet certain. “What do I do? What do I do?”
“Who are you?” the possible demon asked.
“You’re trespassing,” I said. “We need you to leave this property. This isn’t a homeless center. I’m sorry.”
The possible demon frowned at me, then shrugged a shoulder. He looked to be in his mid-thirties with filthy hair and yellow fingernails.
“Not fair. Finally find a place to stay out of the weather, and I get kicked out.”
“It’s summer,” I said. “The weather’s fine. And there are shelters on the south side of town.