Demon

“Live damn it live!”

“Doctor, its too late she’s dead,” the nurse cried out.

“Maybe if I increase the charge,” he grunted.

“No, Sean listen she’s gone, just let her rest in peace,” she said softly.

He stepped away from the gurney and bumped backward into a table littered with equipment.

“Doctor, are you all right?” the nurse asked curiously.

“Yes, yes I just need to go home” he said almost beside himself.

As he walked briskly to his car he glanced up at the neon sign glowing the word ‘emergency’ and shuttered quickly changing his thoughts to how cold it had gotten.

“I must keep my mind off it, it was not my fault, it was not my fault,” he kept repeating over to himself. His cell phone rang as he was driving home, it startled him but he picked it up.

“Hello,” he said gruffly.

“Hey Sean, it’s me Walter, he said happily.

“I don’t want to talk right now,” he said flatly.

“All right just listen then,” Walter stated sternly, “I have your divorce papers ready, so I’ll messenger them to your office in the morning okay?”

“Thanks,” Sean said wearily.

“Are you okay Sean? You sound really down.” Asked Walter suddenly growing concerned.

“It’s Rosemarie, she just – she just died” said Sean quietly slightly stumbling over his words.

“Oh my god, oh I’m so sorry,” came the shocked reply.

“Yeah I guess I won’t need those divorce papers after all,” he said almost beside himself as he hung up.

Walter sat back in his chair, a shocked expression covering his face and was overcome with a sudden feeling of dread.

Sean entered the apartment and shuttered as he realised how cold and lonely it now seemed. He pored himself a night cap and settled in the antique chair she had just bought. It had been Napoleon’s or so he had been told. He could imagine crazy little Napoleon sitting in that very chair unknowingly awaiting his death. The clock banged out twelve beats ‘the witching hour’ was upon him.

His heart skipped a beat at the sound of scratching noises coming from deep within the chimney. The scratches were deep and long and the sound made his hair stand on end. Then the scratching sounded very close like it was all around him. The sound became deafening to the point of insanity. Then it stopped abruptly as a small object fell down upon the hearth. He squinted in the darkness, for the only light came from the silvery ribbons cast by the moon. The object rose startling him. It hobbled forth into the light, and he was afraid for it was too hideous to behold in full grandeur.

‘Why have you come here?” he managed to squeak.

“To collect what is due”, the demon said coolly. “You were too busy to care and now she is dead, a life for a life I’ve come to collect.”

“But I did care, I was never too busy, I never wanted her to die!” Sean cried out.

“If you cared so much why did she take the pills, how bad was her life that she wanted to end it, who is to blame?” The demon roared.

He sat there speechless, stunned by the words the demon had spat out.

“See you have no answers,” the demon answered coolly. “A life for a life, you must pay for not thinking it an emergency.”

He sat there frozen. The words trickling his brain, finally realising what the demon had to do. He closed his eyes and silently prayed to a god that didn’t exist for forgiveness. And in that silent final moment he was at peace, no longer fearing life or its ramifications and he opened his eyes.

The silvery light cast out by the moon was worthy of heaven and he wished that she were in a place of absolute peace and beauty. And with a turn of his head he saw the demon standing patiently in the centre of the room. Sean nodded briefly and closed his eyes once more. The demon removed a small jade knife that was concealed by a sheath that was hanging on his side. The demon took a breath and lunged for him. Sean never moved as the demon violently cut open his chest and skilfully removed his tiny heart that contained his soul. The demon wasted little time in securing the heart within its hand and scampered off towards the chimney from whence it came. It looked back at the body of Sean, and shuttered at how many times in the history of its existence had it done this and how many more would it have to do? The demon decided not to ponder this question and leaped up the chimney upon the roof and into the darkness of the night.

Walter knew something had happened that night and called the police in the morning to check on Sean. All they found in the apartment was Sean’s limp and bloodied body in an old chair, his glass from the night before still dangling from his cold fingers.