Page 126 of The Devil and His Ghost

“It’s done,” Xander announced beside me. “He’s gone, and the souls are free.”

One white, glowing orb stopped in its ascension and hovered in front of me. It slowly settled near the rooftop and grew into the bright, transparent figure of Maria. Not the little girl. Not “The Evil One.” But the woman who’d lived and died after enduring far too much pain. She wore a hospital gown, but her body wasn’t as thin as it was in her monstrous form. Her hair was free of tangles, and if she had color to her, I was sure the locks would’ve been a beautiful dark brown. I could see hints of the little girl I knew in her eyes and face, and that made my chest warm.

“Kendyll,” she greeted timidly. “I’m so sorry for hurting you. I didn’t mean to.”

I gave her a reassuring smile and shook my head. “It’s okay. I know it wasn’t you.”

She looked down sheepishly. “It was me. At least, a version of me, something I only understand now that I’m like this.” She gestured to her spectral form. “My head and thoughts are much clearer now. Forgive me for the trouble I caused you.”

“There’s nothing to forgive, Maria. You protected and helped me, too, remember?”

She smiled sweetly. “I certainly tried when I was able to put the monster away.”

She worried her lip and hesitated. She looked so much like her younger self as she did. My heart twinged, knowing this was probably goodbye.

“D-Do you care to do something for me?” she asked as her form bounced gently like a body wading in water. “To help me rest easy?”

“Of course.”

“My body. It’s still down there in the last holding cell at the end of the hall. Would you … care to cremate me and scatter my ashes among some flowers? I always liked flowers but haven’t been able to see any since coming here.”

Emotion clogged my throat. I shoved that lump down while nodding with a smile. “I will.”

Her entire being seemed to turn weightless, and the smile she wore turned her very soul brighter like a beautiful glowing star. “Thank you. Thank you for saving me and setting me free. Setting all of us free. We can finally rest now as we should’ve been able to before he claimed us.”

I couldn’t form a response around the tightness weighing down my tongue. Maria turned too bright to look at, so I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, she had vanished. I blew out a shaky breath and watched the last of the soaring souls disappear into the distance.

“Where do ghosts go when released from a demon’s hold?” I asked Xander, wiping the tear that trailed down my cheek.

“They finish the journey that was cut short,” Xander answered quietly. “Some move onto a place that’s peaceful and free of pain. Those who were terrible people in life get sent to where demons play to be their new toys. Some are reborn while others choose to remain as a ghost where they wander the world or finish whatever they couldn’t in life. And some … fade away. Forever. It just depends on the individual soul and what journey each one wants or is meant to take.”

I looked at Xander only to find him already looking down at me. “What about Maria? What will happen to her?”

“Only she knows that. A ghost’s journey is theirs with a destination only they know once they get there.”

I nodded slowly and looked back at the spot where Maria had just been moments before. “I hope she goes somewhere nice. Somewhere that lets her forget the horrors of the life she lived.”

“Me too, Ghost.” Xander wrapped his pinky around mine and squeezed it lightly. “Me too.”

Chapter 43

Xander

(Present Day)

I WISHED I WAS MORE like what a demon should’ve been, what we were typically portrayed as in various media. Uncaring. Unfeeling. Selfish down to the very core. If I was, I wouldn’t be bent over in my chair with my head on the table, staring down at the ink on my pinky.

Maybe it would’ve been better to have never met Kendyll. Maybe it would’ve been better to have never kept the truth of that day from her. Maybe it would’ve been better to have never fallen in love with her.

I let out a mirthless laugh and shook my head slowly against the table. “You know you don’t mean that, stupid bastard.”

I swallowed hard and rubbed at my pinky. I thought I was doing the right thing. That was what I’d told myself at the time, but I realized that moment was when I’d been the most in touch with my true nature as a demon. It was my most selfish moment. I’d hidden behind my own wants long enough.

A hand landed on my shoulder. I didn’t need to lift my head to see who the heavily ringed fingers belonged to.

“Are you okay?” Perseus asked.

I pressed my lips together hard. Only after really digging to find my voice did I manage to answer, “Not really.”