Eidolon

Chapter 13: The Burning Man

"Did they see us?" Cynthia whispered, crouched behind the pews next to Alex, trying her best to peer around the side without making herself visible.

"I don't think so," Alex replied, trying to control her breathing. Who on earth would be here at this time of night? Had someone heard them break, in and came to investigate?

"I don't see anyone" Cynthia whispered back. "Where are they?"

Alex pointed at the man who was slowly pacing down the center aisle towards the front doors, only to turn around and start pacing back when he reached them. Cynthia's gaze followed Alex's finger, but her expression was confused.

"I still don't see anything."

"He's right there," she insisted. Cynthia still looked bewildered. Then it dawned on Alex who the man surely was. "Of course..."

She rose to her feet, and waved towards the man. She could see now that he was in his mid- to late-thirties, with shaggy dark hair poking out from beneath his baseball cap. He was dressed in work boots, jeans, and a flannel shirt. His face had a stern look to it, all hard lines and stubble. "Excuse me, sir. Are you okay?"

The man's grim expression softened somewhat, and his deep, scratchy voice sounded relieved when he spoke. "Oh, thank God. No, no, I've been trapped in here all day. I don't know what's going on, but there have been police officers, and firefighters, and the priest was here earlier..." he trailed off, gesturing wildly but without any meaning that Alex could comprehend.

"My name is Alex," she said. "Are you John Ferguson, by any chance?"

Cynthia's eyes widened in recognition of the name, and she looked up at Alex from her hiding spot behind the pew. "You're talking to the ghost?" she whispered.

Alex shot her a brief glance and gave her a tight nod before looking back towards the man.

"Yes, that's me!" he said emphatically. "Oh, thank God. You're the first person to acknowledge me this whole time. Do you know what's going on here? Why can't I leave? And why has everyone else been ignoring me?"

Alex took a deep breath and let it out slowly. As she spoke, Cynthia crept behind the pews, making her way towards the confession booth. "Mr. Ferguson, do you remember what happened before all the police and firefighters arrived?"

It was clear from his expression that he didn't grasp what she was saying. "Before...?"

"There was a fire," Alex said cautiously.

John looked around, saw the confession booth, and stared at it for several moments before turning back to face her. "Yes, a fire."

Alex remembered what Spooky Jay had told her about some ghosts having a hard time accepting their death. The problem was, she wasn't sure how to proceed. Should she just tell him that he was dead? How would he react?

"Do you know how the fire was started?" she asked.

John took a moment to consider the question. "The fire... it was in the confession booth? Yes, that's right. I was in the confession booth. I was in the confession booth, and..." his eyes went wide with realization. "There was a demon! There was a demon in there. It trapped me, and it started the fire."

A demon? Alex knew immediately that it must have been what Spooky Jay referred to as a wraith. Was it the same one from the park? Maybe, but it didn't seem likely. The MO was completely different. That monster had beaten and partially consumed Lucas, and it was hard to imagine such a creature having the patience to trap someone and wait for them to burn alive. How many wraiths were lurking in Arcadia City at this very moment?