Jimmy Holiday, reluctant exorcist, is finally getting the help he needs from the higher-ups. The Order of Markers is sending him to the Vatican’s exorcism school. Now, he’ll receive the training he should have gotten at the beginning. One problem, someone wants to sabotage him.
When his time at the school is cut short, Jimmy receives an interesting new case. It is the assignment that no one wants—a corpse has come back to life. And it isn’t a zombie.
Too bad nothing goes as expected. Armed with his usual bag of tricks, Jimmy thinks everything will eventually be all right. Well, that is until his betrayer turns out to be the person he trusts most.
Jimmy Holiday, reluctant exorcist, is finally getting the help he needs from the higher-ups. The Order of Markers is sending him to the Vatican’s exorcism school. Now, he’ll receive the training he should have gotten at the beginning. One problem, someone wants to sabotage him.
When his time at the school is cut short, Jimmy receives an interesting new case. It is the assignment that no one wants—a corpse has come back to life. And it isn’t a zombie.
Too bad nothing goes as expected. Armed with his usual bag of tricks, Jimmy thinks everything will eventually be all right. Well, that is until his betrayer turns out to be the person he trusts most.
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Overview
Jimmy Holiday, reluctant exorcist, is finally getting the help he needs from the higher-ups. The Order of Markers is sending him to the Vatican’s exorcism school. Now, he’ll receive the training he should have gotten at the beginning. One problem, someone wants to sabotage him.
When his time at the school is cut short, Jimmy receives an interesting new case. It is the assignment that no one wants—a corpse has come back to life. And it isn’t a zombie.
Too bad nothing goes as expected. Armed with his usual bag of tricks, Jimmy thinks everything will eventually be all right. Well, that is until his betrayer turns out to be the person he trusts most.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781944728113 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | City Owl Press |
| Publication date: | 03/05/2017 |
| Series: | The Marker Chronicles , #3 |
| Pages: | 260 |
| Product dimensions: | 5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x (d) |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
Sorrows Turn
Book Three of the Marker Chronicles
By Danielle DeVor
City Owl Press
Copyright © 2017 Danielle DeVorAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-944728-11-3
CHAPTER 1
Every Little Thing She Does is Magic
IF EVER I thought stuff couldn't get any weirder in my life, boy was I wrong. Getting out of Arizona was — well, interesting to say the least. No way could we take Lucy on a plane — not without documentation or permission from her parents, which wasn't going to happen. Poor kid had it rough learning how to walk on real feet again. Then there was the airplane itself. She'd been through enough having been possessed, separated from her body, and ultimately left with me to take care of her. Now this.
How did you call up someone to ask if you could take their daughter's spirit that had just developed its own body on an airplane while they still had her real body in Virginia? It was enough to make my brain bleed.
And of course, I didn't have their new phone number, but that was beside the point.
Like I said, things had gotten a whole heap weirder.
"Are you going to help me or not?" Tabby stood behind the car, fiddling with the suitcase.
I was in trouble again. It was starting to become a trend. One of these days she would clobber me. I could see it coming. I got out of the car, took the monstrous suitcase from her, and loaded it into the trunk.
"Car rental place said we can have the car, but there's a fee," I said, closing the back hatch.
Of course there would be. It wasn't like some big organization was going to be nice or anything. Hell, I had trouble with people in general. Why would a corporation be any different?
"How much?"
I shrugged. "I didn't ask."
Thwap. My head rocked forward.
"Did you hit me?" I stared at her. Maybe being psychic was another added bonus to this marker thing. Nah, if that were the case, I wouldn't have screwed up in Arizona.
Tabby stood with her hands on her hips. Her red hair framed her face like she was some sort of pissed-off goddess. Her eyes darkened, and I was reminded of that guy on TV who kept hitting his workers on the back of the head.
"Yes, I did," she said. "Just because you love that magic black card, it doesn't mean you don't have to worry about it."
I rubbed my head. Damn, she hit hard. "If this was my sort of normal I'd be worried. But how else are we getting this menagerie home?"
"Good point."
I was glad she saw it that way because there wasn't another option. It wasn't like I had some amazing powers like flight or anything.
"Was that the last of it?" I asked. The trunk was almost full. I could maybe fit a small stuffed animal in there, but that was questionable.
"Yep."
"Okay. Let's blow this popsicle stand." I jumped behind the driver's seat and glanced in the rearview mirror. Lucy was strapped in the car seat Tabby had bought at Wally World after the fleshing rod had done its business. Doc sat next to her, showing her card tricks. I was glad for Doc. Who knew having the sentient ghost of Doc Holliday hanging around would be so useful? His relation to me was beside the point. No way was I going to complain about his help with Lucy.
I glanced at Tabby. "Ready?"
"As I'll ever be."
It took roughly three days, fourteen hours, and seventeen minutes to get back home. I knew because I counted every single minute. I probably should have let Tabby drive, but I needed something to hold, and the steering wheel served as a great source to out my frustration. My brain wouldn't stop coming up with various worst-case scenarios.
Every so often, Tabby would ask if I wanted her to drive. I refused. It was a shitty enough trip as it was. No sense in making it worse for her. I might as well keep my asshole behavior in check.
Plus, I had to get used to a child's bladder. Lucy — now that she was whole — had normal bodily functions again. Yet another thing I hadn't counted on. The next time I saw the Devil I was going to hit him with that rod. Well, not really, but it was nice to dream about.
Still, it was nice to be home. The old house with its white siding and black shutters never looked so good. It might be old, but it was mine. As soon as I stepped foot from the car, the smell of the Virginia air hit me and I smiled.
"What?" Tabby peered at me while she brushed her long hair away from her face.
"Glad to be home."
She shook her head. "We'd better get on it."
I blinked. "Get on what?"
"Get the car unpacked?"
Lucy gaped at her with wide eyes. Doc was watching the sky.
"I don't want to start anything, but I'm too tired. Let's unpack tomorrow."
Tabby glared for a minute, and then slumped her shoulders. "Okay. We can wait until tomorrow."
I hugged her. Nothing in there that couldn't wait. At least as far as I was concerned.
"Shouldn't you get your holy iPad?" Tabby asked as she unbuckled Lucy from her car seat.
Even Lucy seemed tired. Her long blond hair appeared stringy and lifeless.
"Someone probably wants to talk to you," Lucy said.
I peered at her through the car window. The kid saw right through me. "Okay. Fine."
I closed the door of the car, handed Tabby the house keys, and pulled all the crap from the trunk. I guessed it wasn't in the cards to wait until tomorrow after all. Fine. But I wasn't unpacking all the shit right that instant either.
Tabby chuckled and opened the door to the house.
As soon as I got all the crap inside, I noticed Lucy perched in her usual spot in front of the TV. Doc hovered next to her. It was kind of nice having Lucy solid. She could turn on her own TV whenever she felt like it. Eventually, I was going to have to come up with something else to entertain her. And more importantly, some sort of schooling for her.
"If you want a chair, feel free to grab one," I said to Doc. Just because he was a ghost didn't mean he shouldn't make himself comfortable. I knew he was being polite since this was the first time he'd been in my home, but I didn't want him to feel like a guest.
Doc nodded in his way. "Mighty obliged."
"I'd like you to feel at home." Since he was going to be staying with us for the unforeseeable future, he should act like family.
Isaac let out a loud meow as I put his pet carrier down and freed him from it. He sauntered over to the couch, hopped up, and promptly went to sleep.
"Yes, Your Highness." I bowed in his direction. "I swear, in my next life, I want to be a cat."
Lucy laughed.
"Jesus, Jimmy. That's just what we need," Tabby said.
I snorted. Part of me thought it would have been great to have her wait on me hand and foot, but the lack of sex would suck. I didn't even want to think about her threatening to neuter me.
"You hungry? I'm going to throw something together," Tabby said from the kitchen.
"Good luck."
* * *
I couldn't lie and say I wasn't happy to be in my own bed. Lucy stayed downstairs like she had before. Oddly, even though she seemed to have normal metabolic processes, she still didn't appear to be able to sleep. How this worked? I didn't know. It made me uneasy. A kid needed to sleep, and if her body didn't change to adjust, I didn't even want to think about the health problems. I needed to figure out a way to spread the worry a bit; otherwise, I was going to get high blood pressure.
"What has you so," Tabby said as she turned to me, "odd?"
I rolled over in the bed. "I'm worried about Lucy. Nothing about this seems right."
She nodded. "Did you check your email?"
"No."
Tabby rolled her eyes at me. "Didn't Lucy say that you should?"
I could have kicked myself. If I didn't get my shit together, everything was going to end up completely craptastic. "I'll be back."
I headed downstairs. Lucy was watching some documentary on the effects of uric acid on the brains of chickens. I raised an eyebrow at Doc. He shrugged. At least she was getting an education about something.
"Everything okay down here?" I asked.
Lucy glanced up from the TV. "Uh-huh."
I snatched the iPad off the table where someone had put it. I hadn't even unpacked it before I went to bed. I jogged back upstairs. Might as well leave Lucy to her chickens.
"Everything okay?" Tabby asked once I got back into bed.
"So far." I fired up the tablet. Sure enough, there was an email waiting for me. I took a deep breath and tapped it.
Mr. Holiday,
It is my pleasure to inform you that you have been accepted into the next class of Exorcism at the Vatican — Exorcismo E Preghieri Di Liberazione. We will be sending you your requirements shortly.
Fr. Martin
"Fuck me." Granted I'd been whining about wanting help, but this wasn't exactly what I had expected. Looked like the church did want me in some capacity after all.
"What?" Tabby asked.
"They are sending me to school to become an exorcist."
Tabby guffawed. Literally, guffawed. In fact she laughed so hard she fell out of bed. No joke.
"What's so funny?" I asked. Granted, I already was an exorcist, but it wasn't like I knew what the hell I was doing.
"Do you even speak Italian?"
"Well, no." Damn. She was right. The school for exorcism was at the Vatican. I was so screwed.
"Oh, God. This is going to be interesting."
I glared at her. "Okay. Yeah. But this does nothing to help with Lucy, now does it?"
I didn't mean to be a bastard, but Lucy was a hell of a lot more important than making fun of me going to exorcism school. We needed information to help the kid. The sooner the better.
Tabby got quiet. "No, it doesn't. Question is — do you want to let them know about her?"
I thought about it for a minute. I'd been Lucy's protector for so long now it would feel wrong to hand her over to someone else. And not to be mean, but she was likely to end up as some Vatican experiment. I wouldn't put anything past any of them. The Order of Markers was connected to the Vatican — not run by them. I had to be damn careful. Periodically, I found myself looking in corners of the rooms for micro-cameras or something, but I never found any. Still, since the Order had broken into my house before (when they set up the holy iPad), I knew they were watching. The question always was ... how much?
"No, we aren't telling them about her." It was better that way. Maybe. If they had footage of her entering the house, they would think Lucy was a relative.
"All right then, what are we going to do?" Tabby asked.
I sighed. Sometimes, I wished she wouldn't expect me to have all the answers. I needed more of a give-and-take. "Get some sleep."
* * *
The next morning I got up to nothing. There was no sound. No weird events. It almost had me worried. Kind of sad I was getting so used to the unusual that when something normal happened it felt suspect.
I got up out of bed, went downstairs and found Tabby, Doc, and Lucy sitting on the sofa. They all looked like their pet rocks had died.
"What's up?" I asked.
"Something's wrong," Lucy said. She glanced at the floor. The TV wasn't even on. Bad sign where Lucy was concerned.
Nothing like those two words to scare the shit out of me.
"Wrong how?" I asked. It could be anything: a new demon, bad luck about to befall me. I began to sweat.
"I don't feel very good," she said.
Her skin had a sort of waxy appearance to it. Okay. I could work with sick. Lots of over-the-counter remedies to try. I waved at Tabby.
"Is she running a fever?" I asked.
Tabby shook her head. Doc's lips pursed together. If she was normal-sick, Doc wouldn't be acting so strangely.
"Make it stop," Lucy said suddenly. She held her head with both hands.
I patted her arm. "If I can, honey, I will."
"Any ideas, Doc?" Tabby asked.
He huffed. "All I know is that this ain't natural. And when something ain't natural, lots of bad can happen."
I ground my teeth together. It wasn't like we could take Lucy to a doctor. It was not what any of us needed right now. Not to mention the kid was in pain and I didn't know how to fix it. "We'd better look into what a fleshing rod actually does."
"Guess so," Tabby replied.
CHAPTER 2Time Is on My Side
NOW, THE PROBLEM was — where the hell to get information about the damn thing. No way was I going to get another Ouija board after what happened the last time. No way in Hell. It wasn't like I could call up the Devil and ask him questions. I did not want to go down that road. Part of me did think it would be kind of cool if I could send him an email, but I didn't even want to think about the possibility of demonic computer viruses.
I also didn't want to have to explain to my neighbors the bands of birds acting weird when I destroyed it, either. No sense in imagining the same thing wouldn't happen here that happened in Arizona. There wasn't any reason at all that brand of weird wouldn't stir up again. Thank God I didn't live in a development. Somehow, I don't think me and an HOA would get along well.
I booted up my big computer, finished all the updates I missed, and started reading. Sadly, typing "fleshing rod" into a search engine only brought up a bunch of pictures of giant penises. That was something I could have gone without seeing. I was going to need to buy stock in brain bleach.
I was up a shit creek without a paddle. There were only so many options open for me now. And I was left with a pretty damn unsavory one — trying to find a person who was a true practitioner of the so-called Dark Arts. Where I would find that? Who knew.
"Here," I heard Tabby say.
I glanced up. She was holding a steaming mug toward me.
"I'm sunk," I said. She might as well know.
"Sunk how?"
"You don't even want to see what I've been looking at." In fact, if I had to look at it again I was going to need a stiff drink. Stiff. Heh.
She laughed. "Anything useful?"
"Not a thing. That's why I'm stuck." The information I needed was probably hidden in some ancient tome somewhere.
She sat down at the table beside me and threw her hair over her shoulder. "Want to talk about it?"
"Not yet." I didn't want to unload all of my fears onto her. It wasn't necessary. Especially since I didn't exactly know what I was talking about yet. My brain was latching onto random shit to worry about.
"Well, we still need to go to the store, or do you want me to do it?"
I shook my head. I wasn't accomplishing anything anyway. I might as well get off my ass and do something. "No, I'll go. Keep an eye on Lucy. Maybe I'll come up with an awesome idea."
"It would be different if she'd just gotten sick or something."
I nodded. If it wasn't for Doc's reaction, I would be thinking it was the flu or something. But his comments about the unnatural made me definitely feel it was not an illness. And, well, Lucy wasn't actually supposed to have a body to begin with. She already had one. "Tell me about it. Not with the way Doc is acting; that isn't it at all."
"I know."
I grabbed my car keys from the dining room table. "We need to return that rental car."
Tabby sighed. "Okay. I'll follow you — keep Lucy in the car with me. We can get rid of that thing and then you can drop us back by the house."
"That works." Plus that way someone living had their eyes on Lucy. I wasn't too sure what else we could do. Maybe she'd get over whatever this was.
* * *
It didn't take long to drop off the car. Luckily, there wasn't any damage to it. They still stuck me with the drop off fee, but I'd been expecting that. Now we could go about our business and not have to deal with anything left over from Arizona. At least, anything physical anyway. The rest of it was a work in progress.
Lucy still looked horrible. Her skin appeared waxy, like it was fake, and she seemed to get paler by the minute. And she wasn't talking. At all. I think that bothered me most. Hell, it wasn't even demonic Lucy. This was something new. Usually, she would at least chuckle at stuff Tabby and I said, but there was nothing. The silence seemed so wrong.
I dropped the horde back at the house. I paused before turning off the car. Then, I glanced over at Tabby. "I'll be back as soon as I can."
"Okay. Be careful," Tabby replied.
I nodded. "I will."
I got out of the car, walked up to the house, opened the front door, and waited for Tabby to unbuckle Lucy from the car seat and carry her to the house. I opened the front door for her and waited until she and Lucy were safely inside. Then, I closed the door. As soon as I knew everything was okay, I left.
The irony did not escape me that even though I was at a complete and utter loss, I ended up doing something with food. I was starting to think that Tor's food obsession had somehow rubbed off on me. Lucy's mother had a real obsession with food. I'm sure a shrink would have a field day with that. Of course, the dude probably wouldn't believe in exorcism either and that's where the real trouble would begin.
I pulled into the parking lot of the mega-mart. As usual there was nowhere to park except Timbuktu. At least it wasn't hot like it had been in Arizona. Spring was still nippy here back East. I had to appreciate the little things. If I didn't, I would start to get cynical and that wasn't going to help a damn.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Sorrows Turn by Danielle DeVor. Copyright © 2017 Danielle DeVor. Excerpted by permission of City Owl Press.
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