Continuation. Read Part 1 here
- Daddy, Daddy, -called him Mercy, taking the old man out of his mind.
- What, Merci? - Dad leaned toward her.
- Dad, I'm thirsty,- she said.
Dad brought her a glass of water. Mercy raised her head and took a few sips.
- Thank you,- she thanked her by putting her head on a pillow.
With glass on the nightstand, Lewis sat down on the edge of the bed, gently looking at her calmed down the daughter.
- Merci, what's wrong with you? - He asked.
As before, she said the same thing:
- The scary old lady... She came again... She looked at me like you are now. She was hypnotizing me, leading me. She... She...
Mercy was nervously shivering, screaming and wriggling wildly. Mr. Lewis got out of bed, hastily stepping back. He crossed his daughter. Mercy was clearly torturing something.
He couldn't stand it alone anymore, so he went to the Reverend Cotton Maserus to ask for help. He found Cotton in the church, and he was just about to leave.
- Cotton! I need your help! - Lewis grabbed the reverend by the hand.
- What happened? - He asked.
Lewis looked around as if he was afraid they might be overheard and dragged Cotton away from his curious ears.
- You see, this is about... my daughter.
- And what about her?
Lewis leaned closer to Maser's ear and whispered:
- My daughter was possessed by a demon. He kills her. Please, Cotton, help me. I don't know what to do anymore.
- A demon? Your daughter? Father, are you sure about this?
- I am sure. Yes, I do. She is obsessed with demons, here's across. - Lewis crossed paths in public and spat over her left shoulder. - Cotton, you're my last hope. I can't handle it alone anymore. If you'd seen Mercy, you'd have realized how hard it was for me. - Lewis pulled Maser toward his house. - Look at her and you'll see for yourself.
- Since you couldn't handle it, what makes you think I could handle it? - Cotton raised his eyebrows in surprise.
- You're the son of Inkriz Mather, and in Salem, I can only trust you. Let's go. - Lewis insistently wolves the Reverend home.
- Okay, I'll come in for a minute to see what's wrong with your daughter. Maybe she has a common sickness? Nothing serious.
- Don't you think I can tell the difference between a simple illness and an obsession? - Lewis was outraged.
Cotton waved in a hurry:
- No way! I meant that maybe you're worried about her health in vain. She's kind of young.
In Salem, Cotton didn't know everyone by sight. All he saw was the image of his brothel mistress, Gloriana's whore.
This redheaded beauty was caught in Mather's soul and settled in his heart forever. Cotton was just about to go to her after mass when Lewis came in with his problem. So Cotton postponed a visit to his mistress, deciding to visit her after he found out what was going on with Mercy. Lewis Cotton heard the desperate screams of an obsessed woman on the doorstep.
- Hear that? - Lewis raised his index finger up. - And you don't believe me either. This way. - He headed towards his daughter's bedroom, taking out the key as he went.
- Is it so bad that you lock it up? - Cotton was amazed.
- You'll see for yourself," Lewis answered, unlocking the door. - Please.
He stood back, skipping Maserah.
The Reverend was stunned when he saw Mercy obsessed with evil. When she saw Cotton, Mercy screamed hysterically and then laughed to tears.
- And what am I supposed to do about it? - asked Cotton confusedly.
He had never encountered anything like it in his reverend life.
- Read her the psalms of God. What if she calmed down? - Lewis suggested, shrugging her shoulders.
- Didn't you read it?
- I have other psalms than yours. Try it. - He pushed Maser to the obsessed one.
- Prayer alone isn't enough," Cotton said. - I don't think that's going to help her.
Lewis pleaded with him by putting his hands together in prayer. After assessing his silent request, Cotton agreed to do everything he could but did not promise a positive result.
***
After he finished preaching to the demon-possessed, Cotton went on a date with Gloriana. His prayers, psalms, etc., had no effect: Merci remained inadequate. Lewis sat alone with his daughter in the living room, dropping his head on his hands. Lewis' head was split by her daughter's screams. Until late in the evening, he wondered how he could help her. He was suddenly struck by the thought. Exorcism. Here is the only way out.
It is necessary to exorcise the evil spirit. Taking what was necessary for the ritual, Lewis came to his daughter's room and began to perform an exorcism. Mercy screamed, twitched, wriggled, not letting him cut herself, but Dad was adamant. He wasn't sure if he was successful, but it was worth a shot. After long prayers, baptisms, and the splashing of holy water, Lewis took a knife and cut the skin on Mercy's stomach. Her shirt cloth was soaked in blood.
To be continued...