Chapter 64 – The Bargain and the Exorcism
"Mr. Bayek, the toys by the window—did you also use lumber from your forest for those?"
Gideon asked, eyes fixed on him.
Hank set down the little wooden axe in his hand.
"Yes. They were carved from leftover wood."
"Do you remember where those logs came from?" Gideon stroked his chin.
"They were all cut from the same trunk," Hank recalled. "That day we started work early and pushed deeper into the woods. We found a strange-looking piece of deadwood along the way. I thought it might make good toys for Jode, so I brought it back."
"You're saying… his illness came from that wood?"
Gideon nodded, and told the carpenter about the truth of evil spirits.
"This world is not inhabited only by men and beasts. There are things beyond—things that invade the human mind and body, spreading only pain. That piece of deadwood was their vessel."
Hank's face darkened. "So Jode's sickness… it's not natural? It's the work of a spirit?"
"Exactly. That's why no medicine or machine could help him."
What surprised Gideon was that Hank didn't resist or scoff, unlike most others he had warned. Instead, the man's thoughts flicked back to the whispers in the forest. The workers had noticed other strange occurrences before—several lumbermen had fallen mysteriously ill after returning home.
They had suspected something was wrong with the woods. But fear of ruining the mill's business had kept them silent.
Now his son lay on the brink of death. Hank felt a crushing guilt. Perhaps this was punishment for his selfishness.
He lifted his head.
"Father… you're saying you can save my boy?"
"If you're willing to let me try."
"I…" Hank wanted to agree, but thought of his empty purse. He could barely keep food on the table.
But Gideon gestured toward the window.
"After the exorcism, all I ask is that you guide me to the place where you found the deadwood. That is our bargain."
Hope flared in Hank's weary eyes. If Gideon had asked for this at the start, he might have refused—the forest was deep, and he and his wife had to take turns caring for their son. But now… he didn't hesitate.
"Deal!"
"Then we begin now."
From his observations, Gideon had confirmed that Jode was not directly possessed. His weakness came from prolonged exposure to the taint. Hank too carried traces of it, though faint. For safety's sake, the entire family would need purification.
He led Hank outside, arranging ritual objects around them before drawing a vial from his coat.
"Mr. Bayek, drink this."
Hank uncorked the bottle, peering in. The liquid looked just like water.
"What is it?"
"Salt water. Or, if you prefer—holy water."
Hank tipped it back. The taste was sharp, briny. He smacked his lips.
"Shouldn't this be for Jode—"
His face suddenly twisted.
A searing pain erupted in his stomach, something twisting, clawing its way up from within.
"Urgh—!"
He collapsed to his knees and vomited violently.
When he looked down, his blood ran cold.
Sprawled on the ground before him were fragments of bone, squirming white maggots, and even a rotted eyeball.
"No… no, this—this can't be real!"
He staggered backward, gagging again, but only bile and water came up. His entire body shook as he wiped his eyes, praying it was just a nightmare.
But the stench was real.
He thought back—his meals these days had been nothing more than potatoes, cabbage, and scraps of pork. None of this could have come from his stomach.
"Calm yourself, Mr. Bayek. You've handled that wood as well." Gideon's voice cut through his panic.
The realization struck him like a hammer. Since Jode had fallen ill, Hank too had felt bouts of unexplained sickness. He had dismissed it as exhaustion, and when the symptoms faded, he ignored them.
Now, hearing the priest's words, he understood. The spirit's corruption had touched him as well.
A bead of cold sweat trickled down his temple.
If he fell the same way Jode had… Avena would be left to shoulder everything alone.
Avena—!
His wife had spent even more time caring for their son. If he was tainted, then what of her?
During this time, Hank had also noticed his wife's complexion worsening.
The thought struck him with sudden dread.
"Father, my wife—please, you must help her too!"
Avena had gone out to do odd jobs that morning and had not yet returned.
Gideon shook his head.
"If she can still work, then her symptoms have not yet reached the point of no return."
Relief washed over Hank, if only slightly.
---
Meanwhile, Gideon purified the abominations on the ground before stepping back into the house. He placed a cross and an amulet at Jode's bedside.
Once the preparations were complete, he opened the Exorcist's Bible.
"In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit… let the holy light bless this afflicted child."
As the words left his lips, Jode's face twisted in agony, his limbs jerking uncontrollably.
To Hank's horror, the wounds on his son's skin began oozing pus. Then, something far worse:
Writhing maggots forced their way out of the lesions, squirming frantically as though trying to flee the boy's body. But an unseen barrier held them in place.
Gideon calmly set down the Bible, uncorked a vial of holy water, and with his fingers flicked droplets across the bed.
The effect was instantaneous—like ice water splashed into hot oil.
The maggots convulsed violently, then withered to powder in seconds. At the same time, Jode's wounds closed before Hank's wide eyes, knitting together at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"—Uurgh!"
The boy suddenly lurched upright, clutching the bedside as he vomited. What spilled forth was the same filth Hank himself had disgorged earlier—only now it was tar-black, reeking of rot.
Hank's throat caught. His son—his bedridden son, who for weeks had been too weak even to rise without a chamber pot—was sitting up on his own.
The priest had saved him.
"Jode!" Hank cried, moving forward—
But Gideon raised a hand, halting him.
"The ritual is not yet finished."
"My… my apologies." Hank stepped back, trembling with emotion.
Through the sight of Ethereal Sight, Gideon confirmed it: the evil aura surrounding Jode was gone. The boy was frail but safe. With rest, he would recover.
Gideon sprinkled holy water over the vile sludge on the floor, purging it until no trace remained. Then he raised the Bible once more.
"By the Lord's light, let every corner be illumined, and let no evil remain hidden in this world…"
As he chanted, the row of toys by the window began to smoke. A sudden blaze consumed them, crackling like dry tinder, yet the fire was confined to the toys alone, unable to spread.
Within moments, nothing remained but a line of blackened ash.
The exorcism was half complete.
Gideon spent the next stretch of time purifying every corner of the room, leaving not a speck of corruption, giving the spirits no foothold to return.
Only then did he gather up his tools and declare the ritual complete, instructing Hank on precautions to follow in the days ahead.
When he turned, he found Sadie standing at the doorway.
At some point, she had slipped in quietly and witnessed the entire exorcism.
Now, she stared at Gideon with wide, astonished eyes.