Free The Haunting Season by Michelle Muto Page A

I’ve already seen Mrs. Hirsch. She doesn’t seem very cheerful today.”
    “She’s not so bad,” Dr. Brandt said. “She just takes her responsibilities seriously.”
    “Dr. Brandt,” Allison interrupted. “Have you ever heard anything about mirrors and the paranormal?”
    “Do you mean about breaking mirrors and bad luck?”
    She shook her head. “No. Not breaking them. About seeing things in them.”
    He eyed her for a moment. “Superstition has it that to look into a mirror is to see your own soul. It explains why, in folklore, vampires cannot see their own reflections. In Greek mythology, reflections can foretell the future. In some cultures, when someone dies, all the mirrors in the house must be covered to prevent the soul from being trapped behind the glass. Then, there’s some who believe mirrors are portals into the world of souls. Some people have sworn they’ve seen the image of a dead person in a mirror, others claim they’ve seen evil spirits. And finally, according to a few demonologists, demons, being the vain creatures they are, sometimes like to see their own reflections. Does that help?”
    Jess nearly spilled her coffee. Last night, Allison had stood in front of the mirror, staring into it. Given her history, or at least her story about possession, she couldn’t help but wonder exactly what Allison had been looking for. The demon she believed had once taken her over? Had it followed her?
    “Yes, thanks, that does help,” Allison replied calmly and took a bite of her Danish.
    Dr. Brandt set his pen down. “Did you see something in a mirror, Allison?”
    Allison didn’t appear as though she wanted to answer. She chewed on her breakfast and then chased it down with juice.
    “Allison? What did you see?” Dr. Brandt pressed.
    “Riley,” Allison replied matter-of-factly.
    He blinked and fumbled with his coffee mug. “How do you know about Riley?”
    “Who is Riley?” Jess asked Dr. Brandt. She turned to Allison. “A demon? Is he the one who possessed you?”
    “No,” Allison replied. “I don’t speak his name.”
    “Bael,” Dr. Brandt said as he continued to stare at Allison. “A demon commanding sixty-six legions. He’s the one who possessed Allison.”
    “ Don’t say it!” Allison slammed her hand on the table, rattling the dishes. “Don’t call him.”
    “My apologies,” Dr. Brandt replied. He picked up his pen and began writing.
    Jess looked from one to the other, not sure which direction she wanted to go—whether she should try to get more information on the demon Allison wouldn’t talk about or learn what she could about Riley—the boy in the mirror Allison also wouldn’t talk about. But maybe Dr. Brandt would.
    “So, who is Riley, Dr. Brandt?” Jess asked.
    He removed a small voice recorder from his pocket and placed it on the table. He pressed a button and a red light flickered on. “Tell us about Riley, Allison.”
    “I thought we were going to wait for Gage and Bryan,” Allison replied.
    “It’s okay. Just tell us about Riley.”
    She sighed. “He lives here. There are others here, too. He trapped them and now they can’t leave.” She turned to Jess. “You can’t help them, Jess. The souls Riley has kept here are his now. It’s too late for them.”
    “It’s too late for whom?” Dr. Brandt asked.
    “The others. And the girls. He killed them. Riley told me.” She took another bite of her pastry.
    “You could have researched that much,” Dr. Brandt said.
    Jess took a thoughtful sip of her coffee. Allison hadn’t told her Riley was a murderer. A small shiver danced along her spine. She thought of the two girls, their souls held captive by some evil being. They were the same age as her sister, Lily!
    If I find a way to talk to ghosts again, maybe I can help them.
    Jess didn’t have any ideas on just how she’d do that, or even why the thought occurred to her. The idea of helping the girls escape their murderer made her uneasy, but if