Nights With Elmer

Nights With Elmer

The lust for exorcism was high in the heart of Elmer, a man who scrapped 15 years like 15 wrappers in his debatable attempt to seep in the real truth through the seen truth. This insane, partially eccentric anti-ghost person was 45, earning livelihood at the Edinburgh University Of Moral Sciences...and satisfaction at 35, Louis Towers, Harper Street.

He had set up a small workplace in the room, from where Elmer had solved larger than life mysteries. There was no sleep for him, as according to him, the modern world was repeatedly led into dicey by what they called, Supernatural.

“Cops save the day. I, the night” was his tag-line hung at the door.

One warm evening, a-seeming-to-be-Italian lady hotfooted into Elmer's, speaking Raggish; A step sister to English. “No man born who save Ellie. I hear you do..will?”

Elmer, as usual, studied the victim before the case. This time his analysis was petrified. The lady didn't have 5 fore-teeth, which substantially killed her looks.

“Yes, lady? Care to have a seat and explain?”

“I..see ghost and scared. Ghost in garden, ghost in home, ghost in cup, ghost in tea. I no more can talk.” Ellie started palpitating.

Elmer had two questions of astonishment. One, did the British government began tolerating nuisance of the language? And second, was the lady a deserter who pretended falsely to make his room a hideout?

He neither did stress on any of those questions and decided to go by the ethics, to do his job.

“Let's go.”

They ushered into the lady's Cadillac, as the lamps flickered..probably of boredom. As they started moving, the dickey shuddered, making a loud noise. “The dickey jam. Do not worry” Ellie assured.

“This night will be long” Elmer thought. “I don't know where will this take me. I can really sense something extraordinary.”

They stopped outside a bunglow, 'The Avramson's'. Ellie got off and began screaming, “You witch, out..come out! I and Cedric have love. We marry! You not stop us!” Elmer rushed to her and forced her in the car. “Hey, you cannot serenade around here. This is modern Europe!”

The lady calmed down and began silently cursing the supposed villain in her life who was up there. Suddenly, the gates opened and a woman ran towards them. She was wearing a night-gown and looked as if she'd just escaped a riot. Getting into the car she said, “I am Caddie, the one she's looking for. Drive away quick. I'll explain everything.”

The three were at the graveyard, near a grave which read, 'In the fond memory of CEDRIC AVRAMSON'

“You see Ellie, this is the reason I kept you away from Cedric. He's not living anymore” Caddie revealed.

“But I see him, everyday. You lie.”

Elmer was listening carefully. “That's his ghost, dear. He has confined me to the house. When we once met to finally end our dispute, he went mad on me and committed suicide. But his ghost, his terrorizing soul stayed back in the house. He uses me in his bed all night and during the day roams out. Only both of us can see him” Caddie wept while describing her exploitation by an evil spirit.

Ellie was led into a great shock. She was about to marry a living ghost, who would restrict her to his bed along with Caddie and her life would be ruined. She owed Caddie her life, but at the same time felt sorry for her. “Elmer help you!” she exclaimed. “Elmer knows trick. He runs ghost away.”

The exorcist summed up a plan and asked the ladies to halt at his place and let him investigate in his way.

He dropped them to his office and took Ellie's car back to the Avramson's.

Elmer was welcomed by rats and kingdoms of spider-webs. The walls had a red theme, with patches of crimson blood on them. An anchor fell from the ceiling and just missed Elmer's head. He was alert, the air grew colder and chrome moonlight scattered on the floor. Elmer was lifted in midair and he collided with the flickering chandelier. He stuck up there and below in the moonlight, stood a jet black figure with sea-green eyes, looking at Elmer. The figure seemed to ask a question, it begged for freedom; Not from the dark house, but from the darkness of betrayal. He uttered some words, “Woman...Crimson Woman” and vanished with his voice growing louder, causing a headache.

As Elmer stepped in his office, Ellie had already breathed her last. A shocked him also witnessed Caddie's gown lying beside Ellie. “Damn! He took Caddie back I suppose!” Finding the truth was the most important thing for Elmer then. He put Ellie's corpse to sleep and rushed to save Caddie.

He went to the graveyard. It was dead silent. No sign of the ghost he was hunting for. Elmer went near Cedric's grave. “Elmer” a frail voice approached him. “You are here to stop the evil. Yes?”

“Why are you asking me this?”

There was a movement on the grave. Elmer saw, the letters rearranged. In a blink of the eye, CEDRIC AVRAMSON shuffled to CRIMSON CADAVER.

“Because I need to dig your grave here!!!!!!” A crimson-coloured supernatural cluster with a disheveled face, not Caddie, jumped at Elmer, to his sudden hullabaloo. Elmer ran and entered the shed. “There's always a stone-hammer in a graveyard!”

He dodged the fierce evil's attacks and somehow reached the grave and destroyed it. Crimson Cadaver turned to ashes and mixed with the mud.

. . .

A week later, Elmer was relaxing at his office. He closed his eyes and recalled another terrifying experience.

He left for saving Caddie. The jammed dickey of Ellie's car drew his attention and he struggled to open it. Cedric Avramson lay stiff within with a note clutched in his hands. It read, 'To destroy the spirit, destroy its grave, which is a mere illusion.'- The Dwell Of The Collins.

Elmer woke up with a knock at his door. “Come in!”

Sagher