The Parliament of the Dead (14 page)

“To our haunts and hiding places,”answered one; although in the shifting mass of spirits Iona could not tell who.

“But wait, we’ve got to get that disk back,”cried Iona. “We can’t let Arthur’s death be in vain.”

“He died a long time ago,”said another voice from the cloud of ghosts,“and it was in vain then too.”

“But the breather is right.” Sweeney Todd appeared from nowhere and began walking alongside Iona and Tiggy.

Iona was uncomfortable to find herself on the same side as Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

“We must regroup and plan an attack,”insisted Mr. Todd, “meet in Lincoln’s Inn Fields in a quarter of an hour.”

“Why there?”asked Tiggy.

“We often meet there in times of crisis,”the Barber replied.

“But why?”

“I think I know, mum,”interrupted Iona,“because so many ghosts were made there.”

Sweeney Todd nodded his agreement.

Iona continued,“It used to be a place of execution.”

The ghosts seemed to agree with the plan as the message echoed around them,“To the Fields of Blood... to the Fields of Blood...”

Chapter Forty-Six

Parliament in Exile

For the third time that night there was a gathering of the dead.  This time it was in the dark and cold of a tree-lined square: Lincoln’s Inn Fields.  Iona could not tell whether there was a fog settling in, or if the pale cloud she could see represented a trace of the ghosts that were gathered there.

Sweeney Todd was the first to speak. “We are at war, my friends.  We must avenge the fallen and make sure that these clerics are dead before this night is over.”

Cries of,“Hear, hear!”echoed round the square.

“They have some fancy weapons, but as you all know it is easier to destroy the living than the dead.  Let us stop making spooky noises and hiding objects in the houses we haunt.  Let us take up weapons and cut their throats from ear to ear.”

The ghosts cheered.

“Wait!”called Iona. “We do need to strike back, but we mustn’t kill them.  I don’t want to go to prison, and you don’t want these guys sending for reinforcements, do you?  Let’s try and stop them,
not
kill them.”

The ghosts grumbled to each other, no longer so sure about what they wanted to do.

As they were muttering Morag finally joined the others.  She nervously brought the crowd up to date with what had happened to Arthur and Judge Hawkins. “…and they said they were meeting some cardinal at dawn in their base.  Wherever that might be.”

When Morag finished her story there was a fresh outbreak of murmured conversation.

“I know where it is,” Iona silenced the crowd,“I know where they’re based.  And if we do this
my
way, I’ll tell you.”

Sweeney Todd said nothing, but examined his razor in the dim glow of the streetlamps.

“So what do you suggest we do?”a well-dressed Tudor ghost asked, his head talking from underneath his arm.

“OK,”Iona addressed the assembled ghosts, “we need to pull together, bring out the best in one another, and work in a way we can be proud of.” She tried to speak with the authority of one of her teachers, but the words seemed hollow.  With a pang of sadness, she remembered the passion of Arthur’s speeches on his ghost walks.

She started again. “Ladies, Gentlemen, ghouls, mummies, spirits and poltergeists.  Now is the time to act.”

“The disk will give us our revenge!  Let’s take it to the Police, and not only will these people be locked up in jail, but no one will dare to try an exorcism like this for centuries.”

Looking at the crowd Iona could see that they were coming round to her way of thinking.

“What we need are some ghosts to provide a distraction while a poltergeist gets in there, grabs the disk, and gets out again.”

Volunteers were coming forward; Iona found herself acting as leader to a large group of dead people.  She felt that she should pinch herself to see if she was dreaming.

“What talents have we got?  You - what can
you
do?” Iona pointed to a sorrowful-looking man in a frock-coat.

“Nothing really,”the ghost replied,“all I can do is make a room a degree or two colder.”

Iona thought for a second. “OK is there anyone else who can make a room colder?”

Several ghosts came forward to be greeted with a broad smile from Iona.

“Excellent!”she beamed.“I want you guys to team up...  You are my fridge team!”

*   *   *

The planning continued for almost an hour.  Tiggy had to explain about the disk to several of the ghosts who had never heard of video cameras or televisions.  When they were organised Iona led the way to the small church where she had been held captive just a few hours before.

Chapter Forty-Seven

Shadows Gather

The ghosts gathered round the corner near the Church where the Exorcists were based.

“They’re in the rooms attached to the side of the Church,”Iona explained.  Then she turned to Morag,“You’re good at moving around undetected, could you go and have a quick scout around...?”

“Poor Gibbs would be so proud of me!”Morag whispered as she floated off towards the Church.  She circled the building and then tried to enter through the back.  The wall was impenetrable.  When she couldn’t get through she thought that her new-found ghost skills had deserted her.  She floated into the air and tried to pass through the wall higher up, but the wall was as solid to her as it would have been when she was alive.

As an experiment she tried to fly through the wall of the house next to the church.  She rather startled a young man who was playing video games in his bedroom as she floated through his wall with ease.

She hurried back to the others.

“They’ve worked some kind of nasty magic to stop us getting inside!” Morag cried despondently.

“Of course,”snarled Sweeney Todd, “they’ve used the same ritual as the one to stop us escaping, only this time they’ve used it to keep us out.”

“We’ll just
have
to call the Police now,”said Tiggy.

“No,”Iona replied quickly,“by the time they get a warrant to search the building, and that’s
if
they get a warrant, the disk will have been destroyed.”

Looking over at the building Iona noticed something.  All the windows were covered with bars except for a single small one that was slightly ajar. “Look, I climbed out of that window earlier tonight.” She pointed it out to the others. “It’s still open, I know my way about in there.  I’ll go in and find the disk.”

“It’s far too dangerous, I couldn’t let you.” Tiggy stared at the small opening as she spoke.

“But mum, I’d be straight in and out.”

“No Iona!” Tiggy hissed,“I forbid it.”

“OK then,”Iona looked to the sky. “We’ll have to think of something else.” Iona stomped off and muttered something to the Grey Monk who had come over to join them.

The Grey Monk walked in a circle, stood behind Tiggy, and coughed to get her attention. “Excuse me.”

Tiggy turned round.

“You work in the media, don’t you?”

“Yes,”answered Tiggy.

“You know about the modern world?”

“I suppose so…”Tiggy looked uncertainly at the ghost as she spoke.

“Can you help me find an image that would be scary for the people of today?”

Tiggy stared at the ghost in disbelief. “I…I don’t know,”she answered truthfully.

The Grey Monk changed into his idea of a new updated image:  his habit transformed into a bloodstained boiler suit, his face whitened and elongated, bolts popping out of his neck, fangs and horns sprouting, and pins appearing sticking out of his forehead.

Tiggy looked him up and down. “This is going to take some work.”

The Grey Monk looked dejected. “But wait a minute, I know just what would scare those creeps in the Church…”

Chapter Forty-Eight

Peace at last

Iona looked guiltily at her mum who was engaged in earnest conversation with the Grey Monk; then she sneaked towards the open window in the Exorcist’s building, and pulled herself inside.

Once again she was in the toilet.  Iona looked at the door which had been smashed from the pursuit the last time she was here.  The memory of the chase returned to her along with the terror she had felt as she had escaped.  She fought an almost unstoppable urge to jump back out of the window and run to her mum.

She swallowed hard as she waited for her heart to stop beating so fast.  Once she had calmed herself down she tiptoed out into the hallway. 

She could hear the sound of the clerics gathered in a room opposite the door to the crypt at the far end of the hall.  Carefully she edged her way down the corridor towards the noise.  She passed an empty kitchen and a broom cupboard.

When she was as close to the room housing the priests as she dared, she listened intently.

“You can’t see the devils at all!”

“Only us.”

Iona realised that they were watching the film on the disk.

“They say that being on television makes you look a stone heavier.”

“Brother Dominic, if you looked any heavier you’d fill the screen!”

The monks laughed, until one of them spoke in an irritated voice. “I’m glad you find it so amusing brothers, because if this tape gets into the wrong hands our Order could be exposed.”

There was silence in the room as the monk continued,“...and if our Order is exposed, we will be finished.”

After another moment of silence the monk concluded,“But brothers, you may have a point; Dominic does look like a fat friar!”

Under cover of the monks’renewed laughter Iona decided to double back and tell the others that the disk was here - they’d have to make a plan.  She turned round and started back towards the toilet only to see Father Pious standing at the end of a corridor pointing a gun at her.

“What have we here?”the priest asked smugly.

Iona’s heart pounded in her chest, but she resolved to sound defiant and not let him know how terrified she felt. “We must stop meeting like this.  People will begin to talk.”

Father Pious swung his hand back and slapped Iona hard in the face.  She tasted blood in her mouth and fought to keep tears from her eyes.

“You’re a priest for God’s sake!”she protested, rubbing her lip,“Aren’t you supposed to be into good?  You know, love and peace and stuff?”

Father Pious snorted and led her by the arm into the room with the other clergy.  They turned to see what was happening as their leader continued to speak to Iona.

“Sometimes the best way to express love for humanity is to shoot its enemies in the head with the weapons of faith.”

Iona’s breathing was speeding up, as she looked at the shotgun still trained on her. “But surely you wouldn’t shoot an unarmed girl?” The pain in her shoulder reminded Iona that they would.

“Jephthah, a man of God in the Bible, killed his only daughter because of his faith,”began Father Pious, “what makes you think I would hesitate for a second to kill you?”

A trembling voice answered from behind the priest, “I won’t let you!” Father Thomas had picked up his gun and pointed it at his leader. “This is wrong.  I won’t let you harm her.”

Father Pious sighed deeply and looked up to the roof, before he turned to the other priests and spoke,“I’ve had enough, kill this joker.”

His followers looked unsure whom they were being commanded to shoot.

“Shoot the young and foolish Father, now!”he barked.

Several of those in the room pointed their guns at Father Thomas, but it was two of the Monks of St Cyril that fired the shots.

The young man’s face had a look of total surprise, as if this was the last thing he had expected when he fell to the ground.

“Give him the Last Rites, and then dump his body in the crypt.” Father Pious screwed up his face, as if he had an unpleasant taste in his mouth. “He’ll be at peace now, the poor confused boy.”

Iona rubbed her eyes, she couldn’t believe what she had seen.  She turned her pale face back to Father Pious:“What about‘thou shalt not kill’and all that?”

“I don’t enjoy killing.  It just has to be done.” Father Pious pulled a patronising smile that was devoid of mirth or warmth. “We have taken up arms in the cause of righteousness.”

“But all this killing: attacking the living and the dead, don’t you see it’s evil?”

“Evil?” Father Pious looked astonished that the girl could suggest such a thing.

The priest who had crouched by the body to give the Last Rites looked up to his superior, “He’s still alive!”

Father Pious sighed deeply, and turned to Iona, “You are a disturbed and misguided child.  But if you are so
moral
you can look after the young Father until he dies.” 

He turned to the rest of his group:“Lock them both in the kitchen.  The girl can look after the idiot.”

Chapter Forty-Nine

Blood of the Father

Father Thomas was unceremoniously carried to the kitchen and dumped on the large wooden table in the middle of the room.  Iona was dragged by the arm down the corridor and shoved in after him.

Iona and Father Thomas stared at each other.

Iona looked down at the shotgun wounds in the young priest’s chest.  There was a lot of blood.

“I took a first aid course once.  It got me out of a week’s detentions if I signed up for it.” She took a closer look at the injury. “But I’m afraid I can’t really remember
much
of it.” She bit her lip. “Or
any
of it actually.”

Father Thomas looked confused.

“Look I know a really good nurse.  She patched me up when one of your lot shot me.  If you tell me how to let my friends in here, she can make you better.”

“Is she a spirit?”

Iona looked into the priest’s eyes.  She couldn’t lie to him. “Yes, she is.”

“I can’t betray the Church.”

“Listen, I’ve been to church”

Father Thomas looked surprised.

“
I have!
”Iona repeated indignantly.  Then added more softly,“I kind of like the tombs.”