W-What should I do?
“Some ghosts relive their loop daily. Others may only experience it once
a decade.” Nick shrugged. “If Shreya doesn’t like to relive her loop often,
there’s not much we can do to break it. That brings me to my final solution: a
cleansing.”
“Yeah, this house needs a cleansing. Have you seen the dust?”
I kicked Lucky’s leg a little harder. He grunted and shuffled his chair
away from me.
“A spiritual cleansing.” Nick spoke patiently, even though I was sure
Lucky knew what he’d meant. “It’s where we attempt to forcefully expel the
ghost from the house. We use smudging—that is, burning sage—and scatter
salt. It’s not always successful, but it works often enough to be useful.”
The three of us turned to Ruby.
She blanched under our attention. “W-What should I do?”
“It’s your house, miss, and your choice.” Nick shrugged. “If you think
you can live with the spirit the way she is, we can leave her be. Maybe you’ll
eventually witness her loop and be able to break it. But if the presence is too
threatening, I have equipment for a cleansing in my briefcase. We can
perform it right now.”
Ruby sent a panicked glance towards me.
I leaned closer to her. “What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know! What do you think?”
I phrased myself as carefully as I could. “I know you’re not bothered by
living with a ghost. But I don’t think Shreya is as friendly as you want her to
be. And I’m worried about you living alone with her.”
“So…”
“I’d try the cleansing, yeah.”
“All right.” She swallowed and nodded to Nick. “We’ll do that last one.
The cleansing. Please.”
“Of course.” Nick rose with a bright smile. “Let’s get started.”
Nick TOOK us back to the dining room, where his case rested next to the
computers. He unlocked and opened it and took out two bunches of herbs and
a large opaque plastic bottle.
“Salt,” he explained as he shook the bottle. The grains rustled inside. “It’s
historically used to purify and clean areas where bad events have happened.
And the sage”—he held up the herbs—“is burnt to force spirits to move on.
They don’t enjoy the scent.” He tucked the items into his cardigan’s pockets
then nodded towards the living room. “If you’d all be so kind to open the
windows and doors. It helps to give spirits clear passage outside.”
We obediently spread through the house. I tackled the kitchen and
laundry windows. Lucky passed me in the hall, and I distinctly heard him
mumble something about letting bugs in.
I caught up with Ruby on the second floor. She was going through the
bedrooms, squeezing around the aged, faded furniture, and opening their
windows. I saw the worry lingering over her face. “Hey, are you all right with
this?”
“Hm? Yeah. It’s the right thing to do. Isn’t it?” She hesitated with her
hands resting on an open sill and shivered. “I just…”
“Go on.”
“I know it’s stupid, but it feels like we’re being cruel by forcing her out.
This was her house before it was mine.”
“I know how you feel.” I looked over the outdated furniture and
wondered how often Shreya must have sat in them. “But she needs to let go of
the past. You own this house now. I don’t see her paying the rent.”Ruby chuckled. She stepped back from the window and folded her arms
around herself. “She had a really hard life. I don’t want to do anything worse
to her.”
“Maybe this is a good thing.” I shrugged. “If she’s been resentful and
unhappy the entire time she’s been on earth. Maybe it’s best for her to move
on. Maybe the next life has something nicer waiting for her. Some sort of
reward for her suffering.”
“Yeah.”
We stood staring at the old furniture for a moment, then Ruby sighed. “I
really hope that’s the truth.”
We finished opening the windows and retraced our steps downstairs.
Lucky and Nick were waiting in the foyer.
Nick gave us a smile. “All ready?”
“Yes, whenever you are.”
Nick took out a box of matches and lit the tip of one of the herb
bunches. The leaves caught and began to smoulder, sending up wisps of
fragrant smoke.
Ruby pressed her hand over her nose. “It smells weird.”
“The spirits think so, too,” Nick said good-naturedly. “Let’s begin.”
He moved through the rooms slowly, spreading the smoke through the
area before scattering salt around the doors and windowsills. As he walked,
he spoke in a low, even voice. “You are no longer welcome in this house. It is
time to move on. You are no longer welcome in this house.”