Kiss of the Succubus Ch. 06

"It was my fault!" Bethany cried out, praying Grace was still in listening distance. "I did it. I helped Neil rob you, and I'm so sorry. I was stupid. I needed money. And I gave Balko the map to this place because I was scared! He was going to kill me so I did it! I'm so sorry about your daughter, Grace! It was my fault, I know, but I'm so sorry! Please help me! I'm so sorry!"

She pressed her forehead to the bedpost and bawled her eyes out. She covered her mouth with her arm as the black smoke began to fill the room.

It was then that Grace reentered, holding the skeleton key. She wasn't in quite the mood to dig her hands through Pratt's pants to find his keys, and decided this way would be faster. She unlocked the cuff on Bethany's wrist.

"Thank you! Thank you!" Bethany cried out in gratitude.

"Don't thank me. I just need your help to save my friend."

Quickly the pair hurried out of the bedroom and down the hall to the living room. Daniel Becket lay on the floor; still alive and conscious, in a puddle of his own blood just feet from the inferno. Grace grabbed her T-shirt and held it to Daniel's neck.

"Hold this, Mr. Becket, and I'll get you to a hospital." She turned to Bethany. "Get his legs, I'll get his shoulders!"

Together, the two naked women carried Daniel out the front door, just before the ceiling collapsed into the living room. Undeterred, they continued carrying him off the porch and into the front yard. Exhausted, they lay him in the grass in front of the cottage. Grace knelt down next to him.

"Mr. Becket? I did it. Balko is dead. Your wife- is dead. We did it."

"I'm sorry, Grace," Daniel whispered.

"Don't be," she said, grabbing his hand and squeezing it. "You were always there for me. I'm here for you now."

She hadn't even realized what she'd done next until it was done. It was purely instinctive, but Grace found herself pressing her lips against Daniel's and kissing him long and passionately. She took her lips away, and froze in realization of what she'd done.

"Oh God-" she said.

"It's okay, Grace," Daniel assured her. "Maybe in Hell, I can see Gabby again."

The life left his eyes, and a hunger Grace hadn't previously known she had was satiated. She shut her eyes, and felt a pleasure throughout her body; a dark, evil pleasure. She wiped her lips with the back of her hand and rose to her feet.

Bethany looked at Daniel in shock. "Is he-"

"Yes," Grace replied, and even she noticed her voice no longer sounded like her own. It was deeper, almost unearthly. She'd just tasted a man's soul for the first time, and it was delicious. To her surprise she realized she wouldn't mind trying it again.

Unable to look Bethany in the face, she hurried around to the back yard. Bethany followed her. Grace walked faster, but stubbornly, Bethany kept up.

Grace reached the edge of the cliff and stared straight down. Kayla's body was gone. She knew likely the surf had carried her off, and Kayla's voice was just another one of Balko's tricks, but true to his word, Grace would never know for certain. It was his final act of vengeance.

Grace dropped to her knees and stared down at the jagged rocks as the surf splashed over them. She thought of pushing Bethany over the edge of the cliff, but couldn't. It wasn't Bethany's fault, not really. Grace blamed no one for Kayla's death more than herself. If it took a monster to destroy a monster, Grace had fit the bill.

She climbed to her feet and stared out at the night sky.

"Grace?" Bethany asked. Grace whipped her head around to face her. Bethany took a frightened step backward. "What do we do now?"

Grace stared Bethany in the eye.

"Whatever we want."

She turned and wandered across the grass. Bethany couldn't tell where Grace was going, but suspected she wasn't going anywhere. Grace walked towards the trees and disappeared into the forest.

Bethany never saw Grace Harker again.

* * * * *

A passing motorist spotted the smoke and called 911. Before long, fire engines and squad cars arrived at the cottage, but only its smoldering foundation remained. Bethany Dutton was the only surviving witness found on the scene. Her tale was met with skepticism by the authorities.

Two bodies were found within the burning wreckage. Through dental records, the identities of the bodies were confirmed to be Detective Joseph Pratt and Gabrielle Becket. This created a bit of confusion as Gabby Becket had supposedly died six years earlier. Gabby's coffin in Green Woods cemetery was subsequently exhumed, and discovered to be empty.

Unable to explain how Gabby's body had somehow traveled from the cemetery to the burned down cottage, or how Gabby's skeleton featured horns and wings, investigators left it an open case. Gabby's body was returned to its grave. Her husband Daniel was buried by her side.

Lukas Balko's body was incinerated by the stake that impaled his heart. The cottage fire reduced his remains to dust, and no sign of him was ever found. Following up on Bethany's story, investigators also found his casket in the Balko Family Crypt to be empty.

Lukas Balko went down in history as one of the most prolific serial killers of the 20^th and 21^st centuries. His fate, and what he truly was, was conjectured upon for decades to come. When he was conclusively proven to be the killer of Haley Farough, his reputation of being able to kill from beyond the grave was cemented in folklore forever.

Bethany Dutton, the sole known survivor of Balko's attacks, was interviewed by authors and journalists extensively about her experience. Some dismissed her story as attention-seeking sensationalism, others accepted it as the most likely truth, but none of it could ever be proven.

Bethany earned enough money from her book deals to put herself through college to study veterinary medicine. When her brief time in the spotlight died down, she began volunteering as a counselor for troubled youths.

Former Officer Adam Perry and his wife Linda were found dead in an apparent murder/suicide. Given Perry's history of infidelity and his upcoming trial, it was assumed the Perry marriage was on the rocks and Adam chose to end it permanently.

Haley Farough's sister Heather returned home from college in the wake of Haley's death to help her father run the motel. With declining business, the Shady Woods motel closed soon after.

Albert Szymanski, better known as Big Al of Big Al's Auto Body Shop, was found dead in his office the Monday following his death. While blood belonging to Joe Pratt was present at the scene, investigators could find no cause of death for Big Al. No mark or injury could be seen anywhere on his body, although traces of woman's lipstick had been smeared around his mouth.

Paul LeClair eventually remarried. He remained in the real estate business, but refused the sell the property at 2000 Blackwater road. He had the house demolished, and the land converted to a memorial for all of Lukas and Catherine Balko's victims.

Catherine Balko burned in Hell until the end of time.

George Buttrey continued to work at the Havenswood Psychiatric Facility. He was able to keep busy working in the laundry facility, and he still performed strip searches on the female patients, although his lack of sight required him to be even more hands-on with the body searches than before.

Jaclyn Becket's remains were eventually found. She and her brother Dylan were buried near their parents in Green Woods cemetery.

Rubena "Rose" Selimaj remained paralyzed for the rest of her life. She refused to show any remorse for her role in Catherine Balko's murders. She was never told about Lukas Balko's death, and spent the remainder of her days lying awake every night, with a crucifix by her bedside, watching and waiting for him.

Kristof Selimaj was put in a group care home. He found a job as a janitor cleaning bathtubs at a health club.

Sarah Wainwright continued to sing in the Blessed Hills Community Church girls choir group. Although the scars on her face and body were extensive, her positive attitude and optimism made her an inspiration among the church members. She even visited Rose in the hospital to personally forgive her for what she'd done. Sarah remained a virgin until her wedding night.

No one ever heard from Grace Harker again. In spite of Bethany's account, the large amount of blood found near the cottage led investigators to conclude Grace had died; though no body was ever found. However, many people over the following years reported seeing a naked blonde woman with a brand on her thigh entering their church during Sunday services. Some accounts claimed the woman had horns, others with wings, but all told the same story. The blonde woman would approach a basin of holy water, cup her hands within it, and splash the liquid upon her body while she begged an unseen presence for forgiveness.

She would repeat this process at different churches in different cities all over the country in a desperate hope for a chance, a small chance, that she could be saved.

THE END