Anabel stood in the doorway of her son’s bedroom. She had rosary beads in her hand and she felt each one with her fingers one at a time as she prayed in a quickfire whisper. Her eyes were closed tight. She knew that she should have her eyes open. Her son needed her then more than ever, when it seemed that God had abandoned him completely and left him open to the horrible possession that gripped his body. Every now and then, Anabel worked up the nerve to peek through one eye, never missing a word of her prayers. It was too much for a mother to endure.
Her son, Ismael, had looked the same for days. Her husband had been injured and they required help from other family members and neighbors to restrain Ismael and tie him to his bed. It started a couple days before when Ismael suddenly stopped using language to communicate. He was out feeding the chickens when thunder suddenly shook the area and a huge flash of lightning whited the sky for a split second. The sound and the flash of light came from nowhere. There were no clouds and it hadn’t rained in at least a week. Then the sound of the chickens’ clucking began to echo inside of Ismael’s skull. The sound seemed to lull him into a trance and anyone watching would have seen his pupils roll up and leave only the whites filling his sockets. And he dropped like dead weight, like he had died suddenly.
His father found him there, still staring up at nothing with the whites of his eyes. When he knelt next to Ismael and put a hand on the boy’s arm, Ismael grabbed his wrist. His father jumped out of his skin and then he yelled at the boy, “Hijo, qué the pasa?”
Ismael’s grip tightened and his father grabbed at his fingers, trying to pry them off. But the boy was too strong.
“Ismael, por favor…” The man was suddenly very concerned and watched as the boy slowly sat up to look him in the eyes. It was not the boy that he knew.
Ismael smiled a menacing smile and his eyes flexed. Then he yelled profanities in languages that his father did not know. He jerked his hand quickly and broke his father’s arm. It was his yells of agony that brought help from other relatives nearby.
When the boy was finally restrained inside, everyone was convinced that he had been possessed by the devil. His mother, Anabel, kept watch by the door of his room and most everyone else stayed away from the house, afraid that his malady might be catching. She waited patiently for a priest to arrive, but the days passed slowly as she waited. The priest was a very busy man the day after the lightning strike in the small Mexican town.
Ismael was not the only person who had suddenly fallen unconscious after the unexplained thunder and flash of lightning. A woman cleaning dishes fell and when she stood up again she was not herself. She was practically foaming at the mouth and she hurt a lot of people who tried to restrain her in her erratic behavior.
A man feeding his animals was suddenly stricken during the flash of lightning and when he stood up again, he created a bloody mess in his barn. When he was found, everyone close to him thought it best to put him down for fear of the danger he would bring to his family.
Because of the religious convictions of the community, most assumed demonic possession and immediately called for the priest. There were about twenty unique requests for a visit from the priest and after his first, he felt that he needed religious reinforcement. The girl that he visited had chased everyone from her house and when he arrived, there was a crowd gathered. Most prayed with the girl’s family, but some had torches and were ready to set the house on fire with the girl inside.
The priest entered the home slowly. It was dark and he was sure that there was a lingering stench of sulphur. He found her in the kitchen with a knife that she was using to carve into her arm and she used the blood to smear haunting messages on the wall. The priest did not recognize the language she was using and he crossed himself as he approached her.
“My child…” he started and the girl’s head jerked in his direction.
She didn’t say anything, but ran at him screaming. She tackled him and began beating him with a strength that seemed impossible for her small body. He was saved when those outside heard his screams and managed to pull him out of the house. The girl was not interested in leaving.
The priest went back to his office where he made calls for help. When the Catholic church did not immediately respond, the priest was dismayed.
Ismael’s mother stood at her son’s door hoping that he could survive his ordeal long enough for the priest to show up. His wrists and ankles were starting to bleed as he struggled against his restraints. He hadn’t eaten or had water in two days. The thought made the woman pray faster.
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