Unhappy Medium by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel Page A

and I’m not certain you have the full power to protect yourself every time it attacks. I’m not
     sure any living person does. And I do believe it will be back.”
    “What about someone who
isn’t
living?” I asked.
    “What do you mean?” he asked.
    I told him about Madame Serena.
    “She threw herself at it and suddenly I could move again,” I told him. “That’s how I got away the second time.”
    “Interesting,” Orin said. “Here’s the thing. An entity like this feeds by manipulating a living human — through their body.
     Madame Serena is no longer living. So she can sense the thing and fight it, and it isn’t as good fighting her off, because
     she doesn’t have a physical form to manipulate.”
    “So she can protect me.”
    “She did once. Who can say if she can do it again? It sounds like it comes after you, not her. What if she isn’t around the
     next time? Kat, I’m very concerned. I think we have to get ahold of your mother. I don’t want you to take this on alone.”
    “No offense, Orin, but I don’t think I have much of a choice. I’m here, and so is the black cloud. And like you said, it has
     me in its sights now. What if Madame Serena and I work together? Is there a way to get rid of an entity like this?”
    Orin sighed.
    “It’s possible. But I don’t want you to go looking for this thing.”
    “Better me looking for it, than it looking for me. Just tell me what to do,” I said. “If it came back. You said it was possible
     to get rid of something like this. How?”
    “I can only tell you what worked for my friend in Connecticut,” Orin said anxiously. “Your mother is the expert. I’m just
     guessing the entity in that hotel functions the same way as the one in the Connecticut house. I can only go from that.”
    “It’s going to have to be good enough,” I said. “Please, Orin. Just tell me what you know.”
    “Well, the key is light, Kat,” he said. “Light in every form is this thing’s enemy. When you read about the forces of dark
     and light, whether it’s in a cultural myth or in
Star Wars
, the metaphor is quite literal. Light energy is the energy of love, of goodness, and of beneficence. Dark energy is the energy
     of hatred and destruction.
    “A person, no matter how weak, could protect themselves from being entered physically with a simple prayer or call to whatever
     power they believe in, if only they knew to do it. But it’s coming at you psychically, and that’s much harder to block. You
     need to hit it with every form of light you can — call on all the Beings of Light that the Universe can put at your disposal,
     then bombard it with light energy, which you’ll have to visualize. Think of a star going super nova. And throw love at it.
     Every caring, compassionate emotion you can muster.
    “It feeds on fear. No matter how scared you feel, replace it with the image of something or someone that inspires pure love
     in you. And not to be obvious, but keep every light in your room switched on.”
    Now that was a problem at the moment. But there was no point in mentioning it — it would only make Orin more anxious.
    “Okay,” I said. “And how will I know? If I’ve gotten rid of it, I mean?”
    “I don’t know,” Orin said, sighing. “I can only guess that you
will
know. But Kat …”
    “And if I don’t get rid of it, it will still be there, right, Orin? The next time someone checks into that room, or even visits
     someone in that room, it will be there. Trying to get into them.”
    “I … yes. It might.”
    “Jac’s mom is staying in that room, Orin. And she already sensed something. She gets headaches, and she’s not herself.”
    “Kat, listen to me. I’m going to drive over to your house to find your mom. I want you to talk to her directly.”
    “I’m all for it,” I said. “I just need to make sure I can handle myself now. In case.”
    “Be careful,” Orin said.
    “I will. I promise.”
    “You better,” he said.