The oppressive darkness vanished the moment the female corpse disappeared.
The lights returned to normal, and the unnatural cold that had filled the hotel room faded as though the haunting had never occurred.
Only the destruction remained.
The broken door lay across the floor while shattered glass covered the carpet.
Furniture had been thrown against the walls, several paintings were ruined, and deep cracks spread across the plaster where Madison had repeatedly slammed the corpse with her telekinesis.
If not for the wreckage, Charlie might have convinced himself that the entire encounter had been a hallucination brought on by exhaustion.
He looked down at his clothes and noticed something even stranger.
The rotten flesh, insects, and foul-smelling remains that had splattered across him while he struck the corpse had vanished along with their owner.
No stain or trace remained.
“That was the most exciting thing I’ve experienced in eighteen years.”
Madison rested her chin against Charlie’s shoulder while admiring the ruined room.
Her earlier exhaustion had already begun to fade, replaced by the exhilaration of surviving a genuine supernatural attack.
“Now that it’s over, I have to admit it was a completely different kind of thrill.”
Charlie’s shoulders and arms still ached from swinging the Golden Arm.
“You call that thrilling?”
Madison raised one eyebrow and gave him a knowing smile.
“You don’t believe me?
Check for yourself.”
Her hand guided his briefly before Charlie understood exactly what she meant.
He froze, pulled away, and stared at her in disbelief.
Queenie’s earlier judgment of Madison had been disturbingly accurate.
Charlie cleared his throat and pretended the exchange had never happened.
“Thank you for helping me.”
His gratitude was sincere.
Without Madison’s telekinesis, the corpse would have torn him apart long before he discovered the Golden Arm was connected to its weakness.
The weapons Charlie had trusted most had accomplished almost nothing.
The bullets only delayed the creature, while the blessed cross and Bible proved far less effective than every horror movie had promised.
Every genuine supernatural incident was more dangerous than it appeared from a distance.
Madison waved away his thanks.
“Consider us even for what you did at the fraternity party.”
She looked toward the spot where the corpse had vanished before turning back to him.
“If you decide to chase another monster, call me.
I’d rather not hear that the first guy I’ve liked in years got himself killed because he was too stubborn to ask for help.”
“Of course.”
Whether Madison was motivated by gratitude, attraction, or the excitement of fighting supernatural creatures did not matter.
Charlie had wanted a powerful partner, and she had just proven that she was willing to join him again.
That was more than enough.
Madison’s expression suddenly became playful.
“So, should we continue what we were doing before we were interrupted?”
She hooked one finger beneath his chin and moved closer.
Charlie stared at her.
He had only just decided that she was dependable, yet she had already returned to flirting as though they had not nearly been killed by a rotting corpse.
Before he could think of an excuse, voices sounded in the hallway beyond the destroyed door.
A hotel guest slowed outside their room and looked inside.
His eyes widened when he saw the shattered windows, broken furniture, bullet holes, and collapsed wall.
“My God.
Did someone fire a machine gun in here?”
Charlie turned toward him with a grave expression.
“It was worse than that.”
The disturbance should have attracted attention much sooner.
Under normal circumstances, hotel security and frightened guests should have arrived within minutes.
No one had heard anything.
The room appeared to have been isolated from the rest of the hotel while the corpse was present.
Only after it vanished did the barrier disappear and allow the sounds and damage to become noticeable.
Within ten minutes, the hallway was crowded.
Hotel employees, security guards, and curious guests gathered outside the room.
Several people stepped inside despite warnings to remain behind the damaged doorway, eager to photograph the destruction.
The hotel manager arrived soon afterward.
He looked around the devastated room before turning toward Charlie with a carefully controlled expression.
“Mr.
Taylor, you’re saying a supernatural entity caused all of this?”
“Yes.”
Charlie spoke with complete seriousness.
“Madison and I were attacked by the spirit of a dead woman.
Neither of us has taken drugs, and this wasn’t a hallucination or a prank.”
He glanced toward the ruined walls.
“I swear that everything I’m telling you is true.”
Charlie deliberately avoided mentioning the Golden Arm.
He did not know whether the hotel would attempt to claim it, contact the police, or connect it to the nervous stranger who had abandoned the bag downstairs.
The less anyone knew about the object, the better.
Most hotel managers would have called the police immediately.
The guests surrounding them reacted in a completely different way.
“That is incredible.”
“What did the ghost look like?”
“Was she beautiful?”
“You actually saw her move things?”
“I’ve stayed here three times and never experienced anything.”
Several guests took pictures and uploaded them to social media while asking Charlie and Madison increasingly enthusiastic questions.
Rather than fearing the possibility of a violent spirit, they looked jealous that someone else had received the encounter they wanted.
Many people stayed at the Hotel Monteleone because of its haunted reputation.
Some had traveled across the country hoping to witness an unexplained event, and the destroyed room appeared to confirm every story they had heard.
Charlie watched their excitement with disbelief.
What kind of world considered an attack by a murderous corpse a desirable vacation experience?
The hotel manager soon became even more enthusiastic than the guests.
“Mr.
Taylor, we believe you.”
A warm smile appeared on his face.
“The Hotel Monteleone has served New Orleans for generations.
This building has welcomed famous writers, actors, politicians, ordinary travelers, and perhaps a few guests who never completely checked out.”
The people around him laughed.
“Our resident spirits have always been part of the hotel’s history.
Most are harmless and occasionally enjoy playing small tricks on our visitors.”
Charlie slowly looked around the room.
The door had been torn from its frame.
The windows were gone, bullet holes covered the walls, and half the furniture had been reduced to splinters.
Calling the incident a small trick required impressive optimism.
The manager continued without acknowledging the destruction.
“Since this damage was caused by paranormal activity, the hotel will cover the cost of repairs.
We’ll also provide another room for the remainder of your stay.”
He had been worried that the hotel would demand more money than he could earn in several years.
“There is one small request,” the manager added.
Charlie’s relief weakened.
“We would like both of you to describe the encounter in detail.
With your permission, we may use the story as part of the hotel’s history and promotional materials.”
His attention shifted toward Madison.
“Ms.
Montgomery’s confirmation would add considerable credibility.”
The manager had clearly recognized her.
Madison’s acting career was no longer at its peak, but she still possessed enough fame to turn a hotel haunting into entertainment news.
“I don’t care,” Madison replied.
“Use it.”
The hotel staff immediately became even friendlier.
Charlie and Madison declined the replacement room.
After fighting a corpse and discovering that the hotel’s reputation was more accurate than expected, neither wanted to sleep there.
They answered questions, posed for photographs, and described a carefully edited version of the incident.
Charlie removed the Golden Arm and the Book of Containment from the story, while Madison exaggerated several details whenever the account began sounding too ordinary.
By the time they finished, the hotel staff treated them less like victims and more like honored guests.
Charlie and Madison finally left through the main entrance while employees thanked them and several guests asked for Madison’s autograph.
Outside, Charlie turned and looked back at the brightly illuminated building.
“What is wrong with those people?
Aren’t they afraid?”
Madison lit a cigarette and took a slow drag.
“They’d advertise a demon infestation if they thought it would increase reservations.”
The Hotel Monteleone was already famous for stories of ghosts and unexplained events.
A newly documented haunting involving a recognizable Hollywood actress could bring in tourists, paranormal investigators, reporters, and thrill-seekers.
The manager had waived the damages because the destroyed room might become more valuable than it had been before.
Madison exhaled smoke toward the street.
“They probably won’t repair it right away.
They’ll photograph everything, preserve part of the damage, and advertise it as the room where Madison Montgomery survived a supernatural attack.”
She smiled at the thought.
“People will pay extra just to stay there.
I might even start getting offers for horror movies again.”
Charlie considered her prediction and nodded.
“I believe it.”
The entertainment industry would transform almost anything into publicity.
A real ghost attack was more marketable than most studio campaigns.
Charlie glanced at her before adding, “It’s fortunate I was the only man in the room.
If another guy had been there, the tabloids would have turned the story into something completely different.”
Madison imagined the headlines and burst out laughing.
She doubled over on the sidewalk while several passing tourists gave her confused looks.
“You’re right.
This world is completely insane.”
Charlie took the cigarette from her fingers and attempted a drag.
Smoke immediately burned his throat, forcing him to cough several times before handing it back.
Madison laughed even harder.
Charlie looked toward the crowded French Quarter and released a tired sigh.
“This world has gone rotten again.” 500 = +1 Chapter]
[Review Goal: 10 = +1 Chapter]