“Mom, can you please tell me why I have to come along on this?”507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJP4peSSxh7
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“Honey, it’s time you do something other than sit in front of Street Fighter 6 all day. I want you to come with me.”507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBZgSmylFCh
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“But Mom… you know how I feel about ghosts, monsters, and demons. I find them really, really scary!”507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY2bPXUIuGX
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“I know it makes you uncomfortable. But right now, I really don’t care. First of all, the ghosts I usually deal with aren’t dangerous, just very mischievous. And secondly, it would be nice to have some company while I work sometimes.”507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfEhYmU3S6P
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“Fine… maybe you have a point, but I want you to know that if I die tonight, it’s completely your fault!”507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ96xKkRXV3H
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Mom smiled at me, her voice soft and calm: “You won’t die tonight. I’ll make sure of it.”
She grabbed the wheel and turned onto Humblebrink Street 7, Majorna. In the middle of the night. Darkness hung over the city like a thick blanket. Everyone was probably asleep in their beds. Everyone except Ann-Charlotte, the middle-aged woman who had called Mom at half past one in the morning. She had bought a rare African mask on eBay, and the moment it arrived, her apartment had been terrorized by poltergeists. She didn’t know what to do, so she called Mom, a full-time professional exorcist.
Mom parked right outside the building, slipped a mysterious black notebook into her jacket pocket, and strode toward the entrance. I reluctantly followed.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoGNYVtM5Uq
At the door, Mom pressed a button and began speaking to someone—probably Ann-Charlotte. After five seconds, the door opened.
We took the elevator to the top floor. In front of us stood a door with the word “WELCOME” painted in big letters.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAbSzKWQr8
Mom knocked. The door swung open, revealing a woman in her fifties, wearing nothing but white underwear—a bra that seemed far too large and matching white panties.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEQqdWQchac
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“Hello, my name is Malin Duwall. I work as a full-time exorcist, around the clock, year-round. You called me—can you describe where in your apartment the paranormal activity broke out so I can try to drive it away?”
Ann-Charlotte didn’t answer. She only said, “Follow me into the living room.”
We stepped inside. And there… everything was floating. The couch, chairs, bookcases, the TV—everything. And the sounds. A creepy, ghostly echo that made the skin crawl. I tried to pull the couch down, but it was as if an invisible magnet held it up.
Mom lifted the black notebook in her right hand, flipped it open, and showed me a page.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0rOEoTKbSM
“We’re dealing with a group of mischievous child spirits. Luckily, I have a magical chant 507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZ5l6UXYR0
that should scare them away. Liam, when I count to three, I want you to repeat everything I say, okay?”507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE6Xp4dX9Ey
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“Okay,” I said, hesitant.
Mom counted to three and then began reciting a strange chant in a language that sounded like a mix of German and Danish. I opened my mouth and repeated after her.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB7wdWmcdU3
The furniture began to spin, just like one of those spinning rides at Liseberg. Faster and faster. Mom and I had to dive to the side to avoid being hit. We repeated the chant seven more times, and the violent rotation intensified.
Suddenly, everything stopped. The furniture crashed to the floor with a deafening bang. The living room looked like a scene from a third world war.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5wTnHHPwD
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“Quick, Liam! Grab the mask and destroy it!” Mom shouted, pointing at the African mask in the middle of the room.
I ran forward, lifted the mask, and smashed it onto the floor.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCEFHrT6guF
A childish scream pierced the air, and the mask hissed as if it had just burned and been extinguished.
“There! Now you’ve seen what we exorcists do.”507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLexSOIlPzO
“I’m still terrified, but… wow. This is amazing. Being an exorcist seems like an incredible job,” I said.
Ann-Charlotte came into the room and thanked Mom for the help. She offered two thousand kronor as payment.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ331l4CqsA3
“I don’t need money,” Mom said gently. “The thrill of driving away mischievous spirits is payment enough.”507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVOYsZYSMtG
“But you could stay for a snack?” Ann-Charlotte suggested. “I have a bag of pastries in the cupboard, and it would be really nice if you two joined me for a midnight snack. I’ll just put on some clothes, and then we can eat together.”
Mom was about to respond when her phone buzzed. She picked it up and paled. Her face went as white as a sheet.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpBZcnJeRGF
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“What happened?” I asked, worried.
She held the phone up for me to see. I read the message and paled too.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPsg3aErcPZ
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A young couple in the Lundby district needed help with a very aggressive spirit. A spirit that had carved the word “Boogeyman” into all the walls of their bedroom.507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk5dF2dzvr8
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Afterword:507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaC9wOSZ4si
This short story was inspired by the classic supernatural films The Exorcist and Poltergeist and it was also inspired by Stephen King’s short story The Little Green God of Agony. I’ve always been fascinated by the tension, mystery, and thrill of facing the unknown, and I wanted to capture that sense of eerie excitement in a story that also explores family bonds and courage. Also, I loved the idea about a Swedish young man having a mother who works as a professional exorcist!507Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaGpCqDtF7n
and then Add to home screen.