Back in the room, she slid the box on Edward's desk. "Here, Ed, the orb. I'll go pack now."
His eyes gleamed with an unsettling eagerness as he took it.
Elizabeth pretended to pack, her back to him, and asked, "Hey Ed, how's Andrea? Is she improving?"
He hesitated. "Y-yeah, yes she is. You should see her smiling."
Elizabeth's heart sank as she bit her lips. Their daughter suffered from a neurodegenerative disease, incurable and relentless. Edward visited her at the hospital daily, never missing a day. This hesitation, lack of knowledge, confirmed her worst fears.
She stood up and faced him as she drew a sword shimmering with holy aura. "Where is my Edward?" She demanded, tears and resentment brimming in her eyes. "Who the hell are you?"
Meanwhile…
Walter paced, his heart pounding in his chest. His instincts screamed that something was wrong—terribly wrong. Clutching his phone with trembling fingers, Walter dialed the private line reserved for contacting the Church's Elders. The line crackled faintly before connecting.
A familiar voice answered.
"Sanctum Ecclesia. This is His Holiness, Pope Stalinsky."
"Your Holiness, please—this is urgent! I need to speak with the Elders immediately. It's about Sir Edward. Something is… wrong."
There was a brief pause on the other end, a silence that felt like it stretched for hours. Then, the Pope replied, his tone unsettlingly calm.
"Not today, Walter."
Click.
The line went dead.
Walter stared at the phone, disbelief flooding his mind. What?
The Church had never dismissed them like that before—especially when it concerned matters of such urgency. His pulse quickened as the realization struck like ice through his veins.
"The Church… They're compromised."
A cold sweat broke across his brow. His mind raced back to Elizabeth—alone upstairs with whoever—or whatever—was wearing Edward's face.
Without another thought, Walter dropped the phone, his heart hammering against his ribs. "Madam Elizabeth!"
Back to Elizabeth...
The entity, realising it's futile to play pretend in the face of the raging lioness.
"You shouldn't have been so smart, Elizabeth. Such a shame; you almost made it out alive." The imposter's facade crumbled. "What's the point wielding something you can't even swing?"
"At least, I'll make sure you don't leave here unscathed." She growled
"Ho ho ho, I'm scared," it jested as he grabbed the box from the table. "I have what I came for already, no point in staying any longer. You don't have to waste your life this way though. Put the sword away." He said
"Not until your head is on the floor." She assured it as she clenched the sword tightly
"Even if there's a chance Eddie was still alive in this body?" He taunted.
Her face paled as doubt crept in. Seizing for the moment, the skinwalker lunged, knocking the sword from her hand and gripping her throat, lifting her off the ground.
"Curse your sharp perception for putting you in this situation," it sneered, claws poised to strike.
Before he could deliver the fatal blow, Walter burst into the room, throwing himself between them. The skinwalker's claws sank into Walter's chest, blood spraying.
"Hmm.... I can never understand humans. Well, I liked you better than the Pope, so sad you had to die this way though," the creature mocked, withdrawing it's hand and turning to flee with the box
Alarms blared throughout the estate, as guards scrambled, but the skinwalker, driven by desperation moved with inhuman speed, evading capture.
Elizabeth cradled Walter as he collapsed, tears streaming down her face. "No Walter, not you too!! Walter... please breathe. Call for an Ambulance!"
"I'm sorry. If I hadn't been pathetic, I'd have known it wasn't him. Even though I had served him for years,"
"Please don't speak Walter. Ambulances are coming,"
"I know my body more than anyone, there's no saving me," he said as he coughed blood. "Well, this is what I get for failing to do my duty properly." He said with his face filled with guilt. "I called the church, but they ended the call on me. Please be careful Ma'am," he said as he took his last breath.
"Walter!!!"
The estate fell into a mournful silence, the betrayal and loss hanging heavy in the air.