Chapter 9

Carl had said that he was bad, but he had not specified in which way. Hannah did not really want him to expand on his declaration at that point because she was scared enough. In the following days, she thought a lot about his words and wondered what he meant. Unable to leave, at least learning more about him might make life better.

Hannah sat down and made notes about the facts as she knew them so far. Carl did not appear to have any family. He had found them comfortable places to live, but there were questions about how he had done that. He said he worked, but she did not even know the name of his employer. They had plenty of money. He'd bought a cat not a dog.

All of those times when Carl had deflected a question, or simply not answered, were recalled by Hannah. The memory of the meal with her family and how he had done the same to them. Why did everyone believe everything that he said and not worry about all the things he didn't say? It seemed that he could bend people to his will. That was evident in the fact that, however hard she tried, she could not leave him.

This thing with the manipulation. Did that mean that there was something supernatural about Carl, or was he just clever. The more Hannah thought about it, the stranger it was. Start with the straightforward bit, who exactly was Carl Shand. Typing his name on the computer, holding her breath as the results returned, what wasn't there was the issue. Was Carl Shand even his real name?

The mystery deepened as Hannah found no mention of her partner. A man with no past and no digital footprint. He had achieved something that was nearly impossible these days. Hannah was staring at the laptop thinking what she could do next. If Carl had been bad that could mean that he had committed some crimes. Not knowing where he had lived, what his real name was and even if his date of birth was correct, rather hampered her ability to search for a police record.

The main fact was that, as much as she loved him, Hannah was afraid of Carl sometimes. Only being able to put one shoe in a suitcase and not being able to leave were not normal. It was time to consider a different line of enquiry. The next thing that she typed into the computer were the words "demonic possession". Hannah's finger hovered over the enter button. This was absolutely crazy. The first of the articles was opened and read.

The reports she saw either related to stories from antiquity, or sensational articles in the tabloids. There were many theories about how to spot someone who was possessed. A lot of clues were supposedly found by changes in a person. This might be in the form of changes to diet, attitude, weight loss or weight gain, or becoming quiet.

Other indicators were a lack of sleep, nightmares, self-mutilation and violent outbursts. Was the subject catatonic? Could they speak in tongues? Did they display inhuman strength? Then there were all the things that were of an occult nature. Strange writing might appear and furniture might seem to move of its own accord. Lights could flicker on and off and other electrical items may be affected.

Hannah shivered as she read about instances of changes in temperature and strange odours. Another sign was banging noises were heard around a house. Looking over her shoulder, this research was unsettling. All of this information was interesting, but none of it applied to Carl. He was the same now as he had been on the day, she met him.

At this moment she stopped to have a reality check. She was searching on the internet to ascertain if her boyfriend was possessed by the devil. The details she had read were wide ranging and speculative. Good God, why not just check for the numbers 666 behind his ear.

Whatever was wrong with Carl it was not going to be identified by looking for any signs. He had said that he was bad to the core and he needed Hannah around to help mitigate his urges. When he was at home with her, she was unlikely to see his dark side. What worried her was what happened when he was away from their home and outside of her influence.

Her thoughts had led her on a circuitous route back to crime. Hannah searched on the computer for any offences which had been committed in the local area. The nature of the misdemeanours was not known, so she looked for anything that was unsolved. They were never short of money, so maybe she should focus on thefts.

Even in the remote area where they lived, there was a depressing catalogue of crimes listed in the local papers. It was unlikely that Carl had been involved in all of the things which had been reported. He was home with her every evening and fewer crimes were committed during daylight hours. He would probably choose some sort of confidence trick over anything violent. Or at least she hoped he would.

There had been a couple of murders in the area in the last six months. The region where they lived was rural and it was noted in the article that it was unusual for such a peaceful place. Hannah could not face the possibility that this was something to do with Carl, so she tried to ignore the reports. The stories stayed with her, however and crept back into her mind from time to time.

What about the cottage and the stories about Mr Grundy? Everyone insisted that he had owned the house and some land, but Carl had said this was not true. She also recalled Jane telling her about Mr Grundy's sudden death. A shiver ran down her spine as she thought about what might have happened to him and how they had ended up living in his home.

When they had first moved into the cottage there had been lots of things that had been left behind by the previous occupant. Why hadn't Mr Grundy's family removed his belongings? Carl had taken some things away and she was pretty sure he had sold them. That had made her worry that he had done something illegal. What a minor worry that was now.

Whenever he was home Hannah was observing Carl. He was aware of her attention and he made sure that she knew. He would fix her with an unwavering stare and when she began to fidget uncomfortably, he would smile or sometimes laugh.

"Give it up." Was his comment one night. "You don't want to know my secrets."

It was all so confusing. Hannah was unnerved by Carl, but she was not living in a nightmare. There were shopping trips, nice clothes in the wardrobe, gifts and kindness. There were times when she could almost forget about the spell she must be under. At night she didn't reject his advances, she welcomed them. He was like a drug to her.

Despite his admission that he was bad, Hannah had no choice about her life. Something held her at Carl's side and she would have to make the best of it. He had never hurt her or shouted at her. If they carried on like this, her life would not be as she had hoped, but she could cope with it. Then she became pregnant.