Exorcism Cleaners - The Holy Version

This is a prose version of a story for future consideration. The doorman at our office had the initial idea, and I fleshed it out a bit.

Exorcism Cleaners - The Holy Version

Downtown, there always seems to be a profusion of rundown cleaners. So from the outside, the Exorcism Cleaners doesn't really stand out. However inside, something is definitely different. The walls are dingy, which is expected, but they are decorated with all manner of crucifix, crosses and pictures of the Virgin. Some look like they've been used as hammers. And the truth is, some have. Sometimes you just have to beat the Devil out of some people. Father Nudyovski doesn't believe in desecrating the cross, so even when these holy symbols become beat to hell, he can't bear to throwthem out or to otherwise dispose them.

He is a graying 30-something man. His hair is still full, but kept short. He carries himself like Bogart in the Maltese Falcon, there is something of a bygone era in his mannerisms. Whether they are studied or natural is impossible to tell. The Father owns Exorcism Cleaners and is the head cleaner. His other staff are less holy, though only marginally less effective. The father's standing with the Church is also somewhat marginal. Since the Vatican no longer authorizes exorcisms, Nudyovski had to go freelance. But that connection with God is hard to break.

A long granite counter, black of course, separates the lobby from the shop. There are the obligatory cleaning machines and conveyors, but also basins of water, racks of what look like spices and other vaguely religious paraphernalia lying in well ordered if dingy shelves and cases. There isn't a view even in the shop that doesn't include at least one crucifix. There is a whole bookcase dedicated to different versions of the bible. And this is just for the "everyday" copies, there is a separate vault for the rare versions. The whole place is poorly lit, it's obvious that spotless stain removal is not the primary aim of this cleaners.

The father is in the shop right now, hovering over a long gown. The gown appears to have been white originally, but age and the horrible murder of it's owner stained it to a blackish-red. The father is patiently sewing up the multiple gashes across the back. The front has already been fixed up, there was only the diagonal slash where the brides head had been removed with something heavy and sharp.

As he finishes the sewing, he mumbles a few Latin verses. He moves the gown to a different table, this one long enough to hold it's complete length. At each end he puts a crucifix-shaped candle holder with three candles each. He reached inside his suit-coat and retrieves a small vial. Another blessing and he dashes the holy water across first the front then the back of the gown. Where the drops hit the bloodied gown, it starts to hiss emitting a small wisp of steam and a smell of charred meat. The red changes from dingy and old to bright and fresh. The puddles start to coalesced across the silk, slowly at first, then faster. The bloody garment starts to steam all over.

The father appears calm, but his chanting increases just slightly as he reaches for a large gilt crucifix on a china platter. He genuflects and raises the heavy golden symbol above his head. Then WHAM! He brings it down with a thud right across the breast of the gown. The steaming intensifies. He raises the crucifix back up, leaving its silhouette burned in pure white on the surface.

"BE GONE! BE GONE spawn of Satan! Leave this relic and return to the bowels and your fallen master!!" His deep voice, normally understated, booms throughout the still of the shop. He repeats the incantation again in Latin, then in Hebrew. Again and again he issues the command. With each repetition the white spreads across the gown, cleansing the blood and age. When the gown is pure white, he stops shouting. His voice becomes barely audible as he administers the last rights to the fallen bride. The gown stays white. The only indications of its past violence are the repairs made by the father.

With that done, he picks up a plastic bag and wire hanger. He hangs the gown in the bag on the conveyor and checks the register for the next article. That was a messy wedding. The family hoped that by purging the evil from that long ago day they could change their fortune. The father, however, knows that miracles are rare, and only time will tell whether the families luck will change.