I heard the words from my front yard come wafting through the open kitchen window. I craned my neck around the corner and peered out. A group of children in Halloween costumes ran across the grass. They were dressed like witches, their long black dresses and pointed hats blowing in the unseasonably warm autumn air. In their hands, they held pillowcases and black and orange bags full of candy, swinging across their legs.

I started toward the front door, where I had a black bowl of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups waiting for the trick-or-treaters. I opened the door and smiled and passed out the candy as they opened their bags. I looked down the street, where Mark had Emily and Jack in a larger group of kids from the neighborhood, going door to door. Del pulled a wagon of beer behind him. They were stopped at the Spadlowskis’ house, where they always had candy for the kids and libations for the adults.

I had offered to stay inside and pass out candy, since last year we had set the bowl out on the front step and all left. Within five minutes, the bowl had been emptied by a few greedy trick-or-treaters, something that made Mark inordinately annoyed. I was quick to point out to him that he told me as a kid they had done the exact same thing when they saw a bowl unattended. But still, I offered to stay home and ration out the precious candy.

It had been three months since we’d banished Mavis to whatever level of hell she came from. The four of us had mostly healed—well, the burn marks on our bodies had. Jess’s face had the lightest hint of a scar that was easily covered with makeup. Her dermatologist had told her it should continue to lighten and eventually fade completely. If only our memories would do the same. I still had nightmares about the exorcism, even though we had triumphed. Emily, thankfully, told me Amelia didn’t visit her anymore. I had hugged her tight and told her that Mommy had stopped all of the bad things.

She looked up at me, smiled, and said, “I know.” She was aware of so much more than she would ever tell me.

After Liz had come to, she’d asked what happened. She remembered nothing from the possession, which seemed like the best possible option. Her last memory was the day they broke ground on the She Shed. We gently explained to her what had happened, and she thankfully didn’t ask too many questions. It made me wonder if she did remember a few things but had chosen to block them out.