by K. F. Breene
I couldn’t help a grin as I reached Mia in her usual alcove, picking at a large button on her ratty blue sweater, her large eyes solemn.
“Hey,” I said, stopping.
“A spirit has been wandering around,” she said. “One I don’t know. She looked like a spy.”
I repeated what she said for Red’s benefit.
“How can you tell?” I asked.
“The living try not to act suspicious. The dead don’t think anyone can see them, so they peer in closets, in desks, watch people…”
I repeated that as well.
“Appearance?” Red asked.
“Middle-aged white woman with short hair. She looks pretty athletic, but she kinda stoops when she’s creeping around,” Mia said. “Reminds me of the Hamburglar in that way.”
“Who?” I asked, getting out of the way of someone coming up the stairs.
“An old McDonald’s character,” Red replied. “Stole burgers, that sort of thing. I like weird retro stuff. That qualifies.”
“Strange detail, but okay. Is she still here?”
Mia shrugged and glanced around. “She disappeared on this spot. She’d just finished looking around Demigod Kieran’s assistants’ desks, but didn’t go in his office.”
Red stiffened when I relayed that bit.
“She’s not a shadow?” I asked. “You could make out her appearance and everything?”
Mia nodded slowly. “But I’ve seen those shadow types around here lately. They dart around me. They burst into view and dart away a second before I can get a good look at them. I think they’re taunting me. Telling me it is time to retire from the living world.”
A chill ran down my back. The same thing had happened to me leading up to our battle with Valens. I’d seen strange, shadowy creatures from the corner of my eye. I hadn’t had a chance to really think about it at that time—it had always happened at some crucial moment—but Mia was describing my experience exactly. It was like the creatures didn’t mind if we knew they were watching us, but were great at not getting caught.
“Keep an eye out, if you don’t mind. In the meantime, I need more people watching things,” I said, finishing the climb of stairs and heading toward Kieran’s office. Someone was getting intel through the spirit world. With enough energy, a spirit could open drawers. Maybe lift files. No energy and they could still monitor conversations and comings and goings. Kieran could see most spirits, thanks to our soul connection, but he still couldn’t see the Demigods. One of them could park in his office and he’d never be the wiser. He needed a spirit bodyguard like I needed a living one.
“John,” I said, standing in front of the receptionist’s desk. The desk was familiar, but the person behind it was not.
“Sorry, what’s that?” the middle-aged woman asked me, her round face turned up with a somewhat strained smile. I noticed she didn’t acknowledge Red’s presence.
“That’s Rena. She’s the new help,” Red said, probably reading my confused expression. “Hopefully she’ll know to patch through an important call during a non-important meeting.”
“I know my job just fine, thank you.” Rena pursed her lips. Apparently, she wasn’t one of Red’s few or nonexistent friends. That had to be an awkward working arrangement. If the job hadn’t been working for Kieran, for a Demigod, I would’ve wondered why she’d taken it.
“I should contact John.” I cocked a hip, thinking of all the spirits that had helped me take down Valens. Many of them had said they owed me one for freeing them. Maybe they still wanted to help. “Oh”—I snapped—“and what’s-his-face. The experienced guy I summoned with the locket. Chad! Maybe he got a taste of the action and wants another go, this time without a gross body to maneuver.”
“You want”—Rena’s hand hovered over the phone—“me to call…John?”
“Jesus Christ, if you were any worse at your job, they’d take away your participation ribbon.” Red steered me past the desk and toward Kieran’s closed door.
“A little harsh, huh? It’s her first day.”
“I’m helping her. If she hates me, she won’t want to talk to me, and then she won’t have to pretend we’re friends. She can focus solely on her job.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Wait, wait.” Aubri hurried to my side as Red turned the handle. Aubri peered at my face, ducking this way and that. She stepped back with an “mhm!” and a smile. “Still perfect.”
Red thrust open the door, glanced back to make sure I was on her heels, and led me inside. She paused for a moment, as if gauging the situation, then peeled off to the side.
Kieran looked up from the couch. He sat across from an unremarkable, aging man who nonetheless had a sharp stare and a lithe body. I got the feeling the man wanted everyone to know they were in plain sight. None of the Six were in the office.
“Alexis, please, come in.” If Kieran was mad that I was late, he didn’t show it.
It didn’t make me feel any less awkward. I barely kept myself from apologizing and throwing Bria under the bus.
He smoothly stood and put out his hand, welcoming me closer. “This is Nester, the Defalcator that Demigod Nancy sent to help you explore some more facets of your magic. Nester, this is the infamous Alexis Price, not quite so scary as everyone would think.”
Nester rose and lifted his hand in a salute. I suspected I knew why he didn’t go for a handshake. My magic wasn’t the only one that came with a reputation. No one liked being robbed.
His smile didn’t reach those calculating eyes. “Hello, Miss Price. Nancy spoke highly of you. I’m excited to be working with you.”
He lied well, at any rate.
“Hi.” I copied his hand gesture. “Thanks for helping me out. A few nudges in the right direction and hopefully I’ll be off to the races.”
“Hmm, yes.” He put his palms together, his fingers spread out. “I feel it is my duty to be upfront regarding the help you might receive from one with my magic. The only similarity between our magics is the commonality of spirit. I have, essentially, one function as it pertains to spirit—to hide things. Things, not humans. Not souls. But I can, of course, walk you through how I store the items, and maybe you can garner some understanding about the nature of spirit that way. But I must be clear: I cannot show you how to wander through the spirit realm. It is a dangerous practice and I simply do not have the skill set. I’d as easily kill you as help you if I even tried.”
Kieran nodded as though he knew all that. I twisted my lips to the side. My “teacher” would be even less help than I’d originally thought.
I’d definitely need to wrangle that Spirit Walker, and I would not feel bashful about having Kieran help me.
13
Alexis
“Okay, no. Out.” I sternly pointed at the door.
Jack froze, the white cat, a dwarf in his big tan arms, hugged to his chest. “What?”
I pointed out of the kitchen, having just grabbed some water on my way to the backyard. It was dusk and much of the crew was waiting for me to summon the past Spirit Walker. They all worried something would go horribly wrong. It probably had something to do with the way he’d yanked me into spirit limbo last time…
Word had spread that the Spirit Thief, as I’d started calling my would-be teacher, was mostly useless. After waiting around the office for half the day, Kieran had just excused him, letting him know that he’d be contacted when needed. I didn’t blame him. Regardless of Kieran’s wish to get further into Nancy’s good graces, the guy was a waste of time.
“Get that animal out of the kitchen,” I demanded. “You have no idea where it came from. It can’t be in here.”
A wounded look crossed Jack’s face. “He’s hungry. I’m not going to keep him. I’m just giving him a little food and love until we find his owner. I had the staff put up a few signs.”
“It had no collar and was on the outskirts of the dual-society zone. Frank said it came through the hole in the wall in the backyard. That animal
was left behind. And if it wasn’t, the owner will be looking at the pound—if there is one over there—not a gated community.”
“Well…” Jack ran a big hand over the perfectly content animal. “I can always leave a sign at the non-magical shelters. The last magical one has been closed. A Bray Road Beast escaped from its handler and ate its way through the mundane animals. Now we ship all our strays to the non-magical zone. If they aren’t found and killed for sport on the streets. Which will probably happen to this little guy if we don’t at least help him.”
I sighed. Why was the magical zone so messed up in so many ways?
“Fine, whatever. Give all the shelters its picture.”
“His picture. He’s a boy. He still has his balls and everything.”
I leveled Jack with a look. “He better not spray, or you will find a new place to hang out.”
Jack lifted his free hand. “He’s a good boy. He won’t spray.”
“But in the meantime, out! He could have fleas or ticks or who knows. I want it—him—out of the kitchen and away from couches, chairs, beds—”
“I know, I know. I was just heading outside.” Jack hurried up in front of me. “You’ll see, Lexi. Cats and kids—they just bring everything together.”
“Someone is bound to agree with me about this,” I muttered, heading through the back door to find everyone sitting in a semicircle around an enormous circle of two-by-fours, the ends just touching, in the grass. On top of them burned all manner and size of candles, interspersed with stinky incense and the occasional bell.
Bria knelt on the grass beside a large, flat piece of wood holding the rest of her Necromancer tools. She’d decided part of the problem with our last attempt had been a lack of firepower. She clearly intended to fix that issue this time.
Kieran sat in the middle of his Six, though a little rug sat empty in front of him, between his chair and the nearest two-by-four.
“Really? I get the rug?” I asked, drawing everyone’s attention. “I don’t even get a chair?”
“Oh.” Jack hesitated at the end of the semicircle of chairs around the wooden circle. “I thought you’d want to be mobile?”
The cat, perfectly content up until now, hissed. It bit Jack’s arm, raked suddenly clawed paws across his skin, twisted, jumped, and darted away into the trees, all in a flurry of movement.
I lifted my eyebrows and pointed at it. “It’s possessed. The witchcraft portion of this summoning scared it. See? It probably ate its last owners. It probably turns into some sort of…hell cat in the nighttime or something. It doesn’t need to be in the house when we’re all sleeping. Or anytime, actually. Cat dander can’t be good for the sinuses.”
Thane twisted in his seat to look at me more closely. “Cats do that, Lexi. Jack was probably squeezing it too tightly. They don’t put up with bullshit. Have you never owned one?”
I crossed Thane off my list of no-cat-in-the-house allies.
“Any animal that turns on you is not to be trusted,” I muttered, waving Jack away. “It’s fine. The women will take the ground, at the men’s feet. It’s where we belong.”
Daisy huffed, at the opposite end of the semicircle from Jack. “No ground for me, thank you very much. These are new jeans.”
I pursed my lips but didn’t comment on her moneymaking scheme. “Ladies. You don’t qualify.”
“Quit yapping and let’s get going,” Bria said, looking at the sky. I didn’t know why.
Red and Aubri clearly got nights off, since they weren’t on scene. Lucky for them.
I took a deep breath. “Fine. Okay.” I’d just bent at the knees when a blur of white froze my heart. The cat zipped past me, randomly pivoted near one of the candles, batted at Zorn’s legs, dashed between the chairs, and ran back out of sight. I clutched my chest. “What in the holy fu—”
“Don’t worry about that. He’s just playful,” Boman said with a smile that would normally melt anyone’s resolve. I wiped that smile off his face with a heartfelt scowl.
“That thing needs a leash,” I said, trying to calm myself. Trying to re-center. Or even center for the first time.
Donovan chuckled. “You don’t put leashes on…” His words died when he got the next scowl.
“Ready?” Bria asked, her focus intense.
I swallowed and nodded. Showtime.
Kieran’s movement had me glancing over my shoulder. He held out the pocket watch, which he then placed in my waiting palm.
“I’m right here,” he said softly, his sweet breath dusting the side of my face. “You have a lot of power sitting right behind you. Nothing, not even a Demigod’s army, will get through us. Do whatever you need to do. We’ve got your back.”
Jack and Thane both grunted their agreement. I could see the others nodding out of the corner of my eye.
“Okay,” I said, breathing out a little more stress. Reaching for the power of the Line.
Spirit crawled across the ground and filled the circle, not stopped by a few boards and some stinky candles. The Line pulsed, comforting, its nightmarish colors not instilling me with any fear. The watch felt like it was pulsing in my hand. Like the guy on the other end of it was waiting for me to reach out and reel him in. Like he was challenging me. He’d gotten the better of me last time. He expected to do it again.
I gritted my teeth and hardened my resolve, sinking into a trance, the act second nature now. My consciousness followed the signal from the watch.
Time dropped away. My stomach rolled, and I felt like I was rolling with it, the laws of gravity ripped out from under me. This had never happened with any other spirit, and I knew the rogue Spirit Walker was somehow to blame. I was being manhandled.
Boy did I hate handsy fuckers.
I held on to my confidence and rolled with the feeling. Focused on the task at hand with the determination born of keeping two kids alive in the crack of the world. I was a survivor. When the going got tough, I pushed through with a little creative courage.
Free-falling now, I nonetheless sensed I was moving steadily across a flat plane. The logic made no sense, but I forced myself to focus on the end game. Soon enough, I bumped into the same wall, or door, I’d encountered last time. Again, I wondered if it were a cage, if somehow the guy was imprisoned in this realm. That would explain why he hadn’t found his way back last time in order to mess with me. Or maybe just wander the world and cause havoc. A spirit that strong certainly could.
The wall nudged, opening slightly as the presence slammed against the other side. Crashed into it, shaking the very foundation of the spiritual plane. Strange colors, like a blood blister spreading under the skin, pulsed around me. Tendrils of it licked at my limbs and slid down my back.
My resolve shook. Fear worked through me. I stayed the course, but my mind was fixed on the one unshakable link connecting me to the real world.
It leads back to your Demigod. To your soul mate.
The voice seemed to curl around my ears, but the words hadn’t been spoken.
He is a strong root for you. He will stop you from losing your way.
I opened my mouth…until I realized I didn’t have a mouth. Communication was different here. I remembered that from before. There was no air. There were no words. I should know this by now. I’d been in this plane before, many times. Maybe not this deep, but it shouldn’t matter.
Why did I keep forgetting things?
You need guidance. Practice. I will help.
Spirit ripped and tore at me. Rolled my spectral body end over end.
Panic tightened my chest, but I clutched what I knew was the soul link and held on tight, rolling with the feeling. Refusing to be knocked around this plane like a rag doll. This thing was the same power level as me—less, actually, after death. I should be able to withstand him.
I had to learn how to withstand him.
If I met a Demigod in this plane, the effect would be a whole lot worse.
Laughter rang through my ears. Roared all around
me.
Still I held on, refusing to be budged.
14
Kieran
The strange feeling he’d felt yesterday tugged on his middle. Kieran leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees, and stared at Alexis’s back as she sat cross-legged in front of him, her head bowed. Bria peered intensely at her from across the badly orchestrated wooden circle. The precautions Bria had insisted on taking, including her insistence that all of them needed to be present, told him she was scared of this spirit. Something he’d rarely seen.
“What are we thinking?” Kieran asked, rising from his chair and then lowering beside Alexis.
Bria shook her head. “I don’t know. She wasn’t in the trance this long last time. I have the bells that should speed her way back to the surface, but it’s all book knowledge. I don’t want to use them unless it’s dire.”
“She’s okay,” Daisy said, nudging her chair to the side of the circle so she could scrutinize Lexi’s face. “She’s okay right now. She’s got that little stubborn crease between her brows.”
Mordecai stood and knelt next to Daisy’s chair, his focus on Alexis. “Yes, she’s right. Lexi always makes that look when we point out she’s missing something. She’s frustrated she doesn’t know something, I’d bet.”
Bria nodded, an unlit candle in one hand and a bell in the other. “I’d listen to the kids. They know her best.”
A hard tug made Kieran grit his teeth. Those occasional tugs on their soul connection helped him feel closer to Lexi. Her presence, her emotions—they were all gone. Even seeing her living and breathing next to him wasn’t quelling his anxiety. Her body might be safe, but her soul was not.
He took her hand, cool to the touch, and focused on that tug. On grabbing the other end. Maybe if he…pulled it taut? He didn’t even know if that was possible.
Hell, he didn’t even know how to grab it.
Alexis suddenly jolted backward. She sucked in a deep breath, blinked her eyes open, and then scrambled further back. Kieran’s empty chair tumbled away as he stood. The guys all jumped up, clearing their chairs away too. Magic built around them, rolling and boiling, waiting for the enemy to emerge.
