by Meg Ripley
Amar was still talking, but Raul felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He knew it was rude to interrupt a meeting, but he pulled it out anyway, hoping it was a text from Penny. Instead, he found a message from Dylan through The Shift. I need to talk to you right away. Call me. He’d typed in his number.
Raul had only met Dylan once, but he seemed like the most grounded person in the Society for Spirits other than Penny. He wasn’t going to act like something was an emergency if it wasn’t. “Excuse me for a second. I’ve got to take this.” Stepping out onto the back patio, Raul dialed Dylan’s number.
“Oh, thank god you called me back,” Dylan said breathlessly when he answered the phone. “I was worried you wouldn’t see my message or that I’d gotten the wrong person.”
“You got me.” A sour feeling ran through Raul’s blood. He could hear the fear on the other end of the line. “What’s going on?”
“It’s Penny. I think. I mean, I shouldn’t jump to conclusions. That’s what she’s always telling the rest of us, after all. Don’t worry about all the lights and alarms until you know what they mean, you know?”
“Just tell me what’s happening.” Raul knew perfectly well that Penny was always trying to keep herself from getting her hopes up or getting excited, and he also had a good notion now that it was because she’d been burned one too many times. He clenched his free hand at his side, wishing Dylan would get to the point.
“Okay.” Dylan pulled in several shaking breaths. “I was trying to reach Penny all night on her phone, and I couldn’t. It’s not like her not to answer, even if it’s the middle of the night.”
Raul felt all his muscles turn to mush in relief. He’d heard her phone buzzing in her pants several times the night before; she just hadn’t been wearing them. Heat flooded Raul’s cheeks as he tried to find a delicate way to explain why Penny had been so busy. “No big deal. See—”
“So then I went by her place this morning,” Dylan charged on. “I knew it was early, but I had some equipment I needed to pick up from her. Her car was there, but I also saw Tyler’s car screeching off down the road.”
“Did you knock on her door?” Raul was already getting his keys, knowing he was going to have to start moving quickly.
“Yeah, but she didn’t answer. Look, I’m sorry to bother you, but I’m worried about her. Tyler’s been even nuttier than usual, and I just got a really bad feeling when I saw him leaving her place.”
“You’re not bothering me,” Raul countered. “You did the right thing by calling. Just leave it to me, Dylan. I’ll find her.” He hung up and charged back into the conference room.
Everyone looked up, immediately alarmed by his stature and countenance.
“What is it?” Emersyn asked.
“Penny, who I’ve been working with.” Raul’s eyes shot to Jude’s.
“Is she in trouble?” the bear asked.
“I think so. Her ex is part of her ghost hunting group. He confronted me about hanging around with her the other night, and he was seen peeling out at her apartment building. We don’t know where Penny is.” His heart clenched in his chest, recalling the memory of the way he felt the first time he shipped out.
Jude stood and came to his side. “This ex of hers, is there any chance he could be part of Miguel’s misfit clan?”
Raul’s eyes lifted to his as the connection slammed him in the forehead. “I didn’t see it. It didn’t make sense. That cabrón was too much of a blithering idiot, and I couldn’t imagine him doing something like that. But Penny said he wants them to bond so he can be the Alpha of a massive pack, and he’s been learning about ghost hunting from her. Fuck!”
“At least that means our enemies are all likely in one place,” Amar offered. He nodded at the rest of the Force. “Sounds like we need to move our timeline up a little.”
9
Penny swam through an ocean so thick, the sunlight refused to penetrate its depths. Her body felt both heavy and weightless as she floated along, moved by the natural current no matter how much she struggled to guide herself with her arms and legs. Her brain sought some reasonable explanation for being there, but it came up with nothing. She searched again, but it was as though someone had filled her mind with fog.
“Penny.”
She heard the voice. She didn’t know whose it was, but she wanted to swim away. The current wouldn’t let her.
“Penny,” the voice intoned again.
“No!” she screamed, but no sound issued from her throat. The disembodied voice scared her much more than the water, and she fought harder as it dragged her upwards toward some dim source of light. It grew brighter and brighter, bursting through the water and yanking her out into the sun.
She opened her eyes. Trees swirled in her vision. “What the…?” Moving her mouth to speak was like taking a bite of dry sand.
“There she is,” Tyler announced, his face swimming into view. “You were having one hell of a nap there.”
Though she couldn’t yet move her arms and legs, her body intrinsically shrank in on itself, wishing to get away from him. “What’s going on? What did you do to me?” Her voice was still thick and cakey, but it was better.
He sat on the ground beside her, his legs bent and his arms wrapped around his knees. He looked like the casual, careless teen she’d met all those years ago, save for the deepening circles under his eyes. “What did I do to you?” he laughed. “Penny, this is something you brought entirely on yourself.”
“What is?” Once again, she was trying not to jump to any conclusions. It was hard to believe, however, that Tyler could be up to any good.
He glanced over his shoulder and then back at her, hunger in his eyes. “You and I both know what we could’ve achieved together if you’d only cooperated.”
“Tyler, it never would’ve worked. We’re not meant to be together.”
His hand closed around her throat so quickly, she’d hardly even caught it moving. “Don’t you dare talk to me about what’s meant to be!” he hissed, his face pressed into hers. “I had the chance to be one of the most powerful Alphas in the state, perhaps even the country. I knew what path we were headed down.”
He was crushing her windpipe, and she couldn’t argue against him.
“You want to talk about fate like it’s some magic spell. Let me tell you, Penny, I know all about magic spells. They don’t have anything to do with romance and feelings. It’s about knowing what you want and taking it. Since you wouldn’t give me what I want, I have no problem doing exactly that.” He let go with a jerk of his hand.
Penny gasped for air, feeling like a fish out of water as she stared at him. “But…Tyler…What…”
“What am I going to do?” he asked mockingly. “I’m not going to make you mine in some sham ceremony, if that’s what you’re concerned about. I deserve much better than to have to put up with you nagging me for the rest of my life. It wasn’t you I wanted anyway, but the power. I can have that. Now that I have Miguel on my side, I don’t have to settle for just my clan and yours. I can have all of them.”
Someone shouted nearby.
“Just a second,” Tyler called back. He turned back to Penny. “The sun is going to set soon, and we’ll be out of time before you know it. Tonight is the night we unleash panic and terror on the entire city. You only have two options.”
Raul’s handsome face floated in her mind’s eye, but she knew he wasn’t on Tyler’s list. “What?” she croaked.
“You can help me. You can be part of our new clan, and with your experience and skill, you’ll have no problem earning a good place. You’ll assist us in our ghostly invasion of the city.”
She shook her head, tears running down her temples and pooling in her ears. “No,” she gasped. “I won’t do that, Tyler, and you know it.”
“That’s fine,” he replied, without a hint of rage for once. An odd smile tipped up the corners of his mouth, and she noticed how dull his eyes looked. “Then I’ll kill you myself, and Migue
l will drag your soul back to serve as our slave of chaos.”
Terror ripped through her body. How could she make a choice like that? Her only hope was to stall him until she figured some way out of this. “I’ll help,” she finally said. “I’ll help you.”
“Good girl.” Tyler hopped to his feet and grabbed her hands. “Let’s go. You’ve got some training to do.”
She allowed him to keep his arm around her once she was on her feet, but only because she knew she might fall over again otherwise. Penny blinked as she looked around. “We’re at Griffith Park. At the old zoo.” A cold finger traced down her spine. When the new zoo opened, this land had simply been incorporated into the park, and it still held many of the old habitats. She’d always found those abandoned cages and caves to be creepy, and being there with Tyler wasn’t helping.
“Of course. As I’m sure you know by now, since you were so determined to figure out what was going on in the city, the ground here is even more sacred than a cemetery. We need a body or some other important object to locate a spirit, but we’ve found that the location is most important. The land here is incredible, filled with old curses and magic that dates back thousands of years. This is where we make our stand!” He gestured grandly as they moved up the crumbling asphalt path toward the enclosure that once held lions.
“If I’m going to help, then maybe you should give me a little more information,” she said, looking around and desperately hoping for either someone who could help or a good way to escape. The old zoo was already flooded with members of Miguel’s clan. They were dressed entirely in black, their thin frames moving slowly but surely as they carried bundles off a large truck. “How, exactly, are you planning to use ghosts to gain control of the local packs? It doesn’t make sense.”
“It makes perfect sense, Penny.” He let out an exasperated sigh. “This is why you never got anywhere with the Society for Spirits. You’re too busy trying to look for the logical side of things and ways to apply science. But ghosts don’t grow in a petri dish, Penny. There’s so much more to the universe than we can see; we just have to open our eyes enough to let it in.”
“Okay. You’re right.” That was always something Tyler liked to hear, even though he still wasn’t making any sense. “You’ve obviously been doing a lot more research behind the scenes than I’ve given you credit for. Just explain to me what we’re doing. I can’t help if I don’t understand it.”
“No, I’m not going to make it that easy. You’ve always been the one in charge when it comes to the LASS, and I want to know what you think. You tell me first.” He laughed as he guided her around a curve in the path.
“Um.” She quickly flipped through all the footage she’d seen over the last couple of weeks. The ghosts were all shifters. They were creating havoc throughout LA, vandalizing cars and robbing stores. Sometimes, they simply scared the shit out of people. Miguel had said something about chaos when she and Raul had seen him successfully summon a spirit. “A ghost riot? Terrorizing the town and refusing to stop until you get what you want?” Penny could see how they could have some success with that. Ghosts couldn’t be taken down by the police, or even the SOS Force.
“That was the first idea,” Tyler admitted. He walked so casually down the old trail that he might’ve been talking about the weather or griping about taking a test. It was hard to see pieces of his former self come through, especially when she knew he’d changed at heart. “Then, we realized we were missing a great opportunity. I’ll let Miguel tell you about it.”
They reached the old lion enclosure. The fence in front of it had been torn down, and several picnic tables sat near the faux caves. The same man who’d led the ceremony the previous night sat in the mouth of one of them, glaring up at them.
“Miguel, this is Penny,” Tyler said politely, giving a slight bow. “The one I told you about.”
The older man scowled up at her. “Tyler tells me you know a lot about the other side.”
She could pretend for Tyler, but not for Miguel. His energy was dark and she could feel it, even from several feet away. “I study it a lot, but I don’t know what I’m capable of.”
Miguel nodded at Tyler, who reluctantly let go of her arm and stepped back. “Sit,” he commanded, pointing at the ground.
Penny gladly obliged. She still felt dizzy from whatever drugs Tyler had used on her, and the circumstances weren’t helping.
“Here. You need to memorize this.” Miguel shoved a piece of paper at her. The lines looked like complete gibberish.
“What is it?”
“An ancient tribal ritual. Just go by the pronunciation. You can see here that this is where you pause and collect the sacrifices. The men will know what you need from them. You can watch me for the first one, and then you’ll be doing it on your own.” Miguel tapped the paper to show her what he meant as calmly as if he was going over a grocery list. He handed her a small knife. “We’re starting on those who were the youngest when they died, as they’ll have the most power left in them.”
Her stomach churned as she looked down at the stained blade, knowing exactly what it was for. “I don’t know if I can do this.”
Miguel snapped his fingers, making Tyler step forward again. “You said we had some sort of assurance for her cooperation.”
“Of course.” Tyler reached in the pocket of his black jeans and produced Penny’s charm bracelet.
She gasped, dropping the knife and slapping her hand to her naked wrist. “How dare you! Give that back to me!”
“Oh, I don’t think so. At least not until the time is right,” he replied as he dangled it on one finger.
“Tyler,” she hissed, “that’s important to me.”
He nodded. “I know. What was it you said? That Kayla’s parents gave you a bit of her ashes so you could have them turned into a little glass charm?”
Penny felt all the blood drain from her face as her eyes focused on the little blue bead. “Yes,” she whispered.
“Perfect. Then Miguel, here is your guarantee. Penny, Kayla will be the first spirit you’ll raise. She and the other dead shifters from her pack will be held as hostages, along with the souls of many others. They’ll do as we say until their clans give us control. The Alphas will be responsible for not only saving the lives of those walking the Earth, but the spirits of their dead.” Tyler tossed the bracelet to Miguel.
Bile rose in Penny’s throat. “I don’t… I don’t think…”
“Good. Don’t think. Just do as you’re told, unless you’d prefer to help our campaign in a more costly way.” Miguel tucked her bracelet in his jacket pocket for safekeeping.
“Can I have some water, please?” Penny sat on the ground and put her head between her legs, trying not to pass out. She wanted to be stronger. Perhaps in some way she was, considering that her vision hadn’t started to tunnel until after she’d watched Miguel perform the ritual. Now, saliva rushed along the sides of her tongue even as her throat went dry, and cold sweat stood out on her forehead and back.
Tyler sighed and sent someone off, who returned a short while later with a bottle of water. “Here.”
“Thank you.” The polite reply was automatic. Tyler didn’t deserve her thanks, no matter what he did, not now. She unscrewed the top and took a sip. “There’s got to be a better way. I mean, is it really worth it? Risking all these lives and souls just so you can be in charge?”
The back of his hand slammed into the side of her face, sending her reeling to the right. She caught herself on her elbow and looked up at him with shock.
“I’ve always wanted to do that.” He straightened, looking satisfied with himself. “And you’ve always deserved it. This is what’s happening, Penny. You can’t talk me out of it or try to trick me into doing something different. I’ve thought long and hard about this. I’ve played a much more patient game than you probably ever thought me capable of, and it’s about to pay off. Now let’s get this over with.”
She tightened her lips, wonder
ing if she could actually do this. Penny could no longer doubt that Miguel’s method worked, but was it truly just a matter of the right movements and words mixed with a little blood?
“Don’t tell me I have to remind you how many times you’ve whined about not being able to talk to Kayla,” Tyler mocked. He’d gotten her bracelet back from Miguel and spun it on his finger. “Every single day of our lives, it was Kayla this and Kayla that. ‘Oh, how I wish I could just see her one more time and talk to her.’ Well, your fucking wish is about to come true. You just need to quit being a little bitch about it and make it happen.”
It was the middle of the night. Penny could hear other groups of shifters moving throughout the park and the horrific moans that denoted their successes. The spirits they raised found themselves not free to go do as they wanted, but bound to the whims of Miguel and his men. She closed her eyes and tried to drown out the sounds. How could she do this? How could she have let herself get caught up in this? If only she’d listened to Raul when he’d offered to protect her from Tyler. He had no idea just how right he was.
“We don’t have all night,” Tyler warned.
She looked up at him and nodded. “Fine.”
He set Penny’s bracelet on a low stone and stepped back, moving outside the circle but right behind her in case she tried anything stupid.
Penny gripped the paper Miguel had given her in both hands as she read aloud. She didn’t understand any of the words, but she did her best as she focused on her pronunciation. This was Kayla. It was bad enough to bring anyone back who didn’t want to be, but Penny had to do this right. She intoned the words, doing her best to follow the cadence she’d heard from Miguel. Though she had no idea what the words themselves meant, she did understand their intention: call this soul back to the mortal Earth. Bring it back and bind it to me.
