Agents, Agreements and Aggravations: In Her Paranormal Majesty’s Secret Service™ Book Three

by Anderle, Michael

  Roman clamped a cigar between his teeth and lit the end. “Now, we’re talking.”

  Jennie chuckled. “The truth is, we don’t know what we’re dealing with here. Only that there is a dark power involved. We must first expel the lynchpins before the house will yield to us. Find the couple and deal with them together. Once they’re gone, this will be a piece of cake.”

  Tanya nodded resolutely. “That all sounds good, Jennie. But how do we get in if they’re blocking the doors?”

  The shriveled, ancient man that was Hendrick reached into his satchel and drew out several metallic vials with LED lights striping the sides.

  He passed them to Jennie. She placed them into the many loops and pockets she had on her pants and belt. When she was finished, there were around a dozen decorating her body, the lights glowing like small fireflies.

  “What’s that?” Baxter asked.

  Jennie motioned to Hendrick. “Care to explain?”

  “Spectral power cells,” Hendrick replied in an unimpressed tone. “A way for Jennie to draw additional power if ever needed. While she can rely on specters to provide the energy for her powers, these cells will capture energy as she expends it, and increase the boosts associated with her skills.”

  Carolyn struggled to follow. “In layman’s terms?”

  This time, Jennie answered. “Imagine it this way: if specters are the batteries that fuel my powers, this removes some of the reliance on nearby specters. I could journey alone and power myself for a short period of time—provided I’d topped up from a specter to begin with. What is incredible about Hendrick’s latest effort, is that as I latch onto specters, these capsules charge, and in doing so, the technology embedded within will create double the power against the initial input. Essentially, they’re power boosters for me.”

  Lupe shook his head in awe. “How the hell do you invent this stuff?”

  Hendrick pushed his glasses up his nose. “Science.”

  Tanya laughed. “Glad we cleared that up.”

  “Care to give us a demonstration?” Baxter asked.

  Jennie faced the door and closed her eyes. She latched onto Baxter, and as the spectral connection joined the pair, a humming started. The cells along her waist grew brighter, and soon the LED lights were shining with white beams.

  Jennie unlatched from Baxter and turned her attention to the door. She lifted her hands and felt for the spectral force hidden within the door reacting to her. A beam of energy shot from her hands and wrestled with dark shadows holding the door shut.

  White light and black shadow tousled. Jennie grimaced and could feel the power fighting back. After a few seconds of this tug-of-war, the cells depleted, and Jennie was knocked three steps back.

  Jennie chewed her lip. “It’s still going to need all of us. Sandra, do you mind giving me a hand here? Ula, Roman, Triton, stand at the ready, we’re not sure what may happen next.”

  Sandra took position next to Jennie. Jennie latched onto Baxter, and Carolyn and soon, her cells were charged again. She focused on the door with Sandra and resumed her effort to break the block. The door erupted in a rectangle of white light as a girder-bending shriek filled the night air.

  The shadows danced with the light, but they were no match. The darkness receded in a perfect arc around the door, and Jennie called to the conduits to open it while they had the chance.

  Roman, Ula, and Triton needed no encouragement. They sprinted up the stairs and gave the door a generous application of boot leather. On the second attempt, the door yielded to their kicks and they were inside.

  Jennie and Sandra held the darkness at bay as they ushered the others inside. When everyone else was inside, they crossed the threshold and released their power.

  The darkness rushed in as the doors slammed shut, barricading them all inside. Triton tried the handle. “It’s stuck fast. I hope you have an escape plan at the ready.”

  Jennie stared at the manor, on edge by how different the entire house felt compared to last time. Before, it had been an ancient ruin, ready for exploration and discovery. This time it was in defensive mode. The moonlight hardly touched the interior through the glass, the shadows moved as if they were alive, and the very air had turned frigid enough to frost their breath.

  “There is no escape plan,” Jennie replied quietly, already preparing for a coming attack. “We succeed, or we die trying.”

  “My preference is we succeed.” Carolyn grinned, trying to add some levity to the situation.

  Hendrick didn’t pick up on this. “Obviously. Who would want to die trying?”

  Carolyn looked to the others for help.

  Jennie smiled, the expression slipping away as she took her first steps toward the staircase. She wanted to make her way to the music room, the place where it had begun.

  She had no idea that the attack would come long before she made it to the top of the stairs.

  Chapter Eight

  Richmond, Virginia, USA

  The stairs creaked, bowing slightly as though the boards were rotten, which was strange considering the last time she’d had no issue climbing them.

  “Take it easy,” Jennie instructed. “Things are different this time. We need to expect the unexpected.”

  Tanya screamed. Her foot fell through one of the boards, forcing her to cling onto Lupe for support. He held her tight, his other hand holding onto the banister.

  Tanya dragged her foot out of the hole and stared into the darkness. Cackling glee echoed up from out of the pit as the poltergeists wheeled excitedly around the basement.

  “Come on!” Jennie shouted, exploding into a run.

  The others followed her lead. Baxter was at her side. She was only a few steps from safety when something strange happened. She had counted the five steps she needed to ascend to make it to the landing, but somehow they began to stretch on before her, casting themselves into an infinite treadmill. Jennie was sure she was moving, but there they were, five steps in front of her, again, and again.

  And again.

  And again.

  “Jennie? What’s going on?” Carolyn cried.

  Jennie glanced over her shoulder. The stairs were gone. Only the bodies of her comrades were visible, floating on a bed of darkness as they all ran after her, suspended above an eternal abyss.

  “The manor is playing with our minds,” Jennie declared. “Don’t let it in. If we do, we’ll… Shit—”

  Jennie’s stomach jumped to her throat. The floor opened and the landing slipped away. She became aware of splintered wood and a sudden drop before her feet found concrete and she was jarred by the abrupt stop.

  She bent her knees, positioning into a roll to absorb the shock.

  Jennie stood and looked around the dark basement for the others. She could hear their groans but couldn’t see them. She drew her cell phone and activated the flashlight app, sending its conical beam of light into the darkness.

  She didn’t like what she saw.

  The specters were fine and on their feet already. Jennie was relieved to see that Sandra had turned Tanya spectral and she had been cushioned from the blow.

  Ula, Roman, and Triton had each landed in an uneasy pile, but due to their military training had braced themselves for the fall. A strange lump moved across Triton’s back, and Jennie almost laughed when Hendrick turned and came into view.

  She counted the fallen, discovering one person missing. “Where’s Lupe?”

  A pained grunt came from the middle of one of the piles of trashy antiques. “Over here!”

  Jennie ran over the debris and found Lupe holding his shin in a pile of vintage appliances. Sewing machines and an old gas oven were stacked near the top of the pile. A large shard of wood was protruding from Lupe’s skin.

  “It’s deep!” Lupe complained. “It’s deep! I’m going to die! I’m going to die!”

  “Hendrick! We need you.”

  The mole-like man shuffled across the junk at surprising speed, settling in beside Lupe. “I
t is merely a flesh wound. We can fix this up in an instant.”

  He grabbed the wood, and Lupe reacted by slapping away his hand. “What are you doing, you psychopath? It hurts!”

  Hendrick showed no sympathy at all. Instead, he motioned for Jennie to hold Lupe down while he got to work. She obliged and gripped Lupe’s shoulders with surprising strength. Hendrick clasped the wood and ripped it out in one swift move. A moment later, amidst Lupe’s cries of anguish, he had applied a gelatinous ointment and wrapped the wound in gauze.

  “There,” Hendrick declared.

  Lupe screwed his eyes shut, then noticed that the pain had instantly vanished. He tentatively glanced at his shin and gave it a small wriggle. “What did you do to me?”

  Hendrick shrugged and pushed his glasses up on his nose with a finger. “Fixed you.”

  Lupe looked at Jennie. She shook her head. “Just let it go. He doesn’t share his secrets, but they work. Trust me.”

  Lupe examined his leg, expecting to see a glob of blood collecting on the gauze, but the damn thing was clean. “Impossible.”

  “Nothing is impossible,” Hendrick croaked, nodding at the three shining specters flying toward them.

  “Right on cue,” Jennie sighed.

  The poltergeists cackled, circling above them at an impressive speed. The conduits stood ready with their weapons and aimed them at the specters, but Jennie quelled their eagerness. “Don’t shoot. They’re as much victims of the house as we are.”

  The specters soared overhead again, this time sucking up furniture and bric-a-brac around them in the mini-gale they created.

  The team shielded against the barrage with their arms before Jennie called out to them, “Enough! Do I need to give you another demonstration of my powers?”

  The poltergeist in the robe hesitated and floated above Jennie. “You have returned? Are you stupid as well as dumb?”

  The second specter paused beside him. He elbowed the first poltergeist hard in the ribs. “Stupid and dumb are the same thing.”

  “You would know,” the first specter retorted.

  They squared up and stared at each other with anger in their faces, only breaking apart when the third poltergeist swept between them and hurled a stack of books at Jennie.

  He pivoted with a triumphant laugh, and tried to escape in a flurry of movement, but Jennie latched on and held him back. His mirth melted into instant concern as he struggled against her bond. “Release me! Brothers, assist me, won’t you?”

  The other poltergeists folded their arms and grinned. “Your mess. You get out of it.”

  Jennie exchanged a look with the pair. “And you thought you were the dumb ones.”

  They cackled enthusiastically, watching their brother squirm. The specter Jennie had control of tried everything he could to free himself as she dragged him closer toward her, but nothing worked.

  Eventually, he gave up and glared at her, folding his arms. “It’s no fun if you cheat.”

  “It’s no fun if you forget what I’m capable of,” Jennie retorted, holding the poltergeist an arm’s length away. “Have we not already been through all of this with you?”

  “It’s in our nature,” the first brother declared. “Don’t blame us for what we’ve become. Mischief is our business, darkness is our friend.”

  Baxter looked at him curiously. “I thought it was the darkness that was keeping you lot holed up in this squalid little basement?”

  The first brother gasped. “Squalid?”

  The second brother placed a hand on his chest. “Little?”

  The third brother chuckled darkly. “This basement is a palace.” His laughter faded as his thoughts took over. “Although it’s not the same as roaming the upstairs halls and haunting the brave little children.”

  “You met them, didn’t you?” the first brother asked. “You saw them together?” He knitted his fingers as though sharing a dirty secret. “How was it? Did she scare you? Oh, I bet she did, didn’t she? Terrorized you and flung you from the house. Poor little mortal.”

  Jennie glared at the specter, and he instantly shut up. “You three know this house better than anyone else we know. How long has the darkness lived in the house? How did this all come to be?”

  The poltergeists exchanged glances with each other and asked for the third to be released from Jennie’s grip. She obliged, and they entered a huddle in which all that could be heard was their furious whispering.

  They eventually broke apart. The second poltergeist took a slight move toward the group. “We will tell you. Though, we wish for something in return.”

  Jennie curled her lip. “Name it.”

  In unison, they replied, “We wish for our freedom.”

  Carolyn pulled up beside Jennie. “I thought poltergeists couldn’t be freed from the locations in which they haunt? Are you asking to be exorcized?”

  At once, all three poltergeists’ eyes widened in fear. They waved their hands.

  The first poltergeist nearly choked. “No! No, no, no! Not that. Not that at all!”

  The third poltergeist clarified, “We mean that we know there are skills within you beyond our understanding, and you are clearly on the warpath to expunge the evil from this house. What we ask is that you do not include us in your fruitful bounty.”

  The first brother pulled a face. “Fruitful bounty?”

  The third brother groaned. “Excuse me for getting decorative with language.”

  The second brother exploded in laughter.

  The third brother continued. “What I mean to say is, leave us be. We like this house. We mean no harm to those who intrude within the borders of our property. We just wish to have some fun.”

  “At others’ expense,” Baxter grumbled.

  The first brother grinned. “Usually.”

  “Often,” added the second brother, his smile stretching across his face.

  “Fine.” Jennie offered a hand. “You help us, we’ll help you.”

  Baxter leaned toward Jennie. “Are you sure about this? What about the plan?”

  Jennie spoke out the side of her mouth, “Don’t worry. We got this.”

  The second brother clapped his hands. “Well, thanks for whispering for our benefit, there was no way we heard that.” He floated toward Jennie and grabbed her hand. “Either way, a deal’s a deal. No taking it back now that it’s been made. An agreement among gentlemen.”

  “Gentlemen?” Carolyn scoffed. “I’m surprised you have any morals at all.”

  Jennie interjected before the poltergeists could reply. “A deal is a deal. Tell us what you know.”

  The three floated down to sit on the piles of trash on the ground. As the house creaked and groaned above them, they told them everything.

  * * *

  The house hadn’t always been haunted, most houses don’t begin their life cycle tormented by the specters. Built atop the hill for a wealthy couple who had traveled over from Britain, the house had once been a shining beacon of what could be achieved by those who pursued the American dream.

  Life was simple, to begin with. The Mendlesons did what every young couple did and built a home to become their nest. Annabel Mendleson was a fertile woman and bore many children in her lifetime, delivering children for her husband until she was well into her forties. By the time her final breath was counted, there would be no less than twenty-six of her offspring roaming around the house, including many sets of twins and even one of triplets.

  As the years went on, Annabel grew concerned about the darkness that had begun to creep into her life. Age had darkened her vision, and soon enough, she realized that her eyesight was failing her. A few months later her vision failed entirely, leaving her to stumble around the house and chase the children while her husband Theodor continued to make the money and run the business.

  One night, a storm hit Richmond. The rains yelled, and the winds shouted back. The house rocked on its foundations, and lightning broke the darkness in camera flashes. It was on thi
s night that Annabel summoned a priestess to her bedside who promised to return her eyesight.

  The priestess could be heard calling and declaring her chants from across the city. Her voice, unnaturally loud, carried into the ears of the children. They hid in their beds as flashes of white exploded from the Mendlesons’ windows.

  When Annabel’s husband returned home, fighting the elements to reach his manor, his wife was nowhere to be seen.

  Not much is known about what happened that night, only that Annabel disappeared. The children knew nothing of what occurred in that room, yet they sensed that their mother was still near. Often, they would dream of her standing and watching by their bedsides, but when they woke up, they’d see nothing but the shadows crawling around the room.

  Until one day, they too began to disappear.

  It is said that Annabel took the children, one by one, dragging them into her bosom and holding them within the confines of their house. Theodor receded from the community, concerned for his children’s safety, and soon abandoned his business altogether. Six months after Annabel went missing, he had but one child remaining.

  He clung to that boy for dear life, yet refused to abandon the house, hoping he could bring back the other children. Late one night, his wish was granted, although it was not in the way he had expected.

  Annabel came to him at midnight, in the middle of Richmond’s next great storm. She looked peaceful, glowing in white light and surrounded by her children. She invited Theodor and their youngest son to join them, claiming that they would forever be united, immortal and able to live their lives together. Theodor, so weary worn and desperate, said yes almost instantly.

  It was two weeks later that the postman discovered that the house was all but empty, realizing that his deliveries had stacked up against the door and were blocking the mailbox.

  There was an investigation, and then the house was put on the market. It remained empty until three months after the disappearance of the Mendlesons, when the house was purchased by…