Blood (The Grimm Cases Book 3)

by Lyla Oweds

  “None.”

  Brayden bristled once before he joined into the conversation. “He killed Lily. She was scared of him.”

  To his credit he didn’t react to having a hate-filled ghost focused on him. “She may have rebuffed his advances, but he didn’t hurt her. He would not have even been there if he’d realized…”

  His presence, his inaction, was branded into my memory. As well as Lily’s helplessness as James watched, but didn’t help, from across the room. “But he was there,” I told her.

  The air grew dark again, but this time caused only by a singular spirit. But why there was such pain underlying James’s fury, I didn’t understand.

  “Rosanne,” I recaptured her attention. She, too, glanced around the room at the change. “What is he doing?”

  “He tried to stop it,” Rosanne accused, her eyes meeting mine. “To stop you. She was everything to him. And you let her go.”

  I blinked at her, confused. “What are you—”

  Flashes of pain and befuddled thoughts. A lost boy, raised in evil and fear. He struggled to break through the cloak of his indifference in order to save her smile. He was too late though, and she paid for his cowardice with her life.

  He didn’t escape unscathed. His late attempt at intervention had almost botched the ritual. For a year, he was locked away, alone with his unstable memories. His guilt. The self-loathing. Until, when he feared he’d go insane, he was reunited with her once again.

  Yet, she wanted nothing to do with him. Still he didn’t care. He was content to watch from afar, for eternity.

  They’d be together for an eternity. He’d protect her where he’d failed before. It was safest if she stayed with him.

  But now his reason was gone. Sent away by the intruders who had disturbed his world. How could this be happening?

  A mother. Terrified. Only able to watch in silence as her son was led astray. Heartbreak. The helplessness of not being able to defend her child. Obligation. Perhaps now she could finally see him happy.

  I blinked as the wave of thoughts and feelings ebbed. Another pang through my head, and a faint wet feeling tricked down my neck. I’d already gathered that James had been obsessed with Lily. This had solidified that theory.

  But there was more significance to what had just happened, I was sure.

  Spirits couldn’t divulge how they died. But that didn’t mean I couldn’t guess.

  “James was mentally challenged, wasn’t he? Either he was born that way, or his issues stemmed from abuse. But there’s something off in his thinking. Despite that, even though he was scared of his father, he tried to stop the ritual anyway.” I held Rosanne’s gaze, measuring the truth of my words in her eyes. “Edward tortured and killed him in retaliation. He’s obsessed with Lily, and that’s why he tried to scare me away. He didn’t want her to leave.”

  The air stilled as James quieted. Rosanne blinked at me.

  For a moment, I thought I might have been wrong. It would have been a shame to fail so miserably, but par for the course.

  “I almost lost him when he was born. He was never right after that,” Rosanne replied, her voice soft. “But he was never evil. As a child, he was loving, sweet, and kind. He was protective of his belongings, his pets, and me. Edward took advantage of James’s good heart and ruled over him with an iron fist. He threatened everything James loved, and tried to mold him into someone he wasn’t.”

  My breath caught. I’d been afraid, because I’d been targeted by an angry spirit and it’d been scary. But never once had I considered a deeper meaning.

  What if, in his own way, James thought he was protecting Lily?

  “By the time he was a teenager,” Rosanne continued, “James had locked away that part of himself. He was sullen and withdrawn, though he always longed for his father’s affection. Edward used that eagerness to brainwash him when he began to expose James to his practice.”

  “Which practice is that?” Bryce interjected. I startled, glancing at him. But his eyes were fixated on Rosanne, as were Damen and Brayden’s. Julian was still behind me, so I couldn’t see him.

  But I could see Titus and Miles, and the scene confused me. Both were also looking directly at Rosanne.

  I glanced back at Julian, to see him watching as well. But upon my movement, he brushed his lips against my ear. “Remember, you’ve called her here. She’ll stay visible until she leaves.”

  Inclining my head, I shifted my focus back to Rosanne.

  She was nervous now, but her shoulders squared as she spoke. “The Cole family has dabbled in the dark arts for generations. Their brilliance is their ability to cloak their skill. They use their unpresuming nature, and their arts, to gain a following. They use borrowed magic to remove obstacles and manipulate the populace. They use their power to make it so they won’t be questioned.”

  “What is the ritual?” Miles asked, his voice steady. “What is the purpose?”

  “They are powerful, but no one is that powerful.” Rosanne hugged herself. “I’ve seen the ritual on countless occasions. The first time, days before my wedding. And I personally witnessed the memories many times over. Upon ingesting the essence—the heart—of a victim, Edward would become better able to cast his magic. For them to remain in power, they had to remain outwardly unthreatening. Otherwise, half of our population would never trust them. Their magic had to be more subtle than most so people would never realize they’d been bewitched. But strong enough to hold a thrall over the masses.”

  “That explains a lot.” Miles was frowning. “But what about the curse that had targeted Bianca?”

  “It’s an afterthought, woven into the remains of previous victims.” Rosanne glanced at him. “They exist throughout the surrounding areas. The ritual must be redone every few years. It is potent spellwork, so a certain level of strength from the sacrifice is required. As well as other requirements: How likely would the victim be missed? Is she physically healthy? For a girl to trigger the curse, proximity is enough. At that point, whichever member of the Cole family needed help would feel the pull. A draining spell exists to weaken the victim enough to where they can’t fight back. It also takes time to locate the next target, exactly. But the draining aspect is lifted briefly during the ritual itself.”

  “How could you never have told anyone what was happening?” Julian interjected. “You could have stopped this.”

  I pulled the blanket tight as I fought to not react. Julian’s accusing tone caused an agonizing stab to shoot through my chest. My focus shifted, and it became hard to breathe. To follow the conversation.

  Yet it continued around me.

  “I couldn’t.” Rosanne shivered. “They had a large family, and used my son and the life of my family against me.”

  “They had a large family then,” Damen mused, glancing at Titus. “But there’s not many left. The older generation died mysterious deaths throughout the years, and our parents’ generation never had many children. Alexander Cole never even married.”

  “Who is the biggest threat today?” Miles asked.

  “I don’t trust Alexander, but for other reasons,” Titus’s voice rumbled through the room. “But as the chief of police, he also has the means to hide any missing persons reports. He would also have been able to access Caleb Weaver’s home.”

  “He’s a possibility, but he’s hours away. If someone is trying to find Bianca, they have to be nearby. I don’t know if Garrett is at his estate,” Damen mused. “Senate isn’t in session now, so he might be back. But my father hasn’t mentioned seeing him lately, and they usually meet for dinner once a week.”

  “Garrett has a son too.” Bryce was frowning. “What about Daniel?”

  “I’m not certain of events outside of this estate.” Rosanne cocked her head. “But if they are Edward’s relations, I wouldn’t trust any of them. They teach every male.”

  Brayden seemed deep in thought. “I’ll check on both Garrett and Daniel. I’ve heard that Daniel might be running fo
r office too. But I’m not sure.”

  “That being said,”—Bryce glanced at Rosanne—“what do you think we should do? I don’t think your son is going to move on peacefully. You know he is almost lost to us. Surely you can feel it. Do you think he can resist?”

  Bryce’s redirection highlighted the heaviness of the room.

  “What’s are you talking about?’ I asked, noticing the flickering bulb once again.

  Bryce sighed, pinching his nose. “A spirit is mostly emotion. Heavy emotions, such as those present during the time a person passes, are generally prevalent after death. When someone is weak-minded and they’ve suffered a lot in life, it’s easy for them to lose their sense of self entirely.”

  That still didn’t answer my question, and I didn’t appreciate his attitude.

  Thankfully, Brayden picked up where Bryce left off. “When someone loses their ability to reason, you cannot have a rational conversation with them. They stew. If they lose their sense of purpose, it gets worse. If they are not forced to move on, or exorcised, they become unrecognizable as human. They become something other, phantoms. Phantoms are a danger to all living things, and can no longer be saved. She was almost at that point.” He gestured toward Rosanne. “But you’ve brought her back. Her mind, however, is more sound than James’s.”

  Rosanne had her hand to her mouth as she nervously looked at me. Apparently, Brayden’s words had made her nervous. “I won’t go. I can’t, not until I know he’s safe.”

  “You’re his mother,” Bryce responded coldly. “He’s in tune with your emotions. I don’t have to be an empath to know what you’re feeling. If we’re going to have any luck, it can’t be with you feeling guilty all over the place. It will undermine any attempt to save him. Right now, you being here is making things worse.”

  “But…” She barely spared Bryce a glance before she met my eyes again. “He’s already upset because of Lily. He won’t understand.”

  Dead for almost a century, she held on to the desire to protect her child from what she could. Even if it was from the consequences of his own actions. She felt driven to make up for what she couldn’t, and didn’t, do for him while he was still alive.

  The buzzing in my ears began again, making my head feel fuzzy. “I’ll try to talk to him.” There was one way I might be able to get through to him, but I’d have to preserve my strength for that conversation.

  “Only if he’s receptive,” Damen interjected. “Which he might not be.”

  “You won’t exorcise him?” Rosanne nervously looked to Damen. “He’s done a terrible thing, but the situation—”

  “We’ll try to avoid it,” Damen replied, sounding almost relieved. “But in case we can’t, is there an item that you might have hidden away somewhere? Something belonging to him?”

  Rosanne was silent, emotions between sadness and determination, before determination finally won out. She swallowed, and her shaking arm lifted as she pointed to the far corner of the room. “Under the floorboards, we’d hide some of his toys when his father…” Her voice trailed off. Her attention returned to me as Miles and Titus headed where she’d pointed. “You’ll try? Promise me that you’ll try to do what it takes. Even if you need to force him to go. Only you have a chance of doing it.”

  Bryce waved his arm, cutting in. “She can’t—”

  “I promise.” I nodded, hoping this wouldn’t come back to haunt me later.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Bianca

  Dark

  She smiled then—a sad smile that caused my chest to constrict painfully—and then she was gone.

  With her absence, the air in the room lifted. Rosanne’s departure, combined with Lily’s absence, left the house feeling empty.

  Well, except for James.

  And James wasn’t happy. Gradually, a shadow began to seep inward from every corner of the room. The feeling of being watched, hated, grew more profound each passing moment.

  I could feel only him now. Anger, confusion, and fear. He wouldn’t approach us, not without being forced. He was too afraid.

  I could have called him, like I had with Rosanne. I just wanted this over. But my head pounded, and I was dizzy despite being held up by Julian.

  I only needed a minute.

  “Downstairs,” Bryce said, speaking to the others. “Just in case. That’s where we’re set up.”

  Despite Bryce’s annoyingly bossy tone, everyone must have agreed. A second later, I was lifted from Julian as Damen picked me up and carried me down the stairs. He didn’t meet my eyes, his serious gaze watching his steps. And I should have protested. It shouldn’t have felt nice to be held by him—I was still supposed to be angry.

  The mood was too dark for me to protest, anyway. It felt as though everyone had already resigned themselves. That they were mentally preparing to go through with the exorcism.

  But I had promised Rosanne.

  It was hard to think.

  I wasn’t feeling any better. Even after Julian sat on the couch and Damen tucked me next to him. It took all my focus to murmur an acknowledgement. Neither man looked happy, and I was trying to act like nothing was wrong. However, in reality, I didn’t think I’d ever had such a terrible headache before in my life.

  “Rest for a while. Let Bryce and Brayden take over.” Julian patted back my hair, tucking the locks behind my ears. “You’ve done very well…” His words trailed off. His concerned expression morphed into horror as he pulled his hand back. “You’re bleeding!”

  It was on the tip of my tongue to deny it, although that would have been stupid. The evidence was right in front of me, smeared over his fingers. But I felt lethargic and disjoined, as I was suddenly flat on my back on the couch. My hair was gathered by large hands, lifted from my face. Titus brushed his fingers over my forehead, helping Julian as the other man inspected my ears.

  “Bianca,” Julian said, his face the only thing I could focus on. “Can you hear me?”

  I made some noise in response and saw relief cross over his expression. Even so, his voice was still shaky. “What hurts?”

  “Headache,” I somehow muttered, the word sounding loud through the pounding in my skull.

  I heard Damen from far away, his tone stricken. “It has to be a side effect. Her body isn’t ready to handle this level of magic. She’s done too much tonight. She’s pushing herself too hard. This is why we didn’t want her to do anything at all.”

  “I only wanted to see what she could do.” Bryce sounded defensive.

  “Both of you, shut up. I’m trying to concentrate.” Julian said before refocusing on me. “Come here, darling.” The world shifted as I was tucked into his arms. “Let me take care of you.” His breath was soft against my face.

  A tingling sensation washed over me. The rough tide of pain that had been so crippling receded. In its wake, smooth relief remained. My eyes blinked open, and my vision was filled with Julian’s intense blue gaze.

  I jerked back an inch, surprised. He smiled at me in response. “Better?”

  At my nod, Julian helped me return to the couch beside him. Titus was at my other side and began to clean my face with a wet, pink handkerchief. I probably should have remarked on the color of his tissue, but my mind was still catching up to what had just happened.

  How many times had Julian helped me already, and I didn’t realize? The guys had said this was dangerous. Was Julian doing for me what Damen had done for Miles?

  I glanced at Damen. “Did he do the same thing you did?” Panic touched me, and I looked back towards Julian. “Will you be okay?”

  “It’s fine, dearest.” Julian smiled as he took the cloth from Titus and cleaned my other ear. “I’m nowhere near my limit. And even if I were, that’s what Titus is for.”

  Titus scoffed.

  “That’s twice tonight that she’s had to be assisted.” Bryce crossed his arms, watching us disapprovingly. “She should be able to handle these things. How long has this been going on? What was it doin
g exactly?”

  “The medication?” Damen frowned at Bryce. “I suppose we’ll need Finn to tell us. But at most…” He looked at me curiously. “Ten years?”

  “Not that long.” I stared at my blanket, which had been wrapped around me again. “I wasn’t on medication right away. Remember, at first, Finn was excited I could see ghosts.” My gaze turned up, and I noticed Bryce and Brayden listening with unconcealed curiosity. My heart raced. I hadn’t told them this. What if they thought something was wrong with me?

  I tore my focus from them, watching only Damen, and my heart calmed once again. “Even after everything that happened, I wasn’t put on medication until a short while later.”

  Damen’s eyes simmered, and his mouth pressed in a thin line. “We’ll get to the bottom of it,” he promised. “So, more like nine years?” At my nod, he touched his glasses. “When it’s been that long, a year or two doesn’t matter. The point is, it will take time. And you’ll likely have physical effects coming off of it. You’ve done enough for tonight. Let Bryce handle it from this point forward.”

  Bryce stiffened at being singled out. “Me?”

  “Well, of course. You’re the Er Bashou.” Damen shrugged. “Surely, you’ll want to showcase your skills. After all, we’ve still got James to contend with. And Bianca showed you hers.”

  Bryce’s face paled, and he suddenly looked nervous.

  Brayden too, his focus torn between Damen and his brother. “This is something an empath should handle.” He stepped closer to Bryce. “When dealing with a spirit of this nature, it requires a certain… sensitivity. Bryce, you’re not the greatest with—”

  “Don’t tell people I’m not sensitive!” Bryce suddenly pushed past Brayden as he stepped forward. “And don’t misconstrue my intentions. That’s not what I—”

  “Can I see?”

  I’d been thinking how it would be to watch someone else do ghostly things. With Lily and Rosanne, I had made up everything as I went. It wasn’t until Bryce’s wide eyes snapped to mine that I realized I’d asked my question out loud.

  Then, he grinned.