by Natasha Deen
“When did that happen?” asked Kent.
“Yesterday,” she said. “I would’ve told you but you haven’t been around.”
“But I’m still around, now.” His shoulder bowed. “If she was reason I was lingering, I should be gone, then. But I’m not. I’m not here to save anyone, am I? I’m here because I can’t let go of my death.”
I nodded.
“Then it was me who called The Family. They must have been tracking me or something because—”
“This isn’t all on you,” I told him. “That was an Ouija board and three supernatural beings in one place at one time when it was activated, and you walked into it. The Family was always coming.” That wasn’t exactly true, but I didn’t want to pile on him. “It just lucked out because you were here.”
“Still.” Kent looked ready to throw up. “If that thing had touched me, I would’ve been sucked in.” He stood, wobbled on his feet. “I feel nauseous. Can ghosts puke?”
“The bathroom’s over there.” I pointed at the door.
He gave a sickly nod and walked over on shaky feet.
“You’re not going to tell him?” asked Serge.
I shook my head.
“Good. He’s dealing with enough crap.”
Nell held up her phone. “You guys lost me. What’s really going on?”
“I didn’t lie,” I said. “Supernaturals like me and Craig should never be around Ouija boards, but The Family came because of Kent, it honed on his energy.” I paused, debated how much to tell Nell about their rage and hatred, about their lust for revenge. “Serge knew who killed him, but Kent has no idea who’s responsible for his death. He’s an overachiever and now he’s overachieving at being angry.”
“Okay,” Nell said, “I get it. You can’t tell the guy who lived his life according to do no harm that he almost killed people because he couldn’t deal with his emotions.”
“The Family isn’t just about finding killers,” said Craig. “They’re vigilantes. It’s why they can’t transition, why they get angrier and more dangerous with every soul they ingest.”
“That doesn’t explain Casper,” said Nell. “Look at him. If Kent was their dinner, then Serge was an appetizer. We got justice for you…what are you not telling us?”
Serge didn’t speak immediately. Then he said, “I’m not as over my death as I thought.” He struggled to sit up but Nell pushed him back down. “Sometimes, I still think of it...think of all the things I’ll never get to do and I get mad. My life was taken from me, so was my life’s destiny. I was supposed to become a really good guy. Instead, I died a jerk.” He took a deep breath. “I know I’m lucky. I have a resolution of sorts and I get a do-over because of my link with you, Mags, but sometimes...sometimes, I wish for revenge.”
“It’s normal,” said Craig. “And it’ll pass, if you let it.”
I pulled the sleeve of my shirt over my hand and used it as a rag to wipe the sweat from Serge’s brow. “I’m sorry, Boo-Boo.”
“I thought…I thought this afterlife would be a new chance, a way to start over and erase my past and those feelings, but Craig said—”
“The actions we take in life follow us in death, and follow us into the next lifetime.”
“I made some pretty crap decisions in life,” said Serge.
“You will always have to guard against giving into the darkness.” Craig put his hand on the ghost’s shoulder. “But then again, we all have to guard against the darkness.”
“Thanks for saying all,” said Serge. “But we know I’ll have to be more watchful than anyone else.” His gaze flicked to the bathroom door. “The Family didn’t even try for Captain Canuk once they latched on to me. I guess I haven’t become as good as guy as I thought.”
“Yes you have. And the only reason he’s okay is because you saved him,” I said. Wait a second. We were two people down on the saving score. “How are Tammy and Bruce?”
“As far as they know, the board flew through the air and knocked them out,” said Craig. “I moved them so they didn’t wake up under the table but on the couch.”
“I told them you bonked your head and were sleeping,” said Nell. “And then I got them out and told them to stay quiet.”
“Which they will,” said Craig, “but what happened didn’t turn them off. They want to do it again.”
“They’re super excited about the whole thing,” Nell said. “We’re one creaking door away from them pitching us to some network as the next reality series: Dead Falls, come for the small town atmosphere, stay for the poltergeists.”
Great, just great. They weren’t going to back off. Another thing for me to worry about. Actually two things. One: their safety. Two: them finding out about my secret.
Craig stood. “You’re both okay and I need to go. I think I caught all of the energy of The Family and sent it back to limbo, but I need check and make sure it’s all back there. Even if one soul escaped my net, it remains a danger. It can call its brothers and sisters back to it, or find new co-hosts.”
I thought of the vandalism and graffiti going around town. “How dangerous is it if it’s here? Are we going to see petty crimes become something more?”
“It’s weak because it’s alone, and as long as it doesn’t find a host, we’ll be fine.”
“What kind of hosts does it like?” asked Nell. “Blond, cute girls with a lot of sass or—?”
“You’ll be fine. But Serge, you and Kent need to be careful until I find it. The soul won’t be strong enough to do anything but whisper in your ear. But if you start having thoughts that don’t seem natural, let me know.”
“Define natural,” said Serge. “I still think about revenge and what I lost.”
“There’ll be an…element to it. It won’t just be I wish I were still alive. There’ll be a push for you to do something more than think about it. You’ll feel the urge to go out and do something, to get the bad guy. Since we got your bad guy, that should be your first clue. If it latches in, you’ll feel it in your stomach, like worms crawling around.”
Serge raised his hand. “Okay, just asking. It’s my first stab at potentially being demonically possessed. I want to make sure I know the symptoms.”
“Trust me,” said Craig as he stood and headed for the door. “You’ll know. We’ll all know.”
I pulled him into the hallway. “You said Nell would be fine,” I kept my voice low. “But you didn’t say anything about the rest of the living.”
“Normally, The Family isn’t a threat to the living. They target lost and angry souls, but the more spirits in their collective, the more powerful they can be. And if they ingest a strong soul, that also makes them more powerful. Get enough strength together and they can whisper to the living and latch into them that way…”
“Point taken.”
“Nell really will be okay,” said Craig. “If I was one of the legion, I’d be too afraid to mess with her.”
I laughed, kissed him, and went back to the room.
Kent came out of the bathroom, shoulders hunched, his hand on his stomach.
I wanted to talk to him about the fire and the drugs, but he looked like it was taking all his strength to stay upright.
“You look like crap,” said Serge. “You okay?”
“That thing…I feel like I’ve got the stomach flu.”
“Me too,” said Serge.
“Yeah,” I nodded. “It’s the run-off of all the stuff that just happened. It’ll pass.” I stood and went to him. “Nothing else?”
“Nausea, heavy limbs, lightheaded. Why? Should I be feeling other stuff?”
“No.” I took in his pale face, held his clammy hands in mine. “Craig gave us the rundown on what it’ll look like if The Family comes for you. I want to make sure you’re okay—”
“What are the symptoms?” he asked.
“Voices in your head. Feeling like there’s something crawling in your body.”
My words managed to make him look even sicker. “God, please,” he said. “Help me figure out how to cross over. Please don’t let that happen to me.”
“We won’t,” I said.
“You want to lie down or something?” asked Serge. “You really do look like crap.”
“I want to go home. Can someone give me a ride? I need to check in with my folks,” said Kent. “I want to really be with my parents. Maybe they’ll feel—” His eyes filled with tears. “Isn’t this stupid?” He swiped them away. “I lived my whole life with the goal of being an adult, not needing my mom. And now, I feel sick and scared and I wish—” He choked back a sob. “I wish she was here to hug me and tell me everything was going to be okay.”
“Everything will be okay,” Nell said. “I need to head out, anyway. I’ll drop you home.”
Kent nodded. “I’ll wait by the front door.” He shuffled out.
“We need to transition Kent,” said Serge, once Kent was gone. “The longer he’s on this side—”
“The more likely he is to become one of those wandering souls,” I finished.
Nell sighed and squeezed Serge’s hand. “I hate to think of Kent suffering in death.”
It was more than that. In life, Kent had been driven. Motivated. Organized. If he went poltergeist or hooked up with The Family, I didn’t even want to think about the damage he could do to both the living and the dead. I gave Nell a hug goodbye, then sat with Serge and tried to figure out how to solve Kent’s murder and get him to move on before The Family claimed his soul.
Chapter Twenty-Six
I spent the next day at home and Nell played hooky and hung out with me. Around three o’clock, she got up from the kitchen table. “Come on, we’re going to be late.”
“Late for what?” I asked.
“Do you not read your texts? Or listen to Harriet or—”
“The fact I’m asking, ‘late for what,’ should be your answer.”
Nell rolled her eyes. “There’s a town meeting about the vandalism and the murders.”
“Wait. Now?”
She nodded.
I stood and turned to Serge. “You coming?”
“Definitely,” said Serge.
I texted Dad and Nancy to let them know where I was going—and that Nell the Enforcer was with me. Then we headed out to the meeting.
“Whoa, this place is packed.” Nell’s gaze swept the gym.
Town hall hadn’t been large enough to contain the crowd, so the meeting was moved to the school. The bleachers were full, so people lined the walls or sat in chairs by the podium.
My cell binged. Technically, Dad’s cell. He’d leant me his until the weekend, when we’d go and buy a second-hand one for me. With the way I shorted them out, he’d said there was no point in buying me anything new.
I took it out and read the text. “Dad says he and Nancy are on the north side of the bleachers, which means they’re…” I opened my compass app.
“Stop before you hurt yourself, Johnson,” said Nell. “They’re over there. Is Craig coming?”
“No.” I pushed through the crowd. “He’s still looking for The Family.”
We found them and Nancy hugged me then pulled away. “I wanted to bring popcorn. Your dad wouldn’t let me.”
“You know she’ll throw it,” said Dad. “And when law enforcement goes rogue, what hope is there for the rest of us?”
“This is the kind of stuff that creates relationship baggage,” said Nancy. “You’re restricting me as an individual.”
“Ignore her.” Dad gave me a hug. “She’s been grumpy all day because of the city police.”
“Still?” I asked.
She snorted and shook her head. “Getting a straight answer from those people—”
“Let’s go for a walk.” Dad took her hand. “Outside, in case your head explodes. Maggie, text Nancy when the meeting starts.”
“Don’t,” said Nancy. “Council made a last minute decision to have me head the meeting, which is politician speak for let’s get the sheriff to take all the heat.”
Dad pulled her away. “Let’s get you some air…”
I tracked them as they left and in the mass of humanity, I spotted Dr. Pierson, alone. “Do you think Rori’s here?”
“No dice,” said Nell. “Last I heard, Mrs. P was packing them up to leave town.”
“Seriously?”
“A couple nights ago, I tried again to see Rori. I phoned but the whole thing was a hot mess. Mrs. P said I broke her trust. And that she and Rori need to concentrate on healing the family. Which is just crap. She’s just mad because Rori would rather be with me.” Her eyes misted. “It got worse from there. Mrs. P and the doc started screaming at each other. He was yelling that I should be able to come over, she was yelling about him being an absent father and husband.” She took a long breath. “The worst was hearing Rori crying in the background, begging them to stop fighting...I may have said some things that I don’t regret saying, but do regret the way I said it.”
“Oh boy. I can imagine.”
“Mrs. P got off the phone pretty quick.” She winced. “She slammed the phone down on me.”
“What are you going to do? Can your folks help?”
She snorted. “The adults are smart enough to stay away from a couple on the brink of a bitter divorce.”
“But you on the other hand—”
“Am planning to stop by and see Rori tomorrow. Wanna come?”
“Wouldn’t miss it.”
The gym went suddenly quiet. I followed the direction of everyone’s gaze and saw Principal Larry striding into the gym and toward the podium.
Nell groaned. “They’re having him open the meeting? He’s never going to give up that mic.”
“I guess because the school’s hosting the meeting. Anyway, that works out great for Nancy.”I tuned out as he did the usual spiel of acknowledging the staff, students, and the townspeople.
Nell crowd-watched, then grabbed my hand pulled. “Isn’t that Mr. and Mrs. Meagher?”
I followed the direction of her gaze. “Yeah, those are the Meaghers.”
“Last month,” Principal Larry said as the crowd collectively leaned forward. “We suffered a tragedy. Actually, we suffered many tragedies. But this school has now seen the loss of not just one but two of its students. Sergei Popov and Kent Meagher.”
Ignoring the principal, going on my tiptoes, I scanned the area around the Meaghers for Kent. “But I don’t see Kent…”
“Hey, guys.”
“Hey, I was just looking for you.” I swung around to face Kent. “Holy crap!” I pedalled back. Then forward. “Nell, quick. Stand here.” I pointed to the spot directly behind the ghost.
“—Today, however, we focus on the graffiti and damage to public property”—The principal stumbled over his words —“and, of course, the tragic deaths of our young men.”
Serge, his attention on the principal and not the drama unfolding to his left, snorted. “Yeah, cause he really cares about my murder.”
“Serge.” I tugged the sleeve of his sweater. “Look alive.”
Serge turned to see what was going on. “Damn! Kent, what the hell happened to you?”
The ghost turned his focus from me to Serge, then back again. “What are you talking about?”
I dropped my voice so only my friends could hear me. “Something’s wrong with your skin.”
“It is?” He reached up, touched his face, and I tried to keep my food down. His flesh had gone opaque, not enough to reveal bone and muscle, but enough to make his blue veins stand out against his skin like a 3D rendering of a topographical map.
He pulled at his skin and it came off in one, long, thin, transp
arent layer. “Is that supposed to happen?” Pieces of it hung off his jaw and forehead.
I shook my head.
“What’s going on?” asked Nell. “I can see the conversation but not the action.”
“You don’t want to know,” said Serge. “I better text Craig and get his opinion on this.”
In the background, Principal Larry droned on.
My senses told me the crowd had lost interest. There was the shuffling of feet, the crinkle of candy wrappers opening, people looking around, glancing at their watches.
“How are you feeling? Does it hurt?” I asked Kent.
He shrugged. “I’ve been sleeping all day. When I got home, I was so bagged, I just crashed out in bed. I only woke up because Mom and Dad were fighting. I got up to get out of the house for a bit. When I realized they were coming here, I figured I’d come along.”
Nell elbowed me. “What does he look like?”
“An albino snake shedding its skin.”
“Has he eaten?” she asked. “Developed any taste for human flesh?”
“I’m not going ghost-zombie.” Kent stepped away from her. “I can’t even feel hunger.”
Craig materialized beside me, looked at Kent, and swore.
“Yeah, so I’m hearing,” said Kent. “But I don’t feel bad—”
“That’s bad,” said the ferrier. “You’ve been infected. Didn’t you feel it in your stomach? You should’ve called us—”
“I thought it was the flu—”
“I have to get you out of here—”
“Wait. Infected? With what?” Kent’s face went even whiter. “Oh, God. The Family,” he said. “It’s in me.”
“Which is why we have to get you out of here,” said Craig. “There are too many people and too many of us with psychic energy to be in one spot—”
“How did it infect me without me knowing?” asked Kent. “Without you guys knowing?”
Craig, Serge and I made eye contact. We all knew the why and how, but now wasn’t the time to talk about it.
“Let’s get you somewhere safe,” said Craig, “we’ll talk about this later.”
