by Lauren James
When Kasper realized they’d taken her again, he raced down to the basement.
Edging around the walls, his eyes fixed on Rufus, he pleaded, “Please, she’s going to disintegrate. You have to release her.”
Rufus admired his sharp red nails and said, “You know what we want. If you’re too scared to give it to us, then Lisa will have to pay the price for your cowardice.”
“I can’t!” Kasper hissed. “I would never do that to a living person.”
“It won’t kill them, you know. If that’s what you’re worried about. Humans do survive being possessed.”
“It might not kill them, but it’s – it’s rape. I can’t be that person.”
“And yet you’ll let Lisa disintegrate? How is that not as bad?”
Kasper was breathing hard. “She’s already dead. It’s different.”
“Well, then. If you’ve made your choice, I suggest you say goodbye. She doesn’t have long left. But Mr Jedynak, one day you’re going to have to face what you are, however much it scares you. Because the parts of yourself that frighten you? They’re not going anywhere.”
Lisa disintegrated six hours later. The Tricksters didn’t get what they wanted, but they didn’t exactly lose, either. They play the long game. Kasper’s still caught in their web.
Chapter 14
KASPER
Kasper couldn’t sleep, pacing the empty hallways of the fifth floor. Now that the Shells were gone, he could wander alone, crippled with complete and overwhelming guilt.
He’d possessed someone. What had come over him? He hadn’t ever wanted to stop. If it hadn’t been for Felix, he’d still be inside that poor, innocent woman. Like some sort of—
He was a monster. He really was. He’d tried to be good. He’d thought for a while that he was, but clearly his true nature had just been biding its time until there was an opportunity to strike.
He was disgusting. He could still feel it, the hunger underneath his consciousness. The demon inside him was just waiting for another human to come close enough that it could take control. He wanted to tear off his skin to get rid of it.
He wasn’t safe to be around, not any more. He should join the other criminals in the basement, so that Rima and Leah and – and Felix – weren’t ever forced to look at him again. He had to disappear for ever, before they came to kick him out of the group anyway. They’d be better off without him.
After Harriet had gone with Greg, Kasper had left the room without speaking. He couldn’t bear to hear the others break off all ties with him. Since then, he’d been doing loops of the corridors, up and down and spiralling around the fifth floor, the thumps of his feet resonating through the floors.
He couldn’t seem to sit still. Whenever Kasper stopped moving, he started thinking, and so he ran.
He turned at the top of the stairs to do another lap. There was a tiny noise behind him. Felix was standing there, looking sleep-crumpled and shattered.
They’ve sent him, Kasper’s brain whispered. He’s here to kick you out of the group.
“Hello.” They both ignored how his words came out pained.
Felix rubbed at the shorn hair on the back of his scalp. “Do you, er, want to talk?”
Kasper’s breath left him in a rush. Felix was here to talk. They weren’t getting rid of him then, not yet.
They sat down together against the breeze-block wall, staring at the window opposite. Ivy had crept in through the cracks in the pane, spreading across the plaster in thick, creeping fingers. Light fell into the room through the leaves, casting a green glimmer over the mouldering wood of the windowsill.
Usually, Kasper would pull Felix under his arm, into a headlock or a man-hug. He wanted to, more than ever. But he was suddenly afraid that Felix would jerk away in repulsion. He carefully moved his arm so they weren’t touching, in case he made Felix flinch back.
Kasper didn’t understand why they didn’t hate him. They should – his behaviour was unforgivable. Yet here was Felix, right by his side, where he had always been, for as long as Kasper could remember.
To his surprise, Felix lifted his arm meaningfully. Kasper blinked. Felix had never – not once – offered Kasper a hug before. He grumbled enough when Kasper hugged him.
Kasper shuffled closer, pressing himself against his side. Felix’s heavy arm dropped across his shoulder, the pressed cotton of his shirt smooth against Kasper’s neck.
Kasper let out a long exhale, relaxing in increments. He had so much he wanted to say, but he held his tongue. Felix had supported him before, after Lisa disintegrated. He’d forgotten how awful and guilty he’d felt then, trembling with fear every time there was the slightest noise, in case it was Greg, coming again to demand that Kasper use his power for the Tricksters. Felix had helped him through it all.
“I’m sorry about Harriet, Kasper.”
Kasper stared hard at the floor. There was something in his eye. “I should have known that Harriet would never want to be with a monster like me. Not for real.”
He was aiming for self-deprecating, but the words came out too honest.
Felix twisted, touching Kasper’s chin until he met his gaze. There was a tense fury in his expression. “Kasper. You are not a monster. Not even a little bit. If anyone is, it’s Harriet.”
Kasper closed his eyes for a second. When he opened them again, he felt stronger than before. Braver. Felix had seen Kasper at his very worst: frothing at the mouth with the desperate desire to cause pain. Yet he didn’t blame him for what had happened. He didn’t think that Kasper was worthless, spineless, horrifying.
Felix’s gaze was flickering back and forth across Kasper’s face. “You aren’t going to do it again. I know you aren’t.”
Kasper’s chest swelled. He leant his forehead against Felix’s shoulder, hiding his face. He wasn’t sure what his expression was doing, but he didn’t want Felix to see it. “I don’t know how you can be so sure. I’m not.”
“Because I know you. You’re good, Kasper.” Felix’s eyes were dark when he lifted his head.
Felix still trusted him. Kasper felt winded by the knowledge. He looked at the way the dim light hit the curve of Felix’s nose and wondered if he’d ever really seen him before at all.
Felix would never have been weak enough to possess someone. He was much braver than Kasper, in so many ways. Kasper’s weaknesses were Felix’s strengths, like they were two halves of one whole.
Felix was always there, just when he needed him. But Kasper never gave him anything in return.
“I think Harriet made a mistake,” he said eventually. “I don’t think she knew what she was doing.”
Felix looked away, his jaw set tight. “If she’s not to blame, either, then who is? I don’t trust her, Kasper. Not even a little bit.”
“She’s acting a bit bonkers,” Kasper admitted. “But I need to give her a chance to explain what happened. It sounds like the Tricksters manipulated her into destroying the Shells. I know what they’re like. I can’t cast judgement if there’s still a chance she’s telling the truth.”
Felix sighed. “I don’t know how she could possibly have an explanation that will redeem everything she’s done. Please brace yourself, OK? Even though you – you know, like her—”
“I don’t like her,” Kasper said in a rush. “I used to, but – I made a mistake. Clearly she’s not the person I thought she was. I want to be with someone who actually cares about me. Not someone who pretends to.”
Felix was staring at him, eyes wide, expression beaten raw. Kasper was suddenly very aware of how long and black his eyelashes were.
He swallowed, feeling hot and shy. He could trust Felix not to use this against him, but it still felt strange to spill his heart to him. It was different from their usual playful banter. It was … intimate.
Maybe it was time to pull back. He tried very hard to never think about this. Felix. Whatever they were both doing, beyond spending time in each other’s company.
“I want
to give Harriet the chance to make things right,” Kasper said at last, forcing himself to focus. “And if it turns out she’s…” He trailed off. He couldn’t say it.
Felix finished for him. “We’ll deal with that if it comes to it.”
Kasper sighed, rubbing his face against Felix’s shirt. He wanted to stay here for ever.
Kasper was almost asleep when Rima found them.
“Boys!” she yelled. “There’s a kitten in Felix’s room! Come look!”
Kasper grinned. Whenever a cat died in the hall, every ghost wanted to stroke it, because they could actually touch the spirits, unlike living cats – or Cody, who only ever let Rima cuddle her.
He pulled Felix to his feet so that they could follow her downstairs. A cat day was better than Christmas. It was just what they all needed.
HARRIET
Harriet had to find Kasper. There was a thrumming under her skin whispering, Hurry, hurry, HURRY, which refused to be ignored. She needed to get him down to the main entrance, so that when Greg found a human for Kasper to possess, they’d be ready and waiting.
As she searched Mulcture Hall, she couldn’t stop rubbing at her eye. It stung, throbbing in time with her breaths. When she finally spotted Kasper in Felix’s room, they were all passing around the spirit of some small animal, taking turns inhaling it. No, they weren’t inhaling it. They were cuddling it.
There was no way she’d be able to get Kasper to come with her if the others were around to defend him. They wouldn’t even let her touch his skin, now they knew what she could do. She was going to have to wait until she could get him alone. He’d give up his energy easily, then.
In the meantime, it couldn’t hurt to hear what they were saying about her. She turned herself invisible and slid inside the room to listen.
Chapter 15
FELIX
“What are we going to do about Harriet?” Rima asked.
Felix stopped cooing over the tiny black kitten that was cradled in Kasper’s lap. There was a long silence.
“I don’t think she meant to do anything bad,” Kasper said eventually. He sounded raw. He also sounded unconvinced.
“I disagree,” Felix said. “There’s been something off about her from the very beginning. I tried to tell you all. We shouldn’t trust her.”
The kitten batted at his fingers. It was newly dead, still full of enough energy to want to play. It wrapped its mouth around Felix’s thumb, gnawing on him with sharp teeth.
Rima sighed. “I don’t think she did anything wrong. She’s new. I think she just misunderstood what the Shells are.”
Felix had a sudden moment of doubt. Kasper and Rima were both such staunch defenders of Harriet. Were they seeing something in her that he’d missed?
But, no. She’d killed the Shells. Kasper was being guided by his libido, and it was a historical fact that Rima was too trusting of everyone she’d ever met. Felix was right.
“She wasn’t thinking about them!” Felix said. “She was only thinking about herself. How can you not see that? She made Kasper possess a police officer!”
“She had nothing to do with that,” Kasper said defensively. “That was all me.”
Rima immediately leant over the kitten to hug Kasper. “It wasn’t your fault, either. You can’t help what your power is.”
“You managed to avoid possessing anyone for decades,” Leah added. “I think the fact that you only succumbed now says more about your strength of will than anything.”
Kasper looked embarrassed, and relieved. “Thanks guys. I, er. Just, thanks.”
“We love you, Kasper.” Rima kissed his cheek. When no one else spoke, she prompted, “Right, guys?”
Leah leant over to ruffle his hair. “You’re a decent sort.”
Felix clapped Kasper on the back, biting back the urge to declare how he felt about him.
“We’re a family. We’re going to get through this.” When Rima finally stopped hugging Kasper, the kitten had made its way from his lap to the inside of her cardigan.
Kasper ran a hand through his hair. “Can we talk about something else now, please?” He’d turned slightly pink, to Felix’s delight.
“I think we should make her give up the energy she took from those Shells,” Rima said. “Even if it was a mistake, we can’t let her keep it. It sets a precedent.”
Leah made a noise of disagreement. “When did we decide that it was a mistake? People have been banished to the basement for less before.”
“But she’s new,” Rima said. “She didn’t understand the rules. We can’t punish her for that.”
Felix rolled his eyes. Rima was being completely ridiculous. Before he could reply, someone outside said, “Hello?”
Felix turned to look at the door, thinking in a second of pure panic that it was Harriet. But Qi stepped through the door.
“I thought you’d probably want to hear the news,” she said, folding her arms. “Greg’s gone. He disintegrated.”
Felix was baffled. When Greg had come to fetch Harriet for the Tricksters, he’d been glowing with energy, like normal. He spent most of his time hunting rats and topping up his energy with them. Plus, he got a lot of favours from the Tricksters in exchange for working for them.
What had happened, since he’d led Harriet down to the basement?
“He walked out of the main entrance,” Qi said. “Several people tried to stop him, but evidently he didn’t listen.”
“Why would he do that?” Kasper asked, confused.
Greg hadn’t seemed the type to commit “suicide”, like some ghosts. He had been very calm and content as a ghost, as far as Felix had been able to tell.
“He claimed he was going to fetch something for his girlfriend.”
“What?” Felix said. Greg had never had a girlfriend. Felix had kind of thought he was gay.
Qi cleared her throat. “His girlfriend, Harriet Stoker.”
That was even more interesting. What was Harriet up to now?
“Harriet and Greg weren’t dating,” Rima said, but she sounded unsure.
“Greg was quite insistent about it, I believe.”
Kasper was pacing back and forth like he was trying to get rid of his shadow.
“It must have been a new thing, then.” Rima met Felix’s eye.
What could Greg possibly have been trying to get for Harriet that meant he had to leave the building? Harriet wouldn’t use her power to manipulate him into disintegrating – would she? That seemed beyond cruel, even for her. Why Greg?
“I would like to add that I don’t trust that girl,” Qi said. “If she continues on her current path, it won’t be long before she is banished to the basement. If you need me, I will be waiting for word.”
After Qi left, Rima said, “Do you think that Harriet’s got something to do with that, too?”
“Of course she does,” Felix said, groaning. How much evidence would it take? “The last time we saw her, she was with Greg. Now he turns up dead? Before Harriet arrived, the biggest drama of this millennium was someone stealing my glasses. But since she arrived, awful things have been happening constantly. This has Harriet written all over it.”
“But how?” Rima asked, baffled.
“She must have used her emotion control to make Greg go outside. It’s the perfect murder. No evidence,” Felix said darkly.
“For someone who looks so innocent, you really are morbid,” Rima said, both horrified and fascinated.
The kitten crawled into his lap, rolling flat on its back and purring deeply. Cody stared fixedly at it, shifting impatiently. Felix hoped that she wasn’t going to pounce.
“He’s right,” Leah said. “That’s what I’d do, too. If someone knew something I didn’t want to get out, I mean.”
“I don’t think Harriet’s capable of this,” Rima said. “What reason does she even have to go after Greg? It’s one thing to fight with us, but she’s not a serial killer.”
There was a moment of silence. Kasper was now doing r
estless pull-ups on the door lintel. The lines of muscles stood out on the curves of his shoulders. He looked like he wanted to run, as far and as fast as possible.
Cody let out a rumbling noise in her chest, inching across the floor paw by paw towards the kitten.
“No!” Rima said to the fox, and then added, soft and disappointed, “We talked about this.”
Cody sat back on her haunches, licking her lips.
“It doesn’t matter what her motive is,” Felix said. “First the Shells, and now this? It’s time, like Qi said. We need to have a vote on whether to banish her before she starts manipulating our emotions, too.”
“We can’t send her down there with Rufus and Vini,” Rima insisted. “What if she’s innocent? The Tricksters made Harriet go after the Shells in the first place.”
Harriet and the Tricksters deserved each other, Felix thought.
“I agree with Felix,” Leah said. “I think we should vote on it.”
“Let’s vote,” Kasper said, to Felix’s surprise. “It can’t hurt. Just to see.”
Felix’s fingers wriggled on the kitten, pleased. Kasper was on his side. He didn’t trust Harriet, either.
“Are you really going to decide on my fate without me?” a voice said from behind them. Harriet was leaning against the windowsill, arms folded.
Felix broke out in a cold sweat. When had she come in?
“Harriet!” Rima had gone scarlet with mortification. “Hello!”
Harriet curled her lip, unimpressed. There was something misshapen about her face. The eyelashes on her right eye were dangling in a twisted, unnatural position, and leaking blood in a steady trickle down her cheek.
Taking advantage of the sudden silence, Cody pounced on the kitten spirit. It let out a feeble meow and collapsed into a cloud of energy, disintegrating for ever.
“What happened to your eye?” Leah asked.
Harriet’s hand darted to her face. “I ran into a door,” she said, not even trying to make the lie sound believable. “Will it heal?”