House of Chaos

by K. R. Alexander

  They—Wade, Gideon, and Adam—also figured that wasn’t so long, that they’d already had a couple hours’ sleep, and that they’d stay up with me.

  I didn’t know how to tell them I didn’t want them to. Or how to admit I wanted to bury my head and not look anyone in the eye for at least twenty-four hours.

  They had the TV on, Nat Geo Wild, and Wade was working on the diary with Adam. They’d pulled the two broken-down armchairs together to study the book between them. Wade with his phone, scanning and reading, Adam with a notebook he’d snatched from the kitchen, making notes and comparing letters to pick up patterns. This left the oversized couch for Gideon and me.

  I tried to sit straight up, sipping tea, having already been reassuring everyone I was fine—my feet were fine, my knees were fine, my coldness was fine. But I was gradually leaning into him. Wade looked over, then averted his eyes and kept working.

  Deprived of a prime chair spot, Vel, who still hadn’t changed, eyed me on the couch, chickened out about getting in range of Gideon, and climbed the cat tree. Olive raced out of there in terror, but Vel didn’t stop in her favorite box spot. He climbed to the tallest, round perch, barely big enough for him to curl into a tight ball, six feet in the air, and regarded us imperiously from up there.

  After spending a whole night as a fox, he was starting to grow on me. Would it be too much to ask for him to stay that way? He made a lousy man, but he’d be a seriously cool pet.

  As my head rested on his shoulder, Gideon’s arm eased around me.

  Wade and Adam muttered over the diary. Wade was surprised by Adam’s perceptiveness with patterns of the handwriting, quickly decoding words. Real wolves noticed everything, incredibly sensitive to their environments. I was beginning to think shifters were also. They noticed when pantries were missing food, and lives were missing packs.

  That didn’t explain why they all stayed up, why no one said anything about it, or how they made this feel so normal. Like when Gideon, then Adam, had tried to kill the other one, if they’d apologized, I’d never heard it. Demon happens. Enough said.

  I likewise didn’t ask if Vel was okay or apologize for turning the whole night upside down, or for burning an old family quilt, or ask how they had put out the field before it got beyond control.

  Finally, I just said, “Thanks, you guys. For tonight…” And swallowed, looking at the TV—wildlife in Alaska.

  “Just glad you’re okay,” Wade said.

  “We’ll stamp the maggot out,” Adam muttered, not looking up from one finger on a diary page. “Don’t worry.”

  I nodded, could say no more, but finally had to turn my face into Gideon’s T-shirt, which caught my tears. Gideon shifted to wrap both arms around me, also saying nothing.

  29

  Aside from a couple of light dozes against Gideon, then starting awake, I managed those next hours with my eyes open until after sunrise. I found my mom’s Rescue Remedy in the kitchen and took a dropper-full. Gideon made me a snack of peanut butter and banana toast. Where had he found that banana?

  I nibbled, sipped apple juice, pretended I was on a layover on an international flight, up for twenty-four hours, just had to keep pushing.

  It was 8:00 a.m., August sunshine blazing across the house, AC rumbling, with the quilt and top sheet swapped off my bed, and the now scorched sheet hanging up on the curtain rod in folds to block light, before I finally went to bed.

  Still, I was scared. I asked Wade to stay with me. He could counter magic and try to block me. The wolves napped on the futon just down the hall in the office—between me and the stairs out. If Wade yelled, they could be up and blocking my path in a second.

  We watched cat videos.

  I fought sleep even then, yet there came a point that it was all too much.

  Next thing I knew, I was tangled in sweaty sheets with Wade—not for reasons that would have been fun to relive.

  “I kicked you,” I mumbled as soon as I realized what a tumble the bed was. “I’ve always been a restless sleeper.”

  “Oh,” he let out a breath. “I’m glad. I thought … I wasn’t sure.”

  “No nightmares … no attack. Just me.”

  “Good.” He kissed my ear as I turned my face away.

  “Sorry about the kicking.”

  “It wasn’t that bad.”

  “Yeah, right. Have you been awake for ages? What time is it?”

  It wasn’t much past noon. Still, I would take it.

  Wade kissed my lips while I pulled away, feeling all sweaty and just-woke-up and gross. He was offering me lunch, saying he wanted to make me his jalapeño cornbread sometime. Awesome that they all wanted to cook, but was this the time?

  “Can we … maybe go out and get something? There’s an old burger place, Scott’s, that’s good. I need to … get out of the house for a minute. Then get back to that diary and think.”

  “We can read it.”

  I almost sat straight up. “What?”

  “Yeah, I mean, not yet. The app hasn’t been much help. But Adam really got it and I was figuring it out too. Give us a little more time. I already read some of the short entries.”

  “Great, wow—” Clumsily hugging him in bed. “Thank you.”

  Wade laughed. “It’s just old handwriting, Ripley. We didn’t crack Enigma.”

  “Might as well have been from what I saw.”

  “That’s why you need a team.” He grinned.

  I pulled back, pushing up on one hand. “Why are you all still here?”

  “We’ve only been out two nights…”

  “No, here. I don’t care. I mean, that’s fine.” I couldn’t admit how deeply I loved them being here, especially not after I’d been reluctant to get involved with anyone for this work—or any other sort of relationship. Yet here I was. If something is going to screw you up so bad you run into the arms of strangers and form flash attachments and do things that you wouldn’t have done with better judgement, let it be guys like Wade and Gideon and Adam.

  “It’s just that you live in Atlanta,” I continued. “I thought you’d come down and work in the evenings and drive home. Do you not have a day-job or anything? Is it okay for you to hang out here?”

  “Oh… Well…” He rubbed the back of his neck.

  “You don’t have to tell me.”

  He looked up at me—leaning slightly over him against my hand.

  “Like, if you’re on the lam,” I hurried on, “or already married, or just got out on parole, or anything you don’t want to tell me—”

  Wade was laughing again. “Not tell you that? You have a high tolerance for issues in your relationships.”

  “I wouldn’t have thought so… You’ve caught me at a bad time. Look at last night, or, I mean … the night before. The first night.”

  “What about it?” Looking like he had nothing but beautiful memories.

  “Well, it was … fast. Indicative of someone with issues…”

  His smile faded as I spoke. “I’m sorry, Ripley. I shouldn’t have pushed you. I didn’t know you regretted—”

  “I didn’t say that. Only fast, and it’s been a tough month. It’s a lot to deal with, especially when I’d been sure I wasn’t getting involved with anyone just now. And then extra weirdness crops up like wondering what you’re doing here, and don’t you have a life? Only, maybe the answer would be crazy and you just shouldn’t tell me. I don’t know…”

  “I’m not running from the law. Or married.” He sighed. “I was fired.”

  I hesitated. “That’s it?”

  “That’s it. Less than a week ago. Suddenly nothing but spare time. I live in an apartment north of the city with a roommate—not even a dog or social obligations. No big deal to stay for a while. All the same…” That awkward grin tugged at his face as he tipped his head. “I didn’t mean to. It’s funny how you can be going along and something so out of the blue gets you. Maybe that’s life. I was thinking, just now while I was lying here—”


  “Being kicked?”

  “—that I could run home today. I don’t have more clothes here. The other guys brought overnight bags, coming down from Tennessee. I don’t even have a toothbrush. Maybe I’ll dash back this afternoon and get some stuff if you don’t mind me hanging out here? I could do that while you guys get lunch.”

  “You should come with us first. It’s on me.”

  He watched me, reached up to touch my hair, bit his lip, and finally dropped his gaze, looking away.

  “It’s a little … well…” He rubbed his eyes.

  “Is it too uncomfortable to all go together? That’s the real weirdness here? I don’t know how I feel about Gideon, but I can’t pretend it’s nothing just because I like you at the same time. Which… Uh…” I was catching Wade’s awkwardness all of a sudden, cheeks hot. “I hope that doesn’t have to mean … you know… If you’re not okay with…”

  “This is all brand new. Still those first dates, right?” The uncertainty or whatever it was remained even as he offered another sweet smile. “All this at once, with all you’ve been going through? Everyone’s been torn in different directions over something at some point. I totally get that. It’s interesting meeting shifters like this. That’s your call—for as long as they’re around. I’m not your boss.” More of a grin, cocking his head on the pillow and watching my eyes.

  As long as they’re around?

  “Yeah…” I sat up properly, gingerly rubbing bruised arms. It looked like I’d fallen down the stairs. “I guess … they’re not what long-term relationships are made of… Talk about a culture clash. Even magic freaks them out, though they’re magical themselves.”

  “That’s a different magic.” Wade looked relieved, nodding along, glad I had spelled out what he’d been hinting at: that any fling or sidetrack when we were only just starting to get involved was my concern, while we all knew that nothing with wolves was going to be serious.

  It wasn’t like I’d been planning our futures. At the same time, I couldn’t look Wade in the eye. Was I crazy? Wanting to get involved with a werewolf? What was I really thinking? Nothing, as it turned out. I hadn’t been thinking. Gideon had been flirting since the moment I’d met him. Both the wolves had me feeling like we’d known each other for years, not days. More new feelings like a runaway train.

  Wade was talking about them, saying theirs was a whole different life. He wasn’t trying to discourage me, or at least it didn’t sound like that. He was expressing relief at my own good judgement for already having realized that any little thing with Gideon would be no more than that—a little thing.

  After last night, what we’d been through … none of this felt little.

  The thing to remember wasn’t this sudden connection—which, strong as it may feel, was still just that, sudden and out of the blue—but that we’d just met and they were from another world. They were here for a job—as I’d kept reminding them upon first meeting. Yes, the work would test us, make us close, but that was lightyears from riding off into the sunset. As Vel had pointed out with the unprotected sex, we weren’t even the same species. For some reason, that wasn’t as troubling as this realization that Wade found the idea of Gideon and me together so ludicrous, he wasn’t bothered—unless concerned for my welfare.

  I pushed back the light covers to examine my feet.

  When Wade sat up and kissed my shoulder, I met him for a gentle kiss. My whole jaw was a bit sore.

  He was right. I knew that. It was just … if I knew all that and we were both so right, why did this idea that nothing with Gideon could ever be more than a fling leave me with a feeling that trashed my whole morning?

  30

  Wade headed out as quickly as he could, no coming into town with us.

  I thought Vel had departed, then there he was, on two feet and fully dressed, showing up by the door as soon as I told the two wolves I’d get us a meal.

  Out to lunch, Vel managed to get in some digs about Wade—lack of help last night—and the wolves—useful only at a brawl—but didn’t linger with his two least favorite teammates. He ordered two crispy chicken sandwiches, a cheeseburger, a black bean burger, fries, onion rings, a cherry soda, and a strawberry sundae to go. Then he walked off, away through blistering heat and dusty roads, eating his sundae as he went, heading back toward the farm.

  I didn’t mind. We’d catch him and Fulco tonight and, even if he had to be snide and nasty, he deserved a bag of burgers after he really had helped last night—not least of which throwing himself in the line of fire while trying to stop me.

  So it was lunch with the three of us at the red plastic tables of Scott’s Old-School Burgers, around locals and a few tourists, here to see the Battle of Midway Ridge site just out of town. Safe, calm, no demons in the air. Unable even to see the spirits which I knew were around us all. He’d said something about that, Xaphan, about my curse. That it was childlike? I pushed it aside, trying not to think of him.

  Adam had four bacon burgers and two large orders of fries, then kept sneaking fries from Gideon while Gideon growled at him. He had four double burgers with cheese and two fries. I had the spicy black bean burger with avocado and chipotle mayo, plus onion rings which didn’t interest the wolves.

  I’ve never spent so much at a burger joint in my life, or any other restaurant. Again, I tried not to think about it. I owed them a lot more than lunch and my life. I owed them a night’s pay, that I still hadn’t discussed or figured out. No matter how like a family this was starting to feel, it hadn’t come together that way. They were doing a job for me.

  Instead of contemplating this, or hardcore adulting stuff like the mortgage or insurance or vet bills, I proposed sundaes all around as soon as we were done.

  They didn’t eat as fast out here. In fact, we all talked a little about the town and their drive down, how far it was from here to their pack in the mountains up north, and I think they thought they were being real polite and civilized. So these were their best family manners out with “singles” or “worms,” as they casually called us. Yeah… They still came across like a couple of just-released prisoners or war. But compared to how fast they’d put away meals at home, this was totally chill.

  Adam and I had caramel sundaes with extra whipped cream and toasted almonds. Gideon got a vanilla malt. We headed out then—with only half a dozen tables the place was overflowing. It was too hot to stay out and enjoy the “ambiance” of old town Midway City, but we walked a couple blocks while we ate the ice cream and I pointed out some of the old buildings that my parents had already worked on, and others I knew weren’t dangerous.

  It was the sort of town with handsome Victorian architecture, cars parked along main streets, and a car driving past only now and then. No traffic lights. Dogs off leash. They had a museum, a library, a few bars, some mediocre restaurants, two banks, two filling stations, one grocery store and a convenience store doing a brisk trade in lottery tickets. Cicadas buzzed incessantly and the sun-glare was so bad I was grateful to have in contact lenses and my non-prescription wraparound sunglasses. It was also the sort of town that was more than half bankrupt.

  The weird happenings and handful of mysterious deaths in town in the past few years were only part of it. Midway City had a fine history of ghost stories and hauntings—right from the last shot fired at the Battle of Midway Ridge. Those restless soldiers had never left, people said. Now most of the tourists were only coming for the battlefield, keeping little businesses afloat as more and more people moved out of Midway City—and fewer and fewer moved in.

  Calling Midway City a ghost-town in one sense of the word worked already. Calling it a ghost-town in the other sense might become true before another decade was out. Could the place be saved? If the nasty sort of spirit was cleaned out and the vampires were shipped off to the big city where they belonged, did this town have a chance? Or was it already too late?

  I didn’t know. Bad as it might sound, I didn’t care. People were being hurt, even killed. That
was what had to stop. If Midway City came out of the clean-up stronger that was a bonus. It was, however, something I better get more invested in: this town. Unless I died in the process, it looked like I’d be living here for a while. And like I needed Midway City’s support anywhere I could get it, from anyone willing to hire a psychic to check out their ghost problem.

  Mom and Dad hadn’t been the first ghost-hunters here. Most mundanes in the area shook their heads or took it in their stride. Plenty of people knew about me already. There should be enough believers to get a few jobs. In the meantime, like it or not, I’d have to pick up a day-job and look after my commitments—not just gobble my parents’ savings in a matter of months paying for everything. And a job meant Atlanta.

  An orphan for two weeks and I already hated adulting. Yet I also already loved these guys, crazily enough. And I was still alive, in the sun, eating ice cream. I could figure it out.

  I told them I was sorry about last night, not looking at them. They seemed surprised. Gideon said it wasn’t my doing, he was just glad I was okay, while Adam said that was “another Moon,” as if it had happened weeks ago.

  We didn’t say anything else about it.

  31

  We drove home—they’d ridden with me, Adam’s bike still being at the lake house, along with his only change of clothes in the field—and I pointed out more sights.

  I tended to the cats, food, litter, searching for Chester and Casper to make sure they were okay somewhere. After a chat with Casper under my parents’ bed—no, he wouldn’t come out—I threw in a load of laundry to wash, inviting Gideon to do the same, and we buckled down for another round of searching through documents, hunting clues to banishing demons. Gideon looked in the books while I read at the laptop and Adam worked on the diary. Once Wade was back, we’d see how much they could read out.

  I got hung up trying to remember what my parents had said to me that time I’d been sick from the tetanus shot, when we’d talked so much. About the dangerous houses. About what you needed to know to clear out the worst sort. Something special, specific. Not a certain spell. I did have some ideas of the spells, even if I’d never tried and didn’t know the details. It was more than that.