by Helen Scott
When I walked through the room Rose sneered at me, clearly disliking my mostly black outfit, and went back to her knitting without saying a word. We were just about as opposite as two people could get. I sighed as I left, knowing that trying to make peace with her was not something worth my time or energy. She had her opinion of me pretty firmly set already and I wasn’t about to try and convince her of something she was clearly set against.
I stood waiting outside my own room, and when Gaius appeared holding two cups of to-go coffee I almost wept with joy. I did an embarrassing little hop and skip toward him as I reached for my coffee, but I couldn’t help myself. Who knew a drink could get me so excited?
“If this is how you greet coffee then I’m going to have to bring it to you more often,” he said with a grin.
I closed my eyes and inhaled the roasted aroma of the drink before I took the first delectable sip and moaned with enjoyment. “Thank you,” I said as my eyes opened.
“I’m definitely going to be bringing you coffee more often,” he said with a chuckle, although his voice was pitched lower than it had been a moment ago.
“You can bring me all the coffee you like. I won’t say no,” I teased.
“Come on, me and the guys need to chat with you about something,” he said before taking a sip of his own coffee. I watched and while he might not have moaned and made a show out of it like I did, the man definitely enjoyed it. I was glad to know I wasn’t alone in my obsession for the drink.
By the time we were at the guys’ house I’d finished my coffee and stopped to get another one. What can I say? I have a problem.
Bowie greeted me with a hug, as did Noah, although his hands slid down to my waist and didn’t let go, keeping me pulled tight to his side the whole time.
“Your roommate is terrifying,” Noah said in a whisper that caused his breath to blow against the shell of my ear in a way that made me shiver.
“She’s a giant bitch. I wish I lived somewhere else.”
The guys all seemed to exchange a look, even Xavier who I wasn’t convinced liked me at all. My stomach tightened as I realized that whatever they wanted to talk to me about must involve Rose.
“What is it?” I asked as I followed Gaius and Bowie through to the kitchen, Noah sticking to my side like glue and Xavier trailing after us like he was following against his will.
“We wanted to ask if you were interested in moving in?” Bowie looked up at me from where he sat at the kitchen table and I couldn’t stop my jaw from dropping open. “Not like anything romantic or something like that, but so we can protect you better and avoid crazy-pants back at your suite.”
“Not romantic?” I asked, trying to understand what was being said.
“You can still sneak into my room if you want, I won’t tell,” Gaius said with a wink.
“I-What?” I tried to reply as I plopped down into one of the chairs, my movements as graceful as a pig in mud.
“I have a theory,” Xavier said before I could stumble over any more of my words. He dropped down into the chair next to me and studied me with his dark, almost black, eyes. “There’s something about you that’s interesting to demons. Something that’s attracting them. Something that made the Arbiter give you a guide when most spirits just get thrown onto campus because, you know, clearly they already know everything after just finding out they died. I also happen to think that whatever it is, is what’s causing the problems between you and Rose.”
“Okay, and what is it?” I asked finally finding my voice once more.
“No idea,” Xavier said with a shrug of his shoulders.
“Then how do you know it’s anything?” I demanded.
“I don’t. As I said, it’s just a theory, one we could test though, if you’re willing.”
“We already said no to that,” Noah said, while Bowie shook his head vehemently.
“If it’s about me, surely it’s my decision to make, right?” I asked, looking from one man to the other.
“You’re right,” Noah acquiesced, while Bowie just scowled at him. “The only reason we shot it down was because it’s dangerous and you’re already unstable. Plus, if the faculty found out what we were doing then they could send us all to the dungeons or to our final resting places.”
“Are you seriously telling me that Mr. Rockstar is afraid of breaking some rules?” I asked with a grin.
“You’ve never been to one of my shows, so you can’t play that card, but yes, I am. I already died once, and I don’t want to do it again, especially not for some stupid theory.”
“If it’s so stupid then it won’t take much to prove it wrong, will it?” I asked.
“I guess, but I still don’t want to do it. It’s not safe for you,” he replied, swigging from his coffee mug.
Time to pull out the big guns.
I widened my eyes and put my hand delicately on his arm. “Please, Noah. Don’t make me do this alone.”
“Damn, she’s good,” Gaius rumbled from the corner, almost ruining the effect.
Noah was too busy searching my eyes to pay him any attention though. Whatever he saw there, whether it was nerves or the need for answers I wasn’t sure, but it seemed to satisfy him. “Fine, we do it tonight, and we all go together.”
“Seriously? You’re not supposed to be the pushover, that’s my job,” Bowie grumbled from next to him.
“Do you object?” Noah asked.
“No, but you’re supposed to be the snarky rockstar, and I’m supposed to be the shoulder to cry on that she later realizes is quite muscular and she wants to date.” Bowie practically pouted.
“You want me to date your shoulder?” I asked, trying to lighten the mood.
“No, I—” Bowie caught himself as he realized he was so busy reacting he hadn’t thought about what he was reacting to.
“Listen,” I began, cutting off any more bickering. “I don’t even know what the plan or test or whatever is, so how about you tell me that first and then I’ll decide if I want to do it?”
“Practical, I like it,” Xavier said, gifting me with a rare smile that made two dimples pop out on each side. I was thankful I was sitting down because if I hadn’t been I was sure I would have gone weak in the knees. “The idea is to take you out at night and skirt the edge of the forest to see if we get any activity. If we do then we split up, see which group the demons choose. My guess is they will go after you.”
“What about the fact that I’m a new spirit and you lot are older? Doesn’t that play into it? I mean, if this is an experiment we need to limit as many variables as we can,” I said, trying to sound as smart as I could.
“True, we can recruit some younger spirits as well. I still think they’ll go after you though. What I’m more interested in is what types of demons show up.” Xavier’s response was dry. His brain was too busy thinking for him to censor himself and make this seem like he was concerned with my safety, when all he really wanted was to see what kinds of demons would show up.
“So I’m just bait?”
“Essentially, yes,” Xavier replied, his gaze cold and calculating.
“Okay, I’m in,” I said before I could think too much about it. I needed answers and this seemed to be the most efficient way to get them.
15
Avery
The day passed quickly with me thinking about their offer to move in and prepping for our adventure. Xavier had been going over the most common types of demons that he expected to see if they were truly drawn to me, as well as some of the rarer ones that he was hoping to see. He was a science nerd, and I kind of loved it. Of course, I would have loved it more if I wasn’t at the heart of this experiment, but there was nothing to do about that anymore.
Spending the day with the guys had been interesting, lots of flirting, which I couldn’t help but revel in, while they seemed to be in a competition to see who could make me blush the most. Being around them was like being with my best friends, and I suppose in a way they were. Of course, S
asha was as close as I got to a good girlfriend in the afterlife, but the guys were different. I felt more at ease, more able to be myself with them. Whereas even with Sasha I felt like I needed to put up some kind of front, needed to act a certain way so that she didn’t think I was unsociable or rude.
We had been walking for a few minutes to get to the edge of the woods where some of the younger spirits would be waiting. They were spirits that wanted to be friends with Noah and probably either join his band or bang him. The trees seemed to appear and grow faster than I was comfortable with, although maybe that was just because I didn’t want to put myself in the path of a demon.
Three other spirits waited for us, and when Noah jogged ahead I saw him greet them and chat for a bit before glancing over his shoulder to see if we were still approaching.
When we were within speaking distance Xavier took over, stopping whatever kind of conversation had been going on between the four of them. I’d been hoping to figure out what these other spirits were like, but our scientist didn’t want to linger in one spot for too long, which made sense.
“We’re walking as a group. If or when we see more than one demon appear you will each pair off with one of us. Red you’re with Bowie,” he said, pointing first to the kid in the red t-shirt, then to Bowie. “Blue, you’re with Noah, and blue two you’re with Gaius.”
I gulped when I realized that left me with Xavier. He and I had barely spoken to each other and I was much more comfortable with the other guys, but when I actually took time to think about it, I realized that he must have wanted me with him so that he could see exactly what kind of demons showed up, if any.
The eight of us began walking along the edge of the forest, none of us talking, so the only sound was the grass and fallen leaves crunching underfoot. Part of me loved those sounds, but part of me shivered thinking of what it meant. Did the afterlife have autumn and winter or was it just the same year-round? Hell, did it even really have years? There was still so much that I didn’t know that it made my head spin if I thought about it for too long.
A prickle ran up the back of my neck making me feel like we were being watched. I glanced at Xavier who was watching the woods like a hawk, and I hoped that if he had seen something he would have told me. Part of me wanted to tell the others what I was feeling but I also didn’t want to be the girl who cried wolf, so I kept my mouth shut.
It was when I could have sworn I saw a flash of something out of the corner of my eye that I said something. “I think we’re being watched.”
“Yes, there’s a fear sprite that’s been following us for a few minutes,” Xavier said, the words barely loud enough for me to hear.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” I hissed at him.
“I didn’t want to freak you out. The last thing we need is for you to fade right now.”
I grumbled at him under my breath, hating that he was right. When the prickles on my neck increased a few minutes later I glanced over at Xavier who nodded at me before whispering just loud enough for everyone to hear him, “Split.”
Each pair peeled off until it was only Xavier and me, all alone. The thought freaked me out more than I thought it would when I agreed to this experiment, although I didn’t realize he’d be the one with me at the time. It wasn’t that I doubted his intelligence or bravery, more that I just didn’t really know him enough to trust him to protect me. I would have struggled with Gaius if it had been the two of us together as well, whereas Bowie and Noah felt like old friends at this point, even though I’d only known them a week or so.
“What are they doing?” I asked, too scared to look into the forest in case Xavier’s theory was right.
“They haven’t decided yet, wait, one of them split off to go after another pairing, the rest are starting to follow us though.”
“The rest? How many are there?”
“Five, no six.”
“Oh, is that all?” I asked, my tone conveying exactly what I thought of his nonchalance.
“When I say run I want you to make a break for it and head back to the house. Try not to stop until you get there, understood?” Xavier whispered, although his voice sounded strained, and suddenly I realized he was just as scared as I was.
“Understood.”
We kept walking for a couple of minutes longer, and I wasn’t sure what he was waiting for. I couldn’t help myself and glanced over my shoulder to see at least ten demons sliding through the woods after us. Their forms mingled and drifted between trees when they needed to and became more solid when they could. Red, yellow, and neon green eyes watched me with a hunger like I’d never seen before. They were practically drooling as they focused on me.
“Run!” Xavier called as he pulled on my hand.
My head twisted around until I could see what had my partner sounding so scared. There was another group of shadows in front of us. Only this time they stayed low to the ground, making me think they were shades. That sent fear creeping up my spine. I couldn’t afford to be poisoned again. Not only because I’d only just started feeling normal, but because I didn’t want to have to take that antidote again.
The two of us sprinted away as fast as our legs could carry us. When I looked over my shoulder again though, it seemed like the demons were gaining ground and closing the gap between us which made panic race through my veins. I put a burst of speed on and tried not to think about what was behind me, but I couldn’t keep up with Xavier who seemed to be as fast as a gazelle, his long legs making his strides look elegant and effortless as they ate up the ground.
With a grunt he pulled on my hand and somehow swung me off my feet and into his arms like I weighed no more than a bag of flour. "Close your eyes," he yelled as he ran. I clung to him for dear life as we finally started to put distance between us and the demons. The only problem was I hadn't really paid attention and actually closed my eyes since I'd been too focused on the threat behind us. When I realized how fast we were moving my head turned and I caught the landscaping flying past us in a blur.
We were moving with such speed and force that I wasn't sure how he was avoiding things in his path, or what would happen if he hit something. Would I turn into goo? Or just break most of the bones in my body? And can ghosts even break bones? My mind started swirling with panic and the lack of ghostly knowledge until it was just a tangle of ideas and emotions.
Finally, I closed my eyes. It seemed to help calm some of the panic within me and let me focus on what was going on around me. I could hear the steady breath coming from Xavier while also taking in the clicking and whirring noises the demons were making behind us. They almost sounded like cicadas and crickets in the heat of summer, but their noises were deeper and more menacing. The idea of them having wings popped into my head and I couldn't suppress the shudder that ran through my body. Insects and I did not get along.
When we landed back at the house the others were waiting for us which made me think that Xavier must have taken the long way around to get there. Why? I wasn't sure, but I knew I'd find out. None of the three younger spirits were around and I couldn't help the worry that was clawing at my throat. If they died, became extinct, because of me I wouldn't be able to live with myself.
"They're back in their dorm rooms, and a little wiser for the experience I would think," Noah said, his phrasing making him sound like an old man for a second.
As soon as his words worked their way through the panic in my mind I relaxed. They were fine, and would probably be safer than other spirits their age now since they'd seen what lurked in the forest at night. I knew I would never get the sight of those eyes out of my head. The feeling of being prey was not something I was used to, and I couldn't say that I liked it, but it was how I imagined a rabbit might feel upon sighting a wolf.
"What did you see?" Gaius asked as we settled in the living room. The guys were all calm, almost relaxed, well, everyone except for Xavier who was pacing and bouncing on the balls of his feet like he still had adrenaline coursing through him from
the escape. I hovered by the door unable to relax while the feeling of being hunted still filled me. I wanted an exit or two close by, just in case.
Xavier stopped pacing as he began ticking monsters off his list on his fingers. "At first it was just the nightmare and fear sprite, but after we split up we were being followed by a blood wraith, a white lady, an imp, a djinn, and I think I saw a ghoul and an acheri as well. It's like word spread in the netherworld from the last time she was encountered to this time and everyone decided to show up to investigate. What if it had been an archdemon that had shown up? Or a Fallen? I didn't expect anything like that but judging from what I saw tonight someone will be coming for her. Sooner rather than later. We need to figure out why or she's toast."
"Toast is standing right here," I said, waving my hand in the air to get his attention, my tone acerbic.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to say that you were going to go extinct," Xavier said, seeming bashful after my outburst.
"Which translates to he didn't mean to say it in front of you." Gaius frowned, clearly unhappy with Xavier as well.
"We'll figure it out." Noah grabbed my attention as he stood and walked over to me. "Promise."
I wanted to believe him, I really did, but I couldn't, not with demons like that hunting me. My class hadn't even touched on archdemons yet, but they sounded like the worst of the worst and I hated what that might mean for me. I needed to figure out why they were interested in me, and fast.
16
Xavier
Avery was a problem. One that I wanted to solve. The reason I hadn't been paying attention was because I thought she was just another plaything that Noah had brought home, or rather Bowie, but it was the same concept. Now, I knew better.