“The gates sealed with thirty years blood paid, a deathly promise be made, until death do you bind shall the curse fade.” He recited those words like he’d been saying them over and over since he was born. Maybe he had been.
“That makes no sense.”
He sighed and nodded.
“Yeah. No one knew what it meant, and that witch still talks about it like we understand the meaning.”
Still talks about it?
“She’s alive?”
“She lives in the mansion in her magic room. A ghost, as is everyone else in my family that has passed away. The curse also prevents anyone from moving on until it’s broken. So it’s kind of high tension at my place around the holidays.” He smiled, and I reached out my hand to touch his. To let him know . . . well . . . I didn’t know what I wanted him to know. Maybe that I understood . . . sort of.
Instead, I kept my hands to myself and asked a burning question I couldn’t stop thinking about.
“So how does the whole circus act fit in?”
Chapter Eleven
Jude
“It’s not a circus.”
I corrected her, even though my show was mostly a circus. Ruffling her feathers and contradicting her words was becoming something I did often. When she rolled her eyes, I smiled despite the tough topic of my life.
“OK then, ghostly performers that you sort of bring back to life so they can do circus-like acts on a stage. Oh, and with you dressed up in an all-black ringleader suit.”
Smart-ass.
“They had been invited to the house to perform for my great-great-grandfather’s birthday. When the curse took his life, they got stuck in our family’s mess along with everyone else who was there. My family has always let whoever was in the cemetery hang out if they choose to. Some liked the socialization, but now there have been generations of people who can’t leave Mallory Mansion.”
Her pink lips frowned. She was sad for those who couldn’t move on. It was her job to help them move to the other side to peace or silence. The very taste of heaven was in her blood, mingled with a melody of death calling her to those dying or dead.
“I promised them that if they gave me a last year to remember, I would take them with me when I go. We think ghosts and the keeper working together can break the curse. Madam Tully said this year is the year it happens, so it’s the only thing we have to go on.”
I don’t think I’d said my fate out loud to anyone before. It was oddly comforting to know someone else knew the real part of me . . . that I was going to die.
“But what about your family? Don’t you have any lovers or children who would want a say in this?” She leaned in closer, her voice more tense than before. I shrugged.
“My family is dead. Each descendent had only one boy and no more. So no cousins that I know of. My mother decided to join my father after he killed himself for the debt to be paid. They raised me as ghost parents but I saw what this curse has done to people. I don’t want to put that heavy burden on anyone. No family, no full-time lovers, and definitely no children. When I go, the only thing people will mourn is my show, which is something easy to move on from.”
Our waitress came over and refilled my coffee, then asked if we needed anything else. We both shook our heads silently.
“So you only have twenty-eight days to live?” She stared at her tea.
“Yeah. Halloween is my thirtieth birthday.” I was thinking about maybe having a party at the mansion, but then decided dying quietly and alone was best. Didn’t need anyone else traumatized about finding my body hanging from the tower like I found my father.
“Yep. Trying to go out with a bang of performances.” I sipped the newly poured coffee and gagged. This coffee was disgusting. I should have placed my hand over the cup when she came by.
“Here. Try my tea.” Selene pushed her cup over toward me, completely trusting.
My fingers brushed hers as I gently pulled the cup over to me and raised it to my lips. It was good, despite not having the same kick that fresh coffee gave me.
“I can see why these murders are upsetting you in more ways than one,” she admitted, tucking her hair behind her left ear. She wasn’t the type of beautiful woman I’d been with before. She was normal and real, while the others were fake and wanted to be around me because of my notoriety as a magician. They had sculpted bodies from hours at the gym or a surgeon, money-hungry, fame-seekers and cold personalities, like their passionless one-night stands.
“It’s not really how I want my show being remembered after I’m gone.” I hated to say I, because these women’s deaths should be about them, but I couldn’t help the way I felt.
“Do you think anyone is purposely doing this to screw up your show? A disgruntled performer or a jealous one because you’re getting this life when theirs has ended?”
I wasn’t sure.
“Not that I know of. All my performers are happy to hold up their end of the bargain, since I am ending the curse with them, so they can finally leave this place. I don’t know why any of them would do anything to anger me.”
“OK, what about them having the ability to actually kill someone when you’re around? I know souls can’t do that normally or at least none that I have come by except . . .” Her face lit up like she’d just figured out something in her head, then her eyes narrowed at me, a conclusion to a mystery I didn’t know anything about.
“Someone pushed me down the hill behind your house to the cemetery. I heard laughter and distinctly felt hands push me.”
Surrounded by so many ghosts at home drained me after a while, and I never gave them power when I was there. It was against my rules. It created jealousy and rage, and in their excitement someone usually did a lot of damage. I told Selene as much but I wasn’t sure if she believed me.
“I know someone pushed me.” Her bottom lip was pulled between her teeth as she thought to herself intensely, trying to think of any more clues.
“I believe you. I’m just unsure how that can be true. I am very strict at home. I think that’s why my crew like that I am doing this before my end. They get to perform and live again for a few nights. Ralphie gets to feel his elephant’s skin and hug him. The trapeze artists feel the energy of the excited crowd.”
I hadn’t noticed how passionate I was coming off until I noticed Selene intently paying attention to me.
“We’ll figure this out. You, me, the Seahill police, and the Hero Society are on it, too.”
“I hope so.”
A sense of foreboding wiggled its way beneath my skin. Something was different. Not just the feeling in the air as the cold began to settle in Seahill . . . fall was not the only thing changing the world around us. I looked at Selene and I knew I needed to end whatever was happening before it went any further. The police, the newspaper, and the Hero Society would find the murderer.
“What?” Pink blush coated her cheeks. My mouth opened to speak, to say that I wished her luck on the case and if she needed anything to give me a call, but then she smiled a soft smile like a girl who had a crush.
Fuck, I didn’t need this, but I wanted it.
“Nothing. I just think everything is going to be OK.”
“It will be,” she agreed and took her tea back and lifted it to her perfect light-pink lips.
Chapter Twelve
Selene
Jude and I left the diner late last night, and I still can’t believe all the deep information we told each other. Holy hell. His family curse and the fact he has to die to keep the gates sealed, holding back the dead. I even ended up telling him some of my story, about Travis and when I’d gone crazy from not using my powers. He officially knew more about me than anyone, and we’d only known each other for a very short time.
I woke up a little on edge in my head. Maybe it was being around souls so much lately, but the buzz beneath my skin drove me crazy. My thoughts had turned toward the dark, and I couldn’t find the will to do anything besides get out of bed for some te
a, pee, then get back into bed.
I was grateful I could work from home and did most of the time so I didn’t need to fake a smile to anyone today. It wasn’t that I had a bad life. Even with my past and my powers, I was still living and doing good. But that’s the thing about depression. Somedays it wins, and you need to let it. You need to rest and feel what you’re feeling. I’d been to therapy, I’d taken the meds, and what seemed to help me the most was to let it win one day, then push myself back to normal activities the next day. It gave me a deadline for my feelings, and I focused on that instead of feeling like it would never end.
This had worked for me for years to get out of my real lows, but it wasn’t for everyone. I wish there was a magic button that cured mental illness, but there wasn’t. So today, I read a little from a romance novel I’d been peeking at on my shelf, slept, and watched a show about a witch on TV.
Every once in a while, my thoughts drifted back to Jude. Maybe it was his story that had me falling down the rabbit hole of darkness today, or maybe it was just my time.
I really had enjoyed his show, watching his face light up when he talked about his performance. He told me more about some of his people and their ghost animals that were allowed to move on to where animals go but chose to stay because they loved their caretakers too much. I could see how he appeared to be standoffish in many ways, like he didn’t know how to deal with the living. He had been raised by ghosts, his only friends were ghosts, and from what I could tell, the women he had been with for very short moments in his history were nothing more than warm-blooded ghosts.
My parents loved me. They didn’t quite know what to do with me when I hit my lows, but they were still there for me. Mom would visit as often as she could when I’d been institutionalized, and Dad would always bring me fresh-cooked dinners when allowed.
Jude didn’t have that, which made me want to be closer to him. No one should feel alone, and especially not alone with a fate like his. I still couldn’t believe Jude had to die in twenty-seven days! My phone beeped from the other side of my bed, bringing my thoughts back to the present where they belonged.
Echo: We’re coming over, and we have junk food.
Today wasn’t really the best of days for a get-together, but they were most likely told to come see me by the all-knowing Phillip Griffin.
His sister was a powerful empath and while it was great to be around her, she wandered into my emotions when I was like this. I could see the pain inside her, and I knew if I wanted, she would make me feel happy for a few moments while she was around. But that’s not what I needed.
I didn’t respond. I didn’t feel like peopling earlier than I was supposed to. They’d seen me on my downs, so I didn’t have to fake it around anyone of the Hero Society. They just accepted me as I was. I was curious though who was coming over. Echo said “we” so I assumed more than one. There weren’t astronomical numbers of members since the Hero Society was still growing and branching out.
The knock on my door came five minutes after the text and I didn’t bother putting on a bra before answering the door. My cottage sat on the edge of the city and was small with only two bedrooms. It had a good-sized living room that I filled with a red couch and two black oversized chairs. The kitchen was my dream kitchen with retro-style appliances, and well, the bathrooms were also my favorite. This place was my sanctuary, and I liked to keep it that way. I always felt sad when someone told me their house wasn’t their calming, safe space.
“What did you bring?” I asked through the door, peeking through the peephole to see who was on the other side. Apparently, it was just a girls’ night.
“The fair is in town so we brought lots of fair food! Caramel apples. Fried Oreos. You must try them,” Gwendolyn answered, and I smiled. She was sweet. Hell, they all were.
“All right.” I unlocked my door and let the gang of girls into my home.
Rose had a bigger apartment, as did Gwendolyn, for these types of get-togethers but I suspected they were here for me and my mood, to support me and make me feel less alone. I hated to admit it, but the gesture was working already.
Echo was the first in and carried two food boxes in her hand. I always loved the way she carried herself, with confidence and a badass vibe with her medium-length black hair and tanned Native American skin topped off with a signature leather jacket and boots. She had the power to change into any animal she wanted to, and her boyfriend, Asher, was a witch, not from the demigod side of things but wild magic of the Earth. He owned a bar in Seahill with an apartment they shared above.
“I’ll grab the plates,” she muttered, as she walked in, and got straight to work. Not the best at chitchat, but I had more in common with her than the next woman who danced in. Literally. Lilith was one batshit crazy woman, with long black hair, beautiful brown eyes, and a body any person male or female would crave. She knew it, too. But she was also a retired spy and could take down anyone. She was dangerous but sweet and cared deeply about her friends, me included, thankfully.
Gwendolyn and Rose were the introverts of the group, who I usually hung out with the most. Both didn’t handle emotions well, but that didn’t stop them from trying to break away from their shy tendencies.
Then there was Esme. She was a nurse who fell in love with the villain who took over the world last year. He loved her, too, and willingly gave up everything to have a chance with her again. If it wasn’t for her story, I wouldn’t be here now. I had developed a bit of a secret girl crush on her. What she put on the line for love left me in awe every time I thought about it.
“I’m guessing Phillip said you guys needed to stop by?” I closed the door behind them and grinned as I watched them get their sweets and settle in my living room, like they’ve done many times.
“Nope, we just happened to get lots of food at the fair and think to ourselves, ‘Hey, I bet Selene would love some fried Oreos and cotton candy!’” Lilith exclaimed, while Rose became intensely intrigued in her caramel apple instead of looking in my direction. Lilith was not a good liar.
“Right. So I’m sure one of you has an agenda for tonight. What are the plans?” The girls had girls’ night frequently as a way to destress from the whole “saving the world gig” and getting away from their intense men. However, they did love their men with every fiber of their being. Separation was good for them from time to time, which was fine with me. It was sometimes hard being in a room with six perfectly matched soul mates. The sexual tension and love vibes were crushing.
“We were thinking maybe we’d just hang, chat for a bit, then watch a movie. Eat all the goodies. The men said they can handle the city tonight,” Echo answered and a few of the girls snickered at the thought of the boys handling the city without them. We all knew they were perfectly capable of it. I mean you had Draco, who used to be a general in an ancient Greek army turned immortal with another man who had super speed and strength. Add a witch, and a man who could manipulate water, then finally a villain turned to the good side, who happened to be the only demigod left in existence. I think they were good, but the gals still gave them shit.
As I sat down, I thought about what it would be like to have someone to smile with, laugh with, and also be serious and intense. Someone to have hot sex with . . . something that had been lacking for a while.
Jude flashed into my head when I thought about sex, but then I pushed the thought away. He only had a month to live, and as fun as I knew it would be, I wasn’t sure I wanted to hurt my heart.
Jude
“So how’s it going with Miss Reaper?” Rudy plopped his ghostly ass onto the couch beside me as I fiddled with a deck of cards in my hands.
“Fine. Hopefully we can help in some way to solve the murders at my show. You haven’t heard any of the others talk about killing anyone or being pissed at me for something, have you?” I still didn’t think it was my crew, but there wasn’t any harm in asking the biggest gossiper of the group. If anyone was contemplating murder, Rudy would know about
it.
“Nope. None of us are wanting to fuck up our only chance of moving on.”
Frustrated, I knew he was right.
“Have you guys been feeling different at all? Selene said she felt someone push her into the cemetery. It wasn’t me, but it shouldn’t have been any of you, either.”
Rudy shook his head so quickly, it turned around like an owl’s would. Sadly, I wasn’t even fazed by the movement, having been so used to antics like that since I was a kid.
“I think you would know very quickly if we were able to actually touch things and move them. You probably would wake up with Lucy’s mouth on your cock if that were true.”
I groaned, as the she-devil walked in, as if she waited until someone said her name.
This was not a conversation I wanted to have. I just needed some alone time to think, which was not a common occurrence in a house where doors did not keep people from coming into your room to interrupt the peace.
“I’m going for a walk,” I announced to the room, and the two beings occupying it wisely didn’t question my sudden change.
As I walked through the halls of the mansion aimlessly, I tried to empty my mind and be like the ghosts around me, drifting through the world. I didn’t know what to do about the murders right now, and I wanted to see Selene again but didn’t know what to do about that, either. Neither of us needed this flimsy friendship to turn into anything more than what it was, and the more time I spent with her, the higher percentage of that happening would occur. She was smart and a smart-ass. She was fun to be around, talk to, and yeah she wasn’t my typical type of woman, but she was stunning.
Despite wanting to be alone, I shuffled my deck of cards all the way to Madam Tully’s room in the basement. A candelabra waited on a shelf at the bottom of the stairs with a light for me. There wasn’t any electricity down here.
Like the rest of the house, the basement was not normal. It was just as artfully decorated with no amount of cash spared. Artwork and curtains hung from the ceiling to the floor with lush carpets that could use a good vacuum. The whole place was stuck in the early 1800s, including some of its inhabitants. Although, most ghosts didn’t wander down here, since the lack of light reminded them of being underground in a grave or in a coffin. I also heard from Rudy that Madam Tully made them uncomfortable. She was a witch who married into the family and had originally warned her husband about the repercussions of not doing as he was born to do. Some of the ghosts believed she could have done more to stop the curse, but I didn’t. We only had control of ourselves in this life. What other people did was not our fault.
Fall (Hero Society Book 6) Page 5