“Picking up some activity downstairs,” Calista said, flicking through displays on her tablet. “Movement, sounds. Temperature fluctuation.”
“This is just the pre-game warm-up,” Kell said.
We left the door to the second room open as well. Room three was on the opposite side of the hall, and the faded pastel colors and stencils of toys and animals made it clear that the room was decorated for a child. I frowned. “I thought you said the Blakes didn’t have children.”
“They didn’t. Neither did the Tanners, the first new owners,” Kell replied. “But the Robertsons did. They bought the place from a real estate speculator who lost his shirt when a plan to build a mall fell through. The Robertsons bought the house about five years after the property went into foreclosure.”
I couldn’t imagine anyone thinking that Tarleton would be a healthy place to raise a family. “The Robertsons had two young daughters,” Kell said. Calista, Drew, and Pete moved into the room just far enough to monitor. “This was back in the mid-nineties. Things went okay for a while.”
“Maybe the house took a while to wake up,” Teag said.
I had the feeling that all around us, the house was indeed waking up. I didn’t need Calista’s recording equipment to hear faint scuffling sounds downstairs. Over our heads, boards creaked as if someone was walking in the attic.
“The girls started telling tales about invisible friends, a ‘bad lady’ in the dining room who chased them, and a man with no head in the garage.”
“Uh oh.”
“Mrs. Robertson began having migraine headaches. Mr. Robertson was traveling a lot. Both girls had night terrors,” Kell said. “The family dog wouldn’t enter certain rooms, and it would wake up and begin barking at nothing.”
Nothing you could see.
“There were a lot of weird goings-on,” Kell added. “It got so bad, Mrs. Robertson called in a medium and had a séance.”
“We’re having some weird goings-on ourselves,” Calista said. “The equipment is picking up vocalizations too low for us to hear. Listen.” She tapped her tablet, and we heard a deep voice that sounded distorted.
Leave us.
“Play that again,” Kell ordered.
Leave us.
“Sounds like someone doesn’t like company,” Teag commented.
“The first time we came here, more than a year ago, we picked up some orbs and a little EMF agitation,” Calista said.
“When we came back last month, we got a bit of a woman’s voice, saw some strange shadows, got hit by pebbles and rocks and had a bunch of other poltergeisty stuff,” Pete added, splitting his attention between us and what he was watching on his glasses.
“The readings are way more extreme this time,” Drew chimed in. “Pegging the red zone. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“What happened when the Robertsons held their séance? I asked.
“They got more than they bargained for,” Kell replied. “The medium went into her trance and began to speak in a man’s voice, threatening them. The Robertsons moved out shortly afterwards, and a developer bought the land and just let the house go to rot.”
Out in the hallway, I heard the squeak of footsteps on the floorboards, but no one was in the hallway. From downstairs, the faint sounds of a piano and voices were unmistakable.
“Yeah, you heard that,” Drew confirmed, noticing my expression. He checked his equipment. “I picked up some audio.”
“Let’s take a look at the last two rooms,” Kell said. “Just in case we decide to make a fast getaway.” Above our heads, I heard a scraping sound, as if someone were shoving a heavy piece of furniture or dragging a trunk.
“How do we know there isn’t someone up there?” Teag asked. “Maybe squatters moved in.”
Calista adjusted the sensors on her equipment, and held up a metal wand connected to her tablet. “I’m picking up six heartbeats and six separate thermo readings in here,” she said. “If there’s anyone upstairs, they’re cold and they don’t have a beating heart.”
Teag and I exchanged a glance. I wasn’t going to say so, but that didn’t rule out vampires and other supernatural creatures.
The fourth room looked like it might have been an office. Paint peeled from the walls and cockroaches skittered past. On the hardwood floor, someone had made a large circle with charcoal and salt, like the kind used to do powerful magic. It had been smudged open. I could still feel the remnants of magic, dark and stained.
“No ghosts,” Calista said, looking at her tablet. Pete shook his head. “Nobody home.”
“What about the circle?” I asked. “Was it here the last time you visited?”
Kell frowned. “No, or at least, we didn’t notice it. Vandals must have gotten in again.”
I let him think that, but the residual power I felt wasn’t from a bunch of kids with a Ouija board. Someone with real power had been here. I wanted to know why.
“The fifth room has always been the wildcard,” Kell said as we moved to the last room in the hallway.
The door slowly swung open as we approached. Inside, dingy curtains hung over the windows. Something skittered beneath the fabric. The sense that someone was present in the room was overwhelming, and all my instincts were screaming for me to run.
I stepped far enough into the room to note that its window overlooked the pool. In the moonlight, the pool was a dark rectangle surrounded by a sagging chainlink fence. Then I saw something that looked like a long, dark tentacle snake from the fetid water and lurch up onto the cracked pavement.
“Y’all, we need to get out of here,” I said, backing toward the doorway.
From the darkest corner of the room, a figure began to slide toward us, a shadow with no one to cast it. It had the shape of a woman, with a long, flowing gown, and it was moving fast toward the door. Hundreds of cockroaches swarmed toward us like a living brown tide.
“Run!” Kell yelled.
Slam. Slam-slam-slam. The doors we had left open slammed shut as we ran past. Over our heads something in the attic stamped its feet. Sounds filled the empty house. I heard a child’s laughter and a woman sobbing, then the muted echo of a gunshot.
Cockroaches covered every surface, wiggling out of the walls along the baseboard, dropping down from holes in the ceiling, emerging from beneath the wallpaper and crunching beneath our feet as we ran. We brushed them out of our hair and off our clothing, but no matter how many we trod underfoot or slapped away from us, the swarm closed in behind us.
When we had entered, the old house smelled of mold and decay, mildew and dust. Now, the stench of rotting meat was unmistakable, strong enough to make my gorge rise. I kept myself from throwing up because that would require stopping and something might catch up with me. From the look on the faces of my companions, everyone was struggling not to retch.
As we headed for the steps, the door to the attic swung open, revealing a lightless abyss. I heard footsteps coming down the attic stairs, and I did not want to see what was heading to meet us.
“Faster!” Teag shouted. Calista and Drew were in the lead, heading down the grand staircase. Pete was close behind them. Kell was in front of me, and Teag behind me. As Calista reached the midpoint on the stairway, the huge crystal chandelier crashed to the floor, sending shards of glass flying.
Roaches made a living waterfall down the moldering carpet of the stairway. Pete tripped on the last step and went sprawling. The roaches swarmed over him as he screamed and beat them away. Teag and Kell dragged Pete to his feet, swatting the bugs off him.
“My equipment!” Calista yelled, veering toward the dining room.
“Hurry!” Kell urged.
Teag and I maneuvered ourselves to stand at the bottom of the steps while Pete and Drew helped Calista grab the monitoring equipment and Kell held the door open. Shadows were sliding down the walls of the upstairs landing and from around the corner where the attic stairway loomed. “Get them out of here!” Teag yelled to Kell. “We’ll buy
you some time. Get the van running and wait for us.”
“Go!” Teag said, giving Pete a push toward the door.
Calista and the others were already running. I let the athame fall into my hand and focused on its resonance, gathering my will. A cone of cold, white light blasted from the wooden handle, smashing the roaches on the bottom half of the stairway and driving back the shadows with its glare.
Teag and I backed up quickly, never turning our backs on the shadows that were already regrouping and slithering down the walls to the bottom of the steps.
“Run!” Teag yelled as he lobbed one of Chuck’s EMF grenades in an underhand toss toward the steps. Together, we dove out of the house and clamored down the front steps. A momentary burst of sound and light flared out of the windows of the first floor, then the ruined house was dark once more.
Teag and I piled into the van before Kell slammed the side door closed. “What the hell was that?” Kell’s voice was shaking.
“Tell you later!” I said, remembering the thing that had been hauling itself out of the pool. “Go! Go! Go!”
Drew was driving, and the van laid rubber getting out of the driveway. I had no idea whether any of the neighbors had spotted the light show and called the cops, but if they did, I didn’t want to be around to answer questions. Calista was examining her equipment and swearing under her breath.
“Something nearly blew out all my monitors,” she said.
Pete managed a brave half-smile. “Thanks for pulling me out back there. I thought I was a goner.” His smart-glasses were askew.
“Next time, I’m bringing a big can of Raid,” Drew said. “Calling those bugs ‘palmetto bugs’ doesn’t change a thing. I hate roaches.”
Kell was still looking at Teag and me as if we had grown two heads. “What did you do back there?” I could hear fear in his voice, and beneath it, curiosity.
Teag shrugged. “I used something I’ve been tinkering around with,” he lied. “Sends an EMF pulse and scrambles ghosts’ frequencies.”
“It would have been nice to have a warning,” Calista said, sounding a bit tetchy. “I’m hoping I didn’t lose my equipment.”
“It got us out of there,” I snapped. “Did you really want a closer look at whatever was chasing us?” Calista and the others shook their heads and I realized that they looked more frightened than annoyed.
Kell let out a long breath. “Thanks a lot,” he said “Better to lose some equipment than have anyone get hurt.”
“I’m guessing the last time wasn’t quite that extreme?” I asked.
“Not even close,” Pete replied. “We got freaky readings and heard sounds.”
“No roaches,” Drew agreed, and shivered.
“It’s very possible that EMF pulse wiped our recordings,” Calista said with a sidelong glare at Teag. “So we may not have any data to show for all our bother.” Kell gave her a dirty look, and she shut up.
“You saw what happened in there,” Kell said, and I could see that he was badly shaken. “It’s not just our imagination, or stories we’re making up.”
I nodded. “Yeah. We saw. And I don’t have a good explanation for you.”
Kell met my gaze. “Cassidy, this is Charleston. Ghosts galore. What happens if the rest of them turn dangerous?”
I didn’t know what to say. He was absolutely right about the danger. And that meant that Teag and Sorren and I needed to figure out answers before more people got hurt.
“EVERY TIME THERE’S a lull, I go out and look up more about Tarleton House,” Teag said. The store was busy, but tourists seem to come in bunches with times in-between when the store was empty. Maggie was off, so that left Teag and me to rehash what we had seen the night before.
“And?” I asked.
Teag shrugged. “Kell’s recap gels with what I found, even on the Darke Web,” he said. “Nothing supernatural about the owners, no dark magic at work.” He made a face. “If you make bad enough choices, you can get screwed over just fine without the need for dark magic.”
True enough, I thought. I hadn’t slept well, even with Baxter cuddled next to me and the lights on. Last night had been like being in a horror movie. Only when you’re watching a movie and it gets too intense, you can go out for popcorn, or just shut your eyes. Those aren’t options when the big bad wolf is real.
“I did find something else,” Teag said. “I was poking around the records on Jonathan, the guy who disappeared next door. Maggie was right – he had been acquitted of some serious charges. When I looked up the other people who’ve vanished on stairways, it turns out every single one of them was charged with a serious crime and then acquitted.”
I frowned. “That’s weird.”
Teag nodded. “Yeah, it is. So I dug a little deeper. In each case, it turns out that the person who disappeared really did do something wrong, but circumstances factored into the verdict. So for example, Jonathan really did hit and kill a man with his car, but he was acquitted because the pedestrian was drunk and the jury determined that he couldn’t have avoided hitting the man.”
I could feel a headache coming on, and I rubbed my temples. I was glad that, at least for a few moments, all the tourists had left the store. “Interesting – but I’ve got no idea how that could possibly have anything to do with the disappearances.”
“Neither do I,” Teag admitted. “But I thought it was worth mentioning.”
“I’ve tried to reach Daniel Hunter, but he’s not answering his cell phone,” I said. “Since Sorren isn’t here, I want some answers about Watchers and Reapers.” I sighed. “Guess Daniel just plans to come and go on his own schedule. That’s not helpful.” I had left several messages, with no reply. If we can’t count on him and don’t know when he’ll bother to drop by, he’s not much use to us.
“Don’t forget dinner at our place tonight – it’s Anthony’s treat.” Teag chuckled.
“You had me at hello,” I said, trying to sound light-hearted. It took a real effort to shake off what had happened on the ghost tour and at Tarleton House. Really bad things were happening and I was worried that I hadn’t heard from Sorren.
The bell on the shop door rang, and we both looked up, expecting a customer. To my surprise, Father Anne walked in, with a large leather-bound book under one arm. “Hey there,” she greeted us, and glanced around to see if there were any customers. “Are you busy? Can I talk to you?”
“Sure,” I said. “If someone comes in, you and I can go in the back.”
“I heard about your accident at the cemetery,” she said. “Are you all right?”
I shrugged. “It could have been a lot worse. I’m a little banged up, but nothing that won’t heal. Insurance will cover the car, although I’m not sure ‘monster damage’ is on my policy.” Hard to believe that was just a couple of days ago.
“What have you got there?” Teag asked, coming around to stand next to me.
Father Anne set a large ledger-sized book on the counter. It had an old, worn leather binding, and even without getting close to it, I could feel a tingle of power. “I’m glad you called me. I got in touch with some of my people at the St. Expeditus Society. Thought you might want to see this.”
She flipped open the book. Two full-page colored prints of paintings stared out at us. The paintings were old, and I did not recognize the name of the artist. But there was no mistaking the subject.
On the left-hand page, I saw a trio of young men who looked like they belonged in an ad for every high-priced sin you could imagine in your fevered dreams. They were handsome, but not anyone’s version of the boy next door. Their faces had the chiseled features of a Bernini sculpture, but the thin lips were cruel and haughty, the eyes arrogant and cold.
On the right-hand page, a dozen handsome men stalked forward out of the shadows, but on second glance, they were in the process of transforming into something hideous. One had leathery arms that ended in wicked claws. Another had the cloven hooves and furred legs of a goat. The head and chest o
n one had changed into a monstrous creature with a gaping maw and slitted eyes.
“Is this what attacked you?” Father Anne asked.
“Yeah. At least he sure looked like he’d belong with them.” I wrapped my arms around myself. “So what are they?”
“Nephilim, supernatural creatures born when something from the Other Side seduces a human,” Father Anne replied.
“Yeah,” I replied, thinking of Coffee Guy’s rapid change from handsome heartthrob to ugly monster. “And I bet they hold the illusion just long enough to get what they want.” I didn’t want to think about how flirty Coffee Guy had been and where that might have ended up.
“Let’s just say it doesn’t go well for the women they seduce,” Father Anne said with an expression that told me I didn’t want to ask for details.
“I don’t get how these Nephilim guys can just show up. Aren’t they Lucifer-fell-from-heaven type angels?” Teag asked, bending forward for a closer look.
Father Anne gave a tired smile. “Actually, that’s more legend than fact,” she said.
“How do Nephilim decide where and when to appear?” Teag asked.
“It depends,” Father Anne said, closing the book. I wondered what else it contained, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. “Sometimes, they’re attracted to where a disaster is about to happen. Imagine vultures with foreknowledge of when there’s going to be fresh road kill.”
I could live without that image.
“Sometimes, they’re drawn by a person with a particular gift – like the monk who painted the original paintings reprinted in this book, or like poor, doomed Gerard Astor, a painter who could see them,” she added. “Or a powerful nephilmancer can a summon them to do his bidding. Fortunately, that’s a once-in-a-blue-moon kind of thing.”
“How long ago was the last blue moon?” Teag asked wryly.
Father Anne gave a wan smile. “It’s been about one hundred and fifty years since the last time a nephilmancer showed up on this half of North America. I gather it was quite a battle. Most people remember it as the Great Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1854. Sorren played a big role in defeating that nephilmancer.”
Vendetta (Deadly Curiosities Book 2) Page 13