Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
Back at the office, I tossed my jacket in my office, then called Penn. “Hey, I have a question,” I asked when she came on the phone.
“What’s up?”
“Can you exorcise ghosts? Or can you even tell what’s a ghost and what’s a demon or an astral nasty?”
Penn paused for a moment, then said, “Yes, I’m pretty good at that. What’s the problem?”
I told her what had happened. “We want to get a handle on what we’re dealing with.”
“When do you want to go back?” she asked.
That stopped me for a moment, as I suddenly realized that yes, we were going to have to return to the house and face those creatures again. Then, before I could answer, Orik stuck his head in my office.
“Boss, come on. We’ve got images on the cameras over at Michael’s.”
I jumped up. “Penn, we have cameras set up. Can you come down? Or, if you don’t want to drive, I can send someone for you,” I said, entering the conference room.
Orik gave me a quizzical look and I mouthed, “Penn.”
“I don’t like driving in the snow,” she said. “But I can.”
“Wait,” Orik said. He motioned to my phone. “Put her on speaker.”
I did as he asked and sat the phone on the table, resting it on top of a battery-operated pillar candle sitting on the center of the table. “You’re on speaker, Penn.”
“Hey,” Orik said. “If you don’t want to drive in, I can cast the images we’re looking at to your computer, if you want.”
Penn breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks. I hate driving in snow. Let me turn on my computer. I’ll call you back when I’m there.” She hung up.
“Good,” I said. “I was going to send someone over to pick her up.”
“No need,” Orik said. “I’m also pulling Lazenti in on this call. We need all the help we can get.”
“He’s not asleep?” I asked.
“Nope. He is at home, though.” Orik said, as he and Carson began setting up their laptops. Carson opened a Meet-Me Room and pulled both Lazenti and Penn into it.
Lazenti was looking as dapper as ever. With wavy black hair, pale skin so alabaster he might have been a statue, and ice blue eyes ringed with crimson, he was good looking, with a glamour that wouldn’t quit. But then again, most vamps had glamour and could charm the hell out of most shifters, humans, and some other species. The Fae were usually immune to them, and I found that I could withstand his glamour for the most part—probably my demon side.
Lazenti was wearing an ugly Christmas sweater over blue jeans, but somehow it worked on him. “Hey,” he said, waving.
In the window next to him, Penn was dressed in a cozy green sweater with a black skirt. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and she was wearing a sparkly candy-cane headband that matched her candy-cane glasses.
Lazenti let out a low whistle. “Looking good, woman,” he said. It was obvious who he was talking to. Both he and Carson had a crush on Penn, but Penn wasn’t the monogamous type.
“Thanks,” she said, then waved at the rest of us.
I glanced over at Carson, who glared at Lazenti, but said nothing. For his sake, I hoped he found someone else to occupy his interest. Penn would break his heart, without meaning to.
“Okay, let’s get moving,” I said, breaking up the wannabe-love fest. “What’s happening, Orik?”
Penn straightened, staring at me. “What happened to your arm?”
“Ghost impaled me with a piece of glass,” I said.
“Well, that’s not good.”
But Orik was ready and so he turned on the recordings coming from the Caramite house. “Here we go,” he said. “I’ve got recordings from when we first set up the cameras, but let’s start watching what’s going on now.”
The cameras came online. We could see every room on the six-screen viewer. The living room, kitchen and two of the bedrooms were quiet, but the bedroom belonging to Jules, and the attic both spun out of control. Jules’ room was a maelstrom of flying toys, only instead of cute little stuffed animals, toy solders were fighting each other, a Jack-in-the-box was popping open repeatedly as maniacal laughter fill the room, and a toy dinosaur chased a stuffed rabbit around the room in a dizzying race.
“I don’t think those toys are inviting anybody to come play,” I said, grimacing. “I can’t imagine having a kid in there at this point.”
“They’d attack and try to kill it,” Penn said. She and Lazenti could see everything we could, thanks to the remote viewer. “The energy coming off that room is freaking scary as hell.”
“Can you tell—” I stopped as something began to happen in the attic.
A mist was forming, condensing into a form that rose up like a massive figure. It coalesced into a large, lovely looking woman, standing there in a gossamer dress. But the next moment, she turned to camera and leaned forward, then screamed. As she let out a banshee yowl, her face turned from delicate beauty into a decaying skull, with white-hot rage filling the eye sockets.
“Yikes!” Sophia jumped, then calmed herself again.
I leaned back against my chair, grateful I wasn’t there in person. “What the hell was that?”
Penn was silent for a moment, then she said, “I might know. I’m not positive, but I think that was a revenant.”
“What’s a revenant?” Carson asked.
Penn paled. “A nasty entity. It begins as the ghost of a person who died an untimely, brutal death. They died before their time, and hold a deep grudge against the living. But over the years, it increases in power and loses more of its humanity. The spirit begins to bind other spirits to it and absorbs them. Revenants can affect the living, and if they’re strong enough, they can kill someone. They feed on life force—on fear, mostly. It sustains them. As long as they can scare enough people, they’ll continue to live in this half-life state. Think of the Thing, only in spirit form.”
“How often do they need to feed?” I asked.
“The strongest ones can exist without feeding for years, because they’ve drained enough entities and living creatures to sustain them. They long to be among the living again. That longing turns to jealousy and hatred. Even if they started out as wonderful people before their death, they harbor so much resentment and jealousy toward the living that they no longer resemble any aspect of who the core spirit was in life.”
I thought about what she said for a moment. “Let us tell you what we found about the history of the place—Carson, would you brief her on it?”
Carson ran down the string of murders, deaths, and the history of the Bleeding Rock.
“Let me put myself on mute for a moment. I want to look up something.” Penn hit mute and turned off her camera.
“Well, it’s nice to have someone who has a better grasp of the way these things work,” Carson said.
I nodded. “Penn’s a goldmine of information. I’m putting her on retainer, by the way. She can use the extra money and we can use her expertise.”
“She certainly knows her stuff,” Lazenti said.
When she returned, Penn had a large book in hand. She pointed to one of the entries. “If there’s any chance that the shifter pack created a portal for Xetanbu, then we have to close it, or this creature will continue to return.”
“How can we know if they did that?” Dante asked.
“I’m not certain. Let me a do a little more research into the subject. Meanwhile, send me everything you have on the history of the house. I need to know exactly what we’re going into here, before I try anything magical against it.”
“Sure. What do you suggest we do in the meantime?” I asked.
“Leave it alone. Going back into that house will likely result in you getting hurt a lot more than you have been. I’ll get right on this,” she said.
“I’ll be home by around six. Earlier if the snow gets worse.” I glanced at Lazenti. “Do you have anything you might be able to add?” This didn’t seem like a job for a vampire, but it couldn’t hurt to ask.
Lazenti thought for a moment. “I can’t think of anything. I wish I could help, but unless you need more research done?—”
“You can research the Blood Moon shifter pack, if you want. That will save me some time,” Carson said.
“I’m on it,” Lazenti said. “I’ll email you the results as soon as I find out anything.”
With that, we all signed off. I looked at the others. “Well, this is proving to be far more of a challenge than I thought it would. Dante, will you call Michael and reiterate how important it is that he stays away from the house? Tell him it’s a life-or-death situation.”
“All right,” Dante said. “We’ve done what we can on this case, at least for now. What next?”
“Carson, Orik? Can you monitor those cameras from your homes?” I had no sooner asked when my phone sounded with a weather alert.
“I’ll do it,” Carson said. “Orik has kids, and a pregnant wife, and the last thing we want is to let them get near this…revenant, or whatever it is. Even though remote access.”
Orik let out a long sigh. “Thanks, man.”
“No problem,” Carson said.
“Then, let’s wrap up for the day and go home early. My phone sent a severe weather alert that the snow’s going to increase tonight. We might as well spend a cozy evening at home, rather than worrying about driving during rush hour traffic.
As I gathered my things, Dante stopped in my office. “I’ve got a favor to ask,” he said.
“What is it?”
“I was wondering if you might contact Jet Shy? I found him on an obscure dating app. I thought that—since you’re not Tilly’s relative, she probably hasn’t mentioned you to him. I’d catfish him, but I don’t think I could impersonate a woman—not very well, at least.” He handed me his phone, which was open to an app called Dates Before Mates.
I raised my eyebrows. “The counter to bros before ho’s , huh?”
“Apparently so.” He gave me a pleading look. “Will you? Just to see if he bites?”
I let out a sigh. “The things I do for you, dude. All right. I’ll see what happens.”
Dante gave me a tight hug. “Thanks, Kyann. I’m so worried about Tilly. And before you even think it—it’s not because of her money. I don’t expect to be included in her will. I just…since my family wrote me off, she’s been my advocate, in terms of blood relatives. That she has my back means the world to me.”
“All right, I said I’d do it.” I patted him on the arm. “But you owe me for this. If I have to string this guy along, I need fortification. You owe me a quad shot mocha.”
“As many as you like,” Dante said with a laugh. “And Kyann—thanks. You don’t know what this means to me.”
“Seriously, I think I do,” I said. As we locked up and set the security alarms, I wondered how Carson would fare with documenting the creatures that were invading Michael’s home, and once again, I questioned whether it was even wise for us to continue this case. Revenant, spirit, demons…whatever the case…we were fighting a powerful being who could probably wipe us all out. But then Michael’s face appeared before me again and I realized how much he and his family needed us.
As I headed to my car, I promised myself that we’d do whatever we could to help them.
The snow was falling thickly now, large flakes piling up on the roads as well as the sidewalks and grass. By morning, what plows Seattle had would be out and rolling. I navigated my way home, taking the main streets which weren’t as slick yet as the side streets. By the time I pulled into the driveway, I’d had time to think about the ghosts.
As I entered the house, Penn waved at me. She was sitting with her laptop in the living room, the lights off except for the tree and garlands, and everything in the house seemed to glow in the wash of the twinkling lights.
“Hey,” she said, looking up as I shut and locked the door behind me. “You made it home.” She glanced at the clock. “You’re early.”
“We closed up early, because of the snow and the fact that there’s nothing we can do on this case until we know more.” I shed my jacket and took off my boots, slipping into a pair of fuzzy slippers. “It’s setting into a real storm out there,” I said.
“I know. I got the weather alert, too,” she said, setting aside the laptop. “I was researching that god. You know, he gives the Aztec gods a run for their money, with regards to human sacrifice. Real bloody sect, that shifter pack was. Is. I gather they still exist, but they’ve retreated from modern society and keep to themselves.”
“They’re probably inbred as hell,” I said. “Unless they somehow manage to convince new blood to come into the Pack.”
“I’m thinking, some of the shifter disappearances may be due to them. The local pack was one of the strongest in the nation, though I don’t know why their main settlement was around here. You’d think they’d head for the desert?—”
“It’s easy to make people disappear in this area. That’s one of the theories behind why we have so many serial killers,” I said. “The forests are so thick and vast here, the undergrowth so dense and deep, and the mountains so rugged and difficult to navigate, that it’s easy to hide the bodies. That would probably play into the dangerous packs settling here.”
Penn stood and stretched. “Well, it’s fascinating reading, I’ll say that. What do you want to do about dinner? I forgot to start anything.” She headed into the kitchen and I followed her.
“What do we have?”
She peeked into the fridge, then opened the freezer. “We have some frozen pot pies. I could bake a couple of those, or we could have soup and sandwiches. How about tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, and we have leftover blackberry pie we can have for dessert.”
“That sounds good. I’ll feed the cats if you get started on the sandwiches.” I opened the cupboard and took out a large can of tomato soup and two cans of Feasty Bits—Jangles’s favorite food. Murdoch liked it, too, so I bought a lot of it.
Speaking of the cats, the moment they heard the pop-top on the cans, they came running. Murdoch skidded to a halt at my feet, gave me a quick sniff, and backed away. Jangles rubbed against my leg, purring.
“Hey, furbles, how are you?” I leaned down, picking up Jangles and patting Murdoch on the head. “How’s my beautiful girl?” I asked, holding the floof-ball of a tortie up to look at her before nestling her in my arms again.
Jangles purred loudly, leaning her head under my chin. I sat down on one of the counter stools and rested her on the counter, scratching beneath her chin and rubbing my face on her fur. Not about to be left out, Murdoch joined us, taking the counter in one easy leap, and he rolled over on his back, legs in the air, and let out a noisy purp .
“They miss you. They like me, but they adore you,” Penn said. “How many sandwiches do you want? Two?”
“Yes, please. How’s Mr. Crumbles? I haven’t seen him in a few days,” I asked.
Penn had a gorgeous parrot, a brilliantly colored Macaw, with an unusually large and colorful vocabulary. He mostly ignored the cats except when he was in a mood. He’d figured out that he could drive them nuts by whistling and so, when he was feeling ornery, Mr. Crumbles played with Murdoch and Jangles, sending them on wild goose chases, looking for the birds that weren’t there. Jangles had tried to swat him once, and that was the last time she ever attempted it. Mr. Crumbles was able to defend himself with ease.
“Mr. Crumbles figured out how to mimic the tea kettle today and was driving me nuts,” Penn said. “I think that, as charming as an old-fashioned tea kettle is, I’ll start using your electric one. That doesn’t whistle. And boy, can he whistle.” She rolled her eyes. “I swear, that bird could land a job as a sound effects technician.”
She paused to butter the bread and slice the cheese. Then, as she assembled the sandwiches in the pan, she turned to me. “Carson called me after the meeting today. He asked me out on a date.” She turned on the heat and then began to mix the soup and water into a pan.
“How do you feel about that?” I asked, even though I knew what her answer was.
“I don’t want to hurt him, and I would. I told him that I’m seeing someone, and that right now’s not a good time.” She sighed. “Truth is, Curl knows we’re walking on thin ice—I told him when I went into the relationship that I’m not cut out to be long term monogamous, and he accepted that we would likely have a passionate fling. But Carson, I don’t think he’s fling material, if you know what I mean.”
“I know what you mean. And you’re right. Carson wants someone to fall in love with, settled down with, and make babies. He’s lonely, but he isn’t good at making small talk.”
I needed to find Carson a girlfriend—some nice woman who wanted a happy home, who wanted to be treated like a queen, and who would be able to handle Carson’s quirks. Well, I called them quirks, but to be honest, Carson was on the spectrum. He was highly functional, but his social game was non-existent.
“Well, I’m not that woman.” Penn whisked the soup smooth, then flipped the sandwiches as she turned the heat up under the soup pan.
I set the table with bowls and spoons, and bread-and-butter plates for our sandwiches. By the time I finished, the soup was hot and the sandwiches were done. Penn arranged them on a plate, then brought the soup over in the pan, with a ladle. We sat down to eat.
“How about you?” she asked. “Are you dating anybody?”
“No, but I’m about to try,” I mumbled, placing one of the sandwiches on my plate.
“What do you mean?”
I told her about the Dates Before Mates app, and what Dante had asked me to do. “I swear, I’m probably getting myself into trouble. But who knows? Maybe I’ll manage to catch this Jet guy in a web of lies and prove to Aunt Tilly that he’s a scoundrel.”
“Good luck. Don’t invite him to the house, though. We don’t know if the guy’s dangerous or whether he’s heading up a ring of thieves, or some such thing.” She paused, then said, “What do you think about throwing a Yule party? Just some friends and neighbors. I met your neighbor Ginger today. She’s cool.”
I arched my eyebrows. “My neighbor ? I haven’t even met most of my my neighbors. What’s she like?”
“Well, her name is Ginger Marquet, and she’s human. But she’s cool. Did you realize that she’s an EMT? Handy to have around in case of emergency. And she likes to garden, and she has an actual dalmatian, which she takes to the firehouse with her. She asked me if I’d keep an eye on her place when she’s gone, because her shift is four days on, three days off, and she sleeps at the firehouse when she’s on duty. I told her sure.” Penn ladled soup into her bowl, then filled mine.
“Ginger Marquet, huh? Well, I’ll try to catch a moment to say hello to her. And very cool that she’s an EMT.” I handed Penn the plate of sandwiches and she selected one. “So, you want to throw a Yule party?”
“Right. But it’s your house, so…”
“It’s your house, too,” I said. “I’m down with a Yule party, but isn’t it a little late to plan it?”
Penn laughed. “I can throw together a party in no time flat. Give me a list of people you’d like to invite and I’ll get on it tonight. The decorating is all done, so all I have to do is buy the food and pick the music.” She bit into her sandwich and sighed, looking out the window. “Look at the snow,” she said, in a quiet voice.
I followed her gaze and watched as the flakes drifted down covering the back yard. Everything felt quiet and clean, and for a moment, I was perfectly at peace, untouched by the events of the day or by the worries about my heritage. Life was good, and I soaked it in, because I knew the moment wouldn’t last.