Chapter 2 #2
She passes an unflattering glance over our group and seems to consider her options. If she’s hoping to offload this place, we are definitely not her target buyers. "Let me know if I can answer any questions. Please excuse me."
She struts off, heels clacking double-time toward the exit.
Orion moves toward the parlor, silent as smoke. He's sniffing the air, his shoulders rigid.
Rowan follows, spinning her silver rings.
I scan the foyer, tracking the wrongness that prickles along my spine. "Okay, puppers, find Mommy."
We wind through the maze of corridors and connected rooms, letting the pups lead the way. When they scratch at a door at the end of the hall, Asher opens the way and we climb a set of servant stairs to the second floor.
Upstairs, it's even colder. We follow the pups to the end of the hall, and as we approach an open door, it slams shut.
Then opens again.
Slowly.
"Okay, that's not piss-your-pants-creepy at all," Asher mutters.
I laugh, and my breath mists in a white cloud.
The pups bolt forward, and Asher lets off a panicked whine. I don't think anything other than his love for the pups would've gotten him into that room.
Nobuddy barks once, sharp and frantic, and the four of us race inside.
Every window in the bedroom slams open simultaneously. Then, just as aggressively, they slam shut.
Glass explodes into the room, and Orion and Rowan throw up their hands and shield us from getting shredded. Jagged shards spray inward, glittering and vicious as they hit the barrier of the shields.
By the time the glass has finished raining to the hardwood, Rowan's shadows coil around her fists and Orion's canines are lengthening.
A door down the hall slams. Then another. Then a dozen more, rapid-fire percussion shaking the walls.
The chandelier above sways violently, its crystals chiming in discordant chaos.
"Lizzy?" My voice is steady despite the adrenaline surging through my veins. "Lizzy McAllison? It's Poppy Hallowind, Zoe's daughter."
A shape forms across the room. Translucent at first, then sharpening—an elderly woman in a cardigan and slippers, her wiry gray hair wild, her eyes wide and searching.
She's not monstrous… she's terrified.
"Where are they?" Her voice cracks. "Where are my babies?"
Somebuddy whines.
Nobuddy strains at the leash.
Lizzy's gaze snaps downward, and her expression crumbles. Her form flickers as if her body's experiencing bad reception. "You came back. My little ones came back."
"They missed you," I say softly.
Asher stiffens beside me, following my gaze. Rowan and Orion are looking too, but I can tell they don't see her.
Lizzy reaches toward the pups, and my heart shutters. I want to pull them back, but this is why we brought them. I suspected they would draw Lizzy out. Whatever my concerns, they are immediately dismissed as Lizzy's fingers pass through the pups without touching them.
Panic floods her expression. "Why can't I touch them?"
My chest tightens. "Because you're not here anymore, Lizzy. You passed."
She stares, confusion bleeding into her features. "No… I was feeding them, and then… where are the rest? Where's Biscuit? And Mumford? And—"
"They're safe." I step closer, keeping my voice gentle. "Thaddeus Vale handled your estate. Every single dog you loved has a new home—a forever home. Your fortune is set up to cover their care for life. Your babies are safe and loved."
Her form flickers again before it seems to stabilize. "All of them?"
"Yes, every one of them."
Tears sparkle silver as they tumble down her translucent cheeks. "I was so scared for them. I didn't know what happened. I couldn't find them."
"They're okay. I promise." I crouch beside the chihuahuas. "These two wanted to come and say goodbye. They live with me at Hallowind House now."
Lizzy's expression softens, grief and relief tangling together. She kneels—or tries to—her form hovering inches above the floor. "Good babies. Such good babies."
"You can go now." I meet her gaze and let her see the truth of my words. "I promise all your pups are being taken care of."
She looks at me, really looks, and something like recognition sparks. "You swear it?"
"I do. I swear your pups are loved and safe. Now, it's time for you to rest."
She stares lovingly at the pups for a long moment, and then stands and runs a hand down her cardigan. The air warms as she glances at something over her shoulder. I don’t see what has caught her attention, but it doesn’t matter.
Whatever she is looking at, warms her skin with a golden glow.
“Take care of them, will you?”
“I promise.” The hair on my arms stands on end as Lizzy McAllison gives me a nod, and then fades into nothingness like morning mist.
The entire house seems to exhale.
Asher looks around. "Is she gone?"
"Yeah, she's gone."
Rowan meets my gaze. "Well, that was some cool ghost whispering, girlfriend."
It was. It was also sad, heartbreaking, and terrifying. It's hard to decide.
"You did good too, buddies." Asher scoops up both chihuahuas and hugs them to his chest. Then he looks at me, a haunting sadness in his eyes. "Can we go home now?"
"Yeah. Wait for us outside. We'll clean up this mess and meet you out front in a bit."
Orion sees Asher's distress, but I shake my head and stop him from asking. Asher lost his parents when he was a little boy. There are times when death circles, like now, when that little boy feels just as lost and sad as he did back then.
With Asher's footsteps growing fainter down the hall, I take in the destruction of Lizzy McAllison's ghost. "All right. Let's do this."
Silver light trails from Orion's fingers as he repairs the shattered windows. Rowan's shadows knit the splintered frames and damaged floorboards. And in a matter of minutes, Lizzy McAllison's bedroom looks as good as new.
"Score one for The Life and Death Brigade," Rowan says.
I nod. "Yeah, just another Tuesday night in Emberwood."