Five (Elemental Enmity Series Book I) (16 page)

I raised my brows at her. “Just because we’re headed outside, doesn’t mean we’re going to a séance.”

“Cassie,” Jessica called. “Wait up.”

Jessica shared a quad down the hall with a group of high school friends. She seemed nice enough, yet there was also something irritating about her I couldn’t quite pinpoint. Even though her mousy brown hair bounced up and down with each stride, it was probably the only volume her limp locks would ever see.

She looked at Cassie then me, her dull brown eyes abnormally bright. “I thought you two chickened out. You’ll be glad you didn’t.”

I kept my eyes on her even though they wanted to go skyward. “Why’s that?”

Jessica gave me a look. “The guys from IPS are going to be here.”

I waited for her to tell us what IPS meant. The only thing I could think of was Indiana Postal Service. Why would Jessica care if a couple of delivery guys showed up to the meeting? “Who?” I asked after she clearly wasn’t going to elaborate.

Jessica glanced at me before turning a glare on Cassie. “Why’d you bring her?”

I narrowed my eyes at her, crossing my arms. “Hey, I’m right in front of you.”

Jessica shoved a finger in my face. “I don’t care if you’re a believer or not. Just keep your snide comments to yourself. Some of us are trying to enjoy this.”

I cocked a hip. “I don’t have anything against fun.” When she started walking away, I yelled, “Tell me when we start having some.”

“Boring is as boring does,” she said before running up ahead to another group.

“Why are you so rude to her?” Cassie asked.

I didn’t really know how to answer her. Jessica was just…annoying. “She gets under my skin. I can’t say why.”

Distracted, I nearly sailed into the girl ahead of me when she stopped short. There could only be one reason they would bring us behind Regina Hall. The cemetery loomed in front of us. Beyond that lay the forest that still held fright for me. I knew the man in the woods couldn’t possibly be there now watching me, but I was freaking myself out wondering about the possibility. I still didn’t know if he was one of the fab four. I didn’t want to think about there being another man to worry about.

If Natalie hadn’t come along that day, would I have been the next college student to never go home? As if on cue, an ethereal mist crept over the ground toward us. Did they have dry-ice somewhere? Ghostly wails started in the background.
Oh, brother
.

A female voice erupted dramatically, bringing the chatter to silence. “In this cemetery rest the earthy remains of our beloved Sisters that have faithfully served this institution. However, one young lady that lay nestled in this peaceful place passed before her time. Some say she still roams our grounds, keeping watch over campus. Zellie Selby was only twenty years old when an unexpected illness took her life in 1870. Her father requested she be interred here…” The speaker stepped out from behind a rather large monument, pointing a long arm at the ground below where she stood, continuing, “…and there she lies.”

A few girls in the group gasped what sounded like real horror. I’d briefly heard this story already, but I hadn’t seen the figure supposedly trapped in the base of the headstone. When light erupted from poised flashlights, I moved closer to get a better look.

Sure enough, the rock was discolored at the base with the haunting figure of a woman’s silhouette. If Zellie’s ghost really had been cursed to wander St. Mary’s College for eternity, I for one didn’t want to incite the poor girl. What a horrific afterlife to have to endure for an innocent victim of an untimely demise.

A goy stepped out of the shadows with a blazing light strapped to his forehead. Another followed right behind him. They walked forward in unison, carrying an odd assortment of equipment.

“Everyone,” the girl in charge said. “I’d like to introduce Paul Zanders and Adam Wilder from our own IPS. Paul and Adam have been working with us to prove there is paranormal activity on campus. In fact, they have asked for permission to investigate Le Mans Hall. Let’s all keep our fingers crossed.” She clapped her hands together excitedly. “We have a surprise for all of you. They have agreed to let us watch their study of this cemetery.”

Paul stepped forward, clearly the leader. “We are pleased to be with you tonight. Let’s all hope Zellie is, as well.” A token chuckle moved throughout the congregation. He lifted a doo-dad from his belt, shaped sort of like a remote with a row of small lights at the end. He held it up for all to see. “This is a K-II meter. In the paranormal industry, we use science to explain those terrifying feelings you get when you’re sure someone unseen is watching you.”

I could’ve used one of those on my way here.
Scratch that.
I still could. I’d have to ask if they would sell me one.

“K-II measures the amount of electromagnetic energy in an area. EMF fields are generated from power lines, cell towers, appliances, and batteries,” he said, smiling. “Well, you get the idea. First, we sweep the area for a baseline reading, looking for spikes where you wouldn’t normally expect one. As you can see, none of the lights on the meter are illuminated at the moment. The idea is that when a spirit tries to manifest in the mortal realm, they draw energy from sources around them.”

Adam held up a different gadget. “This is a traditional EMF detector.” He walked between students, maneuvering around grave stones. “Zero point five to zero point eight seems to be the average for this area.” He held the meter next to the massive monument we had all come to see. “Whoa,” he said, stepping closer to the grave stone. He ran the detector up and down. “I really didn’t anticipate that.”

“What?” Jessica asked, moving beside Adam. One more inch would have put her directly under his chin.

He retreated a few paces, a minute smile curving his lips. “Let’s all give Zellie a little breathing room, why don’t we?”

The group backed up a bit. Adam circled the monument a few times.

“I wanted to make sure my reading was correct. Does anyone know if there are underground utilities in the area?”

The RA from the third floor stepped forward. “I don’t think so. Why would they dig under the cemetery?”

“Six point nine for a site like this is unheard of.”

Paul rushed toward Adam, and the thing in his hand lit up like a Christmas tree. He gave Adam a surprised look. “I’m going to ask some questions, now.” He turned on a recorder. “Let’s see if Zellie wants to come out and play with us. Could I have your silence, please?”

The wind was the only thing that refused to comply with Paul’s request. The eerie whistle lent an unholy feel to our meeting. I pulled my jacket closer as a sudden gust shot a chill through me.

Paul stood next to Adam. “Are you here with us, Zellie?” He waited a few moments. “Are you angry that you died here?”

Adam took his turn. “Are you trapped on this campus—”

“Do you know the girl who hung herself in the bell-tower?” Jessica butted in.

The look Paul shot Jessica was decidedly irritated.
Hmm
. Did they already know each other? He went to the edge of the woods. “Are there any other spirits that would like to make their presence known to us tonight?”

“This could be your only chance to ever be heard,” Adam added. “Show us a sign of your presence.”

I turned toward Cassie to ask her if she had met the IPS crew. She stared wide-eyed toward the trees, her gaze trained sharply on a densely wooded area. She worried her lip.

“What’s wrong?” I whispered, trying not to disrupt the investigation.

She looked at me, all sweet smiles. “I’m a bit tired. Are you ready to go?”

I hadn’t missed the desperation in her tone, but I didn’t feel like leaving. Curiosity had wiggled into my heart. “Don’t you want to see what they find?”

She gave a nervous laugh. “You can stay, if you’d like. I’m going back to the room.”

I followed Cassie because she wasn’t acting normal. I couldn’t help but worry about her, especially considering what she had been through. I had been a real jerk to her, but I wasn’t going to do that anymore. Despite how it seemed, I wasn’t the only one who had problems.

She pulled her jacket tightly around her shoulders and shuddered. It wasn’t that cold. Her skin was paler than usual. I couldn’t be sure, but she seemed freaked out.

“Cassie, what did you see in the woods?” I asked a few minutes later. We were almost to the dorm. When she frowned, I held up a halting hand. “Before you tell me you don’t know what I’m talking about, let me just say something.” I caught her arm to slow her down. “You are not hallucinating.”

She brightened a bit. “Did you see her too?”

I had the unwanted impression she wasn’t talking about a ghost. I wished I could lie to her. I wanted to tell her I had, that she wasn’t alone. “That’s not the point. Who did you see?”

Her expression fell. “Leave me alone, Rayla. I know you mean well, but patronizing me won’t help. I’m going to have to call my mom.”

“Why?” I blocked the path when she tried to leave.

“This doesn’t bode well for me. I didn’t really go to India when we were kids.” She eyed me warily and sighed. Her gaze hit the ground. “I was institutionalized.”

“That’s crazy.” She stared at me, hurt, as tears pooled in her eyes. “Okay, poor choice of words. What I meant was that you were just imaginative when we were kids. The stories you told me were amazing. They helped me deal with my mom’s disappearance. I don’t know what I would have done without them.”

We were at our door now. Silent tears streamed down Cassie’s face. She had trouble with the lock.

“Let me.”

She stepped aside, and I turned the knob. Rushing past me to the bed, she buried her face in my pillow. I sat beside her, not knowing if I should talk to her or leave her alone.

I placed my hand gently on her shoulder and to my relief she didn’t pull away. “You should know by now that you can trust me. I want to help.” I brushed her hair aside. “What can I do?”

She turned over, hitting the mattress. “Make them leave me alone!”

I tried to keep my shock over her outburst from showing when I answered her, “I’d love to, but I need to understand what is going on.” I had never seen her this upset. Our running joke was that she was part Vulkan.

She sniffed, searching my face for a moment. “One of them is playing with me as if he knows I can see him.”

Now, maybe we could get somewhere. “What does he look like?”

Her eyes focused on nothing in particular. “He’s short, about two and a half feet tall with scaly, purple skin, bright-white hair, beady orange eyes, a sunken nose, and sharp pointy teeth. I haven’t seen this sort of creature before, so I don’t know what to call him.”

I scrunched up my face. “Sounds really ugly.”

“He is. Some of my things have gone missing.” She sat up, pulling her knees toward her chest. With shaking fingers, she wiped her cheeks. “You know my grandmother’s broach—the dragonfly?”

I nodded. “I love that one.” It was platinum. The wings were lacy webs with two emeralds inset at the ends. The eyes were sapphire.

“I shouldn’t have brought it, but I hadn’t planned on wearing it. I wanted to have something that reminded me of Nana.”

“So you can’t find it?”

She looked at me sharply with haunted eyes. “I saw him take it!”

I hid my excitement over her revelation and smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry. We’ll get it back.”

She grimaced. “I don’t want to go anywhere near that thing! He’s following me, taunting me with it.”

A thought just occurred to me. “How do you know it’s a he?”

Her mouth turned in a frown. “He’s got… parts, Rayla—disgusting, gross parts!”

I grimaced, not caring to know exactly how she knew that about him. “Sorry I asked—”

A knock rang out, jolting me. Cassie shook her head, so I went to see who it was the second time they knocked.

When I opened the door, Jessica shoved past me. “I can’t believe you left! I saw her!”

“Zellie?” I asked.

She shot me a dirty look. “Who else? Guess what? You’ll never guess in a million years.” As usual, she didn’t even give us a chance to respond before she plowed forward excitedly, “The IPS guys want to interview you.”