Grave Possession (Wraith 3) (28 page)

“How are you?”

“I’m good. Eager to get this over with. Any trouble getting him here?”

He wrapped his arm around my waist and spoke low in my ear. “A little. He was set on going to the studio all night, but he knows Tony and is interested in supporting his show. You guys ready?”

“Yes. I think so.” We’d rehearsed how this needed to go down. Jeannie and Connor would anchor Tom to the circle. “Jeannie’s going to set him up.”

On cue, my aunt sat in one of the three arm chairs strategically placed in the room. Connor and I both glanced upward and saw the binding circle painted on the ceiling. “We need you and Tom in the other chairs.”

“Got it,” he said, starting toward one of the empty seats. I gripped his hand and kept him from going. He looked down at me in confusion. “What?”

I pulled him by his shirt collar and kissed him. The feeling of his mouth on mine filled me with a mixed rush of sadness and anger. I couldn’t tell where one emotion began and the other ended. His lips burned futilely against my all-consuming cold. “I love you,” I said, fighting to get the words out. They felt like lead on my tongue. My confession earned me an even bigger look of confusion.

“I love you, too,” he said.

I reached into my pocket and wrapped my hand around the cool metal. I pressed it into his hand and pushed him into the circle. “Go,” I said. “Do it.”

Hesitantly, he released my fingers and sat in the chair next to my aunt. Facing his roommate, he asked, “Did you know Jeannie is a master at palm reading?”

“No,” he said. “I didn’t know that.”

“You should get her to read yours. She did mine over the holidays. It’s freaky.”

“I’m not really into,” he looked around the room, at the crystal balls and candles and incense, “all this psychic stuff. Sorry.”

“Scared?” Jeannie asked. I saw how she tilted her head and gently laid a hand on her neck. My aunt was very pretty. Hard for a guy of any age to resist.

Tom’s eyebrows knitted together. “No, I’m not scared. I’ve just always thought things like this seemed sort of silly.”

“Let me see your hand,” Jeannie said, gesturing to the remaining chair. Tom shrugged and sat down, offering his hand. In the flickering candlelight he looked very rugged and dark. Handsome but a loner. The perfect villain. “Interesting,” she started, but I’d already tuned her out. Darius and Nina took their places behind the counter. I moved to mine by the door.

Nina removed a ceramic bowl from the counter and set the contents on fire, a small smoldering trail of smoke coming from the center. Darius opened a heavy book and began reading aloud in a low whisper.

Tom frowned and attempted to pull his hand from Jeannie’s. She held on tight. “What’s going on?” he asked.

“It’s okay, you’re safe.”

“Safe?”

“I know things have been strange for a while, but we’re here to make it better,” she said. Connor nodded when Tom looked at him for help. “Just relax and take a deep breath, it will all be over soon.”

“You’re all crazy,” he said with fearful eyes.

Darius snapped the book shut. “It’s time. The binding is complete.”

Nina walked over and poured something soft, like sand or ash, in my hand. It made a small mound on my palm. She walked to
Misha and poured some in her hand. With a nod in my direction, we took a step forward, standing around the circle.

“Jane?” Jeannie asked, her hand dropping Tom’s.

Whatever barrier in my mind that had kept the voice separated from my own consciousness lifted and my actions were no longer my own. I cleared my voice and words flew off my tongue.

“Thank you for coming here tonight. We couldn’t make this happen without your sacrifice. We only have a short time to make this right and each of you will be rewarded for your service,” I said, my lips turning involuntarily in a smile. “Unfortunately, since you are all currently pure, you’ll have to wait to join us.”

“Join you?” Connor asked.

I smiled warmly at Connor. “Yes, at midnight. The dark moon will rise and Jane’s power will be at its weakest. Mine will be at its strongest. The sacrifice will happen then.”

Jeannie swallowed and spoke evenly. “Mine?”

“Sacrifice?” Connor said at the same time. I laughed at how slow they processed the situation. Guess that aura reading skill didn’t hold up under pressure.

The three people in the circle stared at me like I’d lost my mind. I hadn’t. In fact, I was nearly whole again. They were so confused I had little choice but explain. “It took decades to get out of that prison – the world of the dead – but the connection between Jane and Evan made for a perfect storm. The perfect vessel to get everyone across.

Connor shook his head like he wanted to rid himself of a bad memory. He asked, “If the others are already in the world, then who are you?”

I laughed, loving the look of fear and confusion on his poor, stupid face. “I’m a combination of the most powerful spirits. I had to wait for Jane’s body to be ready. She is, after all, the Shadow Bound. She’s the only one that can handle a full possession. The others will simply weave themselves into existing souls, helping make sure the sacrifice happens at the right time.” I glanced at my helpers, Nina, Misha and Darius. They had been in the hotspot the night the gateway opened and the spirits attached themselves. They would do my bidding and make the night a success.

“What did you mean by sacrifice?” Connor asked again.

“There must be a sacrifice for the possessions to take hold.” I offered them a weak look of sympathy. “People will die before the night is over. People you know and love. You may want to prepare yourself now for the loss.”

*

I ignored the pathetic hurt in Connor’s eyes and lifted my hand, palm upward. Connor made a desperate grab for Jeannie’s hand but it didn’t matter. With a deep, human breath, I blew the ash in his face. Misha and Nina did the same and the circle filled with dust. All three slumped in their seats. Nina had created a spell to knock them out until midnight. After that it would be too late.

“Wait here,” I commanded
Misha and Nina. “Make sure the binds are strong. Darius and I will complete the ritual.”

“Hurry,” Nina said, checking her watch.

Our timeline was short. Only a couple hours before Jane’s strength returned full force. Nature only allowed a tiny window for evil to gain control. I’d waited long enough for the opportunity.

The gallery was nearby. Bright lights and heavy music greeted us as we walked to the entrance. I stopped Darius at the doorway. “Does he know?”

“No,” he said, peering through the window. There was a large crowd inside. “He thinks all of this is normal. That God blessed him with a latent gift. He has no awareness that he sold his soul for his newfound talent.”

“Lucky for us his descent into insanity lines up with our ascent from death.”

“Don’t forget,” Darius said, pressing the heavy, hard weapon in my hand.
Bang.
I shoved the gun in the back of my pants and pushed through the door, entering the crowded gallery. Tony worked his own magic to gain artistic success. The result was an amazing talent. When the door opened, a flurry of spirits rushed to Tony’s body, already weakened and ready in the hotspot. He had an important role in the sacrifices necessary for this night. “You need to stabilize the room and guests,” I said. “Make sure no one can leave.”

Darius gave me a sharp nod and I searched for Tony. It wasn’t hard, he stood in the middle of a group of admirers. The smile on his face was enough to confirm that the night was a success.

“Impressive,” I said, searching the room for his work. I wanted to see how he managed to pull it off. Experience the story like everyone else in the room.

Spotlights lined the walls, highlighting Tony’s work. The large canvases from his room hung from thin, steel wires. Taking a glass of champagne off a tray, I walked up to Tony and said, “Congratulations. Everything looks amazing.”

He caught me in an embrace, lifting me off the ground. “I wasn’t sure if I could get it all done, but I did,” he beamed.

“Well,” I said, taking a sip from the glass. “Show it to me.”

I knew no more about the presentation than before – no more than what I’d seen through Jane’s eyes. I anticipated a grand finale of some kind, something created by Tony. The parasites had been leaving Jane’s body and seeping into Tony’s for months. The result was a mixture of artistic mania with a touch of violence. Tonight would be the night to show the results to the world. The fury in his soul knew what we needed to take possession of these bodies for good. I only hoped he managed to pull it off. If he didn’t, we all had something to lose.

“This came to me first,” he said, eyes gleaming at his painting. The sleek feathers and beady black eye watched back. “Crystal clear, like a snapshot. I picked up my paintbrush that night and the image came effortlessly.”

“The harbinger of death.”

Pleased, he said, “It follows me every day.”

“Me, too.”

I moved to the next one and studied the ratty white nightgown. Bare, dirty feet peeked out of the bottom, the fabric stopping at her ankles. I knew the face that belonged with the body. “Hazel died when she was four. Men broke into the house looking for her father, a gambler and drunk. He’d left already, warning her and her brother in drunken ramblings about men with guns. Her brother hid, leaving Hazel exposed – more worried about his own safety than hers.” I sighed and touched the glossy texture of the painting.

“How do you know all that?”

I tapped my temple. “It’s in here with the rest of the spirits.”

We wove through the crowd and my eyes landed on purplish bruises against pale, smooth skin. Tony held up a hand up and his thin, artistic fingers lined up in a perfect match. “I didn’t want her to leave,” he said. “I begged her to stay, but she refused. Nothing I said made a difference. So self-absorbed I don’t think she even realized what was happening until it was too late.” His hand clenched at his side.

“Kelsey’s sacrifice sealed your fate. You wouldn’t be here without it,” I said.

We passed by each painting, absorbing the history of the last few months. A slim collarbone. A bird on a delicate gold chain. Tony captured the feel of a hard, cold gun barrel, the shaft glinting. The same feeling pressed against the small of my back. If the paintings raised any red flags, no one mentioned them out loud, a disturbing, yet appreciated, outcome.

“These are the most recent,” he said, pointing to a lone, familiar sneaker on the side of the road. “The vision came last night. I worked on them until dawn.”

“Did she fight?”

“Hell, yeah. Like a cat.” He pulled his collar down and showed me a long scratch down his neck. A feeling of smug pleasure ran though me. “He was pissed too, but didn’t see it coming. Gullible bastard.”

The final image was a set of four bound hands, raised above their heads. Blood dripped down their arms, pooling in the fabric of their clothing. The image halted before we could see their faces.

“A sacrifice is sweeter if it hurts,” I said, feeling a faint twist of pain in my heart.

“No doubt this one is gonna hurt,” he agreed, leading me to the final piece in the exhibition, a platform surrounded by a white sheet. A steel cable hung from the ceiling. It swayed slightly.

“Are you ready?” I asked.

“I’ve been waiting for this moment longer than you can imagine.”

The old-fashioned clock on the wall inched toward midnight. “I think it’s time,” I said. “Go have your moment.”

Tony took a deep breath and stepped up on the platform next to the curtain. “Excuse me,” he said, speaking over the crowd. He coughed and smiled before saying again, “Excuse me. Can I have everyone’s attention for a moment?”

“Hey, I thought I was never going to get here.” I felt a tug on my shirt and swung around. Amber stood before me. “Got trapped in the studio.”

“Oh, hey,” I said. I’d forgotten all about her in the excitement. Of course she was here, Tony was her friend first.

“What’s all this?”

“He’s about to make his big reveal for the night.” I bit my lip to hold back a grin. “Listen.”

“The last six months have been incredible,” Tony said. “Fulfilling my dream of going to SCAD. The opportunity to explore my artwork.” He glanced over at me and made eye contact with Amber. “Making new friends. I had one final piece I wanted to show you tonight. It’s a little different, but it represents the accumulation of a vision I had months ago.”

The clock on the wall clicked another minute forward. Tony moved to the edge of the curtain, both hands in the fabric. “What’s that?” Amber said, pointing to the edge of the platform. A thin line of red flowed from under the curtain, down the side of the wooden platform, into a small puddle on the floor.

“Paint?” My lie was muffled by the sound of the curtain falling and the shocked gasp of the crowd. Tony absolutely beamed standing next to his creation.

“Oh my God,” Amber cried, gripping my arm. “What is that?”