Soul Thief Page 17

Katie stepped out of one of the stalls and walked past Michelle to wash her hands. “Emily’s sister was in my jewelry class.”

  “How come you didn’t tell us that?” I asked her.

  She shrugged. “I didn’t think about it. It’s a pretty big leap, but then again, so is your theory.”

  “Never mind, it makes no sense.”

  “It doesn’t, no. By the way, I’m having a slumber party Wednesday night and all of you are invited.”

  “A slumber party? Are you home alone?”

  “Great guess,” Katie said while she fixed her hair in the mirror. “So, are you up for it?”

  “Sure. But didn’t you have a date that night?” I asked.

  “I did, but something came up and it’s pretty important, so Myron won’t make it, and I thought, why not spend some time with my buddies instead?”

  “Very thoughtful of you,” I said, arching an eyebrow. “Anyway, count me in, even if it’s just for lack of something better to do.”

  “How are things between you and the therapist guy?” she asked.

  “He’s not a therapist,” Michelle said. “I checked his credentials and he’s fake.”

  “What?” Katie turned to me, mouth agape. “Did you know about this?”

  “Yes,” I said, “it’s a long story though. And thanks, Mich, I thought you promised you wouldn’t tell anyone.”

  “I lied. Guess that makes me a member of your little club now,” she said, harsher than I’d ever heard her speak before. “Come on, we’ll be late for class.”

  Katie kept looking at me as if I was about to burst into an explanation, which I wasn’t. My friends seemed farther away than ever and it was my fault.

  * * *

  That evening, I became a master sleuth.

  Leander and I were in my room. He hadn’t found out anything from his underworld contacts, which bothered him. He kept pacing up and down the room. Thank God my parents weren’t home — weekly cooking class — or they’d hear him stomping about.

  I’d laid a map of Fairhaven out on my desk and circled the homes of the three girls. If this was some kind of ritual that required a figure, then I wasn’t seeing it.

  “You’ve watched too many CSI episodes if you think this is going to work,” Leander complained. “There’s no connection between them, and even if there was, we won’t find it out by drawing maps.”

  “Actually,” I said, “I learned this from a documentary about Jack the Ripper. One of the detectives on the case noticed that the locations where the corpses were found formed a pentagram if you connected them. These murders might form a figure too, but there aren’t enough of them to figure out what.”

  “I didn’t think you’d be the type to watch documentaries.” Leander stood next to me, so close that we almost touched. I froze rigid, afraid to move. My breath choked in my throat.

  “Well, I am,” I squeezed out eventually. “But you’re probably right about this theory. Don’t worry, though, I’ve got a few others. Did Diane get any leads, by the way?”

  Leander shrugged. “I haven’t heard from her. She’s usually rather sporadic about checking in.”

  “She seems to know you really well.”

  “A bit too well, I suppose,” he said. “We’ve known each other for more than a millennium. She’s like the annoying kid sister I can’t get rid of and who keeps getting herself into trouble.”

  “And what am I? The baby of this family?”

  “Nah,” he said. “You’re just you. Riley Scott, detective extraordinaire.”

  I snorted. “If I was, I’d be able to see the connection between all of them. Would it be possible the Reaper just went from house to house?”

  “That would be stupid and cost too much energy,” he said. “We’re not master thieves. If we wanted to break into a house unnoticed, we’d have to teleport, which drains our energy. Same thing goes for Reapers. He must’ve known the girls lived there, that’s for sure.”

  “He could’ve followed Marissa home from the club,” I mused out loud. “I didn’t remember seeing her at first, but the longer I look at her picture, the more I’m convinced she was in there.”

  “So he must’ve been in or near the club as well,” Leander concluded. “What about Tara?”

  “He followed her home from the hospital.”

  “Why was he in the hospital?”

  “What are we doing now, some cop routine you’ve seen on TV?” I sat down on the edge of my bed. “I have no idea why he was there. Maybe looking for someone he had a deal with? Maybe getting a doctor’s check-up?”

  “If we leave Emily out of the picture for a moment,” Leander said, “then it sounds like he might be after you.”

  “I thought that too, earlier, but I figured it was kind of egocentric of me. Why would he be after me?” I asked him.

  “It all makes sense now,” Leander said. His face lit up as if he was suddenly standing under a spotlight. “He must’ve heard about the Halfling angel. But he doesn’t know your name, so all he knows is that you were in an accident and that you were at the hospital. He followed you from there.”

  “Hold on.” I grabbed his arm. “Then he saw me at the club and… but why did he go after Marissa then?”

  “Your mysterious savior,” Leander said. “It could’ve been a Reaper.”

  “Why save me then? That doesn’t make sense.”

  Leander was all excited now. He sat down next to me and grabbed my hands. “Do you remember what I told you about some souls being worth more than others in the underworld? Well, the soul of a Halfling angel would definitely make some big cash, enough to persuade a Reaper to go after you. He must’ve figured since you were new and unprepared, you wouldn’t be much of a threat.”

  “’Which is true,” I said.

  Leander ignored me and continued. “So he went to Fairhaven Hospital looking for a teenage girl. He followed the wrong girl and went after Tara instead.”

  A pang of guilt rose in my stomach. So not only had I bailed on Tara, I’d also caused her death. Bile rose up in my throat and I wanted to curl up and cry.

  “Wait,” I said. “How could he have it wrong? I mean, I give off this golden glow and she doesn’t. He could’ve just kept looking until he found me.”

  “Hm.” Leander put his fingers to his chin, lost in thought. “It sounds like he has some kind of quota, like he has to deliver these souls to someone or pay off some debt. Maybe he’s thinking about getting your soul because it’ll be enough to pay off that debt. Demons make deals with each other all the time, so it could be.”

  “It seems farfetched.” I lay down on the bed and crossed my arms behind my head. “Either way, I don’t want to think about it. The thought that those girls died because someone was after me, I… it’s too much.”

  Leander licked his lower lip. He reached out and caressed my hair. “Even if we’re right, Riley, that doesn’t mean it’s your fault. That’s like saying that because a madman wants to kill you, you’d be responsible for other people he kills.”

  “Well, my gut tells me your idea is right,” I said. “But it also tells me that it’s all my fault.”

  “Your gut sucks.”

  I smiled weakly. “Maybe it does.”

  He stared at me, and I looked straight back at him. An unanswered question lingered between us as energy drifted from me to him and the other way around. His hand moved to my cheek and I caressed his cheek as well.

  A thousand different emotions welled up in my stomach: guilt that I could feel this way even though people might have died because of me, worry that he didn’t like me the same way, desire, passion.

  “You’re in danger,” Leander said, “as long as he’s out there.” His hand moved to my mouth, his thumb touching my lower lip.

  “I know.”

  “We need to find a way t
o protect you.”

  “You could teach me how to defend myself.”

  “I will. I hoped we could rely on our mental bond in case of danger, but I’m not confident about that anymore.”

  “Maybe we could try.” I took his other hand and guided him down next to me. “I’ll open up my mind and you open up yours.”

  I lowered the mental barrier in my mind, imagined a tiny door in the wall for Leander to walk through. Then I pictured his wall in my mind and began working on a door for me to get through.

  Minutes passed, but it might as well have been hours. Time had little meaning when you were locked in your own mind. Eventually, I was in, and a thousand different thoughts swarmed through his mind. The most prominent one was about how he could possibly protect me if his theory was right. His mind pulsed with worry and concern.

  It’ll be all right, I told him. I’m not some damsel in distress constantly needing help. I kicked some serious butt on those vampires. Which reminds me, if you think my mysterious savior is this Reaper, then why didn’t he let me get killed?

  Because, Leander answered in my mind, if he did, he wouldn’t have your soul. He saved you for purely selfish reasons, so he could get you for himself.

  And here I was hoping I had a knight in shining armor waiting for me somewhere.

  Leander chuckled in his mind.

  Why not kill me straight after then? It was just me and Katie in the parking lot.

  He was probably drained after the fight, so he waited for a while and then followed Marissa home. Want to know something very selfish?

  Tell me.

  I’m glad he followed her. I’m glad he was there that night, even if that meant an innocent girl’s soul was stolen. Because if those vampires had gotten to you and the Reaper hadn’t stopped them, you’d be dead. It’s disgusting to think this way, I know, but I feel responsible for you and I don’t want you to get hurt.

  His mind trailed back to the day we kissed and I followed along, saw his image of me right before he kissed me, felt what he felt before we did.

  I’m not sure what I feel, he told me, and perhaps it’s too soon to draw conclusions, but I know that I don’t want to lose you, no matter what it takes.

  He turned to me, looked at me. Let me protect you.

  “You can,” I said. I pulled the wall up again. I had no idea what he’d read in my mind, but I was done probing around. “But I’m not going to sit around and do nothing. You have to teach me how to protect myself as well.”

  “I promise. We’ll start tomorrow. I think this exercise proved that we can hear each other’s thoughts when we want to.”

  “As long as something doesn’t block it again.” I hadn’t wanted to, but there was a reprimanding tone in my voice.

  “Don’t worry, it won’t,” Leander said. He touched my face again and he was about to say something when the front door opened and footsteps hurried into the hallway. My parents’ chattering voices echoed through the house.

  “You have to go,” I whispered to him.

  “Do I? I don’t really want to.”

  I rolled my eyes and pushed him away. “Not funny.”

  “Fine,” he said as he got up. “I’ll leave. But I’ll keep hanging around the house to make sure he doesn’t show up.”

  “Total stalker mode,” I said. “I’ve got a better idea. How about I ask my Grandma about a spell to keep the house protected? That way I can sleep without having to worry that you’re hanging around outside my house, and you can save your energy for when something does happen. Besides, if the bugger shows up, I’ll scream and you can come dashing in like a heroic knight.”

  “You’re really scared of getting stalked,” Leander said. “All right, then. But you call me the moment anything weird happens.”

  “Promise.” I got up as well and stood in front of him. “Now go, before my mom comes barging in and finds you here.”

  The words hadn’t even left my lips before my dad’s footsteps came up the stairs. I turned around to look at the door and when I turned back, Leander was gone.

  I sighed and looked for my cell phone. Thankfully, Gran Herbie was modern enough to own a cell phone. She had a habit of not picking up though, so I paced around impatiently as the phone kept ringing. She finally answered, practically shouting through the phone. “Hello?”

  “Hey, Gran,” I said. “It’s Riley. I need a favor.”

  “At this hour?” There was a short pause, and I imagined her glancing at her watch. “It’s eight thirty.”

  I ignored her comment. “We suspect a Reaper might be after me.”

  “What?” She spit out the word. “A Reaper? Why didn’t you call me right away?”

  “I did.”

  “Good. Why do you suspect a Reaper is after you?”

  “Long story. I was sort of hoping you’d have a spell to protect the house.”

  There was a silence on the other end. Eventually, Gran replied. “I have a few spells. You stay put, I’ll be there in half an hour.”

  She hung up on me. I stared at my phone, shaking my head.

  “Riley!” Mom called from downstairs. “CSI is on! Want to come watch with us?”

  “Coming!” I yelled back.

  Chapter 24

  WE’D JUST FINISHED DINNER when the doorbell rang. “That’ll be Gran,” I said.

  Mom frowned. “Why is Gran coming over?”

  “She’s going to charm the house with spells,” I said. “Something to do with the changing of the seasons.” I rushed out of the kitchen to the front door to escape Mom’s surprised expression.

  When I opened the door, Gran appeared in the doorway, or at least a pile of boxes did. She was hidden behind the boxes and bottles. “Out of my way,” she mumbled as she hobbled into the house and to the kitchen.

  She dumped her supplies right on the kitchen table we’d finished clearing minutes earlier.

  Mom gasped. “Mother, what the heck are you up to now?”

  “I told Mom you came to bless the house for the changing seasons,” I said quickly.

  Gran looked at me and rolled her eyes, as if wondering why I couldn’t come up with a better excuse. “That’s right,” she said when she turned back to Mom. “Don’t try to talk me out of it.”

  “All right by me, Herbie,” Dad said. “I’ll go pick up Cass first.”

  Cass had gone to visit our aunt and uncle and their two young sons. She loved playing with the twins. They were only one year younger than she was, so they all belonged to the same magical world where unicorns existed and blanket forts were castles. I felt a pang of nostalgia when I thought about childhood and how simple things were back then.

  “Drive safely,” Gran said. She focused back on the pile of supplies. “This might take a while. Let’s start by cleansing this place.” She grabbed a white feather and a grainy powder, and began throwing some in every corner of the room, saying a prayer to the great spirit that lives in us all. She then walked from room to room, re-enacting the ritual. After she was done with the feather and powder, and after Mom had vanished to do the laundry, she began with some darker practices.

  “Give me your hand,” she said.

  I did as she told me to and she cut my hand. I winced in pain. “What the hell is that for?”

  “Don’t curse at me, young lady. This is for a protection spell, one for the house and one for you. Your blood is very powerful so the house will be well-protected, but just to make sure, I’ll throw in some of mine as well.”

  She cut her own hand and by the time she was done, mine had already healed. I felt kind of bad because hers wouldn’t heal nearly as fast.

  She mixed the blood in a potion and began lining the doors and windows with it. Then she threw some salt all across the house while chanting prayers in Latin.

  By ten o’clock she was finally done
. We were the only ones left in the kitchen; my parents had gone to watch TV and Cass was in bed.

  Gran sat down in one of the chairs. She looked ten years older. The spells must have taken a lot of her energy. Her face was gaunt with thick, black circles under her eyes.

  “Do you want a drink?” I asked. She nodded.

  I poured her a glass of water, which she greedily accepted and emptied in a few seconds. “There’s one more thing,” she said. “Sit down.”

  I did as she told me to. She grabbed my hand. “Why do you think this Reaper is after you?”

  I had to give her credit for doing the spells first and only then questioning me. I told her the entire story. She didn’t say anything, but nodded every now and then as if to encourage me to continue.

  At the end of the story she leaned back in her seat. “I think you’re right. Your aura is a little darker, as if you’re already tainted somehow.”

  “Well, he got close once.”

  “I’m not happy with this at all,” she stated, as if that would change the situation. “What worries me most is how you couldn’t connect with your Guardian when you needed him and why five vampires were after you.”

  “Leander said that’s because my soul is like a beacon, so they can probably sense it or they can smell my blood.”

  “Hm. Vampires are bad news. I don’t like them at all.” She paused for a minute. “I used to date one and he turned out to be a real sucker. Pun intended.”

  “Are you serious? You dated a vampire?”

  “More than one, but only one of them was memorable. Anyway, I brought you something else.” She searched through her pocket and brought out a necklace. It was beautiful. The necklace had a small, silver chain with a little angel figure dangling from it.

  “That’s for me? It’s beautiful!” The angel figure was crafted with great delicacy. It had expressive eyes, large wings, and wore a long dress. Its hands had tiny fingernails. The angel’s long hair framed her face.

  “It is,” Gran said, but a hint of sadness sounded through her voice. “One day, your mother came to visit me wearing this. I knew right away she was pregnant — witches feel that sort of thing. I asked where she got the necklace from and she didn’t know. After you were born and I figured out you weren’t entirely human, I took the necklace. She doesn’t even remember it, like she doesn’t remember who your father is, but I always sensed something strange about it, something protective.”