"Aunt Gloria?" Hazeldemanded, voice stern.
Uncle Vernon shuddered, salivarolling from his mouth and down his chin over his short, gray beard.
"Aunt Gloria, you mustleave this place and go on to the next world. You cannot remain. You knowthat," Hazel persisted.
Uncle Vernon groaned.
No one played at invokingangels or good spirits as they might for an audience. They didn't pit prayersor deities at the ghost. They knew the simple truth of what they did—giftedwith sight and strong souls, they threw their will against another until onebroke. Together, they had drawn the spirit into the room, willed it to themselves, and now they willed it to speak, to yield, toabandon the living world and vanish. Everything else was showmanship.
"Let go,"Emmeline whispered near Benedict's ear, leaning over his shoulder and staringat Uncle Vernon. "The ghost is settling into him. She's going to hangon, like that girl last night."
Benedict cringed, rememberingthe cracking, snapping sounds of her spine.
"Let go, so she can fleeinto the house again," Emmeline pressed.
"Elys…"Benedict hissed, gaze darting to his brother. He saw his own worries reflectedthere in the other man's eyes.
"No!" Hazel snappedas though she read their thoughts. God, he hoped she couldn't do that."Gloria! You will leave this family and this realm! You will go before youharm anyone else!"
Uncle Vernon clicked his teethin a deliberate, snapping. Drool dribbled thickly off his bottom lip, and hisshoulders jerked back in tight spasms.
"Hazel?" Theodorewhispered, clutching at his father's hand even as doubt welled in his eyes.
Benedict tried to let go ofthe hands he held, Luis and Hazel, but they clung to him as though expectinghim to be the one who broke first. They had been right.
"Harm. Harm. Harm," the ghost in Uncle Vernonchanted, jerking from side to side with each word. "Harm.Harm. Harm."
The walls creaked, and thebirds went silent. The paintings and mirrors rattled on the walls, and a thumpsounded against the center of the table. And then another. Something wasknocking.
"Benedict, she'scoming," Emmeline warned, her voice strained withworry.
Footsteps beat up and down thehalls on the second floor, like someone was searching for something up there—orlooking for a way down?
"Benedict!" Emmelineshouted, but it was too late.
The old clock chimed its firstcry of midnight, and Uncle Vernon shot to his feet. The birds screamed, wingsbeating against the cages, shaking them back and forth. The glass in the windowframes cracked, and the table lifted off the floor.
Uncle Vernon's mouth droppedopen, and he inhaled for what felt like too long, his lungs filling and fillinguntil Benedict was sure they would pop. And then he let out a scream—not hisvoice at all anymore, but high-pitched and feminine.
Six chimes into midnight,everyone was talking, some commanding Gloria's spirit out while others criedfor direction. All seven of their chairs slid back just as the table camecrashing down—so heavy that it scored the floor. They finally released oneanother, Benedict falling backward out of his seat and scrambling on the rug tohis feet. The screaming hadn't stopped; it smothered all other sounds.
Eight chimes in and Theodoreand Elysium were trying to hold Uncle Vernon against the wall. Hazel chanted,still commanding—still throwing her iron will against the ghost of Gloria Lyon.
"You will pay for whatyou've done!" the spirit raged from Vernon's throat, somehowwithout the scream ending, still vibrating through the room. Multiple voiceswere coming out of Uncle Vernon. The scream, the old manhimself groaning beneath, and that furious voice.
Lucy pressed her palms to herears, backing away from the others and staring.
Ten chimes in and Elysium wassuddenly thrown back, off the floor and over the table, into the far wall. Histemple whacked against the doorframe, and his body fell limp. Uncle Vernonshoved Theodore off his other arm, tossing his grown son aside. The old manstood straight, no longer crooked. He grinnedsaliva-slick lips at them all.
Twelve chimes,and the candles went out.
The room sank into darkness,and a second of breathless silence stretched around Benedict, threatening toswallow him in the irrational fear that he would never hear or see again—thateverything would be this nerve-wracking nothing forever.
"Get the lights!"Theodore shouted.
Benedict shoved a tremblinghand into his pocket and pulled out his lighter, thumbing back the lid.
He heard the frantic flickingof switches, but the lights didn't come on. "It won't work!" Lucycried.
The room was alive with soundsbut no longer the disorienting ones of a spirit's unrest. Pantingbreaths and shoes scuffing across the floor. Benedict stroked thelighter, bringing that little flame into the room. Within seconds, Theodore haddone the same. They hurriedly lit enough candles to push back the shadows.
"Where did he go?"Hazel shouted even though the room had gone quiet. She turned, candle in hand,to study every corner, but Uncle Vernon was gone. "We have to find him.Aunt Gloria's spirit could hurt him…" she continued, stepping overElysium's unconscious body. She pushed open the doors and disappeared into thehallway.
Benedict cursed her, crouchingbeside his brother and rolling him onto his back.
"Where's Luis?" Lucyasked, still catching her breath.
He was gone, too. Benedict hadn'tseen Luis since the first strokes of midnight. "Maybe he's hiding?"he suggested absently.
Elysium breathed steadily,though he had an ugly cut on his temple. He woke before Benedict got the chanceto slap him. A shame. He wasn't sure he would ever getanother opportunity to smack his eldest brother without getting the beating ofhis life for it.
Elysium winced and sat up."What happened?"
"Uncle Ver—" Lucy started, her words choked off when agunshot cracked through the house, echoing down from upstairs.
They all jumped, chins tippingup, gazes directed at the ceiling as though they could see through it.
A pained, wailing screamfollowed, launching them all into motion. They pushed out into the hallway andtoward the stairs.
ChapterThirteen
The flame of Benedict'slighter flared, the brightness of it stretching sideways. He slowed and swayed.The others were moving ahead of him, their footfalls beating at the stairs andagainst his skull. He winced back, squinting against the straining threads oflight pulling at his vision. "What…" he tried, voice heaving out,breath thin. He sucked in hard, trying to fill his
