My mouth drops open. “Got this? In what universe do you have this?”
Why doesn’t he want me here? Does he have a death wish now?
Instead of answering me, he turns back around, facing the way of the tunnel. Our curiosity doesn’t take long to catch up with us. The tunnel is barely longer than a room’s length—maybe ten or twelve feet. It’s made out of the same stone and mortar work as the resurrection chamber in my house...only at the other end is a large, ancient-looking wooden door. Ornate black iron details are strewn across its surface like some sort of incantation. And maybe it is.
Right in the middle of the door, bumping into it over and over again, is Wade’s grandpa.
“Is that—?” Dom whispers behind me.
I nod, refusing to take my eyes off him for fear he’ll turn around and run this way. Wade and I know first-hand how fast he can move and how strong he is.
Reaching for Wade’s shoulder, I lean in. His scent of sandalwood and soap tickle my senses and twist my guilt. Shoving it back down, I say, “What’s he doing?”
Wade shakes his head and shrugs. “I don’t know… I’m still new to revenants. It looks like he’s trying to get in, though.”
“What is this place? How did it get here?” Dominic whispers feverishly. “I can’t get a single read on it. It’s like a black hole to my ability. Is this part of your property still?”
“I’m not sure,” I say, running my fingertips over my mouth. “I’ve never seen it before—but…”
“It’s gotta be the entrance to the catacombs,” Wade says, finishing my thought.
I nod in agreement.
Dominic’s eyes practically fall out of his head. “The what now?”
“It’s a long story. I’ll fill you in later. All you need to know is this is the perfect place for him to be. It actually helps me out a lot because I need to get him inside,” I say, stepping around Wade as I try to get a better view of the door.
The handle isn’t evident, nor is any kind of a lock. Instead, the massive gateway looks impenetrable. I need to figure out how to open the door, and hopefully I’ll be able to convince Grandpa to follow me—or at least go inside of his own volition. Maybe once Colton does his side of things, Grandpa will be totally compliant until he’s been released to the catacombs.
“You wanna get that guy in there? That’s a special kinda crazy,” Dominic whispers. “I wouldn’t go anywhere near that place. Bad mojo…”
“Thanks,” I mutter, making a face.
“Well, we can’t just stand here and stare at him all day. If that’s the door to the catacombs, we need to get it open and get him inside.” Wade walks forward, his arm outstretched.
Reaching for him, I yank him back. “No, you can’t go in there. I’m not even sure you should touch the door.”
“What? Why?” Wade says, his eyebrows pulling in.
“Your job has to be finding out how to consecrate the cemeteries. Remember?” I say, trying to calm the thumping of my heart.
“I’m kinda with Wade on this one. Why can’t we help with this first?” Dominic asks, tipping his chin toward the doorway.
“Because only the dead shall enter,” I say, frowning.
Dominic snickers. “You’re not dead.”
“I know that,” I say, shooting him a look of irritation. “But my family is an exception.”
“Lucky,” he says, quirking an eyebrow sarcastically.
“Look, I didn’t make the rules. I just know that if either of you try to enter the catacombs, your souls could be lost. It’s a magical labyrinth in there—and if your soul isn’t being properly guided, you could get trapped in Purgatory. So, trust me, you don’t wanna open that door, okay?” I turn to Wade, whose expression is quizzical, but he doesn’t say a word.
Suddenly, Wade’s grandpa stops thumping against the door. The silence immediately fills the space and pushes a shot of adrenaline through my system. Wade crouches, taking a stance I’ve only ever seen football players make, while Dom doesn’t move a muscle. Twisting around on the spot, Wade’s grandpa flits his hazy white eyes over the three of us and releases the most horrifying high-pitched scream.
Dominic’s mouth opens, his own scream mingling with the sound of the revenant’s. I open my mouth at the same time, but no sound escapes, no matter how hard I try.
Wade, on the other hand, looks up to the ceiling of the small interior space and yells, “Dad—”
Chapter 24
A Guarantee
Black smoke billows behind us, consuming the opening of the tunnel as it sends dark tendrils out in every direction. Like the darkness of a black hole, no light comes in or out when both Wade and Dominic shine their flashlights into it.
Then, materializing out of the darkness, is the man I’ve seen twice now. The pure panic and fear in the tone of Wade’s voice must have been enough to summon his father—whatever he is. His silver eyes survey the scene with deep discernment, and apprehension is painted across his features. When his eyes pause on the revenant behind Wade, his jaw clenches and eyebrows lower. When Wade’s dad raises a single hand, the revenant’s cry ceases, and he drops into a strange, silent trance.
“What’s going on here?” Wade’s dad says, his voice a pile of gravel as he turns to Wade. The darkness that brought him here vanishes as if sucked through a vortex in his back.
Wade takes a deep breath, straightening his shoulders as he walks toward him. “Things have worsened, as you can probably see. I know you said not to,” He starts to turn around, pointing toward the revenant of his grandpa.
“And yet, here we are,” his dad says, blinking slowly and flitting his gaze to me long enough to send a
