Pearl moved away from the window and stood by the door. I whistled, and Betsy clopped into the room through the broken French doors. “When they come in, let Betsy do most of the work. Neck and head shots will slow them down. If you can remove the head, good. If not, step away. They recover quickly. If you feel as if you’re getting boxed in, get behind my sister or my horse. They can’t be killed.”
Jackson hefted his axe, handing his gun off to one of the girls.
Linda had brought the Aquagold out and dumped all the bullets in it. Pearl positioned herself in front of the door. Betsy blocked the back.
I glanced out the window at the Soulless Ones standing in the middle of the street, their dead eyes transfixed on Willow Sin. “They’re not moving,” I said. “We have time to secure the back.” Parasol shoved the furniture toward the side door leading to the dining room and kitchen. After piling it up, she went upstairs and retrieved Cherise. The girl, while dazed, had come around.
Jackson came and stood next to me. “What are they waiting for?”
No sooner had he asked, Sheriff Longfellow’s voice rang out. “Frank Covington. We had ourselves a deal. Seems you have broken it.”
I turned and looked at Covington.
“But I’m a fair man. What say you rid us of our visitors, and in return, I will give you your cousin. Unharmed.”
“Enemy of my enemy,” I said, reminding him of our bargain.
He dipped his head once in acknowledgement, then moved toward the window and peered out. “They have him on his knees out front. They also have a gun trained on his head.” He turned and regarded me. “How did you learn how to kill us with silver?”
I had no choice but to tell him the truth.
He gave me a look of confusion. “But that’s how I was turned. He bit into my neck, spilling my blood. When my soul had detached from me, he took it and shoved a another one in me. I could feel the soul twisting inside of me. Changing my body.” He looked off. “The pain was intense. It was like my body wanted to reject it. Soon, the ache dulled, and I could bare it. But only for a short while. I had to consume another soul.”
I nodded, let out a sigh, and continued. “My grandfather learned that what makes you can also kill you, given the right circumstances. It’s the water and the silver combined with the rotten soul. He believes the Aquagold is a sort of purification, and it prevents the stolen souls from staying bound to you. So the pain quite literally eats you alive.”
It was his turn to nod. He closed his eyes. “When we’re shot with silver, I can feel the stolen soul pulling away from me, allowing for the pain. But it doesn’t last long. And eventually, I’m able to re-fuse it back to myself.” He opened his eyes. “Even my old employer didn’t know, aside from beheading, how to kill us.” He paused, his eyes filling with understanding. “Of course, Bobby Daring, the famed inventor would devise a way to destroy us.”
“He’s one of you,” I said, adding a note of pleading to my voice. “We are also searching for the cure.”
A howl ripped through the air, and we rushed to the window. The sheriff, probably tired of waiting, had shot his cousin. “Forgive my cruelty,” I said, turning back to Covington. “But it’s time to give the sheriff your answer.”
“He shot Lionel.” The color in his eyes bled away, his fangs dropped down, and his fingers lengthened. “The sheriff is mine.”
I squeezed his shoulders, reassuring him, and turned to my sister. “Pearl. Can you take Betsy and go get his cousin?”
She smiled. “Looks like I get to go introduce myself to a few of the good folks here in New Orleans.” She patted Betsy. “Come on, Betsy. Let’s go move the crowd.”
Betsy neighed, rising up. Her eyes blazed red.
I wished my sister and Betsy’s efforts would take all of them down, but likely only a few would suffer under their ministrations. We had to change our plans. I looked at Ella. She held her shotgun half-raised, waiting for the battle to begin. A look of pure grit and determination had taken over the fear in her eyes. But I also saw a flicker of resolve. As if she, too, had calculated our odds and came up with craps. I wanted to give her hope. But all I could muster was a slim chance. A possibility that heavily relied upon many of the Soulless not wanting to die.
Which meant I had to prove we had the means to kill them.
Plan solidified, I walked over to her. “Ella, I know you worked hard for this place. But sadly, the only way I see out of this situation is if we can lure enough of them inside and burn the place down. I need to separate the fearless from those who wish to live.”
Tears laced with pain and frustration filled her eyes. She glanced around the room as if she would never see it again, cataloging each joy, each emotion, each loss. Finally, her gaze settled on the girls in the room, all of whom had taken up some weapon of sort, ready to follow her into battle.
She nodded once to them and then turned back to me. “If we live, I can rebuild. Make it better than it was.”
I squeezed her shoulder, letting her see the vow in my eyes that I would do everything in my power to keep her alive. “Thank you.” I turned away. “Pearl, I’m going out with you.”
“Now hold on,” Jackson said, moving toward me. “Like you said, your sister and Betsy can’t be killed. But you, darlin’, can.” I saw the fear of my death in his eyes, along with other things I wasn’t ready to acknowledge.
“No, Jackson. I have no plans to get myself killed. In order for me to weed a few of them out, I need to give them a demonstration.” I lifted my gun. “They believe only Pearl can kill them. I need to prove them wrong. Like they used to say, ‘I can show ya better than I can tell ya.’”
Jackson reluctantly nodded. And then he gave me one of his smiles. The one he reserved when he was about to get into some devilish deeds. “Good plan, darlin’. Mind if I come outside and watch your back?”
“There you go thinking my sister weak-willed again,” Pearl said, a smile on her face.
“Not weak,” Jackson said, still staring at me. “Just want to make sure I’m there when she needs me.” He wasn’t talking about the fight we were heading into, and we both knew it.
I placed a hand on his arm. “Well, Jackson, I believe I can handle myself. But,” I leaned in, my lips a bare whisper from his, “I will let you know when I need you.” I moved back and smiled. “Take care of things here. Help them spread the kerosene. Once I kill one of them, things are going to move quick. I need everyone to be ready.”
He winked at me. “Will do, darlin’.” Before I could turn away, Jackson pulled me to him and took my mouth, hard. The kiss lasted only a second, but its effects would carry me for the rest of the night. One of the girls whistled, and I turned away, not wanting him to see the longing in my eyes.
Steeling my spine, I stepped toward the front door. It had gone quiet outside. They were waiting. Probably giving us time to work through the inevitability of our deaths. A cold smile spread across my face. If I hadn’t promised Covington I’d let him kill the sheriff, I would have put a bullet in his head first. Instead, it looked like I was going to have to settle for his deputy.
I looked at Pearl. “Ready?”
She smiled at me. “Sister, I was made to be ready.”
I kicked open the door and stepped out into the street. My eyes skipped over the other Soulless and found the deputy standing close to the sheriff with a smug look on his face.
I aimed my gun.
He smirked.
I put a bullet in his head.
And laughed as he started his death song.