It was unlocked.
I yanked the door open and slipped inside, finding myself in another hallway similar to the one directly below me. Again, light streamed through the windows, while on my left there were doors running the length of the hallway. But something felt different. For one thing, there were benches along the outside wall, and I could actually see several ghosts here, some sitting on the benches and wistfully looking outside. Others seemed to be aimlessly wandering the halls. None of them seemed to notice me, and I gently reached out to try and touch their consciousness.
Nothing. I could see them, but there was no substance behind their specters. They were an imprint on time and space, a retelling of things that it happened here, like a faded filmstrip.
Most likely, the spirits had been so attached to this place—as often happened when confused people died—that they had become connected to this building and would forever wander the halls. But when I reached out, it was like I was viewing a hologram of what had happened.
I ignored them, leaving them to their peace. Some spirits faded back into the energy pool this way, not moving on to incarnate again. Usually they were either fairly new, unaware of how to manage the transition between life and death, or old—ready to let go of physical life altogether. The young ones would get trapped in their death state, but eventually their consciousnesses would fade and pass. Sometimes they were spawned new again, while other times, they just stayed within the vast universal pool of consciousness.
As I made my way down the hall, I had a sudden thought. This place was teeming with ghosts. I knew that three hundred people had died here, but it didn’t make sense that they’d all get caught. Yet, if there were this many ghosts in this building, how many were there in the other buildings? I frowned, looking around. Most of the spirits that I could sense had been patients. That much I could tell, and given when the hospital had been built, most of them would be male. Yet I was seeing women here as well.
Could the fact that the facility was located in the Worchester District make a difference? This area was a magnet for ghosts, after all. But still, it didn’t add up. Even in some of the most haunted areas of the world, not everybody who died ended up trapped. Unless there was something keeping them here.
Shaking my head, I slowly made my way down the hall. Some of the doors were open, some closed. From what I could tell, they had been patients’ rooms. Wanting more information, I walked over to one of the benches that was unoccupied by a spirit, and sat down. The phantoms here might not notice if I sat on them, but I would feel weird about it.
I pulled out my phone again. I needed to know more about this place to understand the layout. I brought up the search again, and looked through the links until I found an article on the buildings of the United Coalition’s Home for Wounded Veterans.
From what I found, two of the three buildings had been residence halls, open to returning soldiers as well as the wounded ones. They had served as transitional housing for veterans coming home from the war who didn’t have a place to go.
This building had been the hospital proper. So when they had shut down the hospital, they had also shipped out those living in the transitional housing. That had probably dumped a number of veterans on the street, although by then the men would have found their way out of here. Except the majority of men had been severely traumatized—either physically or mentally—and they wouldn’t have been able to heal up and get a job right away.
I was so busy looking at my phone that I lost track of what was going on around me. The next moment, a shriek to my right made me jump.
I stuffed my phone in my bag and looked down the hallway. The voice had been familiar—the one I had heard before. And there she was. She looked like an army nurse, only she was covered in blood, and there was a bullet hole on her chest, surrounded by blood. I froze as she made a beeline directly for me.
Help me, help me! Her voice echoed in my head. It’s after me! Don’t let it get me!
I reeled as she burst through my body to the other side. A wave of icy frost swept over me, chilling me to the bone. She certainly wasn’t just a phantom, but a full-on spirit.
I turned but couldn’t see her anymore, so I glanced over my shoulder to see if I could find out what was following her. Toward the end of the hallway, where it turned to the left, I thought I saw movement—a head peeking around the corner, perhaps.
Heading in that direction, with Venom in one hand and the bottle of blessed water in the other, I was near the bend in the hall when another shout startled me. It came from the room that I had just passed, so I headed in.
There was no light, so I had to make a decision what to keep hold of. I slid Venom into my belt and pulled out my flashlight to sweep the room. As the light hit the back wall, I saw what looked to be a word scrawled across the wall. My heart in my throat, I moved forward. Sure enough, the words “LEAVE THIS PLACE” had been written in shaky letters across the back wall. The coppery scent—blood?—was cloying and sweet in my nostrils. The blood was fresh, still dripping down the wall, and I backed up quickly, turning to race through the door as it slammed behind me.
Back in the hall, I leaned against the wall, my heart pounding. What the hell? Things like this happened with hauntings, but usually in a place where people were living, not in some abandoned hospital. I turned back around and hesitantly touched the doorknob. I tried to open the door again, but now it was locked. I backed away, glancing over at the windows that lined the wall. There, staring back at me, was the reflection of a clown—a terrifying, grotesque jester. He sneered at me, then laughed as his reflection in the window began to grow.
A series of skittering noises came from around the bend in the hall. I whirled just in time to see a swarm of rats, racing down the hallway at me. Holding out my hand, I summoned my fire.
Fire to flame, flame to fire,
build and burn, higher and higher.
Flare to life, take form in strike,
attack now, fiery spike.
A stream of fire came rushing off my hand, forming into a ball that traveled into the center of the rats and exploded. They scattered, singed by the sparks and flame. I took the opportunity to race back to the staircase as maniacal laughter filled the hallway.
I didn’t look over my shoulder as I clattered down the stairs as fast as I could go. The laughter expanded to fill the hallway. I burst through the door leading into the reception room. Slamming through, I let it swing closed behind me, and kept on going toward the front door.
As I opened the door, throwing it wide, I thought I could feel bony fingers clutching at my shoulder. I jerked out of its grasp, whatever it was, and pulled the door shut behind me. As I stumbled away, I turned to look at the building. It was lit up with an eerie green glow. The entire building seemed alive, where before it had felt dead.
Crap, I woke something up.
My hands shaking, I sat down on the bench and pulled out my lock picks, working to lock the door again. I wasn’t sure what good it would do, and my instinct was to bolt and run, but I had to make certain that none of those things could get out on a physical level.
As I worked, holding the door shut with one hand and working the locks with the other, I could feel something trying to turn the knob from inside. My stomach lurching, I refocused my attention and finally the deadbolt shifted and turned. I was about to take my hand off the knob when something on the other side grabbed it and turned, twisting, trying to open it up. Stuffing my lock picks in my bag, I let go of the knob and slowly backed away, keeping my eyes on the door as I made my way back through the gate, shutting it behind me.
On the top floor, lights were playing through the windows.
In my attempt to help, I’d done the exact opposite. I had woken something that had been long asleep and now I had to find a way to put it back on ice. I couldn’t just leave it.
I hurried back through the secret garden, walking sideways as I kept one eye on the building. I still didn’t trust that whatever was in there couldn’t come after me, but I made it to the chain-link fence and climbed over without further incident.
As I jogged down the side street, I wondered what the hell I was going to do. I couldn’t go back there alone. Whatever it was, was too big for me to handle. I could ask Trinity, but I wasn’t sure just how much he could take care of things on the spiritual level. No, I needed more help than that. I’d have to tell Kipa what I had done. And I’d probably have to approach Ember and the gang. Dreading admitting my mistake, I made my way back to my car and sat for a moment, trying to calm down before I headed back home. I clutched the steering wheel the entire way.
I stopped by the Sun & Moon Apothecary on the way home. It was nearly two. Kipa would probably be back by now, but before I talked to him, I wanted to see if Llew might have a trick or two that I could pick up.
Llew was finishing up with a customer so I wandered over to my table and sat down. I leaned back, looking around the shop. I had taken care of a possessed doll for Jordan—Llew’s husband—a few months back, and now the shop was fully warded and cleansed. Llew had been adamant about checking anything that came into the shop for psychic cling-ons.
When he finished he came over and sat opposite me. “I didn’t know you were coming back today, or I could have booked you a couple clients.”
“I’m not here to read the cards. Llew, I have a ghost problem.”
“Isn’t that your department? I don’t mess with spirits if I can help it.” He leaned back, crossing one leg over the other and wrapping his hands around his knee. Llew was cute, in a way, and just about the most loyal friend I could have.
“Yeah, but this… Llew, I stumbled onto an abandoned property last night and made contact with a spirit who is trapped there. Today I went back to check it out and…” I paused, frowning. I hated admitting my mistakes, but the fact was, even though my intentions were good, I had basically stirred the cauldron and now it was bubbling up and over the sides.
“What did you do?” Llew gave me a sideways glance, as though he already knew the news was bad.
“I think I unleashed something that… I don’t know if it’s a ghost. It might be demonic. It might be something else. But whatever it is, it chased me out. It can manifest on the physical level—I felt its hands on my shoulder.”
“Oh shit. That’s not good. Where is this place?”
I frowned. “Have you heard of the United Coalition’s Home for Wounded Veterans? It was founded during World War II, and closed after a massive scandal revealed over three hundred unnecessary deaths, and a slew of other problems.”
Llew paused for a moment, frowning. “Wait a minute. I’ll be right back. Watch the counter.” He disappeared into the back, behind a curtained-off doorway. I kept an eye out for customers until he returned a few moments later, holding a book. He was flipping through the pages, looking for something.
“Here it is—I thought so.” He sat down and slid the book so that I could see it, too. “This is a book of local hauntings, written by an author who lives close to me. She’s investigated all over the state and I can guarantee you, she’s the real deal. She’s a medium.”
I jerked my head up. “Medium? She works with the dead?”
Llew met my gaze. He knew what I was worried about, with the rise of the dead. “I’ve warned her to be on her guard and I’ve outfitted her house with a massive number of wards and charms. I also talked her into buying a security system for the house. I check in with her at least once every other day. If Pandora or her goons are on the lookout for more victims, I won’t let Lynn be one of them.”
Relaxing, I leaned back. “I’ll forever be watching over my shoulder, I think. At least until I grow into my full power. I talked to my mother the other night—she called. She’s coming for a visit. I told her what happened and she was pissed out of her mind that I didn’t let her know earlier. But she said once I reach my full power, even Pandora won’t be able to stand against me. That’s going to take quite a long time, though, given that I’m barely of age in my world.”
Llew blinked. He had met my mother. He knew what she was like. “Give her my best,” he muttered. “I hope you don’t mind, but I’d rather skip any parties you throw for her. She kind of freaks me out.”
I laughed. My mother was Queen of the Bean Sidhe, head servant to the Morrígan, and she freaked out a lot of people. “I’m not offended. She scares me, too, but then, I’m her daughter. She should be able to scare me. Anyway, what did Lynn have to say about the building?”
I leaned forward again, eyes glued to the page. There were pictures of the United Coalition’s Home for Wounded Veterans in its heyday, when it was running at full capacity. Even then, there was something about the pictures that bothered me. Something that felt off.
“Lynn says here that she went in with a full investigative team. By the way, she’s not one of those investigators who tries to get a rise out of the ghosts. She respects the dead, and the forces she’s working with. But she does a thorough investigation both before going in and then while she’s there. Anyway, she says that the building is one of the most haunted in Seattle, and that she counted at least fifty separate apparitions and handfuls of spirits there. Let’s see…here it is.” He adjusted the book so we could both read.
The nightmarish quality of the atmosphere struck me more than anything else—even more than the spirits I caught on camera, and the ones who were trying to communicate through me. I felt like there was something bigger hiding beneath the surface, a dark force looming behind all the spirits, keeping them trapped. I tried to tune in, but whatever it was wouldn’t show itself to me. I didn’t want to hold a séance because it felt like the entity was old and treacherous. Once brought to the surface, it might break through and I wouldn’t be able to undo the damage. But I highly caution people: do not attempt to visit this facility. Leave it alone, and let the dead rest, even though I highly doubt they’re at any semblance of peace.
Llew looked over at me. “She felt it, too. Whatever Clown Face is, she picked up on it, but she didn’t try to contact it.”
“Somehow, I brought its attention to myself. I wonder—maybe it’s because I’m one of the Ante-Fae? I have an innate power that is noticeable by anybody who works with energy. If this creature either feeds on magical energy or is attracted by it, maybe my mere presence caught its attention?” I frowned, trying to think over the creatures that I knew fit that description. “I highly doubt that Stephen King’s Pennywise has taken up residence in the building.”
“Huh?” Llew asked, looking up from the book.
“You know, the clown face? I doubt it’s really a clown of any sort.” I paused, then sighed. “All right, I’ll head home and tell Kipa. And meanwhile, can you call your friend Lynn and ask her—off the record—if there were any experiences that didn’t make it into her book? I’m pretty sure there are a number of humans out there who, if they fully opened up about everything they had seen or experienced, would be locked away in the loony bin. And if she’s a medium, chances are she may have picked up on things she didn’t want to talk about.”
“I’ll do that in a few minutes—I’m overdue for a talk with her, anyway. I’ll call you later tonight.” He waved as I grabbed my bag and headed toward the door.
“Hey, if you think of anything I might need for exorcising this creature, let me know? Jot it down, pack it up, and charge my tab?”
“Will do. Bye, Raven!” He waved as the door swung shut behind me.
All the way home, I tried to shake off the fear I was being followed. But whatever it was that I’d run across, it was no Pandora, and I wasn’t going to be fooled again. As I pulled into my driveway, I saw Kipa’s truck, so I leaped out of the car and headed for the door. The weather had shifted and it was muggy and hot, so sticky that my clothes were plastered to me. Grimacing, I unlocked the door and strode into the living room.
“Hey,” Kipa said, glancing up from where he and Raj were wrestling on the floor. Kipa was letting Raj win, that much I could tell, and both of them were laughing. When he laughed, Raj got this big goofy grin on his face and he had a nasal laugh, a lot like a male Fran Drescher. It was lovable and sweet and did my heart good to hear him giggling.
They rolled to their feet, and Kipa leaped over the back of the sofa to give me a kiss. His hair was askew and falling out of his ponytail, and his shirt was sweaty, but at that moment, I threw my arms around him.
“I love you, you know that? I love that you take time with Raj, and that you…well…I love you. I’m so glad I can say it now without being afraid it’s going to burst out without me realizing it.” I kissed him, the funk of his sweat both enticing me and making me want to shove him into the shower. Say what they want, men didn’t perspire—they sweated, and when they sweated, it was fun-ky.
“I love you too, sweet cheeks. How did things go?”
I dropped my bag on the console table back of the sofa, then hustled around to give Raj a hug. He smelled too. It had been too long since I had ordered him into the shower.
He grinned. “Raj loves Kipa. Raj loves to wrestle. Raj no wrestle with Raven or Raj would hurt Raven.” He leaned back on his haunches, his eyes wide.
“Oh Raj, I know. Raven doesn’t have the strength to wrestle with you. Hey, how about Raj take a bath? Get all flower fresh? Raven will turn on the water for Raj.” Usually I made him bathe outside. The cold water never bothered him, but now and then he would beg to use my violet-scented bath wash. I usually said no—he could happily use an entire bottle in one go, and I’d be cleaning up bubbles for hours. But I wanted to talk to Kipa without Raj listening in.
“Raj can smell like violets? Raj loves violets—they’re so pretty and delicate.” He wiggled with an excited little butt-dance.
“Yes, Raj can smell like violets.” I glanced at Kipa. “Why don’t you take a really quick shower in my bathroom so we can talk afterward. I’ll get Raj into the bath.”
I motioned for Raj to follow me and he bounced along happily by my side. Gathering the bath gel and a massive bath sheet, I led Raj into the hall bathroom and filled the tub with bubble bath. Then I tossed in Raj’s toys—a plastic baby doll named Sally, a rubber duck, and a rough-and-tough plastic tank. It was an odd mix, but he somehow managed to work them all into a play session. He had recently latched onto Sally, which I had found in the thrift store. I had planned to use her for a magical project, but Raj had fallen in love with the auburn locks and princess-pretty face, so I gave him the doll and now he carried her around with him everywhere.
Raj took my hand with his as I balanced him so he could step up and over into the tub. He leaned back in the warm water, grunting with delight as the bubbles popped and frothed around him. I handed him his toys, and he hugged Sally to his chest as he leaned forward.
“Raj be good,” I told him. “Raven will come back in a while to help Raj out of the bathtub.”
“Raven shouldn’t come back too soon, because Raj wants to destress.” He closed his eyes and sighed happily.
Where he had heard that term, I wasn’t sure, but Raj picked up the weirdest crap at times. Once in a while, you’d think he was Confucius. Other times, he sounded like a deranged mix-tape of rap, slang, and gibberish. I patted him on the head, heading for the door.
I turned, glancing over my shoulder. “Don’t splash too much water on the floor, and don’t drink the bathwater.”
I had no fears he’d drown. Raj couldn’t swim, but he was strong enough to pull himself out of the bathtub, so I didn’t have to worry about him slipping under, and he never fell asleep in the bath. But I knew that when I returned, the bathroom would be a complete mess. All that mattered, though, was that Raj was happy, and that I had some time to talk with Kipa without Raj hearing. Because a worried gargoyle was a handful to deal with.