River

Those hopes were dashed as the grayish figures sitting at the diner counter swung toward me. They all stared at me with sulky expressions on their transparent faces. Before the gateway fell, those serving their time in Purgatory remained on Earth as ghosts, but they couldn’t be seen by most humans. The opening of the gateway caused them to become visible to all humans, something the ghosts hated.

Maybe I can still see them because I died too, I thought. I knew it was a long shot given the ghost’s morose demeanor, but it might be possible.

“Erin? Vargas?” I asked.

“I still see them,” Erin murmured.

“So do I,” Vargas said.

“But the gateway is closed! We felt it!” Ethel declared. The ghost planted her hands on her hips as she floated closer to us. Last time she’d screamed at us to get out the second we entered. This time it seemed she had more important things to worry about.

“It is closed,” I confirmed.

“Are those angels out there?” one of the ghosts breathed from behind me. I turned to find Pompadour with his head through the blinds covering the windows. Only half his pompadour showed as his face was on the other side.

“They are,” I said.

“They can help us!” many of the ghosts declared.

“Highly unlikely,” Corson drawled, “but ask them. They’re such kind-hearted fellas.”

“Corson,” I warned.

He shooed the ghosts away from the stools as he strolled forward. The ghosts gathered at the counter glowered at him and remained where they were. Corson plopped himself straight through one of them to sit on a stool.

“Revolting, filthy demon!” the ghost Corson sat through shouted. He floated away from Corson, and many of the others nodded their agreement.

Corson paid them no attention as he rested his elbow on the counter. He twisted slightly on the stool to gaze back at me while he spoke. “Letting them speak with the angels is the only way they’ll let it go. Don’t forget, ghosts are one-way assholes.”

“Not as much as demons!” a few of the ghosts protested and many of them gave Corson the finger.

“Why don’t you go out there yourselves and ask the angels to help you,” Corson said. “It is daytime.”

“Oh, we couldn’t! What if they say no?”

“The World Walker will ask them for us! She is one of them after all!”

“That one, I think he’s fallen. He’d never help!”

“Ask the golden one then!”

The ghosts all shouted different things so fast that I couldn’t stop my head from bouncing as I tried to keep up with the conversations.

“Enough!” I shouted. Striding to the door, I pulled it open and stuck my head out. “Caim, Raphael, could you please come here?”

Releasing the door, I stepped away from it and looked over the ghosts in search of Daisy. The young woman had helped us when Azote and the lower-level demons were hunting us the last time we were here. From the back of the large group of specters, I spotted Daisy when she gave me a small wave.

I smiled and gestured for her to come forward. She floated toward me as the door opened and Raphael entered. The ghosts all drifted closer to him until Caim entered. Some of the ghosts zipped away from Caim to hover behind the counter. Others were still irresistibly drawn toward Raphael. Kobal shifted closer so that his chest brushed against my shoulder as he rested his hand in the small of my back. The ghosts couldn’t hurt us, but he always moved closer to me whenever Raphael and Caim were near.

“The golden one can help us!” the ghosts chattered enthusiastically as more of them closed in on Raphael.

Raphael didn’t pay them any attention as he focused on me. “What is it you require?”

“The ghosts believe you can help them get into Heaven,” I replied.

“I cannot,” Raphael stated.

“Of course you can!” the ghost who had tried to look down mine and Erin’s shirts the last time we were here insisted as he floated closer. Pervy ghost, I’d called him. “You’re an angel! You can do whatever you want!”

“I cannot open a gateway from Earth to Heaven. You will remain here until your time has been served and you are deemed ready to pass on,” Raphael replied.

“See, demons aren’t the only assholes in existence,” Corson said and smirked at the ghosts when they all shot him furious looks. “You’ve heard it from the source, folks. You’re stuck here.”

“Corson,” I said, hating that he antagonized them even if they were only focused on themselves.

“What about you?” a ghost demanded of Caim. “Can you help us?”

“Moi?” Caim said as he rested his hand over his heart. “I’m flattered, but no, you’re on your own with this one.”

“But the gateway has been closed,” Daisy whispered. “We felt the closing, but experienced no difference in ourselves. The humans still see us.”

“There is no repairing the damage the humans created when they opened the gateway,” Kobal said. “It is only a matter of time before all humans learn everything that has happened, if they haven’t already.”

Some of the ghosts made sobbing noises. In the back, one of them threw himself down and started kicking and throwing his hands in the air like a toddler having a tantrum.

Daisy’s eyes went to the covered windows. “We’ve been hearing all sorts of things out there lately,” she murmured.

“And there will be more,” Kobal said.

“We’re stuck here, in this place?” Pompadour asked, and the sorrow in his voice tore at my heart. Some of the ghosts, like Daisy, were here because they’d been unwilling to leave their loved ones behind. Others had been too frightened to pass on. However, most of them were here as penance for things they did or didn’t do in life. Even knowing that many belonged here, I wanted to be able to do something for them.

“Yup,” Corson said.

“Get out!” Ethel shrieked.

“There’s the Ethel we all know and love!” Corson declared as he spun on his stool to face her.

“Get out! Get out!” Ethel shouted.

She swooped toward Lix when he tapped his sword against the ground. “Pardon me, Madame.” He held up a bony finger as he spoke to Ethel. “Before we go, could you tell me if you have any spirits here.” Lix glanced at the ghosts hovering nearby. “Of the alcohol variety, I mean? Preferably a malt beverage.”

Ethel looked mad enough to spit nails. “Get out!”

“I’ll take a look for myself,” Lix said and sauntered straight through her. Ethel gawked after him. The rest of the ghosts drifted out of his way as he pushed open one of the metal swinging doors separating the diner from the kitchen and warehouse beyond.

“It’s time to go,” Kobal said.

The ghosts zipped faster and faster around the room until they became a circling, gray ball overhead. Their distress became nearly palpable on the air.

“Can’t be stuck. Don’t want to be seen anymore,” many of them lamented.

Erin, Vargas, and Hawk headed for the door. Corson rose from his seat as the light coming from the bulbs overhead intensified to the point I was certain they would burst. Caim and Raphael looked as pleased with the ghosts as the demons did. Daisy floated closer to me while Ethel continued to shout for us to get out. Kobal pressed his hand more firmly into my back and nudged me toward the door.

“Is it true, World Walker, is there nothing you can do for us?” Daisy whispered.

“Wait!” I breathed and dug in my heels to stop Kobal. “There may be something!”

Kobal tensed at my words and the others all froze. The lights flared brighter before dimming as the circle of ghosts eased. Some of them floated down around us again. They pressed so close that they cooled my skin, but nowhere near as badly as the wraiths did.

“What?” many of them asked at the same time.

Tipping my head back, I stared at the lights before focusing on the see-through crowd again.

“We could use help powering the lights at the wall.” Enough ghosts together could generate a fair amount of light. “It’s true that ghosts will never be able to hide from humans again, but we can work together to make it better for all of us!” I said.

“Please don’t say what I think you’re going to say,” Corson muttered.

“They can help us, and we can help them!” I insisted.

Pompadour gave me a suspicious look as he floated closer. “How?”

“You can light things up and we can use that ability to help keep the wall lit, if it’s still standing. The humans at the wall already know about the existence of demons and angels, so ghosts won’t be much of a stretch for them. You can come to the wall and help us.”

“Aw shit, River,” Corson griped, and he looked as if I’d just told him he had to kiss an angel.

Kobal didn’t argue my words, but the expression on his face mirrored Corson’s. No one else said a word.

Lix kicked open one of the swinging doors, breaking the silence. He strolled out with a crate in his hands. “Jackpot!” he announced before setting it on the counter and heading out back again.

“You expect us to work for you?” Pervy asked.

“I expect you to work with us,” I replied. “If you do, you won’t have to hide. Helping others might also increase your chances of passing on from Purgatory faster.”

“We would have to go out there, in the dark?” Pompadour squeaked the last word.

“If the wall still stands, we should be back at it in a day or two,” I said. “You can make it there faster than us. If you leave at daybreak you could arrive at the wall before nightfall. If you give us two or three days before you leave, we’re more likely to be there before you, and we can prepare the others for your arrival.”

“Do you really think they won’t be afraid of us?” Daisy asked hopefully.

“I’m sure it will take some getting used to you, but they will adapt to you as they have everything else.”