Paige rolled out of bed, and shambled into the kitchen like a zombie. After pouring herself a large mug of tea, she made her way over to the short drop-leaf table that filled the tiny dining/breakfast area. Its thin steel legs strained under the mess of books she had pulled out last night after taking her bath. She’d been desperate to find answers to the oddity that was Nova, but even more than that, she’d wanted to find a solution for the loneliness. Her encounter with the vibrant spirit had rekindled her search for finding others that suffered from the same curse that she did—so much so that she even got on the internet.
Foolishness. When it came to researching the supernatural, the “real” supernatural, the internet proved more than useless, and sometimes so convincingly misleading, a person could lose months or years looking in the wrong direction. Books held the real truth. Ancient-ass books. The kind of old, dusty tomes that even old people didn’t know about. Unfortunately, Paige had only seen one like it in her life, and it wasn’t hers. It belonged to another one-of-a-kind, Joseph Conner, and he had no intention of letting it go anytime soon. That left the library as her only option. So far, it hadn’t been much more effective than the web.
Despite not finding anything useful, she poured herself a cup of chamomile tea to settle her nerves, donned her headphones, and dug through the musty tomes she’d gotten from the local library. She’d lost herself in them for a few fruitless hours before finally calling it quits for the night. The only trustworthy information she’d gathered spoke of a spirit’s strength being at its peak when following a true purpose, or when recently taken from the land of the living. Information she already knew through the stories she’d heard from ghosts first-hand.
Frustrated, she flipped page after page as she sipped her tea. Back to square one, no matter how deep she dug for that ever-elusive lead that would take her to the next level of understanding. She wanted to scream. Although the tea curbed her irritation, sex would have been better.
That’s not happening any time soon, she thought bitterly.
More than two years without a boyfriend only reminded her of the loneliness. Talking with beings that other people couldn’t see or hear tended to dampen relationships, not to mention when those “beings” got their kicks by messing with her significant other. Ugh, I should just get a cat. Sometimes I hate the way I am...what I am.
She threw the book she’d been thumbing through at the tall pile on the table. Half a dozen hardbacks fell to the floor with a clatter, doing nothing to brighten her mood.
She sighed. Great, another mess to clean up.
Reluctantly, she set her drink down, and went over to fix the mess. When she scooped up an armful of books, she noticed one she didn’t recognize. A little thing, bound in navy leather with silver wrought corner pieces. Two small locking brackets held the book closed, protecting its silver-dusted pages. An artifact for certain. She could smell the old on its worn edges. Gorgeous.
She dropped the other books to cradle the newly found treasure in both hands. Though small, the book had decent weight to it. No inscriptions or markings gave clues about what it contained or who it might have belonged to. Lost in excitement at the find, she didn’t care. Her gentle attempts to open the little volume became an exercise in vexation as the artifact refused to cooperate. She clawed at the locks with her fingers, and pried at them with various kitchen utensils to no avail. She even went so far as to plead with the damn thing until finally slamming it on the counter in frustration.
“Shit!” She leaned back against the kitchen counter, rubbing her temples. Nothing like starting your day off in the toilet.
“Having trouble?” Nova asked, appearing next to her.
Paige scrambled away from the ghost, and smashed into the wall on the far side of the kitchen. The clang of her fork hitting the floor provided the only other sound beyond her heavy breathing. “What the hell?”
The ghost casually gestured toward the little, locked tome. “The book? Having trouble with it?”
Paige pointed at the door. “Get the hell out of my apartment!”
Nova continued, as if she hadn’t heard the command. “If you’re what I think you are, that book is going to help—”
“Get out!”
The ghost frowned. “Not until you hear what I have to say.”
“I already told you: Not interested.” Anger replaced her initial panic. She didn’t mind lending a hand to a spirit in trouble, but popping in unannounced to solicit help grated her nerves.
“You know,” Nova said, “seeing as how I’m dead, I could hang around here forever if I felt like it. Is that what you want?” Her patronizing smile cut deep.
I hate ghosts. Paige grimaced in defeat.
“I even brought gifts.” Nova patted the little, blue book. “Just like you wanted.”
“I never asked for a gift.”
“You wanted more than money,” she retorted. “And I have more than the book, if you help.”
“How did you even find me?” Paige came away from the wall, ignoring the bribe. She walked right through the Native American woman to retrieve her tea.
“I could sense your aura, it’s intoxicating. Don’t your other spirit friends visit?”
“No,” Paige replied, pointedly. “They don’t. And you’re not my friend.”
Nova frowned. “Well, that will come in time.”
Paige rolled her eyes, took a drink, and then sat down. “Shouldn’t you be low on energy or something?” The ghost appeared as real as she had last night. That took effort. Not to mention Paige didn’t think she was from Salem, that took even more effort.
The ghost shook her head. “No, not really.”
“You must have some kinda bone to pick, to be carrying around that kind of power.”
“What do you mean?”
She is new. Paige took another sip of her tea. “Most ghos...spirits, can’t maintain a solid form like you’re doing. It takes too much power.”
“Ah,” Nova replied, understanding. “Not so much of a bone to pick, as it is protecting my brother from the same fate I’ve suffered.”
“And you think I can help with that?” Paige was still doubtful, but glanced at the little blue tome with growing hope.
“Yes, I do.”
Paige sighed. The temptation to get her hands on that book was becoming too hard to resist, and she didn’t want a ghost hanging around her apartment for all eternity. “You said something about ‘more to offer’ if I help?”
Nova smiled, and drifted over to the chair across from Paige. It was kind of weird, considering Nova looked like an actual person hovering around. She took a seat, eyes alight. “There are others, like you. I can show you where they are.”
Paige almost shot tea through her nose. “What?!”
Nova laughed. “I thought that might get your attention.”
It’s what Paige had wanted in the first place; a chance to find others like herself. “I hope you’re not pulling my leg. After last night, I don’t think I can take it.”
“I haven’t lied to you about anything,” Nova said, a bit ruffled. “There are people out there that have special powers. The ones you’re looking for are witches.”
Paige’s mouth dropped open. “You mean they’re real?”
“As far as I can tell.”
After three years of giving tours about witches, she never thought they actually existed; she’d hoped and dreamed, sure, but truly believed? No. Even now she found it hard to swallow. Spirits knew more about the supernatural than anyone Paige had ever met. Some knew more than others of course, but those who walked the netherworld, even the neophytes, had exposure to knowledge that the living couldn’t fathom. Paige had been given permission to peek into that otherworld, by whom or why she didn’t know, but it was fascinating and terrifying all at the same time. The point being: spirits knew stuff, and not one of them had mentioned witches being real.
Paige glared at the ghost skeptically. “Why haven’t you asked these ‘witches’ for help?”
Nova frowned. “I was afraid to approach them. They aren’t exactly like you. They can’t see spirits without the aid of a totem or spell. At least you have experience with spirits, and even then your reaction hasn’t been the greatest.”
A twinge of guilt hit Paige, but she got over it.
“They’ve also put up wards around their home, so I can’t enter.”
Interesting. Wards and spellcasting sounded pretty involved, and fun as hell. “What about the book? What’s in it?”
“If you agree to help me, you can find out for yourself,” Nova answered. She glanced over at the book, and touched it with an index finger. Wisps of greenish smoke coiled around the locking brackets, unhitching them with a click. Her gaze leveled on Paige. “So, are you in?”
She hesitated. “I don’t know. What is it you want me to do?”
“First, I need you to warn my brother. Then I need you to...neutralize the creature that killed me.”
Paige narrowed her eyes. “Neutralize? Creature?”
“I know it sounds bad, but I need help, and you’re the only one that can.”
“That’s pretty vague. And ‘creature’ sounds worse than just plain old bad.”
Nova straightened the non-existent creases in her dress. “The main thing is to warn my brother, the rest is up to you. If it looks too dangerous, and you can’t help further, I won’t haunt you.”
Paige snorted. “That’s fair, I guess.” She took another drink, feeling a little better about the situation. “Where is your brother anyway?”
“Oklahoma.”
The deadpan look she gave Nova should have been enough to convey her thoughts, but just to make herself clear, she said, “You’ve got to be kidding...I don’t have the funds to go to Oklahoma. Do you have any idea what airfare is like these days?”
“I didn’t die that long ago.”
“Couldn’t I just call him?”
“This is going to be hard enough trying to convince him that ghosts are real. You think hearing it from a stranger, over the phone, will make it any easier?” Nova asked. “We’re going to have to prove it to him. In person.”
Paige shook her head. “I don’t see it happening. I mean, I literally don’t have the cash or the time to make a trip like that. I can’t just pick up and go, it’s the busiest time of the year. My boss would flip.”
“Let me worry about the money,” Nova said. “As far as the time, isn’t it worth it to find others like yourself?”
She had a point. Paige rubbed her chin. “I need some time to think it over.”
“Understandable,” Nova said. “I hope you decide to help me. Here,”—she reached into a small leather bag Paige hadn’t noticed before, and pulled out a photo—“this is my brother, Levi. Levi Walker.” She set the image on the table.
Paige leaned over and glanced at the picture. Her glance turned into a focused stare, as she stopped to study the man’s face. Whoa, he’s really... hot.
She shouldn’t have been surprised, Nova was a knockout, or would have been if she’d still been alive. It only made sense that her brother would be too. Levi and his sister shared the same chiseled features, but his were stronger, thicker, and masculine. They shared the same silky, dark hair and eyes as well. Paige tore her gaze away from the photo and raised her cup in an attempt to hide her blush.
Nova smiled, and gave her a sharp nod. “Keep the book. I’ll be in touch.” With that, the Native American beauty vanished.
Paige winced, spilling tea down the front of her shirt. “Dammit!” She was used to ghosts fading away or disappearing in a puff of smoke, a few even blinked out like Nova had, but they “looked” like ghosts—all wispy and transparent. Nova on the other hand, could have passed as a regular living person on the street. Watching someone vanish like that was a bit jarring. She got up and cleaned herself off. Ghosts... pain in my ass.
Work didn’t start till seven, so she had a good amount of time to process what Nova had said. Six years ago, if anyone had told Paige she’d be contemplating helping a ghost to save her brother, she’d have laughed. The idea of the afterlife and its denizens had always been fascinating to her, though she never imagined that contact with those who had passed could be so literal. Not more than three years ago she’d been a philosophy major, but once the dead started showing up, that all came to an end. Ghosts and dorm rooms didn’t mix—in the movies or in real life. She’d dropped out soon after they started to appear, and never looked back.
Her gaze slid to the blue book. She could feel her heartbeat speed up just by looking at the opened latches and silver-edged pages. Maybe this little tome held the answers she’d been looking for. Maybe Nova had been on the level about there being “for real” witches. And just maybe, Paige wouldn’t have to be alone anymore.
She grabbed the book and the photo of Levi, then settled into her loveseat. Situated under the only window in the living room, the little sofa was the best piece of furniture she owned. Whenever she wanted to relax or had a big decision to make, the loveseat was her “go to” spot. After a deep, calming breath she gently pulled the leather-bound cover open. The thin pages reminded her of a Bible, though yellowed with age and filled with spidery handwriting. A wonderful old book smell wafted from it, doing more to settle her nerves than the deep breath. She ran her fingers over the bold flowing script.
Belladonna Loghain
April 4th, 1584
My arrival to the new world
Paige whistled. This sucker is old.
She flipped past a few blank pages, surprised that they were still intact. More elegant script stopped her progress, and she read the first few paragraphs.
I have traveled across the sea in the hopes of finding a new beginning. My kind is no longer welcome in the rugged hills of Great Britain. Forced to leave under duress by way of fire and torture, I escape with a heavy heart.
The fear and anxiety that had plagued me during my voyage eased somewhat once I finally set foot on dry land again. The natives of this new world have been friendly and more than accommodating. It is my hope to garner their support in the trying months to come, for I am unaccustomed to the hardships of country life...
Paige skimmed forward, looking for something specific that would tie her and this woman from the past together through common cause or supernatural likeness. Several hours later and about a third of the way into the book, her eye caught a passage that made her slow to read more thoroughly.
The focus. Nothing is more helpful to a witch than finding and understanding her focus. If a woman of power is to survive, she must master her abilities with all haste. The native tribes of this new world have proven that to be just as true here as it was back in europe. A focus will aid in that journey, making magic which seems impossible, possible. If the artifact is not gifted then one must be crafted, though it may be far less powerful...
What the hell is a focus? Paige thought, flipping through the book again in search of a definition. She paused, distracted by several arcane symbols that had been meticulously drawn on one of the fluttering pages. A few side notes labeled them as foundational elements for use with spells.
A tingling sensation danced its way up her spine. If casting spells was actually possible, she wanted to try it. There was no way to know if these symbols were genuine, but she couldn’t suppress the excitement that raced through her veins. The anticipation was a great feeling. Far different from her discovery of, and initial exposure to, the spirit world. She hadn’t been prepared for that first experience with the supernatural. Who would have?
There had already been enough sorrow and chaos when her grandmother died. Seeing the woman’s spirit only served to shake Paige’s foundation. At the time, it seemed as if the world was collapsing in on itself. She didn’t realize until later that she actually had a gift and wasn’t just going insane.
Paige frowned. Nothing like a bad memory to spoil the moment...
A glance at the clock told her it was past time to get ready for work. Damn.
She’d continue her research later when she had more time, but it took all of her willpower to put the book down. She took it, and the photo of Levi, to her nightside table. Giving the young man’s handsome features a last, longing stare, she wondered what it would be like to be with him. Man, am I sad or what?
She stuffed everything inside the little side table with a touch of despair. A quick shower saw her out the door and on the road to Necropolis by Night, but her thoughts remained at home with her hopes and dreams.