Teri Brown: Born of Deception

Billy looks down, uncomprehending and I hear Walter whimpering.

No. I will not let her win.

In one smooth lightning-fast movement, I bend and grab both my knife and the satchel I’d dropped earlier. I somersault into the circle and am on my feet before Calypso can react. I try to get the rope out of my bag, but as I work to free it, she throws herself at me and I’m knocked to the floor. I slash sideways with my knife and my stomach turns as it glances off something soft.

Calypso pulls back and cries out, grabbing at her arm. The scent of blood draws Aiwass away from Walter and he is on her in a flash. I can’t tell what he’s doing, but her screams fill the apartment. I crawl backward in horror.

Something shatters behind me, and I whirl in time to see flashes of light as the mirror erupts into a thousand shards of glass. Billy hurls himself in front of me, protecting me with his body.

The pathway to the netherworld must be closing.

“Calypso!” A voice thunders and everyone, even the spirits, freezes.

Trembling, I turn. Standing in the doorway like a towering monolith is Aleister Crowley.

With a rush, Walter is by my side. I feel the cold of him but welcome it for the first time.

Mr. Crowley waves his hand and Aiwass dissolves into mist, then vanishes altogether. Some of the heaviness in the room disappears with the spirit. Calypso stares at her father from the floor, her eyes transfixed.

Her father steps toward her and stops at the edge of the salt circle. “Miss Van Housen,” he says to me without taking his eyes off Calypso. “I’ve come to take my daughter home. Please break the salt circle.”

He senses my hesitation. “She won’t harm anyone. Not ever again.” Calypso winces but is perfectly still. His voice is so commanding that I find myself doing what he says and, using my foot, I break the circle. Mr. Crowley holds out his hand and, whimpering like a beaten puppy, Calypso slowly gets up off the floor and steps to his side. I can see the blood dripping from her arm and almost feel sorry for her. Almost.

Mr. Crowley turns toward me. “I strongly suggest you remove everyone from the building as soon as possible. You’re protected, but the others are not. There are many malicious spirits here and I have no control over what sort of mischief they might do to your friends.” He gives me a formal nod of his head. “It was a pleasure meeting you, Miss Van Housen. Be careful how you handle your abilities. Someone with your special talents will always be at risk. Your spiritual defender won’t always be able to protect you.”

With another nod, he leads his daughter away by the hand and disappears through the open doorway.

The instant after that I see another form at the entry.

“Anna!”

“Cole!”

He rushes toward me and sweeps me up in his arms. “Why did you come here? Are you insane?” He holds me close, his heart beating beneath my cheek.

“I had to stop her,” I tell him simply.

“We can talk about it later. Let’s get everyone out of here. Harrison is waiting downstairs. I wouldn’t let him come up.”

I sense his rebuke and know I deserve it for bringing Billy without taking into account Calypso’s special abilities.

Billy picks up my silver knife and finishes cutting through the man’s bindings. His mouth is drawn up into a tight line and I know I have a lot of explaining to do.

Cole’s eyes widen. “Jonathon!”

The young man nods at Cole but says nothing.

Mr. Casperson wakes up and I toss Cole a pair of handcuffs. He raises his brows but slips them on Mr. Casperson’s wrists. No use taking chances.

“What were you thinking?” Cole asks as he cuffs him.

Mr. Casperson’s face falls into the lines of a beaten man. “I wasn’t,” he says in a weary voice. “I just did what she wanted. She told me to hold Pratik and I did.”

My stomach churns.

“I’ll check out the rest of the rooms, see if there’s anyone else,” Billy says, avoiding my eyes. He skirts around me and I wonder what’s wrong until I realize he can see Walter, who is still standing by my side.

I face the wan young man who died so young. His cheeks are hollow and his skin has a yellow cast, but I can see where he might have been handsome when he was alive. I can imagine how proud his mother must have been of him.

“Thank you.”

He shrugs and his melancholy drenches me like a soft wash of tears. “There isn’t much else for me to do but to look in on you from time to time. You’re the only one I can talk to.”

“Isn’t there somewhere else you can go?” I ask gently, not caring if the others think I am talking to myself.

“Some kind of white light? A portal? A doorway?” Walter shrugs. “If there is, I haven’t found it.”

“I’m sorry.” And I am. It must be horrible to be able to see people but not communicate. No wonder he stuck close to me.

“You don’t mind if I talk to you from time to time when I can, do you?” His voice is wistful. “I can’t do it all the time. I think it has to do with place . . .”

I’m a bit uncomfortable at the thought of having a ghost stalk me, but what can I say? He probably saved my life. “No. That’s would be fine. Sometimes.”

He nods and then with a sad little salute, disappears.

Billy brings out three other young men. All are rubbing their raw wrists where they’d been bound. One of them is sporting a black eye.

A scant thirty minutes later Billy, Cole, Harrison, and I are sitting in front of my hotel in Cole’s motorcar. Cole had telephoned Mr. Gamel before coming and he was waiting for us by the time we came down. He took the other Sensitives, Jonathon, and Mr. Casperson, home with him. I wondered what would happen to Mr. Casperson and then decided I don’t want to know.

Billy opens the door. “Thanks for the rescue,” he says. “Right in the nick of time and all that.”

Cole nods.

Reluctantly I get out of the motorcar. It doesn’t make any sense for me to stay with Cole as he has to go drop Jonathon off, but I am hesitant to leave him. There is so much I want to tell him.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” I search the darkness of Cole’s eyes. All I am feeling from him is relief and a strange sense of fear.

He nods again and I close the car door, feeling as if I’ve just lost everything.

Billy and I walk into the lobby of our hotel and I know I need to talk to him, to tell him the truth of how I feel.

If I can find the words.

I place my hands on Billy’s shoulders and he turns to me, pain in every line of his body. “I can’t thank you enough,” I start, and he puts a finger against my lips.

“Don’t thank me. I let you down.”

“You did not! You probably saved my life.”

He shakes his head. “The dead boy did more for you than I did. I don’t know what happened there, but I’m sorry for breaking your necklace. Oh hell, I don’t even understand half of what went on tonight.”

“I wish I could tell you . . .”

He shakes his head. “I don’t want to know. Just know that I would do anything for you, Anna. You’re special.” He gives me a lopsided smile. “I didn’t know how special until tonight.”

“You’re special, too. You saw Walter. The dead soldier.”

I glance at the clerk behind the desk and draw Billy farther away.

He shakes his head. “My aunt occasionally saw loved ones who had passed on. I’ve seen a couple of ghosts in my time, but it’s not something I seek out. Don’t make more of it than what it is. There are all sorts of things in this world I don’t understand and have no wish to. I have no desire to mess with the spirit world. Not like you do.”