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Good try, Iris, I’ll outsmart you at every turn.
Raven
“You bought her flowers?” Jayce asks incredulously as we walk into the cemetery. I rushed off the moment I spotted the flower shop across the street. We needed to play the part flawlessly and what better way to blend into a cemetery in broad daylight than bringing fresh flowers to the grave. Honestly, we’ll be lucky to read the grave after this many years.
“Don’t worry.” I grin. “I did my flower research. Orange lilies really mean ‘I hate you’ or as I like to think, ‘fuck you, you crazy, murderous wench.’”
Jayce and Eli both laugh as I proudly hold up the gaudy, orange bouquet. I’ve never considered disrespecting a grave before, but we have to go all in on this or one of us might die.
We fall quiet as we wind our way through the path
“Do you think she’s stronger here?” Jayce asks quietly as we wind through the paths to the older section. They kept up with it, but from the fading headstones and lack of flowers, it was clear that no one visits these particular graves any more.
“Yes, the place the body lies is where they are at their peak power. We need to be careful not to tip off Stella. If she figures it out, we may be in trouble,” I say. “Hell, at this point we have to just assume she’s waiting around every fucking corner. I don’t know how the bitch has this much power, but it’s insane.”
“There is no way the psycho will know we are here. That is unless Lucien’s ass shows up. He is like a magnet for that crazy ghost,” Eli points out.
“Eli’s right, let’s make this a fast in and out,” Jayce pipes in. “It’s just recon anyway, right?”
“And it’s daytime, we hurry and find what we need, then leave. No big deal,” I reassure them as much as myself.
Jayce takes a deep breath and points to the opposite end of the cemetery. “Right, she should be in the older part of the cemetery. It's located in the northwest corner. I did a little research before we left.”
“You, Jayce? Never.”
My words get a laugh from Eli, just what I was hoping for. He’s looking more and more tense as we walk and I don’t want us freaking out prematurely.
“Lead the way,” I say, motioning for him to go in front of us.
Jayce swallows hard and puffs out his chest before stalking that way. I’m short and end up having to practically jog to keep up with him now that he’s on a mission.
“Hey, did you not see the sign?” The booming voice has us all freezing and looking over. An angry-looking man is stalking forward. His overalls are covered in dirt and his face pinched in frustration. “I swear no one respects the dead!”
“I’m sorry, we didn’t—” I try but he cuts me off.
“The sign was neon orange,” he deadpans. “You need to leave now. You’re trespassing, we’re closed, until tomorrow, for a funeral.”
My eyes widen before the crunch of tires on gravel has us looking over at the main entrance, a row of cars coming in now.
“We apologize, we’re going now,” Jayce promises. Grabbing my hand and leading me out before I can say something to get us in more trouble. Plus…it’s a tiny cemetery, we can’t exactly blame them for wanting a bit of quiet to mourn their loss.
He glares at us the entire time we wind our way back to the front, frustrated and ready to scream. Every time we take a few steps forward, it’s like someone kicks us twelve steps back.
The moment we’re outside the gates again, I toss the flowers in the trash and stomp toward the coffee shop. I need a double shot of espresso to deal with the bullshit that keeps piling up.
Jayce and Eli rush up to me and I feel someone grab my wrist, spinning me around. “Hey, stop. This is just a setback,” Eli argues gently.
“Another one,” I seethe. Not realizing we stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, I flinch as someone slams into us.
“I’m so sorry,” she mutters as Eli helps steady the poor lady before she falls.
“That was our fault,” I say. She nods and rushes off but Eli seems frozen now. “Eli?”
“Eli?” Jayce hisses, yanking both of us out of the way of foot traffic. “What’s wrong?”
“Holy shit,” Eli finally breathes out. “She must have come from that funeral or was going to it. The death had to have just happened, I watched as a man held her hands, dancing in their living room one last time.” His voice cracks and I wrap him in a hug. “It was a beautiful moment, but he died that night. It’s her last real memory of him. Fuck, this power sucks so damn much sometimes.”
Now Eli is the one pacing up and down the sidewalk like a cornered animal.
