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“Why did he send it to me?” I wonder, the question nagging me.
Tory takes a deep breath and looks down at her hands. “It’s been a misdirection, Pocus,” she says, fear coloring her voice. “Anderson wanted you distracted so he could take Hex.”
CHAPTERTWENTY-FIVE
The men file into the meeting room, ready for battle. News travels fast in this place, and there’s a palpable excitement as they impatiently wait for me to call church to order. Excitement courses through my veins, though it’s mixed with anxiety and fear. We have to play this exactly right if we’re going to get our brother back.
Seer shuts the door and nods, indicating everyone is here. I call the meeting to order and explain everything as best as I can. We’ve purposely kept the poltergeist a need-to-know item, but now it affects all of us. They deserve to know the truth.
I watch their faces change as I deliver the news. I explain how every attack, every unexplained instance over the last few weeks has been the work of Anderson Grey’s spirit. A mixture of skepticism and fear comes from my men. Though we’re aware of the ghosts in the house, some have a hard time accepting them in practice.
The added news of an evil spirit that can harm the living world is a lot to take in. What’s even worse is that we’ve never had to battle a threat like this. When we took on Anderson before, he was alive and easy to deal with. This is a battle none of us truly understand or know how to prepare for.
When I tell them Anderson has taken Hex, the mood changes. They spring into action, ready to take up arms. We may not know how to fight a spirit, but we will lay our lives down for one of our brothers. It’s part of our code.
“Pocus, what do you need from us?” Snake asks, the first to throw his hat in the fight.
“You focus on finding him. The last we saw him, he was at the church. Seer and I don’t know where he went from there. Whether he was taken or coerced. Find him.”
Snake nods, and I dismiss him so he can begin his assignment. We have to find Hex to rescue him, and we need to do it as quickly as possible.
“How do we fight a ghost?” Bones asks. “It’s not like we can shoot them or beat them with our bare hands.”
“We don’t think Anderson is working alone,” Seer chimes in. “He may have a foot in this world, but there’s no way he’s carried out these attacks by himself. Even a ghost can’t be in multiple places at once. We don’t know what kind of situation we’re walking into, but we have to prepare for a small army.”
I nod in his direction, grateful for his help. Now that Tory’s better, he’s more himself, able to jump in when I’m at a loss.
“We need to follow Tory and Mama’s lead,” I tell them.
A little grumbling comes from the younger men. Despite club loyalty, not everyone is thrilled to be taking orders from women.
“If you have a problem with that, feel free to sit out of this fight,” I tell them seriously. “Our brother needs us. Get your heads out of your asses and put your pride aside.”
I feel my heart racing, thrumming against my ribcage. I don’t care what this crazy lady does to me, but she can’t hurt Juliana. She’s alive. I don’t know how or why, or what this bitch did, but she can’t take that away from her. Not with everything she’s come through.
The room is in shades of white and stainless steel, the perfect place to torture and murder someone and quickly clean up. I wonder if that’s its true purpose. I wonder if Anderson used his soldiers to torture information out of people here. The thought turns my stomach. Abigail was hexed and trained for that work against her will. This woman probably is too.
“Anderson doesn’t love you, you know,” I goad her.
She smiles at me coldly, pulling Juliana’s head back further and pressing the blade closer against her flesh. Juliana grunts in pain. The woman sneers, satisfied with her work.
“I thought I told you to shut up,” she hisses. “Unless you want your pretty little woman to die.”
“She has nothing to do with this,” I answer evenly. “She’s a normal girl with no special skills. Let her go and I’ll do whatever you want.”
I must sound desperate, as much as I’d like to seem strong. From the way the woman laughs at me, she probably agrees. She likes seeing me beg. That’s exactly why Juliana has to be here. They want to break me. Well, I won’t go down without a fight.
“Just like you’ll do whatever Anderson wants,” I spit. “Do you have a choice, or did Spooky Spice over there hex you? That’s Anderson’s move, right? He has to hex women to help him because they wouldn’t come near him with a ten-foot pole otherwise.”
The woman lets go of Juliana and rushes at me, pointing the knife at my face. That worked better than I expected.
“You know nothing, you insolent piece of shit. No one had to hex me. I’ll serve Anderson until he makes the world burn.”
Up close, I see the insanity in her eyes, but they’re crystal clear. She isn’t under a hex. She truly believes in what she’s saying. She’s completely sold on Anderson, even after death.
“That just makes you stupid and crazy. No one in their right mind could truly love him.”
“I said shut up!” she screams, holding the knife inches from my eye. Then something stops her and she straightens, dropping the knife on the ground. “Go sit in that chair,” she says, pointing to a chair that reminds me of old-school electric chairs.
