Page 18 of A Soul’s Curse (Fallen Souls #1)

The brisk coolness of fall was laced within the gentle breeze sweeping through the porch as I anxiously walked in circles while waiting for Ren to pick me up.

Ellie’s ghost was standing beside me, but wasn’t in a very chatty mood.

It left me alone with my thoughts, and I began to dwell on the whole situation.

How was I going to get Ellie’s body back?

And the Syndicate—an organization I had never even heard of until yesterday—was coming after me for some reason I had yet to figure out.

On top of that, a demon had broken into my house to make breakfast, and my pet bird was really a fairy who had been spying on me for the past year.

I stopped pacing. Was she spying on me? Ren said I had already been on the Syndicate’s radar, and Stella warned me about prying into her past. Maybe they sent her to keep an eye on me.

I shook away the thoughts. My sister would remind me that I was too trusting of people, but I didn’t get bad vibes from Stella.

She was definitely hiding something from me, but she said it had nothing to do with the Syndicate—and I didn’t think it had anything to do with me.

My gut said I could believe her, and I believed Ren too.

“Hey, Theo,” Ellie’s soft voice caught my attention.

Her magic was flickering like a dying flame in the wind and she was rubbing her chest like she had a severe case of heartburn.

Normally, ghosts wouldn’t be able to feel, but since Ellie was still technically alive, her painful discomfort was being channeled through her magic.

“Since you mentioned Stella is asking around for information, tonight while you’re at work, I figured I’d start asking some ghosts about the Syndicate. ”

“You don’t have to do that, Ellie.” Although it was a brilliant idea—Who better to spy on the Syndicate than ghosts they quite literally couldn’t see?—I knew she was suffering enough as it was. There was no need to bring her more distress.

“It’s okay,” she answered. “Staying busy is the only way to distract myself from the pain.”

My heart broke in two. For all my ability to help others heal, this was one thing that terrified me the most. I could do nothing to help ease her discomfort.

“Okay, just … be careful I guess. I know people can’t see you, but you’re sort of like a half ghost and I don’t know how other types of magic will affect you. ”

Ren’s black sedan pulled up and parked in front of the neighbor’s house.

Smart , I thought, even if it embarrassed me I had to hide him.

I had told him not to honk or knock on my door, but the fact he didn’t pull up into the driveway either, and parked next to the neighbor’s house, was good thinking on his part.

“Hey,” I said as I tugged the passenger side door shut.

My hands were a little numb from waiting outside in the cold, but I wanted to avoid the possibility of Sly asking me questions if he saw me waiting by the front door.

His bedroom also faced the front of the house, and he had woken up earlier than I expected.

I had to make sure I made as little noise as possible leaving the house.

“Hey,” Ren answered, then quickly drove off down the street.

The radio was playing some local rock station. I turned it down so we could talk. Carson’s Pizza wasn’t more than a ten-minute drive from my house, so we didn’t have time to waste.

“Thank you,” I told him, hugging my backpack in front of me. “I know I said it already, but I want to say it again. Thank you for saving me yesterday and for agreeing to help me now.”

“I’m not doing it for you. I just want this shit to end.” The desperation in his voice cut through the air like a blade, leaving behind an ache in my chest that was impossible to ignore.

“So, the Syndicate,” I said, getting right down to business.

“You know more about them than I do. I admit I’m …

kinda lost here. I have friends asking around for information, but there’s gotta be something I can do to help Ellie.

Sadly, crime fighting vigilante isn’t exactly a skill I’ve honed over the years. ”

“You really want to know what I think?” He turned off the radio, the only sound that remained was now the heat blowing out of the vents.

“I guess I do.”

“I hid within the Syndicate for over a year. They’re methodical, organized, and if I’ve learned one thing being among them, it’s that if you aren’t one step ahead, they’ll eventually be dragging you in chains behind them.

Like I said earlier, they will destroy your life until you have no option but to crawl back to them and become their slave. ”

“So you’re suggesting … what, exactly? Find their secret hideout and check out their community bulletin board for a seminar on ‘How to manipulate Theo Kingston’?”

“I’m saying, Theo , you need to act now before it’s too late. I think you should consider Leon’s offer. Join me as a member of the Syndicate—”

“Woah, wait a minute!” I dramatically threw my hands up in the air.

If he wasn’t driving, I would have punched him.

“You want me to join the Syndicate? Are you insane ? How could you even think about asking me to do something like that? What if they ask me to do something I don’t feel comfortable doing?

What if … what if your plan backfires and I’m stuck serving the organization forever? ”

“Oh, they will definitely ask you to do something you’re uncomfortable with.” Ren rolled his eyes. “Just … stop complaining for a second and listen. Do you trust me?”

“I’m trying to.” I mumbled, smacking my head against the backrest of the seat. “But when you say shit like that, it makes it very hard to believe in you.”

Ren grunted. “Look, James Whitfield is on thin ice right now. He let both you and Thomas escape last night, and now they’re questioning his loyalty. I’m not bringing my brother back to them, but I could bring you in.”

“Ah.” I let out a bitter laugh. “So I’m just a pawn, then? Do you even really want to help me? Because I’m pretty fucking sure handing me over to the enemy is essentially sentencing me to death.”

“No, Theo. I mean … yes.” He smacked his hands against the steering wheel and exhaled a deep breath.

“No, you are not my pawn and yes, I meant it when I said that I want to help you. But this is how you stay one step ahead of the Syndicate. They want you, Theo. And make no mistake, they will do everything in their power to make you theirs. If you come in with me now, I’ll still have my cover intact and I’ll be able to watch you—maybe even figure out what they’re planning so we can come up with a plan of our own.

You're not deep enough in shit yet that you’re desperate, and Ellie still has time, but not a lot.

If you willingly go to them now, it’ll save us the hassle of waiting until it’s too late. We control the situation.”

“That …” I paused to process the idea. “Okay, that actually makes a lot of sense, but it’s still a ridiculous idea.

Even if we made it look like you were forcing me to be there, there’s no way I could pull that off.

I’m a terrible liar and it’d be obvious we were up to something.

All of a sudden I see the error of my ways and decide to join the Syndicate on their escapade for world domination?

How do you know they won’t ask me to go after your brother myself?

Or to, I don’t know, kill someone with my magic? ”

Ren scoffed. “Thomas was a pawn, not a threat. He was captured as a bargaining chip, and since they got nowhere with using him in the past hundred years, there’s no need to bother trying to retrieve him.

Also, they have enough professionally trained killers on their payroll that they don’t need a weakling like you to do their dirty work, even if your magic was built for it. ”

“I take offense to that,” I pouted.

Ren glanced over at me with a mischievous smirk.

“I know you do, but it’s true. Take it as a compliment.

You’re not a killer, but they will most definitely use your magic and connections to their advantage.

They’ll make you do something that only you can do with your ability.

I’m begging you to think about this, Theo.

You don’t know them like I do. Come with me right now, and at least they’ll stop targeting you or anyone you care about. ”

I couldn’t give Ren an answer. In theory, I understood exactly where he was coming from. But in reality … it went against everything I believed in. I thought about all the things he had to do as James Whitfield. I couldn’t willingly do anything like that.

Ren was silent for the rest of the ride to Carson’s Pizza.

Although I was focusing on the pros and cons of joining my enemy, he seemed focused on something himself, like he was having an intense conversation in his mind and didn’t want to invite me into it.

The uncomfortable feeling gnawed at my stomach, twisting into tight, uneasy knots.

I distracted myself by fidgeting with the key to Scootie Pie that I had in my pocket.

Ren was smart enough to use my phone to text Mr. Carson the other night, saying that I was sick and was planning to go home early.

At some point, although I wasn’t sure exactly how, he also returned the scooter to avoid anyone finding it at either the museum or his place.

Ren pulled into the parking lot and parked the car, but didn’t shut it off.

Ellie’s ghost was outside waiting for me, peering into the establishment and practically salivating over the food she couldn’t eat.

Though no actual drool fell, an eerie shimmer traced the edges of her mouth, as if her very essence was leaking with hunger.