Page 22 of A Soul’s Curse (Fallen Souls #1)

Over the next couple hours, I stopped to see a few regulars and to check in with some unfamiliar faces I hadn’t seen before.

Most of them had turned away my help, but I was thankful for the small number of people who accepted it.

Maybe they hadn’t heard the news yet, or perhaps Ren’s imposing presence scared them into complying.

Either way, by the end of it all, I was exhausted.

I braced a hand against the wall for balance, the dizziness spinning my vision. I stepped forward, searching for a chair to sit in, when I tripped over the tip of my sneaker and crashed into the wall.

No, not a wall. Just a set of rock hard abs.

“You look like shit.” Ren’s strong arms wrapped around my shoulders to stabilize me, my face buried in his chest. I had expected him to be the kind of guy who smelled like aged whiskey and Christmas trees, or some kind of overly masculine aftershave, but instead I inhaled a good whiff of … was that chili powder?

“Subtle,” I joked. “You really know how to make a guy feel good about himself.”

The feet of the folding chair screeched against the wooden floor as Ren pulled it over. I immediately sat down, the ache in every one of my muscles intensifying.

“Here.” Ren handed me a bottle of water. “Maybe eat some of those gummies of yours or something. You need to take a break.”

“Gee, thanks, Mom .” I sat there for a few minutes to recover, but my work here wasn’t done. I stood up and reached for Ren’s arm, not giving him a choice as I grabbed his soft hoodie and dragged him up the stairs to the upper level of the church. “Follow me.”

What once used to be the choir loft was now a cluttered storage area, filled with extra cots, chairs, and other furnishings. Stacks of supplies—blankets, first aid kits, and crates of nonperishable food—lined the walls, leaving only a narrow path through the chaos.

I pulled out a rolling stool and swiped off some dust, then gestured for Ren to sit down on a sturdy chest filled with clothes beside me.

“I’m, uh, sorry about how I acted before.

” My cheeks burned with embarrassment as I forced myself to look into his eyes.

Now that I had time to think and settle down, I needed to get this off my chest. “I’m usually pretty calm and can keep my shit together, but this whole situation has me losing my mind.

I didn’t mean to hurt you, but you have to know how that made me feel.

I really wish you had just told me what was going on.

You had to know how I'd react to something like that.”

I handed him what was left of my bottle of water.

He snapped open the cap and took a short sip.

“I suppose I deserved that outburst. But I didn’t tell you because the first thing you would have done was tip off Mr. Carson.

The Syndicate would have known it was my fault, and even if we didn’t get caught, your reaction wouldn’t have been genuine.

Leon assured me he wasn’t planning to kill anyone.

He just wanted to startle you until you panicked and agreed to his terms. But I tried to avoid this.

I tried to get you to come with me to the Syndicate so I could call this all off. ”

I snorted, rolling the chair closer to him. “Well, look at how great that worked out for us. Now I have two weeks to find this mysterious ghost—and if I fail, not only is Ellie essentially dead, but I’ll be bound to the Syndicate for the rest of my life.”

“I won’t let that happen, Theo.” His voice was scratchy, but his words rang with truth, although it was a promise I knew he couldn’t keep.

“The Oathstone wasn’t a part of the original plan and I didn’t think Leon would go that far.

My plan was to bind you to me so that I could keep tabs on you in case anyone tried anything when I wasn't around. But what’s done is done.

All things considered, it could have been a lot worse.

At least you agreed to something we have the capability of doing. ”

We , I thought. He’s still acting like he wants to be a part of this.

“Did you know what Leon was going to do to the food supply?”

Ren shook his head. “He told me right after we left you. I immediately came here, hoping I could get ahead of it, but I was too late. The least I could do was assure Nick you had nothing to do with it.”

“Thanks for that.” I sighed. He may have gotten me into this mess in the first place, but without him, I couldn’t deny things would have been a lot worse.

“May I?” I raised my hands toward his head, my magic itching to absorb the damage I had caused earlier.

A dark bruise was blooming around his neck like a ring of shadowed petals, wrapping around his skin with a painful precision.

“I promise I won’t strangle you this time. ”

Ren smacked my hand. “No.”

The hurt of betrayal must have flashed across my face because Ren quickly added, “Not because I don’t want you to, but because you’re exhausted, Theo. Don’t worry about me. It’s just a bruise. I’ll be fine.”

I hunched over on the stool, bracing my elbows on my thighs and resting my chin on my hands. “Can I ask you something?”

Ren grunted. “What?”

“Leon said that if I tried anything, the oath would hurt the person who cared about me most, but I don’t understand why. Wouldn’t it make more sense the other way around? To hurt someone I care about?”

With a heavy sigh, Ren answered in a distant voice.

“You already know who the person is that you care about most. You could try to protect them, but do you know who the person is who truly cares about you ? You do so much to help others, Theo, but look at how quickly they turned on you when they thought you poisoned them and burned down Mr. Carson’s restaurant.

You’re replaceable. It won’t be long until they cast you aside completely. ”

“I don’t believe that. They’re good people …

most of them, anyway.” Regardless, the truth of his words sat heavy in my chest. I enjoyed helping people—I took care of my mom, protected my sister, and used my magic to help anyone I could.

I didn’t know what I would do with my life if I suddenly could no longer do that.

“Theo?” Stella’s footsteps and loud greeting echoed in the church loft. “You slacking off up here?”

I was worried about Stella when she left my apartment earlier, wondering whether she actually had a place to sleep or a meal to eat.

The icing stains smeared on her t-shirt informed me she must have taken my advice and went to see Ivy at the grocery store to interview for a position within the bakery department.

“We’re over here,” I waved her over. “Where’s Ivy?”

As if summoned by my thoughts, the smacking of footsteps against the stairs was followed by an out-of-breath demon.

Ivy’s eyes brightened when they settled on me, and a brilliant smile widened across her face.

With newfound energy, she rushed over to me and squeezed her arms so tightly around my neck I thought she might snap it.

“I tried calling, but you didn’t answer.

Stella was in the middle of an interview decorating a cake and I was in the break room watching TV when I saw on the news what happened. We immediately left to find you.”

Stella crossed her arms and sniffed at me. “You better hope they were impressed enough with half my cake to still offer me the job!”

“How did you find me?” I rasped, tapping on Ivy’s arm to let me go, and as soon as she did I sucked in a deep lungful of air. Something buzzed beside my ear, and I batted my hand around at something blurry that darted across my face.

The little pixie, about the size of a hummingbird, flapped her iridescent wings.

Translucent and gossamer-thin, they reflected an array of blues, greens, purples, and pinks from the overhead lights.

She made a few circles around me while leaving behind a trail of sparkling magic in her wake.

When she stopped and hovered in front of me, her lilac hair and red, petal-like dress floated in an invisible wind.

“Me, of course! I followed the trail of your magic here. I approve of this one, Ivy. I like the feel of his magic. It is so accepting and innocent, and sends a delightful warmth through me, even if its origins are a bit … dark.” She took in a deep breath through her dainty nose, and her pale skin lit up with glowing golden vines of magic winding across her arms and legs.

Eager to take in more, she dove into my sandy blond hair, tiny fists gripping at strands in small clumps.

“Um, Lyric,” Ivy pleaded. “Maybe you should …”

“Not now, Ivy! I’m committing his scent to memory, so next time I won’t need to rely on something he owns.” The little pixie abandoned my hair and began pulling at my lips and nose. Bright green eyes, full of expression, intensified with the golden glow of her magic as she examined me.

“It’s okay, Ivy,” I said as Lyric pried open my mouth and practically shoved her body inside it.

Her hair tickled my tongue and a brief laugh rumbled from my throat.

I knew little about pixies except that they were a type of fae, a distant lineage to Stella, and that they were often curious but rarely malicious.

If Ivy trusted this pixie to locate me, then I wasn’t worried about Lyric poking and prodding.

“I hope you don’t mind,” Ivy’s stare turned to her feet. “Lyric can track magic. We didn’t know where to find you, so I gave her the gummy bears you gave Stella. She tracked your magical signature inside them to bring us here.”

Ivy looked up at me, the bag of gummy bears in her hand crinkling as she tightened her grip on them.

“Before you ask, she can’t track Ellie’s magic because her body isn’t, um, alive, I guess?

Stella actually told me what happened and asked me about it, but Lyric can’t track the magic of a ghost and most of Ellie’s magic was separated from her. It’s not strong enough to track.”

Lyric, her assessment of me completed, then moved on to Ren. She immediately stuck up her nose at him and rudely sniffed, made a gagging sound, then returned to nestle herself in my hair. “Can I keep this one?”

“Oh, I don’t think Theo would—”

“Pleeeease, Ivy? How many times have I helped you out and I’ve never asked for anything in return? I just want this one thing! I won’t break our agreement, I promise!”

“But—”

“Lyric.” I held my hand up beside my head. She sat in my palm as I removed her from my hair so I could see her as I spoke. “You can’t keep me, whatever that means, but how about we be friends? You seem fun. I wouldn’t mind hanging out with you.”

“Really? I am fun! I want to be friends, too!” She jumped up and clapped her hands in delight.

“Great,” I assured her.

“Then I’ll go ahead and mark you.” She placed her tiny palm on the inside of my wrist, and the golden vines on her skin started pulsing with magic.

“Wait, mark me? Hold on—”

I heard Ren growl beside me. Stella and Ivy froze, but didn’t intervene. Lyric’s magic wasn’t strong, or at least it didn’t feel that way to me as it flowed through the veins in my wrist. There was a brief golden glow, similar to her own magic, and then it disappeared.

“Lyric, what did you just do to me?” I stared at my wrist. There was nothing there, but I could still feel her magic buzzing through my arm.

“We made a pact to be friends!” The magic in my veins flashed a golden hue when she mentioned it, the design an intricate vine. “So now I can find you whenever I want and wherever you are, and you can summon me too! Just like Ivy!”

“Oh, um, that’s awesome!” My enthusiasm wavered. There were horror stories in fairy tales about making deals with fae, but … this wasn’t a deal, was it? That was all superstition anyway … I hoped.

“Hurray!” She flew in small circles, giggling like a balloon about to burst. “So, what’s our first adventure together?”

“Um …” The entire room looked at me, but I was looking at Ren. He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, waiting for my answer.

“Well, I guess it’s time we start the ghost hunt.”