Page 57 of Conjure

Aron’s jiggling knee brushes up against mine, causing my throat to close up. He radiates violence—a time bomb that’s seconds away from detonating.

“Please,” Gwen pleads, softening her features. “We need you, Lily. You’re the glue that keeps us together.”

Seconds pass before she reluctantly sits forward and puts her finger on the dial.

“Okay…” Gwen says on a long exhale. “Let’s close our eyes and take a few deep breaths.”

I rub my sweaty palm on my lap while inhaling deeply through my nose and exhaling through my mouth. A small voicewhispers at the back of my mind how reckless this is, but I blank it out.

Now is not the moment for regrets.

Gwen’s haunted voice assaults the silence. “Are there any spirits present that wish to communicate with us?”

My heart thuds hard as the seconds tick by.

Undeterred, Gwen tries again, “We welcome you to our circle.”

Nothing happens.

Beside me, Aron shifts in his seat, his spicy scent filling the air.

“What happened to Benny?”

“Just fucking show yourself, you pathetic coward,” Aron growls, and I open my eyes.

He glares at the candle, waiting and watching like me for it to flicker or, even better, blow out like last time. When nothing happens, he shoots to his feet and kicks the chair, causing Lily to yelp.

“He wasn’t suicidal!”

Pacing back and forth, he pulls the hairs at his nape.

“He fucking wasn’t.” He points a finger at the spirit board on the table. “This proves nothing.”

“Aron,” Gwen tries, her eyes glassy with tears.

He sends her a glare and stops pacing. “You know he wasn’t suicidal.”

She remains quiet, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, and simply watches him with sad eyes while he unravels before us.

“I was his best friend. If anyone knew him, it was me.” He jabs at his chest. “Don’t you think he would have said something or given some kind of clue if he was suicidal?”

“He wasn’t suicidal,” I speak up. “And he wouldn’t kill someone.”

All eyes land on me, and I drop my gaze as my cheeks burn. I clear my throat. “Weird things have happened since my family moved into that house. Whatever that…thing is,” I say, fidgeting with my hands, “it stalks me through others.”

“What do you mean?” Brittany asks.

I sniffle. “It has taken an…interest in Dominic’s obsession with me.”

No one speaks, and I keep my gaze on my lap.

“While Benny was on the roof, he shouted something to me.” I peer through my lashes at Aron. “It said, ‘his obsession with you is delicious.’” I sweep my gaze around the table. “That’s what Mr. Jones saidandwhat Dominic once said when this…thing entered him.”

“I remember that day,” Gwen says. “Something happened to you. You went pale and clammy, and then you freaked out on Mr. Jones. We thought it was a heatstroke.”

“Wait a minute. Slow down.” Aron tugs harder on his hair. “What do you mean by ‘this thing entered him.’”

“I mean exactly that. Whatever this entity is, it taunts me through others.”