Page 91 of The Cursed Fae

I ran my fingers along the metal chain from Nana that prevented contact with spirits. She didn’t want me talking to Missy anymore, but I promised nothing. Even if I had, Lena’s life was worth breaking my word.

Stands of my hair had wrapped around the clasp, making it difficult to unhook. I ripped out a few wisps but finally got free of Nana’s ghost-repelling charms. My muscles relaxed all at once. The necklace’s magic had made it seem like the world always pressed into me like a leaden blanket. I hadn’t really understood that until I removed it.

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply through my nose, exhaling the long breath from my mouth. The hardest part came next—clearing my mind. My head was a chaotic place, and it took considerable concentration to push aside the images of the vampire sinking his fangs into my best friend. I squeeze my eyelids shut and shoved away the sounds of people passing the door to my room in the hallway.

Finally, I fell into a meditative state and tried to conjure Missy. I didn’t need infused herbs to summon her. Instead, I called her name into the darkness inside my mind and waited.

Nothing happened.

I spoke to her a second time.

Again, nobody appeared. Then I felt resistance—a mental tug.

In response, I summoned my magic and repeated the request to the spirit world aloud.

“I’m mad at you,” Missy snapped.

My eyes popped open. The ghost wore cute jeans and a baggy t-shirt that she’d knotted at the waist. How was it possible that a dead girl had a better wardrobe than me?

“What did I do?” I shot back.

Missy placed her hands on her hips. “What’s with the necklace?” She pointed to it on my comforter.

I sighed. “Nana saw me talking to you at the funeral, and now she wants me to wear it. I’m sorry.” I met her hard glare. “Can you be mad at me later? I need to talk to you.”

Her eyebrows lifted. “Yeah, well, I’ve needed to talk to you for days.”

I found her response a tad dramatic, since I’d only had the necklace for twenty-four hours, but I didn’t comment.

“Is it about Lena?” I asked.

Missy’s scowl softened. “How’d you know?”

“I called her while she was getting ready, and the eternal showed up to take her boating. She called him Mat.” A shiver ran down my spine at the memory.

“That’s his real name. They were going out on some yacht. That’s where I was until you pulled your little puppeteer tricks and summoned me away.”

Again, I ignored her tone. “Is Lena okay? Has he hurt her?”

“Define ‘okay,’” Missy said. She looked around for a good place to sit, eventually settling on Tina’s bed. “No biting or anything, if that’s what you mean.”

I heard the unspoken “yet.”

“The issue is this...” she continued. “Mat has perfected his charm over the years, and your girl Lena is eating it up.”

I shook my head. “No way. They just met. She can’t be falling for him already.” I didn’t have to wonder whether my words were true; Missy’s expression left no doubt.

“I hate to be the one to tell you, but Cupid’s arrow has definitely hit her,” Missy said.

My shoulders slumped. “A love spell?”

She shrugged. “Possibly. It also might simply be his pull—he’s turning up his allure and charm. Humans are very susceptible to vampires. His seduction techniques left me a bit hot under the collar.”

That was not an image I wanted in my head. “Can you keep watching her? Knock over a candle or something to interrupt them?”

The ghost frowned, her tone flat when she said, “You want me to set your old house on fire?”

My stomach cramped at the thought of the two lovebirds getting it on. “How do we get Lena away from Mat?” I asked.

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