Page 9 of An Invocation of Monsters

A large, grumpy-looking chef whose arms were a solid block of tattoos was laboring over rows of tiny plates on a vibrating metal table, flourishing his hands wildly as he moved to the music.

“This is Tater,” Kase yelled in my ear.

“Dark chocolate panna cotta with vanilla whipped cream,” Tater announced over the thumping bass, plating a tiny chocolate half-sphere with a perfect dollop of vanilla bean-speckled cream on top, and sprinkled with chocolate shavings.

He handed me a spoon, and of course with it being chocolate, I wasted no time in taking a not-so-ladylike bite.

“This is ungodly,” I said thickly, and he nodded with satisfaction.

“Sinful.” He pinched his fingers in the air, shaking them for emphasis.

“Absolutely decadent.” I ate another bite, wondering if I could just scoot my bed in here. There was room in the corner next to the dessert fridge, if I just shoved the extra stove out of the way…

“You may come and sample whenever you like,” he said, taking my empty plate. I saw words in Italian tattooed in black script over his hairy chest in the gap of his shirt.

I could already tell Tater was going to be my new best friend. Anyone who gave me chocolate for free won my heart.

Kase practically dragged me out of there before I could start sniffing around whatever was hiding in the oven, and my ears popped when we left the kitchen and its endless vibrating beat.

Next, I was brought back across the house to yet another set of double doors. There was another plaque here that read Mary and Joseph.

“All the founders have full apartments here,” Kase explained. “They’re marked out so no one wanders in.”

“Where do you live?”

He pointed up. “Acolytes take upstairs bedrooms. There’s only two of us right now. Mary and Joseph are here, your quarters are on the lake side, and Tasha’s are closer to the front of the house.”

“Tasha?” Who was Tasha? My mother had never mentioned anyone by that name.

Kase gave me a sidelong look that in no way diminished the brand-new puppy love in his eyes. “Tasha Vintner was the fourth founding member of the Wendigo Society.”

“And… is she here now? I’d like to meet her.”

“No.” Kase cleared his throat. “She’s been… gone for a while.”

I made a mental note to ask Mary and Joseph about her.

“Look, it might be best if we continued this tour tomorrow,” I said, looking up a spiral staircase. “It was a long drive, and I’ve got a lot to think about.”

Kase looked disappointed, but he brought me back to my quarters. I was already starting to get the hang of the first story’s layout, but the next two levels were for another day.

From the moment I’d laid eyes on the rooms my mother had lived in, I’d been itching to start digging around, but…

It was like taking a sledgehammer to my emotional guts.

I locked the double doors behind me after he left, then turned and looked around at the silent sitting room, exhaling and closing my eyes.

There was only one person who could make me feel better about this. All these secrets were piling up, a landslide on top of my grief that was threatening to let loose at any moment.

I practically ripped my hated gloves off, flexed my fingers, and dug my phone out of my pocket.

Elle: I made it to Deepwater Lodge! It’s gorgeous here. But all the people are weird, to put it nicely

Before I sent the text, I stood in front of the picture window, the sunset-limned lake behind me, and took a selfie to send to her as proof of life. My hair was the same bloody color as the sun on the water.

I hit send, then sighed in exasperation. I’d moved my phone at the last moment and blurred the image.

Then I frowned, zooming in a little. The window, the lake… all of it was clear. My face was the only part of the picture that was blurred.

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