Page 10 of Malice

“We can see spirits.” I tap my chin. “We’re essentially immortal unless…”

Farnsworth tilts his head at an unusual angle. “Unless?”

“Unless we’re expelled from the society.”

“How does one get expelled?” he asks.

“Breaking the rules. Failing to meet the required quota.”

“And?”

“Accidental trade.”

“Correct. Do you understand the trade explanation? It trips up a lot of newbies.”

Nodding, I reply, “I think so. The spirits are tricky. They’ll try to negotiate with me. I have to be very measured and careful with the words I use.”

“Correct.” Farnsworth narrows his eyes, studying me. “What questions do you have?”

“Is there a training period?”

The group of spirits behind me laugh in unison. Abigail pops out from behind Farnsworth, shaking her head before ducking behind him again.

“I’m afraid not. We don’t have enough support for that. You jump right in.”

“Oh.”

“Continue to rely on the handbook. You may have a small lag before you’re assigned but?—”

A loud siren cuts off his sentence and suddenly there’s a flurry of activity. Purple strobe lights flash, casting shadows across the space. Abigail shrieks and disappears while the group of workers crowd around me and Farnsworth in a circle.

“Oh dear,” one of the figures in black says.

“We’ve got a hot one.” Farnsworth taps on what appears to be an electronic tablet that just appeared in his hand. He scrollsthrough several screens, nodding as his frown deepens. When he glances up at me, he looks almost apologetic. “You’ve got your first assignment.”

“Already?”

“Yes. You’ll get the details shortly. There are two escapees, and we have to wait to see where they plan to settle. I won’t lie to you, Aster. There’s an unpleasant one in the mix. You’ll receive a dossier and instructions on where to find the Horror.”

“Okay, but how will I know?—”

I fall backward, expecting to hit the floor, but instead, I’m suddenly standing in front of my apartment door. I suck in a breath as if I had been underwater, then exhale slowly. I’m home. What the fuck?

I dig my keys out of my pocket and open the door, worried about the state of my miniature poodle, Otto. I have no idea how long I’ve been gone. He must be starving and worried about me.

When I open the door and rush in, I’m surprised to see him curled up in his favorite spot on the couch, his food and water bowls still full. How was he fed?

He hops up, bouncing over to me and waiting to be picked up, acting like he does every day when I come home from work. Weird.

Oh god. Work. I need to call and somehow explain my absence. I wish I knew how long I’ve been gone and how to explain that everyone thought I was dead. Maybe I’ll just feel it out and see how it goes.

I pull my phone out of my jacket pocket. Huh. How weird that I don’t have a bunch of missed calls or texts. I unlock the screen and scroll my contacts for my boss’s number. It’s not the best job in the world, but it pays the bills and I need to keep it. I press the Call button and wait for him to answer, catching the time as I do. It’s six p.m. He should be home by now.

“Hello?”

“Uh, hi, Brad. It’s Aster. Sorry to bother you at home, but I felt like I needed to explain my absence and that I’ll be in tomorrow.”

“Huh?”

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