Page 7 of Ghostly Touches

I look back down at the man on my couch and frown. “I can see if Viktor’s body will still accept his soul, but if it doesn’t have a pulse, then I can’t do anything about that. The only thing I’d be able to do then is send him on to the Realm of the Dead.”

“I’m still alive,” Viktor snaps.

“It’s okay to be in denial for a bit, but it’s best to come to grips with it sooner rather than later,” Georgina tells him calmly. “It makes life… er, um, death, easier.”

I nearly forgot all about her. She’s not normally a quiet spirit.

“I’ll come to terms with my death when I am dead,” Viktor barks back.

Unaccustomed to anyone speaking to her so sharply, Georgina lifts her nose and sniffs in disdain before floating out of the room.

“Try being nicer to the people trying to assist you,” I warn him as I glare at his spirit. I turn back to his body. “Let’s see what I can do for you, Viktor. Just don’t get your hopes up.”

“I do not need to hope when I know I’m alive,” Viktor grumbles as I approach.

Crouching down so that I’m eye level with his body’s face, I reach over and pull the hood of his cloak back.

I can’t stop the gasp that slips past my lips. Another Fae?

Another attractive one at that.

Viktor has a thick, square head, with sharp edges to his face, more severe and defined than Theodon’s. His hair is stark white and braided similarly to the leader of this small group. Despite his severe look, he is every bit as handsome as his friend.

Along with how attractive he is I notice there is a lack of color in his face. His lips are tinged with blue and his face sheet white. For all intents and purposes, Viktor clearly appears dead. I reach down and touch his neck, searching for a pulse. To my surprise, I find one. I glance at Viktor’s spirit.

“You are alive? But how?”

Viktor throws his hands in the air in frustration. “The hell if I know! How about instead of asking questions you just fix me so we can be on our way?”

I turn to Theo, not bothering with this asshole any longer, and ask, “What did you guys get into? For his spirit to still be here and him to be very much alive… This is some wicked magic.”

Theo glances over to Kwil. After trading looks, he answers slowly, “We stumbled upon a hidden object filled with magic. Viktor here made physical contact with it while we were fighting this Shadebroode.”

“Viktor, want to fill me in as to what you touched?” I ask the spirit hovering nearby.

“No.”

“You’re not being very helpful.” I glare at the spirit.

He shrugs. “You don’t need to know the details to help me.”

“Fine, be an asshole. See if I help you.” I move to stand, but Kwil steps closer to me and places a hand on my shoulder.

For whatever reason, a shiver of excitement ripples through me. He’s an imposing figure, standing well over six and a half feet tall with wide shoulders. Attraction should be far from what I’m feeling, yet here I am with my heart beating rapidly and heat rising in my cheeks.

“Viktor has a hard exterior, but he does have a good heart. Please,” he pleads in that deep gravelly voice, “help him.”

Theo nods in agreement. “I’m sure Viktor is uncomfortable with being so vulnerable. If he is being rude, it is because this is unfamiliar territory, and he can do nothing about it.” Theodon hesitates before he adds, “Viktor managed to pick up the item and place it in the satchel just under his cloak before he collapsed. I believe it is a book although I cannot be sure.”

“Alright, first things first. Let’s get the book away from Viktor’s body. That could very well solve this problem, and I won’t have to do anything,” I suggest.

I unclasp the cloak around Viktor’s neck and peel it away from his body. His very large, impressive body. The simple, dirty long sleeve shirt that clings to him stretches over his wide chest, which hardly tapers down to his waist. The worn-out sleeveless leather vest over the shirt also clings to him like a second skin. I wonder at his apparel. Are jeans and a tee shirt not part of the dress code? Across his chest is the strap to the large leather satchel slung across his body. I reach for it, knowing that is where I’ll find the book. Maybe there will be something inside of it that can help me help Viktor. I flip open the flap and reach inside.

Abruptly, the monster beside Theo roars through its gag. The sound shakes the house and rattles the window. I jump to my feet in surprise as it begins to fight against its binds. His tail whips around, and as he thrashes about, the spikes on his back seem to grow larger. Kwil jumps in front of me, using his body as a shield as Theodon pulls the sword from its sheath hidden under his cloak.

The Shadebroode roars again and something in the other room breaks. Theodon sticks the blade of the sword against the creature’s neck, and it goes eerily still. The Fae pulls his sword away and hits the creature so hard with his fist it falls forward onto its face. It doesn’t get back up.

“Please proceed,” Theo hisses, not taking his eyes off the creature.

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