“Right. You’re very well informed.”
“Get to the point.”
“I want to discuss a trade.” Harriet tried to pitch her voice at the assertive tone her gran used when she was trying to gain control of an argument. Something about these men reminded her of her gran. “I need information. In exchange, I’ll give you time using a mobile phone. It has some music on there, and a few episodes of a TV show called Loch & Ness. It also lets you access the Internet.”
“The Internet is, er—” Greg started explaining.
“We know,” Rufus said again, cutting him off.
“… for porn,” Greg trailed off, under his breath.
“What kind of information do you need?” Vini asked.
Harriet wondered what question she could ask that would give her the maximum amount of information. If this was her only chance to make a deal, she had to get the most out of it. “I want to find a way of choosing my power when it manifests.”
For the first time, Rufus moved, turning his head to exchange a glance with Vini. He had been absolutely, inhumanly still until now.
“We want the phone,” Vini said. “Not just time using it. Permanently.”
Harriet pretended to consider this. She had come prepared to barter. The phone would run out of battery soon, so she didn’t want to give it away completely if she didn’t have to. “I’d rather lend it to you by the hour. Just to make sure I’m getting the information I need.”
His eyes glinted. “Give us the phone afterwards, if you think we’ve helped you. We know how to do this.”
“How do I know I can trust you?”
Rufus cleared his throat pointedly at Greg, whose hand squeezed the back of Harriet’s neck.
“They’re on your side, I promise,” he whispered in her ear.
Harriet grinned dopily at Greg. “Fine, it’s yours,” she told Rufus.
As she shook their hands, Harriet noticed Rufus had a neat rectangular tattoo on his forearm. It looked suspiciously like a spreadsheet. Was it a record of black-market trades?
Their ice-cold skin made pins and needles spread through her hand. They were sucking out her energy, like Qi had done. As quickly as she could, while still looking polite, she pulled her hand away.
Vini put a hand on Greg’s shoulder. “You should go outside now.”
Looking more than a little relieved, he backed away. “I’ll, er, be outside,” he said to Harriet. “Catch up with you later.”
Harriet closed her eyes, taking a moment to settle herself and focus on whatever was about to happen. She couldn’t let herself panic again, not if they fed on fear. She’d come this far; she had to keep going. These Tricksters were nothing compared to how disappointed her gran would be if she didn’t get home soon.
“So,” she said, and then cursed herself for breaking the silence first. It betrayed her nerves, and they would leap on any sign of fear. Whatever agreement might be in place, they would break it in a second if they saw an advantage. “Tell me.”
“You don’t eat fear like us,” Rufus said. “But—”
“Doesn’t she?” Vini interrupted. “Are you sure?” He leant forward and took Harriet by the chin, staring deep into her eyes. She held herself very still.
“No,” Vini said a full six minutes later. “You’re right. She’s something else.”
They were very close. Suddenly, she was aware that they were licking their lips. She imagined herself as prey, being hunted, and then, just as quickly, pushed the thought away.
Instead, she tried to imagine herself as a predator, strong and equal to them and not at all afraid. It was too late. They were both breathing in her fear, fingers grasping her wrists and wide teeth catching at the edges of their smiles. Pins and needles frayed away her skin where they touched her.
“Stop it!” she said, her voice tight and high. She pulled her arms away. “That was not part of the deal.”
“Apologies,” Rufus said, stepping back. “Vini,” he added sharply.
His brother moved away from Harriet, still watching her hungrily.
“The only way to choose your power is to take one from another ghost,” Rufus said, pitching his voice low.
Harriet swallowed a lump in her throat. “How do I do that?”
“You’ll need to take their energy. All of it, if you want the power to be yours permanently.” His gaze was boring into her.
“All of it,” Harriet repeated, feeling faint. “All of it?”
“Every last atom,” Vini confirmed. “Or it won’t be permanent.”
Were they saying what she thought they were? “How do you know? Have you tried?”
In unison, they shook their heads. Vini’s right earlobe was torn, the skin dangling from the lobe like an earring. She carefully avoided staring at it.
“Then how do you know it will work?”
After a long pause where she thought that neither of them was going to bother answering, Rufus said, “Because it’s been done before.”
This time, Harriet was the one to step closer to them. Her fear had gone. “By who?”
“You’ve met Leah and Claudia by now, I presume?”
Harriet was so shocked that she actually gaped at them. “Leah?”
“Not Leah.” Vini smirked. “The baby. Claudia.”
Our powers aren’t random. They represent part of us – something we value, whether that’s our culture, personality, strengths or beliefs. My power comes from my desperation to have control. Rima wants to be friends with everyone and everything – including every animal she meets. Felix doesn’t know how to talk to people, so his power lets him make sure he’s never put in a social situation he can’t fix.
And Harriet? I guess we’ll have to see what her power is, when it manifests. But I have my theories.
Most of the time, the powers you think will be the most valuable are not very useful at all, and boring ones turn out to be surprising. Rima’s power, for example, is very desirable. Ghosts can be tattooed using porcupine quills and black squid ink taken from a shapeshifter’s animal forms. People are constantly asking Rima to trade supplies on the black market. But nothing can convince her to trade with Rufus and Vini.
There’s a long history of ghosts on this site, with more powers than you can imagine. There were five of us, in the beginning – one of the beginnings, anyway. A family, bonded through blood and bone and fealty. Nothing like Rima and Felix and Kasper, who found and chose each other. That kind of family is easy and gentle, but it’s weak, too. A bond that’s grown from friendship can be broken. Blood is more powerful. Blood bites back. Blood defends itself.
Blood or bond? Harriet hasn’t decided yet. She doesn’t even know that she’s going to have to make a choice.
She hadn’t even noticed the baby until the tricksters mentioned her. Now she thinks the baby is important. But she has no idea.
Chapter 8
FELIX
“Mars bars, for sure,” Felix said, tilting his head up to take in the early morning sunlight. He was sunbathing on the moss-covered metal fire escape with the girls. It was one of the only occasions when Leah seemed anything other than ambivalent about life.