“Bro, that’s fucked up,” Thad murmurs.
“Fucked up or not, let’s do this.” Closing my eyes, I imagine myself as a spirit. It tingles slightly, a sense of weightlessness taking over my body. When I open my eyes, I can see the blacktop through my boots. “This is seriously tripping me out.”
“Alright. Now the rest of us.” Cole and the twins mimic what Mack and I have already done.
“My dick kind of tickles,” Thad chuckles. “Damn, is it over already?”
“That’s what she said,” Levi adds with a smirk.
“Shut the hell up, bro.”
Standing in an empty alley, in all our ghostly glory, and they still have to bicker like two little kids. I roll my eyes. I don’t have time for this.
Thad looks around the group, his eyes bugging out as he lifts his arm, a finger poking through Levi who just raises a brow. “You’re all creepy as fuck!”
“So are you, jackass,” I retort.
“Alright, enough.” Cole shivers lightly, though he tries to hide just how uncomfortable he is in this form. “We need to get inside.”
A thought strikes. “Dumb question...do we go through the door, or can we walk through walls?”
“I’m assuming we can walk through walls, but I wouldn’t suggest that at the moment. We have no way of knowing where Fate’s at inside, and we don’t want to lose the element of surprise. The door would be smarter.”
“Good point, Mack. We go in, find Fate, and get the fuck out of here. Understood?” Cole looks around at all of us, his power shooting out to ensure we don’t screw this up and no one tries to play hero. “We can’t risk drawing more attention to ourselves right now.”
All of us respond, “Understood.”
We make our way toward the street, the sounds of cars and people becoming louder the closer we get. Turning the corner, a parade of color is lined up along the wall, people waiting to get through the door. Their auras fill the sidewalk with a colorful pattern like a kaleidoscope, emotions flooding through me from everywhere all at once. Excitement, anxiety, greed, lust, and everything in between.
The metaphorical bucket that houses my emotional intake is brimming, on the verge of flowing over the edge. Crowds are normally something I avoid if at all possible, which also has the totally unintentional side effect of getting me out of grocery duty. Can’t complain about that.
No one seems to notice us as we walk toward the bouncer, making our way inside.
Just as Thad starts to walk through the door, the bouncer steps through him to let more people in. “Oh, that’s just not right,” he groans.
Smirking, I turn back to the crowded bar and let my ghostly eyes adjust to the darkness as I begin to scan the crowd, frantically searching for Fate. The place is packed. An ocean of auras and emotions, along with the smell of sweat and alcohol. Such a lovely combination. My gaze quickly looks for the silvery aura that I know like the back of my hand.
It doesn’t take me long to find her. Zeroing in on her like she’s the lighthouse to my ship, my eyes lock onto my little ghost, tucked into the far back corner, and her emotions are so high right now that they drown out those of the living. There’s a spirit in a light-colored suit, probably white based on the lack of contrast in his translucent form, standing far too fucking close, his hand wrapped around her upper arm, and he’s not letting go. I’m moving before I can think, storming toward them, walking through anyone and anything that gets in my way. I hear my brothers behind me, the twins making random comments about how gross the living feel as their bodies slip through them, but I tune them out. I’m focused on one thing, one ghostly female who isn’t going to be able to sit down for a week when I’m done with her.
Just before we approach the group, he jerks his hand away, shaking it like she just zapped him with her power. Yeah, fucker. Didn’t expect that, did you?
Reggie steps toward the two spirits behind Mr. White Suit just as he leans in, whispering something too low for me to make out, and I see red. My power ignites, the glow being drowned out by the shifting colors bouncing off the disco ball in the middle of the dance floor.
“Back away from her. Now!” I growl as my brothers step forward, effectively boxing the group in.
Fate looks up at me, her eyebrows shooting up to her hairline as her eyes quickly dart over the others.
Mr. White Suit shoots Fate one last pleading look. “Remember, Fate, find Liv,” he says urgently.
Thad and Levi reach out, but just before their hands make contact, the two spirits behind Mr. White Suit touch his shoulders, and they all disappear.
“What the fuck?” I growl.
“It’s about fucking time you all showed up. What took you so long?” Reggie rolls her eyes.
I watch as Fate’s hand comes up to rub her upper arm where the shithead had grabbed her. She’s studying her marks a little too intently. Despite the clog of emotional haze in the room, her confusion and worry hit me.
Taking a deep breath, I try to get a handle on my temper. Looking at each of my brothers, with their varying levels of pissed off expressions, I know I’m not the only one. Thad and Levi are both standing at the back, arms crossed over their chests, looking like giant vikings. Their faces are blank, and from experience, I know the fact that they’re silent right now does not bode well for Fate.
When my eyes meet Macklin’s, I see the disappointment and hurt, along with a hefty dose of anger born of worry. Fate must see it too because guilt immediately floods our connection.
Cole’s staring at her with his trademark scowl. So, nothing unusual there. I can feel the fear lingering within him, the relief that he’s found her and that she’s safe. Why can’t the fucker just be real with her for once? I’m honestly a bit fed up with his go-to reaction. All it does is push him, and the rest of us as collateral damage, further away from her.
When I turn back to Fate, her eyes meet mine. I want to be mad, and I am, sure. Hell, I’m positively furious, but I’m also overwhelmed with so many other emotions that I can’t even comprehend them all. Love, fear, gut-wrenching worry. Even though she’s fine now, we were almost too late.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers, then she grimaces, knowing that’s lame as shit.
“You fucked up,” Cole growls, his temper barely leashed.
“I know. But I…”
“No buts, Fate. Immature stunts like these will get us all killed.”
Her eyes narrow on Cole. “Immature?”
“Maybe we should take this…” Mack doesn’t even get to finish his thought before Cole steps up into Fate’s space.
All of us go on high alert. Ready to jump between them if needed.
“Yes. Immature and irresponsible.”
Her anger is now through the roof, dampening her guilt. The lights throughout the club start to flicker, the music begins skipping, and the temperature starts to drop. She pokes her finger into his chest, and even though they’re both incorporeal, the force pushes him back slightly.
“How dare you call me immature and irresponsible! I did nothing different than what you and the guys have been doing behind my back. I followed a lead. Just because I’m a woman doesn’t mean I’m any less capable of handling our current situation.”