The Bridge by Rachel Lou

Author:Rachel Lou [Lou, Rachel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ya
ISBN: 978-1-63476-883-2
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2016-06-02T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

BRYCE DIDN’T call or text Everett after the crotch incident. Everett ignored Buzz for the rest of Wednesday, but the jellyfish played the perfect role of a guilty pet and moped around the shop. His eye was teary and his tentacles dragged on the floor. Sometimes he got kicked around by customers’ feet, and he let the momentum bounce him off shelves and other feet. At the end of the day he slammed against the counter and lay on the ground as if he were dead.

On Thursday morning Everett gave Buzz a list of strict rules to abide by. The most important rule stated that before touching anything that could grab attention, Buzz had to ask for permission. The only exception was if Buzz sensed any danger. The least important rule stated that Buzz couldn’t go in the bathroom when Everett was using it—unless he got permission.

Buzz valued Everett’s rules and dedicated an honorable effort to obey them, sometimes saluting Everett after demonstrating compliance. On Friday, when Everett broke into Omar’s house, Buzz tagged behind and didn’t do anything unless given permission.

The front door had an alarm spell, so Everett disabled it and spent five minutes focusing on the doorknob, making it unlock. It hurt more than it exhausted him. When the lock clicked, he wrung his hands out and opened the door wide enough for Buzz to slip in.

Buzz scoped the house for traps. Everett studied the interior of the house he could see from the porch. The front door opened into a minimalist living room. Someone with an ego as large as Omar’s should have had a house filled with exuberant décor, but instead he saw a couch facing a wall-mounted TV, a coffee table, two lamps, and a bookcase. There were no paintings, no plants, and no personality.

Buzz signaled that the house was clear. Everett pulled a plastic baggie out of his pocket and quickly donned the contents: disposable covers on his shoes, a hairnet over his head, and latex gloves on his hands. He twiddled his fingers to keep them from wandering toward furniture.

In one of the fingertips of the gloves was a small pile of salt. The grains rode under his nail, but it made for convenient spell casting. The living room lacked paranormal residue. The kitchen was the same. The dining room was another story.

“This is where the brunt of the investigation must be,” Everett said.

Buzz floated around the room, dipping behind the furniture that was pushed to the walls. At the center of the room, the wood was blackened in the shape of a circle. The center of the circle suffered the most damage. The wood paneling there was splintered and reached toward the ceiling with stick fingers.

The paranormal residue was heavy. A single strand curled around the room with the thickness of Everett’s wrist. It was the darkest shade of black. The residue disappeared at the center of the room.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” Everett said. “This is one strong creature.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.