Sit Still, Look Pretty · Julie And The Phantoms ·

La Vie En Rose

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Sheepishly, Alba stuck her hand into Caleb's office, a white handkerchief waving from between her fingers. Ellis had told her that there were three new additions to the house band and they were the reason for Caleb calling off the nightly show, but she wanted to know for herself.

Caleb went easy on her, even when she pushed him further than anyone else ever attempted to. She'd been hiding because Caleb had set up a private performance for just her with a very wealthy Lifer. This Lifer was a recurring guest, but he paid far too much attention to Alba and it skeeved her out. She didn't like it. If she was stuck in a room with just him and no one else, Alba was a little worried what the Lifer would do.

She'd been hurt before by a Lifer, but it had been an accident. Caleb's magic made it so that they could interact with them, however, it only caused issues.

"Come in," grumbled Caleb, the door to his office opening fully and Alba being tugged into the room. She gasped before she came to a stop in front of his large desk, her hands hitting it before she stalled. "Do you have any idea how much you embarrassed me tonight?" he asked, raising his voice. He went easy on her, yes, but he still yelled at her. He knew how much she hated that. "And thanks to you, a well paying investor won't be returning. How are you going to make up for that, Alba?"

"I'm sorry," she tried, but Caleb slammed his hands on the desk as he stood up, making the girl's whole body jump with fright.

"I don't want sorries, sweet songbird," he told her as he wandered around the table, his voice lowering once he was beside, "I want...souls," he whispered in her ear. "You are meant to give them a reason to stay."

Alba's body shuddered as his breath stroked her neck.

Willie was considered a headhunter, he would find ghosts and bring them to the club, they would then make a bargain with Caleb and their soul would be tethered either to him or the club. She had no involvement with the other ghosts. She performed.

Her role wasn't just to perform, however. One performance was enough to make most Lifers return to hear her sweet voice again. She was like a siren, the sound of her voice was addictive.

Her role was to give Lifers the desire to return and when they passed, their souls would be sold over to the club. She was a trap. She hated it.

"How are you going to fix this?" he asked her, gently stroking her shoulder. Alba had no idea how she'd fix it, she wasn't allowed to venture far.

"The house band, the new members, I'll make sure they fall in line," she promised Caleb, her body still shaking. She was just as afraid of Caleb as the others who resided in the Ghost Club, however, if not for him, she would have ended up expiring.

There were two ways to cross over if you didn't do so immediately after dying; discovering what your unfinished business was and achieving it; the other was something she'd been very much at risk of experiencing. Alba had met Caleb, not knowing anything about herself, who she was or where she'd come from. She hadn't even known her own name.

A name is a very powerful thing and so are one's memories. To not know who you are, such as your name and history, in the afterlife is like asking to be sent to Limbo. It wasn't quite crossing over. Whether there were pearly gates or seven circles of hell, to get into either of those, you had to know who you were. Limbo was where the souls like herself went when they 'crossed over'. They would be stuck in some in between place for eternity with no way of making those true final steps.

If it hadn't been Caleb, this would have happened to her. Once you're stuck in Limbo, you don't go up or down, there is nowhere for you to go. You end up becoming 'forgotten', he would always remind her of that. He saved her afterlife, and not only that, he provided her with a way to be immortalized. He was her get out of jail free card.