Beyond the Veil

Chapter 18

“I don’t see why he has to be here, we’d be fine.” Al was still stewing over the fact I had made a short call to Cole while he had been asleep.

“He is the one who destroyed the last thing to attack us, your gun didn’t stop it remember?”

Al still pouted, “He’s the one that made the dang thing though!”

“I am right here you know.” Cole said good-naturedly, making me blush, he was so quiet I had forgotten he was here. “Sorry.”

“It’s quite alright.”

“No it’s not alright!” Al glanced back him via the rearview mirror, “Lacy has those ghost super-power things right? What do we need you for?”

“Does Miss Lacy know how to utilize her full abilities yet?” The silence in the car was the only answer, I could hear the smug smile in his voice, “You see human, I am more than capable of protecting her than you are, there’s no need to be upset about it.”

“Nobody’s upset!” Al gritted out, “She’s a ghost, and she’s dead. Why would I have to protect her?”

You’re dead dear; just stay here with Reese and us. You don’t belong with the living, they will have no use for you, that’s what Mom had said. I guess she was right, I’m useless and not worth protecting.

“Lacy?”

I looked up, Al was looking at me oddly, “What?”

“Your face, it got real weird for a minute.”

Had I really let my thoughts translate to my expression? I blushed, “Its nothing.”

“To put in frankly my dear boy, you are a fool. You just told this beautiful damsel she was not worth protecting. Idiot.” Cole added the last part, I guess just to make sure Al knew he was an idiot.

Flustered Al said, “That’s not what I meant. Look,” He twisted in the seat, still driving, “You are dead correct? How can you be hurt or die again?”

“Demons and the Undead are capable of touching spirits as you have seen, and are quite capable of killing spirits. Except when the spirit dies the second time, they don’t come back, their soul is consumed.”

Humiliated that they talked as if I wasn’t in the car I slid down in the seat. A futile attempt on my part to disappear.

Al, bless his soul, didn’t say another word; he just drove, finally coming to a stop in front of a dilapidated apartment building. “Is this the place?”

Cole nodded; already out of the car and opening my door. I blushed and accepted the arm he offered, he truly was a gentleman. Al scowled at the sight but kept his mouth shut.

I took in the decrepit nature of the building while Al rung the bell. There were red chips missing from the bricks, entire shutters were missing from broken windows. An elderly woman opened the door a sour expression on her face, “What you want?”

Cole narrowed his eyes, “I believe you mean what do you want, what we want is to see Mister Brunswick.”

The old woman snorted, “They’re not in, come back some other-” Cole whipped a blade from its sheath and cut the old woman’s throat in a single sweep. After cleaning it he slid the slender blade back into the white cane that housed it.

So that’s why he carries that cane around all the time.

“What did you do that for?” Al knelt down next to the fallen woman, hand automatically reaching to check for a pulse when he hesitated.

Replying coolly, Cole readjusted his gloves, “She was already dead.”

“How did-”

“How did I know?” Cole cut him off, “When I asked if Mr. Brunswick was in she replied that they weren’t here. If you had done your homework you would know that there is no Mr. Brunswick in this complex. Plus, I said he, she said they.”

Al wasn’t the only one confused; I hadn’t gotten any weird vibes of the old lady. Seeing my scowl Cole sighed, “The necromancer is perfecting his skills, can you smell anything? Anything out of the ordinary?”

Now that he had said something I did, I had just dismissed it because of the area we were in. The smell of industrial cleaners in a part of the city known for its meth labs wasn’t exactly something out of the ordinary.

“So you smell it?”

I nodded, it was hard not to. Plus the shambling forms of the undead that stalked Cole and Al’s exposed backs added extra credibility to what Cole insinuated.