Inhumane experiments are turning Dante Gray, a werewolf, into a monster - can he and Chase, a hot-headed warlock, find a cure before it's too late?
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Dante Gray, a werewolf, e...
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-Dante-
The House of Spirits was basically a hotel. The wide room was painted with white and beige and had those small trees in flowerpots in every corner, surrounded by cozy-looking armchairs and tiny tables. There was a big, golden chandelier hanging right in the middle of the ceiling, lighting up every spot in the room, and a wide counter at the opposite wall, but nothing else. The place looked exactly like the reception areas in the hotels I had visited.
A middle-aged dwarf woman in a nice, light-blue suit was standing behind the counter. She had her big, red hair tied up into a massive bun, she was wearing a professional layer of makeup, and had glasses with golden rims. She was writing something on a big, bulky book that had black leather covers, using a small, white quill.
"Elena!" King Gregor greeted her with a cheerful laugh, and her face lit up into a smile.
"Who is that stranger stomping into my house?" she asked. "Can't say I recognize that face!"
"It hasn't been that long!" King Gregor chuckled, stopping to a halt in front of her.
"Three months, Greg," Elena said in a scolding manner, turning her attention to me and Chase. "And you two must be here for the emergency appointment?"
"Yes – This Chase and Dante – they are having a life and death situation," King Gregor spoke quietly, his smile long gone.
"I see," Elena said, her smile also vanishing. "Your room is ready and waiting for you, and we'll start with the ritual in a few hours."
"Ritual?" I repeated, feeling a bit nervous.
"Cleansing ritual," Elena smiled soothingly. "We must be sure you are ready to meet the spirits, but we can go over the details after you've settled in."
"What about payment?" Chase asked while pulling his wallet out of his bag, making me feel absolutely horrible – I never even thought about payment...
"Well, we are run by donations," Elena said, gesturing towards a massive, hollow globe made of glass that was standing in a wide alcove on the left side of the reception. I hadn't even noticed before; it was well hidden inside the alcove. It was otherwise completely see-through, but the areas representing the countries were opaque, matte white. The massive stand holding it was almost as tall as me, made of bright silver and carved into the shape of a leafless tree with massive roots looking like they were going through the floor.
Chase took his wallet and walked up to it, pushed a small stack of money through a small hole on the top of the globe before returning to us. I saw several fifty-dollar bills fluttering down on top of the big pile of previous donations.
"Thank you, sir, for your kindness," Elena said with a respectful smile.
And I didn't even have any change with me... I peered at Elena, who smiled at me just as brightly as she had smiled at Chase just now. I cleared my throat, feeling embarrassed because I didn't have any money.
