Page 76 of The Wishing Game

He's still watching me intently, a low sound erupting from his throat in what I think is meant to be a grunt of acknowledgment. But he doesn't open his mouth to say anything. He just...stares.

"Uhm," I stammer, looking at Cer and Thea for help. But they seem just as puzzled by Ze. Maybe he's just that odd. "Will I be able to see the Collectors when they come?" I decide to ask, once more to divert the attention from me.

"Probably not—" Thea starts speaking. But she doesn't get to finish as Ze interrupts her, taking a step forward and barking a low command.

"Give me your hand."

For a moment, I'm not sure what he means, but he doesn't await my answer as he grabs both of my hands in his big ones. My God, he really is a giant.

"What are you—" The words die on my tongue as he bends down, spitting on the back of my right hand before repeating the process on the other.

My mouth is hanging open in shock—for the thousandth time today? He spat on me not once, but twice now.

And on top of that, now he's smearing his spit on my arms.

Yet I can't find it in me to argue with him—not when the pain from the blistered skin is already receding. The red skin slowly heals, healthy tissue swallowing up the damaged one.

"Wow," I whisper.

I'd felt the healing effects before, but this is the first time I'm seeing his saliva in action.

"Thanks. I guess?"

He releases another grunt before stepping back. Yet his staring doesn't cease. Well, that must just be his manner. Who am I to judge after seeing him fight so well? He's officially won us the first trial, bringing me one step closer to getting Nikki back. For that alone, I'm willing to overlook any...eccentricities.

A white swirl of air appears within the circle, making the souls more erratic than before. It's almost like a portal, remaining open right in the middle while the souls move around it, almost as if being sucked inside.

"They're here," Cer says.

"I can only see a white mist." I frown.

"That's them. They're not visible to the naked eye," he explains further.

"Do we still need to convince them to go back?"

"I think at this point they're all pretty willing," Thea jokes, describing that the souls are overjoyed to have escaped the demon and that the Collectors are having an easy job getting them to cross over.

We wait for moments on end, and Thea relates to me what's happening that I cannot see. One soul after another, they say yes to the crossing. There must be over a hundred souls that the demon had accumulated over time.

"Is Olive there?" I ask, remembering the sighting.

Thea smiles.

"She is. I guess now we know how she came to be at this location when she died in another country. The demon must have eaten her soul there before coming here. And he used her projection to draw other victims."

I nod, happy with the outcome. At least now she'll be able to find peace in the afterlife.

"There are only a few left." She points out to the few particles of colored mist remaining.

When the last ones have left, the portal snaps shut and the entire room returns to its initial state.

It's rather shocking to realize that the first trial is done.

"We did it," I whisper, slowly turning toward the other three. "We did it, guys!" I squeak in excitement, jumping up and down. Thea joins me, grabbing my hands as we twirl and hop around. The guys, however, are merely looking at us with bored expressions on their faces. Cer shakes his head at Thea, already used to her shenanigans, while Ze simply stares at us. His hands are behind his back, his spine straight, his chin tipped up. He stands so still, no muscle moves on his face.

"We passed the trial," both Thea and I chant as we continue to jump up and down.

Yet our mirth quickly dissolves as I release a loud, startled scream, letting go of her hand and tripping on my feet. I fall back on my ass, staring wide-eyed at the translucent half-human, half-whatever-it-is thing in front of me. The torso resembles a young woman, but around the hips, the body is cut off, extending into a tail of sorts that doesn't touch the ground. She's floating, almost as if that tail was a cloud of smoke. She's a grayish color, wavering between a transparent white to a solid dark gray when her features are most pronounced.

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