Page 24 of Sins of the Hidden

She looked down at the remnants of the necklace before giving Faith an uneasy smile, "Sure."

The bathroom door creaked open, and Nyla emerged, her skin pale under the hallway lights as she wiped the corner of her mouth. "What are you doing?"

"Communicating with ghosts," Joslyn grinned, patting the space beside her. Nyla shook her head, heading toward the empty space next to Libby on the couch.

"No thanks," Nyla mumbled, her voice still hoarse. "I talk to my demons enough."

Libby raised her mocktail, ice cubes clinking against the glass. "Amen."

"Are you here with us?" Faith leaned in once Joslyn settled on the other side of her, fingers holding the planchette lightly.

The wooden pointer glided across the board, smooth as silk, settling decisively on 'YES'. The candlelight flickered, sending shadows dancing across the worn letters. Faith's grin widened as she leaned forward, her toffee-colored hair catching copper highlights in the dim light. "You want to have some fun with us, oh wise spirit?"

Again, the planchette moved, this time spelling out 'NO'. Nyla's nervous laughter broke the tension, and even Libby's lips twitched. Faith's mock sneer was interrupted by Joslyn's disappointed pout. "Even the ghosts don't want anything to do with us."

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The sound came from below, each knock precise and deliberate. Our screams pierced the air, mixing with the sudden scrape of chairs against hardwood as we scrambled closer together. The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees.

"Or maybe they do," Joslyn squeaked, using Faith as a human shield. Her fingers dug into the taller woman's shoulders, leaving white crescents in their wake.

"Do you guys hear that?" Faith's whisper held more excitement than fear, her eyes gleaming in the candlelight. She turned back to the board, "Let's try?—"

The planchette flew across the room, courtesy of Victoria's throw, splitting against the wall with a sharp crack that made us all jump. "You're not trying anything else."

Thud.

Everyone glanced up, but the sound hadn't come from the room.

Knock. Knock.

"What was that?" Faith's head snapped toward the noise, her brown hair swung sharply.

"Faith, I swear to God if you summoned a fuckin' demon inside my house," Victoria shouted at her.

"Me?" Her smile carried that wild edge that made men lose sleep and sanity. "I would never."

Libby stood from the couch, removing a cushion. She bent forward, pulling a gun out. "Sounds like it's coming from the basement."

Faith pouted, "Got one for me?"

"You know how to use one?" Libby mocked.

"No. What does pulling on that trigger do?" The sarcasm in Faith's voice could have cut steel.

"Well," Victoria's voice carried that particular blend of exasperation and resignation, "Guess we're doing this tonight." She jerked her head toward the wall. "Behind the picture, code is zero seven two six."

"That's Dad's birthday," Nyla pointed out.

Victoria's shoulders tensed, but her voice remained steady. "That's not important right now. Stay behind us."

Weapons drawn, we moved toward the basement door. Victoria led the way, flicking on the light switch before starting down the stairs. The tapping grew more insistent. Thestairs creaked beneath Victoria, each step sinking deeper into breathing darkness. Faith followed, both women moving with the kind of grace that came from dancing with danger. Their gun barrels caught what little light filtered down from above.

We reached the bottom step, the tapping loud as we looked for the source.

And there in the center of the gritty stone floor sat V.

His massive frame seemed to absorb what little light reached him, turning familiar shadows into something ancient and hungry. Those black eyes, void of any emotion, lazily tracked Victoria and Faith's movements as they shouted at him. The bat never stopped its persistent strikes against concrete.

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