I jumped. “I don’t like being scared.”
“My apologies.” Lucky floated out in front of us. “What can I do for you, seeing as I just left?”
I folded my arms. “How good are you at yanking on chains?”
Chapter 11
Afew minutes later Roan and I were standing in the séance room. My hands were cemented into fists that were lodged to my hips.
Traylor and Lemon each sat on opposite sides of a tapestried couch. Luis, who was dressed in emerald-colored striped silk pajamas, stood at the bourbon table, making himself a drink, while Tex had kicked off his shoes and sat like a ball of dough on a love seat.
“Whichever one of y’all tried to lock us in the attic, it didn’t work,” I said.
Luis’s eyes widened. “What are you talking about?”
Roan drummed his fingers on a slick wooden buffet. “We’re talking about the fact that a few minutes ago the ladder leading to the attic mysteriously shut, locking us in the room.”
Luis glanced at Lemon. “Did you do this?”
She rolled her eyes. “It’s always my fault, isn’t it, whenever anything goes wrong? This is just you trying to throw blame because you’re the one who’s really guilty.”
I flared out my arms. “Stop the bickering. Right now. The fact is, one of you killed Zelda, and more than likely the same one of you tried to lock us upstairs.”
“Nobody leaves this room alone,” Roan said. “We go in pairs everywhere.”
Tex peeled off his socks. “Everywhere? Even the bathroom?”
Roan glanced at the ceiling and shook his head, as if asking,Why?“The other person will stand outside and wait for you to get out. Since there’s an even six of us, Luis can be your partner for the night.”
Luis looked at Tex with disdain before shrugging. “I’d rather be with him than her.” He jerked his head toward Lemon. “She would for sure kill me.”
Frustration erupted inside me like a volcano. “Okay, can we all please just try to be nice?”
“No,” Luis and Lemon said in unison.
I threw up my hands. “I’m hungry. Is there anything left to eat here?”
Lemon rose from the couch. “I’ll show you to the kitchen, and you can make yourself a snack.”
“Need more pickles?” Luis said sarcastically.
Traylor’s gaze sharpened on Luis. “Why don’t we try to be kind to one another for once? Zelda is dead. I know we’re all mourning her.”
“All of us but one,” Luis said with bite.
Traylor dragged his gaze from Luis and squeezed Lemon’s hand. “Do you need me to come with you?”
She shook her head. “I’ll be fine.” Lemon jerked her head toward me. “Come on. Let’s get you some food.”
Roan arched his brows at me, and I shrugged. Whatever. I’d be fine. I followed Lemon through a corridor gleaming with polished dark wood. Still more elves. Past that and through a billiards room, then into a solarium and finally we reached the kitchen.
“I really missed a lot of this house, didn’t I?”
Lemon, who had changed from her sparkling gown into bedclothes and a satin robe, smirked. “There is a lot of house here. That’s why my mother loved it so much. Luckily we were the same size, and I was able to borrow her pajamas to get through the night.”
I batted away an elf that hung dangerously low. “And the Christmas decorations? Were all the elves part of what your mother loved?”
Lemon laughed as she pulled a tray of cured meats from the fridge. “Mother had a thing for elves. What can I say? They were her favorite thing about the season.”
