“The one who killed me,” Zelda announced in a very regal manner, “was—”
“Help,” cried another voice. In a blink Sable darted through a wall and entered the room. She whipped around, appearing to look for a place to hide. “Help me, please!”
I rose, ready to spring into action. Unfortunately the helmet wasn’t. Moving with it on my head was like wearing an anvil.
My dad appeared in the room, scanning it. When he spied Sable near the table and Zelda only a few yards away, an evil smile spread across his face, one that sent shards of ice spiking down my spine.
“Well, well, well,” he said slowly, “it looks like I’ll be getting two souls for the price of one.”
Chapter 22
Everything happened very quickly, almost like a blur. Dad dashed toward Sable, who raced around the room, screaming.
Tex rose. “Sable? What are you doing here?”
“Trying to avoid having my soul sucked from me!” She veered right and stopped.
That was when Lucky Strike flared bright and hot. “Vince Breneaux, I believe we have some unfinished business.”
My dad stopped and stared at Lucky. Then he whirled to face me. “This was all a setup, wasn’t it? Find the girl and she’d lead me right to here, to where you can stop me and my plans.”
I shot Lucky a confused look. “This wasn’t a setup. We were trying to keep you from Sable, weren’t we, Lucky?”
Lucky shrugged. “I might have promised the little lady something of value if she let Vince find her and bring him into this room.”
I fumed. “Lucky, this was not part of the bargain.”
Roan came up beside me. “Doesn’t look like we have much choice now.”
That was when Alice shot forward. “I’ll stop them! Don’t worry, Blissful. I’ve got this!”
Like, what did Alice have this situation with, I wondered. But there was no time to question it too much, because next thing I knew, Alice had her purse open and was barreling toward Dad.
“I’ll get that soul back,” she shouted.
“Alice, no,” Roan called.
But Alice wasn’t thinking. Honestly I believe she was trying to help however she could, but her means of helping meant that she charged right through my dad and ended up on the other side of him.
Zelda took one look at the mess of spirits and people and said, “This is too much, even for me.”
Without another word she disappeared, taking the hope of finding her killer with her.
Roan pulled the helmet from my head. “Use your ghost gift, the one that Lucky gave you!”
Dad had turned his attention back to Sable, who was cornering Tex, giving him what for.
Did folks not realize the actual danger they were in with my father? Sable had stupidly turned her back on him. But I guessed the temptation of haunting her living husband was too much to bear.
“And if you ever bring that tramp into our house again,” she was saying, “I will haunt her butt, too!”
Dad grabbed her by the arms just as I threw out my ghost gift. He froze in place, and Sable wiggled from him.
“You don’t know what you’re doing,” he said to me.
Roan and I cautiously approached him. Lemon, Traylor and Luis huddled in one corner of the room while Ruth tended to Alice and the bump that was growing on her head.
I stopped right in front of my dad. Lucky Strike stood a little ways off to the left, faintly flickering.
