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“Why, it’s the final stop for lost souls of course. A gathering place for spirits with unfinished business, where they can pass on to the other side. Once, we were the hottest destination in the afterlife!”
“So, this entire place is a home for spirits?”
Zoe shivered as an icy breeze swept through the room. The shadows stirred, until a gravelly voice reverberated from within them.
“Precisely. Which is why you don’t belong here.”
Zoe turned as the dark-haired stranger stepped from the shadows. With a click of his fingers, Cerberus emitted a low whine, and trotted obediently to his master’s side. A cold chill settled over the room, like frost on a wintry day, until Zoe’s breath turned to a cloud of fog. She met the stranger’s gaze, his eyes cold and unyielding.
“You could have told me your car broke down, mortal.”
The man’s voice was icy and authoritative. A voice that was used to issuing commands, and having them obeyed without question. Well, this motel might be his kingdom, but Zoe refused to be treated like one of his subjects.
“Well, I would have been able to tell you, if you hadn’t ordered your friends to scare me to death.”
The man sucked in his breath in surprise, while Misty gulped nervously. Something told Zoe that the King of the Underworld Motel wasn’t used to his subjects answering back. A look of fury flickered within his eyes, before he clicked his fingers once more.
“Spooks! Get here this instant!” A jingle of bells filled the room as the poltergeist stuck his head through a nearby bookcase. “How are you faring with your task?
“No need to fear, my lord! I’ve done exactly as you asked.” Spooks drifted through the wall, holding a wrench in one hand, and a sack of clanking metal contraptions in the other. “Behold, the fleshie mobile!”
Zoe watched in bewilderment as the ghost emptied the contents of the sack onto the floor. Dozens of metal parts clanked and rattled to the ground, followed by a pair of windshield wipers and her exhaust pipe. She turned to Spooks in horror as he flew through the air, clutching a round wheel as he careened across the room.
“Is that my steering wheel?”
“Oh, is that what this is for? I thought it was a trumpet!”
Spooks excitedly honked the steering wheel, cackling with delight as the room filled with the blasts of the car horn. But despite the jester’s joy, a murderous look crossed the raven-haired stranger’s face.
“I asked you to repair the mortal’s car. Not to take it apart!“ The man’s fury burned in his eyes. “Put it back together, this instant!”
“But I’m a poltergeist! My specialty is chaos and destruction, not fixing things…” Spooks flew across the room, sending books flying from their shelves. “Besides, it would take weeks to put the fleshie mobile back together again.”
Zoe shot up from the sofa in horror. “But I don’t have weeks! I have to be in Spring Valley by tomorrow.”
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible, fleshie.” But a mischievous gleam sparkled in the poltergeist’s eyes as he turned to Zoe. “Unless you’d like to travel by the cobweb catapult? I’ve been dying for a new crash test dummy!”
The raven-haired man turned to Spooks with another furious glare, cutting short the poltergeist’s cackle of delight. He sighed in exasperation, until the shadows brewed beside him like storm clouds.
“So, fixing the mortal’s car is out of the question…” He paced the room, before he turned to Misty. “When is the Spectral Speedway due to race through here?”
“Not for another ninety-three years, four months and twelve days.” Misty turned Zoe hopefully. “At which point they can take you to Spring Valley as quick as a flash!”
Zoe cursed. Something told her that Mr. Gravesend wouldn’t agree to that deadline extension. She glanced at the dark-haired stranger, sensing that he shared her irritation at the unfortunate turn of events, before she checked her phone.
“If I can get some phone signal, then I might be able to find a way to Spring Valley in the morning.” Zoe glanced at the night sky, knowing she could do little until sunrise. “But until then, it seems I’m stuck in this ghost-town.”
The stranger’s eyes narrowed with displeasure. “It would seem so.”
The pair glared at each other, fueled by their mutual irritation. An uncomfortable silence fell over the chamber, while the very building itself seemed to hold its breath as the pair maintained their battle of wills. The air crackled with tension, as Zoe narrowed her eyes, and fixed the stranger with a glare that rivaled his own.
“Well, this is wonderful news! It looks like the fleshie will stay!” Spooks cackled as he swooped between the pair, and honked the car horn once more. “Boys? Start the music!”
At once, the mariachi band burst into the room with a hearty cheer, until the chamber filled with their lively music. Zoe watched in bewilderment as Cerberus began chasing his tail once more, while Spooks accompanied the band with the shrill blasts from her car horn. But despite the scene of merriment, the shadows boiled and brewed as the dark-haired man glowered in fury.
“Fine. The mortal can stay.” The man’s eyes narrowed in displeasure. “Just don’t make the mistake of getting attached. People don’t tend to stay for long in the Underworld.”
“Oh, let’s not ruin the mood, my Lord. It’s been years since we’ve had a guest, and I intend to make the most of every minute.” Misty dusted her hands on her apron, before she fixed Zoe with a reassuring smile. “I’ll get your room fixed for you in no time, sugar. I’m assuming you won’t mind vacating your chambers, sire?”
