Page 47

Jeffrey must’ve somehow shielded her from being seen by me.

They were in on something together. But what?

The dark figure drifted to the other side of the gas station. I stalked forward, trying to keep an eye hooked on him.

“Francine,” I whispered.

“Yes?”

“I need you to do me a favor.”

She smiled. “Will it help me get into the cemetery faster?”

“Yes.”

“Then darling, I’m your woman.”

“Follow that dark spirit.”

“Which one?”

I pointed to the window. Her gaze washed back and forth until it landed on its mark. “Yes, I see him.”

“I need to know who it is and where he goes. Can you do that?”

Francine’s lips curled into a mischievous grin. “Can I do that? And is bread white?”

“Sometimes it’s brown.”

She fluffed her hair, uninterested in the detail I pointed out. “Yes, I can do that.”

With that, she zipped off, following the spirit, who had slinked from the gas station and was floating down the road.

I watched until she disappeared and turned to leave. Stupid me, I wasn’t looking where I was going and ran right into an old aluminum trash can.

The can crashed to the ground, making a deafening sound.

I winced. I’d wanted to remain invisible. My only hope was that the spirits hadn’t heard the crash.

I righted the can and whirled around.

Three rough-looking spirit men hovered over me. The first one cracked his neck from side to side. The second cracked his knuckles, and the third punched a fist into his hand.

Tattoos blazed up and down their arms. The foul looks on their faces suggested I was in more trouble than I’d bargained for.

“No living allowed,” the first one said. “That’s the rule.”

I grinned. “Sorry. I didn’t see a sign.”

The third one pointed to a wall. “There it is.”

Sure enough, a ghostly sign was tacked to the outside of the gas station. In black letters it read NO LIVING ALLOWED.

I laughed nervously. Normally I wouldn’t give a rat’s behind about a few ghosts trying to intimidate me, but ever since I had been attacked by a dark spirit in the middle of the night, my confidence had plummeted.

Even so, I couldn’t afford to look like a sissy in front of these three. “I guess I missed your sign. Maybe you should put it where it’s more visible. Now then, I’ll just be going.”

I moved to brush past them, but one of the lugs clamped a hand around my arm.