The Curse of the Betweens

Chapter 27

Dios mío.

Estoy rodeado de tontos.

I should have never trusted them to go off alone.

If I hadn't trusted them, then maybe my nosy niece and this disbelieving soul wouldn't have gotten themselves sucked into the Deep Spiritual Realm. AGAIN. If I hadn't, then Celestial wouldn't be keeled over in her bed from anxiety. AGAIN. And for sure if I hadn't, I wouldn't have to be driving over an hour away to get her car. Well, technically Ted was driving the car. But that was hardly the point.

The point was that I was cleaning up their mess.

AGAIN.

"I'm getting too old for this, Ted." I grumbled, rubbing the bridge of my nose.

"I couldn't agree more," he said, keeping his voice jovial and friendly. "At least you just have Celestial. To think I'm putting myself through it all over again."

I couldn't help but smirk at that. "Yes, yes you are. You and Verity are going to have your hands full. I do not envy you, but I am happy for you."

Ted smiled briefly at me, before turning his attention back to the road. The town seemed quiet, only a few people out and about. But that isn't what alarmed me. What alarmed me was the familiar chilling presence of sinister energies at work. It slowly seeped into me, causing me to inhale deeply. It wasn't overwhelming, but it was there. Definitely there. Frowning, I watched as Ted turned a corner as Celestial's car came into view.

"There," I murmured, staring at the building, "That's the one."

"Well," Ted let out a low whistle. He pulled off to the side and peered out the window towards the apartment complex. "It doesn't seem out of the norm."

"To an untrained eye, no it doesn't." I said, picking up Celestial's keys from the cup holder.

Ted glanced at me seriously, his hands tightening on the steering wheel. "I take it you sense something?"

"Something," I muttered feeling the presence just silently lurk. I didn't bother to elaborate anymore than that. I couldn't possibly begin to explain and he wouldn't fully understand. I unbuckled myself swiftly as Ted looked at me nervously.

"Are you sure that you don't want me to go with you-?"

"Ted," I interrupted, "I appreciated the gesture. But you can't see the spirits-!"

"I may not be able to see," Ted said firmly, tapping the top of his head, "but I have my good old noggin and my common sense. Both of which are telling me that you going in by yourself is a bad idea!"

"Ted, if you come with me, there is a chance you will be getting dragged into the Spirit World," I said impatiently, "I won't."

"You can't know that for certain," he said as I opened the car door. I shot him my best defy-me-and-I'll-curse-you glare before getting out of the car. Leaning on the top of the silver sedan, I said, "I do know. I have my ways. Now go home. I'll see you there."

Ted may not have liked it, but I wasn't really going to give him the option. Shutting the car door, I made my way around it and across the street. The presence was still lurking, but it made no effort to do anything. It was like it was just sitting there. Reaching out, I opened the door of the apartment building and made my way towards it.

Luckily for me, I seem to make it up the stairs without issue. The boards creaked under foot and the sounds from people's apartments slipped out. But nothing else happened. The presence did not seem to grow any larger or potent. Just as before, it just seemed to be sitting there. Climbing the last of the stairs, I found myself grasping the railing as I stared down the hall.