Page 75 of The Ghost and the Graveyard (Knight Games 1)
"Logan, what happens to you if you don't get sorted?"
He flickered in front of me but did not answer. The mug became much more interesting to him, and he refused to meet my eyes.
"Tell me."
"If I'm not sorted, I stay here forever. The longer I stay in this state, the more attached I become to this life. By the time a new witch comes, it may be too late."
"I'm so sorry, Logan. How horrible for you to be at the mercy of my choice."
"No, don't think that. I've enjoyed this time with you. It doesn't scare me anymore to think of spending more time here, especially if you are here."
"You'd sacrifice your soul, your eternal rest, for my happiness?"
"Yes, I would."
Sometimes in life there are easy decisions, where the right thing to do pops out at you. I had to decide between sex with a monster that would result in a lifetime of moonlighting as a witch, and living with the guilt of condemning the nicest soul I'd ever met to an eternity in my attic. As decisions went, this was one hell of a ding-dong.
"I've got to think. Logan, I need to talk to Prudence. She said to find the key and bring the vessel. Rick is the vessel. Do you know where the key is?"
"Are you sure? A good night's rest might make everything clear."
"I'm sure. Where is it?"
Logan walked over to the cabinet and opened the door. A silver canister engraved with the word coffee rested in front of the Tupperware. He waited. I pulled down the canister and opened the lid. The top of a key stuck out from the grounds.
"This is why you made my coffee every morning. You haven't wanted me to go up there. You've been trying to keep me from the truth!"
He hung his head.
"Why? Why would you do this?"
"For the same reason I told you to stay away from the caretaker. But you're right. It should be your decision, either way."
"Damn right it should. We are not finished with this conversation." I pointed at his ghostly form, grabbed the key and headed for the stairs.
ost Comforts Me
I stumbled through the front door of my house and locked it behind me. Not that a deadbolt could stop anything I'd seen tonight. Or could it? I didn't know the rules of the game I was playing. Obviously, the unholy couldn't get through the gate, but was that because of the lock or because of Rick's magic?
"They can't come in uninvited," Logan said from the stairs.
I turned toward him, shaking so forcefully it was hard to form words. "Wha-What?"
"Prudence says in your last life you put a spell around this place. Nothing preternatural can come in without an invitation."
I hugged myself. "But what about you?"
"I'm natural, a human spirit. Still, I came through the portal in the attic. I'm not sure even I could walk through the front door."
He abruptly disappeared. Before I had a chance to ask where he'd gone, a plush blanket floated toward me from the family room and wrapped itself around my shoulders.
"Sit down, Grateful. Let me make you a cup of hot chocolate." Logan's disembodied voice came from the kitchen.
I pulled the blanket tighter around me and took a seat on a stool behind the island. "Is it true? All of it?"
"I'm not sure how to answer that. Without knowing what the caretaker told you, I can hardly say which parts are true. Plus, I've only been here a few months and the sole source of my knowledge is Prudence."
A pot on the stove filled itself with milk, cocoa, vanilla, and sugar. From the drawer on the left, a spoon floated to the pot and began stirring the mixture. There was no one holding the spoon. The animated utensil didn't scare me. I'd grown accustomed to Logan the way you do a hot bath, immersing yourself gradually. Now, his presence comforted me.
