I spent most of my off days in cemeteries. Other Collectors had found my choice of destination morbid and redundant to my daily life. But I found beauty and peace in them. Over the years I had traveled to every cemetery I could find, my favorites being the crumbling mausoleums in New Orleans. But in the spring I enjoyed staying close to home. I’d visited many of the New England cemeteries, yet one of them always stirred something inside of me.
I walked down the middle aisle of the cemetery listening to the wind rustling the leaves in the trees outlining the property. A few humans visited their loved ones, but I steered clear of them, allowing them to mourn in privacy. A burial took place at the far end; a sizable crowd had formed around the service.
I scanned the stones as I passed, taking in the names of the deceased. I wondered who these people were and hoped that their lives had been happy. Not that any of them could take those memories with them to the After.
A prickling sensation at the base of my neck stopped me mid-step. I turned toward the feeling. There was nothing behind me aside from the stones.
I squinted to focus on the source of the sensation. In the distance by the road a young man stood under one of the trees. His gaze focused on something behind me. I wanted to turn around and see what he was staring at, yet I couldn’t look away. Something stirred inside of me that was both exciting and terrifying. I couldn’t focus on his face but his body had gone ridged as if the same chill crept up his body. I turned in the direction of his gaze and nearly crashed into a hard, muscular chest.
I tripped on my foot, sailing backwards toward the ground.
Cooper caught me by the arm, holding me inches from the ground. “Sorry about that.”
I looked behind him, but the stranger in the distance was gone. “Were you spying on me?” I balanced myself and he let go of my arm.
“No,” he said. “I just got here. Felix sent me for you.” He sounded in a hurry.
“It’s my off day,” I challenged.
Not that I would turn down a case, but this guy didn’t know that.
“Felix needs your help with something,” Cooper said in a strained voice.
“What is it?”
“We don’t have a lot of time,” he said, disappearing as quickly as he came.
I took one last glance at the empty space where the man had been before transitioning to the After.
I arrived outside of Felix’s office and lifted a hand to knock, but stopped when I heard the hushed voices inside.
“I thought they couldn’t come back here,” Cooper was saying.
Who couldn’t come back here? A chill ran through my soul, not unlike when I’d seen the man at the cemetery.
“Never underestimate a Shadowed,” Felix’s voice grumbled.
“Okay,” Cooper snipped. “What’s next? We need the Collector to find it? Are you sure she is the right one for the job?”
I stiffened.
“This True Soul will call to her, and her alone. She will not fail.”
Pride swelled within me. I knew my talents weren’t underappreciated.
Their conversation turned from rushed to silent. The door opened in front of me and Felix’s form crowded the doorway. He indicated for me to enter the office and closed the door behind me.
Felix turned his gaze on mine. “A Prognatum True Soul has been taken.”
“A what?” I asked. “What’s a Pregnortom?”
“Prognatum,” Cooper corrected.
“Aren’t there a dozen Caeleste guarding the vault at all times?” I asked. And why is this Prognatum soul so important?
“I need to get back to her,” Cooper interrupted.
“Yes, absolutely,” Felix said then trained his gaze on mine. “Go with Cooper and do what he asks. Treat his orders as if they are coming from me.”
Cooper hesitated. “Are you sure about this?” he asked Felix.
Felix’s expression darkened. “It’s the only way.”
Cooper nodded and reached his hand out toward me.
I stepped back from him, my head spinning. Someone got into the most coveted place in the After and Felix wanted me to, what, confront them? “What am I up against here?”
“Maggie, this is important,” Cooper said.
I stood my ground. If I was going into this blindly I’d need an incentive. “Will this help me with my promotion?”
“Like I said,” Felix stated, “you have to prove yourself worthy.”
I clicked my tongue. “See, that’s not good enough for me.”
“Are you serious right now?” Cooper snapped.
I shrugged, keeping my eyes on Felix. “I don’t know. Am I?”
Felix’s nostrils flared; something he did to strike fear in his Guard. But I wasn’t buying it. “This situation is very serious, Maggie.”
“I understand,” I said. “And so am I.”
We stood, holding each other’s gaze. Cooper remained silent, but I felt his restiveness.
Felix broke the stand-off first. “Do this job and I will reconsider your case.”
Good enough for me.
I stuck out my hand toward Cooper. “Let’s do this.”
He entwined his fingers with mine, the touch sending a spark of energy through me and Felix’s office dissolved around us.
We landed in front of a high school. The wooden welcome sign read: “Fairview High School, Home of the Colts.” A breeze whipped a flag around a pole, next to the sign. I scanned the campus. The three-story tan brick building reminded me of a detention center I’d Collected from a few years back more than it did an educational institute.
Cooper dropped my hand as if it were covered in scales.
He disappeared from my side then reappeared at the school entrance where a few Guard were stationed.
Couldn’t he have transported us any closer? He probably did it on purpose, getting back at me for negotiating my soon-to-be status on the Guard. I opened and closed my buzzing hand as I walked across the pavement toward the school.
By the time I made it to the group of Guards, they dispersed.
Okay, time to be serious. I needed to show Felix that I could work on a team.
Aaron was the last member of the group to leave on his assigned task. “Good luck with this one,” he said, grinning at me.
I wiggled my fingers at him. “Bye bye now.”
I didn’t need to work with all of them.
Cooper and I transitioned through the front doors. He disappeared at the bottom of the stairs to the second floor.
This transitioning thing was going to get old real quick.
He reappeared at the top of the stairs seconds later. “Come on,” he said, that rushed tone back in his voice again.
I took the steps two at a time. I didn’t want him to leave me to wander