The diagram had been excruciatingly difficult even with accelerated brainpower. Alex was grateful that Jack had been her partner. The compound was a mixture of dozens of elements, many of which the physical world had yet to discover. Duvall’s periodic chart was nearly two times the size of the one Alex had used for chemistry when she was alive.
Alex struggled to disentangle the rest of Skye and finally freed her arms. “I wonder if it’s the same goop Duvall used in the ballroom. Rhodo gel, or whatever it’s called, was even stickier.”
“Rhodo gel?” Skye asked in surprise. “That’s what she wanted it for? The ballroom?”
Alex examined what was left to unravel. “Yeah.”
“I was there when Duvall started to prep the ingredients in her test tubes. It seemed like a pain to make, so I thought she had a more significant purpose for it. Amid a million other ingredients it has peppermint, ginkgo, basil, rosemary, and of course rhodiola.” She spun her hands in circles around her head. “All that cleansing stuff.”
“What would she need to cleanse?”
“Good question. Rhodo gel is supposed to make someone understand things that aren’t clear to them. Why would she use something so complicated to gloop a bunch of walls when she could have just used this?” Skye kicked the baby pool of webs.
“Maybe to help the guests get out of the ballroom?”
“Maybe.” Skye lifted a finger to her chin thoughtfully. A thick thread of web broke off from around her elbow and twisted its way around her torso like a vine. “Damn,” she murmured.
Alex began to unwind it, twirling Skye around like they were partners on a dance floor. The released threads clung to Alex like static. “This is probably the sort of thing they do at couples counseling retreats.”
“I doubt they have witches there to spin webs.”
“So Duvall really is a witch?”
“Of course. You have to understand that the word witch merely means someone who is gifted,” Skye picked at her fingers. “What? Why are you looking at me that way?”
“You say it so nonchalantly.”
“Say what?”
Alex glanced around nervously as the taboo reached her tongue. “Witches,” she said in a low voice.
“How else would I say it?” Skye let out a tiny laugh. “And you don’t have to whisper. Why do you think—Oh.” She paused, her smile fading. “You sit with the Bonds during Duvall’s class, don’t you?”
“So?” Alex was defensive. She didn’t understand why everyone felt the need to pick on them.
Skye snorted. “The typical Bond thing to do. They’ve infected your pretty little head already. I thought under all that hair you had more sense.”
Alex self-consciously spun her hair around her finger. “Why would that be typical?”
“Multigenerational spirits stick to their stereotypes. Everyone knows that Gossamers”—she pointed her thumb to her chest and winked—“are always captivating. Darwins are always aggressive. And Bonds are always cursed.” Skye plopped down on the floor with her long legs blocking the hallway. “They really haven’t told you anything?”
Alex shook her head.
“I guess that’s the smart thing to do. Before they were known for being cursed, they were known for being manipulative. I’m not sure which is worse. They wouldn’t want to scare you away, but you have a right to know who the Bonds really are.”
Alex crouched down next to her. “What do you mean by cursed?”
“Once, the Bond family was well regarded around here, but they pissed off the wrong gifted coven and now they’re doomed to remain at the bottom of the food chain.”
“What did they do?”
“Who knows? It must have been something pretty bad, though.”
“How do you know all this?”
“I’m a Gossamer. My family has been around for a while.” She grinned. “And we’re pretty good at getting what we want. Information included.”
“Right.” Alex murmured. “So people are afraid to be around them because the curse might spread? Are you afraid to be around them?”
“Yes and no. I understand why they do the things they do. I don’t think they’re bad people.”
“But you hang out with the Darwins,” Alex argued.
“I can’t change the fact that I’m a legacy. Not to mention the Darwins also have justification for their behaviors. Half of their family died in the Witch Wars compliments of the Bond family.” Skye shifted her legs when several spirits trumped by, sliding their hands along the wall and leaving trails of blood. More spirits followed, ripping dry wall, chipping paint, and depositing tattered objects along the hallway floor. Even though Skye was blatantly in the way, they smiled at her. One even thanked her for no reason, and she chuckled. “Anyway, I’d be careful if I were you. The Bonds will do anything to get ahead. They’ve been that way for a long time now. They’re like quicksand, and they’ll pull you down fast.”
A whistle sounded, indicating that they should report to their stations. Alex hadn’t even noticed that the air outside had dimmed in the approaching dusk. The first guests would be arriving soon.
“This is exciting!” Skye exclaimed. Evidently the previous conversation was over. Any trace of seriousness vanished from her face as she pointed to the sky. “The clouds are moving in circles tonight, and that means everything will go routinely.”
Alex didn’t know what it was about Skye that made her believe she was right. She picked up her bucket and followed the strange girl into the utility shed. Alex shoved the leftover webs under a counter, disturbing a thick layer of dust, which puffed into the air like flour in a bakery. “This place is filthy.”
“The dust is there on purpose. It helps the bodied to see us.”
“Oh.” Alex lifted her hand to examine the dust that stuck to it. “They wouldn’t be able to see us without it?”
“They could because we want them to, and technically they are searching for us without knowing it. The dust is there just in case. It’s another one of Duvall’s concoctions. Make sure you don’t have any of that dust on you now, though, since you’re supposed to be invisible. Here, wipe it on me, since I have to chase them.” Skye lifted a chainsaw from the workbench.
“If I were bodied, I probably would have run away from this place, screaming.”
“Oh, that’s the point though.”
“I know. I just mean—”
“But each guest does have to sign a waiver. Don’t worry,” Skye said, smiling at Alex’s alarm. She held up her chainsaw. “The blade is gone. It’s the people with certain medical conditions who are advised not to enter.”
This precaution seemed a little extreme to Alex, but once she saw the reactions of the guests, she understood. When the guests stepped out from the back door of the manor, their faces were completely drained of color, even before the chainsaws or daggers were raised. Some even came out sobbing.
At a quarter to one, Alex stretched wearily. The hordes of terrified visitors had slowed. Skye said this was good because the clouds were no longer moving, whatever that was supposed to mean. Alex yearned to go home and sleep so she could see and hear Chase again.
“The next wave is coming out,” Skye warned, gesturing with a machete and yawning. She looked like Rambo Barbie. Reuben had direly wanted the chainsaw, so she’d swapped with him hours ago.
The door creaked open, and four more guests exited. “Oh, thank God,” a boy said.
A girl heaved before bending down to comfort a whimpering friend. “It’s over!”