Chapter 1

There weren't many smells that possessed the power to rouse me from a deep sleep, but bacon was one of them. I untangled the covers from my legs and ventured downstairs to the kitchen to investigate. Addison Gray sat on the counter, legs swinging, while Nana Pratt, one of my resident ghosts, cooked bacon in a skillet.

Addison's gaze swung to me. With her lustrous brown hair and symmetrical features, she was what my grandmother used to call ‘comfortably pretty.' The type of beauty that tempted men yet didn't feel threatening to other women. Even the colorful tattoos that covered every inch of her visible skin suggested ‘artist studio' rather than ‘biker bar.'

She whistled at the sight of me. "Wow, that's a serious case of bed head."

"Good morning to you, too," I said, although there was no warmth in it.

I wasn't sure why I was surprised to see the elderly ghost frying bacon instead of my living, breathing houseguest. So far, Addison had demonstrated a severe allergy to anything that resembled work, despite our agreement that she'd pay for room and board and help with household chores. In exchange, I wouldn't kick her ass to the curb. To be fair, I should've done that the second she cast a shadow over my front porch. Addison was an avatar of Aite, the goddess of mischief and ruin. She'd lived up to her name when she tried to serve me up on a silver platter to her former employer, The Corporation. I lucked out when the organization of godly avatars showed more interest in punishing Addison for her transgressions against them than her tales of an unidentifiable supernatural living off their grid in Fairhaven, Pennsylvania.

It was still unclear what possessed me to take pity on her. Probably something in the vein of there but by the grace of the gods go I. Maybe if Addison had been fortunate enough to be raised by people like my grandparents, she wouldn't have shackled herself to an evil organization.

"Eggs are next," Nana Pratt chirped. "Hope you're hungry."

"Always." I looked at Addison. "Did you even offer to help?"

"I'm telling her stories of my misspent youth while she cooks," Addison replied. "Somebody's got to bring the entertainment. For a house with ghosts, this place is shockingly boring."

"And we like it that way." Ray Bauer, resident ghost number two, drifted into the kitchen.

"Good morning, Ray," I said.

Addison aimed a flirtatious smile in his general direction. "Morning, sunshine." She'd quickly adapted to my seemingly one-sided conversations with the ghosts. To the manor born.

"What kind of eggs would you like?" Nana Pratt asked.

"Scrambled, but I can cook them myself."

"Don't be silly, dear."

"Fried, sunny side up," Addison piped up.

Nana Pratt shifted the bacon to a plate to cool. "I was only talking to Lorelei."

"You can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs," I quipped. "Pops used to say that."

"My dad used to say you can't scramble any brains without cracking a few skulls," Addison said.

We stared at her in abject horror.

She slid down from the counter. "Okay, fine. My dad never said that. It was me." She paused. "I learned it from my mentor at The Corporation."

"Do I even want to know who that was?"

She examined her nails with casual disinterest. "Enyo."

"Goddess of bloodshed." I nodded. "That tracks."

"She was such a character, I swear. I miss her rants the most. Good times." Addison smiled at the memory. "Nobody destroyed a city like Enyo."

"The perfect epitaph for her tombstone," Ray grumbled.

I was relieved when Addison sat at the table and shifted her focus to the food, so I didn't have to endure any more of her special anecdotes. The more I heard, the more I understood why she was unhinged.

Addison crunched a piece of bacon. "Do you have any hot sauce?"

"No."

"You should put it on the grocery list. I'll give you money for it."

"Exactly how long does she plan to stay?" Nana Pratt asked. "A bottle of hot sauce can last a very long time."

I wasn't thrilled about our houseguest either, but I had qualms about sending someone to the slaughter. Given that Addison had tried to use me as a pawn to return to The Corporation's fold, my house was the last place they'd think to look for her.

"Nana Pratt would like to know how long you intend to stay."

"Dunno. I'd like to hide in your oversized Barbie dream house until The Corporation gets distracted by another crisis and temporarily abandons their quest."

Instinctively, I opened my mouth to defend the Castle before her description landed. "You think this is a dream house?"

"Sure. What girl doesn't wish to live next door to a cemetery?"

The cemetery hadn't been on my wish list, but its presence was one of the reasons the property had sat abandoned for decades before I came along. Bluebeard's Castle had been built with distinctive bluestone during the Gilded Age; its owner, Joseph Edgar Blue III, had a flare for the dramatic. In addition to the off-putting cemetery, there was a moat and a giant gate that screamed ‘this man is an island.' Despite the Castle's idyllic hilltop position overlooking downtown Fairhaven and the Delaware River beyond, it was five thousand square feet of a never-ending project. Too bad I didn't have never-ending funds.

"You're fond of cemeteries?" I asked. Aite didn't share my connection to the dead, so there was no godly reason for it.

"Lost my virginity in one, so yeah. I guess I am."

Nana Pratt groaned. "Oh, dear."

"We've got ourselves a live one," Ray chimed in.

I tried to steer us back to the important part of the conversation. "Do you think they'll ever stop looking for you?"

"Never. Their egos won't let them, and before your Caspers complain that I put you at risk by coming here, I'd like to remind them that you put yourself at risk by fighting in Magnarella's ring."

"That was a favor for a friend." A friend who now hated me because I'd lied to him about my identity. Hopefully, a nice dinner and an abject apology would mend that particular fence. Which wine paired best with accountability?

"Still don't trust her," Ray murmured.

I polished off my eggs. "How do I know this isn't some Trojan horse trick? I let you stay in my house, and bam! Betrayal."

"No trick ponies here. I played my last card when I tried to use the intel I had about you as leverage, but it didn't work."

I clenched my hands into fists, prompting Addison to raise her hands. "Please don't smite me. I can help you."

"How? You can't even help yourself. That's why you're here."

"Fair point. You've managed to fly under The Corporation's radar for forty years. What's your secret?"

My gaze slid to the knife on the counter. "How old do you think I am?"

Addison swallowed. "Did I say forty? I meant less than that."

"She doesn't look a day over twenty-five," Nana Pratt sniffed indignantly.

"Everybody looks twenty-five to you, Ingrid," Ray told the elderly ghost.

"I'm thirty-five," I ground out, "and I've managed to stay out of trouble by not insulting those who've tried to help me."

Nana Pratt sucked in her cheeks. "I don't know that I agree with that."

"Me neither," Ray said. "You hand out insults the way I used to hand out Halloween candy."

I ignored their contrary remarks and directed my response to Addison. "I had a grandfather who taught me how to stick to the shadows, I lived in a big city where I was one among millions, and then I bought a house in a small town." A town that wasn't supposed to border a multirealm crossroads, and yet…

"A big house with a moat," Addison pointed out. "You didn't think that would draw attention?"

"Squatters used to live here, and everybody in Fairhaven avoided the cemetery except bored teenagers who left their trash everywhere, so no, I didn't think my purchase would draw attention." Even the moat had fallen into disuse until I struck a bargain with a local wheeler-dealer known as Big Boss.

Ray's voice cut into my thoughts. "Speaking of trash, you asked me to remind you when it's trash day…"

"Shit." I glanced at the clock on my phone. It was already later than I would've preferred.

"What's wrong?" Addison asked.

"I need to go." I rushed upstairs to dress, brush my teeth, and remedy my serious case of bedhead. Then I grabbed a wad of bungee cords from an open container in the closet and hurried back to the kitchen for my purse and keys.

Addison still sat at the table, holding a mug of coffee. "Where are you going?"

"Out."

"With whom?"

"Nobody."

"For how long?"

"Depends."

"I want to go, too."

"You can't. You're in hiding, remember? You can't risk being seen."

She gave me a pleading look. "Come on, be a pal. I've been stuck inside for ages. I need to breathe fresh air again."

"You've been stuck inside a very large house for exactly five days, and given the state of my windows, there's plenty of fresh air circulating."

She pointed to the bungee cords in my hand. "I can help you with those."

I held up the cords. "I've been using these since I was old enough to tie my shoelaces."

"I highly doubt you and I used them for the same purpose. What are you going to do with them?"

"If you must know, I'm embarking on a mission to find furniture."

Her eyes sparked with interest. "You plan to steal it?"

"From a dumpster or the side of the road, yes."

"I can help with that! I have a great eye for diamonds in the rough."

"So do I."

Folding her arms, she leveled me with a look. "I once found a painting left on a Chicago sidewalk that turned out to be worth six figures." She gave my ancient computer a pointed look. "You seem like you could use six figures."

She had me there. My bank account was as empty as her promise to clean the bathroom.

"Fine," I said, "but you should wear a disguise. I don't want The Corporation attack squad showing up on my doorstep because they spotted us dumpster diving together on someone's Ring camera."

"I'll be two seconds." She ran past me and hustled upstairs.

Ray followed me to the foyer. "You sure about this?"

"Nope."

"Then why do it?"

"Because I'm in the market for a sofa and she can help me load it on the truck."

"I thought you had goddess strength."

"It's not about the weight. It's about the awkwardness of lifting a sofa and placing it in a certain position. What if it's an L-shape? What if we have to pivot?"

Ray chuckled. "Sounds like someone's making excuses because she wants company. Nothing wrong with that, by the way."

"You can't trust her," Nana Pratt chimed in. "She pushed you into the moat and tried to kill you."

I blew out a breath. "I know, but I really need furniture." Priorities.

Addison thundered down the stairs. Her disguise consisted of a bronze-colored puffer jacket, jeans, white sneakers, a Yankees baseball hat, and oversized sunglasses.

"Forgot to pack your glasses attached to a mustache, did you?"

She looked down at her attire. "What? It's my celebrity survival kit."

"You're a celebrity now?"

She waved a hand in a dismissive gesture. "Most wanted. Celebrity. It's all the same."

"You girls have fun now," Ray said.

"Don't bring home anything that reeks of smoke," Nana Pratt warned. "I can't bear the smell."

Ray gave her a curious look. "You're dead, Ingrid. You don't have to smell anything you don't want to."

"Oh, right." She tittered. "Sometimes I forget. I blame Lorelei. She makes me feel like I'm still alive."

That could be easily remedied.

I grabbed my coat off the rack and tucked my arms through the sleeves. I couldn't wait for spring to arrive, but we probably had another month of winter to slog through, no matter what that attention whore of a groundhog reported.

Addison walked beside me until we reached the bridge, where she stopped to admire the moat. "You're so lucky. I'd kill for a moat." She hurried to catch up to me. "Not you, of course. That wasn't a passive-aggressive threat."

"I didn't take it as one." I unlocked the truck and let the engine warm up for a minute. Gary didn't take kindly to sudden starts. The truck was too old and set in his ways.

Addison shivered in the passenger seat. "Doesn't this heap of junk have heat?"

I turned to stare at her. "Get out."

"What?"

"Nobody insults Gary. Get out of the truck."

Addison looked at the dashboard and back at me. "What if I apologize?"

I leaned back and folded my arms. "Go ahead."

She patted the dashboard. "Sorry about that, Gary. The cold makes me testy."

"Now reassure him it won't happen again."

"And it won't happen again. Ever. I swear." She kissed her hand and touched the dashboard.

"Fine. You can stay." With the crisis averted, I eased the truck onto the road and turned right at the next intersection.

Addison jerked her thumb sideways. "Shouldn't you be driving down the hill toward town?"

"I'm not dumpster diving in my own town. I have standards." The last thing I needed was to discover I'd foraged the castoffs of someone I knew. I'd never hear the end of it.

She fiddled with the seatbelt. "Thanks for letting me join you. I really meant it about needing to get out. I'm not used to being caged."

"I have a huge yard and an entire cemetery to pace if you're truly feeling stir crazy."

"I don't want to be out there on my own in case…" She stopped abruptly and pointed. "Cows! So many of them."

"It's a farm."

"Why do I feel like I'm in Iowa?"

"Have you ever been to Iowa?"

She slumped against the seat. "No, but I imagine there are a lot of cows."

"That land is part of Sylvan Farm. Same county, different town." There were no working farms left in Fairhaven, with the exception of Phaedra Bridger's. Most of the land had been sold off and developed by builders.

Addison turned on the radio and blasted a heavy metal song. I immediately switched it off.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Should I have put on classical music? That's your jam, isn't it?" She flashed a mischievous smile. "Which composer was it that got you to your feet in the fighting ring? Mozart?"

"Debussy."

"And what's so special about Debussy?"

"None of your business." It still bothered me that Addison had watched a video of my performance in Magnarella's fighting ring. It was impossible to know who else might've seen it and figured out that my powers had nothing to do with the god elixir I'd supposedly taken.

"Ooh, this road looks promising." Addison pointed to the right where two large houses with impeccable lawns stood sentry at the start of an upscale development.

I swung the truck right and slowed to a crawl as I drove along the street. "You check out the right side of the street. I'll watch the left."

"Should I be scouting for anything in particular?" Addison asked.

"A sofa would be nice. Nothing upholstered, though. Too many risks."

"Then I don't suppose a mattress is on the list."

I looked at her askance. "Problem with your sleeping bag, princess?"

"No, but there's a perfectly good bed right next to me. It seems a shame not to sleep in it." Her nose scrunched. "A used mattress just seems like asking for bedbugs though."

"My friend Sian made the bed himself, but alas, he couldn't provide the mattress." Sian had been a recent visitor from Faerie whom I helped reconnect with his changeling sister. In exchange for food and lodging, he put his woodworking skills to use and built a bed for my guest bedroom. I had no idea I'd be entertaining another visitor so soon afterward.

Addison pointed ahead. "What about that chair?"

"The wood is rotting, but I like the sofa next to it."

"You said no upholstery. That's leather."

I pulled over and parked along the curb. "Leather that appears to be in excellent condition."

Her lip curled. "But it's red. You claimed to have standards."

I ignored her and exited the truck for a closer look. Sure enough, the sofa seemed to be in perfect condition. Not even a mark on it. My guess was it came from a lightly used basement where their kids once congregated until they grew too old to want to hang out at home.

I motioned for Addison to join me. "This one's a keeper."

She contemplated the sofa. "Are you sure? We only just started."

"We have no idea what time the trash trucks come through. If we wait, we might miss our chance."

Her arms fell to her sides. "Fine."

Together, we loaded the sofa onto the bed of the truck and continued driving.

"What a pair we are," Addison remarked. "Dumpster diving with deities. It ought to be a TV show."

"What makes you so sure I'm a deity?"

"I saw enough of your nightmare mojo to convince me."

"Forget the show. You should film it as a public service announcement, to dissuade people from becoming avatars to escape their problems."

Addison winced. "Ouch. Way to kick a goddess when she's down."

I turned on an adjacent street. "It's true, though, isn't it?"

"Even if it is, there's no need to call me out." She snuck a peek at me. "Does that mean you're an avatar, too?"

"Nice try." I spotted a promising lamp closer to the corner and pulled over.

"At least throw me a bone and tell me more about your powers. Inquiring minds want to know."

"So you can anticipate my moves? No thanks."

"I have no intention of fighting you again. That was a one-time deal. I swear."

"Then why do you care?"

She looked at me. "Because I like that you're interesting. A god like Thor, I know what to expect—lightning and a big hammer." She rolled her eyes. "Well, not as big as he makes it out to be."

I got out of the truck and walked over to inspect the lamp. Addison joined me at the curb. She took note of the ‘Keep Off Lawn' sign posted in the yard and immediately stepped onto the neatly manicured grass.

I shot her a death glare. "Seriously?"

She shrugged meekly. "Can't help it. I'm an impulsive line crosser."

"Is that the human or the goddess?"

"Both. This was the ideal vessel for me, apart from her early trauma, but the goddess in me has helped her overcome it."

"How?"

She gave me a deadpan look. "Are you for real? You've seen what I'm capable of."

I wasn't sure what one thing had to do with the other, but I didn't want to argue. Addison was too unpredictable; with my luck, she'd ditch me and ride off into the sunset with my new sofa.

The sprinklers turned on, dousing Addison in water, as well as the prospective lamp. She danced back to the sidewalk. "Lame deterrent."

"But effective. You're off the lawn." I abandoned the wet electrical item and we returned to the truck.

As I drove toward the Castle, Addison admired the view. "This town is pretty. I can see why you like it."

Distracted by the view, I nearly collided with a flash of white. I hit the brakes and skidded to the side of the road just as the creature disappeared into the woods.

Addison blinked. "What was that?"

I stared at the empty spot between the trees. "A white stag."

The creature must've come through the crossroads. The mystical White Stag was from another realm and endowed with special powers, although the legends didn't specify what those powers were.

Addison slumped against her seat. "Wow. All my lives and I've never seen one of those up close. That's a good omen."

A white stag in Wild Acres didn't seem like a good omen to me. If anything, its presence seemed like trouble of the supernatural variety. We needed more supernatural trouble like we needed more pizza options with pineapple.

"Should we chase it?"

I waited for my heartbeat to slow before I continued along the road. "No. If the legend is to be believed, the gods protect the white stag by giving him the ability to evade capture."

"Huh," Addison said. "Sure would be nice if the gods granted me that gift. Think I can grant it to myself?"

"Not how it works."

At the Castle, we unloaded the sofa from the bed of the truck and carried it across the bridge. The front door opened as I climbed the porch steps.

"Need a hand?" Ray asked.

"We've got it, thanks." I guided us to the parlor room where we positioned the new acquisition in front of the fireplace.

"Teamwork makes the dream work," Addison sang. "Now your lonely chair has a friend."

Kane Sullivan, demon prince of hell, had delivered the chair personally, for which I was grateful. It was nice to have another place to sit aside from my bed and the kitchen table.

"It's very red," Nana Pratt observed from the doorway.

"This room needed a pop of color," I said.

"Maybe so, but red?"

Ray seemed to sense my rising frustration and cleared his throat. "Lorelei, have you decided what you're cooking for dinner?"

"It's a little early to think about dinner."

He stared at me expectantly. "Is it?"

I sank onto the sofa as the realization settled. "Shit."

"What now?" Addison shook her head. "It's always something with you, isn't it?"

If looks could eviscerate… "You do realize you're part of that ‘something.'"

"Whatever. I earn my keep." She skipped out of the room.

"There's enough salmon for all four of you," Nana Pratt said.

The four included Gunther Saxon and Camryn Sable. With Addison in the house, it wasn't ideal timing, but Gun had finally agreed to hear me out after discovering my secret identity and I wasn't willing to reschedule. Addison was welcome to eat the same meal as long as it was in her bedroom.

"Salmon's a great idea. Thanks."

I peeled myself off the sofa and entered the kitchen to explore the vegetable options. Addison sat on the counter, chowing down on a bag of pretzels.

"Dumpster diving is hungry work," she declared.

I tossed a bag of potatoes on the counter. "When you're finished your snack, you can peel these."

She stared at the offending vegetables. "All of them?"

"I'm having friends over for dinner."

She perked up. "How attractive on a scale of ice cube to supernova?"

"Doesn't matter. You won't be joining us."

Her face fell. "No fair. You promised room and board."

"And that's what you're getting. It doesn't mean I have to include you in my personal affairs."

She hopped off the counter and washed her hands. "What kind of potatoes are you cooking?"

"Baked with rosemary. I'd like to get the prep out of the way sooner rather than later." I struggled to time side dishes to be ready at the same time as the main dish. Anything I could prepare earlier, I would.

"Can't one of your Caspers do it?"

"They have plans."

Nana Pratt glanced at Ray. "We do?"

I set the peeler on the counter.

"I haven't peeled potatoes since I was a kid," Addison said.

"It's like riding a bike. You won't have forgotten."

She picked up the peeler. "Fancy."

"Not really."

"What else are you serving?"

"Baked salmon with lemon zest."

"Ooh, zest. That means they're at least a burnt marshmallow on the attractiveness scale."

"The meal has nothing to do with their looks." And everything to do with preserving our friendship. It had taken my entire adult life to make friends; I wasn't giving up on Gun that easily.

"Will I at least get to say hi?"

"I'd prefer they didn't know you were here."

She opened the bag of potatoes. "They won't approve?"

"Of course not. They'll recognize your name." I contemplated the row of spices. "Would you prefer I call you Aite or Addison?"

"Either works for me."

"But which one would you prefer?"

She cast me a sidelong glance. "Why do you care?"

"You're a guest in my home. The least I can do is call you by your preferred name. It isn't hard."

"Which name do you prefer? Lorelei or…?"

I snorted. "Nice try. It's Lorelei."

She started to peel. "I guess I'll stick with Addison since it's not a name The Corporation would recognize. Safer that way."

"What do you think would happen if they found you?" I asked.

"Death," she said simply.

"Won't they just transfer Aite to a new body?" They might put the goddess on ice for a few years to teach her a lesson, but they were too smart to waste a valuable resource.

"They might, but they wouldn't let human me live. In cases like mine, The Corporation prefers a clean slate. No loose ends, and it's this person I want to save. This body." She thumped her chest. "I've grown fond of her."

"Are they capable of killing Aite?"

She arched an eyebrow. "Looking for a way to get rid of me for good?"

"Not at all. I'm only curious about the extent of their power."

"They have an obliteration team. I know nothing about them other than the fact that they exist."

"Who have they obliterated?"

"That information is above my pay grade, but rest assured if they decide Aite should go, they have a way of making it happen." She pulled over the trashcan and swept the peels into it.

An obliteration team. The name alone sent shivers down my spine.

"For better or worse, the fate of both the goddess and human are inextricably linked."

"What if Addison is killed by other means? Does that automatically obliterate Aite if she has nowhere to go?"

"No. Aite will enter a period of stasis until she's recovered enough strength to regenerate. Could take centuries."

"I wouldn't think she'd be capable of regeneration. Gods don't seem to have enough staying power these days."

She gazed at me in wonder.

"What?" I asked.

"If you were an avatar, you'd know all that—unless, of course, your creators kept you nice and ignorant."

I ignored yet another attempt to extract information from me and, instead, concentrated on grating the lemon peel. "Once the ward activates, you'll need to stay in your bedroom until I tell you otherwise. Nana Pratt will bring you dinner."

"I know, I know. Your friends are coming over and I'm like some wee child from the 1800s, not allowed to be seen or heard. I feel like Cinderella being told she can't go to the ball."

"It's nothing personal. I need to have a very important conversation with them in private."

She looked at me with renewed interest. "Why? What did you do?"

"What makes you think I did something?"

"Well, it sounds like you need to apologize. I'm nosy. I want to know what you did."

"None of your business."

She huffed. "Can I have a glass of wine with dinner or is that also reserved for friends only?"

"We'll see."

"My parents used to say that when the answer was no." She heaved a sigh. "You're not the pushover I hoped you'd be. I'm beginning to think I should've taken my chances with The Corporation."

I showed her my teeth. "That can still be arranged."