Chapter 5

Sebastian opened a hatch at the side of the house, leading to the crawl space below.

"Feel free to wait inside." James peered into the dark. He'd already double-checked that the power to the house was shut off, even if it wasn't working, and was ready to scope things out.

"I'm good here." Sebastian shivered in the misty rain, droplets clinging to his curls.

James put his hood up. "Suit yourself." He clicked his shade-light on and nothing happened. He tried the button again, but it didn't light up. "Damn."

"Is it not working?" Sebastian asked, sounding almost eager. Did he not want James going under the house? It really wasn't a big deal.

James pressed the charging indicator on the side of the light. None of the little dots lit up. The thing was dead, even though he was sure he'd grabbed it off the charger that morning. Maybe it hadn't been plugged in properly.

"It's fine." James clipped the shade-light back to his belt. He flicked his fingers and said the spell for light. A faint glowing ball appeared, hovering above his hand. "I'll still be able to look around."

James crawled under the house. This was why he'd left his leather jacket in the truck and worn an old hoodie. Dirt and spiderwebs were bound to get all over him.

The space was tall enough for him to crouch in a low squat and walk along. It was better than being on his hands and knees. He'd slipped his work gloves on, but you never knew what could be under a house, broken glass or old rusty metal bits waiting to cut you.

The light floated ahead of him. James hadn't used a light spell like this in years. It wasn't worth the energy when shade-lights were more reliable. He concentrated on maintaining the light and kept the glow low in order not to drain himself.

For a seemingly simple spell, light took a lot of personal energy. James wasn't only using magic to manipulate what was in front of him, like moving air to levitate an object. He was calling the light to him from elsewhere, bringing the sun's rays though negative space to reach him outside the laws of physics.

He was half concentrating on the light as he made his way to where the fuse box was located on the side of the house so he could see the wires coming through into the crawlspace. He couldn't see beyond the area immediately around him and wasn't pleased that the anxious unease the property triggered was back with a vengeance.

James was used to crawling around in tight spaces, not haunted spaces. He hadn't been worried about the potential shades, but now he wondered if they had something to do with Storm House's bad energy. He didn't see how they could. As far as James knew, affecting a place's energy wasn't something shades were capable of, but he didn't really know what was happening at Storm House.

He followed the wires away from the edge of the house, deeper into the dark. The house creaked, wind whistling through small gaps in the wood. A scuffling sound came from somewhere beyond his sight.

James found the spot where the first lot of wires were sent up through the floor. As he suspected, the whole place was done with the old knob-and-tube method of wiring. Luckily, James could just disconnect it and leave it where it was. He might even run his new stuff in a different pattern. The existing wires didn't seem to have been laid out in the most efficient way.

There was another scuffling sound. Closer this time.

James wasn't scared of shades. They were pests, that was all. However, he didn't usually have to contend with the extra anxiety of being at Storm House. He whispered another spell, ushering his light forward. It floated away, leaving him in darkness but allowing him to see more of the crawl space beyond. There wasn't much down here, only supports for the house and dirt.

A shadow moved in front of his light, blocking it out temporarily. James wasn't surprised. Sebastian had warned him, so he didn't expect the spike of fear that hit him. His skin crawled and a primal part of his brain tried to tell him it was because of the shade he'd just seen, but it wasn't. It had to be the haunted nature of the property getting to him. He wouldn't normally be afraid. Shades were essentially supernatural raccoons.

Okay, they were way more creepy-looking than those little trash bandits, but the basic principle held true: they were both nuisances and were hardly ever dangerous.

The shadow didn't cross the light again, so James decided to move on. He wanted to examine the central line of the house, check that all the wooden beams were in good shape and positioned so he could run things along them. He called the light back to himself and inched his way forward.

There was the scuffling again. The sound was definitely getting closer.

"Can nothing be easy?" he grumbled before increasing the strength of his light.

As more of the space was illuminated, James caught the glint of three sets of eyes peeking out from behind one of the supports. One pair blinked and moved away from the others, coming closer.

It wasn't generally a good thing when a wild animal approached you. This was no different. He didn't want the shades coming too close in such a tight space.

James began to back up, making his way slowly toward the exit while keeping his eyes on the shades. He had no desire to interact directly with the beasts. He wouldn't want to be in a tight space with a raccoon either if he had the choice. Both had grabby little hands and sharp teeth.

At least shades couldn't be rabid.

It was a silly thought, but it triggered something in James's mind, and the unease plaguing him turned to alarm. He became hyperaware of the cold temperature. His heart pounded as the shadow slinked closer. What if the energy at Storm House wasn't the only thing different out here? What if the shades on this land were also altered?

James lost sight of the other two sets of eyes. The shade he could see lunged forward with a woosh and a rush of cold air. James could see its wispy, rail-thin arms and bony hands now. It shifted in the dark, its ghostly form changing and moving unnaturally. Its eyes were shiny black, reflecting the limited light. They blinked at him. Then the thing smiled, showing its pointy onyx teeth.

James sent his light toward it. The shade cringed and backed up, hissing.

Hands grabbed James from behind, icy fingers digging into his arms and neck. Even through his hoodie, he felt the unnatural chill like an electric shock. He gasped, and his haunted-house-induced feelings of alarm turned to panic.

James's concentration broke and his light went out. Another set of hands grabbed his ankles. The shades were clicking their teeth and making whiney hissing sounds. One even emitted a wheezy laugh.

The grip on his ankles was vice-like. The creature yanked him, making him fall on his ass. The other hands began to pull him in the opposite direction, like he was the rope in a game of tug-of-war. James said the words for light, but he faltered, and the spell didn't take.

A sharp twinge of pain pinched his ankle as the sharp points of claws dug into him. This wasn't good, and it wasn't just the house making him unnecessarily scared. Shade didn't usually attack if they weren't provoked.

Sebastian was right. They were territorial.

James thrashed instinctively, trying to shake the shades off. They weren't deterred and kept tugging him from either end. James took a breath, forced himself to concentrate, and cast the spell for light again. This time, he didn't hold back. He pulled as much light to himself as he could.

A blindingly bright flash lit the crawl space, emanating from a point right in front of James's face. He shut his eyes, seeing stars. The shades shrieked and released him instantly. The chill in the air lessened as the shades fled the light, seeking dark corners to hide in. If they couldn't find sufficient darkness or the ball of light made direct contact with their bodies, they would be banished back to Beyond.

James turned over and crawled on his hands and knees. He kept the light behind his head and cracked his eyes open. It was so bright that he could barely see, but he wasn't collected enough to dampen the spell. He didn't need the light going out accidentally.

He made it to the hatch. Once he was an arms-length away, he released his magic and the light went out. He was breathing heavily, exhausted from using so much power all at once. He should have been more careful. He hadn't needed quite that much light, but panic had gotten the better of him.

James popped his head out from under the house. He felt anxious and almost jittery, more scared than he remembered being in years. His sweaty skin prickled as if more shades were watching, lurking, about to grab him. He hated this place. It created all these unjustified emotions, fucked with his head, and caused him to wield magic like an undisciplined child.

"What the hell was that?" Sebastian asked in alarm. "Are you all right?" He reached down, took hold of James's hand, and pulled.

James stood, only to bend forward and rest his hands on his knees to catch his breath. "Shades."

"You drained yourself with that flash-of-fucking-lightning spell."

If James didn't know better, he'd say Sebastian sounded worried. He grunted in response.

Sebastian tugged on his arm. "Come inside."

James straightened and allowed himself to be led into the house. Sebastian took him through a back door into a mud room and then the kitchen. He pushed James into one of the chairs at the small table in the corner.

"I'll be fine." James pulled down his hood and took off his gloves. "I just need to rest for a second."

He hadn't completely drained himself. Not even close. He still had plenty of energy left. He'd just used too much too abruptly and needed a nap, maybe some food. Too bad he couldn't curl up and shut his eyes while on a job. He would be useless for the rest of the day, even for nonmagical things.

A glass of water appeared in front of him. "I won't say I told you so."

James grunted again, hoping it showed his displeasure. He picked up the water and drank it all in one long swallow.

"They don't like anyone going down there," Sebastian continued. "I had some feral cats living at the front of the house for a while, under the steps, but the shades chased them off."

Sebastian sounded almost sad about it, like he missed the cats. James didn't have the energy to comment.

"How about a snack?" Sebastian didn't wait for James to answer before turning toward the counter.

The kitchen was a lot more cheerful than the rest of the house. The cupboards had been painted a soft shade of pink rather than the horrible dark green that covered the rest of the place. There were white tiles under foot and light marble countertops. Flowers were arranged on the table and in vases around the room.

A large cast iron stove sat opposite the table with a basket of firewood beside it. James looked at the kitchen more closely. There was no refrigerator, microwave, or coffee maker. Obviously, the power didn't work, but James had assumed Sebastian had a battery-operated generator to run basic things off of since he'd apparently been living here for a while.

Sebastian was taking cookies out of a tin and putting them on a plate. He grabbed an apple from a fruit bowl and, after a moment of consideration, opened a jar labeled Nuts and added a handful of almonds to the plate.

He brought everything over to James. "Want some apple cider?"

"Um." James popped an almond in his mouth and chewed. "Sure. Unless you still have lemonade?" Either would be good for sugar to help perk him up.

"I drank all the lemonade." Sebastian looked down at him, frowning slightly. He turned and disappeared through a door leading off the kitchen without another word.

James ate the almonds quickly, then moved on to the apple. He eyed a line of ten identical jars of peppers on the counter. They all sported handwritten labels, making it look like Sebastian did his own pickling.

Sebastian returned with a bottle of cider, again looking like something homemade rather than anything bought at the store. "It's better warm, if that sounds good?"

"Yeah, thanks." James put down his apple core, already feeling better, his mind clearer. It probably helped to be back in the warded house, away from the emotion-altering effects of the rest of the property.

Sebastian brought the bottle over to a stovetop built into the counter. He lit a match, then turned a knob, lighting the gas with the flame. He blew out the match and poured the contents of the bottle into a small pot, setting it on the stove to heat.

"What?" Sebastian crossed his arms and leaned against the counter.

"Nothing." James glanced around the kitchen again. "You don't have a generator?"

Sebastian narrowed his eyes. "What for?"

Wasn't it obvious? "So you can hook up a fridge and a coffee machine."

"I have a French press." Sebastian gestured to the press sitting by the sink next to a jar labeled Coffee.

That was so not the point. "I know generators aren't cheap. The ones with the decent batteries anyway." James paused, not sure how blunt he wanted to be. Sebastian had implied he wasn't worried about the cost of rewiring the house earlier, so surely he could afford to run a fridge and a few small things.

"Do you sell generators at Gray Electrical?" Sebastian turned back to the stove and stirred the cider with a wooden spoon.

"We can order pretty much anything in, but we do have a small one in stock."

"Bring it by."

"Okay, sure," James said carefully. "But why didn't you do that before now? Haven't you been living here a while?"

Sebastian faced him, his expression tight. "I've been here for six years."

"And you haven't figured any of this out?" James's voice rose in disbelief.

Sebastian stared at him, the tension thickening between them. Maybe he was offended at James casting judgment on the way he lived.

"I've hired you to fix the place, haven't I?" Sebastian returned his attention to the cider. "You can sell me a generator too, if you want. But it's not like I haven't managed without it."

But why manage? Why settle if he had the means to afford modern conveniences? What else was going on with Sebastian? It seemed like he was avoiding more than people, hiding out here in this unbearable place.

Sebastian took two mugs out of a cabinet and poured the cider. He brought them both to the table and sat opposite James.

"Thanks." James picked up his steaming mug. Scents of cinnamon, allspice, and sweet apple made his mouth water.

Sebastian assessed James over his own mug, lines crinkling around his eyes. All traces of his previous tension seemed to have disappeared. "Are you feeling better?"

"I'm tired but not about to fall over or anything." James sipped his drink. "Oh, that's good."

"Thanks." Sebastian looked down at the table, almost like the praise made him shy.

James had another sip. "You made it from scratch?"

"Yeah. There are trees out back. Apples, pears, apricots, lemons." He looked up with a pointed stare.

"Now I wish I hadn't turned down the lemonade. Should have said it was homemade."

Sebastian hmphed. "Eat your cookies."

James obeyed, picking one up. He still had a way to go in restoring his energy, and eating more, sooner rather than later, was always best in these situations. The cookies were peanut butter. He ate the first one in two bites and picked up another.

"I have more, so don't hold back." Sebastian sounded amused, and James thought he caught the hint of a smile hidden behind his mug.

"I love peanut butter cookies." James ate another.

"Me too." Sebastian got up and grabbed the tin, bringing it to the table. "Here. Eat them all. I'll just make more."

James swallowed. "You're good at baking. And cider making."

"Thanks." Sebastian looked away again, staring off into space.

James ate most of the cookies. He felt silly for freaking out about the shades and was glad Sebastian hadn't hassled him. Sebastian was a good man. He had taken good care of James, who would recover from his magical overuse more quickly after the array of snacks, even without a nap.

James found he wanted to do what he could to take care of Sebastian in return. He didn't understand the guy and still found him aggravating most of the time, but he didn't like that Sebastian didn't seem to have anyone looking out for him. There might be a reason he lived out here, avoiding people and not trying very hard to take care of the problems at his house. But James didn't need an explanation to know the situation with Sebastian was likely complicated and Sebastian probably needed somebody.

If Sebastian was okay with accepting help with the house from James, that had to be a good sign. It wasn't his business why Sebastian hadn't gotten things together sooner. He was doing it now, and James would make sure he was taken care of. If that included staying for a chat over lemonade, he could do that too.

James didn't usually get this concerned about his customers, but this was an unusual case. James wouldn't get attached or anything. He didn't exactly want to be friends with Sebastian. He just didn't want the guy to be in the dark without a fridge and no one to talk to. He wanted to make sure the isolation wasn't hurting Sebastian and wasn't a sign of something more serious that might need addressing.

Sebastian had said the community support of Moonlight Falls never seemed to extend to him. James was going to make sure that changed. That was all. It had nothing to do with the unexpected warm feeling he got while sitting at the table with the man.