Chapter 196

Ava

I woke up shivering at the sensation of the cold air nipping at my exposed skin. Groggily, I sat up and looked around, noticing that the window had been wide open, letting in the chilly morning air and a bit of the ever-present fog—whose tendrils had slipped in like fingers and were currently curling around the edge of the window.

“Chris,” I grumbled, stumbling out of bed to shut the window with a shudder. “Why on earth would you open this?”

But there was no answer, and upon turning and looking around, I realized that Chris wasn’t in the room.

I sighed, taking a moment to peer out the window as I rubbed my arms to warm myself up. Looking outside, I noticed that the mist was still just as thick as it was yesterday and the day before, obscuring most of the view.

“This is so fucking creepy,” I muttered, turning away from the window. “Damn fog.”

As if in response, a particularly strong gust of wind rattled the window frame and howled around the corners of the house. I shuddered and made my way to the bathroom to turn on the shower.

A hot shower was exactly what I needed, and soon, I felt right as rain. I pulled on a warm sweater and a pair of pants—Moonshine was already known to have a much colder and wetter climate than Moonstone, and the fog wasn’t helping any—then pulled my hair into two braids. The humidity from the fog had left my already-curly hair incredibly frizzy.

After getting dressed, I made my way downstairs, following the smell of coffee and bacon through the large house. In the kitchen, I found Chris and Fabian already having breakfast at the table.

“Morning, sleepyhead,” Chris said with a smile as he pushed a mug of coffee toward me.

I accepted it gratefully, taking a long sip before speaking. “Thanks. By the way, Chris, why did you leave the window open last night? I woke up freezing.”

Chris frowned, looking confused. “I didn’t open any windows. Are you sure you didn’t do it yourself?”

“Of course I’m sure,” I replied. “Come on, just admit it. Is this another one of your pranks?”

“No, seriously,” Chris insisted. “I didn’t touch the window. I swear.”

I narrowed my eyes at him, but saw no hint of a lie. “Well, someone must have opened it. And it wasn’t me. I woke up freezing and that fog was practically sentient as it tried to get in.”

Fabian cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable. “Actually, Ava... Chris saw something last night.”

Chris’s eyes widened. “Don’t tell her—”

“Don’t tell me what?” I turned to Chris, raising an eyebrow. “What did you see?”

Chris looked sheepish, avoiding my gaze. “It’s probably nothing. I was just seeing things, I’m sure.”

“What things?” I pressed.

He sighed. “I came down to the kitchen last night and… I thought I saw a woman in white. I heard her crying, too. But it was late, and I was tired. I’m sure it was just my imagination.”

A chill ran down my spine despite myself, but my skeptical attitude was as stubborn as ever. “A woman in white? Chris, you don’t actually believe in this stuff, do you?”

“I don’t know what to believe,” he admitted, looking away.

I shook my head, trying to shake off the uneasy feeling that was becoming harder and harder to ignore the longer we stayed here. “You were probably just half-asleep and imagining things. There’s no such thing as ghosts.”

Fabian shrugged, and there was a knowing look in his eyes. “Perhaps you’ll see for yourself, eventually.”

We finished breakfast in silence, each lost in our own thoughts. As we cleaned up, an idea struck me.

“Fabian,” I said, “why don’t you go and see Betty today? You know, the woman you told us about last night?”

Fabian looked startled. “What? No, I couldn’t possibly—”

“Why not?” I pressed. “You said so yourself that she’s leaving soon. This might be your last chance to tell her how you feel.”

Chris nodded in agreement. “Ava’s right. You should go talk to her.”

For a moment, Fabian just stared at us, the gears turning in his head. Then, finally, he sighed and looked around the dusty room. “Very well. But I’d like to see if she’ll come over for dinner, and this house is in such a state…”

“Say no more.” I rose from the table, pushing up my sleeves, and began to gather the dirty dishes. “Let’s get to work.”

…

“Whew… That’s the last cobweb,” Chris said, lowering the broom and wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. “In the main area, at least.”

Fabian, Chris and I stopped our work and looked around, taking in the fruits of our labor. The house was far too large for just the three of us to clean the entire thing in one day, but we had gotten a good start; the main foyer, stairwell, kitchen, bathrooms, and parlor had been tidied and cleaned of dust and cobwebs.

I had even dug out some scented candles and lit them around the house to combat the musty smell, since the windows still couldn’t be opened, and a crackling fire had been lit in the parlor’s fireplace.

“Thank you so much for this, you two,” Fabian said with a thin smile. “It’s starting to feel like home again.”

“See?” I said, gesturing to the freshly-plumped pillows on the couch. “It’s not so creepy. It just needed a little…”

“Ava,” Chris said softly, shaking his head and shooting me a pointed look. “Enough.”

“Sorry.” I scratched my head and set aside my cleaning rag, smoothing down my trousers. “Now, are you ready to go and confess your love to Betty?”

Fabian nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be, I suppose.” He smirked. “Although, something tells me that you’ll make me go even if I’m not. Is she always this much of a firecracker?”

Chris grinned in response, his eyes sweeping over me. “Why do you think I fell in love with her to begin with?”

With that, we piled into his car and drove through the misty town to Betty’s house. It was a charming little cottage peering out of the fog, but as we pulled up I could see that there were boxes piled up on the porch, evidence of her impending departure.

Chris and I hung back a few paces, and Fabian hesitated, nervously smoothing down his shirt, before he steeled himself and knocked on the door. After a moment, a beautiful woman with enormous brown eyes and long dark hair answered. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw Fabian.

“Fabian? What are you doing here?” she asked, peering at Chris and me warily.

“Betty, I... I needed to talk to you,” Fabian stammered. “This is Chris and Ava—the Alpha and Luna from Moonstone pack. Can we come in?”

Betty hesitated for a moment before nodding and stepping aside to let us in. The inside of the house was in disarray, more boxes scattered around.

“Sorry for the mess. I’m actually in the middle of packing,” Betty explained. “I’m leaving town today.”

“Today?” Fabian’s face fell. “But why so soon?”

Betty’s expression darkened. “I can’t take it anymore, Fabian. The demons knocking on my windows at night... And you know yesterday, I found six dead birds on my front step? Six! It’s too much. I’m just going to abandon the house and start fresh somewhere else, because no one will buy property here.”

“But Betty,” Fabian said, following her to the living room, “surely you could consider…”

The sound of their voices trailed off as they disappeared into the house, and Chris and I remained behind, exchanging silent glances. While we waited, we settled down at the kitchen table, and I amused myself by looking around at the quaint wallpaper. It reminded me of my own home, and it was only then that I realized how homesick I was getting.

“I miss home,” I muttered, rubbing my eyes.

Chris, reaching across the table to take my hand, offered me a sympathetic look. “Me, too. We’ll be home soon, though.”

“If there’s even a home left to go back to…”

“Hey.” Chris tightened his grip on my hand. “Why are you being so negative today?”

I shook my head, looking out the window at the fog. “I’m sorry. I think this fog is just messing with my head. I need sunlight.”

Chris, fully empathizing, nodded and followed my gaze. It was then, as I peered out the window, that I noticed something: smudges on the glass. They looked like fingerprints. And upon touching them, they were clearly on the outside of the glass.

“Huh. If it’s a ghost who’s tormenting people,” I mused, “how could they leave physical fingerprints?”

Fabian and Betty, who had apparently finished their conversation, overheard my question.

“Spirits leave physical signs all the time,” Betty said matter-of-factly. “It’s not uncommon.”

I shook my head, still skeptical. “Are you sure it’s not some neighborhood kids who are messing with everyone?”

“For three months straight? And killing animals?” Fabian asked incredulously. “That’s quite a commitment for a childish prank.”

“True.”

“Betty,” Fabian said, turning to her with a pleading look in his eyes, “I know you’re set on leaving, but would you consider staying for dinner tonight? At the manor? We could all have a nice evening together before you go.”

Betty hesitated, glancing around at her half-packed belongings. “Oh, I don’t know, Fabian. Moonshine Manor? With everything that’s been happening…”

“Please,” Fabian insisted, looking almost like he was ready to drop to his knees if that would convince her to stay. “It would mean a lot to me.”

I could see the conflict in Betty’s eyes. It was clear that she cared for Fabian, even if she was scared.

Finally, after a long moment, she sighed and nodded. “Alright, I’ll come for dinner. But just for tonight. I’m still leaving in the morning.”

Fabian grinned and whirled to face Chris and me, clapping his hands together.

“To the grocery store!” he announced. “We’re going to prepare a feast.”