My Paranormal Life

Ghost Fight

“You wouldn’t dare call in Yctavia. You wanna know why?” I asked as I flipped my ponytail back over my shoulder.

Mr. Binder gave me this “yeah, right” look. “Why?”

I grinned. “Because if I was dead, there’d be no stopping me.” I walked toward his gun. “Think about it.”

Confused, he stepped a few paces backwards.

“Tanner’s already so unpredictable, with so many powers, that you’re barely hanging on as it is—he’s constantly stopping you. And you yourself said that I was smart and fearless. Can you imagine me in ghost form? Can’t you see all the amazing things I’d be able to do?”

Mr. Binder looked completely unsure of himself. It was sad, really. The man was so very intelligent. In fact, I believe so much of his brain was being used for his schemes and inventions that it had no room left for common sense.

“You mean you wish you were dead?”

My hand reached out and snatched the gun. “Of course not. I’m only saying I wonder what it’d be like to—”

“To what?” The soothing voice behind me caused chills to run up and down my spine.

Yctavia. If she was here, where in the world was Tanner?

“You wonder what it’d be like to do what?” Yctavia asked again. “Come now, Riley—don’t stop now. We’re all curious to hear what you yearn for.”

“She wants to die,” Mr. Binder said.

I groaned. “No, I don’t want to die. I was only pointing out that if I did die, it’d be even worse for you two, since I would continue to fight you both and there’d be no way of stopping me.”

“Oh, don’t get your hopes up. There is always a way to stop you.” Yctavia lifted an eyebrow and smirked at me.

I had the gun, but it was basically pointless. The only thing it did was stop them from killing me. However, we all knew that at any moment, it could be invisibly whisked from my hands and turned on me again. I slipped the safety on and tucked it into the back of the waistband of my jeans, like how they do in movies, hoping they’d forget about it.

I put my hands on my hips. “Where’s Tanner?” I was certain Yctavia knew.

She chuckled and walked over to a plush leather computer chair near the center of the room. “Last I saw of Tanner Binder, I had him begging for mercy.”

My blood boiled. “What did you do to him?” I nearly shouted. There’s no way I was going to stand back and let her hurt him.

“I destroyed him the best way I knew how.”

Yctavia probably knew of hundreds of thousands of ways to annihilate someone, ghost or human. This was not helping.

My stomach sank. “What do you mean?”

She plopped down on the chair and crossed one leather-clad leg over the other. “I threatened to kill you, of course.”

“What?”

“It worked.” Her foot bobbed up and down. “It would seem that our Tanner has a fancy for your annoying habits. In fact, the poor bloke was willing to trade his existence for yours. Which was foolish, of course, since I have every intention of getting rid of you now that he’s gone.”

I had no idea what she was saying, but it didn’t sound good. “Speak. English. Words I can understand. Now.”

“Excuse me?” Yctavia’s eyes burned like fire for a brief moment before she calmed herself. “Do not dictate to me. Ever.”