Spirited Wishes

(Includes characters from Ghost Guardians)

By S. Peters-Davis

Kyle tapped on the walk-out sliding glass door, and I waved him in. He wore a black cape and had slicked his blond hair back. His big smile showed the vampire teeth capping his eye-teeth.

“Ahhh, Count Kyle, let’s eat, I’m starving.” My stomach growled as if on cue. “Pizza, beer, and Gramps’ Halloween cupcakes.” I swept my hand toward the goods.

“What is that?” Kyle pointed at the strange, ancient-looking glass jar candle on the coffee table as he removed those crazy teeth.

“Doesn’t it look spooky and old? I found it in Luke’s room. He brought some things with him when he moved in.” Luke, my best friend through school and college, was now more like my brother. I flipped the gas on for the fireplace, and Kyle dropped onto the couch.

“Man, it’s pretty crappy outside. Hardly any kids came for candy. The rain just won’t quit.” And to prove it, lightning shocked the sky, and reverberating thunder shook the windows.

“It’s a dark and spooky night.” My voice trembled in an eerie laugh.

Kyle uncapped the candle and lit it.

A woosh of wind gusted through the room, the electricity went out, and the candle flame flared tall. A chill swept across the room, even though the fireplace cranked out heat.

“Who calls upon me?” A plume of gray smoke rearranged, forming into a haggard elder woman with a bent nose, bushy brows, and unsettling sharp teeth exposed by her thin-lipped grimace.

Kyle and I glanced at each other, our wide-eyed gaze matching. 

“Is someone here, Bri?” Kyle reached for my hand, not gifted with the ability to see spirits like me.

“Yes, and I believe that candle brought this upset woman here.” I stared at the woman, her face wrinkling as if angered.

She scoffed, “As if you didn’t know I’d arrive to grant you a wish, but understand with that wish comes sacrifice. I take something in return.” She scanned the room and drifted down the hall.

Kyle squeezed my hand. “You appear concerned. Is she still here?”

“She just wandered out of the room.”

“Should I call for back up?” Kyle let go of my hand to grab his cell phone from his pocket.

“I’m sure the gang is busiest on Halloween night wrangling ghosts, don’t you?” We worked for S.P.I., Spectral Paranormal Investigations, and I mostly guided ghosts into the light while Kyle kept me grounded.

“Is this woman good or evil?” Kyle pocketed his cell and rose from the couch. “Do we need supplies?”

I shook my head, not understanding what this freak show might have in store for us. “Whatever you do, don’t speak a sentence with the word ‘wish’ in it. Got it?”

“Like, I wish—”

Before Kyle finished, I slapped his mouth to stop him. “Not one word,” I whispered. The scary spectral suddenly stood beside Kyle.

“Fine specimen.” She eyed him. “He’ll do in a pinch.” Her body shook from the eruption of a guttural chuckle.

“We don’t require your services, whoever you are. Please go back now.”

“Are you making a wish for me to leave?” Her eyes widened as her tongue slid out and licked over snarling lips. Her hands reached for Kyle.

“Don’t touch him,” I screamed.

Kyle jerked back, stumbling over the coffee table and nearly sprawling into the fireplace. He jumped up fast, shaking his hand. “Damn, burnt my fingers.”

The woman shot out a horrifying cackled, creating a wave of goosebumps down my spine. “I’m taking him.” A wind gusted me aside, and Kyle froze in place, only his wide eyes scanning the area in front of him.

“I said, don’t touch him!” I pushed my way through the gale of air, chanting protection mantras for Kyle and me.

The woman melded into another image—a human-sized grub worm, pustules coating its wrinkled skin, and it moved in front of Kyle. The worm opened along its center, showing grizzly insides lined with pointy teeth. It shuffled closer to Kyle.

Kyle’s eyes moved wildly.

I grabbed the sage and lavender smudge pack I’d forgotten to use before Kyle arrived, lit it, and waved the smoke as I ran toward the entity. “Archangel Michael, I call upon you to take this entity of darkness where mother earth and father sky can best direct its beneficiary properties,” I repeated three times.

As my words ended, a hole opened beneath the vermin, and boney hands reached out and grabbed the lower section of the grub, hauling it down into the fires.

I stood between the entity and Kyle.

His arms slid around me, drawing me back as if he had an inkling of what happened in front of me.

“You’re back, unfrozen.” I entwined my fingers with his.

He kissed the side of my face from behind my shoulder and whispered, “What just happened?”

The grub disappeared, screaming in a high-pitched shrill, and in a stinky puff of smoke that sounded like a nasty belch, the flooring settled back in place as if nothing had occurred.

“All I can say is the spectral turned into something else, supernatural. I don’t know about dark entities, other than ghosts. This thing wanted to eat you, Kyle.” I turned toward him inside his arms. Our lips met as tears rolled beside my nose, leaving a salty taste as I pulled away. “I didn’t know if I could stop it.” My stomach dropped. The thought of losing Kyle ran rampant through my head.

“You called in Archangel Michael. Impressive.” He smiled, showing his even teeth. “You know more than you think when it comes to stuff that goes bump in the night.” He kissed me again, taking his time, and I let him. Then he asked, “So, can I say the word—”

“—wish? Yes. Let me do it for you. I wish we were in bed, right now.”

Kyle lifted me into his arms, carrying me toward the bedroom.

“Wait!” I dropped to my feet and ran back to the coffee table, capping the candle. “No more mishaps, not while I have my way with you.” I grinned.

Kyle grabbed my hand and rushed me toward the bedroom. “I believe that’s my wish, not yours.”

Ghost Guardians

Book One

S. Peters-Davis

Genre: Paranormal Romance,

Suspense-mystery, New Adult

Publisher: BWL Publishing, Inc.

Date of Publication: September Release 2020

Kindle ISBN 978-0-2286-1492-0

Print ISBN  978-0-2286-1494-4

Number of pages: 162

Word Count: 64,900

Cover Artist: Michelle Lee

Book Tagline: Bri intends to work for her father, but ghosts, an old high school flame, a downtrodden best bud, and a deceitful tormenter play havoc with her future.

Series Tagline: On missions to rescue those spirits left behind. Murder, mystery, and mayhem abound...

Book Description:

Bri’s intent—to work for her father, but ghosts, an old high school sweetheart, a downtrodden best bud, and a deceitful tormenter play havoc with her future.

Kyle broke it off with Bri before college but realizes he still harbors unrequited feelings for her. Then he discovers Bri’s ability and wants to keep her close, not just for himself, but as an asset for Spectral Paranormal Investigations.

Ghosts rely on Bri, Kyle confuses her, the best bud requires stability, and the bully deserves a punch in the face until they join forces on a mission to rescue the paranormal—those spirits left behind. Murder, mystery, and mayhem abound…in ghost-form.

Books2Read     Amazon

 

Excerpt #2 (word count 326)

“I think I just saw Max’s mom outside, an older woman in a white pantsuit. Is that his mom?”

Kyle’s eyes widened, and then his brows folded inward as he shook his head. “His mom died about five years ago. There’s no adult here right now.”

Prickles chased up my arms and down my spine. Once in a while, a spirit appeared so full of life, like right now, it seemed a living person. Kyle continued to study me as if I’d lost my mind.

He stepped closer, and I thought he was going to put his arm around me. Instead, he lifted a picture frame off from a table. “This is Max’s mom.”

“Oh, she’s stunning.” And the woman I saw, wearing the same clothing. I quickly moved closer to the row of windows. “What a beautiful room. My mother would love this room for an office.” The moon had risen and cast a path of light across the water. “What a view.” The crystal against my sternum vibrated. Gloria shimmered into view, sobbing.

“He’s gone. Martin. He’s gone.” Her sad eyes searched mine. “Where could he have gone? We’ve never been apart.”

I looked at Kyle. He stood on the other side of me and would surely hear me. When I turned back to Gloria, she had vanished. What were the possibilities that Martin would step into the light without Gloria? He never left her side. Besides, they were both about getting justice before leaving the earth plane. He was all about protecting her. It didn’t make sense after all of these years of being stuck here that he would simply disappear.

“Bri.” Kyle grabbed my hand.

I glanced at him, sensing he’d been trying to get my attention before now. “Yes. Sorry.” The words came out a little breathy. The urgency of Martin missing overwhelmed me with questions. “I gotta go.” I pulled my hand from Kyle’s grasp and rushed from the room.

 

About the Author:

S. Peters-Davis writes multi-genre stories, but loves penning a good page-turning suspense-thriller, especially when it’s a ghost story and a romance. When she’s not writing, editing, or reading, she’s hiking, RV’ing, fishing, playing with grandchildren, or enjoying time with her favorite muse (her husband) in Southwest Michigan.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/spdavis788       

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BWL Author Page: https://bookswelove.net/davis-s-peters/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-davis-8660542/      

BWL Publishing Inc.: https://bookswelove.net/  

BWL Blog: https://bwlauthors.blogspot.com/        

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