“Aria Knight?” a man asked in a scratchy voice.

  “Yes?”

  “The sin eater?”

  God, this had better not be a reporter or weirdo. “One and the same. How can I help?”

  “I need the Final Rite, for my daughter, Una. She died unexpectedly.”

  Her heart sank in her chest as she heard the broken tone of the man’s voice. “I’m sorry for your loss. Can I have your name and address?”

  “Eladon. I live at 564 Woodbury, here in the city. When can you come?”

  She plopped the pasta onto the plates then added the meat sauce. Her chest tightened, knowing that she’d have to be in and out for this one, because she still had to lay Karina Wolfe’s ghost to rest. “I can be there at seven. Do you know how to set up for the sin eating ritual?”

  “Yes, yes, our family still honors the old ways. I will have everything you need. Thank you, Aria.”

  “You’re welcome. See you soon.” That would make it go even faster. She’d get in, do the ritual, collect her pay so she could chuck it into the endless void known as her student loan repayment, then head over to Jacob’s.

  “Who was that?” Zarek asked.

  “An old man, he needs a sin eating ritual for his daughter.” She set the dinner plates down in front of each kid, throwing a fistful of cheese on top. They loved that she did that for them.

  Ellie gasped at Aria’s answer. She finished the last of her homework assignment and stared at her. “That’s so sad.”

  Zarek grabbed his fork and dug in. “I was lying about not knowing anything. The group I was telling you about call themselves the Guardians. They said they’re protecting the wizarding community, especially since a lot of the non-wizards hate us now. They think we should fight back, stop waiting for the authorities to come to our rescue. They’ve already crashed a few Watchers rallies. I think they would’ve invited me to join, but Jeff Lorens made me look like a total loser today when he flipped my lunch tray onto me.”

  Ellie stiffled a giggle when Zarek grimaced and turned beet red. “Ellie, what did you put into the sauce?”

  “I’m sorry, Zarek,” the girl said, catching her breath, “My project this week was to make a truth serum that actually worked, and now I know it does!”

  “You little brat! I’m telling Mom!”

  Aria snapped her fingers. “Ellie, finish eating, then go straight to your room. Zarek, don’t even think about casting a spell against your little sister. Your parents will sort this out.”

  Ellie groaned and began stuffing her homework into her backpack. “Sorry.”

  Zarek shoved his plate aside. “Well, this is embarrassing.”

  She sat down at the table, across from him. “Well, I might as well ask, since you can’t lie to me right now. Do you know any names? Are they planning something against the mayor?”

  Ellie lingered near the doorway that led to the hallway and her room. “My teacher shields his mind from everything! I can’t even read his mind. Believe me, I’ve tried. He might be part of the group.”

  “To bed, little girl!” Damn, there were only a few times Ellie Volgens really vexed Aria, and this was one of them. When the girl finally bolted for her room, Aria faced Zarek and asked, “What’s her teacher’s name?”

  “Paul Young.” He buried his head in his hands. “How long does this last?”

  “Maybe an hour or two, depending on the strength of the serum.”

  “I’m going to bed.”

  “Goodnight, Zarek. I’ll let your parents know about Ellie.”

  As she watched him exit the kitchen, her thoughts turned back to the teacher, Paul Young. She felt that someone who needed to shield his mind from everything had something to hide. Harry would agree as well. Worth a look into at least. Jacob believed the would-be assassin was a faculty member, anyway. She made a mental note of the name to pass along to Harry or Detective Rosito.

  She glanced at the stove’s digital clock. Benjamin would be here soon, and then she could run over to Eladon’s home, perform the sin eating ritual, then head to Jacob’s house. Deciding to forego dinner, considering what was in the sauce, she cleaned up the mess from her earlier prep then rinsed the dishes and loaded them into the dishwasher. The front door opened, and instead of Benjamin Volgens walking through with his scrubs on, she ended up greeting his wife, Kyra.

  “Mrs. Volgens, I wasn’t expecting you. How was your day?” She collected a bottled water and her purse from the nearby counter.

  Kyra slipped off her pumps and sighed as her feet touched the cool tile floor. “Sweetie, I’ve told you countless times to just call me Kyra. And, my day was fine. Surprised to see me?”

  “Yes, is Mr. Volgens okay?”

  She nodded and went over to the fridge, grabbing a pre-packaged smoothie and downing it as if it was the fountain of youth. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, but in a dainty way that would make her fellow CEO’s proud. “Benjamin has a late day today, so I came home to take care of the kids.”

  Kyra grabbed a plate and began piling on the spaghetti.

  “Uh, just to let you know, Ellie made an alchemy experiment out of the sauce. It has truth serum in it.”

  Kyra smirked. “Well, it’s a good thing I don’t give a damn about who hears the truth from me.” She added the sauce with impunity.

  Aria nodded. “All right, then. I have an appointment, so I’ll see you later. Tell the kids goodnight for me?”

  Kyra had already slurped up some of the spaghetti. “I sure will, and I’m going to talk to Ellie about her behavior. I love that girl, but sometimes, I just want to grab her by the shoulders and shake the hell out of her. Am I a terrible mother for saying that? I’m a terrible mother. I should go read them a bedtime story.”

  “You are not a terrible mother. Now, have a goodnight, Kyra.”

  She blinked back tears, but managed to smile at her. “Thanks, Aria. Don’t worry about tomorrow, I’ve got the kids covered. I hope you find your mom.”

  “Thank you.”

  Aria walked through the back door and rushed to her Volkswagen. She checked the bag sitting in the seat next to her to ensure she had everything she needed for the ritual to go right. The last thing she wanted was something to go wrong, especially when it came to Jacob and his wife.

  5

  Aria

  The wailing of women drifted from Eladon’s home, even before Aria made it to the front door. She had arrived at 7 p.m., as promised, and expected the family to be prepared on their side. She clutched her black “work bag” in her hand and waited at the front gate, which was made of iron. Alchemists used the metal for protection and to thwart the physical presence of those intending harm, so she knew not to just barge in, though she came as a friend. A young woman with dark hair, and wearing a black dress and white shawl, stepped out onto the front porch and studied Aria .

  “You’re the sin eater?” the woman asked.

  “Yes. May I come in?”

  The woman nodded and approached. She uttered an incantation when she opened the gate for Aria. “My name is Raya. Una was my sister.”

  Aria nearly stumbled. “Wait a minute, Raya as in Mistress Raya?”

  “My family doesn’t know about that,” she said in a low voice. She led Aria down the short pathway and up the front steps.

  “Okay, fine. I’m here to help your sister find peace.” Then, maybe she could pull her aside and talk to her about selling those dangerous love potions. But, no, would she be an insensitive jerk to do that at this time? She was mourning her dead sister, for crying out loud.

  “Thank you for coming.” Eladon approached Aria and embraced her. His white hair was shaved low, and his crooked nose looked slightly red and swollen, enhancing his bloodshot hazel eyes.

  “Eladon, I’m sorry for your loss. May I see the deceased?”

  He nodded and guided her through his living room. Four women, all donning black attire, sat together on his sofa, holding each other and bawling. Aria suspected one of them was Eladon’s wife.

  She snaked her way past a few other mourners in the hallway, as well as the floral arrangements stored along the walls. Colorful wildflowers, with their purples, pinks, and yellows, looked out of place for a house of mourning. But, as she had seen in the past, this was how Romany folk treated their dead.

  Eladon led her to a room in the back, where freshly washed white linens hung along the walls and even covered the window. More colorful wildflowers decorated the room, arranged to stand or hang on furniture, nightstands, and even at the foot of Una’s bed.

  She looked no older than eighteen. Hell, she looked asleep as she lay there, in a beautiful white dress, wearing a crown of flowers. As instructed, Eladon had a loaf of bread sitting on Una’s chest, and on the nightstand, shoved among the flowers, stood a cup of beer. Yep, Eladon was old school.

  Aria approached Una’s body and then nodded toward Raya, who closed the bedroom door and stood guard. No need to have distraught relatives bursting in and interrupting the ritual, especially if hellhounds showed up. Non-wizards, and even some wizards relegated the mythical creatures to a fictional story status. Well, Aria had seen them rip off sin eaters’ arms when they lacked vigilance during a ritual, and even worse, she’d witnessed the magical beasts rip into souls and drag them away to Hell.

  But not tonight, she said to herself. She would help Una’s soul offer up penance and find paradise.

  Aria bowed her head and prayed an ancient blessing, marking the beginning of the Final Rite. she raised her right hand, revealing the S-shaped birthmark that identified her as a sin eater. She lowered her hand over Una’s body, suspending it in mid-air just above the bread on her chest. Aria felt a rush of power from her birthmark, and waited for her flame to emerge.

  But, it didn’t.

  “Is…something wrong?” Eladon ignored his wet cheeks and runny nose as his gaze went from Aria to Una’s corpse.

  “Hmmm. I’m not sure. Let me see.” What the hell? Her powerful flame from her birthmark should’ve emerged, she should’ve seen Una’s sins.

  Aria shook her head. It was best to get on with this. Once she consumed the beer, her spiritual senses would heighten and she’d be able to see Una’s soul and speak with her. But first, she broke off a piece of bread from the loaf sitting on the dead girl’s chest and ate it. The flavor was sweet, with a touch of cinnamon. A rush of mystical energy swept through the room and ran through Aria’s body like an electric current. The wildflowers seemed to glow, as her enhanced sight kicked in, and she could even hear the anxious thumping of Eladon’s broken heart.

  She cleared her throat as she reached for the cup of beer. She took a few gulps of the rich, malty drink, and felt the moment her spiritual senses kicked in, allowing her to lift the veil between the world of the living, and the world beyond.

  She waited for Una’s soul to appear, but when the girl’s spirit didn’t materialize, Aria began to worry. No purifying flame from her birthmark, no soul present to repent, no sins to eat.

  “Eladon, how long ago did Una die?”

  Aria sometimes would receive sin eating requests from families that didn’t understand how sin eating worked. The right way to do it was to call in a sin eater as soon as the person had passed, because there was a window of time, hours, that the sin eater could perform the Final Rite and help the deceased’s soul. If that window had closed, then nothing could be done, though sometimes the soul still hung around as a ghost. That’s what happened with Jacob Wolfe and his wife Karina.

  Raya crossed her arms and came over to the head of the bed. She caressed her sister’s cheek. “Two hours ago. She died in another town, it’s about half a day away, but we had the Gorgio bring her.”

  Aria pressed her lips into a thin line. Raya’s people didn’t believe in touching their deceased relative’s body, for fear of angering the spirit, or incurring a curse, so they hired Gorgios to handle the corpse. But how did a Gorgio deliver the body to Miracle Falls so quickly?

  “He used a spell to do it?” Aria asked.

  “A traveling amulet,” Eladon answered. “I haven’t seen one in sixty years, but this Gorgio had it. He delivered Una to us quickly, because he knew we wanted the Final Rite.”

  Aria nodded, though her insides twisted and her heart palpitated. She had participated in sin eating rituals that began up to six hours after death. So, if Una only died two hours ago and was transported by magic, then she should’ve well been in the safe zone for the ritual. So why had the girl’s spirit simply vanished? She was gone. There was no soul.

  Besides shock and a healthy dose of fear and confusion, Aria felt humiliated that in all her years, she would have to decline a ritual. She exhaled a deep breath and faced Eladon. “I’m sorry, but something is wrong, and I’m not sure what it is. I can’t complete the ritual, and don’t worry, I won’t ask for payment. I’m very sorry.”

  She might as well have told him the end of the world was nigh and he was the first to go. His expression fell, and then his eyes darted back and forth, revealing his frantic attempt to grasp her words. “I don’t understand…you are a sin eater, are you not?”

  “I am.” Aria felt like crap as she took a step back and grabbed her black bag. Tears stung her eyes as she watched Raya drop to her knees and sob at Una’s bedside.

  Eladon’s scratchy voice cracked. “I can pay. What is it you want?”

  Aria shook her head slowly. “Perhaps, for her, the window is closed and she has moved on.”

  That was the best explanation she could give, and she dared not tell them that Una’s soul just didn’t exist. Even if she had made it over to paradise, Aria would still be able to sense her soul. But she received nothing, even with her heightened physical and spiritual senses.

  “Please,” Eladon begged, “is she safe? Is she in pain? Is she in Paradise, or…” his voice broke, unable to complete the question.

  Before Aria could give an answer, Raya jumped to her feet and uttered an incantation. Nope, it was a curse. Aria, still hanging on to the spiritual boost given by the ritualistic beer, could see the dark words roll off her tongue like thick, black ink. It looked ugly.

  Aria backed away even further, making sure the door was within reach. “Raya, no, please.”

  “Monstru did this! I’m being punished because I didn’t stop him!” Raya screeched.

  “Raya, don’t do this! You’ll only end up hurting yourself even more.” Curses had a nasty habit of also consuming the person who spoke them into existence.

  Aria stepped forward, wanting to calm her down and stop her from making a mistake, but Raya made a sweeping motion with her hands and sent Aria flying into the door. She grunted in pain on impact, and fell to the floor.

  “Raya!” Eladon shouted, “Do not bring shame upon our family! Stop this!”

  Aria decided it was time, as Harry would put it, to nope the hell out of there. Let Eladon speak sense into his daughter, if he could. She grabbed her black bag from off the floor and stood, offering a final apology. She slipped out of the room and ran down the hallway, past the other mourners and the bright, colorful wildflowers.

  When she made it to her beat up Beetle, she got in and sped down the street, her eyes blurred with tears. She sniffed and glanced at her phone, noting that she had fifteen minutes to make it over to Jacob Wolfe’s house. Now, she was more determined than ever to help him and see Karina’s ghost cross over. The pain she felt Eladon and Raya experience, that sense of uncertainty and confusion, was something she never wanted Jacob to feel.

  She would make it there. She would lay the ghost to rest, and Jacob would be at peace.

  6

  Aria

  Aria pulled alongside the curb in front of Jacob’s home and sat for a moment to recover from the failure at Eladon’s house and collect her thoughts. Crossing over ghosts wasn’t easy. First, the ghost had to actually want to move on, and if she made a misstep, she’d spend the next few months trying to get rid of a haunting. Or, a poltergeist. Fun times. She didn’t do crossovers that often, but Karina’s spirit deserved peace. Jacob deserved peace. His wife’s ghost also deserved to rest and not flit about between worlds .

  She took in a deep breath as she gripped the handles of her bag then climbed out of her Beetle. By the time she reached the door, Jacob was standing in the doorway with a glint in his eyes. Aria’s cheeks warmed, but she pushed the feeling away as it was more likely due to him finally getting what he desired for his poor wife.

  “Aria, thank you so much for coming.” Jacob stepped to the side, opening the door wider.

  Aria smiled and stepped into the foyer. “It’s my pleasure, Jacob. Really, the least I can do.”

  He led her into the living room. The furniture had been moved out of the way, pressed against the walls, leaving the center wide and open.

  Perfect, she thought. “You have the items I asked for?”

  “Yes.” Jacob walked over to a small box sitting on the coffee table and pulled out his wife’s favorite outfit, a hair brush, and her wedding band. “Where do you want them?”

  “I’ll take them and place them where they need to be. All you need to do is take a seat and observe.” Aria gestured toward the chocolate-colored, leather sofa on the other end of the room.

  Jacob nodded, handed over his wife’s belongings, and took his seat.

  Aria set her bag on the floor then carefully laid out the sun dress. It was soft, brightly colored, and still held a scent of expensive perfume. She then proceeded to lay the band where Karina’s heart would be. She took a few strands of hair left in the brush and laid them at the head. The ritual may have looked like it contained a lot of guess work, but she knew she had to be as precise as possible.