Chapter 1

Homecoming Helen screamed like a banshee. Fully corporeal now, the spirit knocked the shotgun out of Derricks hand and then wrapped her fingers around his neck. Down they went, rolling into the ditch along the road, becoming a tangled blur of my brothers blue jeans and Helens white, billowy dress. She was trying to get place her mouth on my brothers. Kissing wasnt what she had in mind. She was trying to suck out Derricks soul. This was so not going as planned. Normal ghosts couldnt harm an ordan ordinary humanother than draining their energy or scaring the bejesus out of them. Most of the time, an ord couldnt even see the ghost. Ghosts just usually werent that powerful, and for one to go all Terminator on someone there was usually a witch behind ita very powerful witch. Dropping the flashlight, I charged down the embankment and grabbed a fist full of her blonde hair, yanking her off Derrick. She reared up, hissing and cursing up a storm. I started dragging her back, somewhat impressed by how many four letter words she strung together. Derek scrambled up the grassy hill, reached the shotgun and flipped onto his back. The blast was deafening as the rock salt smacked into Homecoming Helen. A second later, she exploded in a burst of light and translucent gunk. I jumped back, letting out a hoarse squeal as I lifted my hands. Goo dripped off my fingers and slid down my face. I could feel it on my lips, in my mouth. Gah! I was covered head to toe in it, like Id wrestled Slimer or something. Ectoplasm was such a bitch to wash off. Something I was well familiar with over the last seventeen years. In fact, I was a pro at it

having been slimed more times than I could count. It came with our calling, I suppose. You look like a hot mess, Danni. Derrick climbed to his feet and headed to the trunk of his sedan. Reaching inside, he grabbed a towel and tossed it at me. Like that would help. Youre not getting in my car all slimed up. My twin was in love with his car. He strolled over to where I waited. We were on a typical back road with an oh-so-typical urban legend that turned out to be true. Danni, you saved my butt tonight. He propped the shotgun on his shoulder. I wouldve probably been a goner if you havent gone all cat-fight on her. You know Ill take a sliming for you. I started to wring the gunk out of my hair, but it was useless. Derrick laughed. As dark as it was, I couldnt see his gray eyes, but I knew they were sparkling. They always did when he laughed. Man, who knew Homecoming Helen would actually be real? How many of these do we field that turns out to be some whack job? Over ninety percent of ghost related calls turned out to be pure BS. I honestly didnt think shed be out here, convincing dudes to give her a ride. I shook my head, sending chunks of slime at the nearby trees. Who in their right mind this close to Baltimore would give anyone a ride? If you ask me, those guys were just asking to be devoured by an angry spirit. Well, she was wearing a see-through dress, what can you do? Derrick walked over to the pile of smoldering ectoplasm in the ditch. Pieces of leaves stuck out, kind of giving it a festive autumn look to it. Man, she was hot, too. Homecoming Helen had been a local legend that involved a teenage girl that had died on her way home from a homecoming dance in the sixties from a car accident. Every state in the U.S. had the legend, but the real thing existed ten miles outside of Dundalk. She lured guys into

giving her a ride and instead of disappearing in their cars, she sucked out their souls. Real hot stuff there. Were going to have to report this, you know? Shes not your typical Casper. Derrick pivoted back around. Dried leaves and gravel crunched under his boots. Moonlight peeked through the clouds, casting a silvery glow over his charming half grin. My brotherthe heartbreaker. Only one coven can be behind a ghost that does this much damage. I started wiping the slime off my butt. It was a lost cause. The witches, huh? None of them are powerful enough to turn a Casper into a fully corporeal ghost. Who else would be behind a soul-sucking ghost? The vamp and shifter covens have no interest in raising the dead. Its the witches, and especially after He shook his head. Never mind. What? I frowned. Especially after what? Nothing. Just talking out of my ass, but anyway, we need to report this. I sighed. The last thing I wanted to do on a school night was get the entire Panoram community in a tizzy. Witches were forbidden to use the type of magic it wouldve taken to raise Homecoming coming, but sometimes they broke the rules, And that was when wethe Panoramgot involved. We werent a secret military organization or a band of celestial beings sent to keep the balance between good and evil, but we were a well organized group of people that had been around since the first supernatural creature walked this earth. And just like the creation of the supers, no one really knows how we got started. Some of the craziest theories were that we had druid blood in us or that we were other. The most likely explanation was that somewhere in our family tree, there had been a vamp, shifter, or witch. Their blood, passed down over the generations, enabled us to see ghosts when

ords couldnt. It also helped us see through the supernatural glamour that other supes wore to keep their true identities hidden from the ords. But regardless of the theory of why we could see what other others couldnt, we were driven by our ancient calling to keep the supe world under control. We were like walking supernatural detectors and we were in charge of making sure the supes kept things on the down low. And that they kept the ord body count to a minimal. Without us, the four covens would run amuck. Like Homecoming Helen sucking souls out of male motorists. But I also had a trig exam in the morning that I needed to study for. Can you just wait until tomorrow? You know as soon as we post on the forum, the phone is going to be ringing off the hook. And Al will be flipping out, wanting to raid the witches compound tonight. Al was the local head of the Panoram chapter. He called the shots. He was also an anal retentive control freak. Giving up on the slime, I opened the back door and pulled out another towel. That one I draped over the passenger seat. Being the adrenaline junkie that Derrick was, he looked like a raid would be a good ole time. I dont know, Danni. Please. I pouted. He stared at me a long second, then relented. All right, just dont get any slime on the floorboards. Relieved, I hopped into the car while Derrick placed the shot gun on the back seat and threw an old blanket over it. Moms gonna freak. Derrick turned the keys. An old Jimmy Buffet tune immediately drifted out from the speakers. Dammit. Did you grab the flashlight? Its the last one we have.

Crap. We lost flashlights like no ones business. I peered out the window. Its too dark. Ill come back tomorrow after school and look for it. I patted his arm. Im sure itll still be here. He smiled. Youre just awesome. You know that, right? I know. You wouldnt know what to do without me. More like you wouldnt know what to do without me. He eased the sedan back onto the highway, making a sharp U-turn. Just think without me, it would just be you, Mom and Sebastian. Every muscle in my body locked up. I was hot and cold all at once. Sebastian. His name alone brought forth a wealth of emotions I couldnt untangle and figure out. Derricks laugh was evil. Youre such a douche, I muttered, staring out the window. Trees sped past us, quickly thinning out as newly built homes replaced them. Most of the houses stood empty. What is my only rule, Derrick? The only thing I ask from you? I was just kidding. He sighed, and I could feel his gaze bouncing between me and the road. Fine. Not to bring up Sebastian, but its hard. Hes my best friend. I squeezed my thighs until my knuckles bleached. Hes like ten thousand years old. How can you guys seriously relate to one another? I dont know. We just do. And he acts like any teenage guy. Hes a Guardian, Derrick. Were not supposed to be friends with them. No one was supposed to be friends with Guardians. Derrick snickered. Yeah, you didnt have a problem with him coming around not so long ago. You had the biggest crush on him, you goober.

I did not! Lie. There was a time when I thought the sun rose and the moon set in Sebastians inky blue eyes. That time was done and over with. I smacked Derricks arm. I never had a crush on him. He used to babysit us. Gross. Whatever, Danni, you aint fooling me. Folding my arms over my slime covered chest, I glared straight ahead. Yeah, I wasnt fooling myself either. # Derrick dropped me off in front of our two story brick house wed been renting for the last ten years. He was off to wash out the inside of his car. God forbid the interior ever got a little ectoplasm on it. Carrying the dirtied towels inside, I dropped my house keys on the table just inside the door. I stopped in the living room, noticing several DVDs on the scratched surface of the coffee table. Nothing in our living matched. Half of the furniture had been picked up at thrift stores. Rock of Love? I shuffled the towels to one arm and picked up one of the DVDs covered with half naked chicks. I groaned. Tommy? Tommy poked his head through the wall beside the T.V. Even semi transparent and dead as a door nail, his hair still looked like it had more hairspray in it than a bad beauty school. Tommy had died at seventeen back in the 80s. He climbed one of those steel towers during a Motley Crew concert and fell to his death. He and his snakeskin leather pants had been a fixture in my life since I was seven. Couldnt get rid of him then and didnt want to now. What? he asked innocently. I held up the DVD. Seriously, if you can figure out to order stuff off the internet, the least you can do is clean my room.

He drifted further out of the wall, eyeing the hallway. I didnt clean my room when I was alive, why would I start now? How did you pay for this? A sheepish look flickered over his face. I used your Amazon account. I chunked the DVD at his head. It went right through him and bounced off the patched up recliner. If youre going to spend my money you can at least spend it on something other than this trash. Brett Michaels is God. Thats probably why you havent passed on, you know, saying things like that. He floated to my side just as my moms voice erupted. Danielle, is that damn ghost with you? Hes flooded the bathroom in the hall again! I glared at him. Tommy eyes went wide and then he poofed out of the room, going wherever he went whenever he was in trouble. Like when he flooded the bathrooms. Who knew why he did that. Ghosts just had a thing for pipes and water. I headed toward the stairs and yelled back. No, hes not down here. I swear if he wasnt dead. Id killed him by now. My mothers stomping footsteps shook the pictures on the hallway wall. Get in line, I muttered, taking the towels to the tiny laundry off the kitchen. Returning to the kitchen, I pulled out the box of leftover pizza in the fridge and dropped it on the table. Several minutes later, my mom rushed into the kitchen, wearing her ass kicking boots. I froze with a slice halfway to my mouth. Where are you going? I mopped up the water in the extra bathroom, but if you can grab the towels before you

go to bed, Id appreciate it. She looked up, pushing her straight brown hair out of her youthful face. I take it that Homecoming Helen was real? Yeah, but not anymore. I sat my slice down. Where are you going? Theres a bunch of young girls missing in Spokane. She dropped her bag near the table. It looks like a hive of renegade vamps. Renegade vamps shunned the coven and the rules. They killed without discrimination and liked to play with their food. Something I knew all too well. Oh. Are you going by yourself? Grabbing several vials of holy water off the counter, she wrapped them in a towel before placing them in the bag. No. Ill have help. I poked the pizza around as she pulled a bundle of wooden stakes out from under the kitchen sink. Is Jason going with you? Jason was around my moms age, new to our district and had the hots for her. She liked him too, but would never admit it. Mom paused to give me a weird look. Yeah, hes going. He said Chase has been asking about you. Chase was Jasons sound. Hed transferred to our school at the beginning of the year, and had every girl in our senior class drooling all over him, including me. Uh he has a girlfriendCarissa. Doesnt mean he cant be interested in you, sweetie. She scowled. Dammit, if it wasnt for that damn Twilight movie, these girls wouldnt be such prime pickings. Sighing, I sat down. Here it comes. Now every dumb girl out there thinks a pale boy with fangs is a sensitive heartthrob who wants to love them for eternity instead of rip their throat out. She slammed the stakes down on

the table. Vamps are not 90 year old virgins interested in shy, awkward girls other than for their naivety. Mom blamed everything on Twilight. Girls went missing, it was Twilights fault. Shifters got upset; it was Twilights fault. Earthquake in California; it was Twilights fault. Vamps wanting to go mainstream; it was Twilights fault. My mom really hated vampires. Pausing mid rant, she frowned. Wheres your brother? Out cleaning his car. I took a bite of the pizza. Why are they sending you? Theres got to people closer. All the Panorams in the Midwest are keeping an eye out on the shifters because of the full moon. And we got the solstice and Halloween coming up in a couple of weeks. The area is usually dead around here compared to out west. She zipped up the bag. I shouldnt be gone more than a couple of days, a week tops. Frowning at her luggage, I wondered how shed be getting that past security. She sighed and looked up, her gray eyes softening when they met mine. We all had the trademark Callister eyes as my mom would say. Sebastian knows Im going out of town for work, so hes going to check in on your guys. I groaned. Oh, mom, come on. Dont give him any crap, Danielle. He can undo your existence within seconds. She started to kiss my check, but pulled back. Honey, you need a shower. I darted off the stool, making it look like I would hug her. Dont you want to give your only daughter a proper goodbye? Mommy! I need a hug! Holding the bag between us, she shook her head as she backed up. Be good. Take care

of your brother, and no skipping school. I know. This isnt the first time youre going out of town for work. I followed her out into the hall. Please be careful. My mom gave me a reassuring smile. As always, baby. Ill call Derrick here in a few. I love you. I love you, too. I watched her get into her Silverado pickup and back out of the driveway. The house never really felt empty when she was gone, but I missed her. And I worried about her out there. Dad had left one night to handle a run of a mill shifter problem and never came home. That was one of the downsides of being a Panoram. We had a tendency to go missing. Scarfing down the rest of the pizza, I hollered for Tommy, but he was a no show. Either he was hiding over the Rock of Love DVDs or he was still afraid of Mom exorcising his hairband butt out of the house. I went upstairs and frowned at my trig homework lying untouched on my bed. Shower first. Death by trig later. I ended up checking the Panoram message boards on my laptop first. It was habit. Our job of running interference for the four covens came first. Before friendships, dances, parties, school, relationships, and anything else I could think of. We knew every witch in Maryland and what level of power they were. Knew exactly where the vamps hid their nests from the general human population. And exactly how many shifters there were and what animals they shifted into. It was our business to be up in the supes business. Chatter on the forums were the usual: it was boring on the Atlantic coast, several new vamps were made in the Northeast, there was a shortage of red meat in the shifter colonies that

somehow had become our problem, and there was the stuff Mom had been talking about in Spokane. Tomorrow it would be buzzing with the news of Homecoming Helen and how powerful she was. Thered be a good old fashion witch hunt. There went any plans to hang out with Jules this weekend. Closing the lid, I finally made my way to my bathroom. After the longest shower of my life, I wrapped a towel around me and went in search of my comb. Id swear Tommy hid crap from me. I guessd being dead and all, there were few ways for him to entertain himself. Playing hide and go find was one of them. All the lights in my bedroom turned on without warning. Crap! I hissed, racing toward my robe hanging on the back of my bedroom door. Sebastian appeared in front of me. I squealed, clutching the edges of the towel. Seriously! I hate when you just pop in herein here. My bedroom, Sebastian! What if I was naked, you perv? Standing a good six and a half feet and appearing no more than eighteen years old, no one was quite as tall or looked like him. Shoulder length dark brown hair framed cheekbones you could cut ice on. His eyes were a deep blue, the color of the sky right before dusk turned to night, set in a tan complexion that seemed natural on him. He had a firm jaw line, straight, aristocratic nose and lips that oh jeez, why am I thinking about his lips again? Oh yeah, Sebastian was gorgeous in a way that couldnt be judged by human standards. Thats why. Pain in the butt that he was, he knew it too. Sebastian arched a dark eyebrow. Its not like I havent seen it before. I did change your diapers once upon a time. My jaw hit the carpet. Of all the mortifying things for him to bring up when I was in a

towel and ogling him. That was over sixteen years ago. Big difference, buddy. For one, I dont wear diapers anymore. Thankfully, he murmured, because that would be odd if you did. I ignored the last comment. Secondly, its just wrong of you to pop into my bedroom just because you can. There has to be rules against that sort of thing. Speaking of diapers, he continued. There was a small half smile on his lips that made my toes curl into the carpet. You were a really gross baby. And Ive seen a lot of babies in my lifetime. You topped the list of stinky Sebastian! For the love of God Yes? Pure innocence radiated from him. My eyes narrowed. Why do you always have to bring that up? He shrugged broad shoulders. It amuses me. I hate you. I also wanted my robe, but he was blocking the door. A full smile appeared on his lips. Danni, you dont hate me. I didnt and I did but whatever. I hate when you call me Danni. Whats wrong with Danni? Its cute. He reached out, pinching the tip of my nose. Just like you. Every skin cell turned red. I knew he wasnt lying or being facetious when he said I was cute. As a Guardian, Sebastian could never tell a lie. What do you want? As you can see, Im kind of in the middle of doing something. He frowned. What could you be doing in a towel? Getting dressed! My voice ricocheted off the four walls. God, for an immortal Guardian, you really are kind of dumb.

Tiny streaks of lightning flashed from his eyes before they narrowed. Watch it little one, I can turn you back into a baby if I want to. I rolled my eyes. Anyway, where is your brother? Hes not in here. Why didnt you just pop in his room and check there? I really, really wanted my robe. The towel was barely covering my curves. I did. Hes not in there. I dont know then. Maybe hes out with some friends or a girl after he got his car cleaned. I sighed. Derrick was always out with some girl. Why? Sebastian folded his arms, and it was hard not to notice the way the shirt stretched over his biceps. Theres a slug outside and not the garden variety. My heart dropped. What? A slug? Why didnt you tell me this when you first popped in here? He tilted his head to the side, pinning me with a level look. Oh, I dont know. I kind of got distracted by the fact youre prancing around in only a towel. Im not prancing around! My hands balled into fists as I resisted the urge to throw something at his head. And I thought you already seen it all and blah, blah. Well, that was a long time ago, Danni.