Page 71 of The Sisters of Crimson House

“How many people do we have showing up?” asked Charley.

“All of them,” he said, his words muffled inside the hug. The words made no sense.

“All of them?” she repeated.

“Thanks to that bananas interview, we’re sold out. We are officially at capacity,” Zavier said, waving his arms with a showman’s flourish.

Astrid squealed. Charley couldn’t process this.

“Wait, what? Sold out? How many tickets is that?”

“Two hundred tickets,” said Zavier, letting that number land. “With a waiting list.”

Charley felt dizzy with possibility. And just dizzy.

“Okay,” she said, taking a grounding breath. Her burgeoning supernatural powers made her a target of a terrifying entity, but she was about to have a panic attack over party planning. She noticed Astrid staring at the back wall and followed her gaze. The colonel glowered at them from the grand staircase of the entry, just before vanishing into the ether. She shivered. “How’s the household feeling about this?”

“Weird,” said Astrid honestly. “Lots of activity. I think they’re excited we’re finally going to throw a party.”

“Can you ask them how we’re supposed to do that?” Charley said. She had handed water and washcloths to people overcome by the Brydes’ predictions and performances. Planning a gala for two hundred people was conspicuously lacking from her résumé. Astrid slipped her arm through Charley’s.

“You focus on getting into character. We’ll get party supplies,” she said with a reassuring smile.

“I redrew the wards on Sadie’s floor. Should help keep the more noxious spirits at bay,” said Celeste, passing them in the entry.

“Thank you,” Charley said as her aunt gave her a brisk nod and walked into the kitchen.

“She doesn’t get any less creepy, does she?” said Astrid.

“Nope.” Charley impulsively folded Astrid into another hug. The world had shifted off its axis, but Astrid was still here, unfazed by the chaos and party planning to boot.

“I love you, too,” she said, laughing as Charley released her. “What?” she said, as if reading her friend’s thoughts.

“If I told you that having Miranda channel could be the thing that saves this house or destroys it,” she said cautiously, watching her friends’ faces. “How would you feel about having this party?”

“What did I say?” Zavier exclaimed, pretending to be horrified.

“We’re having a party,” Astrid said to Zavier, who had staggered back, his hand over his heart. “Z will be the one destroying things if you cancel it now.”

“But I mean it,” Charley said, studying her friends, her chosen family. “This could be dangerous.”

“We’re not canceling the party.” Zavier kissed her on the head, a benediction. Astrid threaded her fingers into his as they walked toward the kitchen. Charley watched them go.

It was her turn to save her sister. The party was the only way she knew how. She just didn’t want the people she loved the most to be collateral damage.

***

She was accustomed to ignoring the mail, as it rarely offered anything besides false promises or veiled threats. But, hey, at least they couldn’t keep threatening to kick her out of the house, she thought as carried the curious letter with her up to her bedroom. Seated at her vanity, she studied the cramped handwritten lettering addressed to the Bryde family, the return address from a Dr. James Logan in Texas. Likely a condolence for Sadie, she thought as she peeled open the envelope, retrieving the thin piece of stationery folded within. She started reading, amused by the To Whom It May Concern. The feeling vanished as the letter writer made his case briefly but abundantly clear.

To Whom It May Concern,

My name is Dr. James Logan, president of Occam’s Razor, a skeptic society based in Austin, Texas. I am writing to you as I believe one of our members has taken a great interest in your family, an interest that has run contrary to our organization’s underlying principles. Sy Prescott, a student in the master’s program in psychology at the University of Austin, has been a dedicated and diligent member of our organization for the past three years. But it has come to our attention that his devotion to investigating practitioners of magic and the supernatural has crossed an ethical line. We have received numerous complaints about his increasingly unprofessional and unscientific behavior regarding your family, and as a result, we have asked him to cease contact. Furthermore, Mr. Prescott’s membership has been suspended until we receive a satisfactory explanation for his behavior. We suggest not engaging with Mr. Prescott until this matter has been resolved. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Sincerely,

Dr. James Logan

She put the letter down and laughed. Nothing could shock her or surprise her anymore, and laughing beat crying any day of the week.