The Dolls(76)

But when the door to the Marceau mansion opens, my heart sinks. I’m dowdy in comparison to Peregrine and Chloe. As usual, they both look like supermodels in five-inch heels, perfect makeup, and slinky designer dresses. Peregrine’s is a black leather sheath with a diamond-encrusted snake-shaped zipper, and Chloe’s is a gold lamé minidress that catches the light and makes her skin look even tanner.

“What look, exactly, are you trying to achieve?” Peregrine asks.. “Thrift store hippie?”

“It was my mom’s,” I say defensively.

“I think you look pretty,” says a low voice from behind Peregrine and Chloe. I look up to see Caleb gazing at me. In a crisp charcoal suit, he’s too good to be real. Locking eyes with him hits me so hard that I can’t breathe until he turns and walks away.

Peregrine air-kisses me dramatically, and Chloe does the same. “Well, come on in,” Peregrine says, nearly shoving me inside. “We don’t have all night. Are you feeling better after your accident?”

“Still a little freaked out,” I say. I follow Chloe and Peregrine into the house. The rest of the Dolls are mingling around, all of them as dressed up as Peregrine and Chloe. Arelia and Margaux are in matching hot pink minidresses with sky-high heels, and Pascal is standing behind them, leering at their legs. He’s in a black suit with a silvery shirt and a black tie. A few feet away, Justin lounges on an armchair, looking uncomfortable in a navy suit and a yellow tie, which he keeps tugging at.

I clear my throat as Peregrine announces, “Eveny’s here! Someone get her a drink!”

Margaux purses her lips but makes a move toward the bar.

“Gin and tonic?” she asks in a bored voice. “Or champagne?”

“Neither, actually,” I say quickly. I want to stay as sober as possible.

Peregrine makes a face and rolls her eyes. “Fine,” she says. “Someone go get Eveny some sweet tea instead.”

Margaux hustles off toward the kitchen as quickly as her stilettoed feet can take her. Not to be outdone, Arelia scrambles after her.

A moment later, Margaux reappears at Peregrine’s elbow and thrusts a tall glass of iced tea at me. “Here,” she grunts.

“Thanks,” I say, put off by her weirdness as usual. I take a few long sips, then set my glass down on a coaster. The grandfather clock chimes midnight, and the energy in the room shifts.

“It’s time,” Peregrine says solemnly.

I’m the only person who seems not to know what this means, but I follow the others toward a pair of closed double doors, which remind me a lot of the parlor in my own house. Peregrine and Chloe pull open the doors, and I follow the others into a large, dark room lit with candles that send flickering shadows dancing across the walls and ceiling.

The group moves silently into a circle in the center of the room. I’m surprised when it’s Caleb who winds up on my left side and even more startled when his large, warm hand folds around mine. I’m elated for a second until I look up and realized that everyone in the circle is joining hands. In the center of the circle sit a bottle of bourbon and the coiled form of Audowido. I swallow back my discomfort, and I keep a close eye on him as his tongue darts lazily in and out of his mouth.

“What’s happening?” I whisper to Caleb.

Caleb looks at me with concern. “The girls didn’t explain this ceremony to you?”

I shake my head.

“It’s a possession ceremony called a Renmen Koulèv,” Caleb’s voice is flat and grim. “They probably thought it would freak you out.”

“Why? I’ve already been possessed.”

“It’s—” He hesitates, as if searching for the right words. When he looks back at me, his expression is pained. “This ceremony is weird to watch. We use a snake—Audowido in this case—to call the spirits up from the nether. Then Peregrine and Pascal will allow themselves to be possessed by two spirits who already do a lot of favors for us.”

“And it’s weird to watch because . . . ?” I ask.

Caleb clears his throat. “Because it’s kind of . . . sexual. The spirits don’t get to do things like smoke and drink and have sex anymore. So the sosyete banks favors by letting the spirits take over their bodies for a while.”

“Peregrine and Pascal are going to have sex?”

Caleb shakes his head. “Not quite. But things get pretty . . . hot.” Even in the dim lighting, I can tell he looks embarrassed. “It’s the best way to gather power in the short term. If everything goes right and the spirits get what they want, they’ll help us, and the Main de Lumière operative who killed the fraternity guy will be powerless again. He’ll become immediately paralyzed the second he tries to use a weapon against any of us. We’ll all be safe. This is something we have to do.”