Beatrix stirred a thick meat and vegetable stew on the stovetop, something the other lunch ladies called "ghoulash."
It was halfway through lunch and Beatrix had been told to make an extra batch. It was one of the most popular creepateria dishes and sold out every time.
"Did Grey show up at your dorm once you got back to your body?" Jackson whispered, crouched down beside Autumn on the kitchen floor.
Jackson and Autumn had hidden behind the fridges for an emergency meeting in the back of the creepateria. While the other lunch ladies were busy with the lunch line, Beatrix had briefed Jackson on yesterday's events, as well as Spectra's involvement in her witchcraft antics over the past year.
"No, Grey didn't show up. He tried to, though," Autumn answered for Beatrix as quietly as she could, trying to avoid detection from any creepateria staff. "He blew up my phone a million times. He wanted to check on Bea, but I told him she needed to be alone because she was dizzy—which she kind of was, so that wasn't exactly a lie."
Beatrix was still a bit shaken by the ordeal—astral projecting, Grey chasing her down, Spectra's attempted possession.
She felt more at ease with Autumn and Jackson nearby. Now that they were filled in, at least she had friends on her side. Especially since trusting Spectra was no longer an option.
With others around, she doubted Spectra would dare show her face again; the ghost only appeared when Beatrix was alone.
However, Grey was a different story.
"Grey must be wondering about your out-of-body experience and why you were spying on him," Jackson said. "Did he ask you about it?"
"No, but only because I'm avoiding him. I didn't walk Autumn to her classes today so he couldn't corner me in the halls. I've been hiding out in the creepateria all morning. It actually gave me time to get a few things done…" Beatrix glanced at a plastic cup she'd put off to the side on a counter. It held a shot of clear liquid.
"How were you able to get out of your body, anyway?" Jackson inquired.
"Breathing," Beatrix said simply.
"Bea has a natural talent for magic. She comes from a long line of witches," Autumn explained. "That kind of stuff is easy for her if she puts her mind to it."
"And if I know what to do," Beatrix added, recalling her frustration whenever her aunts kept her in the dark about witchcraft.
Jackson pulled out a pencil and notebook from his satchel, turning to a fresh page. "What was it like being a ghost?"
"Insane," Beatrix said. "Exhilarating, yet empty. It's hard to describe. All I know is that I don't want to do it again."
"I still can't believe Spectra tried to possess her," Autumn whispered.
"But why would Spectra do that?" Jackson asked, taking notes as he spoke.
"I think she's jealous of my physical body," Beatrix said. Last semester, Greta the lunch lady had told her that some spirits chose a companion to vicariously live through.
Spectra must miss the physical aspects of life… you bring her comfort… Greta had said.
"Shouldn't we report her to the headmistress?" Autumn suggested.
"We don't want to be on Bloodgood's radar right now," Beatrix said. "I'll deal with Spectra soon, but I have to figure some stuff out about Grey first."
The three of them suddenly heard shuffling feet, and Jackson and Autumn shrunk back to avoid being seen by the approaching lunch lady.
Greta, the elderly goblin woman who had been on Beatrix's mind, made her way over.
"A friend of yours is asking for you," Greta said, voice slow and gravelly. "A tall young man with black eyes. Sounds like it's important."
"Oh, um, Greta, can you tell him I'm not available? I, uh, don't want to get distracted during my shift," Beatrix said.
"I see… yes, you wouldn't want… more distractions…" Greta peered at Autumn's foot poking out by the fridges.
Beatrix felt embarrassed at getting caught. "Please, Greta, don't let Grey back here," Beatrix begged.
Greta, a few inches shorter than Beatrix due to her stooped back, slowly blinked up at her. A hint of sympathy gleamed in the old lunch lady's eyes. "Alright," she said.
Greta shuffled off, leaving Beatrix, Jackson, and Autumn alone in the back of the kitchen again.
Beatrix looked over at Jackson and Autumn. Jackson was jotting down more notes, and Autumn was whispering something to him.
Autumn looked up. "Is Spectra a ghost or a poltergeist, Bea?" she asked.
"Um… honestly, I've been calling her both…"
"Actually, ghosts and poltergeists are different—" Jackson and Autumn both interjected at the same time.
"I know, I know! Geez, it's enough having one brain around," Beatrix teased. "One of Ghoulia's textbooks said a poltergeist can interact with the physical world, and a ghost can't."
"So, have you seen Spectra interacting with the physical world?" Jackson whispered.
Beatrix remembered Spectra moving a bag of haunt dogs off the counter when they were alone in the creepateria last semester.
"Ya. She's a poltergeist," Beatrix stated. "By the way, I learned that poltergeists can't use a spirit weapon to affect the living or the living dead, so that counts Spectra out as a suspect."
"You learned that from Ghoulia?" Jackson asked. "I'm jealous. Ghoulia's got good resources. I wonder if she has a study group I can join…" Jackson thought aloud.
"Oh, speaking of Ghoulia's books, there was a weird poem in one of them," Beatrix said. "Something about plague, famine, and war… seeking revenge… and monster souls burning, I think?" Beatrix struggled to remember exactly what it had said. She'd left the old scrap of paper on her bedside table.
"Plague, famine, and war?" Jackson repeated.
"Sounds creepy," Autumn said, running her fingers along the seams at her wrists.
The poem didn't seem to be ringing any bells for Jackson and Autumn, so Beatrix moved on. "Anyway, that's not why I brought you guys back here. Grey was about to head into the woods last night, like he noticed something—but Astar stopped him. I'm not sure what Grey heard or saw. Maybe if I check in that area, I'll find a clue."
"You want to hop the fence?" Autumn squeaked.
"No, hopping it is too hard. There's sharp iron spires at the top. I'm not strong enough to hoist myself over them. I was hoping you two might have some ideas on how I could get past the fence without anyone noticing."
Jackson and Autumn exchanged a concerned glance.
"Don't be scaredy cats," Beatrix urged. "I want to check that spot while everyone's in the creepateria."
Jackson looked shaken by the idea. "Is it worth the risk? What if Grey just heard a squirrel or something in the forest that night?"
"No way, he saw something important, something incriminating out there. Look, we need another lead since my whole 'spying on Grey as a ghost' plan went sideways. You two can keep watch to make sure nothing goes wrong. It'll only take a minute. Less than a minute."
Jackson tapped his pencil against his notebook. "If you can't go over the fence, what about going through it? Instead of scaling it, find a weak part and sneak through," he suggested.
Beatrix thought it over. "But even if I find a flimsy part of it, I'm not strong enough to move an iron bar, even with your help. No offense," she said, looking pointedly at Autumn and Jackson's slender frames.
"Hey! I've been working out!" Autumn piped up, flexing a little straw-filled bicep. While she did look a bit more sturdy, it wouldn't be enough.
"Hang on, make sure this doesn't bubble over," Beatrix told them, leaving the ghoulash to peek into the lunchroom.
Beatrix wanted to check if Grey was still waiting to speak with her. She didn't see him in the lunch line; Greta must've kept her word and prevented him from entering the kitchen.
Instead, Beatrix saw the reaper boy sitting at a far table, caught in a one-sided conversation with Heath Burns, a talkative fire elemental boy who looked eager to befriend him.
With fiery hair flickering, Heath chatted endlessly with a blank-faced Grey. Despite Grey's reserved expression, it appeared he was at least listening, occasionally nodding politely.
With Grey occupied, Beatrix knew his exact location. If she moved fast, she could visit the perimeter fence without him noticing.
The only question was how to slip past the fence as easily as possible.
Since that morning, Beatrix had a feeling she'd need help to accomplish this. A devil's help.