“Thane.” Thane’s uncle, Malachi Black, owns the property, but being abandoned, it became a popular hangout for death-speakers looking to perform the occult. Thane and I had actually been there one night when we happened upon a séance, which aren’t always bad…except when we were caught, the kids chased us. One caught me and punched me so hard in the face, I blacked out for a moment. When I came to, a patrolling shadow knight had arrived and shut everything down, and I wasn’t allowed to go back to the yard.

Lily admitted she’d been hanging out with Thane again, so the fact that her phone is at the train yard could be coincidence. I’m not so sure she wanted it in her possession when her father or the other elites questioned her about her relationship with the human. Maybe she left it there on purpose until after she faced the Order. Still, it is worth investigating.

Jacobi continues, “I don’t know the exact location of the phone, but we can call it once we get there.”

“We? Jacobi, you’re on probation.”

“Exactly,” he says. “This isn’t patrol, so I can’t get in trouble.”

“Jacobi—” I start.

“I’ll be there in five,” he says, interrupting me, and before he hangs up the phone, I’m in the air. Natalie follows close behind.

The train yard sits against a curtain of dense wood, and a stagnant reservoir makes the place smell like rotten eggs. It is connected to a network of brick and metal warehouse buildings that once housed factories. Railroad tracks twine through the property, unused. I land atop one of several skeletal locomotives. The wind rustles the grass and the trees, carrying the scent of death: distinct, raw, and strong. I turn, staring off toward the warehouse. Two streetlights pour yellow light on the ground, and one warehouse window is lit. It’s that light—ugly, orange, and bright—that makes me feel uneasy.

Something’s wrong—I can sense it in the air. A strong current of energy is here, which means there are either a lot of souls or a few darklings about.

“You feel that?” I ask Natalie.

“Yeah.” She looks around.

“Stay alert.”

Jacobi lands beside us atop the locomotive. As he shifts, he pulls out his phone, staring down at a map where a glowing red dot pulses on the screen.

“I think it’s in the woods,” he says, and I follow his gaze to the tree line, a wall of solid black.

“Can you call it?” I ask.

Jacobi nods, and soon a low ringtone sounds from somewhere ahead of us. We jump from the roof of the train, swallowed by the overgrowth. I draw my scythe, hating the way the ground moves beneath my feet. It’s wet and marsh-like, making it difficult to move forward. It will also make fighting anyone out here harder and more dangerous.