contact of the earth whenever possible.
Baer twisted around, trying to find a spot where Clay could stand that would give him the soil under his feet while still giving Grey a clear view down the street, but there was nothing close by. But a new idea struck him.
“Clay, reach up. The Spanish moss and tree branches,” Baer directed.
Clay barked out a laugh and stretched his hand above his head toward the nearby tree limb draped in moss. A second later, the moss started to shift and dance in the air as if it were teased by an errant breeze. Except each twist and undulation brought it closer to Clay’s fingers. The moss slid down his palm and wrapped around his wrist, connecting Clay to the moss, which was connected to the tree, which was connected to the earth.
The image of the two men holding hands while one was held by Spanish moss was pretty damn weird. Thank God they were the only ones in the square at the time.
“How’s the reception, Grey?”
“You’re an ass,” the Soul Weaver muttered.
“You two look like you’re trying to fix the reception on a TV with a pair of old rabbit ears.”
“Go to hell,” Clay grumbled.
“Got him,” Grey suddenly announced.
“Shit! Seriously?” Baer gasped.
“Yes. He’s with a group of other people walking about three blocks away from us. He…Clay?”
“I see them,” Clay said, and Baer wanted to shake them both. He didn’t like feeling so left out, and it was getting irritating that the two Weavers had obviously learned a trick they hadn’t shared with him.
“What? What is it?”
“Pestilents. About a half dozen. Getting close to the new guy.” Clay released Grey and opened his hand, giving his arm a little shake to free himself of the moss.
They started in the direction Grey had pointed, and Baer took a couple of quick steps to catch up with them.
“What the hell was that all about? Did you use Clay like he was a freaking battery?” Baer demanded.
Grey smirked at Baer. “Yeah, I guess I did.”
“How?”
“I discovered it not too long ago when I was helping him figure out his powers. When he’s all amped up on energy from the earth, I can siphon some of that off him to amp up my own. It makes it a lot easier to sort through all the noise from the random humans to home in on a Weaver.”
“Can you also see the pestilents?” Clay asked. He paused at the corner, waiting for a car to pass them before crossing the street.
“No. I…I’m not sure if they have souls, or maybe their souls are just too different from us. Either way, I can’t see them or get a read on them like I can Weavers and humans.”
“Can we all use Clay like a battery?”
“I’m not a fucking battery,” Clay growled.
“I don’t know, but I think it might be something worth exploring. It could give us all an advantage in a fight,” Grey continued.
Baer clapped a hand on Clay’s shoulder. “But later. We’ve got a brother to locate and pestilents to get rid of.”
“You’re such an ass,” Clay muttered, but there was a hint of amusement in his voice.
“A shame he couldn’t have wandered through a flea market. That would have been fun.” He and Clay had met for the first time in a flea market. Pestilents had chased them through it, and he had a feeling that he and Clay would never be allowed to return to that flea market after all the chaos and destruction they’d caused.
But it had been fun.
At the intersection of McDonough and Abercorn, they caught sight of a group of a dozen people walking down the street, heading toward the Savannah River. At the head of the group was a man in period costume, carrying what looked to be a large iron lamp glowing with bright yellow light.
The man’s voice rose above the shuffle of feet and low conversation. “This is the Colonial Park Cemetery on your right. It was started in 1750 and is the final resting place of some of Savannah’s first settlers. It also houses more than seven hundred victims of the great yellow fever epidemic, and for a short time, it served as a camp for Union soldiers during General Sherman’s march to the sea. If you visit during the day, you’ll find the soldiers have left a permanent mark on the cemetery by making some alterations to the headstones. There are several residents who are said to have lived for a