Ghost of a Chance Read Online Free

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place will make us a fortune.”
    “He’s not listening to you,” my father said,
still in the doorway.
    “He seldom does,” I answered.
    “Karma.” Spider yanked my chair sideways,
taking my hand as he squatted next to me. “I know you don’t like
cleaning houses, but this is important, love.”
    I started laughing. I couldn’t help myself.
Only someone with Spider’s immense ego would believe he could have
a threesome with two other women and still be able to sweet-talk me
into doing something for him. I pulled my hand from his and gave
him the envelope as I got to my feet. The pain meds were starting
to work, making my head feel oddly numb. “No. No cleaning. Not
tonight, not ever. We’re through, Spider, through with
everything—the marriage, cleaning, us.”
    “What?” Spider asked, doing a good
impression of a startled husband. “What are you saying? Why are we
through?”
    I pulled one of the pictures out of the
envelope he held. “This, for one.”
    He barely glanced at it. “Darling, I can
explain that—”
    “I’m sure you can. But it’s not going to
work this time.”
    “This time?” my father asked. “You mean
there have been others?”
    Spider opened his mouth to protest, then
closed it quickly as a hard look came into his eyes. “All right. I
thought there would be need for your particular talents for some
time to come, but recently, I’ve begun rethinking that
strategy.”
    “Strategy?” I asked. “Do my abilities have
something to do with why you said no to the divorce last year?”
    The mocking glint in his eyes as he gave me
a once-over left me feeling soiled. “You don’t think I said no to
the divorce simply because I couldn’t be parted from you?” He
laughed, but there was no humor in it. “Sweetheart, you had value
to me, but not between the sheets. Now, do you want that divorce or
not?”
    “I think that would be best,” I said, the
numbness seeping from my head down to the rest of me. Not even his
cruel words had the ability to hurt me anymore.
    “You can have it on one condition.”
    “I don’t need your permission to divorce
you,” I said, welcoming the dulling sensation. “This is 2008, not
1908. I can do it without your consent.”
    “But it will be easier if I don’t create a
fuss, won’t it?” he asked, a small smile curling his lips. I hated
that smile. It always made my palm itch. “After all, you don’t want
certain… truths coming out, do you?”
    “You bastard!” Dad started forward. I held
him back with an upraised hand.
    “What condition?” I asked my hopefully
soon-to-be ex-husband.
    His smiled deepened. I had to clench my
hands to keep from slapping it off his face. “You clean the Walsh
house for me, and I won’t contest a divorce. I won’t fight an
equitable settlement, and won’t argue over the division of our
assets. I’ll even let you keep this place,” he said, glancing
around the dining room with a look of distaste.
    I hesitated. Oh, part of me wanted to tell
him just where he could shove his precious Walsh house, but the
other part of me, the part that knew full well I had a faerie’s
chance in Abaddon of finding gainful employment of the mundane
variety, prodded me into considering his offer. It was just one
house, one cleaning. I wouldn’t have to send whatever was there
into the Akasha… Despite my father’s accusations to the contrary, I
had banished only a couple of nasty house spirits. The rest I’d
acquired as roommates, and with Spider gone, at least they wouldn’t
have to hide. “How many entities are there?”
    “How the hell should I know?” He shrugged.
“It’s an old house, built by one of the timber lords a hundred or
so years ago. It’s got a few creepy crawlies in it. I just want
them gone so I can get the place turning a profit. Tell you what:
I’ll give you a cut of the first six months’ profit. Ten percent.
That ought to keep you living pretty high on the hog for a