“Nevermind,” he growled. “It’s a note to let us know that the cleaning crew will be in tomorrow and to please ensure our equipment is secured as they aren’t responsible for damages. I really hate this guy.”
“Is it Paul?” I asked. We’d encountered him when we were invited on a train ride during the holidays. Unfortunately it turned out he was playing us and knew it was haunted. It was a test of sorts before he offered us these contracts. We accepted solely because these were some of the best haunts in our nation’s history, but the man himself was borderline awful. At least most of our contact wasn’t with him. He was condescending, rude, and out for money… no matter the cost.
“Yes,” he sighed. “Oh, here at the bottom is a quick note saying it’s our job to find answers if we want them, but ghosts only sell his company more.”
“So he doesn’t care if they’re stuck here indefinitely,” I sighed. “It shouldn’t even surprise us, because if we crossed his ghosts over, there’d be none left.”
“There will always be ghosts left,” Lincoln countered. “It may not be as strong, but I bet that the ghost who set his eyes on Brea will love the fear he’ll bring out in tourists.”
“True,” Sully frowned. “Do they make people sign waivers?”
“At every location, there’s a disclaimer in the ticket purchase process,” I answered. “We had to sign them for that train ride too, and that should have been our first clue that it wasn’t an innocent vacation offer.”
“Well, this man sounds like a gem,” Sully grumbled. “So what now?”
“I’m going to spend a bit longer sending out more emails. I’ve sent them to every Navy contact I can find in the area, including some higher ups. There’s got to be more though,” Ben said.
“And I guess we should go secure all of our equipment and make sure the museum is ready for the cleaning crew tomorrow,” Lincoln reminded us. “Then we can head over to the bar early if nothing else. I don’t want to sit around tonight.”
“I went through the audio already anyway,” Ryker said. I assumed he was working on it since he’d thrown his headphones on the moment he ordered, hunched over his laptop like he was protecting the Ring of Power.
Ethan sat up a bit straighter. “Did you get the laugh?”
“Or the eyes,” I chimed in.
“Nope. At least not until I slowed it down. They were so quick it didn’t catch the movement, but I wrote down the exact time last night so I could pull it up properly. The laugh didn’t pick up, but here.” He spun his laptop around and sure enough, two perfectly spaced glowing orbs stared back at us, a red tint to them making it even more terrifying.
“That’s a first for me.” I shivered to punctuate my words.
“Does it feel evil, Ethan?” Lincoln asked. “Should we be calling the witches in too? After we cross over the willing?”
“I honestly don’t know,” he admitted. “Sometimes it feels awful and dark, but not the same as the true evil spirits we’ve encountered. I’d say this is a corrupted ghost with too much power and not enough ability to filter it properly. I’m imagining it like sensory overload in a human. It’s so much that it overwhelms you to the point you’re ready to snap at everyone.”
“Yet he’s almost addicted,” I added. “He’s reluctant to even consider letting some of it go.”
“But if we find the source and cut it off, he won’t have any to draw from. He can hold onto what he has but the moment he uses it he’s back to normal,” Ben reasoned.
“That’s the goal still,” I sighed, dipping my fry into my shake and earning a disgusted look from Sully.
“Damn Brea, if I didn’t know you were weird already I’d guess you were pregnant,” Sully teased. I made a show of popping the chocolate ice cream coated fries into my mouth.
“Don’t knock it until you try it,” I argued. “Even Lincoln likes it.”
“It’s true,” Lincoln agreed, dipping his own fry in my shake since he didn’t have one and giving Sully a grin.
“Lord, help me,” Sully said dramatically. “I have to go to my video appointment, so I’m escaping this. Brea, can you handle this for me?” He handed over a twenty and I didn’t argue. He’d made it very clear he wanted to pay his way, and I wouldn’t make him uncomfortable.
“Of course, have a good talk,” I said as I tucked it under my wallet. Checking his share of the bill so I would know how much change to give him back, my eyes drifted to the date on the check and I froze. Sully’s pregnancy comment blared in my mind and my vision tunneled for a moment.No. I can’t be. I’m on birth control. But I’m also a week and a half late and that never happened. Like clockwork.
“Hey, you okay?” Lincoln asked when I pushed the plate away.
“Yeah, I think it’s a period coming. I’m going to run to the pharmacy really quick. I’ll grab the tab.” Before he could argue I was up and rushing to the front. Paying Sully’s ticket first, I pocketed his change before doing the rest of our tab and leaving her a hefty tip on it.
The pharmacy was only a few doors down and I was already mid panic when I pushed open the door. The old lady Ben talked about wasn’t there so I returned the old man’s hasty greeting and searched the two shelves until I found a pregnancy test. The man didn’t say a single word about it as he rang up the item and I handed over my cash. I tucked it into my bag before walking out and heading for the inn. My phone was in my hand before I realized it, Olivia answering on the second ring.
“Brea! How is everyone? How’s Sully?” she asked in a chipper tone.
“Liv,” I breathed out before having to calm my breathing again.