Ghostly Asylum

by Lily Harper Hart

  Harper forced a smile as she reached up and ran her index finger down his cheek. He caught her hand and pressed the palm to his strong jaw.

  “Tell me, Heart.”

  “I saw … something … from the past,” Harper said after a beat. “I saw a memory, I think. It was something that happened in this room.”

  Jared involuntarily shuddered as he flicked his eyes to the workbench with the lobotomy tools. “Did you see what those were being used for?”

  Harper pressed her eyes shut and searched the memory. “I don’t think so. That wasn’t the focus.”

  “What was the focus?” Finn asked.

  “It was a man,” Harper replied. “It was a doctor. I think it was Bennett, but I can’t be sure. I want to ask Michael if he has a photograph of him because it’s been years since I’ve seen one and I’m not sure I would recognize him.”

  “Bennett?” Jared wrinkled his nose. “I thought you said that he disappeared once the state shut down the hospital. He left the area without being arrested … or paying for what he did.”

  “That’s the story, but he wasn’t technically a ghost,” Harper said. “At least, well, I don’t think he was a ghost. I saw something else. It wasn’t ghosts.”

  “What was it?”

  “A memory.”

  Jared wasn’t sure what to make of the simple declaration. “You saw someone else’s memory?”

  “I think the building has a memory.” Harper answered the question, but she was talking more to herself than Jared. She couldn’t understand what happened and yet her theory seemed to be the only thing that made sense. “I think a lot of evil was done inside of these walls and it marked the space.”

  Jared had no idea what that meant. “What did you see, Heart?”

  “Like I said, it was a doctor. I’m pretty sure it was Bennett. He was arguing with a nurse about treatment courses for … sexual derangement.”

  Jared tightened his arms around Harper’s small frame. “Is that a reference to what we did Saturday night?”

  It took Harper a moment to realize he was trying to make her laugh, and even though the joke was lame, she indulged him because she needed it as much as he did. “You were just a garden variety pervert on Saturday night. I believe sexual derangement was more for … homosexuality.”

  “Oh.” Jared stilled as his mind wandered to Zander. “Did you see someone die in this memory?”

  “No.” Harper shook her head. “The nurse was arguing with the doctor about his treatment plan. She said she thought it was too harsh, but the doctor didn’t agree. That’s all I saw … other than them preparing the tools. Trust me. That was more than enough.”

  “Okay.” Jared pressed a kiss to Harper’s cheek and pushed her to a standing position before joining her. He kept one arm around her waist as he glanced around the dark room, flicking his flashlight in every corner to make sure they didn’t miss anything. “Lucy isn’t in here.”

  “And given the way the room looks – how preserved it is – I don’t think she’s been here,” Finn added. For the first time since joining their little excursion, he looked somber. “Do you think she’s dead?”

  “Of course not,” Jared answered automatically.

  “I don’t know,” Harper said, shaking her head. “I guess it depends on where she is and who she’s come into contact with.”

  Finn cocked an eyebrow. “Meaning?”

  “Meaning that she might very well have left of her own volition at the beginning,” Harper replied. “She’s been gone a long time, though. Would you hang around this place waiting for a television crew to find you? I think fear would’ve gotten the better of her at a certain point, don’t you?”

  Jared shifted his eyes to Harper’s face. “So where do you think she is?”

  “I honestly have no idea,” Harper replied, leaning into Jared as he led her toward the door. “I’m going to guess the Ludington Asylum had a lot of secret rooms.”

  Jared was in no position to argue with her, so he didn’t.

  By the time they reached the foyer, he was ready to admonish Harper and Finn not to play up the story too much because he didn’t want to create a panic with the other group members. Instead of finding everyone huddled together and talking, though, he found Molly and Michael staring through the open front door.

  “What’s going on?” Jared released Harper and hurried forward. “Has something else happened?”

  As if on cue, a deafening roar of thunder caused the room to rumble. Harper instinctively pressed her chest against Jared’s back in an effort to chase away the sudden burst of fear coursing through her.

  “Storm,” Michael replied, barely sparing a glance for them. “It’s going to be a doozy. The others went to save as much of the camping equipment and food as possible.”

  “And you decided to help, huh?” Jared asked dryly. He was really starting to dislike Michael. He wasn’t a fan from the first meeting, but the man fell in his estimation with every breath.

  “Someone had to watch Molly,” Michael protested.

  A bolt of lightning flashed across the sky and another rumble of thunder followed. Thankfully the rain hadn’t yet started, which meant they still had time to save as much of the camping equipment as possible.

  “Stay here, Heart,” Jared ordered, striding toward the door. “I will be back as soon as possible.”

  Harper anticipated his reaction and was on his heels before he hit the front walk. “I’m going with you.”

  “Stay here,” Jared repeated, annoyance flashing.

  “Don’t bother arguing,” Harper shot back. “I’m going with you and that’s the end of it.”

  Jared opened his mouth to argue and then snapped it shut. In truth, he preferred keeping her close even if they both did get wet. He didn’t trust the asylum, especially after Harper’s “episode” in the treatment room. “Okay, but you stick close to me.”

  “That’s the plan.”

  “That’s the way it’s going to be forever,” Jared corrected, increasing his pace. “Now, come on. The storm is almost here.”

  HARPER AND JARED were the last to make it inside, grabbing several sleeping bags and the pile of pilfered files from the registration office before racing into the asylum under a deluge of rain. They were soaked when they hit the foyer. Zander, however, had grabbed their bags and they both had changes of clothes inside that were not wet.

  Shawn set about hanging the sleeping bags over benches and chairs so they would dry while Jared and Harper began peeling off sticky items of clothing.

  “Turn around,” Jared ordered when Finn, Steve, and Michael turned their interested faces in Harper’s direction as she tackled her wet jeans.

  “I hardly think we’re looking in a nefarious manner,” Michael scoffed.

  “Turn around or I’ll pop you in the face,” Jared growled, his patience fraying. “I’m already not happy about you sitting inside while everyone else did the work to gather the provisions.”

  “Someone had to stay with Molly,” Michael argued.

  “You made me stay with you because you didn’t want to go outside … or be left alone,” Molly argued.

  Jared briefly rested a hand on Molly’s shoulder to calm her. He’d already figured that out himself. “It’s okay. Can you help Harper change her clothes, though? I will make sure that no one is looking from this side.”

  Molly flashed a thumbs-up. “Got it.”

  Jared fixed his attention on Michael, practically daring the man to so much as glance in Harper’s direction as she stripped. Jared considered taking her into another room, but ultimately decided against it because he didn’t want to isolate her. “If you even think of looking at her … .”

  “I hardly think I’m some sort of demented pervert,” Michael scoffed. “I happen to be quite popular with women on my own. I don’t need to go after another man’s girlfriend. I don’t need to go after anyone, for that matter. People always come after me.”

  Jared wasn’t
convinced. “If you look at her, I’m going to make you cry in front of your workers. I’m just warning you now.”

  “Cry?” Michael was confused. “How are you going to do that?”

  “I believe he’s going to use his fists,” Finn said, heaving out a sigh as he set down his camera and lowered himself into one of the uncomfortable wooden chairs near the wall. The chair was rickety and ugly, but it was a much better option than anything with fabric. “Do you think we’re stuck inside all night?”

  “I think that’s probably the case,” Jared confirmed, trying to tune out Molly’s murmurs as she aided Harper. “Even if the storm blows over, the ground is going to be wet and the tents are bound to be blown all over the place. Some of them might end up in the water and the others will be tattered.”

  “So you want to sleep inside?” Shawn pushed Zander so their backs were to Harper and Molly, but they were spread out enough – shoulder to shoulder with Jared – that they cut off almost all view of Harper as she changed. “Do you think that’s safe?”

  “I don’t see where we have a lot of choice in the matter,” Jared admitted, tugging his damp shirt over his head and hanging it on a nearby table. “Eric and John are in Whisper Cove. That storm outside is producing huge swells. That means that they’re not going to be able to come out here until the morning. There’s no way Mel will risk a boat in these waters. Once it’s dark … they’ll come at first light if they can. Not before.”

  “I still think you’re overreacting,” Michael argued. “Lucy is probably perfectly fine.”

  “Oh, yeah?” Jared offered up a dark glare. “Then why hasn’t she found us? Why hasn’t she given up this ridiculous game and rejoined the party?”

  “Because she’s probably in trouble,” Harper answered, freshly dressed as she moved to Jared’s side. “I think she most likely went off on her own as a way to entice me to the basement. She would’ve been back by now, though, if she was still okay. Something else is happening.”

  “So we clearly need to head to the basement,” Michael pressed. “We have to find Lucy right now.”

  “That’s one possibility,” Jared conceded, ignoring the fact that Molly openly gaped at him as he unbuttoned his jeans and shimmied out of them. He didn’t care who saw him naked. Zander and Shawn had already seen the show – and didn’t care in the least – and Molly was young and enthusiastic and bound to buck up his ego. He had no problem with that. “The other possibility is that we wait through the night and hope Mel brings a lot of reinforcements with him when he comes.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Michael argued. “What if Lucy is hurt? What if she fell down?”

  Harper cast Jared a sidelong look. “He’s right. We can’t not look.”

  Jared blew out a sigh. He was afraid she would say something like that. “Heart … .”

  “No.” Harper shook her head, firm. “Lucy probably did wander away to manipulate me. That doesn’t mean she’s not in over her head now. We have to at least try to look for her, find her. If it was me, I wouldn’t want to be the one abandoned in this place.”

  “If it was you, we wouldn’t be in this position,” Jared muttered, dragging a restless hand through his hair. Even though he wanted to argue, he knew it was a lost cause. Harper couldn’t leave Lucy without knowing and, truthfully, neither could he. “Okay. We’re going to have dinner and then we’re going to go through the basement as a unit. It’s going to be one quick pass … no investigating.”

  “Of course we have to investigate,” Michael sputtered. “That’s part of the show.”

  “Then you can stay down there and investigate,” Harper shot back. “We’re going to look for Lucy. We’re not going because we care about your stupid show.”

  “I still care,” Zander said. “I think I would make a marvelous television star. Lucy is more important, though.”

  “Lucy is definitely more important,” Harper agreed. “We’re going to look for her because it’s right. I will not be performing on cue, though.”

  “That’s right.” Zander puffed out his chest. “She’s not a trained monkey.”

  “I am starving, though,” Harper said. “Zander, I don’t suppose you can make your fancy fried chicken in here, can you?”

  “Oh, Harp, I can do anything I set mind to.”

  Harper beamed. “That’s exactly what I’m counting on.”

  12

  Twelve

  The storm made the asylum feel even gloomier than normal. Once their wet clothes and the sleeping bags were left to dry, Harper and Jared moved to chairs so they could watch Zander work his magic with dinner. Molly, who was a bundle of nerves, volunteered to help and Zander happily allowed her to take on a few tasks … under his strict supervision, of course.

  “You don’t have to go to the basement,” Jared said, keeping his voice low as he collected Harper’s hand and pressed it to his chest. “You can stay up here with Zander and Molly and I’ll take Shawn and Steve with me to check the basement. In fact, I think that would be a safer course of action.”

  “No.”

  Harper’s answer was so succinct Jared did a double take. “No?”

  “No,” Harper repeated. “I don’t want to be away from you right now and I need to see for myself. You know that.”

  Jared heaved out a sigh. He did know that. “I had to try.”

  “I know, but you would’ve changed your mind.”

  “Oh, really? How do you know that?”

  “Because you’re too afraid of being separated from me in this place,” Harper replied, her pragmatic side taking over. “On one hand you want to protect me. That means, at least in your mind, keeping me out of the basement. On the other you know you need to be close to protect me so you wouldn’t have actually left me without adult supervision.”

  Jared pursed his lips to hold back a smile. “Molly is an adult. I would’ve left you under her supervision.”

  Harper returned the smile. Now, an hour past her ordeal in the treatment room, she was feeling more like her normal self. “Molly is acting weird.”

  “She has green hair. What was your first clue?”

  “Not that.” Harper playfully slapped Jared’s knee. “I think something happened with her and Eric.”

  Jared shifted his shoulders, intrigued and yet wary. “Like what? Do you think they secretly did it or something? I would be totally for that, by the way.”

  “Only because you think Eric is still interested in me.”

  “He is still interested in you.”

  “Not in the way you think,” Harper corrected. “He might have a minor crush on me, but he’s moved on. I think that before we started dating he honestly believed he had a shot.”

  “Did he?”

  “No.”

  “Did you think I had a shot when you first met me?”

  Harper grinned, Jared’s question serving as a form of amusement despite the dour circumstances. “I think the moment I met you I thought you were kind of a jerk so that would be a no.”

  “How long did you think I was a jerk?”

  “A good twenty-four hours after the first time I imagined you naked.”

  Jared snorted, amused. “That sounds about right.”

  “After that, though, I think I knew. I think Eric knew, too, which is why he hated you so much at the beginning. You guys seem to get along better now, though.”

  “I wouldn’t say we’re friends,” Jared clarified. “He’s not a bad guy, though, and I trust him to get the job done. Why do you think he’s the one I sent back to Whisper Cove?”

  “I think there were a variety of reasons for that, but the main one was that you wanted a member of our team in charge and you were afraid to let Molly go by herself,” Harper replied. “You also wanted Zander and Shawn here because you think they’re good backup should something happen to you.”

  “Oh, you’re so smart.” Jared poked her side. “I do want you to have loyal people around you at all times, though. I�
��m not going to lie about that.”

  “And I’m going to be really angry if something happens to you,” Harper countered. “Make sure that doesn’t happen.”

  “Right back at you.” Jared leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her lips. “I want to hit the basement as soon as we’re done with dinner. The faster we do it, the faster we can set up shop here. It’s not exactly safe but … it’s our only option.”

  “Yeah.” Harper rolled her neck. “Have you considered the worst possible scenario?”

  “What is that?”

  “That she’s dead and we’ll find her body in the basement.”

  “I have considered that,” Jared confirmed. “If that happens … well … at least we’ll know. That’s not the worst possible scenario. The worst possible scenario is that we never find out what happened to her. That will haunt both of us.”

  Harper leaned so her head rested against Jared’s shoulder, smiling when he brushed his lips against her forehead. “That’s another reason I know you would’ve changed your mind when it comes to separating and searching the basement. Not knowing what happened to me if I disappeared would be worse than knowing I died.”

  “No, it wouldn’t,” Jared said. “Knowing you died would … I don’t ever want to consider that. It would be worse.”

  “I don’t know,” Harper argued. “I don’t know what happened to Quinn and it froze me in place for a very long time even though I knew he and I weren’t going to make it over the long haul.” She referred to a boyfriend who died in a car accident years before, his body never found. Jared knew the story. He also knew that she remained haunted by the fact that she was convinced Quinn’s soul was out there and she wanted to make sure she put him to rest.

  “I didn’t consider that, Heart,” Jared conceded. “I know you struggled with that. I know you still feel guilt over it even though there’s nothing you can do to change it. If you died, though, I would be inconsolable.”

  “I feel the same way about you.” Harper squeezed his hand. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” Jared flicked his eyes to the fireplace Zander was using to cook his gourmet meal. “Do you think he can pull this off?”