“Was, your ghost friend decided to trash it.” I turned away from him and started picking up the scraps of the blueprints. “Shouldn’t you have warned us that the poltergeist could create tornados?”
“Only powerful ones, normally created from rage, can do that.” Nick’s eyes widened. “If that’s the case, then they probably banded together, but it still takes a lot of rage to manifest in a storm like that.”
I snatched another piece of blue paper up. “Is there a reason they’d want to prevent us from solving anyone’s murder? Because that’s what it feels like.”
“I don’t know. I asked them about their deaths, but they don’t remember.”
I nodded. “Did you ask for a name? Or names?”
Nick paled a little bit.
“You didn’t think to do that?” I couldn’t keep the amused smile off my face. “Really, Nick? What’s the first thing we ask in an interrogation?”
“I was trying to get other information at the time. Besides, it’s been a while since I’ve had to talk to a ghost.” He rubbed his eyes. “I’ll go talk to them and see if I can look around.”
“Check the room off the living room where all the furniture was moved. There was a photo of a door in the vampire victim’s file, but there are two basements, so I don’t know if that’s the one we need.” I would assume it was since someone had taken a picture of it, but this case kept throwing me for loops already. “I’m going to need a ride back to my hotel after this.”
“I’ll give you a lift.” Mason glanced at me. “And you can fill me in on everything I’ve missed.”
I nodded. “Deal. I want to walk around the house first and see if I can find anything else that indicates where the basements or the entrances were.” I looked at the crumpled papers in my hand. “There’s something about this house that isn’t right.”
“You mean other than the multiple ghosts?” Mason shook his head. “Have you heard anything back on the thumbs?”
“Nope, I think our lab and system are still back logged.” I looked over at the group getting back to work searching for bones. “I think this case takes the cake for strangest one in a while.”
“We have multiple crimes, and PIB has nothing to go off of. Should you call back up in?” He glanced at me.
I knew what he meant, I didn’t meet his gaze. “Maybe. It’s possible my contact could shed some light on one of the biggest mysteries so far in this house.” I pressed my lips together. “Assuming all my contacts synced to my new phone, I can call him today. I don’t know if he’s in town, but the number he gave me is a U.S. number, not an international one.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning, he’s not in Egypt where the Cult’s base is.” I started walking towards my car.
Mason walked with me. “And just where do you think you’re going?”
“To get my bag out of the wreckage. It currently has everything I own in it. I’d like to keep it.”
Mason walked with me in silence until we finally reached the car. We both slid down into the small crater towards the crunched up mess. My gaze went over the twisted metal and the shattered glass. Gray showed through where the paint had been scrapped off by debris and being banged into things. The wheels stuck up in the air reminding me of a helpless turtle that’d been flipped over. Mason was the one who finally reached in the car and pulled out my bag.
I shook off the glass that I could and wondered how much more I was going to be able to take. The meltdown last night had helped, but I hadn’t expected it to be followed up by my car being destroyed. “I’m going to need a new bag, nothing clings to fabric like auto glass.”
“Throw it in my truck for now and let’s walk the perimeter of the house.” He motioned back to the house and I stopped for a moment to take in the full picture of the house. It looked like any other farmhouse, with bits and pieces on the outside that didn’t match up due to add-ons as time went by. From this distance it didn’t look like it had a basement anywhere, but the codes were different then. Massive windows wouldn’t have been required, just small ones. Ones that could easily be boarded up and sealed.
“Come on, Abby.” Mason called over his shoulder, pulling me out of my zone. I trudged back to the house and threw my bag in the back of his truck. Mason met me by one of the corners by the house. “Ready?”
I nodded and started walking slowly along the edge of the house. Cracks marred part of the foundation, moving in a spider web pattern up to the siding. I took another step and the world rushed by me. Air flew over me as I fell and my body hit the ground.
“Aw fuck!” I sat up and flexed my fingers and wrists to make sure nothing broke. Stretched my arms and then slowly stood and looked up. I was going to feel the bruises tomorrow, but right now I was happy that nothing was broken from the eight foot fall.
“Abby?” Mason’s voice called down the small hole I’d made. “You okay?”
“Nothing’s broken, but toss me a flash light and watch your step.” I called back up. The stream of sunlight that came through the hole barely touched anything where I was. I batted dirt off my body, hoping no creepy crawler had decided to stick to me. I heard him calling out to people above me.
“Help’s on the way. Flash light coming down.” Mason dropped a flashlight in the hole. It landed with a thunk by my foot and I bent down to pick it up. I clicked it on and swallowed a scream.
CHAPTER SIX
Bodies lay over bodies, with wrinkled skin stretched over bones. Sunken empty eye sockets stared at me with stretched out jaws of silent screams. The putrid smell surrounded me, stirring acid in my stomach. “Mason…” My voice raised a pitch and I moved the flashlight over the room. The light shook as it bounced over rotten beds and buckets near them.
“Hang in there Abby, they’re trying to figure out if the ground is safe to walk on.” He called back. “What do you see? A big spider?”
A spider would be the least of my worries now. Wind swept up around me, raising the hair on my arms. “Mason…I need to get out of here now. There are bodies everywhere.”
“Bodies?”
I turned completely around to look behind me. Nothing but more bodies. I had a feeling that the ghosts in the house didn’t belong to the thumbs, but to these victims. Outstretched limbs reached out as if trying to escape the horror they’d endured.
“Harness coming your way.”
Rope with a climbing harness attached dropped down next to me. I put the flashlight in my mouth and put the harness on quickly. “Ready.” I called up and clung to the rope as it started to raise me up.
Mason grabbed me once I was safely on solid ground and hugged me. “Get an EMT over here now.”
“I’m okay.” I muttered, but I knew I wasn’t. I knew I’d see those bodies in my sleep tonight. “I think things just escalated and it’s time to call my contact and see what he knows about this.” The acid climbed my throat and I held out a hand to ward Mason off. Vomit spilled out of my mouth, splattering on the ground. I pushed a hand against my stomach to try and stop the dry heaving, but no luck.
Mason led me over to the bumper of one of the vans. “How many bodies?”
“Fifteen? Maybe more?” I closed my eyes. “They are fairly well preserved. I don’t know how long they’ve been down there.”
Mason shouted orders that I didn’t pay attention as I tried to wrap my mind around what I had just found. Nick came running out of the house, coming to a stop in front of me. “Abby? Again, I can’t leave you for ten minutes.”
“It’s been thirty.” I countered. “And I think I know why your ghosts are so angry. I think I just found their bodies.” I pressed the back of my hand to my mouth. “Did you get names?”
He nodded. “A few of them, then I heard Mason shouting about getting bodies unburied and preserved.”
“I found one of the basements by accident. Did you happen to find an entrance?” I glanced up at him. “Because I’d really hate to discover the next one the same way.”
“Nothing broken.” I repeated almost as a mantra, but I wasn’t going to mention the look on the corpses faces when I found them, or the smell, or the nightmares I was going to have.
He patted my shoulder. “Head back to the city. I’ll pick you up tomorrow and update you.”
I shook my head. “I’ll have the Hummer and I don’t know if I can come back here.”
“The ghosts are calling a truce. They understand that you’re here to help.” He motioned to the house. “You still have your house to figure out too.”
I snorted. “I’m sure the insurance on that is going to take a while. I’m staying at my parents’ old place until then. It’s a little bit out of the way, but it’ll do.”
“I didn’t know you still had that house.” Nick smiled. “There are a few memories I have of it too.”
I kept forgetting he knew my family at some point, that part of his original story hadn’t been a lie. “It’ll be nice to have some quiet for a bit.” I stood. “Let me know if you find anything, or need me for anything else. I’m going to do some research while I can, and maybe talk to the PIB records to see if my request was granted.”
Mason walked up. “Ready Abby? No way am I letting you stay on the scene right now.”
“I’m a big girl, but yes, I’m ready, will you drop me off at PIB?”
He nodded. “Jason’s crew is almost done with their canvassing. He’ll call you with the results.”
Perfect. “Have him call Nick with the results of the basement. Please.” I already had a working theory in my head, but it might have been tinted with my own horrors.
I climbed into the cab of the truck and settled into the passenger seat. I didn’t want my request questioned. I buckled up, zoning out and simply going through the motions. Movement on the porch caught my eyes.
A pale afterimage of a woman was leaning against one of the supports, her hair flowing down her shoulders, and a ghost of a smile on her face. I blinked and she disappeared, fading away.
“Abby?” Mason asked when he climbed in the car.
I rubbed my eyes. “I’m thinking about retiring.”
“A few dead bodies have you thinking about that already?” He chuckled.
“No, I’m starting to see things.” I made a note to ask Nick about it later.
Mason didn’t push as he started the truck. I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing while he got the truck on the highway.
I told Mason everything I knew about the case, filling the time it took to drive to the office. I waved to the receptionist and went to the elevator. I looked at the mirrored wall. Sighing, I tried to scrub the dirt off my face. No luck, it was stuck. I was just going to have to deal with looking like I’d crawled through a few holes. I got out when the doors opened. Outside my office stood a man, middle age, his black hair slicked back, and with a dark skin tone only found through genetics. His dark eyes met my gaze and I nodded to him.
“Hello Merick.” I let out an exasperated sound. “I don’t know how you knew I needed to contact you, but I’m glad you’re here.”
He bowed his head. With his three piece suit he could have passed as an agent himself. His little white visitor badge stood out against the black jacket. “I tried your house.” His voice had just a slight hint of an accent. “But it seems to have been destroyed.”
“Then you had nothing to do with that?” I swiped my key pass over the sensor and opened the door for him. “Please come in.”
He walked in and sat at my desk. “No, nor did the Cult. If they wanted to kill you, you’d be dead.”
I held my tongue to keep from reminding him that I had survived their hex before. “That means someone else is out to kill me.”
“That shouldn’t be a surprise, Abigail, but it also seems you have other troubles on your hands.” He motioned to me. “Take a fall, did you?”
I tried to dust more dirt off me, but gave up. “I fell into a hidden basement at a house that I know the Cult has something to do with.”
“The runes in the house were meant for you.” Merick tapped his fingers on my desk. “Have you been able to solve the crime there yet?”
I leaned forward. “Did you leave them there for me?”
“I figured you’d be the one to investigate. The Cult had been looking into the house because of an increase in paranormal activity there, we thought maybe someone had been using black magic, or summoning demons.” He glanced at me. “You’ve handled a demon, what do you think?”
I needed to find out who told them about the demon at the book fest. “It’s not a demon. It’s apoltergeist. Did you not know that when you sealed the room?”
“I knew there were a few poltergeists that we sealed away. I was hoping the spell would last long enough for you and your partner to figure out the crime. It didn’t?”
“The door fell apart, destroying the trigger rune.” I put my head in my hands. “Why would you put a trigger rune on a door like that?”
He was silent and I looked up at him. His gaze was cast to the side like he was trying to remember something. “The door was solid when I was there.”
I raised a brow. “When we got there, the door was rotten and the hinges rusted. It was on its last leg. Nick said it just fell while he was in the kitchen.”
“I think you have a different problem then. My spell would have held up.” He folded his hands together. “Who else knows how to read those runes?”
“We arrested one of my dad’s partners last year, she’s still in jail. Nick knows some of them because he studied the Cult.” I pressed my lips together. “But I doubt he would unleash that many poltergeists into the house…” Doubt filled me. This was a huge case, if Nick could break it alone, it would break our partnership. But at the cost of my life? Would he really do something like that?
“You’ve thought of something, Abigail?” Merick asked.
“Just paranoia.” Well-deserved paranoia, but still. “Do you know where the thumbs in the house came from?”
He shook his head. “I don’t. I paid off the boys that found the crime scene to keep me out of it. There was no reason that you should have known I was there, other than the runes. That house is no longer safe for you.”
“There’s a truce between me and the ghosts now.” Probably because I found all the bodies. “But if you have any more information for me, please share, because this case is like chasing the white rabbit.”
He met my gaze. “And just how far down that rabbit hole do you want to go? Because it’s a mad world out there.” He stood. “I’ll be in touch, please, stay safe.”
He walked out and the door shut behind him with a little click. I leaned back in my chair and debated on how much I could trust him. He’d potentially saved my life by placing the spell, but then again he had the sixth sense and he probably knew more than Nick did about the ghosts. Clearly they had an agent watching over me, because he was up on recent events. I put my head on my desk, taking a deep breath. The bruises and aches from the fall were starting to set in already and protested when I breathed. Cults, ghosts, and threats on my life. Happy birthday week to me.
I called the PIB records department and they were able to push through the request of a copy and enhancement of the photos. The receptionist promised that she was going to have them faxed over to our office. I flipped on my computer while I waited, trying to think of things to research, but all my mind could bring up was the mummified bodies. I pulled up our search system and typed in the address of the house. Files cascaded down my screen. Apparently PIB had more on the address than any other database. From names and sales, to reports of ghosts and paranormal activity. Judging by the number of files and information, it was impressive that there hadn’t been a PIB agent assigned to investigate yet.
I clicked on the first file. The date went back a few years before Chris said he’d sold it for cash. I looked throu
gh my notes to see who had owned the house before then and compared it to the notes. PIB wasn’t an official branch then, but the FBI did have a branch that helped out with paranormal investigations. All their files had been used to create the database and luckily they’d been great with notes.
I scrolled through the notes detailing how things in the house moved and the wind always seemed to blow. There were voices heard below the house, but no one could place where they were coming from. I looked at a scanned in sketch of a woman standing on the porch leaning against the railing. The same woman I had seen before.
I stared at it. She looked so young, too young to be a ghost, but there was no other explanation. I pulled out the file Nick put together on the vampire victim and looked at the picture of the woman kept in the basement. The same girl. I bit my lip and compared the drawing to the image of the body. I didn’t know why I had missed it before. I wasn’t supposed to be able to see ghosts though.
I picked up my phone, pressing the contact listing for Nick.
“Abby, please tell me you haven’t found more trouble.” He let out a loud breath. “I have fifteen corpses on their way to the lab, your car being removed, and the most terrifying basement I have ever seen.”
“I’ll get back to the basement statement in a minute. I have a ghost question.”
“Okay, what is it?”
“People without the sixth sense, is it possible for them to see ghosts at all?” I stared at the screen and wondered why the woman showed herself to me.
Nick hesitated. “They can, but it normally takes a lot of energy for the ghost to become visible. So you might just catch a glimpse or a feeling of them. Hear a whisper or a hand on your shoulder. Why?”
“I saw a woman on the porch right before I left, and it looks like two owners back also saw her. There’s a sketch in the PIB database, and it looks like the vampire victim.”
“I haven’t seen her around, just the poltergeists.” Nick was silent for a moment. “But maybe since they’ve quieted down I might see her. I wonder why she chose you.”
The Trouble with Ghosts (Here Witchy Witchy Book 3) Page 7
