Page 15 of Ghost Girl

Ashe snorted a laugh while Gloria smiled but shook her head. ‘Not exactly. We’re mostly just here to record any paranormal activity. If we so happen to solve a murder at the same time, then so be it.’

‘You guys see a lot of ghosts and shit, then?’ I asked, printing out their parking permit and handing it over. ‘I’ve got you set up for a week. If you need to extend it, just come see me and I’ll print you a new pass.’

‘Thanks, Rhodes,’ Ashe smiled, and I shot her my famous panty-melting smile that showed off my dimples as I openly checked out both girls.

‘Anytime, ladies.’

They scrunched up their noses and laughed, but I didn’t take it to heart. It was clear they were together, so when Gloria pulled Ashe against her side possessively, I winked and leaned back inmy chair, arms tucked behind my head so my shirt would ride up and show off my abs.

Ashe flashed her wedding ring at me with a smirk. ‘Sorry, kid. We’re married.’

‘Married doesn’t mean dead,’ I teased, earning a laugh from them both.

‘Oh, trust me. We’ve got no problems there.’

‘Stop hitting on my friends, kid,’ Chance said as he sidled up to them, to-go cup in hand.

‘What, didn’t get me one?’ Ashe asked, pointing to his drink.

‘You’re more than capable of getting your own coffee, lazy bones,’ he replied, a tender note in his voice that I wasn’t expecting.

‘Ah. I see. You’ve already got the meat for your sandwich.’

Ashe’s nose wrinkled in disgust as she blanched, but Gloria bellowed a laugh at the look on their faces. ‘He wishes.’

Chance frowned, his gaze darting between us. ‘I wish what now?’

‘I’m officially out of this conversation,’ Gloria informed us, pulling her wife with her as she left the building.

‘See you around, Rhodes,’ Ashe called over her shoulder before the door closed behind them.

I turned to the surly man glaring after his friends and handed him his pass. ‘Here. I’ve got you down for a week, but if you need to extend your stay, just let me know and I’ll get you another pass,’ I told him.

He took it, his expression closed off but polite. ‘Thanks.’

And then he was stalking out the door and climbing into his van, the door slamming shut behind him. I winced at the way he abused the poor vehicle. There was clearly something more going on with him that was making him so sour, but it wasn’t my business. Maybe I could lighten his mood, though. I had a spare paddleboard he could use for some leisurely time on the river. Itmight be nice to have some company the next time I went for a lazy drift.

I needed to go again, and soon. Nature was my escape, and I wanted to get as much time with it as possible while I still could.

Chapter 6

Kali

Wisps of untethered energy whip around me. Chasing. Running. Taunting. Challenging. They brush against my skin, tug at my hair, poke and prod at me, and still, I am unable to do anything but float here and take it.

Because it was progress.

For the first time, I had made it all the way to the edge of the property, the road in my sights even if it was still just that little bit too far out of reach. I pushed again, desperate to make it at least that far, but the pushback was more powerful this time. That was as much progress as I was making today.

When I felt like the energy’s resistance was too strong, like it was draining me dry and shrivelling up my well of power that was keeping me tethered to this realm, screams drifted to me from inside the cabin. The girl’s voice had become so hoarse she no longer sounded like a person. It was like an animal had gotten itself caught in a trap and was bleating for help, agony slicing through them, yet no one was coming.

No one except Blake, but even he hadn’t been back for days. The girl was starving, dehydrated, and rapidly losing weight and energy. Her reserves were depleting faster than she could keepup, and she was only exacerbating the issue by expending more energy with her attempts to break free and call for help.

When I first started watching the girls he brought here, I had thought that their attempts were admirable. Their fight, the fire burning in their eyes, was something that I craved. I wanted it for myself, so I could go back in time and defeat him before he destroyed me. Now, though, all I felt was pity. No one was coming to save them. If anything, they should fight harder, weaken themselves faster, because then it would be over sooner. If they were too weak to keep fighting, their deaths would become much easier. Smoother. Less painful.

They could slip away in their sleep as they dreamed of happier things.

But, in the end, it didn’t really matter. We all still ended up dead. Our bodies, sawed into smaller pieces, were scattered beneath the soil in deep graves with animal corpses as gravestones. Our souls, still connected to our dismembered bodies through the trauma of our deaths, remained stuck in this limbo nightmare. Somehow, despite our spirits attempting to find freedom from his torture and captivity, Blake still managed to trap us.

---