Page 76 of Be Our Ghost
He pulled her toward him, and she rested her head on his chest. A sense of peace washed over him. Like the past no longer mattered. Right now, this was precisely where he needed to be.
She traced her fingers along his bicep. “Do you want to come by the front desk tonight? Maybe around ten thirty? That way, we can go check out their base camp. I’m curious to see what kind of footage they get with their equipment, like the thermal-imaging monitor and the electronic voice phenomenon detector.”
“I wonder if they’ll get any messages from Maeve on the EVP.”
“They might not since it’s an all-male team, but maybe they’ll get lucky.” She shivered. “I’m just glad they’re the ones handling it.”
* * *
Despite his best intentions,Knox wasn’t able to stop by the front desk until just before eleven, when the Lily was about to close. He’d had Miles and Jordan helping him, but it didn’t matter. The fact that it was a Saturday night—and Halloween, to boot—meant there had been a big crowd and an even bigger demand for his ghost-themed cocktails. Though the lounge had already hosted a costume party last week, lots of guests had come dressed up. With all the booze being consumed, he’d had to keep an eye on things to ensure no one got out of line.
When he came to get Charlie, she was so hyped up she was practically vibrating. She set down a stainless-steel tumbler. “You’re here. Finally! I’m dying to go upstairs.”
“Sorry. Things got a little nuts.” He motioned to the tumbler. “That isn’t coffee, is it?”
“It sure is! I’m so wired. I already worked a full shift, took a break for dinner, and came back here to wait for you. If not for this coffee, I’d be crashed out in my office.”
“You okay to leave the front desk? It looks like you’ve got enough coverage.” He pointed to the two clerks working the night shift, who were dressed for Halloween. One wore a witches’ hat, while the other sported black cat ears and drawn-on whiskers.
“I’m not on duty or anything. I was just waiting for you to show up.” She came around to his side. “Let’s do this! I’m so excited.”
He took her hand. “Easy there, sweetheart. The film crew would probably prefer it if you were a little more chill.”
“Right. Sorry. But I hope they get some good footage. What if they pick up words with the EVP? What if Maeve says something sinister, like ‘leave this place’ or ‘get out’? Or what if the temperature gauge thingy shows a huge spike in temperature? Wouldn’t that be awesome?”
She was still amped up, but he didn’t have the heart to ask her to calm down again. Despite his relaxed demeanor, he was equally excited. They took the elevator up to the third floor and walked down the hall. When they knocked on the door to room 308, Logan opened it right away.
“Come on in,” he said.
A large monitor took up most of the space on the work desk, displaying footage from the three different cameras. One guy sat behind the desk, observing everything. Logan gestured for Knox and Charlie to come closer. “So…it’s not looking too good.”
“What do you mean?” Knox said. “Did something bad happen?” From all the accounts Charlie had shared with him, the staff members who’d been trapped in the room had never suffered physically.
“Nothing’s happened. That’s the problem.” Logan swiped a hand through his wavy blond hair. “Burke and the others have called out to Maeve, but she hasn’t responded. No readings, no cold spots, no unknown voices. Nada. This investigation might be a bust.”
“Shit.” Knox fought back a wave of guilt. He’d warned Logan the room might not pay off but still felt like he’d wasted their time. “Sorry about that.”
“No, dude, it’s cool. We knew the risk going in. We’ll just have to play up the interviews and the backstory. Sometimes this happens.”
Through the cameras displayed on the monitor, Knox could hear the two team members conversing in the dark room while the other one scanned it with an infrared camera. Though the storage room looked creepier in the dark, it was a far cry from some of the eerie locales the show had visited in the past.
Charlie spoke up. “You know what the problem is? You’re relying on male investigators. That’s why Maeve isn’t reacting.”
Logan tilted his head to the side. “What?”
“This is what I warned you about when Burke interviewed us yesterday. Maeve only responds to a female presence. But you and the others wouldn’t listen.” Her expression darkened. “I wish Celia was with them. I’ll bet you’d get some activity then.”
Logan scratched his chin. “Well…we’re only an hour in. This isn’t how we usually run our lockdowns, but do you want to join them?”
Charlie’s eyes widened. “Me? Join a paranormal investigation?”
“Sure, why not?” He shrugged. “You’ve already had two freaky experiences in that room. What’s one more?”
“Do you have any idea how unnerving it was?” Her voice rose. “I hated getting stuck in there.”
Knox put a hand on her shoulder. In the grand scheme of things, the show wasn’t that important. He’d rather keep her safe. “You don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with. This isn’t on you.”
The man viewing the monitor turned to face them. “If you think it’ll help to send her in there, I’ll let them know. They might be up for it. Otherwise, we could end up with three more hours of nothing.” He gave an exaggerated yawn.
