3 The Ghoul Next Door Read online

  “Well, you know, I’m not really here to talk about me. I came here to help Callahan and you.”

  So Elvis Presley was my guardian angel? Finally my luck was turning around. Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket. On second thought, if my luck was changing I wouldn’t have crazy ghosts lingering around and a shadow person stalking me. Scratch that lottery ticket idea.

  “What do you want to help with?” I drizzled more syrup over the waffles. I needed calories to fuel my long day ahead.

  I had a laundry list of things Elvis could choose from that I needed serious help with, so there wasn’t any problem there. But what did Callahan need help with? He’d managed to make it through two bad magic spells. What else could possibly happen to him?

  “I’m concerned with everything that’s been going on with Callahan. He needed my help sooner, but I came as soon as I could.”

  “Things have been tough, but I’m sure we have things under control now.” I sipped my orange juice.

  I wasn’t sure if Elvis was buying my assertion. I decided to try a subject change, steering the topic back to him.

  I speared another piece of waffle. “You know, I used to tell my mother I wanted to marry you. Fortunately, that wasn’t possible, so now I have Callahan.”

  “Things have a way of working out, don’t they?” He winked.

  I rinsed my plate and placed it in the sink. “My mother always said, ‘You can’t, dear, he’s dead.’ My mother’s blunt like that.”

  He smiled. “At least she’s to the point.”

  I laughed. “That’s one way to look at it.”

  “Maybe there’ll be wedding bells in the future for you and Callahan.” He studied my face.

  Heat formed in my cheeks and I shrugged. “Who knows what the future holds? We haven’t known each other long and we’re just taking one day at a time and enjoying each other.”

  “That’s all you can do,” Elvis said.

  My cell rang and I excused myself for a second. For some reason, Mr. Fine followed me. I couldn’t breathe without him listening.

  “Are you on your way?” I asked when I picked up Mindy’s call.

  “We’ll be there in a few. What’s going on now?” she asked.

  Translation: what was Elvis doing?

  “I’m just chatting with Elvis while I wait.” I was being devilish lately.

  She sighed. “Lucky. Can you tell him that I’ve watched all his movies a million times? I think my favorite is Blue Hawaii, but it’s really hard to decide. My favorite song is It’s Now or Never, or maybe Don’t Be Cruel.” Mindy let out a quick breath and continued. “I sure do like mama’s boys.” Mindy barely stopped to catch her breath.

  Hmm. That wasn’t what she’d always told me about liking mama’s boys. I guessed she’d changed her mind as far as Elvis Presley was concerned.

  “I’ll make sure to do that,” I said before hanging up.

  My chat with Elvis had been a rare opportunity to ask questions though. So many people would do anything to have a chance like I that. I had no idea what was causing my celebrity ghost visits, but I hoped it didn’t stop anytime soon. Unless the famous ghosts were bad… then they could stay away.

  When I looked at Elvis sitting in the kitchen all alone, his haunting eyes became more apparent. It was the look that had apparently captivated everyone who came into contact with him. Fame surely had come with a price for him and I wasn’t positive he’d ever asked for it. His voice was so pure and the southern charm mesmerizing that I could barely take my eyes off him. There was nothing like a good ol’ Southern boy—those full lips, the high cheekbones. Callahan took after his cousin in the looks department too.

  Loud bangs sounded from my bedroom and my mischievous ghost was nowhere in sight. I knew she was up to no good. Following the sound, I walked into my bedroom to find the contents of my underwear drawer thrown across the floor.

  “What the hell are you doing?” I yelled.

  She turned and smirked. “I’m bored. I thought I’d check out your room.”

  She moved over to the bookshelf and began tossing books onto the floor.

  “I command you to stop right this minute.”

  She whipped around and glared at me, then began laughing hysterically. “You’re cute,” she said in between snorts.

  Before I had a chance to yell at her more, she vanished, leaving me to pick up the mess around my room. If she wasn’t already dead, I’d kill her. I grabbed the contents of my drawer and shoved them back in.

  “Do you need any help?” Elvis asked.

  I whirled around, and unfortunately, had a pair of underwear in my hand. I shoved them into my pocket. “No, no. It would use too much of your energy to help. You need to save up your strength.”

  I’d get her back for this.

  ***

  I didn’t bother to say goodbye to the ghosts when I walked out the front door. I knew they’d be coming along with me anyway. With any luck, they’d help me out. Sometimes ghosts could reason with other ghosts when the living couldn’t get through to them. Okay, Candy Cherry probably wouldn’t help, but what could I do?

  While I waited for the crew to pick me up, I wandered out to the mailbox to place a letter inside. My bills still had to be paid. When I opened the box, I spotted an envelope. That was odd. I’d checked my mail yesterday and nothing had been in there but a few advertisements. I pulled the envelope out, flipped it over and looked at the front. It was addressed to me, but there was no return address. My stomach turned. Memories of Brianna Garrett flashed through my mind. It reminded me of the time she had sent me chocolates and tricked me with her magic into thinking they were from my mother. I’d eaten them and become deathly ill. I’d never eat anything someone sent me again.

  Without me noticing, the crew had pulled up in front of my house. They honked the horn, so I stuffed the envelope into my bag and hurried over. I’d have to read it once I got in the SUV.

  Matt approached and Cooper followed along behind me. “Okay. We’re all set. You all will follow me in the SUV. A cameraman is in the vehicle. He’ll be taping from this moment on. So watch what you say. Things start now, gang.” He clapped his hands.

  “Don’t worry, we’ve got manners. Our mamas didn’t raise heathens,” I said as I made my way toward the vehicle. “Well, some of us aren’t heathens.” I looked at Cooper and grinned.

  “Cooper, you’ll be in the van with Larue, okay?” Matt looked at Cooper, who nodded while staring at me.

  Mindy had rolled her window down, straining to hear the conversation.

  “I’m not sure if there’s room,” I said.

  “Um, it is a small van,” Mindy said, trying to help me out.

  Matt frowned. “We need him with you, Larue, he is your co-host.”

  “Yeah. Okay, I guess we have room,” I said reluctantly.

  It wasn’t as if I had a choice, unless Cooper wanted to walk. But far could it be? Fifty miles? The exercise would be good for him.

  “I tried,” Mindy mouthed.

  “Okay, so you’re ready then?” Matt asked again.

  “Yeah, I guess I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. At least we’re not in front of a live audience. I’m not sure I could handle that.”

  Maybe I should have been more enthusiastic? But that strange, irritated feeling had returned right after I’d finished my morning waffles. Could Mindy tell that something was on my mind? Probably. She knew me too well. I really wanted to know what the letter said.

  I hopped in the backseat of the SUV. Unfortunately, Mindy had taken the front seat leaving me to sit next to Cooper in the back seat. How would I get a chance to read the letter with him watching? I didn’t want him to know any of my business. Plus, the darn camera was on us. Cooper gave me a funny look when Elvis sat between us, but he didn’t mention it in front of the camera. I shrugged but didn’t offer an explanation. It was the type of situation that words just couldn’t explain.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  We
pulled up to the farmhouse like a fleet of FBI agents—dark cars and vans full of equipment. Our presence had to be intimidating to the homeowner. It looked as if we were taking over her home. I’d been on this street of historic homes before, but I’d never paid attention to the house looming over us.

  I still wasn’t sure if I knew the full extent of what I had gotten myself into. How long would it take before I figured out what all of this meant? Thank goodness the location had been close to home. I wasn’t sure if I could have accepted the gig if it had been too far away. I wasn’t ready to put that much distance between Callahan and me this soon in our relationship.

  The house was a big old farmhouse in the neighboring town of Stephensburg. It was white with black shutters and little yellow flowers along the edges of the sidewalk. It seemed innocent enough, but I felt the bad vibe all the way out in the car. It was so strong that it could have pounded me over the head.

  The front porch wrapped all the way around the house. I bet the homeowner would be happy if I got rid of her unwelcome visitor; the place would be heavenly once the negative vibe was gone. I’d be happy out there along the tree-lined street among the peace and quiet. But would I be able to help the homeowner? My negativity had reached an all-time high. I felt like a fraud considering I currently had a bad spirit trailing me.

  After climbing out of the vehicle, I paused, placed my hand above my eyes to shield the sun and peered up at the house. I knew something was in the upstairs window watching my arrival. It didn’t feel human and it most definitely didn’t want me there. I turned back to Mindy and Cooper to gauge their reaction to the house. Mindy was busy chatting with Matt, and Cooper didn’t let on if he’d seen the spirit in the window too.

  “Seems like a nice place,” Candy Cherry said.

  “More than a few spirits here.” Mr. Fine’s hand shook as he took a drag from his cigarette.

  “I’m glad you can sense them. Maybe you can help me talk to them,” I said, trying to hide my conversation from the cameraman. They knew I was a medium, but it still looked like I was talking to myself. I didn’t want to appear to be a complete kook.

  “I’m not going in there,” Mr. Fine said.

  “Oh yes, you are.” Candy Cherry glared at him.

  What was that all about? They were a strange pair.

  After helping remove some of the equipment from the back of the SUV, I made my way up the path toward the house. The gate squeaked as I pushed it open and the sound of my footsteps was amplified in my head each time I stepped across the stone path.

  Being followed by a camera crew was more disconcerting than I’d thought. That high-definition camera would be the death of me. My pores would look more like craters. If the show didn’t scare people, my face in HD surely would. For the love of all skin conditions, who thought that was a good idea, anyway?

  So our first case really was located in Kentucky. Matt hadn’t lied. Mindy’s fantasy of traveling to far-away locations had gone up in flames. Staying close to home was fine by me.

  It was part of my job to reassure the clients. Just because I was doing my work in front of a camera crew now didn’t mean I’d lose track of the real reason I was there: helping the person who struggled with a haunting or unexplained events going on in their life. Whether it was indeed paranormal or inexplicable didn’t matter. The person needed my help.

  Cooper hurried beside me as if we were in a race to see who could make it to the door first. But when we reached the steps, he paused and motioned for me to lead the way. Maybe he had manners after all. Chivalry wasn’t dead as far as this city boy was concerned. I stepped up onto the long porch, made my way around the rocking chairs, and stopped in front of the old wood door. The pretty wreath on the door did nothing to ease the fear of the possible evil waiting on the other side. I’d been in a lot of haunted houses, but apprehension never eluded me. Needless to say, demons were always the toughest.

  Cooper joined me at the door—his fidgeting from foot to foot was a little annoying. But everything was getting on my nerves lately. Yeah, I was nervous too, but not because of the demons or ghosts. I was nervous because of the camera invading my personal space.

  Well, I was a little nervous because of the demons, too. I realized how nasty they could be. Don’t get me wrong, Cooper was a big strapping man and looked as if he could handle his own. But, I knew he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t nervous.

  “You nervous?” I asked.

  “Who me? No way.” He shook his head.

  I suspected he shoved his hands in his front pockets to keep from fidgeting.

  When I knocked on the door, a negative energy rushed through my body. The spirits were ready to pounce and we hadn’t even entered yet. I glanced over my shoulder and spotted Elvis. He knew inside this home was no place for him. Mr. Fine and Candy Cherry were nowhere in sight. I thought she was excited to come in, but I guessed I’d been wrong. My anxiety increased and I held my breath waiting for someone to answer.

  “There are two people here,” I whispered to Cooper as we waited. “They don’t want to leave the home.”

  After all this time, I still had nervousness and apprehension when confronting new spirits. I never knew what they’d do or say. Would they attack me or be a sweet potato like Elvis? It just never got any easier. Zach Duncan had been my mentor before he’d retired. He taught me everything I knew about demons and my spiritual talent. I’d been going on paranormal investigations for over three years since. I’d never imagined that one of those investigations would be in front of a camera crew.

  The memories of the demon I’d encountered as a teenager flashed through my mind and left me on edge. Maybe the stress had finally taken its emotional toll on me. I attracted paranormal activity like a bug-zapper attracted mosquitoes. But I wouldn’t let it stop me. I had a deep-rooted need to find answers to the unknown.

  Cooper could deny his apprehension all he wanted, but based on the fidgeting, I’d say he was a little nervous, unless he had to go to the bathroom, really, really bad. So much for being Mr. Tough-Guy.

  With Cooper standing so close, I glanced over at him. He smiled half-heartedly, then gestured for me to knock again and puffed out his muscular chest. He wouldn’t be such a brave macho guy once he got a load of this demon. Why men always needed to prove themselves, I’d never know.

  The cameraman exhaled on the back of my neck. I wanted to ask him if it was really necessary to stand that close, but refrained. The last thing I needed was to look like an ass on TV, although that was probably unavoidable. At some point in this process, I knew I’d make a fool of myself.

  Just when I thought no one would answer, the door creaked open and a petite brunette stood in front of us. She glanced from me to Cooper. It looked as if she hadn’t sleep for days with the dark rings under her eyes and the mussed hair.

  “Ms.—”

  “Ms. Blake?” I interrupted.

  “Yes.” She nodded.

  “Hi, I’m Larue Donavan and this is Cooper Garrett.” I gestured toward my fellow medium. “We’re with Chasing Demons.” That sounded completely strange as if I was in a dream. Was I really going to be on TV? I glanced over my shoulder and saw the big camera in my face, which answered my question.

  “Please come in. Thanks for coming. Call me Jennie.” She tucked a loose strand of chestnut-colored hair behind her ear and let out a deep breath.

  This was it. The reality sank in. I was on TV. The cameraman was in fact taping every word I said. Every move I made would be scrutinized. By whom, I had no idea, but scrutinized, nonetheless. The public could be brutal. I hoped I didn’t embarrass my family. Cooper probably looked like a million bucks on camera. Darn him.

  Cooper stuck out his hand toward Ms. Blake. “Nice to meet you, Jennie. Thank you for having us in your home.” He flashed his million-watt smile.

  I was sure the camera was getting his good side and my bad side. Not that I was sure I even had a good side. Why couldn’t my face be perfect like Mr.
Male Model next to me?

  Jennie led us into the living room. The room was full of new furniture, but with everyone from the show crowded into the space, it was a tight fit. The whole area was cold and uncomfortable in spite of the calming décor. A sleek gray sofa was placed against the right side of the room with splashes of fuchsia from the toss pillows and a vase of deep pink gerbera daisies on the coffee table.

  “Can you tell us what made you call us to your home?” I asked as I glanced around the room.

  She looked down for a second, then finally met our gaze. “I’m terrified of the strange things going on in the house. Everyone who comes into the house is being affected.”

  As I stood there, a flash went through my mind. In my vision there was a dark room and in the corner a young girl sat on the floor rocking back and forth. I had no idea what it meant though. Jennie was still talking, but my mind had tuned her out against my will. I tried to listen to her, but I had no control over my visions at the moment.

  The flash of the young girl ran through my thoughts again. She had a huge gash across her face. Next, she appeared in the corner of the living room and told me that being dead wasn’t all that bad because she could watch the people around her like she used to watch a soap opera. A disturbing thought to most people to know that someone was watching you when you thought you were completely alone. But hey, it was like dust mites, you knew they were there on the bed, but you tried not to think about it because it would just freak you out.

  This girl wasn’t the only thing haunting the house though. No, there was also something that was very bad—the worst of the worst. It was outside the home for the time being, but someone had called it to this house on purpose. I had no idea who would do such a thing.

  Cooper’s voice brought me out of my trance. “What type of things are happening in your home?” he asked Jennie.

  She glanced around the room as if she was looking for someone… or something. “I hear knocking sounds in the walls. And I just feel things, like people are watching me. I really think it’s connected to me. It messes with my emotions.”