Page 16 of Chillingham Castle

“Yeah,” Coffee agreed.

“If the legends are true, that doesn’t narrow anything down,” I replied.

“No, we must resolve this. I can’t man the cameras; I have to dig into the past,” Dive stated. He reached down, and I grabbed his hand and let him haul me up.

“I need a drink,” I muttered.

“Come on, it’s time for lunch anyway,” Reaver remarked. His eyes checked me over, and he seemed happy enough.

Jack

For the most part, the chapel was quiet; we heard a few bangs and knocks, but no one replied when we called out. I sat in the spot where the little girl touched people and got nothing. That didn’t mean she didn’t exist; it just meant she didn’t want to talk right now.

It had been a pretty easy session until Lich began yelling over the radio.

We rushed out into the courtyard and saw them burst out of the main doors. Haunt was tossed over Lich’s shoulder, producing a noise I never wished to listen to again.

“What the hell happened?” Reaver demanded as he helped Lich lay Haunt down. Haunt’s eyes were unfocussed, and the agony on his face was breathtaking. Anything he was feeling was intense.

“The entity attacked us. It went straight for Haunt,” Lich replied.

“Prez!” Reaver shook Haunt, but he was locked into whatever he was seeing. Lucky crouched and pulled out his cross and Bible. He sprinkled holy water over Haunt and began praying.

“Prez!” Lich called, worry in his voice.

Lucky upped his prayers and slammed his cross into Haunt’s forehead. I was relieved when Haunt’s eyes focused on Lucky and then the rest of us. After a few minutes, we headed back inside the tearoom.

“That’s the worst case of transference I’ve seen,” I mentioned, and Dive nodded.

“Yeah. That was full on,” he muttered as he watched Haunt carefully. For a moment, I envied their closeness; growing up together had created a tight bond between them.

“I heard from Cammie,” Dive said to Haunt as Suga fetched drinks.

Haunt cupped his hands around his mug as if he was dragging in heat. “And?” he asked.

“Cammie’s happy to hop on board as an editor. Jayna and Lynnie are undecided; they took a beating from the Essex Ghost Society. They’re going to come and stay at a local hotel. Cammie’s got them to help us with this, and they will arrive early morning before we go to bed. They’re travelling now. They set off at nine this evening, so should be here around three or four a.m.” Dive sipped his drink.

“Any news on what actually happened?” I asked curiously. The Essex Ghost Society had gained a pretty big following, so something serious must have blown up.

“No. Cammie mentioned she’ll explain when they arrive. She said not to press Jayna or Lynnie,” Dive replied.

“That doesn’t sound good. Lynnie helped create the group,” Haunt explained.

“Yeah. If she and that twat have gone at it, after two decades of investigating, it has to be something terrible,” Lich commented.

“We’ll know soon enough,” I drawled and began eating.

Chapter Four.

Reaver

“Can someone check my shoulders?” Haunt asked as he squirmed on his seat. He’d regained a lot of his composure but remained pale.

I pulled his tee up and gasped. Going from the top of his shoulder diagonally to his mid-back were four claw marks. The same scratches repeated on his opposite side.

“Damn,” I murmured as Lucky dropped his plate on the table and came over. He motioned for the first-aid kit. Lich took some pictures while Suga recorded the event as Lucky cleaned him up and then washed the wounds with holy water.

“I sensed them burning in the corridor,” Haunt explained.