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"I don't look creepy, do I?" I asked through the smile and he snorted out a laugh.
"Not at all."
We didn’t say anything else as our host walked up to join us.
“Did you find the place alright?” Kassie asked as she walked toward us. Her black-painted lips were quirked up in a smile. The poor woman had inherited the orphanage and all the land surrounding it.
Unfortunately there was a stipulation that she couldn’t tear it down.
She was working with lawyers to find a way to save the place but I had my doubts whether they’d be able to get contractors in here to make the place into something more.
It was close to being condemned if it hadn’t been already.
Yet she’d alluded to some plans that I couldn’t wait to hear more of. Maybe I’d change my tune after walking inside. Only time would tell.
“Can you give me some more details on the place?” I questioned, leading with a much easier question. We didn’t just go around admitting we saw ghosts, but maybe I could pretend to be a psychic. She knew we had the business for a reason so at least she believed at some level.
“So, as you know I inherited it. There are rumors of ghosts,” she summarized quickly. She had a quick and to the point way of talking and I appreciated that. She was honest and wasn’t going to hold back on us. That would keep us safe.
“Okay, are they rumored to be quiet, violent, anything in between?” Lucien questioned.
“Moving objects, voices, a few touches, nothing violent but no one has been brave enough to delve deeper in years. Hell, I won’t go in either.” She laughed softly but it was humorless and full of nervous energy.
“Who is Charlie?” I questioned. Her eyes widened and she let out a breath as she gaped at me.
“My great grandfather used to talk about her. She was the woman who ran this home. It had one of the best reputations around, she truly cared about the girls who lived here. There were a lot of orphans after the war and she made sure they didn’t suffer more than they already had.”
“Interesting,” I said, not giving her anything more. She narrowed her eyes playfully.
“Why?”
“She greeted me when I got here,” I admitted. “I can feel her in this place.”
“She made this place what it was,” Kassie said. “I have pictures, I’ll bring them by tomorrow. Are you staying in town?”
We’d agreed to stay for the week and investigate. The place wasn’t habitable but we had a small cabin in town, which I explained to Kassie.
“Meet me at the diner at six, my treat,” she said. “I’ll bring everything I have on the history. I wanted to make sure you were the real deal before giving away too much.”
Her cheeks heated at the admission but I couldn’t blame her. I was also curious what she planned to do once we told her what was going on here.
“Here are the keys and a floor plan,” she offered the keyring and a rolled-up paper before waving goodbye. Eli and Jayce had hung out but as she drove off, they rushed over to take her place.
“So, what’s the word?” Eli demanded.
“She trusts us now, so we’re meeting for dinner tonight to learn what all she knows. For now, she’s ours to explore,” I said, holding up the keys. “Shall we?”
Now that I knew Charlie wasn’t a threat, I was excited to see what rested beyond these double doors.
A plume of dust shifted as we pushed open the newly unlocked front doors to reveal the foyer. The lobby was a large room covered in framed artwork from the kids. It was once painted pretty colors in pinks and purples but it had faded into a dull shade after all the years left unattended.
Boxes and piles of building supplies rested on the floor, but even the fresh lumber and paint cans were coated in dust. The last workers didn’t remain long it seemed.
“This isn’t creepy at all. It just had to be kids,” Eli said with an exaggerated shudder.
“I don’t know much about the history here, outside of what she shared, but the kids likely all moved on when it closed down. We won’t be dealing with tons of little creepy children running around.”
“Maybe not tons, but you didn’t say there were none,” Jayce pointed out with a shudder.
