“Nope, that’s monthly. It covers wages for all of you and budgets for petrol, food, and other costs. Any money left over can either be saved for a rainy day or split between you. Also, I’ve calculated thirty years’ worth, and it will be put into a trust with that monthly allocation paid out,” Callie replied.
“What do you get out of this?” I demanded. Nobody was this generous.
“You let me know where you’re going to be in advance, and we’ll do the same. Maybe we can do some crossover episodes. But I get the pleasure of helping you guys help others.”
“You don’t want credit?” Reaver frowned.
“Nope. People need to learn the correct way to handle an investigation. Not like those idiots who scream abuse for attention and likes.”
“I’ve gotta talk to my brothers. Do you have a contract?”
Callie slid a file across the table.
“One other thing: you can say no, but Jack says you desperately need a presenter. He’s applying. Jack has a dual passport; his mom was English and his dad American. He was born here but moved to the USA when three months old. Jack wants to learn about his mother’s country,” Callie said.
“We’ll consider it. When do I have to decide?”
“Take as long as you want. Get a lawyer to review it. No matter what happens, we’ll stay in contact.” Callie grinned.
“Hope so,” I replied, taking a huge bite of bacon.
Today just got interesting.
Welsh and Jenners removed the trunk. I’d no idea what they’d say to their station, but they’d got more than they’d expected. We cleared everything up and blessed the inn one last time. Angela had worried the maid might be gone, but we grinned when a faint voice said, ‘Thank you.’ She was regaining her energy and would soon be back to her normal haunting.
The Mermaid Inn had another chapter to add to its rich and long history. And it had remained standing despite it. A beautiful place to visit and one I’d fondly remember. Sadly, Angela had learned a harsh lesson, but I hoped it wouldn’t stop her from letting genuine investigators in. Only time would tell.
Epilogue.
Haunt
“Ididn’t expect that,” I said as Reaver packed the van up. He was glowering because it was his turn to drive it. We took turns, and we all hated being the one driving it.
“Nope. That was a mighty generous offer of Callie’s. Would it bother you having the logo on the van?” I’d emailed everything to our legal counsel, who got back to us within hours and said I’d be a damn idiot to turn it down. That answered that. Callie had been excited when I handed her the signed document, and she’d already forwarded the details to our solicitor for the trust.
“Nah. If she’d asked for it to be on our cut, then yeah, that might have been an issue, but I ain’t fussed about it being everywhere else.”
“You know what this means? With the funding she just gave us, we can take on more people and help,” Lich interrupted.
“Let’s live how we wanna,” Trunk added.
“Did you check out the budget for R and D?” Gizmo was almost walking on air. My brother was beyond excited.
“Those wages are pretty generous,” Suga stated.
“Yeah. And she said they’re starting rates?” shaking my head in disbelief.
Jack approached and lifted a case into the van. “Callie’s pretty kind-hearted. There’s nothing she loves more than a good haunting. You should visit them over there one day. Their RV is tricked out.”
“I can’t believe you stayed,” I stated, turning to him.
“You needed a presenter, and although I’ve been with Callie from the beginning, she has Connor now. And you guys hate presenting, and Haunt, you suck at it,” Jack stated, laughing.
Jack wasn’t wrong.
“You would have been screwed if Connor had come with Callie; he doesn’t have a dual passport like me. And now I get to tour my mom’s homeland. She’d be so excited. Anyway, where are we off to next?” Jack asked.
I glanced at my brothers, and wicked grins broke out on our faces.
“The Mermaid Inn is one of the most haunted inns in the country. How do you fancy the most haunted castle in England? And it really is recognised as that.”
Jack beamed. “Lead on, Macduff. I can’t wait!”
We all grinned; Jack would be in heaven when he found out the history of our next venue.
