I appreciated she was deferring to me. “We don’t usually investigate the rooms where we’re staying. Recently, we’ve learned that if we witness something, then those staying there are prejudiced against it. We’re going to investigate the rooms known to be haunted and take baseline readings of the others. From there, we’ll start trying to narrow down this spirit’s haunts. He’s not trapped in one spot but…” I broke off and frowned.
“What is it?” Callie asked.
“He’s never appeared where we know spirits are,” I muttered.
“What?” Callie frowned.
“This entity’s never shown up if there’s an existing haunting in the room,” I said, consideringly. “That means something, but I’m unsure what.”
“He doesn’t want to share the limelight. And I’m starting to get an idea of what he is.”
“Going to share?”
“Not yet, not without more proof. If I label him and it’s wrong, we waste time,” Callie replied.
“Well, it’s something I’ve never encountered, and I’ve fifteen years doing this.”
“Not very long, considering,” Callie shot back, smiling.
“Long enough!”
“Okay, let’s get this sorted, guys,” I said over the babble of conversation. Angela’s staff had recently served a filling and scrumptious meal, and everyone was in a good mood.
“You got a list?” Jack asked, and I nodded.
“Sunny and Callie are taking Kingsmill, and I’m with Michelle and taking the Elizabethan Bedchamber. Trunk and Jack, you’ve got James. Ghoul, I want you with Lucky in Dr Syn’s room. Gizmo and Suga hit the Nutcracker Suite, and Dice and Coffeein Hawkhurst. We don’t have a team for Moreton and Fleur de Lys, and we’ll cover that tomorrow. Lich and Reaver, you’ve the cameras. To stave off boredom, we’ll swap around at two a.m. I’ll hand out new room assignments at that point,” I stated.
“Everyone, make sure you grab the equipment you need. We want to minimise movement so we can capture anything moving in the hallways,” Callie added.
I nodded in agreement. “I agree. Tonight and tomorrow, we’re doing the base readings in each room; afterwards we’ll start investigating what the hell is going on,” I said.
“What if we pick up on this entity?” Gizmo asked.
“Record and document; don’t interact. Do you all have protection?” My brothers held up their crosses, which Lucky had blessed. Callie’s team held up their own charms, which Michelle must have blessed.
“Let’s get to it,” Jack said enthusiastically.
“How long have you been doing exorcisms?” I asked Michelle.
“About ten years now. I discovered I had a talent for it, and my church ensured I got the training I needed.”
“You’re a genuine priest?” I asked, looking at her jeans and tee.
“Believe it or not, yes. Obviously, I’m not a Catholic one, but I hold the rank of Priest in my religion.”
“Does it help? Your faith?”
“Yes. What we do is frightening. If I didn’t have God to turn to, I couldn’t do this. I love helping people and helping soothe unsettled spirits. Haunt, we both recognise there’s something deeper happening across the world. Evil is growing, and so are evil entities. Life is so hard now. Demonic entities enter ourworld far too frequently. Darkness is growing, and we need to stand against it,” Michelle said.
The confidence in her voice bolstered me. Michelle was a true believer in what we did. Too many did it for glory, power, or fame. For the wrong reasons.
“Did your church approve of you joining Ghost Seekers Inc.?”
“Yes. Strange that, isn’t it? You’d imagine they would want a mention or credit, but they’ve asked for nothing. Sure, anyone looking me up can see which denomination I belong to, but they don’t want publicity like that. I suppose they view me as a roving priest, which is nice.”
“I like that,” I stated, truly meaning it.
“How about you guys? I’m guessing your MC name came from your investigations,” Michelle asked.
