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I gently reached out and touched the back of his shoulder. He jerked a bit and then turned to me.
“I thought I told you to wait a minute.”
I just stared at him for a second to see if he’d say more. When he didn’t, I looked at Myst, who was still staring straight ahead at the window, no movement visible. I checked to make sure that James was still filming and then looked back at Paxton.
“Uh, I did wait, Pax. The door slammed, and we’ve been trying to get into you guys for quite a while now. What the hell happened?”
His brow furrowed. “What do you mean? We just got in here a second ago. The flies are bad, and I was trying to figure out what was causing them to congregate when Myst”—he reached down and touched her head, and she seemed to snap out of whatever was going on with her, though he didn’t seem to notice—“alerted to something. I was just about to take a closer look when you came in.”
What the hell? He didn’t seem to have any memory of what’d gone on in the time that James and I had been locked out in the hall. Was there a gas leak in here or something? I turned to Myst and saw her lying on the floor, her head between her front paws, whining softly. It looked as if she didn’t know what’d happened either, but it was clear that she knew thatsomethingwasn’t right.
Just as I ran my hand from the back of Pax’s shoulder down his arm and took a step closer to the window, the device I didn’t realize was still on bleeped, and that same voice came through once more.
“Leave.Leave now.”
Then, another voice, this one different than the male one from before and way more seductive, said, “Oh, no. Stay. Be my guest.”
Thatgave me chills. “What the fuck?” I said. “Is someone downstairs messing with us?”
“Not likely.” James shook his head, and I turned back to the window.
“What in God’s name is going on?” Pax asked, just when James’s walkie beeped as he pushed through to connect.
“Uh, boss? I think you should come to the third level. Now.”
CHAPTER8
~Paxton~
It was the morning of day two, and we were all congregated around the mansion’s dining room table, sucking down coffee and tea and waiting for Harper to show. She’d called Dev as we wrapped things up last night and said she had some information.
I didn’t love being back here after what had happened, but this was my job, and I knew I was protected—most of us were. That didn’t hold true for everyone, but we were professionals and knew what we were dealing with and potentially getting ourselves into.
We didn’t even get to finish out the full investigation for day one because of what’d happened to us on the third floor. From what I’d been told, I’d lost at least fifteen minutes of time. When Dev and Hanlen came up to talk with us after James radioed down, we’d investigated the flies on the bedroom window and couldn’t find a logical environmental explanation for them. It was a well-known fact that locations with purported demonic activity had insect infestations—among other things. There was a reason that scene existed inThe Amityville Horror. And given the nasty voice we’d heard come out of the JumpBox, I wouldn’t doubt one bit if we were dealing with a negative diabolical intelligence.
Seemed Dakota had tapped into one of the malevolent presences she’d felt the first night in the second-story bedroom, too. It’d told her to get the hell out and take the faithful with her this time. That there was no room in this house for anyone who didn’t bow to the dark one—whatever that meant.
Dev, Hanlen, and Lark had gotten some great results during their spirit box session. They’d told us they’d heard from who they believed was the starlet from the twenties and from at least two other spirits they thought used to live in the house, and Dev had seen what he suspected was one of the witches from the Moon Call Coven, though she hadn’t said anything. They’d gathered as much information as they could, and would have Harper and Burke dig into it more.
As much as I adored Harper and gave a nod to her excellent investigative skills, among the other things she brought to the team, Burke had an edge. After all, he was a ghost and wasn’t constrained by the trappings of the mortal coil, and he’d been one heck of a historian before he died. The two of them made a unique yet excellent research pair.
And, apparently, Dev’s cousin, Reagan, had become Burke’s constant companion, helping in ways that none of us ever expected. Despite the tragedies that had taken them from us, we found solace in having them back in our lives again in some capacity. I envied Dev and Lark and Dakota the ability to communicate with them, but knowing they were around and happy was a balm despite how it went against my earliest beliefs that all souls either went to Heaven or Hell. My fallout with the Church had changed a lot about me. As had things with my family.
Not to mention, working with the show all these years had made me adapt, and I felt as if I were a more rounded individual for it—and maybe even more spiritual.
I felt a light touch on my shoulder and looked up to see Sky standing over me. I’d been so deep in thought; I hadn’t realized she’d returned from the bathroom.
“How are you holding up?” she asked as she put a little pressure on my shoulder.
“I’m fine. How are you?”
“Exhausted,” she said on a yawn and took the chair next to me, leaving her hand in place. For some reason, the events of the night before still weighed heavily on me, but her touch grounded me a bit. I reached up across my chest and put my hand over hers, squeezing her fingers gently.
I may not be able to remember exactly what’d happened, but I knew that something had, and it bothered me that I didn’t know what had gone on with me and Myst during those fifteen minutes. When James and Sky had described how they’d gotten inexplicably locked out and that we’d almost been in a trance when they finally found their way back in, it reminded me of the research I’d done when studying to become a demonologist, and how inhuman entities could effectively put people into a psychic sleep. I wondered if that could happen while a person was awake. I’d have to look into it more if I could find the time.
I peered into Sky’s dark, soulful eyes and smiled. She returned the expression and then slid her hand down my back before grabbing her coffee. The minute her hand fell away, I felt it in my soul. It was if she lit a place that had been cast into darkness. The things I felt for her were growing, but we had bigger fish to fry.
I shook my head and focused on the conversation happening around the table. Dev and Hanlen were feeding pieces of bacon to Myst while talking about the spirit box session and the women they’d contacted. They said the dog had earned a special treat after what she’d gone through the night before, and I had to agree. I’d buy her a Porterhouse if Dev would let me. Part of me wondered if things would have been worse for me if I hadn’t had Mystique with me. I wasn’t sure what made me think that, but like children, animals were inherently innocent. While evil forces wanted to possess that, they also didn’t know what to do with it. It was harder for a demon or malevolent spirit to affect someone or something that didn’t leave an opening for them to do so.
