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Fiona’s eyes widened her connection with the supernatural world making her instantly empathize with Layla’s gift. Max placed a protective hand on Fiona’s shoulder, his role as sheriff solidifying his determination to uncover the truth. Bella stood silently, her own unique powers a silent comfort in these moments of revelation.
“Are you sure it’s connected to this house?” Jake asked, skepticism clear in his voice. As a fireman, it was hard for him to accept the paranormal aspects of their lives, even after everything they had experienced.
“Absolutely,” Layla replied, staring into Jake’s eyes. “And there’s more. I think the girl we found in the apartment fire might be involved somehow. She could be the key to unlocking the secrets of this cursed place.”
“Then we must find her,” Max declared, his voice firm and resolved. “We need answers, and she might be our only chance at getting them.”
Layla shook her head. “She said something about her husband turning into someone else for a second and then turning back. Could her husband have been possessed by a ghost from the mansion?”
“Wait,” Bella interjected, her gaze locked on the moon as it began to rise in the sky. “Let me use my power to see if there are any hidden truths we’re missing.”
As the group watched, Bella’s eyes glowed silver in the moonlight. She reached out with her power, searching for any hidden threads that would lead them to the truth.
“Someone has been trying to cover up the past,” she said softly, her voice distant. “There are old newspaper articles and records that were deliberately hidden. We need to find them if we want to understand what truly happened.”
“Then it’s settled,” Fiona said, determination flashing in her eyes. “We’ll search for the girl and uncover these hidden articles. Together, we’ll put an end to this haunting once and for all.”
Layla nodded, her heart swelling with gratitude for her friends’ support. As she met Jake’s gaze, she could see a flicker of belief in his eyes. He still had doubts, but he was willing to help, and that meant more to her than anything.
With the wind still whispering through the trees, the group turned back toward the mansion, ready to face whatever darkness awaited them within its walls.
Layla shook her head. “But I think the girl we found in the apartment might have something to do with the fire in the haunted mansion. I saw her in my vision, alone and afraid, surrounded by flames.” A shiver ran down her spine.
“Flames?” Jake’s brow furrowed, his firefighter instincts kicking in. “You think she started it?”
“Or maybe she was a victim,” Fiona suggested, her gaze clouded with worry. “A target of these two twisted souls.”
“Either way,” Max said, his voice firm and authoritative, “we need to figure out how to stop this ghostly couple from hurting anyone else.”
Layla looked around at her friends, grateful for their understanding and support. She turned to Jake, meeting his gaze with a mixture of fear and determination. “I know you might not believe in all of this, but I need your help. We all do.”
As Layla stood with the others, she felt the chill of the north wind blow. And she saw the girl from the apartment being yelled at by the husband. The fire was set and he left. It was only when he reached his car that a ghost floated out of his body.
“The husband was possessed. No doubt about it,” Layla said softly.
The other simply nodded their understanding. There was too much water under the bridge for anyone to argue with one of Layla’s visions.
*****
“ALL RIGHT, LET’S SEEwhat we can find about the haunted mansion’s past,” Max announced as he led the group into the dimly lit library. The scent of aged books and wood filled their nostrils, as they each began to search through the vast collection of historical documents.
Layla watched Jake from across the room, his brows knitted together in concentration. She couldn’t help but wonder what was going on in his head. He had agreed to help them, but she knew he was still skeptical. A pang of guilt tugged at her heart; she didn’t want to drag him into something he didn’t believe in. But with a fire possibly involved, his expertise could prove invaluable.
“Found something!” Bella called out excitedly, waving an old newspaper article above her head. The others quickly gathered around her, eager to read the faded text.
“Listen to this,” she began, holding the brittle paper carefully. “Local Woman Found Guilty of Multiple Murders: In a horrifying case that has shocked the community, Clarissa Harrington was sentenced to death for the brutal killings of several young women. Her husband, Charles Harrington, better known as the town’s notorious Lothario, seduced the victims before luring them to their deaths.” Bella paused, looking up at the group. “This is exactly what Layla saw.”
“Seems like it,” Fiona murmured, her eyes scanning the rest of the article. “It says here that after Clarissa’s execution, Charles disappeared without a trace. People speculated that he joined his wife in the afterlife, forever bound by their twisted love and murderous desires.”
Jake stared at the article, his mind racing with conflicting thoughts. He couldn’t deny that the story matched Layla’s vision, but it was still hard to accept the idea of vengeful ghosts haunting a mansion. He glanced over at Layla, her expression a mix of relief and trepidation. He could see how much it meant to her that they’d found proof, but he also knew she felt burdened by the responsibility of stopping these ghosts.
“All right,” Jake said finally, his voice low and resolute. “I may not fully understand all this paranormal stuff, but if there’s even a chance that someone else could get hurt, I’m in.”
“Thank you, Jake,” Layla breathed, her eyes shining with gratitude. She reached for his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “We’ll figure this out together.”
“Let’s do some more research, come up with a plan,” Max suggested, his gaze steady on each of them. “We’ve faced ghosts before, and we can do it again. We just need to be smart and stick together.”
As they delved deeper into the haunted mansion’s past, searching for clues on how to stop the murderous ghostly couple, Layla couldn’t help but feel a flicker of hope. She glanced at Jake, his strong firefighter hands carefully turning the pages of an old book, and she knew that no matter what challenges lay ahead, they would face them head-on.
