Starfire (Grim Gate Book 2), page 7
“Hi,” a girl with pink and purple hair says when we’re almost to the counter. “Are you here for the ghost hunt?”
“Ghost hunt?” I echo as Ethan lets out a snort of laughter.
The girl smiles, nodding enthusiastically. “The Midwest Ghost Trackers are hosting a hunt at the library. We actually have a few open spots left if you want to join. We’re heading over in about fifteen minutes. It’s twenty bucks per person and they’re even providing us with equipment to use if you dare.” Her smile broadens, obviously excited to go look for ghosts. I really appreciate how mainstream ghost hunting has become, though I can’t stand to watch those shows where loud men go into old buildings and tell spirits to give them a sign.
Ethan looks at me, amusement sparkling in his whiskey-colored eyes. “We should do it. The paranormal fascinates us both.”
“Yeah,” I say with a nod. “It does.”
“I’ll go if you want to go,” Ethan offers and it takes work to keep a straight face. I know exactly what he’s thinking. If there are any ghosts in the library, I’ll be the only one who can actually communicate with them.
“It sounds fun.”
“Great!” The girl smiles again. “I’m Anissa and I just need to get your info and you’ll be all set. Most of the people going on the hunt are here, so you’re welcome to hang out until it’s time to walk over. I just need your names and then payment. You can pay online or in cash if you have it on you. I never have cash on me.”
I give her our info and Ethan pulls out his wallet and pays her the forty dollars. We typically split stuff as evenly as we can. We moved in together after dating only a short time, but circumstances pushed us closer together. The house is mine yet, since we moved in at the same time, it really feels like ours. I’m currently living off my inheritance and Ethan still goes out on hunts for the Order, getting paid that way. We’ve been “letting things settle” and Ethan has brought up getting a job in either Thorne Hill or Paradise Valley.
We’re next in line to order pastries, and we both get coffee since we’ll be sitting around for a bit. There’s only one free table in the back of the café, and it’s crammed up next to another table. Ethan and I sit down, and I give him a look.
“Be nice when we get there.”
“I wouldn’t be anything but,” he says seriously, and I laugh. “Really, though, it can be dangerous to go sniffing around at something haunted. My dad and I have been sent on rescue missions to retrieve amateur ghost hunters from things that aren’t ghosts.” He takes a drink of his coffee.
“You mean demons.”
“Yep. There are some things you should leave to the professionals.” He makes a face. “Which I know is hard when most of the world doesn’t know there are professionals.”
“I definitely understand the interest in ghosts and wanting to contact a loved one. People have and always will want to know what happens to us when we die.”
“Knowing someone I cared about was stuck here as a ghost wouldn’t bring me comfort.”
“Oh, me neither. Most of the spirits I sense are sad.” I pick up my coffee and blow on it, thinking about Bob, a ghost who haunts the barn Mystery was at back in New York. I never did figure out what happened to him, or what made him randomly change his pattern of haunting. I guess I never will.
“Hey,” a woman says, coming up to our table. She’s holding two cups of coffee and a guy stands behind her. “You guys are going to the library for the ghost hunt, right?”
“Yeah,” I tell her.
“Us too. Could we sit with you until it’s time to go over? There’s nowhere else to sit.”
“Sure,” I say, scooting my chair close to Ethan to make a little more room at the small round table.
“Thanks. I’m Rene and this is Keith.”
“Hi,” Keith says with a little wave. He sidesteps, letting Rene through first.
“I’m Anora and this is my boyfriend, Ethan.”
“I can’t believe this many people wasted money on this event,” Keith grumbles.
“He’s a nonbeliever.” Rene sits next to me and takes a big drink of coffee. “What about you? Do you believe in ghosts?”
“Oh, I totally do,” I answer. “But whether we’ll see any at the library…I’m doubtful. I’ve been in there a few times, and it never gave me I’m haunted vibes.”
“Because it’s not haunted,” Keith quips. “All y’all are just getting conned.”
“I agree with him.” Ethan chuckles.
“I’m not saying ghosts aren’t real, I’m just saying a group of us walking around the library after hours isn’t going to make them magically appear.” Keith purses his lips.
Ethan nudges me. “You never know what could happen.”
“You believe in ghosts?” Keith asks Ethan.
“I believe in a lot of things,” Ethan replies. “But I’m with you on this. The only things you’re going to catch tonight are the things you want to catch.”
Rene takes another drink of coffee, eyes widening. “They have a spirit box we can use.”
“You know those things are total crap, right?” Ethan’s lips pull into a half smile. “It’s another one of those you hear what you want to hear kind of things.”
“What’s a spirit box?” Keith asks.
“It’s a device that scans through different radio channels and supposedly spirits can use it to communicate.”
“So, it’s all random?”
“Yeah.”
“Exactly why it’s total crap.” Ethan chuckles. “But, like I said, you never know, right?”
“Have you been on a ghost hunt before?” Rene asks me.
“Uh, not exactly anything like this,” I tell her, which is true. Spirits seek me out more than I seek them out, and the few times I did go looking, I didn’t need a tour group leading me around with equipment. “Have you?”
“I’ve been on a few. They’re fun. Usually, my sister comes with me but she got stuck at the hospital, so I dragged him along.” She gives Keith a look. “Though, you owe me from making me go see Mary Poppins with you.” She looks back at me. “I fucking hate musicals.”
“Really? I love them,” I laugh. “But he hates them.”
“That theater puts on the best plays every fall,” Keith goes on.
“I didn’t know there was a theater in town,” I say. “We, uh, moved here a few months ago.”
“Oh, well, welcome to Paradise Valley.”
“Thanks. Technically, we live in Thorne Hill, but we’re on the edge of town.”
Keith and Rene exchange looks. “I’m guessing you haven’t heard the rumors,” Rene says.
“What rumors?”
“That the town is cursed by witches.”
CHAPTER 9
Ethan leans back, his face neutral. My poker face, on the other hand, is not on point. “What makes you say that?” he asks.
Rene shakes her head, shrugging at the same time. “I’ve never personally seen anything that would make me think that, but it’s something I always grew up hearing. Plus, people tend to get murdered there—like way more than you’d think when all other crime is super low. Kinda creeps me out.”
“Huh,” I say, taking away the fact that other witches are rumored to be in Thorne Hill, not that people get murdered. “That’s—”
“All right, hunters!” Anissa claps her hands together. “It’s time!”
“Yay!” Rene smiles. “This is going to be fun. I have a good feeling about it.”
I stand up fast, bumping myself on the table. To Rene and Keith, the rumors are just that: rumors. It’s something silly they grew up hearing and didn’t put any stock into it. Keith doesn’t think ghosts are real. There’s no way he’d believe witches are too. My fingers almost tremble as I zip up my coat, feeling like I’m right there, teetering on the edge of finding out the truth, not from Rene, but from…someone.
Like the lady with the black hair.
I have to find her, and I don’t care how cold it’s going to be tomorrow, I’m going back into the attic to search for more clues. There’s so much junk up there, something has to help me narrow down my search.
The group of ghost hunters all bundle up, and Ethan and I hang back, being the last to leave.
“I didn’t think about it before,” Ethan starts, voice low. “What if you were cursed and that’s why you’re seeing things only you can see.”
I turn, eyes lighting up. “You mean there could be another witch in Thorne Hill?”
“I feel like you’re missing the someone cursed you part.”
“Yeah, but if someone was able to curse me, then that means they’re a witch. Which means I’m not the only witch in town. And, if they’re more of us, then maybe I can find someone who knew my aunt and the school she taught at when I was a kid.”
“Again. They would have cursed you.”
“Which would be rude. I didn’t do anything to deserve being cursed.” I pull my purse up on my shoulder. “There is a curse-breaking spell in my book. It won’t hurt to cast it.”
“If you have what you need to cast it, you should it tonight.”
“I think I do. I ordered a lot of stuff a few weeks ago.”
“Good.” Ethan takes my hand as we cross the street and enter the library. We hang back, listening to the ghost hunters putting on the tour give a history of the building. It was used as a temporary hospital in the late 1800s and, though the records were lost, many people might have died. They go on to say how the librarians report strange sounds, cold spots, and find books they shelved on the floor. One time, books on the cart to be shelved got put away, all in the wrong sections. And the ghost of a little girl has been seen in the children’s section.
The story about the little girl, who died of polio in the 1950s, is interesting and definitely pulls on your heartstrings. I didn’t venture upstairs into the children’s section, so if she is there, it makes sense as to why I missed picking up on a presence. I turn to whisper my theory to Ethan and see him shoving half a donut in his mouth.
“You’re not supposed to eat in the library,” I hiss.
“I’m hungry,” he whispers back with his mouth full.
“We just ate.”
He just gives me a look and takes another bite of the donut. Pursing my lips to keep from laughing, I listen to the tour guides finish their speech. They divvy up the ghost hunting equipment. Ethan has an EMF meter in his pocket already, and I decline anything since I don’t need it. There’s a group of three women standing front and center, and one of them loudly tells us all they’re sensitive to spirits and have been seeing dark shadows moving throughout the bookshelves already.
Ethan and I exchange looks, both rolling our eyes. We move around the first floor and, I’ll admit, this place is creepy after hours. A lot of the lights have been turned off so people can take flash-photos in the hopes of catching an orb.
“Stop it,” I tell Ethan when he pulls another donut from the bag. “They’ll be none left for tomorrow morning.”
“We got a dozen. I’m only eating two.”
“For now.”
“Hunting makes me hungry.”
I raise an eyebrow. “This isn’t a real hunt.”
“Don’t let your guard down that easily,” he says. “Nine times out of ten, something like this is harmless, but when you get a bad feeling about something, leave. Don’t poke it with a stick.”
The woman claiming to sense spirits gasps, starting a few people and getting most of our attention.
“Something just grabbed me,” she dramatically exclaims. “I felt a hand on my shoulder.” She touches her shoulder, fingers trembling. “Feel this, Lisa. It’s ice cold!”
And once again, Ethan and I roll our eyes. This woman was in my line of sight. There were no ghosts anywhere to be seen.
“I gotta wonder,” Ethan muses. “Does she believe that happened or does she have no problem talking out of her ass?”
Rene and Keith duck out from behind a stack of books. “I’m going to say no problem talking out her ass,” Keith says and Ethan snickers.
“Even I have to agree.” Rene winces from her own words. I can tell she’s the type of person who wants to see a ghost because she needs the proof of the afterlife. People like her came in to get readings when I was working as a medium desperate to communicate with a lost loved one and to know they’re not actually gone.
I wonder who she lost.
“Have you gotten anything?” Rene asks me, looking into my hands. “Oh, you didn’t get any equipment?”
“Nah. I wanted to try this old-school,” I note. “I’m not picking up on anything here.”
“Same.” She holds up an EMF meter. “Where did you move from?”
“Syracuse, New York.”
“Cool. Is it super boring being here in hillbilly country?”
“No,” I tell her. “I’m really liking it, and I like being able to have my horses at my house.”
“You have horses? I love horses. I took riding lessons for years and just had to take a break this fall because it was a little out of my budget. Do you have pictures of them?”
I smile, thinking I just found a new friend. “Of course.”
“That was kind of fun.” I put the coffee cake on the kitchen counter.
“I would pick getting my fingernails ripped off one by one before doing that again.” Ethan opens the fridge and pulls out a beer.
“It was your idea to go in the first place.”
“I didn’t think we’d stay for four hours.”
“Sorry. I didn’t realize how much time passed.”
“Don’t apologize, babe.” Ethan twists off the cap of his beer. “I’m glad you had fun.”
“I did.” A smile comes to my face. It wasn’t fun because of the ghosts—and I did end up seeing the little girl. She’s a fading echo, repeating the same fleeting moment over and over. I had fun because Rene and I hit it off, and it’s been ages since I’ve had a friend to hang out with. I’m not the most social person, but I did hang out with Laney and Leslie a few times a month, and I’d go out with work friends several times throughout the year. “And I got a number.” I wiggle my eyebrows. “Rene’s number. Do you think she’s actually going to call tomorrow?”
“She said she would.”
“If she doesn’t, that’s fine. I can always go out again and actually talk to people so I can invite them over.”
“Should I be worried?” He takes a drink of his beer.
“Very worried. So worried you fuck me so hard my head rams against the headboard and I’m too sore to walk in the morning.”
“Goddamn,” Ethan growls, mentally undressing me with his eyes. “I’m going to do just that.” I wiggle my hips, getting turned on just thinking about Ethan throwing me down on the mattress.
“I’ve always had friends,” I continue, and then wince at my words. Ethan’s friends are other hunters, and the Order discourages them from becoming too close to anyone who isn’t in their immediate group. Ethan didn’t come out and say it, but I get the feeling it’s frowned upon to take the time to build a friendship. If the Order’s hunters do anything other than hunt, they’re not making money off of them.
“Rene is nice.” Ethan leans against the counter. “I’ll have Julia run a background check on her.”
I cock an eyebrow. “You don’t think that’s a little overkill?”
“Given everything that’s gone on, no. And it’s, uh, what we do.”
“Did you run one on me?”
“Yeah. It came back with nothing.”
“I’m such a good girl.”
And now Ethan is smirking again. “You’re not going to be a good girl tonight.” He sets the beer on the counter and comes to me, arms wrapping around my waist. Lust burns in his eyes, sending a jolt of warmth between my legs. I want him to whisk me upstairs for raunchy, dirty sex. But it’s more than that, and my heart swells in my chest.
I love this man so damn much.
Standing on my toes, I kiss him. Ethan grips me harder, crushing my breasts against his chest. He takes a step back, bringing me with him, and then spins us around so I’m pinned between his body and the wall. He takes both my hands and lifts my arms above my head, holding them tight as he kisses me, tongue slipping past my lips.
“I fucking love you,” he mewls, letting go of my wrists. He rests his forehead against mine, and our hearts beat in rhythm with one another’s.
“I love you too,” I pant, hand landing on his chest. I twist a handful of the material of his t-shirt, pulling him to me. Heat floods my body, and I can’t help but think it was fate that brought us together. I don’t ever want to imagine my life without him and, right now, I need him.
I rake my fingers through my hair, arching my back so my hips press against his. Ethan’s eyes fall shut for a moment, and then he kisses me again, desperation coming off him in palpable waves. He doesn’t just want me physically. He’s feeling just as much, just as deeply as I am. Because, despite all the shit in the world, we somehow managed to wade through it and find each other.
“Morning, babe.” Ethan sets a mug of steamy coffee on the nightstand and goes to the window, pulling the curtains back to let the sunlight in and help warm this old house. “Everyone is fed, blanketed, and turned out.”
“You’re too good to me.” I stretch and sit up, keeping the blankets pulled over my naked body. Ethan gets back into bed, slipping under the covers. The material of his sweatpants is cold against my skin, having come in from outside. He kisses my neck, and a rush goes through me, thinking back to last night.
“That’s not possible.”
I pick up my coffee and take a small sip. “I bet you have breakfast ready too.”
“I might have put cinnamon rolls in the oven, but they were from a can. Didn’t require too much effort.”
“Still, though. Thank you.” I take another drink of coffee and set the mug back on the nightstand so I can cuddle with Ethan, resting my head on his chest. “I slept well last night. I didn’t even hear my alarm go off this morning.”
