“I think that’s the only move that makes sense,” Jared agreed. “Let’s go.”
JARED CALMLY REPORTED what they found on the boat while Shawn and Zander served as human shields to protect Harper while she changed out of her wet clothes. She didn’t have anything fresh so she hopped into the clothes she discarded on the beach and went commando, something that made Jared’s mind wander when it should be focused on other things.
Zander fixed an easy meal of lunchmeat sandwiches, refusing to waste time on anything gourmet, and then Jared explained what would happen next.
“We’re going to the second floor.”
Michael balked. “I think we should go back to the basement.”
“You only think that because you heard me say that the truly bad things happened in the basement,” Harper countered, leaning back so Zander could fuss with her hair. “You’re still worried about getting good footage for your show. We’re worried about far more important things.”
“Speaking of that, if you have a hand in the two members of our group going missing, I’ll charge you,” Jared warned. “Not only will I do that, but I’ll confiscate your footage and make sure it never sees the light of day.”
“You can’t do that!” Michael was incensed. “That’s my property.”
“You would be surprised at what I’m capable of doing,” Jared shot back. “This is not a laughing matter to us. That boat was empty and the keys were gone. That means someone took the keys for a reason.”
“And what reason would that be?” Finn asked.
“I honestly have no idea,” Jared replied. “Finding Eric and Molly is the only thing we’re concerned about at this time. If you get in our way, if you impede our progress, you’re not going to like what happens.”
“And what’s that?” Steve asked. He’d been oddly quiet since the discovery of Molly’s disappearance two hours before.
“Let’s just say it will be ugly and leave it at that,” Jared said. “Now, we’re going upstairs. We searched the basement and found nothing. If our people are still alive, that means they’re being kept somewhere. Harper had a good idea about that.”
“I’m sure she did,” Trey said dryly. “You seem to think all of her ideas are good.”
“That’s because she knows what she’s doing and is my little genius.”
“She knows what she’s doing with ghosts,” Trey pressed. “As far as I can tell, we’re not dealing with ghosts. We’re dealing with an abandoned asylum and a bunch of hysterics.”
Jared gritted his teeth to keep from exploding, sucking in a long breath to calm himself. “Harper saw Anna Pritchard and talked to her. Anna said the place was crawling with spirits. What more do you want?”
“I would like someone else to have seen a ghost,” Trey replied without hesitation. “I find it convenient that she only found one ghost to talk to and it just happened to be off camera.”
“I find that suspicious, too,” Michael added. “I’m starting to think she’s a fraud. We didn’t so much as hear a peep last night.”
“And yet Molly is missing,” Zander argued, his hackles rising. “She didn’t just get up in the middle of the night and decide to play a prank on us.”
“She has green hair,” Finn argued. “I don’t think that speaks to how diligent an employee she is.”
“What does it matter what color her hair is?” Shawn asked, defensive on Molly’s behalf. “She’s a young girl who never seeks out trouble. If you’ve done something to her … .”
“If anyone here has done something to her I’ll make sure they’re locked up for the rest of their lives,” Jared interjected, his eyes dark and dangerous. “I’ve had just about enough of you people.”
“Oh, well, color me shocked,” Trey intoned. “Would you like us to get to our knees and grovel for your forgiveness now, or wait until you’ve verbally abused us a bit more?”
Jared, his hands clenched into fists as his sides, took a furious step in Trey’s direction. Harper stopped him with a hand to his arm.
“Don’t bother, Jared. He’s not worth it.”
Jared pinned Harper with a gaze, saw the worry flitting through the fathomless depths of her blue eyes, and purposely vented some of the anger fueling him. “He’s not. It’s okay.” He cupped the back of her head and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. “We’re going to find Molly right now.”
“And what about us?” Michael asked, irritation evident. “We’re still filming a television show.”
“I don’t really care what you do,” Jared replied. “Quite frankly, I can’t help being suspicious about a group of men who aren’t even a little bit worried about the fact that two young women have gone missing.”
“They’re probably just wandering around,” Finn protested. “They’re playing a game. That’s what women do.”
“I can’t speak for what Lucy does in her spare time, but that’s not what Molly does,” Jared snapped. “Either way, I don’t care what you do. We’re going upstairs to find our friends. You guys can sit here and stroke each other’s egos until night falls again for all I care.”
“Night? You think we’re going to have to spend another night here?” Michael blanched. “We were originally supposed to go home tomorrow morning, but I assumed we would leave this afternoon given the … shift … in the focus of this episode.”
“We’re not in an episode of television,” Jared pointed out. “We’re stuck on an island and four people are unaccounted for. Now, there’s a possibility that Eric and John made it to Whisper Cove and got help. I’m not holding my breath for that, though, because I think Mel would already be here if they had.”
“So, what? Do you think they’re dead or something?” Michael’s expression told Jared exactly what the producer thought of the possibility.
“I certainly hope not,” Jared said. “I’m not sitting around and waiting for something to happen, though. We need to find our people. If we find yours in the process, so much the better. We can’t sit around and hope for the best, though. We have to be proactive.”
“And we certainly can’t sit around waiting for something to happen so you can make a fun television show,” Harper added. “We’re done playing by your rules. We’re playing by our own rules.”
“Yay!” Zander pumped his fist. “You can bite us.”
Trey rolled his eyes. “I don’t see how you guys get any work done when you act the way you do. Of course, you probably don’t do real work. You’re the same as the other ghost hunters we’ve come across over the years. You’re all frauds.”
“All of our ghost hunters have been legitimate,” Michael argued. “We put that right on the front crawl of each episode.”
Trey made a disgusted sound in the back of his throat. “Whatever.”
“It’s true,” Michael snapped. “Ms. Harlow might not be real – and I’m beginning to seriously doubt her credentials, she’s obviously fooled a lot of people who don’t know better – but everyone else has been one hundred percent authentic.”
“Hey!” Zander was affronted on Harper’s behalf. “Harp is the real deal. You’re the frauds.”
“Don’t bother.” Harper waved off Zander’s righteous indignation. “They’re idiots, Zander. I didn’t even want to be on this stupid show.”
“Then why did you agree?” Michael challenged.
“Because Zander wanted it and I love Zander,” Harper replied, unruffled by the producer’s tone. “Also … I always wanted to see this place. I thought I would regret it if I didn’t come. Now I’ve seen it, though. I want to find Molly and Eric, help Anna, and get out of here.”
“Well, that’s convenient,” Trey said. “You’ll cash your paycheck, won’t you?”
“You’d better hope that Molly and Eric are alive,” Jared interjected, linking his fingers with Harper’s. “If they’re not, you’re going to have a lot more to worry about than a paycheck. Guys, grab your flashlights and extra batteries. We’re going to the second floor.”
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He led the small group toward the stairs. “If you guys know what’s good for you, you’ll start looking, too,” he added. “The sooner all of our team members are accounted for, the sooner we’ll have answers.”
“And what answers do you expect to find?” Finn asked.
Jared shrugged, noncommittal. “I’m not sure yet, but I am sure that not everything is as it seems. Something else is going on here, and I’m going to find out exactly what that is. I can promise you that.”
16
Sixteen
“I want eyes on Harper at all times,” Jared announced, keeping his gaze on the stairs as they ascended to the second floor. He didn’t want to risk accidentally stepping on a weak part of the floor and falling through so he was hyper-vigilant when scanning the fragile boards. “That means she doesn’t go anywhere alone. That includes the bathroom, no matter how much she whines.”
“You know I can hear you, right?” Harper drawled. “I’ve not been rendered suddenly deaf or dumb.”
“I never thought you were.” Jared squeezed her hand. “I was saying it because you’re going to be the difficult one. Shawn and Zander are already on board with the plan.”
Harper slowed her pace. “Excuse me. I am not a child. I am more than capable of taking care of myself.”
“Under normal circumstances, I would agree,” Jared said. “These aren’t normal circumstances. We’re in a contained environment, Heart. Do you know what that means?”
“Apparently that you’re going to talk down to me for the next ten minutes.” Harper jerked her hand away from Jared and crossed her arms over her chest as she shifted her attention from her boyfriend’s handsome face to the faded artwork on the wall. “I can’t wait for this.”
“I am not talking down to you,” Jared argued. “I’m freaking out because I want to keep the woman I love safe.”
Harper’s expression softened. “I should be angry at you for manipulating me that way.”
Jared’s lips curved. “I can live with you being angry. I cannot live with losing you. Do you understand? You have to stay with us at all times. This isn’t a game.”
“I know it’s not a game.” Harper instinctively grabbed his fingers and squeezed a bit harder than necessary to get her point across. She was agitated with his bossy nature, but she understood where he was coming from. “I’m not trying to mess around or anything. It’s just … I don’t think that being on top of each other is going to be healthy for our relationship.”
Zander opened his mouth, something filthy on his tongue, but Jared flicked the side of his head to keep him quiet.
“You can let some of them go,” Jared chided before fixing his full attention on Harper. “As for our relationship, I choose to believe it will survive this. If it doesn’t, I will not be happy. I will not let anything happen to you, though. I refuse. So … if you feel that’s grounds to break up with me, I guess I can’t stop you.”
Harper’s eyes flashed with indignation. “That’s not what I meant and you know it.”
“Oh, I know.” Jared bobbed his head in understanding. “You were trying to manipulate me into letting you go to the bathroom by yourself. It’s not going to happen.”
“But … .”
“No.” Jared’s voice was icy. “I will not lose you.” He almost broke but managed to hold it together, for her sake as well as his.
“Harp, you’re torturing him,” Zander announced, taking everyone by surprise when he landed on Jared’s side of the argument. “Do you want to torture him? I don’t think you do. I think you’re just a bit set in your ways when it comes to certain things. You’re going to have to let that go, though.”
Harper vigorously rubbed her cheeks to get the circulation going. “Fine,” she huffed out. “I’ll do what you want.”
“Thank you.” Jared kissed her forehead. “We’ll figure out a way for you to keep your prudish streak alive and make sure I don’t have to be away from you. I promise.”
Harper made an exaggerated face. “I do not have a prudish streak.”
Jared, Zander, and Shawn snorted in unison, which only served to make the situation worse.
“I’m not prudish,” Harper snapped.
“You’re lovely, sweet, and kind,” Jared offered, lifting his flashlight a bit when they hit the top of the stairs. “The prudish streak is actually kind of cute when we’re not fighting off ghosts and potential murderers.”
“I think so, too.” Shawn winked at Harper.
“I hate the prudish streak, but you wouldn’t be you without it and I love you,” Zander said, moving closer to Harper’s back as he peered over her shoulder. “Which way, Harp?”
That was a good question. Harper narrowed her eyes as her gaze bounced from the left to the right. She tried to picture the plans they scanned from the night before and hesitantly extended her finger to point toward the right. “I think we should go that way.”
Jared knew better than asking why. “Okay. Everyone stick close together, and be on the lookout in case anyone from the other group decides to follow us.”
“Why is that something to worry about?” Shawn asked, legitimately curious.
Jared spared a glance for Harper before plowing forward. “We didn’t say anything downstairs because we didn’t want to alert anyone to what we suspected, but we believe we’re in trouble from a human force.”
“So we’re not dealing with ghosts?” Shawn furrowed his brow. “How does that work?”
“Oh, I think we’re dealing with ghosts, but I don’t think they had anything to do with what happened on that boat,” Jared replied, allowing Harper to take her time as they moved into a dark hallway. “Go slow,” he whispered, flicking his flashlight beam to his left. “Watch the floor very closely.”
Shawn kept his beam on the floor as Zander and Jared searched the hallway walls. Harper kept her gaze straight forward, her pace slowing to a delayed shuffle before completely stopping. Shawn was the first to notice.
“What is it, Harper?”
Jared jerked his head to the right and scanned her profile. He recognized the rigid set of her shoulders right away. “She sees something.”
“What do you see?” Zander asked.
Harper ignored them, instead focusing on the billowing presence floating in the middle of the hallway about twenty feet away. “Hello.”
The ghost, a pretty woman with long, flowing curls, offered up a hint of a smile as she surveyed the small group. “Greetings.” Her voice was low and gravelly, but she didn’t appear dangerous.
“I’m Harper and these are my friends Jared, Zander, and Shawn.”
The ghost rested her gaze on the three men before turning back to Harper. “You’re not supposed to have men in the women’s ward,” she said, lowering her voice. “You’ll get in trouble with Nurse Stinson if you’re not careful.”
Harper arched an eyebrow. The woman talked as if the asylum remained open, as if she still lived by the same rules she did in life. Harper theorized that it was entirely possible the woman didn’t realize she was dead or that things had changed. If she’d been mentally ill in life, she very well could be the same in death.
“I promise not to incur Nurse Stinson’s wrath,” Harper said, her lips curving. “My friends will be quiet. Won’t you?”
Jared nodded, solemn. “Of course.”
The ghost giggled at his somber expression. “He’s cute. Is he yours?”
That was an interesting way to phrase it and Harper wasn’t sure how to answer. “He’s not my property but … yes, he’s mine.”
Jared’s smirk reflected a mixture of amusement and love, but he wisely remained quiet.
“What about the other two?”
“Oh, well … .” Harper wasn’t sure how to answer. “They’re my brothers,” she said finally, earning a dark look from Zander. “We’re all going to hang out in my room.”
“That’s not allowed.” The ghost shook her head, stern. “Nurse Stinson will punish you.�
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Harper had no doubt that Nurse Stinson – whoever she was – probably had a sadistic streak a mile wide. “Is Nurse Stinson even here? I haven’t seen her in quite some time.”
“I … .” The ghost broke off, tapping her bottom lip. “I don’t know. I can look for her.”
Harper wasn’t keen on sending the spirit off on a wild goose chase, but she needed time to search the floor without having to answer an endless series of questions. “That would be great.” Harper waited until she was gone before flicking her eyes back to Jared. “I’m going to want to put her to rest before we go, too.”
“We’ll see how things play out,” Jared cautioned. “We might have to leave as a group – depending on what happens with Molly and Eric – and then come back when it’s just us so you can do that. I’ll figure out a way to make it happen. I promise. It’s just … .”
“Molly and Eric are our priority,” Harper finished. “I know. We have to find them.”
“So let’s look around.” Jared squeezed her hand before releasing it. “I’m trusting you to be very careful up here and not wander away from me.”
Harper barely managed to withhold an eye roll. “I heard you the first time, Dad.”
Jared pretended he didn’t hear the tone. “If you keep calling me that, I will spank you when we get out of this.”
“She may be a prude, but she’ll probably like that,” Zander noted.
Harper ignored both of them and moved down the center of the hallway. Despite her earlier bravado, she was very careful not to drift too far from her friends. It wasn’t just fear for her own safety propelling her. She had no doubt Jared would be forever plagued with doubt and insecurity if he somehow lost her. He would never get over it.
“Look at this.” Harper knelt down and held her flashlight over a spot on the floor. Jared moved to her side and followed her gaze, frowning when he saw the huge footprint in the center of the dust accumulated there.
“That’s interesting,” Jared muttered, lifting his phone and snapping a photograph of the footprint. The service on his phone didn’t work, but he still had a bit of battery life left, although it wasn’t much. “That means someone was up here.”
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