by H. P. Bayne
“It’s a lot,” Sully said. “I know. Dez and I deal with stuff like that more often than is comfortable. And it it doesn’t get easier. It’s scary.”
Ian nodded. “I don’t get scared. Not ordinarily.” He tilted his head. “You know what’s weird? I think despite what I do and the fact I’ve always talked about believing in this stuff, part of me didn’t. Not until tonight.”
Sully didn’t remind Ian he claimed to be psychic. Why ruin a moment?
“I mean, of course I’ve seen things,” Ian continued. “I’ve felt what I took for spirits. But a part of me, I guess, still sought the scientific, rational explanation. Tonight showed me there isn’t always another explanation.” He frowned. “Tonight changed everything. And I don’t know if there’s any coming back from it.”
“There isn’t,” Sully said. “Not in the sense of you going back to doing things the way you used to.”
He paused as Leanna and Roy came up behind Ian. Leanna slipped a hand into her husband’s and snugged up next to him. Ian smiled at her, then turned and nodded at Roy.
“I’ve been kind of a dick,” Ian said.
Roy snorted. “Kind of?”
Ian smiled. “I had that coming.” He met Sully’s eye. “You mentioned a friend of yours who does cleansing. I think I need it. Hell, I know I need it.”
Dez pulled out his cellphone. “Give me your number. We’ll touch base with her tomorrow, and I’ll text her info to you.”
Ian provided his number, and Dez keyed it into his contacts list.
Leanna reached out and grasped Sully’s hand. “I know we weren’t always the easiest people to work with tonight, but if you’re ever agreeable to coming on as a guest psychic, we’d love to have you.”
Sully wondered if they’d feel the same once they learned he’d swiped their memory card, but that was a problem for another day.
“Thanks,” he said. “I’ll bear that in mind.”
And promptly forget about it, he thought.
Leanna appeared to have something else on her mind. Sully waited her out.
“I need to ask,” she said. “While I was watching the monitors downstairs, I saw some stuff on the death row lock-off camera. You weren’t alone. I saw some other people with you—including a man dressed as what I’d swear was something out of the Wild West. Did you let anyone in we didn’t see?”
The glass door facing the parking lot was to his left, and Sully cast his eyes outside. There, at the base of the stairs, stood Jack, Flynn and Aiden, waiting for their ride back to Edge Creek. Sully owed them a massive thanks too, and part of repaying them would be ensuring no one saw the footage. Like he’d thought earlier, there were some things the world wasn’t ready for.
Sully returned his gaze to Leanna. “I’ve got no idea who you’re talking about.”
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Afterword
Thanks so much for reading. I am continuing to work on the next Dez and Sully books, and would be pleased to keep you updated on future projects and release dates if you would like to join my mailing list. As an added bonus, a growing anthology of short stories, entitled Haunted: The Ghosts of Sullivan Gray, is available as a gift to subscribers. Visit my website at hpbayne.com to sign up and grab the current version of Haunted.
The books in The Braddock & Gray Case Files are intended as standalone books, so they can be read independently of each other and from the preceding The Sullivan Gray Series. Braddock & Gray follows the events of Sullivan Gray, so those who have read the previous series will find a few cookies scattered here and there. I will include links below to the books in The Sullivan Gray Series should you wish to check them out (if you haven’t already, of course).
The books in The Sullivan Gray Series can also be read as standalones to some extent, each containing a plot that wraps itself up by book’s end. But there is a deeper plot that threads throughout the seven novels, so for that reason, I always suggest they’re best read in the following order (click the titles to check them out on Amazon):
Black Candle
Harbinger
The Dule Tree
Crawl
Hollow Road
Second Son
Spirit Caller
As mentioned, the books in The Braddock & Gray Case Files can be read as standalone novels, but for those interested, here’s the publishing order:
The Edge Creek Light
The Haunting of Thornview Hall
The Wynne Witch
The Blake Ghost
Dead Man’s Lake
The Hanged Man
As always, I wanted to take a moment to thank my family and friends for their incredible support. I am so appreciative of all the people in my life who have been at my side throughout this journey.
A big, Dez-sized thanks also to my brilliant editor Hannah Sullivan and to my absolutely stellar team of advance readers, all of whom ensure each of the books is all it can be and more. And thank you as well to my subscribers and my followers on Facebook, especially the Sully’s Spirits among you. I am incredibly grateful to you all.
And, of course, a huge thank you to everyone who’s picked up this and other Sully books. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for making my author dreams come true.
About the Author
Fascinated by ghost stories and crime fiction, H.P. has been writing both for well over two decades, drawing on more than fifteen years in a career in a criminal justice setting. Raised on a farm on the Canadian Prairies, H.P. enjoys reading, portrait drawing, travel and spending time with family and friends.
For more information, visit H.P.’s website at hpbayne.com.
Also by H.P. Bayne
Books in The Sullivan Gray Series (best read in the following order):
Black Candle
Harbinger
The Dule Tree
Crawl
Hollow Road
Second Son
Spirit Caller
Or pick up the box sets:
The Sullivan Gray Series Box Set 1
The Sullivan Gray Series Box Set 2
Books in The Braddock & Gray Case Files (can be read in order or as standalone novels):
The Edge Creek Light
The Haunting of Thornview Hall
The Wynne Witch
The Blake Ghost
Dead Man’s Lake
The Hanged Man