Ghost Trapped

by B L Maxwell

  “Uh, nice to meet you, Deidre,” he said, face muffled into her shoulder and eyes wide with shock.

  “So, you’re James’s new boyfriend?” she asked, as she let Dean loose and gave Jimbo her death stare. It didn’t seem to have much effect on him, or he was really good at pretending it didn’t.

  “He’s not my boyfriend, we knew each other years ago. We haven’t seen each other since,” Jimbo said. Dean looked between Jimbo and Deidre like he wasn’t quite sure who to keep his eyes on. “Can we just focus on what happened earlier?” Jimbo asked.

  “What happened?” Deidre asked.

  “Jimbo was attacked. We all were in the basement, and this time we had done everything Janis told us to do. But for some reason it was still able to attack,” I said as I removed the equipment we’d used earlier from my bag.

  “James, are you okay? What happened?” Deidre asked. She rushed over to Jimbo and started prodding him, apparently looking for injuries.

  “I’m fine, just a bump on the head, that’s all.” As soon as the words left his mouth, Wade’s mom pulled his head forward so she could examine it.

  “James, this looks serious, I can take you to the hospital right now. I can’t stand that two of my babies are hurt.”

  Wade’s mom continued to examine his head, and Jimbo pulled away from her. “Your ‘babies’? What are you talking about, Deidre?”

  “Stop it, James, you know you’re my baby too.”

  “Oh god, can we look at the information we got while we were in the basement?” Wade asked. Deidre pulled back her hand to pop him in the head, but hesitated, and kissed his temple instead.

  “Please be careful, Wade, I can’t take any of you being in danger.”

  “I know, Mom, we tried to be careful the second time, I’m not sure what happened.”

  “I know what happened,” I said. “The spirits that are in the basement are trapped there, but I’m not sure why, or how. They’re angry, and they want to leave but can’t. Let’s see if there are any clues on the spirit box.”

  I turned it on and scrolled through the messages, before I came to one that made the blood run from my face and a chill run through me.

  I’ve waited long enough.

  “What does it mean?” Wade asked from over my shoulder.

  “I’m not sure. I think we may need to talk to your friend in the basement. She seems to know more about this than we do,” I said.

  “And how do you think we’ll go about that?” Wade asked.

  “Jimbo, we’re gonna need you to use your ability to pull in some spirits while we’re in the basement,” I said, Wade looked at me in shock, while Jimbo scowled at me.

  “I won’t let James be hurt again,” Dean said, voice full of conviction. Jimbo looked at him and struggled not to react to his words.

  Deidre, on the other hand, did not hold back. “Fuck that, none of you are going back down there until we talk to Janis,” she snapped.

  We all flinched at her words, but it was Jimbo who spoke up. “You’re right, it’s time to bring in the cavalry before things get any more out of control. I’ll call my sister. This should be good,” he grumbled as he took out his phone.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Wade

  I watched as Jimbo dialed the number for Janis and listened in as he talked to her. He nodded along for a few seconds, before locking eyes with Jason. None of this could be good.

  He ended the call, and Dean walked over to him and gave him a hard look. “What is it, James? What did she say?”

  “She said there’s a spirit trapped down there. It’s been there a long time and it doesn’t want to leave. It’s keeping the other spirits trapped with it, to siphon off their power. It won’t go away without a fight. It’s going to try to take us all out so it can continue to exist. All it cares about is surviving.”

  “So, what do we do?” I asked. Jason and Jimbo knew way more about this shit than I did.

  “We’re going to have to spend more time there, like we did at The Vineyard House. We’ll try to contact the spirits and see if they’ll give us any clues, so far they’ve been very cryptic. The only spirit we’ve actually seen is the little girl Wade interacted with,” Jason said.

  “What little girl?” Jimbo asked.

  “The same one we saw at The Vineyard House, she was at the top of the stairs, just for a short time before she disappeared again,” I answered.

  “When is a good time for us to stay the night, Dean?” Jason asked.

  “I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Don’t get me wrong, I want the ghost, or spirits, or whatever they are, gone. But I won’t have James or anyone else hurt.”

  “Wait, I thought Janis said not to be there after dark, that it was too dangerous,” Deidre said.

  “She did, but something has changed. She said if we don’t convince the main spirit to cross over soon, we may not ever be able to. It knows what we want to do and doesn’t want to leave. It has some attachment to the area that she couldn’t explain. Only that it doesn’t want to leave,” Jimbo explained.

  “I’m so sorry I got all of you involved in this,” Dean said as he let his head drop into his hands. “I thought it was just a simple haunting—you’d come in, burn some sage, and send the spirit packing. I had no idea it would be this complicated.”

  “At least you recognized what was causing the problem and acknowledged it, most people don’t,” I said. “It took staying at a real haunted house to really make me believe it all. Jason dragged me to so many places that were supposed to be haunted, and nothing happened. Which, I’m not gonna lie, I was fine with. But he wanted to see something so bad, and I had such a big crush on him, I’d have gone anywhere to spend some time with him.” Jason grasped my hand and squeezed it, and Mom released a dreamy sigh, making us both laugh.

  “Dean, there’s a lot I need to tell you. I know you don’t understand why we never got together again, and I know I need to explain, but right now, we need to work on getting those spirits out of your restaurant. Janis said the longer we leave them, the stronger they’ll get. The one holding them there is very old, and he’s been keeping other sprits trapped for years. I want to help, but I don’t want to put you in danger,” Jimbo said.

  “I—” Dean started, before Jimbo cut him off.

  “I know you want to help, and you can. But we’ll need to be careful. I have an ability that connects me with the other side of the veil. I’m able to control it, but it takes everything in me to do it. If I don’t completely control my emotions, I can’t control my power,” Jimbo explained, surprising us all with his willingness to open up.

  “James? What are you saying?” Dean asked. My mom wore a sad expression, as we waited for Jimbo to say the words that could change how Dean felt about him.

  “I’m what you would call a beacon, spirits are drawn to me. They always have been. Through the years, my sister has helped me learn how to dampen my light, so they can’t find me as easily. But they still do. I can control it if I keep my emotions under control, but if I’m stressed, or worried, it makes it much harder to keep myself hidden from them. When you’re with us in that basement, I can’t keep myself under control. I’m too worried what danger I could be putting you in.”

  “I can take care of myself. I did everything you told me to do. You guys did the sage thing, I thought that would protect me?” Dean asked.

  “It will, but it won’t hold back what I could invite if I can’t control the beacon. My emotions are my weakness, and they’ll put you at risk if you’re anywhere near me when the spirits decide to try to make contact.” Dean stood up and knelt in front of Jimbo, resting his hand on his knee.

  “James, I’m in this with you. If you want me there, I’m there, but if you think it’ll put everyone in danger, I’ll stay away. I just want to keep you safe,” Dean said.

  Jimbo’s eyes never left Dean’s while he spoke. When he finished, Jimbo reached out and cupped his cheek. “What if I want you there? What if I�
�ve always wanted you there?” Jimbo whispered to him, before Dean covered his hand with his own. The look that passed between them spoke of years of yearning, and a lot of hurt.

  “What if I want to be there—be with you, more than I’ve ever wanted anything?”

  “What the hell just happened?” Jason whispered to me. My mom leaned over and slapped him, breaking the spell that seemed to have fallen over all of us.

  Jimbo blinked his eyes and slowly tore his gaze away from Dean. “You fuckers,” he mumbled, right before Dean took his face in his hands and kissed him again, as my mom squealed in that deafening pitch that, sadly, I was getting used to hearing.

  Chapter Twenty

  Jason

  “Jimbo, can you give us a little more detail? I mean, I’m sorry to interrupt your . . . lovefest and all, but if we want to clear the spirits out of Dean’s restaurant, we need to know everything. No more holding back.”

  He met my eyes for a moment before he breathed out a long breath. “I told you about being a beacon, but I left out how powerful the draw is, and how hard it is to control. If I open it up, every spirit within miles will be drawn to me. And they won’t be happy about it, they’re drawn like steel to a magnet, and when they get there, they’re pissed. I can control it, but it’s connected to my emotions, so being in a constant state of anger, or frustration, keeps it locked down. But if I’m happy, or feeling love, they’re drawn in a way I can’t control.”

  “What if we make a ghost trap? We can draw them in, trap them, and then send them on their merry way,” I said. When no one said anything, I explained, “There’s a few ways to do it, hallowed ground in a metal box, or a candle in a jar. We could also trap them in a crystal.”

  “Have you actually tried any of these?” Wade asked.

  “You know I haven’t, but I’m pretty sure they could work.”

  “The spirit in the basement is like nothing I’ve felt before, not that I’ve opened myself up to many spirits,” Jimbo said.

  “When do you want to go back? We should do it soon,” I said. We all looked at Dean, waiting for his answer, and dreading it at the same time.

  “How is Sunday night? I can close early so we have time to set up before dark.”

  “What do you mean ‘we’? I think it’s better if you’re not there, Dean,” Jimbo said, still holding on to Dean’s hand.

  “Jimbo, I think we should try to set up our equipment similar to the way we did at The Vineyard House. We’ll put a laser grid in that lower area by the mineshaft, we can set up cameras in the basement, and use the ovilus to see if anyone is willing to talk. I’m betting if you’re right, and they’re being trapped by one main spirit, they’ll be willing to try to help us to help them, if given the chance.”

  “Jason, they want to leave, it’s kept some of them there when all they want is to be with their family. I don’t understand why, but the little girl spirit that talked to me seemed concerned for it. Maybe we should see if she’d be willing to talk to us a little more,” Wade said.

  Clapping my hands together, I stood. “Okay then, let’s spend the next couple of days getting ready for Sunday. Wade, you and I need to map out where we’ll put the equipment and what each of us will be doing when we’re there. Everyone bring your stones. I’m not sure why we need them, but I trust Janis.”

  “They didn’t keep Jimbo safe. He had his in his pocket, and I had mine, but he was thrown into a wall. We’re damn lucky he wasn’t seriously injured,” Dean said.

  “You’re right, but we can’t take the chance. We should do everything we can to protect one another,” Wade said. “Let’s all get some sleep, and we’ll talk more tomorrow.”

  “Are you okay, baby?” I asked. He looked so tired, his eyelids seemed to droop more and dark circles were visible under his eyes. He melted into the couch like he was ready to pass out.

  “Yeah, just tired, and a little sore.”

  “Wade, I want you to get some sleep, go on now. Jimbo, Dean, sorry to kick you out, but you can see Wade needs to get some sleep,” Deidre said. “James, will you be all right to drive home?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine, just rattled me a bit.”

  “It did more than rattle you, you’re lucky you didn’t need stitches,” Dean added.

  Finally everyone was gone, and it was just Wade and I. I put my hand out to help him stand, and he swayed a little on his feet. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  He leaned in closer to me, and I put my arm around his back. “Yeah, just want to go to bed.”

  “Your wish is my command.” I nearly had to carry him there, he was falling asleep on his feet; this day had taken more out of him than he was willing to admit. I worried his injury was worse than we realized, as I helped him sit on the bed. He slumped back on the pillows without his eyes ever opening. As I eased his shirt over his head, and slid his shorts off, he still hadn’t moved. He rolled to the side and was asleep before I could undress and lay down next to him. I settled in next to him, and was just about to close my eyes when he reached his hand across the sheet, searching me out. I smiled before clasping his hand in mine and leaning in to kiss his lips lightly. “I love you, Wade Rivers, I always have,” I whispered.

  The dream began like most did—I was outside with Wade, we were lying in the grass, counting stars in my backyard and having a quiet conversation. And as happens in dreams, we were suddenly in the basement of Dean’s restaurant. Wade was over in the far corner with his back to me. He was facing the wall, and almost seemed to be in a conversation with someone. I stood and watched him for a few moments, before moving in his direction. When he became aware of me, he turned with a smile and reached out his hand.

  “Jason, come here, I want you to meet someone,” he said, wearing a big smile I couldn’t help but return. “This is Emma.” He moved to the side to reveal a little girl, the same little girl we’d seen at The Vineyard House. “Go ahead, Emma, tell Jason what you told me.”

  She bowed her head for a moment, seeming unsure, before looking up at us both. “Hello, Jason, I’m very pleased to meet you,” she said with a slight bow. “I’ve been trying to help Wade, but he needs more help than I can give him.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked. When I glanced at Wade, he looked frozen in place. He didn’t move at all and wore a blank expression as he stared off with unseeing eyes. “Wade?”

  “He’s okay, I need you to listen to me. You understand the way of the veil better than Wade does, he was easier for me to make contact with, but he’ll need your help. There is a force in the basement that must be controlled, or soon it will grow too strong and there will be no stopping it.”

  “Did you help him when he fell into the mineshaft?” I asked.

  “Yes, he was injured, and I couldn’t stop that from happening, but I tried my best to keep the spirits busy so he could escape before something much worse happened to him.”

  “You realize he could have died, he fell headfirst down into that old mine. Did you have anything to do with that?”

  She didn’t answer, just looked over to Wade and back to me. “Unless you force this spirit to move on, something worse will happen. It will keep attacking you, and every time you come back, it’ll be stronger. You will need all of your powers combined to accomplish this, or eventually it will kill one of you, then that spirit will be added to the fray,” she said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “If you die in this basement, your spirit will never leave. You will be trapped in the fray forever, and you’ll be part of the force that resides there.”

  “Fuck this, I won’t put anyone at risk to chase away a spirit that’s willing to kill us to stay. I won’t put my friends in danger, and no way I’ll let Wade near it,” I snapped at her.

  She smiled at me, as though I hadn’t yelled at her at all. “Jason, you’ll do what you need to do. It can be done, but it won’t be easy.” She turned and drifted back to where she’d been when I first walked over, standing in front of Wade. He
seemed to snap to life, and smiled at me like nothing strange had happened.

  I startled awake, my gaze immediately meeting Wade’s own. “Are you okay?” he asked.

  I reached for him and carefully pulled him to me. “I’m fine, just a weird dream.” I stroked his back while he laid his head on my chest.

  “Me too, I dreamed I was talking to the little girl I told you I’d seen earlier—”

  “You introduced me to her,” I finished for him.

  He lifted his head off my chest and met my eyes. “What the fu—”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Wade

  “How could we have the same dream?” Jason asked. He sat up in bed and leaned back against the headboard.

  “I’m not sure, you’re the expert on all the weird shit. Is that even possible?” He paused for a second, so I continued. “At this point, I think anything’s possible. Remember, Janis said I was an empath, and you’re aware of spirits, maybe now that we’re together, we’re linked somehow,” I said, trying to think of some explanation. “Janis said we’re stronger together, so maybe that has something to do with it.”

  “I was so worried about you being injured, I couldn’t stop thinking of it when I fell asleep. I was so thankful you hadn’t been hurt when we returned to the restaurant. Maybe those emotions had something to do with it too,” Jason said.

  “I have no idea, but if it means we’re closer than we were, I can’t imagine. You’re everything to me, I can’t imagine feeling more for you than I already do,” I said.

  Jason reached his hand out and pulled me into his side. “Am I hurting you?” he asked, and I felt his lips brush my hair.

  “Not at all.”

  He nuzzled his nose into my hair, making me shiver. “You’re sure you’re not in pain?” he breathed out.