Laure Donavan 2 - Ghouls Night Out (9 page)

“
Oh, just that it’s a
beautiful night.”

“
It is beautiful…just like
you.” He glanced at me again and smiled.

“
Oh, please. Don’t fall for
that lame attempt at a pick up line.” Anthony’s voice
sharpened.

“
It’s not a pick up line,
I’ll have you know. She’s involved with my grandson,” Seth said
sharply.

I looked at him from the visor mirror.
Seth wore a fedora, had rosy cheeks and big brown eyes. Always
chipper, but not so much at that moment. He looked steamed. Anthony
glanced over his shoulder at Seth as he leaned forward in the seat,
but never changed his demeanor.

He turned back to me and moved in
closer to my ear again. “Does he have a radio in this thing he
calls a car?”

“
Does your radio work?” I
asked.

“
Yes, it’s not the best,
but it works. You want to listen to it?” He reached for the knob
with one hand while steering with the other.

“
Sure, that would be
nice.”

I bit my tongue, trying not to lash
out at Anthony. What was wrong with Callahan’s car anyway? So what
if it rattled and bounced. It was perfectly fine in my opinion. Not
everyone had to drive a fancy new car. Before the thought had
completely left my brain, a clanking noise rang out from the back
section of the car.

“
Sounds like something’s
stuck in the wheel.” Callahan steered onto the shoulder, coming to
a halt next to a wooded area on the side of the road. “I’ll check
it out real quick. You stay here, okay? I don’t want a car to come
by while we’re standing out there and hit us.” Callahan climbed out
of the car before I could protest.

Chapter Thirteen

I didn’t want Callahan to be hit by a
car either although, as isolated as it was, I doubt one would come
by anytime soon.

Darkness covered the night sky, but
moonbeams cascaded down, illuminating the area with a mystical
glow. The stars twinkled softly in the indigo twilight like tiny
rhinestones.

As soon as Callahan closed the door,
Anthony spoke up, “A beautiful babe such as yourself should be
toolin’ around town in a pink caddy convertible.”

“
Oh yeah, that’s just what
I need.” I snorted. The last thing I wanted was to draw attention
to myself by driving a gigantic pink car. Under the radar, that’s
where I liked to stay.

I flipped the dial on the radio,
hoping that would distract him and derail the conversation, or
drown out the chatter. I’d take either option. I switched the
station from Talk Radio to Top Forty.

“
Everyone likes this music,
right?” I asked, not really concerned whether they enjoyed my
choice of channels.

I peered around the
shoulder-to-shoulder ghosts perched in the backseat to see if
Callahan might need my help. He said I should stay in the car, but
when did I ever listen to what anyone told me.

“
Without a doubt, this is
the worst music I’ve ever heard,” Anthony barked.

All right, clearly I was wrong about
the station being suitable for everyone’s taste. “Why don’t you
tell me what you want to hear then, instead of making me
guess?”

“
How about classical?” Seth
suggested.

Anthony looked at Seth, then finally
said, “I like classical, but I could go for Fifties.”

Please don’t let them bicker over the
radio like eight-year-olds. I moved the dial to the oldies station.
“You Belong to Me” glided from the little speakers on the car
doors. Anthony’s breath grazed my ear, tickling a
little.

“
Just remember, darling,
you belong to me.” He sang only a few lyrics, but his voice was
amazing. Did I dare tell him? Even my toes tingled. Nope. No need
to encourage him.

“
I’m feeling neglected over
here. I’m accustomed to attention from the opposite sex,” Mae
said.

“
You’ve got all my
attention,” Seth replied.

“
Trust me, Mae, it’s not
all it’s cracked up to be.” I rubbed my temples. “At this
particular time, I’d rather you had the attention than
me.”

Seth chuckled from the
backseat.

Anthony didn’t acknowledge Mae’s
statement. “What do you see in that guy?”

“
She probably sees him in
her bedroom?” Mae quipped.

Anthony leaned back in the seat. “All
right, doll, but I’ll make you fall in love with me.”

Dare I remind him that he was dead? I
watched the three of them in the rearview mirror. They smiled
innocently.

Movement in my peripheral vision
caught my attention. I turned my focus on the wooded area on the
side of the road. We really were in the middle of nowhere. Was it
another spirit out there? I didn’t have room for another one,
unless it wanted to ride in the trunk or hang on to the top of the
car. Trees lined both sides of the road. Anything or anyone could
be hiding out there and we’d never know until it popped
out.

And that’s exactly what this thing
did. It popped out from behind a tree. My vision was limited
because of the darkness, but the headlights and the full moon
provided just enough light to allow me to see this creepy dark
silhouette.

The faint light only added to the
creepiness. What if it was a serial killer? Callahan was outside of
the car—an easy target. I’d seen that exact scenario played out one
too many times in the horror movies.

The dark figure seemed to watch us,
but I couldn’t be sure because no facial features were
distinguishable. Somehow, I knew it was observing us.

“
Do you all see that shadow
figure staring at us?” I asked the ghost gang.

“
Where?” Anthony leaned up
toward the front seat.

“
Over there by the trees.”
I pointed.

“
Well, there’s only a
million trees over there, sweetheart, so how can we know which
trees you’re referring to?” Mae shifted in the seat.

She did have a point. “Well, there are
no distinguishing markers, so I guess I won’t be able to point it
out. I need to go out there with Callahan.”

“
Now, what good do you
think that will do? If it’s some crazy person, do you really think
that strong man will need your help?” Mae asked.

“
Well, maybe. You never
know. I could cause a distraction while Callahan knocks them over
the head with the tire iron.”

“
Or your distraction will
cause Callahan to get knocked over the head with the tire iron.”
Anthony chuckled.

I wouldn’t even give him the
satisfaction of a response. When I glanced in the rearview mirror
again, I noticed Seth was out of the car and beside Callahan. Bless
his dead heart, he was out there ready to protect his grandson from
a would-be killer. I couldn’t let Callahan stand out there alone.
So what if I wouldn’t be strong enough to fend off an attack, I had
other methods of protecting myself. And so what if Callahan
probably would prefer to be the macho, tough guy and have me sit in
the car and wait. It just wasn’t my personality, he’d have to deal
with it.

The dark figure had popped back behind
the tree. For all I knew, I was seeing a ghost and not a person. I
prayed it wasn’t a demon. I could handle a person or ghost, but I
didn’t want to face a demon.

I climbed out of the car and hurried
around to the back.

Callahan looked up. “You look like
you’ve seen a ghost.” He set the lug wrench down. “The tire was
flat. I’m going to have to change it.”

I stepped closer to the grassy area,
but glanced over my shoulder several times.

If one spirit was out there in the
woods, there’d be a good chance on two or twenty roaming
around.

“
You don’t have to stand
out here with me.” He grinned.

Should I tell him I thought I saw
something? Would he think I was being paranoid? Heck, maybe I was
being paranoid.

“
I thought I’d see if you
needed any help. I don’t like not helping out. It’s my
nature.”

“
Yeah, well, I like your
nature. But I wouldn’t want you to get your pretty clothes
dirty.”

“
He’s so sweet,” Mae said.
“I love brawny men.”

“
Yeah, he’s a real hero.
Anyone can change a tire,” Anthony said.

“
I doubt you could. You’re
too scrawny.” Seth shot Anthony a cross look.

Standing on the side of the road with
a flat tire, a possible crazy person in the woods and bickering
ghosts…aw, ain’t life grand.

“
I’ll just stand out here
and keep you company,” I said, wrapping my arms in front of my
chest to fight off the chill.

“
I don’t want you to get
too cold, but I’d love your company.” Callahan smiled again. “I
have to say, I am completely impressed with your skills. The way
you took command back there tonight. I can tell you’re passionate
about your work.” He placed the jack under the car.

I didn’t want him to think I was
ignoring him or not paying attention while he talked, but the
shadow that roamed from tree to tree was freaking me out. If I told
him, he might want to check it out and see if anyone was out there.
By the looks of it though, this was no living person. The spirit
was watching us from just beyond the trees, and it wasn’t a nice
spirit—definitely not Casper the friendly ghost.

The bad vibe was strong, shooting off
this thing and flying all the way across the road. As long as it
stayed over there away from us, we’d be fine, but if it came close,
I’d have to tell Callahan. I couldn’t risk the consequences, just
to keep my little secret.

“
That’s very sweet of you
to say.” I looked over his head and straight at the figure standing
behind the tree. Callahan didn’t notice my distraction as he took
the wheel off the tire. “I love helping people. It’s a good thing
this happened after the investigation instead of on the way,
huh?”

I’d keep him distracted by keeping the
conversation going.

“
Yes, that wouldn’t have
been good for Mark and Dallas. I’d love to hear about how you all
met sometime.”

“
Sure, I’ll tell you all
about it.”

The figure darted to a tree that was
just a little closer to us. One more move this way and I’d have to
say something. The thing hovered a couple inches off the ground. It
was completely black, but a white glow ringed the outer edge of its
form. It didn’t have eyes that I could see, but if it had, I knew
they’d be focused on us. If it hadn’t been for that glowing ring, I
don’t think I would have been able to see the shadow the further
away from the headlights I went. But I would have sensed the creepy
thing’s presence.

Callahan continued working on the
flat. “You know, I've read some books on the
paranormal.”

“
You have?” I quirked an
eyebrow.

“
Actually, they were mainly
spooky ghost stories.” His lips tilted at the corners.

“
I like spooky stories.” I
fidgeted from one foot to the other.

Little did he know we were in the
middle of our own real-life, spooky story.

“
I could give him a
real-life spooky ghost story.” Anthony walked to the other side of
Callahan, staring at him intently.

“
Do it and I'll punch your
lights out.” Seth shook his fist at Anthony.

“
I'm already dead, old man,
in case you forgot.”

I was so going to let them have it
later.

“
Shut up, both of you,” Mae
yelled.

You tell 'em, Mae.

Chapter Fourteen

The smell of mossy earth and crisp
leaves permeated the air. No other cars passed us on the isolated
road. The sounds of crickets filled the night air. It was like
being cut off from the world. In spite of how hard I tried, I still
had fear…I was only human. But I wouldn’t let this thing know I had
any fear because demons fed on it. That was something I’d learned a
long time ago. I needed to suck it up. Toughen up. I wasn’t some
helpless damsel in distress. I hunted ghosts, for Pete's sake. Life
was not always bright, shiny, and perfect.

I wasn’t sure what this thing wanted.
Could it have been the demon Mark talked about at the home we had
left earlier that evening? Had it followed us here? Had it attached
itself to me? Cooper had now planted that idea in my head. Great.
Having ghosts attached to me was one thing, but a demon was an
entirely different level that I wanted no part of…been there, done
that. Still have the T-shirt to prove it.

I shifted from foot to foot
again.

“
I’m getting a bad feeling
about being out here. Something is giving me the creeps. Must be
that shadow you saw. Is it still out there, Larue?” Mae
asked.

I nodded when I thought Callahan
wouldn’t look up. She moved closer to me. “I hope he hurries up,”
Mae said as she looked around.

Callahan looked over toward the trees,
but didn’t say anything as he turned his attention back to the
tire. Did he see the spirit? Did the other ghosts see the spirit
too? I couldn’t ask them, and they didn’t volunteer
information.