Chasing Shadows Read online

  All of them moved into the house, and Bishop gave Avery a long look over his shoulder as he followed Ramsey into the dining room, which had already been set up for filming. The crew had taken off the dust covers from the furniture and lit a few candles on the table. It was all very atmospheric.

  Then Avery heard Cam’s voice from the front porch. “Good evening, this is Barbie Blair. Welcome to a special live episode of Chasing Shadows. Tonight is a very unique night for me, because Bethel Springs, Alabama, is my old hometown. I grew up here and just recently returned to settle my late aunt’s affairs. While I was here, I wanted to investigate a house that has always fascinated me and, indeed, the whole town. We always called it, ‘The Johnston Mystery House.’”

  Avery heard the cameraman make a noise and then Cam stopped talking. In her place, a tiny voice in the background began going over the tragic history of the house. Avery realized there was a monitor nearby on the porch out of camera range, and what she was hearing was the voice over and what the viewers at home were hearing over their own televisions. From where she was standing Avery could see Cam’s back and the cameraman in front of her. The camera lights began flashing at Cam once more. Shaye pointed a finger at her.

  “Come inside with us now as we investigate in real time.” Cam turned and strolled through the door, smiling over at Avery. “I’ve already been investigating, and I can tell you this is an active haunting. One of the most active I’ve ever seen. The first time I came in this house, I saw a full body apparition, and the man I was with—though he was something of a skeptic when we entered the home—became so frightened by what he saw and heard here, he had a light heart attack and had to be taken to the hospital. He’ll be joining us later as we try to contact those spirits.

  “For now, I’m joined on my walk-through by Detective Avery Smith, a member of the Brooks County Sheriff’s Department, and a very credible witness. Detective Smith, are you ready for tonight?”

  Avery froze, suddenly very aware that millions of people were sitting at home watching her on television. She swallowed. Okay, don’t screw this up. “I’m ready…Barbie. And, please, call me Avery.”

  In the dim light Avery could see Cam smile at her. “Then let’s go upstairs, where the spirits seem to be the most active. Avery…” Cam picked up a voice recorder and the ghost box and holding them out to her. “…which of these do you prefer?”

  Deciding to go with what she knew, Avery said, “I’ll try the ghost box.”

  She handed Avery the device before turning to lead the way up the shadowy stairs. Since they themselves weren’t carrying cameras, someone—Shaye presumably—had left a lamp on in the upstairs foyer. Its light seemed to hardly penetrate the darkness, which was almost palpable. As they climbed the stairs, Avery couldn’t help but notice the house had taken on that listening quality again, like it was waiting for something to happen and holding its breath until it did.

  In the lamplight at the top of the stairs, Avery could see that Cam was nervous. She had begun wringing her hands in front of her. Avery waited until Franks was panning the camera lens down the dark hallway to reach out and put her hand over Cam’s. The action seemed to steady her. Cam sent her a grateful smile before walking toward the first bedroom.

  The camera returned its focus to Cam. “This is the bedroom where real estate agent Chuck Jackson, who was taking me through the house, and I first saw the apparition of a young woman.” Avery watched, somewhat awed by the energy and confidence that radiated from Cam as she spoke. She seemed effortless in front of the camera. “Possibly the same person who went missing from this house over twenty years ago, a young girl named Roxanne Johnston,” Cam said, her tone turning serious. “Roxanne’s mother called the local authorities after she disappeared from this very room in the middle of the night, and no trace of her has ever been found.”

  Holding out her voice recorder, Cam called out, “Roxanne? Are you here with us now? Can you show yourself?”

  A breathless silence. Not even the crickets were chirping outside the house.

  “If you can hear me, would you verify your name for us?” Cam continued. “We only want to help you, Roxanne. We want to learn the truth of what happened to cause you to disappear. Please tell us. Did someone hurt you? Did someone murder you, Roxanne?”

  This time there was the whisper of a sigh. So faint, Avery wasn’t sure if their equipment could have picked it up.

  “Did you hear that?” Cam asked Avery sharply, and Avery nodded. Turning to face the camera, Cam gave a loud, conspiratorial whisper. “I’m not sure if you could pick that up at home, but there was a sound like a deep sigh just now.”

  Shaye called softly up from downstairs. “We’re reviewing the tape. If we can, we’ll do a replay.” Cam nodded and relayed the information to the viewers. Then she stepped over to the door of the bedroom again, but this time walked boldly inside. Avery followed her, surprised at how reluctant she felt to enter. It felt like a violation—like they were going into someone’s private space.

  “Will you show us some sign of your presence here in this house? If I knocked, could you answer me?” She walked over to a dresser and gave three knocks. “Can you knock three times?”

  Silence again.

  “Avery, could you try to use the ghost box?”

  Avery fumbled with the switch, blinking as the light from the camera shined in her eyes. Immediately the loud sound of the “white noise” filled the upstairs room. Avery herself called out, “Roxanne, are you here with us? Can you communicate through this box?”

  A few random scratches of sound answered, but nothing coherent.

  Cam gave Avery an encouraging nod.

  “Can you tell us who hurt you?” she asked, holding the ghost box out in front of her.

  There was another loud patch of static and then a noise that could have been a girl’s voice broke through. “Buddy!”

  “Roxanne, who is Buddy? Is he the one who hurt you?” Nothing. Just the churning white noise. Avery repeated the question. “Did Buddy hurt you?”

  In response, there was a long, drawn out sobbing that went on and on. It was chilling, and Cam shook her head again, visibly upset at the sound. Avery turned to Cam and raised one eyebrow, questioning if she could go on and got a nod. “Roxanne, I’m a deputy sheriff. If you tell me who hurt you, I promise you I’ll try to make them pay.”

  There was nothing for a long moment and then a girl’s shriek, “Buddy! Please, nooooo!”

  Avery jumped at the sound and almost dropped the box. Even Frank looked uneasy as he poked his head up from the camera.

  “I’m a little dizzy,” Cam murmured and began to sway. Avery rushed forward, catching her just as her knees gave way.

  Frowning, Avery called down to Shaye. “Okay, let’s call this. It’s getting too intense up here.”

  Shaye called back up, “We’re cutting to commercial!”

  Avery felt Cam begin to shake in her arms. She looked down to find Cam visibly weeping.

  “She’s so heartbroken,” she moaned. Cam turned her face to stare at Avery, her eyes unfocused. “She doesn’t understand why he killed her.”

  A light flashed in Avery’s eyes, and she noticed with some irritation that the cameraman was still rolling. She turned so that her body shielded Cam from the camera’s glare and then frowned over her shoulder at Frank. “I think we should head on downstairs now.”

  Cam stumbled along beside her and when they got to the top of the stairs, Avery wrapped an arm around Cam’s waist. “I need some help up here, Shaye,” Avery shouted down.

  “Oh, my goodness!” From the bottom of the stairs, Shaye spoke into her radio and within seconds a couple of brawny guys came hurrying up the stairs toward them as the show finally cut to a break. Avery shook off their help for herself but was happy to turn Cam over to them for a few minutes. Things were getting way too heavy both physically and mentally, and it was there strongly in the atmosphere. Gone was any skepticism that Avery may have b
een holding on to.

  Once down the stairs and seated on a chair in the den, Cam seemed to recover. Shaye produced a bottle of water for Cam to drink while another one of the crew fanned her with a stack of papers. Avery hovered over her, debating whether or not she should call the whole thing off. This certainly wasn’t part of the plan.

  “Do you want to continue with this?” she said quietly, leaning down to look Cam in the eyes. “We don’t have to. We can find another way.”

  “No, no,” Cam shook her head. “I want to go on. I feel like I owe it to that girl. To Roxanne.” She shivered again. “I wonder if I could get her to move on? She’s so alone and so miserable.”

  Avery considered the question before nodding. “If you get the chance, then do it. Don’t wait around for the séance. This girl was a victim—I won’t prolong this thing for her.”

  Cam squeezed Avery’s hand and then Shaye began that countdown thing again.

  “We’re back,” Shaye said to the camera, “and we’re still talking with Detective Smith, who has been aiding us in our investigation. We have some actual news footage from the time of Roxanne Johnston’s disappearance. We’ll show it to you now, while we get ready for the séance to see if Roxanne will talk directly to us.”

  The monitor started showing old news reels and Shaye moved them expertly into the dining room, where they had planned to set up. Mildred was there, along with Chief Deputy Ramsey and Bishop. Avery saw that Chuck Jackson was seated, too, making the circle complete. If anyone noticed Jane’s absence, no one remarked on it, not even Cam.

  Cam went to stand in front of one of the chairs, and Avery moved beside her. Shaye came back in after a few minutes, as did the cameraman. Soon, the lights were flashing on the cameras again.

  “Welcome back,” Cam said. To Avery’s relief, her voice sounded stronger. “I’ll explain everything before we get started. We’re holding the séance around this small reading table, rather than the dining table, to make it more intimate.” Cam made a waving gesture with one hand. “I’ve put out three white candles in their holders, which will cast a white light of protection over us. And then we’ll sit down and wait. It’s getting darker outside and as a matter of fact, we’ve already had to turn on a couple of lamps.”

  Avery watched as the cameraman panned around the room, holding over the candles for a few seconds before turning back to focus on Cam.

  “I’m fairly certain most of you have never been to a séance before, so I want to tell you what to expect. There will be six of us seated at the table. We have Chuck Jackson, the local real estate agent we introduced you to earlier. Also joining us are three members of the Brooks County Sheriff’s Department—Detective Smith, who you’ve already met, Detective David Bishop, and Chief Deputy Steve Ramsey. Rounding out the circle is Mildred Smith, who is, uh, a local paranormal enthusiast.” The camera stopped to focus on each of them as Cam spoke. “The only light in the room will be the candles, and we’ll all be joining hands. Now, there’s no guarantee that we’ll be able to make contact with any spirit, but given what we’ve already been able to capture tonight, I feel as if we will.” The camera behind her, Cam turned to face the group. “I don’t anticipate any problems, but remember you’ll be perfectly safe as long as you don’t break the circle. If there’s a complication of any kind, I’ll ask for protection and tell everyone to unjoin your hands so I can extinguish the candles. That will end the séance. I’m going to go ahead and light the candles on the table. Then, we’ll all take a seat and I’ll turn off the lamps so we can begin.”

  Cam took a seat, and Avery sat next to her on the right. Mildred was on her left, then Chuck, Ramsey, and Bishop. Avery thought that Bishop looked as reluctant to hold her hand as she was to hold his, but neither had a choice.

  Mildred leaned forward and gave Avery a huge wink and a nod, indicating, she supposed, that Jane was in place. It took more than a little effort not to roll her eyes.

  Once everyone was in place, Shaye turned off the lamp. The only light in the room was the three candles in the center of the table.

  Cam looked around at the group and said, “Everyone, please join hands.” Once that was done, she closed her eyes and began making a humming sound. Bishop shifted in the seat beside Avery. She was about to whisper at him to sit still when she felt a tap on her shoulder and a cold breath by her ear. Keenly aware that there was nobody behind her, Avery swallowed. Just my imagination, she thought, just my imagination. She took in a deep breath in an effort calm her nerves. I hope.

  “There have been times,” Cam said, “when I’ve had to summon the spirits more than once before anyone came through. Tonight, I don’t think that will be necessary.” She raised her voice. “If there is any spirit here, if Roxanne is here, I ask you to move among us and communicate with us.”

  A deep, heavy silence.

  “Roxanne, please talk to us. Tell us what happened to you.”

  Suddenly, Cam stiffened and looked over toward Mildred. Avery thought she must have done something and was about to say something when she realized Cam wasn’t looking at Mildred but the empty space behind her.

  “There’s someone here,” Cam whispered. “Roxanne, is that you? Step out of the shadows and make your presence known.”

  By this time, it was fully dark in the room. Avery wrinkled her nose as she began to notice the smell of flowers. It was a sickly-sweet odor. Gardenias, maybe?

  Suddenly it began to rain outside, just a soft drizzle at first and then harder, the rain beating down on the roof and tapping at the windows. Time stretched out in complete silence. Seconds fell into minutes. Avery could feel the tension building in the room. Bishop’s hand was now wet with sweat. Chuck Jackson sat wide-eyed, and even Mildred began to look squirrely. Only Cam and Ramsey seemed unfazed.

  “If anyone is here who wishes to speak to me,” Cam continued, her voice raising an octave, “please come forth and make yourself known to us.”

  Avery was about to despair of anything happening, even Jane knocking on the floor, when suddenly, from near the doorway, a ball of mist began to form. It looked like just a shapeless swirl of fog, floating slowly toward the table. Avery felt goosebumps raise on her arms, whether from the mist or the sudden drop in the room temperature, she wasn’t sure.

  The fog hung beside the table, but nothing else stirred.

  “Roxanne,” Cam called to the misty form. “Make yourself known.”

  A soft whisper echoed in the room. “Buddy! Buddy!”

  Avery thought she saw someone flinching to her left but then the fog began to swirl again, unfolding itself and spreading, taking shape. Where the ball of mist had floated now stood the translucent form of a young woman.

  Bam! Bam! Bam!

  Cam fell back in her chair, obviously startled at the loud banging that suddenly came from the ceiling above the room. Chuck Jackson screamed, a high-pitched shrieking sound that left Avery’s ears ringing.

  Simultaneously, Mildred leaned down toward the table and began to chant, “Abort, abort, abort.”

  Goddamn it. Avery scowled, silently cursing herself for going along with Jane and Mildred’s harebrained scheme. Of all the times for Jane to start knocking…

  Bishop mumbled something under his breath before jumping up from his chair, ripping his hand from Avery’s.

  Cam yelled out, “Don’t break the circle!” but it was too late. Bishop was sprinting out of the room, nearly tripping over the cameraman in his haste. He skidded to a stop in front of the misty figure of Roxanne Johnston. She slowly raised a hand to point at him and then disappeared. Bishop let out a hoarse cry and then bolted.

  Avery was up and out of her chair in a flash, right on his heels. The son-of-a-bitch wasn’t going to get away if she could help it.

  Avery came out of the dining room, blinking at the bright lights setup by the production crew. Not seeing any sign of Bishop, she ran into the foyer, crashing into Hobbs as he stepped inside the house. She steadied both of them, yelling
out, “Get Bishop!”

  They both went crashing through the front door, just in time to see Bishop slide on the wet grass and trip spectacularly over Louise, who was bending down beside one of the vans, sorting through an open make-up case. He careened headfirst into the side of the van. By the time Avery and Hobbs reached him, Bishop was out cold, a huge gash pouring blood down over one eye.

  Ramsey ran up behind them, radio already in hand. As Avery knelt beside Bishop to check his pulse, she heard Ramsey calling to dispatch for paramedics. Satisfied that Bishop was simply unconscious, Avery looked up to see Shaye bending over a prone Louise shouting orders at the production crew, who all seemed to be running around the front yard like wild men. Cam and Chuck Jackson appeared on the front porch, Cam holding to Chuck as he held onto his chest.

  It was utter chaos.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Avery had never been one for hospital waiting rooms, especially when they were jammed full of people. The Brooks County ER waiting room was no exception, between the patients who were actually ill or hurt and the steady stream of looky-loos, nosing around to see if they could get the scoop on what happened at the so-called Johnston Mystery House, and why all the ambulances suddenly showed up.

  Mostly those people came in, took one look at Avery’s face, and had the good sense to turn right back around, but the occasional reporter got through without noticing or paying any attention to Avery and went straight up to the nurse’s desk to ask questions. Avery wondered if she could charge the whole damn bunch of them with obstruction. Too bad there wasn’t a charge for being a general pain in the ass, but then again, if there was the jail would stay full.

  Avery leaned back in the uncomfortable waiting room chair and glanced down at the dog-eared stack of Reader’s Digest, circa 2007, in the seat beside her. Deciding to forego whatever germs inhabited the pages of the magazines, Avery got out her phone to check her messages instead. Cam had volunteered to stay behind with Chief Ramsey, along with Mildred, Jane, and a couple of crew members to close up the house, and she was supposed to let Avery know when they left to go home.