Oleander House: Bay City Paranormal Investigations, Book 1

see what we get.”
Cecile’s pale cheeks flushed. “I’d rather you didn’t.”
“I’ll just bet,” David muttered. Sam lifted his mug to cover the grin he couldn’t stop.
“I would’ve slept okay,” Amy said, “but Andre kept waking me up.”
“It was just a couple of bad dreams,” Andre insisted. “Sorry I woke you.”
Amy laid a hand on his arm and kissed his cheek. “Honey, you know I don’t mind about that. But I think it’s significant that you’re having these dreams here, in this house. You don’t normally have nightmares.”
Bo leaned his elbows on the table and gave Andre a considering look. “Want to tell us what you dreamed?”
“I don’t remember it all that well. All I can remember for sure is feeling like there was something waiting in the house, and it scared me.”
Sam frowned. Andre was lying, he was sure of it, but he couldn’t figure out why. It made him more eager than ever to find a few minutes alone with Andre to compare notes.
Bo sipped his coffee, dark eyes thoughtful. “Anyone else have strange dreams, or any other experiences during the night?”
“Not me.” David scooped the last bit of gravy off his plate with his finger. “Slept like a rock.”
Sam just smiled when Bo glanced questioningly his way. The thought of telling everyone what he’d dreamed made his guts clench. The dream he remembered, anyway. Vague memories and scattered images floating on the surface of his mind told him that the dream that had woken him hadn’t been the only one.
“Okay.” Bo’s gaze lingered on Sam’s face just long enough to make Sam squirm. “Only Cecile and Andre experienced anything unusual during the night, right?”
Everyone nodded. Sam ignored the way Bo’s eyes narrowed at him. “All right. Any strange experiences— dreams, seeing or hearing things, anything at all—please report it to me or Amy.”
Noises of affirmation echoed around the table. Amy shot one last worried look at Andre, then turned to the rest of the group with a smile. “If everyone’s done eating, let’s get the dishes cleaned up then meet back in the library to go over last night’s tapes.”
“Sounds good.” David jumped to his feet and started collecting dirty dishes. “Great breakfast, as usual, Bo. You’re gonna make us all fat. I don’t know how Janine stays so hot, with you doing all the cooking.”
Bo laughed. “Hey, I try to keep my family healthy.”
“Yeah,” Amy chimed in. “He saves the artery clogging for us.”
Bo shook his head. “Okay, let me get the dishes cleaned up, then we’ll meet back in the library and get everything set up for today.”
“Aye-aye, cap’n,” David said, grinning. “Sam, why don’t you go on ahead with Andre. Y’all can get the equipment set up and he can show you the procedures we use to screen several hours’ worth of video. I’ll help Bo get the cleaning done, won’t take us ten minutes.”
“Okay, sure.” Sam resisted the urge to turn and look at Bo as he followed Andre out of the dining room.
Chapter Four
    Since Sam was already familiar with most of the equipment, it didn’t take long for Andre to instruct him in the video review procedure. By the time Bo and David returned from the kitchen, Sam and Andre already had everything set up.
    “Okay,” Bo said. “What say we divide up into teams now and get started?”
“How do you want to handle it?” Amy asked from the armchair in the corner, where she was fiddling with one of the EMF detectors. “We have the washhouse, the barn and the old outdoor kitchen to look at. Plus we have several hours of tape to review from last night.”
“Hm. Let’s see.” Bo tucked a stray lock of glossy black hair behind one ear. Sam swallowed and forced himself to look away. “Why don’t we divide into three teams, with two teams starting on the outbuildings while the third stays behind to start going over the tapes?”
“I absolutely refuse to waste my time staring at videotapes,” Cecile declared. Sam turned, startled. He hadn’t realized she’d come into the room. Her sharp features were set in a scowl. “I need to be in the field where I can communicate with the spirit world, not stuck in front of a television set.”
“What if the spirits are in here, not out there?” David asked, absolutely straight-faced.
Cecile’s pale cheeks went pink. “Well… Well, I suppose…” she trailed off, clearly flustered.
“We’ll just have to chance it.” Bo raised an eyebrow at