Oleander House: Bay City Paranormal Investigations, Book 1

how can…?”
“Wait.”
Andre strode down the hall without another word.
    Instead of going into the nursery, though, he veered into the little parlor opposite the stairwell. Sam followed him, puzzled. “Andre, what’s going on?”
    “I wanted to talk to you privately.” Andre shut the door and leaned against it, arms crossed. “What did you feel in there last night? Because I have to tell you, whatever it was, I didn’t like it one bit.”
    “Neither did I.” Sam drew a deep breath. “It felt like there was something…” He stopped, fumbling for the right words. “Like something was waiting, just out of sight. Something dangerous.”
    “Exactly.”
“You ever had anything like that happen before?” “I’ve felt things before. There was a theater we
    investigated in Mobile a couple of years ago. Every time we went in there, I felt like someone was watching me. But I’ve never felt anything like I did last night.” Andre’s expression was solemn. “I was scared. And I don’t scare easy.”
    “Same here.” Sam ran a hand through his hair. “Any idea what it was?”
“Not a fucking clue.”
“Maybe we’ll get something on the tape.”
Andre let out a short, sharp laugh. “You know, I don’t know whether to hope we do, or don’t.”
“No kidding.”
“Listen, Sam, you and I are gonna need to keep our eyes and ears peeled. We’re gonna have to pay close attention to everything. I don’t think anybody else can feel it like we can.”
Sam didn’t have to ask Andre’s opinion about Cecile. He agreed with David, and was certain Andre did too. “I told Bo about it earlier.”
“Yeah? What’d he say?”
“Nothing, really. He believed me, though. That’s enough for me. Not everybody would.”
Andre’s eyebrows went up. “Sounds like this isn’t your first paranormal experience.”
Sam almost denied it. He’d learned the hard way to keep his mouth shut when strange things happened to him. But this was a group that dealt with the paranormal for a living. And Andre had felt the same thing he had. He couldn’t have asked for a safer time and circumstance for telling the truth.
“I’ve had some weird things happen before. Seen things, heard things. Felt things, now and then. But I’ve never felt anything that scared me like that did last night.”
“Whatever this is, it’s dangerous.”
“I agree.”
Andre pushed away from the door and took a step toward Sam. “We could be risking our lives here. You willing to do that?”
Sam thought about it. Andre was right; their lives might be on the line. But he couldn’t deny his desire to know what it was he’d sensed the night before. It drew him irresistibly. “Yeah. I’ll risk it.”
Andre nodded. Looking into his eyes, Sam knew they understood each other. “Think I’ll grab a beer and sit out on the porch for a while. Want to join me?”
“Sure, that’d be great.” Sam followed Andre out the door again. “Oh, what about the tape? I’ll come up and change it at six if you tell me what I need to do.”
“There’s nothing to it. Just take the old tape out, pop a new one in and start it rolling, then get in front of the camera and state your name, the date and time. That’s it.”
“Isn’t the date and time on the camera?”
“Yeah, but ghosts have been known to mess with the equipment.” Andre grinned over his shoulder. “It doesn’t take but one time having a fucked-up camcorder clock before you learn not to rely on it exclusively.”
“I bet.” Sam laughed, excitement lifting his spirits in a sudden rush. “Damn, you know, I realize that this might be a dangerous job, but I fucking love it already.”
“Amen, brother. Gonna be one hell of an exciting week.”
Sam smiled his agreement as they descended the stairs.
Chapter Five
    After dinner, Sam, Andre and Amy headed for the little upstairs parlor. Amy flung open the French doors, letting in balmy evening air. The twilight buzzed with the songs of insects and bullfrogs. Somewhere not far off, an owl hooted. The faint scent of honeysuckle floated in on the humid breeze.
    It wasn’t long before the rest of the group wandered in one by one to join them. Conversation flowed easily, smoothed by the bottle of pinot noir Bo brought with him. Even Cecile let her haughty attitude drop enough to join in, laughing along with the rest of them. It was nice, friendly and relaxed. Sam couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so peaceful.
    As evening deepened into night,