Oleander House: Bay City Paranormal Investigations, Book 1

taught us to treat with a healthy dose of skepticism.”
Cecile stared resolutely at the floor as Bo talked. In the tense quiet that followed, she raised her face, and Sam was startled to see tears gathering in her eyes.
David laid a hand on her shoulder. “Hey, Cecile—”
She jerked away and stalked out of the room without a glance at any of them.
For a space of seconds, no one spoke. Amy broke the silence with a heartfelt sigh. “Great. Now I feel like a heel.”
Crossing his arms, David glared at Andre. “Why the hell’d you have to ask her that? Christ, Andre.”
Andre’s mouth fell open. “What? Hey, you’re the one who’s been bitching about her being a fake!” “Yeah, well, maybe I changed my mind.”
“Changed your mind. Right.” Nudging Amy gently off of his lap, Andre stood and leaned toward David. “If you did, it’s only because you got in her pants.”
David’s expression turned stormy. “That’s not it, and you damn well know it. You’ve got no reason to say something like that to me.”
“And you, my friend, have no right to bust my balls just because you’re thinking with your dick.”
“Stop it!” Amy shouted. She planted herself between the two glowering men, blue eyes shooting sparks. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe that the two of you have better things to do than fight like a couple of first graders. You”—she poked David in the chest—“obviously feel guilty for being so nasty about Cecile before you got to know her. Whatever, just don’t take it out on the rest of us. And you”—she whirled on Andre before he could say a word—“don’t be so damn juvenile. David’s never let emotions destroy his objectivity about anything. You know him better than that.” Amy stepped back. “Now kiss and make up.”
Sam watched, amused, as David and Andre grinned sheepishly at each other. “Sorry, man,” David said, holding out a hand. “Didn’t mean it.”
“Neither did I. C’mere.” Ignoring David’s outstretched hand, Andre wrapped both arms around David and hugged him hard.
“Watch the ribs!” David wheezed as Andre lifted him right off his feet. He laughed breathlessly when the larger man set him down again. “Damn. I’m gonna start calling you Bonecrusher.”
“Someone should probably go talk to Cecile,” Amy suggested. “The least we can do is hear her out.”
“Now who’s feeling guilty?” Andre teased, tugging on Amy’s hair.
“Yeah, I know,” Amy muttered.
“David,” Bo said, “do you believe her now? Is she really psychic? Because if she is, we need to figure out how to make the best use of her talents. This is a very unusual house, we need every investigative tool we can get.”
“I think,” David answered, speaking slowly, “that she does have some kind of psychic ability. The thing is, it’s more in terms of sensations and intuition than actual communication with spirits or anything like that.”
“Meaning what exactly?” Bo leaned against the table. “Are you saying she dismisses what she feels because it’s not concrete enough for her?”
“You’re partly right.” David brushed a smudge of dirt off his knee. “She trusts what she feels, and believes in it, but she doesn’t think it’s concrete enough for other people.”
“Oh!” Amy exclaimed. “So, she thinks people expect her to see and hear specific things, like talking to ghosts, so that’s what she does?”
David smiled grimly. “Bingo.”
“And she told you all this?” Bo seemed fairly impressed.
David shrugged. “Not in so many words, no. But it wasn’t hard to figure out once I got her talking.”
“Has she felt anything strange here at Oleander House?” Sam asked. He didn’t have to look to know that Andre was wondering the same thing.
“Funny you should ask. We were talking about this place last night in b…” David stopped, cheeks flushing pink. “After we left the parlor. She told me that she doesn’t feel comfortable here. She said she feels on edge all the time, like if she turned around, there’d be something standing behind her.”
A chill raced up Sam’s spine. He glanced at Andre, and saw his own horrified fascination mirrored in Andre’s face. I don’t want to be psychic, Sam thought a little frantically.
Bo pushed away from the table, a determined expression on his face. “I’ll go talk to Cecile. Y’all go on and grab some lunch. There’s stuff for sandwiches in the fridge.”
Andre leaned toward Sam as the group