Oleander House: Bay City Paranormal Investigations, Book 1

on the back of Sam’s neck stood up as something cold rushed past him with a vibration he felt deep in his bones. Fighting to keep his composure, he turned in a slow circle, taking one picture after another. He nearly jumped out of his skin when Andre’s hand landed on his shoulder, but it seemed to dissipate the almost palpable malice and suddenly Sam could breathe again.
He gave Andre a shaky smile. “Please tell me you got that on the audio.”
“I think so, yeah.” Andre ran a hand over his closecropped hair. “What the fuck, huh?”
Sam shook his head. “Whatever it was, it was just like before, only not as bad.”
“Right.” Andre grinned. “Okay, that was interesting. Ready to move on?”
“Sure,” Sam answered with more confidence than he felt. “Let’s do it.”
Sam and Andre spent the next couple of hours methodically going through the rest of the downstairs rooms. Mudroom, sun porch, foyer, servants’ quarters. Sam found the routine of the investigation comforting. By the time they reached the library, he’d stopped tensing every time Andre asked the thing they’d sensed to show itself. Nothing further happened, and Sam couldn’t help feeling a profound relief mingling with his disappointment.
When they entered the library Amy and David both looked up at them. Both wore headphones, David listening to audio from that morning and Amy watching the video Sam had shot the previous day in the outdoor kitchen. Amy’s bright blue gaze followed Sam around the room. The cool, appraising look made him nervous.
Sam glanced at the TV over Amy’s shoulder as he passed behind her. She was almost to the end of the tape, Sam realized. On screen, Bo laughed at something Sam had said. Those dark liquid eyes burned with a hunger his laughter couldn’t disguise. Sam saw the tension in Amy’s shoulders, the tightening of her hands on the arms of the chair, and knew she’d noticed. He forced himself to keep moving in spite of his shaking legs.
“Okay, guess that’s it,” Andre said a few minutes later. He switched off his recorder and thumped Amy on the shoulder. “Hey, babe.”
“What?” Amy paused the video and tugged the headphones off. “Couldn’t hear you.”
Andre grinned at her. “We’re done with the downstairs. Are you finished watching that tape yet?”
“Just this minute, yeah.” Amy stood and stretched.
Sam shuffled his feet nervously. “Did you see anything? On the tape?”
Amy gave him a needle-sharp look. “Like what?”
“Babe, what do you think we’re here for?” Andre bumped her shoulder with his arm. “Ghosts. Spirits. Otherworldly critters. That sort of thing.”
Sam, who knew exactly what Amy had seen, wet his dry lips and managed to speak without his voice shaking. “We had that EMF spike early on, remember? I mentioned it yesterday. I didn’t see anything while I was filming, but you never know.”
“Guess that’s true, huh? You never know what you’re gonna catch on tape.” Amy held his gaze a moment longer. Sam got the message. She’d seen the lust in Bo’s eyes, seen the way Sam followed Bo’s every movement with the camera, and she knew.
The thing that shook Sam like an earthquake was that she didn’t seem surprised. Angry? Yes, a little. Disapproving? Definitely. But not surprised. There could be only one reason for that.
Amy must know that Bo was gay, or at the very least bisexual. How long she’d known, Sam had no idea, but it had to be for a while. She’d known Bo for years. Had she seen that look in Bo’s eyes before? The hot glow that needed not a woman’s soft curves to sate it, but the hard, rough touch of another man?
She must have. More than once, judging from the half-resigned, half-irritated look behind her cool gaze.
Sam blinked and shook himself when he realized she was speaking. “What?”
“I said nothing showed on tape. No unusual sounds either.” Amy crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him. “You okay, Sam? You seem a little shaken up.”
Sam tensed. Andre unknowingly came to his rescue. “We had a strange experience in the parlor. We both felt something. There was a temperature drop, and a sort of sound or vibration.”
“I took a bunch of stills,” Sam added, feeling a little calmer with Amy’s gaze fixed on Andre now instead of him. “Didn’t see anything, but maybe I got something on film.”
“And I’m positive I got it on audio.” Andre leaned over and nudged David, who was slumped in his chair with his