What Hides Inside: Bay City Paranormal Investigations, Book 2

softly as he could. “What should we do?”
David’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. “Go see who—or what—it is.”
“Crap,” Dean breathed. To Sam’s shock, Dean’s hand clamped onto his left wrist, holding tight. “Didn’t bargain on this, guys. I’m scared shitless.”
“Me too.” David drew a deep breath and blew it out. Flashlight held out in front of him like a weapon, he crept forward, hugging the wall. Sam followed, with Dean still clinging to his wrist.
Those were the longest seconds of Sam’s life. His pulse raced as he wondered what waited for them around the bend. Please don’t be one of those things, he silently pleaded.
“Ready?” David whispered.
“Fuck no.” Dean pressed closer to Sam. His heart thudded against Sam’s arm. “Let’s do it.”
They moved forward as a group. Sam held his breath, every sense on alert. They rounded the corner. In the distance, three lights bobbed above the ground. For a second Sam froze, shocked at the physical evidence that they had company in the tunnel. Then he realized what the lights must be, and laughed out loud.
“Sam,” David hissed. “Be quiet.”
“No, it’s okay,” Sam insisted, still laughing. “It’s only—”
“Hey!” Andre’s voice bellowed from where the three lights hovered. “That you guys?”
David groaned and leaned against the wall while Dean doubled over with laughter. Grinning, Sam started walking forward. “It’s us, Andre. Y’all about scared us to death.”
“Yeah, we thought you were other-dimensional critters.” David ran a shaking hand through his hair. “Jesus.”
“We thought the same about you guys,” Cecile called.
Bo’s laugh drifted down the tunnel, making Sam’s breath catch. “Now that we know this is one tunnel instead of two, let’s continue as before and meet in the middle.”
“Gotcha, boss.” David leaned against the tunnel wall, his smile fading. “I tell you what, I sure am glad that was them and not one of those things.”
“Yeah, me too.” Sam heard the faint tremor in his own voice and hated it. He wished he wouldn’t react that way every time he thought of that night, the nightmarish creature appearing out of thin air and killing Amy right before their horrified eyes.
Dean’s hand slid down Sam’s wrist, twining their fingers together. Surprised, Sam turned to look at him. He’d forgotten Dean still had hold of his wrist. Dean squeezed Sam’s hand, then let go without a word. Sam blinked back the prickling behind his eyelids and followed David, who was already moving down the tunnel.
“So,” Sam said as he fell in step beside David. “Mr. Innes didn’t say anything about there only being one tunnel. He made it sound like there were two.”
“Maybe he didn’t know. It’s been bricked up for more than fifty years.” Pointing his flashlight beam at the floor, David studied a long, narrow furrow in the dirt. “What’s this look like to y’all?”
Sam crouched on the ground and peered closely at the deep scratch. Damp reddish earth lay loose on either side, and the bottom glistened with moisture. “It looks fresh. Like whatever made it was just here.”
“Hm.” Squatting beside Sam, Dean picked up a clump of earth and crumbled it between his fingers. “Yeah, it seems fresh all right. But we know no one else has been in here other than us, and the rest of our group hasn’t been this far.”
They looked at one another. Unease churned in Sam’s stomach. “Rats, maybe?” he suggested, though he knew in his heart it wasn’t.
“Maybe.” David frowned, tapping his flashlight against his thigh. “Mr. Innes did say they found evidence of large rats in the other tunnel.”
“That would be one hell of a rat,” Dean observed. “This is, what, about two feet long?”
“And at least an inch deep.” Rising to his feet, Sam glanced down the tunnel toward the lights of their coworkers. He didn’t like the things he was thinking, but there was no point in keeping it to himself. It’s not like they haven’t guessed anyway . “No, this wasn’t made by any rat. I think it was—”
A feminine cry cut off his words. He, David and Dean looked at each other, then took off running toward where the three flashlights huddled in a tight group about twenty yards away. Sam noticed the walls were lined with brick here, but didn’t stop to consider what that meant. Not with Cecile’s frightened cry still ringing in his ears.
“Hey!” David shouted as they drew