Desperate

Chapter 8

Rebuilding the ghost portal after so long certainly brought back memories from Vlad's college days. Some were good, most were bad, but it was still the time when he met Maddie, the love of his life, and never regretted going because of her; except, of course, he regretted befriending Jack just to be around Maddie but that was beside the point.

He levitated up in the air, examining what he had done so far and determining what needed to be done next. So far, he assembled most of the ecto-filtrator control panel, drilled the necessary holes through the wall to attach the metal beams that would shape the portal to it, and unpacked the ectoplasm needed to power up the ghost portal. Now all he had to do was finish assembling the filtrator, drill the metal beams through the wall, screw on the emergency lights, attach the doors to the portal, then build the necessary turbines and connect them with the pipes that would attach to the portal. He sighed in exhaustion and rubbed a hand down his face, wishing he could snap his fingers and the hard labor would be done instantly.

A loud scream erupted to his right, and he frowned and glanced over at the baby bouncer, staring at Elizabeth with annoyance when he realized the problem right away; she dropped her binky, again. He sighed in annoyance and levitated downwards then changed back into his human form, knowing from personal experience she was immensely afraid of his ghost form. He walked over to her, picked up her binky by her tiny feet, and gave it back to her. She sucked on it and blinked up at him a few times, as if trying to communicate but that was just a guess.

"You're welcome," he commented, believing she was trying to give her thanks even though he was probably wrong.

"Mr. Masters?" the voice of his maid called down from the top of the stairway to the basement.

He rose his eyebrows in surprise and glanced at the ghost portal before deciding to meet her at the top, not wanting her to see what he was doing. He ascended the stairway and stopped a few steps below her when he saw her standing in the doorway. "Yes, Ms. Harrison?"

"There's a phone call for you."

He checked his watch, noticing it was two-thirty; the time Jack normally called. "Just tell him I'm not available right now and to leave a voicemail."

The maid nodded and left, hurrying to the nearest phone. He sighed, more annoyed than before with Jack's daily calls after their one conversation a few nights ago. Why was he so eager to 'reconnect' with him when he clearly didn't want to? That idiot could be so oblivious sometimes.

He closed and locked the basement door, not wanting anymore interruptions. Perhaps he should build, or have built, a secret entrance into the basement, one that only he would know about. That way, no one could interrupt him, and he could go down there to take a break from playing 'daddy' for a bit and focus on finding the other ghost portal. He nodded once, deciding that that would be the best option, and walked back down the stairway to continue working.

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After several weeks of hard work and determination, Vlad managed to build his own ghost portal as well as make it look more like a laboratory than a basement. Plus, he built that secret entrance, cemented the original entryway, and made sure to destroy the blueprints that showed he was supposed to have a basement; even though he was certain no one could find the secret entrance anyway.

He sighed in content as he examined the place, pleased with how his secret lair turned out, while holding Elizabeth. "What do you think, Elizabeth? It's a pretty nice secret lair, don't you agree?" he asked, smiling down at her.

She cooed up at him, smiling, and opened her fist then placed her palm on his chest. He smiled a little wider at her, feeling a bit wanted. "Do you want to see the ghost portal activate, sweetheart?" he asked, and she cooed a bit louder in response as her smile grew.