Perception (Apparition Investigations #1)

Case #2: Hell's Gate: Part 12

Rose threw open my apartment door. I wedged a foot in before it banged shut behind her, hissing at the sharp whack as it smacked into my foot. "Easy," I hissed, "people are trying to sleep here."

She rounded on me. The fire hadn't drained from her since we'd dropped Noah off at his car. If anything, it'd grown in the drive to my place.

"Can you believe him?" she demanded, hands back on her hips. "Can you believe him?"

I set down the camera bag just inside the door. Then I felt a chill on my shoulder. "What happened? Is everything alright?" Cyril asked.

"The nerve!" Rose bellowed, stomping into the kitchen. "Where's the wine? I need a drink?"

I sighed. "It could have gone better," I whispered to Cyril.

"And now I can't even go back to my stupid apartment!" she snapped, throwing open cabinets, searching for a wine glass and the bottle opener. Her hands throttled the neck of the bottle of white she'd found in the refrigerator. "Because he could waltz in any freaking moment. God, why did I give him a stupid key?"

I froze. "You gave him a key?"

"Shut up," she hissed, yanking open a drawer. She found the bottle opener and started to work the cork free. "This is freaking ridiculous. I can't believe he blackmailed me into leaving when we were actually starting to get evidence!"

Despite myself, I took in a breath and readied myself to defend him. Inwardly, I was cringing. But he'd been right. We shouldn't have stayed there. "He was right to insist that we leave."

She rounded on me, eyes blazing. "And then for him to suggest that you order me to leave? Ha! Stupid psychic, fourth-grade teaching—" her words devolved into grunts and mumblings as she continued to struggle with the corked bottle.

"What happened?" Cyril asked.

"Something appeared," I answered in a hushed tone. "It was giving off seriously bad vibes. I felt off, and so did Noah. We told Rose we should leave, she didn't want to, Noah suggested I force her to, Rose flipped, he blackmailed her when I refused, and here we are."

"Here we are..." Cyril repeated weakly. "What kind of bad vibes? Did it hurt you any at all?"

I shook my head. "It just kept repeating 'home' over and over again. I couldn't hear it though—the spirit box picked it up. But when it started getting closer, I froze. Noah threw up his ward after that."

I felt another chill on my shoulder. "Thank goodness he was there."

"Words I never thought I'd hear you say."

"Got it!" Rose shouted triumphantly as the cork popped free. She snatched the wine glass from the counter and poured the white wine until it nearly reached the brim.

"Whatever was out there, Rose," I said, "it was dangerous. Noah was right to leave."

"We were fine in the ward," she waved a hand dismissively as she sank onto the couch. "I'm guessing he'd put it up?"

I nodded.

"See? We were fine."

"Maybe. But I've seen what ghosts can do when they get angry or upset. And I don't know how Noah's wards would hold up against that. Whatever was out there tonight could have turned on us in an instant. And we would have been trapped if the ghosts had circled around."