Page 14 of Destined Chaos
“Sleeping on the floor is going to hurt with your foot. You got a bed in this place?”
“I’m not a damsel in distress. I’ll survive.”
“Never thought you were. But I can’t in good conscience leave you to fend for yourself. My sister and sisters-in-law would shoot me. Just humor me and point me in the direction of where I can find you something more comfortable. Trust me. This isn’t for you. You’ll be saving my life. You don’t want to be responsible for my impending death, now do you?”
He’d smoothly twisted the narrative around where it was me helping him and not the other way around. I gestured down the hall with my thumb. “I didn’t think I’d be staying, but there might be something like a cot or air mattress down in the basement. If you’d get that for me, I promise to sing your praises to the female members in your family.”
“Perfect.” He headed past me down the hall like he knew where he was going. He opened the right door and grinned as he hit the light switch and vanished out of sight.
Creepy basements didn’t scare this guy. Maybe he really could help me with the contractors.
A chill skirted my spine when the footsteps from somewhere above started again. I rubbed at the forming goosebumps on my arms, debating if the icy chill was the drafty house or something else. The unsettling feeling of being watched washed over me.
I pulled myself up using the staircase railing and grabbed my crutches, wishing I were on more steady feet.
At least this time I was at the bottom stair and not the top. The deadly ghost overall-wearing guy was standing on the top of the stairs staring down at me. I swallowed around my fear, not giving in how his presence affected me. His icy stare held me in place. I wasn’t about to run, not that I’d get very far.
I held my breath and met his gaze, refusing to look away. His bony fingers clenched into the little ghost girl’s shoulders. She looked up at him over her shoulder with sadness and some type of knowing what was coming next.
Anger flashed in his eyes and his lips twitched. He gave a hard push and sent the ghost girl tumbling down the stairs.
My hand flew to my mouth, covering my gasp. All the scared feelings from when I was five rushed through me like a tidal wave. I couldn’t stop my descent back then, and no one had heard my screams. I’d lain at the bottom for what seemed like an eternity before my mother came in from the garden.
Seconds before the little ghost girl would have reached the bottom, she vanished out of sight. Almost as if this was a residual haunt, but I knew it was not. The man at the top remained unmoving, uncaring. A smile twisted on his lips. His words played in my mind.
“Welcome back. It’s your turn next.”
“Bring it on, asshole. I’m not so little anymore.” I fought the feeling of dread that settled in my bones and narrowed my eyes. This guy would not scare me. Not again. Never again.
A loud thump sounded in the basement, followed by Hugh’s cursing. The ghost at the top of the stairs vanished.
“Hugh, are you all right?” I called out as I hobbled down the hallway to the open door.
He appeared at the bottom of the stairs, carrying the box with the air mattress over his head. “I’m fine, but we’ve got a problem.”
Whatever he’d found wouldn’t be the first problem, nor the last, not with the way this ghost was screwing with me.
Hugh hurried up the stairs and set the box on the floor. “Your water heater just busted, and water is gushing everywhere. I need to turn off the water supply at the valve.”
“Right.” I met his determined gaze. “And where do we do that?”
“Houses talk to me, remember?”
“Maybe you should ask it where the dead smoke detector is hiding. It will save me extra trips up and down the stairs,” I said.
“I’ll take care of that tomorrow after I handle this first. You go back and sit down until I get this situated and can blow up your air mattress.”
He whisked by me in a run toward the kitchen, where I heard a drawer open and close before the back door did the same.
“The water heater, really?” I growled and used the end of my crutch to push the box to the sitting room.
The salt line smeared as I crossed the opening. Pulling out the air mattress and electronic pump from the box, I hooked it up and plugged it in. The loud annoying sound was comforting and drowned out the rest of the unexplainable noises in the house.
Hugh reappeared minutes later. “Good, you situated?”
“Just peachy. I don’t suppose you’ve got the number to a water vac guy or a plumber. Whoever can get the water out of the basement.”
“No need. I can handle it.” He grinned. “You had a pump in the basement. I’m guessing this isn’t the first time this has happened.”
