She’d tried to send him home, but he refused, saying he didn’t want her alone in the house. But he drew the line at going up to the attic. She didn’t blame him. The few times she’d been up there, she had moved as fast as humanly possible.
He looked up from the books he held in his hand. “She does.”
“So I wonder just how…mystical she gets? Like, do you think she could know anything about ghosts?”
“I don’t know. I think she maybe opened up the shop here because of the legends about the swamp, but I honestly don’t know her well enough to know what she believes.”
“I’ve been in there a couple of times, and she has a lot of herbs and protection type products, so maybe? Do you think she would think I was completely crazy if I went to talk to her about this? She’s not the friendliest person, but maybe she could help.”
He shrugged. “I don’t know her all that well. Like you said, she’s not too friendly. I helped her replace the glass in her shop when someone shattered it. But even then she didn’t talk much. I don’t even think she reported it to the police.”
“That’s weird. Did they ever find out who did it?”
“Duval thinks it was kids, but like I said when you thought kids were breaking in here, we don’t have a lot of kids in town.”
“I’ve noticed that. That’s kind of weird, isn’t it?”
“I mean, there isn’t a school, so no. And people moved to Maillard when the factory closed down to be closer to the school.”
“Hattie said something about that.”
“Have you talked to Hattie about any of this?”
Erielle coughed out a laugh. “No. Do you think she would believe me? That woman is very difficult to talk to, and she already doesn’t like me. I don’t want her to think I’m crazy on top of it all.”
“Do you think you’re crazy?”
“Not anymore. It was touch and go there, for a while, but now that you’ve seen what I saw, I at least don’t feel like I’m losing my mind.”
He grinned and reached up to grab the next set of books. “Or we’re both losing our minds.” He turned, grin morphing to a frown, his hand still wrapped around the three books. He pulled one down, then tugged at the next, tilting it toward him, but it didn’t come free. Instead, a grinding growl sent him leaping across the room to stand by her, between her and the bookshelf that was now sliding open.
She hadn’t realized she’d grabbed him until her palms registered the hard lines of his waist, the rapid thud of his heartbeat under her hands. She edged him aside, stepping around him toward the open entryway now revealed on the far side of the room.
“What the hell?” His voice pitched high, breathless. “Did you know that was there?”
“I had no idea.”
Before she could take another step, he caught her wrist, his hand hot, firm.
“What are you doing? We are not going in there.” Alarm jangled in his voice.
She turned to him, perplexed. “What are you talking about? Of course we are.”
He stared at her for a long minute, must have seen her determination, let out a long-suffering sigh. “Let me get a flashlight out of the truck. Do not go in without me.”
When she didn’t respond, he squared up.
“Promise me, Erielle.”
She hesitated a moment longer, then gave a short nod, though, damn, curiosity was burning through her, stronger than any fear of what she might find.
He was gone in a flash, his heavy steps vibrating across the porch. She caught herself wondering what her neighbors would think if they saw him running from her house like that.
She drifted toward the opening, drawn as questions fluttered through her brain like butterflies, none of them sticking around long enough for an answer to form. She placed a hand on the entry, and heard Samson’s heavy steps behind her. She turned to look at him, saw his face flushed, his mouth drawn tight with trepidation. He held a hefty flashlight with a handle in front of him. He wasn’t looking at her, though. His attention was fully on the space behind her.
“Stay behind me,” he ordered, thrusting an arm out to bar her from slipping past. And then he stepped through the door.
Taking a deep breath—mistake, because the musty air filled her lungs—Erielle followed, pressed against his back as she strained to see over his shoulder.
