“I’ve decided where cameras can go in the cabins, church, workshop, and tunnel. The hotel is what I’m working on now,followed by Santa’s house. I can give you the camera positions for those buildings as soon as you want them,” Phil replied.
“That’s great. If you want to get started,” I said, looking at the rest of the guys, “I’ll look at creating three teams.”
A chorus of agreement came back at me as I grabbed a pen and paper and wrote everyone’s names down. They all left—Sunny stopping to give me a toe-curling kiss before leaving.
Within a few minutes, I made up the teams. Connor would lead with Solace and Merrick. Jack would have Diaz and Michelle. I’d take Phil, Ashford and Sunny. Freddie would stay with Harry and watch the monitors. Freddie liked to join investigations so she could swap out with Michelle, who also liked watching the cameras. Once I’d decided the teams, I headed out after the guys, intending to help with set-up.
As I walked through the snow towards the church, I saw something—or someone—dart out of the corner of my eye. I turned to greet them, but there was no one there.
Surprised, I frowned and looked around. I’d definitely seen someone, although I didn’t want to admit it. Because I was sure I’d seen a damn elf!
Sunny
Callie joined us and seemed a little off. I wanted to ask why, but she shook her head at me, and I guessed she’d tell me later. We worked quickly, placing the cameras according to Phil’s plans, and headed back to collect the locations for Santa’s house and hotel.
“You know what’s bothering me?” Callie said as we strolled back through the village.
“What?” I asked, capturing her hand and hauling her close.
“Nothing is malicious.”
“Huh?”
“Whatever ghosts are here seem content and happy. They’re not causing trouble… more like mischief.”
I considered her words for a few moments.
“We’ve got Casper the Friendly Ghost or something?”
“Don’t know. But everything Simon and Fiona reported seems done in innocent fun, for attention. A kind of ‘look, we’re here and we want you to remember us’ behaviour,” I replied.
I frowned. “What are the odds of that type of haunting? I don’t think we’ve ever encountered that.”
“Oh, I have, where all spirits were benign. Usually, there’s at least one rotten element. But a purely non-malicious haunting? That’s rare, Sunny, so rare I’ve only investigated one like it.”
“Interesting,” I drawled.
Callie stared at me for a few moments. “What, babe?”
“Are you okay? You seem grumpy, like the Grinch is infusing your body,” she asked finally.
“It’s Christmas in June, babe. I’m not into this shit; it’s far too much,” I answered honestly.
“Sunny! This is one of the most magical places I’ve ever seen. How can you not be spellbound by this?” Callie exclaimed.
“Callie, this is… not my thing. I’m not interested in shit like this.”
“This place is wonderful!” Callie looked shocked at my reply.
“Not to me,” I said shortly. “In fact, I can’t wait to get out of here.”
Callie stared at me in disbelief. “You really are channelling your inner Scrooge! Damn, I hope you won’t be this miserable when the baby arrives. Christmas is a magical time for families, Sunny. I won’t let our child’s Christmas be anything less than filled with amazement.”
How the hell did I answer that? Small, toned-down Christmases were disappearing from my future. Callie was really going to go all out. A part of me understood why, but I didn’t want that. No doubt Callie wanted the movie Christmases that she’d seen on TV. A sharp pang hit me as I considered the child she’d once been and how she must have yearned for a family time like that. A bitter feeling settled in my stomach. Callie had been denied all of that. And while I didn’t wish to begrudge her anything, this was something that was going to make me miserable. Damnit!
Callie
After we’d all got back to the hotel, I checked that Harry and Phil had set up the command centre and found them staring at the screens.
