Cain signaled for Jenny to join them.
“Max has something to show us,” Cain said. Jenny flicked Max a glance, and then the three of them walked to the stairs. As they reached the top, Max turned right and headed into the new section.
“We didn’t find anything in the older part of the hotel, but in the new section . . .” He joined Mike Stockton, who stood in the middle of the hallway next to an aluminum ladder. Mike pointed up at the ceiling, where a hole had been cut.
“What’d you find up there?” Cain asked.
“Better if you just go up and see for yourself,” Max said.
“I’ll go,” Jenny said, but Cain rested a hand on her arm, letting Mike go up first.
Mike waited next to the opening to help Jenny into the attic. Cain went up behind her, and Max followed. The attic was coated in a layer of dust, the air choking with it.
Cain frowned at the cluster of odd-looking instruments in the dim space. “What is that stuff?”
Max spoke to Jenny. “You told Cain some of the guests reported seeing a transparent man in a bowler hat walking down the hallway.”
“That’s right.” Jenny cast Cain a glance.
“What they were seeing was a hologram.” Max ducked to avoid the low ceiling and made his way over to a laptop computer sitting on a card table.
“The actual video was made somewhere else,” Max said. “It was brought here and projected by a laser. They used holographic film plates, optical lenses, mirrors, and an anti-vibration setup to make it all happen. The hologram was controlled by the computer. There’s a tiny opening where the image was projected into the hallway.”
“I can’t believe it,” Jenny said, her eyes big as she stared at Max. “So all of it was fake?”
“This is all we’ve found so far. Cain told us about the sounds you heard in your bedroom. That’s where Carrie is now.”
“Bring the laptop,” Cain said. “Leave everything else the way it is. This is a problem for the police.”
When they returned downstairs, Carrie was waiting for them in the hallway. “I found something in Jenny’s bedroom. Bring the ladder.”
They all marched in that direction, Mike carrying the lightweight aluminum ladder.
Carrie pointed to something wedged out of sight in the molding around the ceiling over the bed. “One up there. Another one over near the corner.” She pointed to a spot mostly hidden by the drapes. “Small wireless speakers. Whatever you heard was a recording, probably controlled by the laptop.”
“I can’t believe it.” Jenny sank down on the bed. She looked up at Cain with such despair it made his chest clamp down. “Why would someone do this to me?”
His jaw tightened. “That’s what we’re going to find out.”
Mike climbed the ladder and pried the small speakers out of their hiding places. “I’ll take another look around, make sure there aren’t any more.”
“We’ll need to check the rest of the rooms,” Max said.
Jenny just nodded.
Cain set a hand at her waist. “Come on, honey. Let’s let them do their job. We’ll be downstairs,” he said to Max.
Back in the saloon, Cain seated Jenny at one of the tables. Noting the pale color of her face, he went over to the bar and had Barb pour her a shot of whiskey, then set it on the table in front of her.
“Drink that,” he commanded. “You look like you need it.”
For once, she didn’t argue, just took a long swallow of the dark liquid and relaxed back in her chair “So none of the ghost reports are real? What about room ten?”
“Let’s wait till Max is finished.”
Jenny nodded dully. “I still can’t believe it.” She looked up at him. “What about the ghost I saw at the Grandview? You don’t think . . . ?”
“What . . . ? That the Grandview has also been bugged? I doubt it, but I’ll have Max and his crew check it out. Whatever is going on, it’s happening here. It’s directed at you personally.”
