“My feelings are a little hurt, but no. I guess not.”
“I hurt your feelings? Really?” I ask snidely.
“Surprised I have them?”
“A bit.” But no. I’m not actually surprised. Of course, he has feelings. He has a whole lot of them from what I’ve witnessed. I resign, softening my tone. “I’m sorry I hurt your feelings.”
“It’s whatever.”
My lips form a flat line, but he moves on before I can address that fib, typing the name of the old grist mill into Google. Aswe read through a couple of articles about the Gurley Rock Grist Mill, I learn of several deaths on site as well as reports of it being a hub for witchcraft and “suspicious paranormal activity.”
“Oh, that’s interesting,” I comment when we come across a blog post that claims the writer’s friend was killed as a result of said “suspicious paranormal activity.” I lean closer to the window, and Kit enlarges the web page so I can see it better. “Can ghosts possess people?”
The blogger believes that their friend was possessed by a ghost, which they attribute as the cause of their tragic end. They assert having witnessed the ghost physically enter their friend’s body, along with the immediate changes that occurred in them afterward. They became an entirely different person, just like that.Huh. I know the feeling.
“Yeah,” Kit says. “Most either don’t know how or don’t bother because they can survive for centuries on Earth without a host. Eventually, ghosts fade away or move on, as you know, but they can outlast demons any day.”
“Is ghost possession worse?”
“Typically, yeah. Because ghosts don’t need to possess. They do it for a reason beyond survival, and that reason is typically shitty. They possess with a specific aim to hurt or kill. They possess with an anger and vengefulness that is unimaginable. Demons, on the other hand, have pretty much gotten over any grudges from our human lives. We’re here for a good time, they’re here for revenge.”
I’m quiet for a tick. I never thought that the idea of a ghost, any ghost, would be more frightening than a demon. I knowghosts. I understand ghosts, but perhaps I just understand the good ones. “And this is the place you want to take me?”
“Well, yeah. You can’t get possessed by a ghost if I’m already possessing you. Or another demon, at that. No one else has the opportunity to interact with a vengeful spirit like this without fear of getting hurt.”
“Huh,” I say, mulling over the idea of exclusive access to something like this. “That’s actually kind of cool, then.”
“I’m watching out for you, babe. It’s what I’m here for.” He clears his throat. “So, you into this place? We can head over there tonight, if you want.”
I bob my head. “Yeah, I’m down. Can we do some more research? I need a list of names of who our ghost could potentially be. Even if this is an angry ghost?—”
“A vengeful spirit.”
“Right. That’s not a terrifying term. Even if this is avengeful spirit, it’d be nice to know their name.”
“Quite the humanitarian you are. Yeah, we can do as much research as you want.”
twenty-one
. . .
“We’re almost there.”
I put down my pen and glance at the car clock. It’s just after midnight. While Kit drove us to the old grist mill, I decided to write some more. “That was quick.”
“For you. What were you writing about?”
“Um, an ex who stole my coffee maker.”
“He stole your coffee maker?” he questions.
“Yeah. Left a note to break up with me and stole my coffee maker. I found it after I came home from investigating this old, abandoned mini golf course close to my mom’s house. That’s what I started writing about, but that good memory bleeds into the bad one.”
“That was a shitty way to break up with you.”
I suck my teeth. “Yeah, well, Jack was shitty.”
“Why would you…?”
