Page 99 of The Haunting Plot

“I know what it’s not. It sounded like metal banging on the pipes. Turn the faucet on again.”

He follows my instructions, and we wait for the noise, but it never comes. Downing the water quickly, I push my way into the en suite and turn the faucet on and off several times, hoping to recreate the sound, but the house is silent.

“No one else is here, right?” Sawyer says, staring at me in the mirror.

“No. The kids are with the moms.”

He turns to me, a slight tremble in his voice. “I don’t want to ruin the moment by saying something idiotic, but I’m starting to think your house is actually haunted.”

“Whatever prank you’re trying to pull, you can cut it out.”

“I swear, it’s not me.”

Something in his eyes stops me from teasing him. He’s actually terrified. I can tell he’s being sincere, that he truly believes these hauntings are real, but my intuition is screaming that they’re not. I just haven’t figured out what could be causing them. Based on his reaction, it’s clearly not him.

“Whatever. I’m going to take a shower,” I say as I push past him and turn on the hot water. The room quickly fills with steam as I turn back to ask him if he’s joining me, but the look on his face stops me. He’s staring at the mirror, mouth agape, hands trembling. When I glance over to see what’s got his panties in a twist, there’s a message on the mirror in shaky block letters.

GET OUT.

CHAPTER 24

SAWYER

Raven’s house is haunted. That’s the only thing that makes sense. I knew I shouldn’t have torn out that wall. Thank God I haven’t touched those dick windows. Who knows what kind of chaos that could cause?

Raven thought it was me pranking her, but I had nothing to do with it. She accused me of writing the words on the mirror. When I denied it, she waved it off, saying one of the kids could’ve done it days ago and it just appeared in the steam. I suppose that’s possible, but why would they do that? She thinks I’m nuts, but I know it’s a ghost.

The next week passes in a blur, but I manage to make progress on all my unfinished projects at the house, including my secret ones.

Since Raven’s on a deadline, her focus is scattered, but she’s still managed to help me stay on track, reminding me to set alarms on my phone and hanging a calendar in her kitchen as a visual reminder of all the tasks I need to complete around the house. It’s also color-coded to include the kids’ activities, hers, and mine.

And I need the reminder since things have been getting more hectic around the station as we approach the dry season. We’ve had a few wildfires in the area the past several years, and with the lack of precipitation this year, we might be headed for a busy winter.

I finally finished the flooring on the main floor, having secured and painted all the baseboards. After I wash my brush in the laundry room utility sink, I stroll over to Raven’s desk, ready to stir up trouble. It’s hard not to stare at this woman as she types furiously on her keyboard, her brow furrowed in concentration. “You know what’d be fun?”

Raven’s eyes never leave her screen. “If I could make this deadline?”

“Newspaper or book?”

“Huh?”

“Which one are you working on?”

“Book.”

When she doesn’t offer more, I know she’s in the zone, so I sneak upstairs to work on my secret project in McKenna’s room. She wanted a bed with a built-in desk and bookshelf. I found an old wooden bunk bed that Blaze’s niece was getting rid of, and it only took two days to transform it for her. I timed it just right, too. RJ helped me sneak it in while Raven was at the newspaper. It lined up with Jocelyn’s night with the kids and her weekend, and I was able to distract Raven at bedtime so she didn’t see what I was up to.

I’m adding the finishing coat of paint when the door snicks open, and McKenna’s face appears. “Is it done?”

“Yup. Is it three thirty already?” Shit, I lost track of time. McKenna walks in, her eyes big and full of joy. Damn, that feels good. To know I did that for her. “Wanna show your mom?”

She rushes out of the room, and minutes later, I hear Raven climb the steps, then McKenna throws the door open.

“Ta-da!”

Raven frowns. “What’s this?”

Shit. Did I fuck up? Why does she look pissed?