The Richmond Haunting (COMPLETED)

Chapter 26

Andrew looked terrible.

Chris had meant to pay him a visit, but time was no friend of his. Not with the other case in Blackpool and the one on Richmond Street. The last being the most violent.

Add to that — the seminars he was scheduled for on Thursday, one in the morning and the latter in the afternoon. That meant going through his notes. Checking for any grammatical errors because — the last thing — you wanted was to stumble halfway through a sentence thanks to a blunder in the writing.

It wouldn't make a good impression during the lecture, not when you had some students studying for their BA.

Everything had to be perfect, but his mind wasn't. It was everywhere at the moment. And his lack of sleep didn't help. Four to five hours a night, and that was something his slumber didn't like. He was an eight-hour man. But his workload wasn't allowing that.

Depending on what he had on, he would have to be up at six-thirty, and that was no fun, not when you came home around nine or eleven. Sometimes at midnight. Those days when he was ghost hunting.

No wonder he was so tired. It was everything in his work life, the lectures at the Union, the paperwork he had to proofread before the seminars, the investigations. Add to that the bad dreams he was still having.

Those really kept him awake soon after. They were scary — but not as bad as the sounds he would hear in the early hours. Voices, speaking in the bathroom, a dog that would suddenly bark, and the damn cat outside his window. Yes, the same one that attacked him.

And now, with all this, Andrew.

Lisa was concerned about him. The things she kept hearing about him. He wasn't himself — kept speaking to somebody.

It was her friend who mentioned it. She knew Andrew.

Of course, Lisa hadn't mentioned that house on Richmond Street. The old man haunting it.

Best not to. People only laughed when you spoke about ghosts and demons.

And how she came involved with these two happened like this.

Her good self and Andrew had gone to hear one of Chris's lectures. And it was different. A mile away from the other talks, no jargon tones, but straight talking.

And following that first and only lecture; (don't ask why), Lisa wanted to know how somebody became a psychic researcher. She also mentioned the gift that Andrew had. Psychic abilities.

Andrew had felt embarrassed when Lisa had told Chris about his talent because it wasn't something you spurted out, not during a first encounter. Yet Chris was an open book.

'Don't be embarrassed; we live in a world where most things are excepted, but if you want to know how I started hunting ghosts. There's a course you can take online. Parapsychology; it's a three-day course. Or you can take the long route.'

'Doing what?'

'Spending three years at the KPU.'

'Sorry, what's that?' Lisa asked; the abbreviation sounded too far right for her taste.

'The Koestler Parapsychology Unit. It's in Scotland, Edinburgh Union, if you must know.'

'Is that where you went?'

'Three years there.'

'Does it pay well? You know haunting ghosts?'

Chris laughed. 'Not really; my fees come from these lectures.'

'So, it doesn't pay anything, ghost hunting?'

'I'm afraid not, but if you want an insight into the work, I do, you're more than welcome to join me. As long as you pass the course online.'