Each creak of the pine board steps sent an uneasy vibration tumbling around her insides. Skye gripped the iron railing on the side of the staircase, taking in the scent of dampness and darting quick glances in the dark corners.
It seemed creepier than the last time she was downstairs several days ago. A cloying sweet smell, with an underlying note of rot and decay, assaulted her nose. Skye caught the barest hint of movement out of the corner of her eye. She whirled and looked around, but saw nothing.
“It’s just me here,” she whispered in the empty silence. Her voice echoed in the dimly lit room. The tiny window, high up on the back wall, reflected the black night. Rain pelted the pane and tiny rivulets ran down its surface like tears. The darkness matched her mood. All day she was haunted by Tanner’s look the other night when she told him she wanted more, remembered the feel of his breath in her hair. What an idiot she’d been to speak up. She only hoped he didn’t tell her brother about it.
Skye thought of the strange humming noises. Would she hear them again if she headed to the back of the room? She had to know. Grabbing several of the calendars she had come down for, she gripped them tightly in her arms as she walked deeper into the room.
Something moved just at the edge of her vision. She turned slowly in a complete circle, but the fluttering sensation had disappeared. This wasn’t such a good idea. She turned and took a step, only to scowl at the unmistakable crunch of dried bugs beneath her feet. As before, the floor was littered with the carcasses, only now there were more of them.
“Termite extermination time,” she muttered. “I don’t like sharing space with unidentified varmints, dead or not.”
A quivering brushed by her ear. Something soft brushed her cheek. The fluttering multiplied and the beating of some kind of insect wings, dozens of them, tangled in her hair and tugged at her scalp. The humming returned. Skye closed her eyes and concentrated on the buzzing vibrations. The noise increased in volume and the pitch became higher, like the squeak of mosquitos. She waited for the sting, but there was none.
The sound ceased to be a monotonous buzz and morphed into a clipped pattern. It ebbed and flowed like syllables…it was saying something!
Good goddess, she was transported to age seven again, hearing the trapped fireflies struggling to communicate. She concentrated harder on the unfamiliar sounds.
“What is it? What do you want?’ She whispered the words as softly as possible, barely moving her lips.
More buzzing. Something brushed against her eyelids. They were moving in on her.
“Help me.” The hum said, ever so faintly. “Please, help me.”
Skye gasped and opened her eyes. Dozens of pinpoints of light danced in front of her. The humming increased into a chorus. “Help us, please help us.”
“Skye!” Heavy footsteps clomped down the stairs. “What’s taking you so long? I’ve got a customer waiting on that calendar.” Glenna’s scowling face appeared. “Did you find it or not?”
Skye never thought she’d be happy to see Gloomy Glenna’s face, but her knees almost collapsed with relief.
“I’ve got the calendars. Wait up for me.” She ran to the stairs, conscious of the crunching sensation beneath her feet. She didn’t want to be alone down there another minute.
When she returned to the light and a throng of people in the store, Skye breathed easier, but her heart still raced. Maybe Tanner’s rejection had pushed her mind over some kind of edge.
Tea, I need some kava-kava tea. And probably a few valium would help. Too bad she didn’t do drugs. She walked to the coffeehouse and got tea. Her hands trembled as she brought the mug to her lips and a bit of the hot tea splashed onto her numb fingers.
“Seen a ghost?’ Glenna’s sudden voice at her side made Skye jump. Half the tea spilt down the front of her shirt.
Skye glared, but Glenna smiled knowingly. “Something must have happened down there in the storeroom. You’re pale as a blood-sucked corpse.”
Maybe Glenna would understand, seeing as how she liked to claim she was clairvoyant. “Have you ever seen anything unusual going on here?” Skye asked cautiously.
To her surprise, Glenna nodded seriously. “I see ghosts everywhere I go. It’s all part of my extraordinary psychic ability.”
“Do they say anything to you? Do they have a smell?”
“They tell me things, secret things.” Glenna gave a mysterious smile.
“Like what?” A rush of excitement tingled down her spine. If Glenna could really talk to ghosts, maybe she could communicate with them and find out why they, whatever they were, kept asking for help.
Glenna put on her most irritating smirk. “If I told you it wouldn’t be a secret.”
Psychic ability, my ass. At least Glenna was focused on herself again instead of interrogating her. She popped a couple aspirins and sipped her tea.
Glenna eyed the pill bottle with distaste. “Why are you always taking that stuff?”
“Scoliosis. Gives me backaches most days, although it’s gotten worse lately.”