Paranormal Trip

Watching hours of footage of darkened room was not fun at all. Katrina, Heather, and Eilfie didn’t seem to find it much fun either, which was why watching footage turned into a two hour game of Desert Island.
“Okay, Claire, five movies,” Katrina said as I held up a hand to count them off.
“Okay, Breakfast club, Titanic, New Moon, because if I have to be stranded on an island I want to stare at Taylor Lautner’s abs,” the girls laughed making me smile. “Um, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and the Exorcist because it would remind me how much movies lie.” I said as Ryan reappeared in the room looking confused.
“Why are you stranded on an island, and why are you looking at Taylor Lautner’s abs?” Ryan asked as the rest of the guys came in looking just as confused.
“Because it could happen, and Taylor Lautner is hot, that’s why.” I said standing up. “Finish with the photograph?” Ryan nodded as he looked at the log books we had half made up since bangs and knocks really didn’t change much.
“Yes, now I want to show you guys where I was when I freaked out.” Ryan said motioning for us to follow. I nodded at Peter, and he immediately pulled his sword, my way of being safe now that the sun seemed to be setting.
“You couldn’t of picked a location on the ground?” I said as we climbed yet another set of stairs. I may have been a former softball player, and an even more former ballerina, but that did not mean I liked to climb stairs. Ryan just peered down at me from where he was at the front of the group.
“Next time,” He said as we started up another flight of stairs. “The Warden’s tower is actually up here. I was invited here with Chad about six months ago, and they do not allow people up here but for whatever reason they allowed for myself to come up here and do a private investigation. I was here alone,” Ryan said as I started up another flight of stairs. I really wished their was an escalator. But when we finally reached the room I immediately bent down and started panting.
“Just so you guys know too, people have claimed to have heard and seen a woman up here, now one of the things I experienced when I was up here was a woman laughing at me,” I gave a half chuckle that sounded more like a huff. I liked this ghost already. “Very clearly, when there was nobody up here at all.” I straightened myself up just as Katrina started talking.
“Did you have anything else happen?” Ryan glanced at me and I just tilted my head in curiosity.
“Yeah,” He said curtly making the group laugh nervously. I looked to Taylor and Peter who were talking in hushed tones while looking around. “No laughing,” Ryan said from the other room.
“Dude, we’re not laughing at you, we’re just-“ I immediately looked at Ryan when he cut Sergey off. In my time dating him, I had never heard him cut Sergey off, at least not like this.
“I didn’t say that, but if you’re going to start giggling and stuff then just stay down here.” My eyebrow shot up and I stayed where I was. Ryan went ahead a bit, but I knew when he realized I wasn’t there anymore since I heard my name being called and a few seconds later he reappeared.
“Claire, are you coming?” I just crossed my arms.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” I asked causing Ryan to take a step back.
“What are you talking about?” Ryan asked, and behind him I could see the group all trading looks.
“If you’re going to start giggling stay down here? Ryan, they are scared, you won’t tell us what happened, what did you expect? Solemn silence? We don’t all work like you do.” I said pointing a finger at myself. “Do you ever wonder why I don’t stay serious for long? It’s because the things I see, and the stuff I hear is scary and if I let that fear control me and let it take away any feelings I have, then what does it accomplish?” I asked dropping my arms. “Nothing, so don’t yell at them because they are laughing at your lack of words. Understand,” I said watching Ryan’s passive face. I knew most of what I was saying wasn’t hitting home, but he seemed okay with letting it go as he turned to keep going.
“At least you tried,” Heather said as I caught up with them.
“Tried being the keyword there,” I muttered as I continued to follow them. When we reached the top I stared down at the bottom, unaware that Ryan had disappeared with Sergey down a hall while the rest of us looked at the view.

A few hours later I was surprised when Chad approached me holding his camera. “I need to show you something,” He said making me frown. I had just about been ready to go talk to Heather, but the look on Chad’s face made me turn and watch as he turned the camera on to show me Sergey’s interview.
“He never was good at telling people what’s he’s thinking,” I said quietly as Sergey talked on screen. I knew where he was coming from. Not knowing what Ryan had seen, what they were going to face, it was frustrating. I knew what we were facing only because it hit me time and time again, but for the rest of them I knew it was a battle of doubt, of knowing what to believe and what to think of as your own imagination.
When Ryan came on screen I frowned, and then immediately glanced up ready to go after Ryan. “Will you excuse me a second?” I said noticing the way Chad backed away from me slightly. I could tell that he knew what was going to happen based on the way I walked, or more likely stormed towards the conference area where Ryan was setting up.
“Seriously?” I said the second I came in. Ryan looked up at the same time as Sergey, both slightly confused.
“What?” Ryan asked as I motioned for him to follow me. He gave Sergey a confused look but did as he was told, following me towards a room that held only one spirit, and a non scary looking one at that. “What’s going on?”
“It’s not my job to spell out myself to them? Ryan,” I began as he tilted his head back in a look of annoyance.
“Chad,” He said, but I cut him off from whatever rant he was about to go on.
“No, Chad had every right to show me that tape. Ryan, these people you have on your crew, you have to trust them and they have to trust you. But when you are keeping secrets from them-“ Ryan laughed a bitter laugh.
“When I’m keeping secrets from them? What about you Claire? You hold more secrets then most governments.” I blinked in surprise and heard Shade mutter something along the lines of, why did you just go there.
“I’m sorry, but last time I checked, what I saw here isn’t being kept some vague secret like yours is. I experienced something in the hole, you all know that. I didn’t tell you what, and I didn’t berate members of the team because they were scared or because they were frustrated.” I said in an annoyed tone. “And the secrets I keep are because most of what I see is just so hard to describe and so hard to even relive sometimes.” Ryan looked down at me.
“And you think that what I saw wasn’t?” He asked as I threw up my hands.
“I don’t know Ryan because you don’t say anything. You’re like a giant vault, full of secrets that we are all dying to know so we can at least figure out what we are facing, but you refuse to share. How can they know how dangerous something is unless you tell them?” I asked as Ryan only stared at me.
“They should just know how dangerous this stuff is, they’ve seen it before.” I shook my head.
“No, they haven’t Ryan. They’ve seen shadows and heard noises but a raccoon can cause that and they don’t fear those. So when suddenly they are face to face with a spirit alone, how are they supposed to know? When I came face to face with my first spirit, years of preparation wouldn’t have prepared me for facing it alone. They are doing the best they can with what little you are giving them yet you expect them to be perfect.” I pointed out. “But news flash Ryan, they are in college, they are scared and they are trying to mask that, and you not telling them things and you yelling at them because they are being unprofessional and whatever else, it doesn’t help anything.” I said watching as Ryan walked away. I waited until he was out of earshot before muttering my own feelings. “And it certainly doesn’t help us.”

I wandered the prison alone for a bit, being careful to avoid the places Peter or Taylor didn’t want me going. By the beginning of dead time I had wandered back to the tech area and sat with Katrina. Since I had been half of the team to do dead time the day before, I was half of the team to work tech tonight. Not that I would actually be working, no, rather I’d be avoiding Ryan and just ready to go protect someone if necessary. I saw that Eilfie was in my old spot and glared at Ryan when he told her to lose the flashlight. “If she’s scared then let her keep it. The spirits won’t mind.” I said causing Ryan to look at me in a way to suggest not to start before going back to watching the monitors.
I watched Eilfie’s camera mostly, wondering which of the spirits remained in there. I thought they had all gone last night, but I knew one may of remained.
When Katrina mentioned the steps I looked up and froze when I heard a gruff laugh. “One by one,” The man said and then nothing as Ryan called them back in. I tapped my fingers on the table, ready to go running if one of them didn’t come back, but they all did. Making me wonder if the spirit didn’t know that I hadn’t really left.