Page 4 of The Penitentiary (Ghost Seekers Inc. #1)

Sunny

M adi wanted fried chicken for dinner, where I’d been hoping for a proper meal, but her eyes filled with tears, and I agreed quickly. After what she and Levi had been through and with their latest loss, I wouldn’t deny her anything. I felt ten feet tall when Madi hugged me tightly, thanking me.

We sat and shot the shit until the early hours. Madi and Levi were naturally curious about why we stayed up even though we were all yawning.

“Setting up begins tomorrow, which means we need to rise late, and obviously, on Monday, we’ll start the investigation,” Callie had explained.

“Will we get a brief of what’s meant to haunt the Penitentiary?” Madi asked.

“Yeah, we prefer to be prepared in places like this,” I’d replied. For another hour, we dragged it out before hitting our beds at three a.m.

The next day, we had breakfast (at lunchtime) before Callie called the team together. Phil set up a camera to record it. Sometimes we would show the pre-planning, gathering, or snippets of it.

“Okay, so we’ve got a lot to do. Let’s begin with the meeting and then roll through the typical checklist. For Levi and Madi, we’ll cover briefly what needs doing,” I said and turned to Callie, who grinned.

“Harry will give us an outline of the events that have been reported here. We may find we encounter some of it or none. We aren’t supposed to get names or backgrounds, because any information we then discover is genuine and not planned or plotted.

If we see no activity, then we don’t, and we report that,” Callie stated.

“Okay.” Madi nodded her head enthusiastically. “Why make us informed of the alleged hauntings?”

“Because everybody needs to be aware of what’s potentially inside. Not all spirits are benign, and some have tried to injure us. With everyone forewarned, we know what to look for,” Jack explained.

Levi sat up straight. “People have been harmed?” he asked with a panicked glance at Madi, who didn’t seem bothered.

“Scratches, slaps, and bruises are frequent, depending on the property. Also, items can be thrown which could harm someone,” Callie stated, and Levi sent Madi a dark stare.

“Madi, I don’t think—” “Levi.” Madi smiled sweetly.

“Fine.” Levi folded his arms across his chest and looked grumpily at the rest of us.

“Once we’ve had the heads-up from Harry, we’ll discuss what’s being investigated and when. When we assemble the gear, we’ll also follow the same plan.”

“So basically, you’ll plot the order of the wings to investigate, for example, A, B and C and then set the equipment in the same order?” Madi interrupted.

“Yeah. When that’s done, we’ll check that everything continues working. Sometimes a camera might go offline, and then it’s nap time before we get ready. As soon as the first camera is switched on, Freddie will be monitoring because things happen during set-up,” I continued, and Madi nodded.

“Okay,” she said and bounced a little on her seat.

I smiled indulgently. It was hard to reconcile the excited woman in front of me with the cool, calm lady I knew.

Madi had been brought up in a top crime family and had arranged her own father’s death and framed her half-brother for several crimes.

She later discovered that her father wasn’t her blood parent, which led her to Derek.

“Okay, Harry?” Callie asked, turning to him.

“Building began on it in the eighteen-twenties, and it took nearly a decade before it was opened for service.

The original design was intended for seven one-level cell blocks, but overcrowding turned into an issue after the third cell block was constructed.

The rest of the wings were built with two floors to ease the crush.

“This was the first of a design known as the Hub and Spoke plan. Several famous people were incarcerated there, and although The Penn had a death row, nobody was ever executed here. The death row inmates were moved to other facilities for their sentences to be carried out.”

“Well, that’s a surprise,” I stated. I’d been unaware of that fact.

“Yeah, weird thing to do. Okay, so onto the hauntings. People have claimed to have witnessed a male shape standing in a guard tower. However, there’s no workable way to reach the upper level, as there are no stairs; they crumbled years ago.

We’ll need a zoom-in camera if you plan to record that,” Harry said, glancing at Callie and Freddie, who both nodded.

“A figure was recorded walking through cellblock twelve, and several shadow figures have been spotted. There are multiple reports, some confirmed, of echoing voices, cackling laughter and a feeling of being watched. Several investigators and visitors have reported an overwhelming sense of dread. A ghostly man whose identity is unknown has also been recorded. Although details about him are sketchy.”

“This is all in cellblock twelve?” Madi verified, and Harry nodded.

“In cellblock four, ghostly faces of the tormented have been seen. The rumours state they beckon you over to get a closer look. How faces beckon, I don’t know, so maybe a debunk there? Unidentified sounds have also been heard there.”

“I’m aware of an encounter that happened with a locksmith. He claims an invisible force overpowered him, and he sensed someone lurking. But he doesn’t state how he was overcome. Was it physical, emotional, or mental?

“He claimed that there was negative energy coming from a cell, and he saw faces. However, the locksmith described them as having agony written on them, not beckoning. He also claimed a man jumped at him before disappearing,” Callie said.

“Yeah, I have the account here. In cellblock six, shadowy figures shadow you around. Once attached, they will follow you anywhere in the penitentiary. Other cellblocks have reports of people being scratched and shoved. One man claimed he was bitten, and several women have stated they were groped.

“Items have been recorded moving on their own, and I’ve handed Phil the footage to examine to see if we can debunk this.

The usual whispering, weeping, laughing, and screaming have also been heard.

The women’s wing makes a lot of men uncomfortable, and they say the air feels oppressive, while women are fine in there.

One man even claimed he was groped. When his wife objected, they stopped. ”

“Is that everything?” I asked.

“No. This is where it gets interesting. A ghost hunter in cellblock eight mentioned he didn’t believe in ghosts.

A multitude of cell doors slamming shut chased him from the block.

Someone else reported being followed home after daring a spirit, too.

And some fool used an Ouija board, and there are reports of a demonic entity now,” Harry announced and sat back.

“Anything else?” I asked sarcastically, and Harry shook his head.

“Well, damn!” Levi said. We exchanged glances, and I could read his mind. We were in complete agreement. This was going to be one hell of a doozy! Trust Callie to book something like this.

“Okay, so let’s get on with the plan, which section we’ll investigate first, and obviously, the set-up will follow that,” Callie said.

“Cellblock eight,” Jack declared, and Freddie nodded.

“Twelve,” Madisen and Phil both announced.

“Levi?” I asked.

“How about none?” Levi wondered and received scowls in return. “Honestly, they all seem as bad as each other. I’ve no preference.”

“Same here,” I drawled, and Callie scowled. “I think four,” Harry mused.

“You want to know how faces beckon,” Madi teased, and Harry agreed.

“Callie, you’ve got the deciding vote,” I informed her, and Callie bit her lip.

“Despite the level of haunting throughout the prison, there is one focal point which seems very strong,” Callie said.

“Cellblock eight,” I guessed, and Callie nodded.

“Twelve is second, then four, followed by six,” Callie decided.

We hashed out the remaining cellblocks in order and then began deciding where we wanted the cameras to be placed.

We had a variety of different styles, such as motion sensors, static recording, and ones that moved slowly to capture things a static one might miss.

They all had one thing in common: night vision.

I sat back as the geeks, aka Phil, Harry, and Freddie, argued about where to place each. When they finally agreed, Freddie marked them down, so we all remembered.

“What next?” Madi asked.

“Now we get a coffee, and Freddie will show us what delights she has in store for us. This is a new season we’re filming, and Freddie always has new toys!” Callie grinned.

I rolled my eyes. I’d still not forgiven Freddie for the end of last season. She claimed she’d made an X-ray camera and chased me all over the damn place, claiming it removed my clothes! Bitch! From the expression on Callie’s face, she’d soon tell Levi and Madi.

Levi

“How the hell did we get this cellblock?” I complained. Sunny appeared not to be happy either, although Phil didn’t seem to care.

Time had flown by, and everything had easily enthralled Madi. She had helped Freddie test every piece of equipment and had been glowing by the time they finished.

“Two big burly bikers shitting themselves?” Phil asked with amusement.

“Shut it, bitch,” Sunny growled, and Phil cackled, amused. He was setting up a static camera at the end of the cellblock where the gates were.

“Do you really believe in this?” I asked Sunny, who didn’t hesitate to nod.

“Brother, I’ve seen and heard things I can’t explain.

I wasn’t superstitious or interested in the paranormal until Callie came along, and even then, I sat on the fence.

The thing I loved about it was how Callie would light up.

She becomes a different person on camera.

Callie knows her shit and loves this stuff.

When she first hit the screen, I was shocked at how confident she was.

Sure, Callie got scared, but she doesn’t hold back from going in. ”