Page 24 of Ghost Hunters 2

She looked up at him then at Bane.

Bane actually gave her a wink and nodded as he spoke in a normal voice, “Seems Georgie was right, we are trapped.”

“Isn’t that what George said?” Jillian asked.

“But things are different this time,” Matthew said. “This time you and Dino are here and you have his pouch.”

“I don’t think having the pouch is going to save us,” Dino warned.

Jillian had her dog in her lap now as she stared at it, then she looked up at the sisters. “If your dog started the fire, where is his body?”

Claire shrugged. “When I asked George about where the dog was he told me he must have died outside.”

“What if it wasn’t your dog that started the fire? What if George started it?” Bane asked.

“Why would he do that?” Tilly asked.

“He said he did all of this for Claire,” Bane reminded her. “What if, like his father, he was nothing more than a jealous bastard? He took Tilly to the basement because he thought she was in the way. And he cursed this place to give himself time to get you to fall in love with him”

“I wasn’t thinking about anything before that fire except for getting Matthew for myself. I didn’t realize my actions would come back and literally haunt me for forty years.” Claire looked upset. “All of this is my fault and I deserve it but you all don’t. I’m so sorry this happened!” Tears rolled down her cheeks as she ran out.

“Maybe I can talk to her.” Tilly left the kitchen to look for her sister.

Chapter Twelve

Dino had gotten his laptop out. “We can't just sit around and do nothing. I want to look into this connection to voodoo. Maybe we can get around this curse.”

“Good idea,” Jillian nodded, then she looked over at Bane.

He looked at Jillian and raised his finger to his lips.

Looking at him then at Dino she tilted her head as she felt curious about what they were planning.

Dino pointed at Bane then he nodded at the pantry.

Silently nodding, Jillian set her dog down.

Bane then slipped out silently.

Jillian went over to the cabinets to see about plates and glasses again. Feeling hungry, she intended to make some more sandwiches.

Matthew came over and stood next to her. He did not need a cane and in fact he looked twenty years younger. “I hope you can find a way out of this damnedable curse. You, Dino and Bane don’t deserve this.”

Jillian shook her head at this then looked at Matthew and smiled. “You didn’t deserve it either.”

“But maybe I did,” Matthew said quietly.

“What do you mean?”

“I came here a broken man. I couldn’t get over what I was forced to do in the War. I hated killing. My soul hurt deep inside me. I carried their faces with me everywhere I went. Their screams haunted me every time I closed my eyes. Then I came here, and this place offered me a solace I never thought I would find again. Walking these hills I found a peace I didn’t know if I deserved or not. I had done some terrible things but the hills accepted my pain and released it from my soul. I could breathe again without the hurt stabbing my lungs. When I was myself again I noticed Tilly. She was such an angel. She was soft where a woman should be soft, tough when she needed to be and she was very understanding. I couldn’t help but fall in love with her. Suddenly, she became my reason for living. Tilly and I had decided to elope and we were going to leave that very night. The next thing I knew I was waking up in bed with Claire and when I saw the look of betrayal on Tilly’s face I think I died a little that day.”

“What did you do after she ran off?”

“I was so mad at Claire. In one swift moment of time, she had taken everything good I had and turned it to dust. I was again...a broken man. Claire told me to leave and I was on my way out the door when someone hit me from behind. When I came to, I made up my mind I was going to get Tilly back. I hadn’t done anything wrong. I don’t know how Claire managed to get me into her bed but I hadn’t done anything wrong. You know the rest. By the time I got back here, the Inn was burning and all I could hear was their screams of terror.”

Tilly came to the door of the kitchen and announced, “I can't find her. I can’t find Claire. What if George has done something awful to her just to keep this stupid curse going?”

Matthew rushed over to Tilly. “Don’t worry, we’ll find her. She can’t have gone far. She’s here somewhere.” He glanced back at Jillian.