Moving In Series Books 1 - 6: Horror Bundle Series

823 pages

Chapter 2: A Meeting with the Reverend

Brian Roy sat in the Riverwalk Coffee Shop in Rye, New Hampshire while he waited for Reverend Joseph Malleus. He was on his second cup, because the coffee was actually pretty good. The man had called the night before and been adamant about the arrival of a ghost in his church.

A headless ghost.

Even as a ghost hunter, Brian might have scoffed at the story, if he hadn’t recently survived the destruction of Middlebury Sanitarium.

Brian discovered he was now a lot more open-minded.

“How’s the coffee?”

He looked up and saw a young woman standing beside his table. She wasn’t the waitress who had served him.

“It’s really good,” Brian answered, smiling.

“Glad to hear it,” she said. “My name’s Lisa. I’m taking over for Sarah, her shift’s done. Let me know if you need anything.”

“Will do, Lisa,” he said. “Thanks.”

Brian watched her walk back to the counter. She was tall, with short black hair and of Asian ancestry. Her white shirt and khaki pants fit nicely on her lithe figure. He caught sight of a dragon tattoo showing out of the collar of her shirt, and in the light of the shop, he could make out the faint outlines of more ink beneath her sleeves.

Brian smiled, took another drink and turned to the door as the bell above it chimed.

A pale skinned, thickset man walked into the cafe. His blonde hair was cropped close to his head as was his slightly darker beard. The man’s eyes, which were a strikingly bright blue, darted around the shop.

Reverend Joseph Malleus, Brian thought. The newcomer wore an all-black suit with the religious white collar.

Brian lifted his mug up and caught the man’s attention.

The Reverend smiled nervously and hurried over to him.

Brian stood as he offered his hand.

“Brian Roy?” The man asked, his grip strong.

“I am. And you’re Reverend Malleus?” Brian said, sitting back down.

“Yes, but you can either call me Reverend Joe, or the Rev,” he said. “The kids call me the Rev, and well, I like it.”

“Fair enough,” Brian said.

Reverend Joe turned slightly in his chair, motioned to Lisa, and the young woman hurried over.

“Afternoon, Rev,” she said with a grin. “You want your tea?”

“Yes please, Lisa,” he answered. “How’s your father?”

“About the same,” she said, her smile faltering. “But, thanks for asking. He still won’t see anyone but family, though.”

Reverend Joe nodded. “Understood. Please have him call me as soon as he feels like he can tolerate my presence.”

“I will,” she said, and her grin returned. “Be right back with your tea.”

“Thank you.”

The Reverend turned his attention back to Brian. “Sorry. We’re a pretty small community. I try to keep track of everyone.”

“Sounds good to me,” Brian said. He looked at the man and realized the Reverend would probably avoid the issue for as long as possible. “Why don’t you tell me what happened at your church?”

Reverend Joe fidgeted with his wedding ring nervously for a minute. He was about to speak when Lisa returned with his tea and set it down on the table.

A strong, spice smell floated up with the steam from the cup.

“Well,” he said, looking down, “the first occurrence was last weekend. Mrs. Staples, who cleans for us, ran into him. Or, it. I’m not sure. The ghost is headless.”

Brian smiled. “Let’s say ‘he’ for now, just to make it easier, okay?”

Reverend Joe nodded. “He. Yes. So, I was working at my desk while Mrs. Staples was cleaning the office, and when she looked up, she saw it … him, standing in the doorway. He was filthy, and headless, of course, and her first reaction was to snap at him.”

“What?” Brian asked, laughing in spite of himself.

The Rev blushed slightly and nodded. “She’s rather a bit of a spitfire. She told him that she’d just finished cleaning and he was going to make a mess of the hall.”

“What happened?”

“Well, I just sort of sat there, shocked. The ghost though, he left,” the Reverend said.

Brian shook his head and finished his drink. “I’ll need to meet this Mrs. Staples.”

“Good,” the Rev said. “She’s already insisted on speaking with you.”

“Okay,” Brian said, smiling. “So, she reprimanded the ghost, and he left. Has anyone else seen him?”

“Yes. I did again, last night, with Mrs. Williamson,” the Reverend said. “We didn’t challenge him, though. We left as quickly as possible.”

“And you called me,” Brian added.

“And I called you,” the Rev agreed.

A police cruiser, with an ambulance directly behind it, raced past the front of the shop. The sirens blared, and lights flashed maniacally.

A phone started to ring, and the Reverend took a cellphone out of an inner pocket. “Could you excuse me?”

“Sure,” Brian said, sitting back a little in his chair.

“Hello?” The Rev said.

He listened for a minute before all of the color drained from his face as he looked at Brian in horror.

“Yes,” the Reverend said hoarsely. “Yes. I’ll be right there.”

With a shaking hand, he ended the call and put the phone back in his pocket.

“Reverend?” Brian asked.

“I’m sorry,” Reverend Joe said. “I … well, you see, Mrs. Staples just called. She went into the Church, she’d forgotten her scarf, and she found two boys. Two of our youth group members. They’d gotten into the office … and …”

“Reverend?” Brian asked gently.

The Rev looked at Brian and said, “Someone ripped their eyes out.”

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