Tyler and Cameron traded a look. Cameron gave a slight nod, conveying support.
“I worked at Mountain Laurel Lodge the first summer after I got out of the Army while I figured out what I wanted to do,” Tyler said. “I thought I was tough. I’d seen combat. I figured the worst that could happen was catching some guests doing drugs or fucking each other.” He shook his head. “Turned out that wasn’t true.”
Seth and Evan waited, letting him tell the story at his own speed. Seth appreciated that Tyler was willing to risk sharing something he felt conflicted about. That Tyler didn’t sound like he told the story easily added credibility.
“I’d grown up around here. There have been a lot of stories about the Mountain Laurel Lodge. People say crazy things. One rumor said that the man who built it back in the 1950s had been a hitman for the Mob and retired with a big payout. Other people said there used to be a village up there that got wiped out by a monster, and the resort was built on their graves. And then there were the stories about celebrities who overdosed or jumped off balconies or tragic love triangles that ended badly. I really didn’t pay any much attention,” Tyler said ruefully.
“Once I got there, I learned fast that the staff took the ghost stories seriously. They told me rooms to watch out for, hallways to avoid at certain times, places I should never go. I thought it was a hazing. You know—like sending someone snipe hunting,” Tyler went on, coming around to sit next to Cameron. “So I ignored them. I mean, I’d just come from a deployment where we worried about air strikes and suicide bombers and IEDs. I wasn’t going to get scared off by ghost stories.”
His voice grew quieter, and he looked down at his clasped hands on the table in front of him. Cameron laid a hand on his forearm in silent support. Tyler’s wan smile flickered in response.
“At first, I didn’t see anything weird. I didn’t go looking for the spots they said to stay away from. I was too busy to mess around like that, and nothing took me to those places. I kinda forgot about the stories.”
Tyler’s jaw tightened. “Then I had to cover some night shifts because we were short-handed. One of the guys just left his keys and badge on the check-in counter and never came back.”
“Did anyone ever see him again, or did he really just run away?” Evan asked.
“I don’t remember. I was just glad to get some extra hours,” Tyler said. “The duties were a little different, and they took me into some of the areas people said to avoid. I didn’t think much about the weird cold spots because it was an old building. But there weren’t a lot of people in the service corridors in the middle of the night, and it started to spook me that I kept hearing footsteps when no one was there.”
He met Seth’s stare. “I thought I saw a woman in a long dress going up the employee-only stairs. I called out to her, thinking that maybe a guest got lost, but she didn’t respond. I was watching her, and she just vanished,” Tyler went on. “There wasn’t a door for her to go through. One second, she was there, and the next, she was gone.”
He took a few breaths. Cameron rubbed the back of Tyler’s neck and murmured something Seth couldn’t hear.
“I thought the others were pranking me since it was my first night shift. But I couldn’t figure out how. I didn’t hear anyone running away or snickering. And there was something about the way the room felt when I saw that lady that really creeped me out,” Tyler confessed. “So I kept working. I heard footsteps a few more times, but I convinced myself that it was just someone else running an errand. Then I got turned around—I was still pretty new—and I ended up in the wing that hadn’t been remodeled yet.”
“I’m still not sure how I got there. Some of the lights didn’t work, the wallpaper was peeling, and the carpet stank. I figured it had to connect with the new part, so I kept walking. Then I saw a man ahead of me in the shadows. Or at least, it was the silhouette of a man. I called out to him, asking how to get back to the main section,” Tyler added, growing quieter.
“When he turned around, he didn’t have a face. I was scared, but I still thought I was being pranked, so I made some stupid insulting comment about leaving me alone. And then…” Tyler licked his lips and paused. Cameron squeezed his shoulder.
“Then itstretchedtoward me. It didn’t walk or float—it just expanded. And I got the same gut feeling that I used to get in the Army when things were going to get really bad. I knew that if the shadow touched me, I’d be in big trouble. So I turned tail and ran. I flew out of there as fast as I could, back the way I came.” Tyler was breathing fast, and Seth heard shame in his voice.
“It was behind me—until it wasn’t. I didn’t care. I kept running until I found my way back to the main area. My boss saw me—I must have looked like a wild man—and he didn’t say a word, like he knew. He fuckingknew.”
Tyler drew in some slow breaths. His hands clasped into fists on the table. “I worked the rest of the summer, but I never took night shift again.” He shook his head. “I tried so hard to convince myself it wasn’t real, but I know it was.”
“There was that other time, too,” Cameron prompted. He reached out and took Tyler’s hand, lacing their fingers together.
Tyler looked at Cameron, who nodded that it was okay.
“Now you’re really going to think I’m nuts,” Tyler said self-consciously.
“We won’t,” Evan swore. “Promise.”
“Yeah—you haven’t heard me yet,” Tyler said. “One time they sent me into the sauna to bring fresh towels. It was at an odd time, so I thought the steam room was empty. A guy comes out stark naked, and I stepped behind a curtain so I didn’t embarrass him. And then his skin melted away.”
“What do you mean, ‘melted’?” Seth leaned forward. Tyler’s initial resistance now seemed more due to trauma than skepticism.
“It went gooey, like a hot candle, and then just sort of…rearranged itself…until he looked like a completely different person,” Tyler said. “I was so scared I nearly shit myself. I stayed real quiet, and he didn’t notice me. He just went and got dressed, and I waited until he was gone before I threw up and went out for a smoke. I would have taken a couple of shots if I could have.”
“Shapeshifter,” Evan said. “They’re not usually that sloppy about changing where someone might see. He must have thought he was safe—or that someone would cover up if anyone did see.”
“I didn’t tell my boss,” Tyler said. “Ghosts are one thing, but melting people? I thought he’d either fire me for making up stories to get out of my duties or call the preacher, and I’d be getting prayed over at a camp meeting. Cam’s the only person I ever told—until now.”
Seth looked up. “Have either of you ever heard of Camp Morning Glory?”
Cameron frowned. “The old abandoned tent meeting place? I’ve heard stories about what it was like back in the day, but it’s been shut down for a long time. Why?”
“Remember when we said that Swain had to change his name every so often to keep people from realizing that he was immortal?” Seth asked. “He was the preacher who started that camp and ran it for a long time. When he stepped away to change identities, he was still involved behind the scenes. What kind of stories do the locals tell about it?”