Page 51 of Curse of the Stag's Eye
“I was thinking you could write about what happened tonight in your blog. Maybe it’ll help the lighthouse with its fundraising. Michael might be a bit of a knob but we shouldn’t hold thatagainst the lighthouse. It’s a good cause. And hey, there are bound to be lots of other hauntings we can help out with.” I nodded towards Dawn. “And with our very own ghostbotherer, we might be able to help any number of trapped spirits.”
Rhys rubbed his beard. “It could have been a combination of Dawn, and the anniversary, and the standing stone. It might not ever happen like this again somewhere else.”
I shrugged. “It’s worth a try though, isn't it?”
“And what about your podcast?”
Dawn looked up at me. “You have a podcast?”
Rhys laughed. “Oh, I thought you’d overheard us talking about it! You’re in the presence of the one and only Sheffield Sceptic!Theauthority on paranormal debunking in the north of England!”
“You never!” She slapped my arm. “You sneaky little tosser!”
I winced and my ears burned. “Alright, alright, I know. I know. I was wrong. Are you happy?” I held my hands up. “I am going to talk about this, though. And I’m going to tell people exactly what happened here tonight. We owe it to Baines and Jessop. We have this letter now, as proof of their relationship. I’m going to make sure people know what really happened with them.”
Rhys sucked in air through his teeth. “Ooh, that won't go down well with your listeners. Admitting you’ve seen ghosts? You’ll lose that big following of yours.”
“Tough. People can believe me or not, I don’t care. I’m not going to lie and pretend it didn’t happen. Tonight opened my eyes.” I smiled at him. “To a lot of things.”
Rhys turned the letter over and over again in his hands. He went to slip it back into the envelope but stopped. Instead, he placed the letter in the display case, open, front and centre. “No more hiding, Mr Baines. You’ve spent too long hiding, and you don’t have to do it anymore."
I took his hand again and squeezed. He lay his head on my shoulder, just for a moment, and then he kissed me gently.
Dawn clasped her hands together. “Aw, you two will make me blush. I’m glad I pushed you two together.”
I pointed at her. “You did not push us together. It just happened.”
“Sure it did, of course.” She gave me an exaggerated wink.
“Hey, we could start a new podcast,” I said. “The three of us. And Nikesh, if he wants to.”
Dawn giggled. “I’m not sure he’ll be up for any more ghostly goings-on. But I am. We’ll need a new name, though.”
“How aboutSupernatural Sheffield?” Gaz said.
“Too specific,” I said. “What aboutThe Weird World of Wales?”
“The Ghostbotherers?” Dawn said, laughing.
“I’m not sure if I’ll have time, mind you.” Rhys pressed his lips tight. “What with work and all.”
Dawn tapped him on the arm. “I meant to ask you, why aren’t you selling advertising on your blog? You must get a decent amount of visitors.”
Rhys rocked his head from side to side. “A fair bit. But I don’t know anything about advertising.”
“I do,” Dawn said. “I’m an SEO specialist. Search engine optimisation?"
“I didn’t know you did that,” Rhys said.
“You never asked,” Dawn said. “Yeah, I can set you up, get your blog earning some money. You too, Gaz. It might even be enough to make a living from. Or half a living, at least.”
Rhys hugged her. “You’re bloody brilliant, you are!” He suggested we keep the lantern burning until we got back to the car park. He let me help him with his bags this time. On our way out, I took the old dollar bills from my pocket and slipped them into the collection box.
Dawn pointed to the plastic orb of coins and notes. “You know those aren’t legal tender anymore, right?”
“Oh, bugger.” I jiggled the padlock on the side and took out the old hammer. “Rhys, get your pen knife.”
We crossed the aluminium bridge and took our time climbing the four-hundred-and-twenty-seven-bastard-steps. At the top, we found Nikesh examining the standing stone.
