Voices From Beyond (A Ghost Finders Novel) (22 page)

“Things . . . got a bit mixed up,” said JC. “But I’m sure they’ll sort themselves out again. Eventually.”

“Shit happens, in the Ghost Finding game,” Happy said comfortably. “More important, weird shit happens.”

Tom went back to glowering at Jonathan. “Well, don’t just sit there! This is your station! You must have an opinion as to what we should do!”

“Yes,” said Jonathan. “Keep the noise down.”

“Jonathan . . .”

“What do you want me to say, Tom? I am tired out, worn-down, and running on fumes! The Ghost Finders are the only ones who seem to have a handle on what’s happening here, so I am more than content to be guided by them.”

“Even after what they did to Felicity?” said Sally.

“Shows how desperate I am,” said Jonathan. “I understand radio and radio stations; but I don’t have a clue what to do about hauntings . . .”

Tom shook his head firmly. “You know I don’t believe in all that bullshit, Jonathan. There has to be a sane, rational, scientific explanation for everything that’s happened; and if we can’t see it, that’s because we’re not looking hard enough.”

“Really?” said Melody. “A rational explanation? Such as?”

“Sabotage!” said Tom. “By another radio station! A more powerful signal, breaking in on ours and occasionally overpowering it.”

“A signal strong enough to do that, which can’t be detected by any of my very powerful machines?” said Melody. “One that can’t be tracked back to any source?”

Tom shrugged angrily. “I’m only a general engineer; I don’t understand the heavy science stuff.”

“Clearly,” said Melody.

“Anyway, why would any other radio station want to sabotage Radio Free Albion?” said Jonathan. “We’re not big enough to be worth sabotaging!”

“I don’t believe in the supernatural!” said Tom.

“Felicity used to say that,” said Jonathan. “And look what’s happened to her . . . Denial can get you killed here, Tom. Or worse.”

Happy lost what little interest he had in the conversation and wandered away to join Captain Sunshine at the open front door. They stood together, looking out on the clear, quiet evening and the empty car park. It all seemed so very safe, and ordinary. The last of the light was going out of the day as the afternoon passed through twilight into evening.

“You see anything out there?” said Happy, after a while.

“No,” said the Captain. He took one last drag on what was left of his spliff and sent the butt flying out into the car park with a flick of his finger. “All quiet, man. Like you could walk out into the embrace of the world, and leave all this down-beat shit behind. Except we can’t. Like your friend said, we have to stay and face our demons.” He looked at Happy with experienced eyes. “You are seriously maxed out, man. Definitely lacking in the mellow department. You want me to roll you a little fix-me-up?”

“No thanks,” said Happy, politely. “With what I’ve got coursing through my veins, I doubt it would even touch me.”

The Captain shrugged. “Might help you take the edge off.”

“Last thing I need,” said Happy. “I need to stay sharp. Cutting edge. Bad things are on their way, Captain.”

“Aren’t they always,” said Captain Sunshine.

He went back into the reception area, to join the others. Happy took one last wistful look outside, at the tempting peace and calm of the car park; and then he turned his back on it and followed the Captain back in. He left the front door open, though.

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In the end, JC got them all organised. It was what he did. With his usual mix of confidence, charm, good-natured arrogance, and a general sense of authority, he soon had a circle of chairs arranged, with everyone sitting facing each other. The radio staff sat together on one side, and the Ghost Finders took the other. It just worked out that way. Kim made it clear that she preferred to stand. She had to. Because sometimes she got so caught up in what was happening that her concentration would slip, and she would find herself floating an inch or two above the seat of the chair she was pretending to sit on. And she wasn’t ready for the others to know she was a ghost. People always looked at her differently after that. And these people didn’t need to be distracted from the things they should be afraid of. So she stood behind JC’s chair.

“I feel like I should be organising some snacks, or drinks,” said Jonathan. “Does anyone want anything? I could always make a quick trip to the kitchen, see what’s in the fridge, maybe make some tea . . .”

“Do you really think going off on your own is a good idea?” said Tom.

“Probably not,” said Jonathan.

“We could always phone out for some pizza,” said the Captain.

“I am not touching any of those phones!” Sally said loudly.

“I’ve got a mobile phone built into my array,” said Melody.

“Reception around here is really lousy,” said Jonathan. “And yes, I am aware of the irony.”

“Look,” said Tom, “if we are going to do this whole big discussion thing, we have to be honest with each other. I need some proof, some real evidence . . . that these Ghost Finders really do know what they’re doing. That they understand what’s happening here and why. And that they’re capable of doing something about it!”

“You want evidence?” said JC. “Well, why didn’t you say? How about this . . .”

He took off his sunglasses. Everyone jumped, and made startled noises, as his eyes glowed a deep disturbing gold in the growing gloom of the reception area. No-one could meet his golden gaze directly, not even the other Ghost Finders. JC looked casually about him, his eyes shining fiercely bright, as though the sun itself were looking out through his eyes. And then he put his sunglasses back on, pushing them firmly all the way back up his nose, so that not a single golden gleam got past them. Everyone relaxed a bit. Jonathan and Tom stared at him, fascinated. Sally looked genuinely scared, staring open-mouthed at JC. Captain Sunshine looked at him with a childlike delight, his lips silently forming the word
Groovy
. . . And Felicity slowly turned her head to look at JC. The golden glow from his eyes had reached her where nothing else could. She looked reassured. Character and personality seeped slowly back into her face, and she sat up straight in her chair.

While everyone else was still a little stunned, and a lot more compliant, JC took charge of the moment. Speaking slowly and carefully, he brought everyone up to date on what had been happening, and spelled out the current theory . . . That what they’d all been hearing were in fact voices from the future. Messages, warnings, sent back through Time. And having said all that, he sat back in his chair and waited to see what they would all make of it. Sally seemed to have found a whole new reason to sulk. Captain Sunshine nodded slowly, rocking slowly back and forth in his chair, conspicuously mellow. Tom and Jonathan looked at each other and didn’t seem to want to say anything. And Felicity seemed to be thinking hard.

“If all of this is true,” Jonathan said finally, “it looks like you were right all along, Tom. We should get the hell out of here. Because we are in way over our heads. We need to call in the authorities. Get more people involved. Have them occupy Murdock House . . . and either defuse it or blow it to pieces.”

“We are the authorities,” JC said flatly. “In cases like this, the Ghost Finders of the Carnacki Institute are always going to be
The Authorities
. Because we specialise in dealing with situations like this.”

“Then call in more of your people!” said Tom. “With . . . better equipment!”

“We have all the people and all the technology we need,” said JC. “And besides . . . even if I did call for reinforcements, by the time they could get here, I’m pretty sure it would all be over. We are a long way from anywhere, people; and we are on our own. Time is not on our side.”

“Tomorrow,” Jonathan said to Happy. “You said, the world will end tomorrow.”

“What?” said Tom. “Really? He said that?” He glared openly at Happy. “When were you going to tell the rest of us? And anyway, how can you be sure about something like that?”

“I’m not,” said Happy. “It could be later this evening . . .”

Sally made a loud and very rude sound. “I don’t believe in any of this shit, and you can’t make me. I haven’t seen anything . . .”

Everyone nodded understandingly, and talked right over her. It was clear she’d felt something because of all the breaks she’d been taking; but it was also clear that she would bolt like a startled deer if it even seemed like she might see something. Sally tried to make herself heard, then gave up, sitting stiffly in her chair with her arms tightly folded, taking it in turns to glare defiantly at different people, with utterly impartial scorn. Captain Sunshine smiled kindly on her.

“If you’re not part of the answer, you’re part of the problem. As we used to say, back in the day.”

“Oh . . . stick it up your karma, you boring old hippie.”

But she didn’t make any move to get up or head for the open front door. The discussion, upsetting though it might be, was still interesting enough to hold her where she was. And there was still comfort, if not safety, in numbers.

“Can we all agree,” said JC, “that the voices have become increasingly clearer, and more understandable? That’s because we’re drawing closer to them, in Time. The nearer we get to the future they come from, the more they . . . come into focus.”

“There was something familiar about some of the voices,” Captain Sunshine said slowly. “I’m sure I’ve heard some of them before, from somewhere . . .”

Everyone waited until it became clear that was the extent of his insight. He smiled gently around the circle, seeming more infuriatingly at ease than ever.

“Maybe we should . . . shut everything down,” said Tom. “I mean permanently. Take Radio Free Albion off the air. I still think the station is drawing these voices here. Like moths to a bright light. If there was no light, they might go somewhere else . . . and we’d be free of them!”

“We can’t shut down the station completely!” Jonathan said immediately. “The new owners would never stand for it.”

“Are you still going on about that?” said Tom. “Don’t you think we’ve moved beyond that?”

“They don’t know what’s been happening here,” Jonathan said doggedly. “They could fire us, replace us . . .”

“How can they hope to make any money out of this station if most of our audience is too scared to listen?” said Sally.

“I can’t be fired,” said Jonathan. “Not again. I’m too old to start over again.”

“Listen to yourself!” said Tom. “We have more important things to worry about than unemployment!”

“Spoken like a man who’s never been fired in his life,” said Jonathan, bitterly. “We can’t turn our backs on the station.”

“Even though staying here puts your lives in danger?” said Melody.

“We’re all going to die,” said Happy.

“Stop saying that!” said Jonathan. He scowled at JC. “If we’re really in trouble, get us more help! If your Institute can’t get reinforcements here in time . . . There has to be someone else! Someone local!”

“You keep coming back to that,” said JC. “Wanting the authorities you know to come in and rescue you. But what would you say to them if I could bring them here? If you tried to explain what you’ve experienced, what you’ve been through, they wouldn’t believe you. They’d either arrest you for wasting their time, or fit you for a strait jacket. They’re not equipped to deal with situations like this. You’re much better off with us.”

“And what about Felicity?” said Jonathan. “Is she better off because of you?”

“If she were to see us put things right,” JC said carefully, “that might help to put her right.”

“Might?” said Tom.

“It’s always the ones who think they’re strong who break the hardest when they’re hit,” said Kim. “Trust JC! He knows what he’s doing. Don’t you, sweetie?”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, dear,” said JC. “Look, you all need to understand what it is that’s coming. When Happy says the world is coming to an end, he is not exaggerating. Everything and everyone we know is in danger.”

“From what?” said Tom. “Voices?”

“No,” said JC. “From what the voices are scared of.”

“We’re all going to die!” said Sally. “I don’t want to die!”

“If we’re all in such imminent danger,” said Felicity, “do something!”

Everyone jumped and turned round in their chairs to look at her. Felicity was sitting up straight, her eyes clear. She still looked pale and drawn and had her hands clasped tightly together in her lap, so people wouldn’t see how badly they were shaking, but her gaze was steady, and her mouth was set in a firm line. Jonathan squeezed her arm.

“Welcome back, Felicity. I was worried . . .”

She pulled her arm free. “Not in front of the children, Jonathan.”

He smiled at her, almost fondly. “No point in trying to hide our . . . relationship, Felicity. That ship has sailed.”

She looked fiercely at him. “You told them? Are you insane?”

“A lot has happened while you were . . . away,” said Jonathan. “How are you feeling? Do you remember what you saw upstairs?”

“Yes,” said Felicity. “I remember. I’m fine.” She fixed JC with a cold, hard stare. “You claim to understand what’s going on. So do something!”