The Piano || 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘣𝘺 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘬

|35| We're going back.

They ended the call after Ronja promised to mail all of them the information she had gathered. Ashley leaned back on the couch with an exasperated sigh.

"How," she breathed out. "I mean, how?" she added at a lack of other words. "I have always believed, but, like... this is another level. We just... we helped a historian figure out Ilse's past by doing ghost investigations in a haunted hotel? Just for a YouTube video? What's next, we solve a murder?"

Sam chuckled softly as he watched her freak out. "Yeah, that was pretty much my and Colby's reaction as well," he said as she pressed the palms of her hands against her eyes.

"And I thought it was over finally," she groaned. All of a sudden, she sat up, locking eyes with both of them for a few seconds. "When are we going?"

"Not yet," Sam chuckled. "But are you sure you want to come with us?"

"Yes," Ashley said before she could think about it. Then she bit her lip. "I mean if that's okay for you guys. I don't want to make it awkward of course." She glanced apologetically at Colby. "But I really want to know more about all of this..."

"No, sure, I think you should come with us," Colby stated, clearing his throat. "This isn't about you and me; this is about so much more. You deserve to come with us." She smiled in relief, and he reciprocated it a little hesitantly.

"Thank you," Ashley said. "But I should probably get going. Jerry has prescribed me a lot of rest because I managed to get sick yesterday."

"Oh, sorry to drag you here when you're sick," Sam said, getting up. "You could've told me."

Ashley shrugged and stood up to go to the entrance of the house. While walking, she pulled out her phone and turned it on. She'd put it on mute for filming and was startled by a call immediately coming through. This was weird, no one ever called her, not even her team.

"Wait, hold on," she said as she stopped, picking up the call. "Hello?"

"Hello, is this Ashley Reed?" an unfamiliar voice asked.

"Yes," Ashley confirmed. "Who am I talking to?"

"LA State Hospital," the person on the other end said. "I'm calling on behalf of Jeremy Bennett, I assume you are his girlfriend?"

"Um, friend, actually," Ashley corrected, her voice weakening by the second. "What... did something happen?"

"There was an accident, and we're asking you to come here as quickly as possible. You are listed as his emergency contact so we're going to need you to fill in the documents."

It was as if the world stopped spinning. Ashley's mind was sent reeling, and she felt her knees go weak. An accident. An accident. Jerry had been in an accident. She felt her mouth move, heard herself say, "Sure. I'll be right there." Her phone almost slipped from her hand as she ended the call.

Colby's voice startled her back into the present. "Ashley, everything alright?" he asked.

Taking a moment to ground herself, Ashley dried her hands on her pants, tucking her phone away.

"No," she whispered. "No, it was about Jerry, he..." Hesitating, she looked up. Colby's eyes locked with hers, filled with worry and encouragement to continue speaking. Ashley swallowed. "He's in the hospital. An accident..."

Her hands started trembling, and she grabbed her wrist with her right hand, just to feel her pulse beating frantically. The steady rhythm grounded her, forced her to take deeper breaths. "I need to go." Her voice broke while she was speaking, but she didn't care as she reached for her jacket.