Haunt: Volume 2

The Angels Search for Snapper (An Autumn, Kelsie & Delilah Story) Part 2 of 3

Weekend Two: Friday Night, Continued

September 23, 2022

POV: Kelsie Conrad

Outside, on the concrete sidewalk in the employee square, I started toward administration when I heard quick footsteps coming toward me. I turned around and there was my gal Autumn. Today she wore a blue scarf tied at her throat, which twirled around her yellowshirt and fluttered in the breeze behind her. She wore black jeans to match her pretty dark hair which was back in its ponytail, and it had her streak of magnificent blue in there like a racing stripe.

Like me and Delilah, Autumn had been digging around to find out what she could. She stopped breathlessly before me. "I've talked to all the old-timers I could find. Nobody knows where they might keep someone like Snapper."

I could only imagine. "Must have been some fun conversations!"

"Watch this," Autumn suddenly adopted a vacant, wide-eyed stare that made her look ten years younger. She asked in a childish voice, "Omigod, do they have a prison where they keep monsters? Omigod, is it like spirit jail? Omigod, you've got so much seniority, and everybody respects you so much!" She went back to her normal voice. "That's my dumb-girl act."

"Hard to make you sound dumb. Does that work?"

"Seriously, Kelsie? I can hardly get people to shut up about what they know. I've heard things I never imagined - that Wolfie guy talked to me for ten minutes about the real reason why werewolves were moved from Ghosts of London to Vampire's Lair fifteen years ago. He actually said werewolf war. And then he said that Scott Bakula's characters from Star Trek and NCIS: New Orleans were just more iterations of his Quantum Leap character."

"What?"

"Yeah exactly. And that's not even the weirdest...look, the thing is, nobody knows where spirits might be kept."

"Jackie was a bust too," I said. "So we're looking for Tom."

"Well come on then, let's go!" She took my hand and pulled me along. Her blue scarf fluttered. I had to laugh. Autumn on a quest was an amazing sight to behold. As we hurried across the lawn, she said, "Seven Wonders is supposed to be a happy place. It makes me sick that they have a prisoner here. I don't care if she's a wraith. Uh, so I've never even met this Tom. Who is he?"

"Right-hand-feller to all the bigwigs. There's Calicus, the Head of Park Operations. Ramis, Head of Attractions. And Gustov, Head of Engineering. And at the very, very top is the Real Overlord. Mom and I see Calicus every year at the administrator retreat and day spa, but we're not on first-name terms. Gustav is always busy keeping the park running, and Ramis is not going to bother with stuff like this, she's way too high up the ladder. Wuh. These aren't people you can just ring up on the phone. But Tom's basically the Overlord's executive secretary, or personal assistant, or whatever. So we're finding him."

"Because he's the connection to all the authority," Autumn surmised. "Okay then!"

Inside administration, we stopped at the reception desk. A kid of about 15 manned the phones. I didn't know him yet; his nametag said he was Demetrius. "Hey, partner," I greeted him in my deepest country accent. "Got some urgent park business. Is Tom in?"

Demetrius looked at his computer screen. "Yeah, it says he's here today."

"In his office?" I asked hopefully.

"Uh..." Demetrius frowned. "It says he's on rounds."

"Does it say when he'll be back?"

"Uh..."