Palmyra Paranormal

Chapter 14: Firework Fun

Well, we know it's not ghosts. Right? Scott typed into his message app. What Josh saw seems real enough.

Emily followed up with, Right, but no talk of werewolves! That's not even a possibility, is it?

Granted, Josh added. I guess I was just a little freaked out at the time. I think we should focus on information about Dogmen. That seems more realistic, if that word is even appropriate.

Ok. So we all start digging into the Dogman lore, Scott chatted back. Maybe we'll find some useful information. Pictures. Sightings. If we find where someone killed one, that would be great.

Emily scowled as she thought about her next reply. They had so little information in front of them that she was surprised and worried about how deep the boys were getting. She could understand Josh's interest. After all, this is how he made a living. But all he'd ever really done, it seemed to her, is walk around old buildings scaring himself.

If what he says he saw on the road was real... Did she and Scott really want to get involved in something like this again? In the cafe, talking about it in the light of day, it seemed more like an exciting adventure. A great mystery to solve.

But sitting in her room alone, with nothing but a messaging app for company, she remembered the fear, the feeling of helplessness facing something that seemed invincible.

"But it wasn't invincible, was it?" She said softly, but with conviction. "It had to be stopped, and we stopped it."

She turned back to her tablet and started typing.

We need to figure out what kind of evidence we might be able to find that would convince the police of what is going on.

Josh replied, In my experience, they won't listen. They have their playbook and they won't change it up, no matter what we have.

I agree, Josh, Emily typed. But we need to give them the chance. If we can get them on our side, we've got a better chance of succeeding. Surviving, she corrected herself quietly with a wince.

Ok, Scott's reply came back. Let's see what kind of evidence others have found. That way we'll have an idea where to start.

Meanwhile, Josh replied. I think I need some actual sleep. Maybe now that we're getting a plan together, I'll be able to actually get some. Two days 'til the Fourth. Won't get any sleep then.

After a few 'good nights' bounced around the app, they all signed off for the night. Josh put his laptop away and lay on his hotel bed, staring at the blackness behind the window. He didn't feel at all like he was going to get any sleep.

Scott put his phone down on the nightstand, slid down under the covers and was snoring peacefully before the screen on his phone went dark.

Emily, exhausted but not feeling sleepy at all, opened a streaming app on her tablet, hoping some music would help her sleep. She needn't have worried. She was asleep and dreaming before the first tune had ended.