The Ghosts in You (A Zak Bagans Fanfic)

Chapter 81

Sara was lounging on the sofa. She tried, but failed, to get into her novel. Her mind raced incessant circles over the prior evening's events with her stalker dragging her along on his hellish ride, ultimately ending in his demise. Who or what was Dwayne arguing with? He seemed... It was far-fetched, she knew, but the only word that sprang to mind was "possessed". But she struggled to find a better, more apt word. She had to figure out exactly what had happened and why.

Zak interrupted her thoughts. "Hey, what are you up to?" 

"Reading."

"More Stephen King?"

She nodded yes. "But I can't stay focused. How's your work coming along?"

"Not bad. Why don't you join us? You can see how we put our show together."

He hoped Sara might like to observe every aspect of who he was as a person and what he did for a living. He wanted to share everything with her. He longed to pique her interest enough that she might be willing to accompany him on a lockdown at some point.

"Sure, I'd like that."

He held out his hand to help her up.

"Do you want anything to drink? Or maybe for the guys?" she asked, making her way to the refrigerator for a Diet Coke.

"No, we're good. I have a mini-fridge in the editing room that's stocked."

At that moment, it occurred to Sara that she'd never actually seen the editing room. She followed Zak down the hall, where he opened a door for her to step inside.

"Hi, guys," Sara said.

"Hey, Sara," Billy replied. Jay and Aaron waved absently, engrossed in some footage. The entity they were trying to capture on film was known to possess people, causing them to harm others.

"Zak, check this out, man!" Aaron motioned for Zak to look at the monitor. "Look, bro! Can you make out the face?"

Zak studied the screen and thought he might see a very faint outline and features of a male face. When Zak was able to make it out, he got a very bad vibe. The face looks...what? Demonic?

Sara looked over Zak's shoulder at the image. She was able to recognize it instantly. "That's the look Dwayne had on his face," realizing a little too late that she was thinking out loud.

Zak's head whipped around. "Stalker Dwayne? What do you mean?" The guys shifted their focus from the screen to Sara, waiting for her to continue. Aaron's jaw dropped in dismay.

"He was arguing with himself. Well, no, he was arguing with someone or some thing that wasn't there. Not physically. It was like he was possessed." It was the first time she'd actually settled on that word, and it weighed heavily on her. "And that's the expression he had on his face the whole time." She pointed at the monitor.

Zak pressed her. "What did he say, Sara?" 

"He just kept up a constant stream of argument. I could hear him mutter 'kill her' a couple of times. I could feel that he was struggling with whatever he was hearing or being directed to do. His face was different too – he didn't look quite like the guy that I knew back in L.A. Obviously it was him, but there was also something different, too."

"Why didn't you tell me?" He was still stuck on the words "kill her". His concern had been general until these words cemented the genuinely Evil intent.

"I'm still trying to make sense of it myself, Zak. It's just...a lot."

Zak's gears were crunching. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't think any of this was mere coincidence. Is there any connection between the face on the screen, her stalker, and the guy that hit us a couple of weeks ago?

Sara was starting to put the puzzle pieces together, too. Zak's reoccurring nightmare of the demon; her stalker, here in Las Vegas; and the look on his face – the look that matched this apparition on Aaron's screen. I wonder if there's a connection with the guy who hit us on New Year's? Are they all linked? Maybe Dwayne forced the officers to shoot him because he wanted that voice and whatever had dominion over him to end?