Ghostly Force (Ghostly #10)

CHAPTER ONE

If anyone had been watching, they would have thought it was raining as wet as Lance was as he tried to keep his dog, Haunt, in the bathtub. She shook again, sending water droplets every which way. Lance groaned. He was going to have to wash the walls and entire bathroom after this.

From the doorway, Bethany and Ray stood laughing, watching as he tried his hardest to rinse the suds from the dog's fur.

Lance glared at the two ghosts who had become good friends and now lived with him.

"You two find it so funny, why don't you get over here and help me keep her still?

It's not like the water will bother either of you. "

"It's more fun to watch." Bethany laughed but slowly floated toward the tub and got inside with the dog. She stooped down and brushed her hands across Haunt's ears. "Easy, girl. You'll feel so much better after this."

It still amazed Lance that ghosts existed and that he could see and communicate with them.

Even more surprising was that animals could see and interact with ghosts too.

But unlike the living humans, the animals could still feel the touch of the ghosts.

Lance was told it has something to do with vibrations and energy levels that humans couldn't feel, but he really couldn't understand how it all works.

"You sure the water's not too cold?" Ray stood behind Lance and watched.

"I didn't want it to be too hot, but it's not freezing. I could stand in it and not be uncomfortable." Lance ran his hand down the dog's back, watching the suds fall. "I think I used too much shampoo."

Bethany seemed to be calming the dog as she spoke softly to her. "Maybe we should let her outside and just turn on the sprinklers. You know she loves running through those."

"And rolling in the flowerbeds after. She'd be covered in dirt again." Lance sighed. "Why is it our dog loves sprinklers and even that wading pool Franks bought for her, but hates the bathtub?"

"What in the world did I walk in on?" Angus asked from the doorway.

Lance glanced back and sighed but didn't release his hold on Haunt. While Bethany could pet the dog, she didn't have the energy to hold her. "You want to come help?" Lance asked his boyfriend with a hopeful bat of his eyes. "I'd love you forever."

"You better love me forever either way." Angus pulled off his shirt. "Why are we washing the dog at six in the evening? Wouldn't have been better to wait for the weekend?" He moved into the bathroom.

"Bethany and Ray are here, just so you know we're not alone," Lance warned as he scooted to the side to make room for Angus to kneel beside him.

"Your precious girl decided to dig in the flowerbeds today while we were at work.

Bethany and Ray came home to find her covered in dirt and the flowers we planted destroyed along the back fence. "

"I think she was after something. Maybe a vole or gopher. Not sure what you have around this area." Ray now appeared to be sitting on the counter.

Lance repeated what Ray had said for Angus since he couldn't see or hear the ghosts.

"Could be, but whatever it is, it's new. She's never torn up the flowerbeds before. I'll have a look once we get done here." Angus scrubbed the suds off Haunt's hind end.

"How was work?" Lance asked.

"Quiet. Too quiet. It's that calm before the storm kinda feeling around the station. I'm trying hard not to worry, but when it gets this slow, something big is usually right around the corner." Angus was a detective with the Fairway Police Department.

"Don't jinx yourself," Lance said softly. "Just enjoy it while you can."

Haunt shook again, sending water flying.

"Damn it, hold still." Angus laughed as he blinked water from his eyes.

Just then the doorbell rang, and all hell broke loose. Haunt, hearing the bell, jerked free from everyone and leapt from the tub, running full speed to the front door, dripping and spraying water as she went.

"Grab towels." Bethany rushed after Haunt.

Lance grabbed the towels he'd set on the toilet to dry her when he was done and turned to follow Angus down the hall, frowning at the wet carpet as they went to the front door where Haunt was shaking her body, trying to rid herself of the excess water.

"I've got her. Give me a second before you open that door.

" Lance wrapped a towel around the dog, then drew her to his chest to keep her from escaping again.

Angus waited for Lance's nod, then opened the door.

"Surprise." Jackson smiled.

Lance fell back on his butt, releasing Haunt as he stared at his brother in the doorway. "You're home."

"I was going to call, but I wanted to surprise you." Jackson narrowed his eyes as he took in Lance's wet clothes and hair. "Bad timing?"

"Never." Lance stared at his brother in shock. He looked so good. "Tell me you're here to stay." Lance stood, water dripping from his shirt, but he didn't care. Jackson was home. Lance smiled at the ghost standing behind Jackson. "You brought Kel with you."

"Is that okay? I didn't think you'd mind." Jackson glanced over one shoulder, then the other. "No idea where he's standing, but I told him I was coming home to stay and asked him to come with me."

"Yes, it's okay. It's more than okay." Lance smiled. Then, realizing they were standing in the doorway, he stepped back. "Come in. Sorry, it's a mess. Haunt was in the tub, heard the doorbell and…" He waved his hand, not needing to explain.

"I'll go find Haunt." Angus laughed. "Welcome home, Jackson." He quickly took the towels from the floor and headed to find Haunt.

Jackson and Kel walked inside, and Lance shut the door.

He nodded to Jackson's large duffel bag.

"You know where your room is. Make yourself at home.

If you need anything…" His voice trailed off as he closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around his brother. "I'm so glad you're home."

Jackson hugged him back. "It's good to be home. I still can't believe it's happening. It hasn't hit me yet that I'm not just on leave and won't have to go back." He pulled away. "You are soaking wet."

Lance laughed. "Sorry. Blame the dog." Then remembering the bath, his eyes went wide. "Shit, I left the shower running." He took off down the hall, smiling at Bethany, Ray, and Kel as he passed by where they were talking in the living room.

Luckily, the sprayer in the shower had fallen so it hadn't sprayed water outside the tub.

They already had a big enough mess already to clean up.

He made sure everything was off, then walked back out to see his brother.

He was so happy he was here, even if he'd shown up without warning.

Jackson knew he was always welcome, and Lance knew that Angus felt the same way.

"Don't go near the window," Ray warned Lance as he walked into the kitchen to find Jackson, Kel, and Bethany all laughing as they stood at the now closed sliding glass door that led into the backyard. "You won't like what you see."

Lance narrowed his eyes. "What?" He quickly went to the window that was over the kitchen sink and looked out into the backyard.

He sighed heavily when he saw Angus sitting on the lawn, holding Haunt, who was once again covered in dirt.

She'd obviously raced back outside the first chance she had and started to dig again.

"What is she after? This isn't like her. "

Jackson turned toward him. "Let's go look."

"You just got here. You sure you want to deal with this the moment you walk in the door?" Lance asked.

"I'm curious." Jackson stepped out into the backyard.

Lance followed, closing the door behind him.

He followed Jackson and the three ghosts over to where Angus held a very muddy dog.

"I'm not taking her back in the house like that.

We'll use the hose. We just have to find a way to keep her out of the dirt after we spray her off.

Once we get the mud off her, I'll give her a normal bath inside. "

Angus sighed. "I'm now as muddy as she is. You may have to hose me off as well."

Lance took in Angus's mud smeared face and arms. His chest was also splattered with mud. "This is insane. What has her acting this way?" He looked over at the area Haunt had been digging and saw she'd torn up over half of the flowers and had a hole several inches deep dug into one area.

"You've got gophers, voles, or something similar." Jackson squatted near the hole. "I'm afraid she's going to keep digging until we figure out how to get rid of whatever is burrowing here."

"Just what we need." Lance sighed. "I just wanted to come home from work and take a shower. Instead, I get to give this beast a bath twice." He glared at the dog he loved so much. "This must be what having toddlers is like."

Angus laughed. "God forbid. What will she be like when she's rebelling like a teenager?" He stood, lifting Haunt as he got up. "I'll carry her back to the bathroom. You go get more towels."

Lance glanced over at his brother and the ghosts who were standing with him. "Anyone know how to get rid of whatever it is now living in the flowerbeds?"

"I'll do some research tonight," Jackson told him.

"You just got here. You don't have to—" Lance started but was interrupted.

"I need something to keep me busy. Go deal with Haunt and we'll talk after. For now, I think it's best you keep her out of the yard or on a leash when you bring her out to do her business." Jackson gathered a handful of dying flowers from the ground.

Lance sighed.

"Martin will know what to do. We can go talk to Lizzy," Bethany offered.

"No, don't. The last thing I need is everyone rushing over here tonight. Angus can call his dad, but if you go over, I know Lizzy and Betty. They'll rush over here to solve the issue and spend the night replanting flowers." Lance smiled. "But thanks for offering."

"Sorry we can't do more to help." Bethany leaned toward Ray, causing their ghostly bodies to merge a bit where they touched.

"I had shrews in my yard once. We had to trap them. Maybe that's what you need to do here," Kel suggested.

"We'll talk about it over dinner. I need to get Haunt taken care of first, then I'll order pizza.

We can figure it out then." Lance gave a last look at his destroyed flowerbeds and shook his head, then refocused, reminding himself that despite the destruction in his yard, he did have something to celebrate.

Jackson was home. He smiled at his brother. "I'm so glad you're here."

"Me too." Jackson laughed. "Even if your life is in chaos."

"It's not usually this exciting," Lance told him as he headed inside, then he sighed.

Who was he kidding? His life hadn't been normal for a long time.

Today was just another adventure in his crazy world.

Ghosts, mud covered dogs, and creatures living in his flowerbeds—who could ask for anything more?