All Along It Was A Fever

A cold sweat Hot-Headed Believer

I Threw My Hands In The Air, Said "Show Me Something"

He Said, "If You Dare Come A Little Closer"

Round And Around And Around And Around We Go

Oh Now Tell Me Now, Tell Me Now Tell Me Now You Know

Not Really Sure How To Feel About It

Something In The Way You Move

Makes Me Feel Like I Can't Live Without You

And It Takes Me All The Way

I Want You To Stay

…Rihanna Ft. Mikky Ekko (Stay)

Chapter 10

"Jess? Jess? You up sweetheart?"

I peered over the top of the pillow to the sound of soft rhythmic breaths on the other side. She was still asleep. Lying on her back with her head tilted towards my side of the bed. I propped myself up on to my elbow, careful not to shake the hand still being tightly clutched in her small fist. The corner of my mouth twitched up as I watched her snuggle further into the blankets. There was a calmness to the room now, a far cry from the night before. I couldn't stop my hand from reaching out to run my knuckles down the pale cheek once stained with tears. Jess flinched before relaxing back into my touch. Her lashes fluttered but stayed draped over her eyes as she moaned softly.

"Zak"

It was barely above a whisper. So faint that had I been on my side, I wouldn't have heard it. I crouched down next to the bed and brushed my hand across the top of her head.

"I'm going to go check up on the guys and make some phone calls. I'll go get one of the girls to come sit with you and I'll be back in a bit."

Her head jerked in protest but the need to sleep largely outweighed her need to argue with me as her eyes closed once again. She loved to argue with me. I laughed to myself at the thought. The smile slid off my face the longer I stayed watching her.

"What the fuck are you doing Bagans?" I said aloud.

The door hadn't even closed all the way before I was staring at three pairs of tired eyes. The deep creases in their face showing the different levels of concern mixed with curiosity.

"Father Bailey is coming back tonight" Aaron was the first to speak. His puffy eyes barely seemed focused "How is she?"

I pushed my lips together and shrugged. Not the most detailed response to that question. It wasn't something that could be explained. Not like a doctor pinpointing an illness. The only person that could answer that would be Jess and how do you explain the explainable? How do you explain feelings that are so foreign they haven't even invented words for it yet.

Nick's gaze drifted to the floor and he leaned against the wall behind him "I hate to be the one that brings it up..but what about Ghost Adventures? What about the show? We only have one more day here and we have absolutely no evidence. I mean nothing. We don't even have…"

"I'll take care of it" I cut him off. I shook my head absently and rolled my head from side to side "They knew we didn't want to have to go back to Mackey's. They can't chastise us for not being able to make contact with anything."

"What about what happened to Jess? Shouldn't we.."

"They don't need to know that. They don't have to know about Jess and the girls." The mention suddenly made my eyebrows twitch up "Where are Mandy and Shelly? I told Jess I would have them check in on her."

"Shelly woke up a little while ago and went to go get food for everyone." Billy chimed in "Don't know where Mandy is."

Aaron cleared his throat and looked suddenly embarrassed as he chewed on the inside of his lip.

"Dude you didn't." Nick tried to keep his smile from spreading.

"It's nothing like what you're thinking guys" Aaron defended, raising his arms up "She's in my room but we were just talking. She didn't want to be alone."

"Can't say I blame her" I whispered.

The old rusty elevator needle sprung to life and moved to the number of our floor. After a moment the doors chimed and slowly creaked open revealing a very tired looking Priest.

Father Bailey looked up and his body jerked suddenly at the sight of the group standing together. His face was pale and his eyes were bloodshot. They wondered from face to face before a weary smile tugged at his lips.

"From the looks of it I'd say you all got about as much rest as I did."

It was amazing to me that his very presence made the entire group visibly relax with a collective audible sigh. I had fallen asleep before having the chance to express my gratitude to the man. I knew all to well just how much these "situations" took a toll on his body. Just as much, if not more, than the person he was helping. A fact evident in the weak manner in which he shook my hand.

"Have you been in to see her yet today?" He asked.

I could feel a warmth rise up in my cheeks and everyone else grew silent. I didn't want to have to explain to the priest that I had stayed in the same bed with her through the early morning hours into the afternoon. Catholic guilt I think is what they call it. Even though I was not an active participant in the religion, I knew Jess was.

"She's tired and confused." I said louder than intended if only to drown out the faint laughter in the background "She doesn't remember anything."

"No. No she wouldn't" Father Bailey mumbled softly to himself "Well I'll just go in and have a look."

"Actually Father, can I talk to you for a bit. She's sleeping still so I'd like to let her rest."

The tone in my voice caused his brows to twitch in acknowledgment and his head bobbed to direct me down the hall. "Aaron would you have Mandy go sit in with her? Even though she's asleep I don't want her alone."

Wordlessly, Aaron nodded and pushed himself from the wall he was leaning on, disappearing down the opposite side of the hallway. I ushered Father Bailey back to my room and shut the door behind us. The Priest sighed loudly as he fell back into a chair in the corner of the room.

"I'll tell you there is never a dull moment with you guys. Now you have female counterparts" he chuckled and ran a hand back and forth over his head "I thought we were never going to have to go back to that place after the last time."

I felt a looming sense of guilt as I passed him a bottle of water and sat down at the edge of the bed. I heard the crackling of the plastic while he nearly drained the entirety in one gulp. It took me a moment to compose my thoughts while fingering the label of my own cold bottle.

"I think this whole thing is my fault" I whispered.

"Hmm? Why's that?" He asked, reclining farther into the chair.

"I warned her. Warned all of them. But I didn't do anything to stop them from going in. Instead I offered for them to follow us on our investigation. I thought maybe since we didn't get anything on our walkthrough and they were telling us about strange things going on with them, maybe we could help each other out. I thought maybe that way we could get some evidence for the show. I thought maybe I would be able to keep on eye on Jess. I thought…Hell, I don't know what I thought.

Bailey chewed on the tip of his thumb and studied my face. Clearing his throat he sat up and placed his ever present bible in his lap.

"Did you know these girls before going to Mackey's?"

I shook my head, rubbing my eyes with both hands "I had never met them but Rebecca over at Mackey's told me they would be filming the same time we were. They have a website and I checked it out. They're not amateurs. They've caught some really interesting stuff and even just meeting Jess I could tell they were pretty prepared for.."

"Nothing prepares you for that place Zak." Bailey shot back.

I shuddered remembering those were the exact words I used when trying to warn Jess about her investigation.

Bailey leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees "Zak, you couldn't have stopped anything. It seems that they would have gone into that place regardless if you and your crew were here or not. If anything you being here was a blessing in disguise. What would that girl have done without you if you hadn't gone into the storage house to get her? She could have really hurt herself or one of her friends. She could have been in throws of complete possession if she wasn't pulled out." He jabbed a stubby finger in the direction of Jess' room "You know better than anything that what happened in that room last night was minor compared to how it could have gone."

I nodded wordlessly, unable to look him in the face. His words had some comfort but not much. He couldn't answer the question of what happens now. I had to decide that. How do I let this girl go back to her life in Chicago like this had never happened? Like everything is going to be fine when I knew from personal experience there was a possibility it might not be. Why should I care as much? I've met a lot of girls on location. Dated a few too. Why was she any different? Maybe because she wasn't like any other girl. Maybe because in such a short time I may have started feeling something for her. I snorted our loud. What was the point? She would be gone tomorrow anyway and anymore interaction we may have would be through a series of random texts and emails till we both got bored. Pointless.

A knock at the door caused us both to jump and then share a laugh in spite of ourselves.

"Like I said, never a dull moment" Bailey laughed, finishing off the rest of his water.

"You ain't kiddin" I whispered as the door clicked open.

Nick stared back at me. He opened his mouth to say something but his eyes drifted over my shoulder to Father Bailey."

"Jess is up. She wants to see you. Both of you."

There was a stifled urgency in his voice mixed with concern. His gaze conveyed both. He was already walking back down the hall before Father Bailey even made it up from his chair.

Mandy and Shelly were outside the room. Both girls wearing the same look as Nick. Mandy had her arms wrapped around herself and only relaxed when she saw Father Bailey walking closely behind me.

"Something's wrong" She met us halfway and clutched my arm "She still doesn't seem right."

Bailey put a hand on her slim shoulder reassuringly "She isn't going to feel like herself right away. I know it's a poor comparison but think of it like having a bad illness. You may start feeling better after taking antibiotics but it doesn't happen over night. Jess may still have the symptoms but they'll slowly begin to dissipate." He paused outside the Jess' room "The emotional scars however..Well, that is something you girls will have to help her with."

Mandy locked eyes with Shelly and I could tell by the blank stare they weren't convinced. By the way Aaron and Nick were looking at me I could tell they felt the same. The moment the door to Jess' room cracked open it seemed justifiable.

I could see Jess sitting up in bed. Her back to the door while she stared out the window. It was cold. So damn cold. Her body made no sign of acknowledging we even came into the room. It wasn't until the door clicked behind me that her shoulders flinched.

"Jess? Father Bailey is here."

I was standing in front of her but her eyes didn't pull away from their fixed point at the window. Turning a worried a glace to Bailey, whose face was expressionless, I took both of her hands in mine and crouched down in front of her.

"Jess? Can you hear me? I said Father Bailey is here."

Again, she didn't move but her chocolate eyes slowly lowered down to meet mine. Jess seemed confused for a moment. Almost as if it were the first time she had ever looked at me. Then, slowly, a smile spread across her face.

"Oh. Hi Zak"

My brows furrowed and I turned again to Father Bailey. He still remained unmoving by the door, watching on with silent interest.

"H..Hi sweetheart." I stammered "How are you feeling?"

She cocked her head to the side and gave me a curious look. "I feel great. I haven't slept so good in I don't know how long." Getting off the bed, her bare feet padded over towards the large window in her room. "Did you see her?"

"See who Jessica?" Bailey finally spoke.

"The woman. She was standing by the window. How could you have missed her?"

I became even more perplexed as I watched her lean over and push her forehead to the glass as if she was expecting to see something floating outside the window. Bailey reached into his pocket and grasp something tightly in his fist. He wordlessly strolled towards Jess casting random glances out the window as well. When she finally turned towards him, he pushed the object in his hand to her forehead. The silver cross gleamed against her sun kissed skin as she smiled back at him. Bailey sighed and grinned at her.

"Well that's a good sign. Now, tell us more about this woman you saw."

Jess scoffed at his rather patronizing tone and directed her attention back to me.

"I'm not crazy Zak. Or possessed. There was a woman in my room talking to me."

"Jess..I.." I stopped myself and looked over at Bailey who seemed to already know what I was thinking as he nodded and slipped out the door and back in to the hallway.

"Jess, I was in the room with you all night. All the way up until an hour ago it was just you and I. You were probably dreaming and it was Mandy or Shell…"

"NO" She shook her head violently "No Zak. I know what I saw. She spoke to me. She said she was going to try to protect me. That she had been protecting me."

"Well now I KNOW you were dreaming" I sat down at the edge of the bed, resting my elbows on my knees "Jess you were partially possessed. You had to.."

"It could have been worse Zak. A lot worse." Jess sat down next to me and took my hand "The other night.." She hesitated, running her pale bottom lip through her teeth "I had a dream about you."

"Okay?"

"You and I….."

"Uh huh?"

Jess rolled her eyes and hand simultaneously and I could feel a childish blush rise up in my cheeks when I realized what she was trying to say.

"Oh' was the only response I could muster.

"Anyway" She continued "You changed into something and attacked me. That was the reason for the scratches you saw yesterday morning on my stomach."

"I did that to you?"

Jess shook her head "No. Whatever that "thing" was made itself out to look like you."

I could feel anger boiling up in me. I thought things couldn't get any worse than the first time we went to Mackey's and I got scratched. I had been wrong. This demon, or demons, had attacked me, possessed me, called me by name, imitated my voice and now took on my form. I knew it was powerful but this was more than anything I could have imagined.

"A whole new darker layer to discover" I whispered.

Jess clutched my hand in hers once again and snapped me from my own thoughts "I know it wasn't you Zak. I know you wouldn't hurt me" She smiled " The girls woke me up from that dream though. They had managed to get into my room when they heard me screaming. They said my door just happened to open up when they were pounding on it. That was the woman. She opened it for them. She was also the one yelling for me to wake up when I was lured into storage house."

"Does this woman have a name?" I questioned

Jess frowned and shook her head "No. She didn't tell me. She did tell me you were coming to get me. She said you would help me. She said.."

She paused and caught my gaze. Before I knew it, she had leaned in and caught my lips with hers. I hesitated. Taken off guard by her bold assertion. Of course it wasn't the first time we had been in this position but it was definitely the first time she had initiated it. Her palm came up to rest gently on my chest while mine cupped her chin. Her body leaned in to mine and my arm snaked around her waist to slide her closer. She felt warm compared to the way she felt when I took her out of the storage house. Her scent was even different. She smelled like sweet fruit and wild flowers. It was so intoxicating that when her lips parted and allowed me access, I felt like I was the one possessed. My arms completely encircled her and pushed her flat against my chest. Hers wrapped around my neck and with minimal effort, pulled me down so I was lying above her. I couldn't think. Couldn't focus. My common sense seemed void with every passing second. My hand drifted down to her stomach and my fingers ran across the flat soft flesh. It only made me want more. I wanted to explore every inch that hadn't been visible to me in the passed 2 days. I wanted her to tell me in detail what happened in this horrible dream so I could make every bad memory of it go away. I wanted to make her feel safe and protected if only for the time we had left.

The time we had left

The part of my brain that may have remained rational called out to me, suddenly reawakened by the single truth that I had avoided all day. This was a job. A location. Jess would be gone tomorrow. Her fingers crept under my shirt and I shuddered when her fingernails ran up my sides. The thought of her bare skin pushed rightly against mine made my head foggy. She moaned into my mouth and my senses wavered again.

"I want you" She whispered between breaths.

No. No I shouldn't do this. Using every ounce of self control, I pulled back quickly and stood up. Jess' eyes flew up and she bolted upright in the bed. The look on her face a mixture of confusion and lust. We stared at one another in awkward silence, listening to the sounds of us trying to steady our breathing. Her gaze alone made me want to continue what we had started. Messy strands of raven hair pushed to her forehead. Once pale lips now pink and swollen became more tempting then they already had been. She was beautiful. I could feel my body leaning towards her but my feet remained firmly planted on the ground. I had to look away.

"Did I do something wrong?"

I winced. Her voice was barely above a whisper but the question packed quite a punch to my gut. Guilt.

"No" I said taking a deep breath "No. You didn't do anything wrong. I did."

"Zak you didn't.."

"Look Father Bailey is still here and I still have to make phone calls." Jess opened her mouth to say something but I cut her off again "I'm going to send the girls in and I want you to write down everything that "this woman" was telling you. Maybe even see if you can draw up a picture of her or something. I'll…maybe I'll come back and see you a bit later."

"Maybe" She said, sounding hurt.

"I…" There was nothing left to say. I couldn't stay. Not alone with her. "I'm sorry Jess."

I walked back out into the hall before she could say another word. Anything else and I would lock myself in the room with her for the rest of the night.

Mandy and Shelly were both sitting on the floor across from Jess' door talking quietly to each other. They both looked up at me concerned. Maybe even slightly judgmental.

"Is she okay?" Mandy asked, standing up and folding her arms across her chest.

"Um…yeah..yeah. She's okay. She's got some things to tell ya. Maybe you can help her figure it out. I…I have to go."

I didn't wait for a response or questions I'm sure they had. I had to get back to work. I had to walk away.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Hey guys. Really sorry I haven't updated in awhile but I kind of lost my writing muse for awhile. Not that I have to explain but right before Christmas my stepmoms cancer came back and I was driving back and forth from Michigan to Chicago to help my dad out. Unfortunately we lost her in March after the cancer moved to her brain and spine. Not only did I find it hard to find time to write, I kinda didn't feel like it. I know this isn't an insanely long chapter but I hope it made up slightly for my absence. It ain't over yet!