Chapter 10

Jo was not having nearly as much luck as the Doctor. It was already late afternoon and all she had gathered from her various house visits was there had been anywhere between two to fifteen deaths at Brightley Manor, with almost no consistency.

Needless to say, she was a little frustrated. Being Josephine Grant, however, she was not ready to give up. As she walked around yet another street corner, she came across a small shop shrouded in shade from the surrounding trees.

Cautiously, Jo turned the brass door handle and entered the shop. Inside, there were a few tables and bookshelves strewn haphazardly around the small room. The tables were covered with black candles, images of pentagrams, and Ouija boards.

"Hello?" Jo called, nervously. "Is anyone here?"

There was no response.

Jo took another step into the shop. As she looked around her eyes were caught by a short, black and red cloak hanging on one of the bookshelves. Curiously, she reached out and touched the cloak, but instantly withdrew her hand when she felt an almost tangible chill.

"May I help you?"

Jo twisted around instantly, her eyes wide. Behind her was a tall thin man with a gray face and white hair. He leered forward, his hands clasped behind his back.

"Oh! I—yes, er—yes—I—" she sputtered.

"I don't believe I've seen you before," the man hummed pensively, his eyes raking her face.

Jo swallowed. "If I may, um, ask you a few que—"

"Give me your hand," he commanded.

Before Jo could react, the man had grabbed her hand a run his thin, gray fingers over the shallow lines in her palm.

"What are—what are you doing?"

He didn't answer. He continued to look at her hand intently. Jo was about to yank her hand away and leave as fast as physically possible when he suddenly spoke.

"That man you travel with…" he began, his voice low.

"Man? Do you mean the Doctor?" she asked, trying to position herself closer and closer to the door.

"That man… you shouldn't trust him," he said, his eyes slowly raising until they were level with hers. "You have no idea what he has done."

"What – what he has done?" she breathed, now openly trying to back away.

"Be careful, Ms. Grant. You don't want to end up like her…" His gray eyes remained fixed on hers. He clutched her hand tightly, making her wince.

"I don't think I told you my name…"

At that moment the door opened and a stream of evening light entered the dingy shop. The strange man briefly grinned at Jo before sinking back into the shadows.

The Doctor entered through the open door.

"Jo? Are you here? – there you are, I – Jo, are you alright?"

Jo stood shivering, staring at the place where the man had just been standing.

"Yes, yes I'm fine," she said in a trembling voice. "What have you – what have you found out?"

"I believe I may have solved the mystery of Brightley's ghost."

"Really?" Jo asked, looking up.

"Yes. Come, we need to get to Brightley immediately. We'll take Bessie – she's much faster than any of the Brigadier's jeeps."

Jo allowed the Doctor to drape an arm around her shoulders and steer her out of the shop. As they walked briskly away, Jo looked back at the shop, now almost hidden in the shadows.

She shivered.

"Are you cold?" the Doctor asked.

"Something like that."

She thought about what the man had said and let her eyes wander up to the Doctor's face.

You have no idea what he has done.

A nod to where the idea for this fic came from and a little bit of foreshadowing!

Amron - School has settled down a little bit, so I'll have some more time to write and update. I promise this story isn't getting canned! Thank you so much for your continued support.