~ Jed ~

The next several days were grueling between the constant barrage of testing and physical therapy, but I was growing stronger. Not that the staff was cruel, but they clearly were there to tick the box rather than any real concern over my recovery. My physical therapist was a real ball buster, pushing me relentlessly until my muscles shook with exhaustion. I welcomed that though, eager to get back into shape. By the end of the week, I was able to walk again, and spent my spare time roaming the halls, trying to build up my endurance.

There was no reply from Kate, and I wasn't sure if that was because she hadn't gotten the message or didn't care to return it. I didn't hear from Uncle Warren either, which was a blessing, he was the last thing I wanted to deal with at the moment. When I enquired about who was footing the bill for my care in the private recovery center, I was told it was being handled and I shouldn't worry about it.

Gemma was the one bright spot in my day, her sunny moods often lifting mine when she came to see me. She brought my promised jelly and then soup, and I eventually graduated to real food, such as it was. It wasn't particularly tasty, but it was better than I'd had at other facilities, so I had no cause to complain. Gemma seemed to seek out my company, and I got the impression that she checked in on me more than other patients, sometimes reading to me or sitting to talk after she'd gotten off her shift.

"There he is."

I looked up in surprise at the familiar voice, unbearably relieved to see Ryan standing at the end of the hall on one of my laps around the floor. I'd started to think I had no one left. "Hey, long time no see, mate."

"I'm surprised to see you up and around at all," Ryan smiled, coming up and clapping his hand on my shoulder. "Warren made it sound like you'd never wake up again and there was no point in coming around."

"Of course." Leave it to Uncle Warren to try and cut me off from what friends I had left. "Sorry, I haven't got my mobile and I couldn't remember your number to call."

"No worries," he assured me. "You've had a lot on your mind, I expect."

"You're not wrong," I said, leading him back toward my room so we'd have a spot of privacy. "Is Kate alright?" I asked as soon as the door was shut.

"Yeah, she's fine," he said, digging out his phone and showing me a picture of her posing with Molly. "They've gone on holiday, sort of backpacking abroad. Not from hostel to hostel or anything, but traveling light. I get the occasional snap but that's about it."

I studied the photo, Kate looked good. Happy even. It was the usually cheery Molly that looked a bit down. "Then you haven't talked to either of them in a while? Not even Molly? I thought you two were pretty close."

Ryan rubbed the back of his neck, looking away. "Yeah, ah… I sort of…"

"Sort of what?"

"Bollixed that up," he winced. "We…" He floundered around helplessly, and I caught on.

"You slept with her?"

"I didn't mean to," he said quickly, and I had to laugh.

"How exactly do you shag someone without meaning to?"

"She was upset and I wanted to make her feel better."

"And did you?" I raised a brow at him.

"Well… yeah… for a bit. But then… later I thought I probably shouldn't have done it at all."

"Why not? You care about her?"

"I do, but as a friend, and I thought it'd change our friendship too much and… well, it did."

"Sorry, mate." It gave me something to think on though. Things between Kate and I were… volatile to say the least. There had always been a connection there, but part of that was because she knew me in a way most people didn't. That one kiss had been… there was something there, at least for me, but there was no mistaking the regret in her eyes when she pulled away. I supposed we were both just lucky it hadn't gone any farther or… or were things already at an end between us? Why hadn't she tried to contact me after I'd reached out to her?

"You've gone all quiet. Do you hate me now too?"

"What? No, of course not," I assured him, handing over his mobile. "Just have a lot to work through still."

"Yeah, I can imagine," he nodded. "Look… what happened down there?"

"I wish I knew," I sighed, slumping back in the chair. "All I can remember was going down in the lift, and being in a corridor… and then… there was a door, but…" I shook my head. "It's all dark after that."

"I tried to get in and see, after the accident, but Warren had it all cordoned off, even hiring a guard to keep people out, said it was a safety hazard. And after what happened to you, no one could argue that."

"What does he say happened?"

"He said you went down in a lift that hadn't been properly serviced in years and there was a cave in that bashed you on the head. He's had the whole thing walled off again."

"What the hell is he hiding down there?" There had to be more of the story than that. What about that door?

"I couldn't say. When they pulled you out… I admit, I thought you were dead, mate. And Kate screaming and screaming… She didn't stop until they sedated her."

"She's alright though? What did she say happened?"

Ryan just shook his head. "She wouldn't talk about it. All she would say was that it was all her fault, you almost dying, for her dragging you into her mess. And then she left."

"Just like that?"

"Well, it was a few weeks after. She didn't want to stay at the flat anymore, so it's been lonely days," he said with a sad little smile. "But now you're awake, maybe they'll come home and it'll be back like it was."

Somehow, I doubted it would be like it was, but I just gave him a tight smile.

"I expect you'll want to get out of here sooner than later, what with the surroundings. Have they said when you'll be released?"

"No, not as of yet, but…" And then it hit me – my surroundings. I hadn't once seen a ghost or gotten a vision of anyone's traumatic death. Surely there had to have been people who'd died there. Why hadn't I seen so much as a hint of any ghosts? Perhaps I was jaded from having spent so much time in sanitoriums where people had died traumatically? Perhaps they'd simply moved into the light after passing peacefully here?

"But what?"

"I just realized, I haven't seen a single ghost here."

"Really? Well then, that's almost like a holiday, isn't it?" he smiled. "Maybe you should stay on longer?"

"No, no I'd rather be out on my own," I smiled back. "So… how did you find out I was awake then? I was going to come and see you when I got out."

"Oh, one of the nurses called me. She said you'd very much like a visit from one of your mates."

"Gemma?" It had to be her, no one else would've cared. "That was nice of her."

"Yeah, she said you could use something to lift your spirits and did I know how to reach Kate. Sorry I'm not her."

"No, not at all, it's good to see you, very good," I assured him. "This is the most like myself I've felt since I woke up here."

"Will you be coming back to the flat then? When you're released?"

"Ah… yeah, I suppose so. Don't have anywhere else to go, really."

"Good, good. Not that you don't have anywhere else to go, but…"

I waved off his extra explanation. "Has anything else… strange happened around the place since that day?"

Ryan let out a long breath. "It's hard to say. We lost some more tenants, concerns about the cellar not being stable. Warren's had it all repaired though, supposedly, and brought in some new hotshot to try and re-brand or something to attract new ones."

"And the missing girls? Any word on them? Or any new disappearances?"

"No, no new girls have gone missing. And I'm afraid the investigation has come to a halt. As part of the repairs, Warren had those rooms all cleared out. All of the information Grace gathered is gone."

"I thought you'd taken it."

"Well, some if it, I had, but most of it was still down in her room and it's gone now."

I dragged my hands over my face. "Maybe it's time to let that all rest."

"You mean just give up? Not try to find out who's doing this?"

"It's not like we did any good, is it? We're no closer to finding out what happened to them or why than we were when we started." My suspicions about Warren's involvement aside.

"I guess you're right." Ryan was quiet for a few moments. "I should probably shove off. I've got a meeting with the new sales director about the website in an hour. I just wanted to see you're okay."

Was I okay? Whether or not I was, I gave him a smile. "I appreciate you coming 'round."

"Of course," he smiled. "I'll see you soon."

"Yeah, bet on it," I smiled back. Only I wasn't so sure. After the holiday from ghosts, as he called it, I wasn't too eager to get back to ghost central and endure all of that pain and terror again. Then again, could I really turn my back on it?

A/N: I like the peace of Jed getting a break from having visions and seeing ghosts, but something tells me he won't be able to stay out of that life for long. What do you guys think?

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