Chapter 1
Two days later the team reassembled at Ghost and Spirit Hunters headquarters (G.A.S.H) to go over the data that had been obtained a few nights earlier at The Saint Mary’s Emergency room. The First part of the data was turning out to be pretty standard. They were seeing some orbs, and a few full figured ghosts. Then suddenly everything changed, Ally noted this was around the time she had started to smell the strange smoke.
“Ok, I’m going to stop the tape here,” Jeff said. “Dillon would you like to explain what happened here.”
“Why here dad,” Ally asked.
“This is when you started to smell smoke,” Jeff replied.
“How the hell do you know that,” Ally asked. She didn’t remember mentioning it to her dad, and she knew for sure Deanna hadn’t. Then she looked at her father’s eyes and could tell that somehow in his own spooky way he knew.
“Go ahead Dillon,” Jim said curiously.
“Um,” Dillon started uncomfortably. “Soon after we got back from the Nevada State Prison I started to look up how to control spirits. You know how Google is you can find anything.” When he noticed that no one laughed at his little joke, he went on. “Anyway I thought I could be at least like Allyson cause I knew there was no way to be like Jeff. So when we got there I thought I had it mastered and a voice kept reassuring me I had. So I sat down and started to repeat a chant I had learned.
I really thought that I had called some spirits, I realized I hadn’t. Right before you came to get me for dinner I tried to reverse it. I felt something enter me as I did. The next thing I really remember is waking up in the new emergency room.”
“So your dumbass caused all that bullshit,” Ally screamed. “You are such a stupid pri…”
“Allyson enough,” Deanna interrupted. The glare that Allyson gave to Deanna made Jeff step in before things were said that someone if not all would regret.
“Dillon wasn’t in control of himself,” Jeff said. “There was a very dark force in there, which used him against himself.”
“Jeff I have a question,” Amy interrupted.”
“Go ahead and ask.” Jeff said.
“Well the story behind a Doppelganger,” Amy started. “Is if it has taken on you image and you see it you will die. How did you live through this?”
“Because we weren’t dealing with a Doppelganger,” Jeff answered. Seeing the confused looks around the table he went on. “We were dealing with a demon that old witch Josephine sent to get either mine or Allyson’s gifts.”
“I thought she was sent to Hell,” Jim said.
“I don’t understand how she keeps effecting out lives either,” Jeff said the concerned look on his face evident.
“But how could I feel and see the Demon, but the dogs couldn’t?”
“That Al is a question that I can only speculate on,” Jeff answered to his daughter.
“Well let’s hear it,” Belinda piped in.
“All I can think of,” Jeff started. “Is that when Allyson was seeing it and the dogs were responding is it was projecting its self directly into Ally’s head.”
“Why did it choose you to project though,” Troy asked.
“That’s easy,” Deanna said. “Who else is she going to trust than her dad, and he wasn’t there to stop it. Now my question is when I heard your voice those times. Why me and how did you know?”
“Again I wish I knew the answer to that.”
“Dad,” Ally said. “How did you transfer your gifts to me, and then get them back.” Seeing a slight look of concern on her father’s face Allyson blurted out. “Daddy you did get them back, please say you did.”
Looking around the table Jeff solemnly said “Will you all excuse Ally and me for a moment.”
The rest of the G.A.S.H members glanced each other the concern on their face evident and slowly stood and filled out of the office conference room. “What’s going on dad? You still have your gifts right? You can get them back from me, I don’t want them.”
Seeing the tears welling up in his daughters eyes was more than Jeff could take so he started. “Allyson, come here.” Allyson rose and walked into her father’s embrace. “Sweetheart, I did give you my gifts, and I can never take them back.”
“But Daddy I….” Ally started to say but was interrupted by her father.
“Ally, I gave you all my gifts the day you were born. Yes you have gifts that I don’t and there are some I have that you don’t, but we share many. When we were there the other night, I knew I was exhausted and was already weakened. To get you and Deanna out of that corridor it took a lot out of me. So when the demon attacked I was on empty.”
“But I felt when you gave them to me, and heard you tell me to take them,” she said a puzzled look on her face.
“A little confidence goes a long way,” Jeff smiled, and started to walk to the conference room door.
“What’s that supposed to mean,” Allyson screamed after her father.
When the two emerged into the main room of the office suite that housed the G.A.S.H headquarters, Jim approached his little brother. “You still have your gifts right?”
Seeing the grim look on her husband’s face Deanna started to cry. Knowing how special the so called gifts made her husband. ”I still love you American.”
“Thank you,” Jeff replied quietly. “I love you too.”
Looking around the room at all the faces that looked like they had just lost a family member Jeff surprised them all. “I agree,” he said. “A Subway sandwich does sound good let’s go.”
A look of relief fell on the entire group since now they knew that their friend, their leader, their family was still the same, since they had been talking about mentioning Subway to Jeff when he and Ally emerged.
“You still have your gifts,” Belinda screamed.
“Do I?”
“How else would you know we were talking about Subway,” Troy asked.
“Could have been a lucky guess,” Jeff replied his face a mask of concern. “I’ll be right back I need the rest room.”
As soon as Jeff had left the room the group looked at Ally. “So what did he say,” Amy asked.
“Not a whole lot,” Ally replied.
“Tell us what he did say,” Deanna said. “Please.”
“All he said was A little confidence goes a long way.”
