━━ CHAPTER ELEVEN / house in flames
episode one, part two.

The downstairs hadn't shown them anything new. When Demi touched anything outside of the hallway, there didn't seem to be anything attached to it. There wasn't even a feeling of it being haunted until she stepped back into the hallway. But, there was one exception to the non-feeling. And that was when she pressed her hand against the wall where the old chimney used to be. There was a horrifying shriek that ran through her head but she didn't say anything.

At first it was because it didn't seem important but the more that they checked around, the more she began to wonder whether it had been something more important than she initially thought. Not that she said a word, suddenly too embarrassed as the trio headed up the stairs. Lockwood was first, Demi followed behind and then Lucy last.

"Knocking's back. Getting louder," Lucy commented as they walked up the steps but as soon as she pressed her foot against the landing she added, "It stopped. Soon as I stepped onto the landing." Demi glanced around, shining her torch along the walls. Nothing overly significant and she reached out and pressed her hands against the banister.

The tumble of Mr Hope falling down the stairs was loud in her ear and she winced at the sound. That must have been what Lucy had heard. It was significantly duller for Demi but it almost felt like there was something else there. She could hear someone else breathing. Mrs Hope, probably.

"Temperature's dropping," Lockwood commented as the temperature gauge beeped. Demi looked over at him, shining her torch around. He looked calm enough and considering that they had no idea what they were about to walk into, he seemed as arrogant as always.

"Right, torch off. I need to tune in," Lucy said. Demi switched her torch off and slipped it into it's holder. Her eyes took a moment to adjust to the gloom and she stood beside Lucy. The brunette glanced down at Demi and gave her a look. She almost looked scared but they knew that being scared was a bad thing. Spirits fed on fear.

"Pick a door, any door," Lockwood said. Not to either of the girls particularly but Demi didn't like choosing. It usually ended in disaster. Their cluster case had left her permanently scarred after she walked right into the murder room. The screaming had been intolerable.

"Go with the furthest," Lucy suggested. Lockwood looked down at her, raising an eyebrow.

"Why?"

"It's the scariest."

"It's only scary if you let it be," Demi commented as she stepped away from the pair. Her footsteps were cautious as she tried to compartmentalise. She hated the dark. She always had. There was always something lurking in it but she had long learnt to brave it. The anxiety that settled in her chest was just part of her process.

Each step she took was cautious and then she felt Anthony gently take her hand from behind her. He squeezed it and she glanced back at him, trying to give him a reassured smile. It wasn't very reassuring but they forged on. Lucy walked behind the pair and Demi was the one to gently push the door open.

Lockwood grabbed his torch from his pocket and flicked it back on. He let go of Demi's hand as they walked into the room, shining it around. It was clearly some sort of office. There were stacks of papers piled everywhere. The walls were a questionable green colour with an odd pattern but Demi tried not to judge the decor as she glanced around the entire place.

There was nothing in particular that struck her as odd but the tingling had returned to her fingertips. It was overwhelming and she glanced at Lockwood. He didn't seem to have any particular reaction as he knelt down and pulled the rug up from the floor. Though, she shouldn't have expected him to feel anything. He never did.

"Office," Lucy commented. Demi hummed in response and she turned around to see what Lockwood was looking at. He kept the rug pushed back and gestured towards the grooves that he had noticed.

"But not always. Look. Pressure marks. Deep, wide apart," He explained as he got back to his feet. Demi pulled her own torch out and shone it across the room. The grooves probably meant a bed and considering the size of the room, that would make sense.

"A bedroom," Demi mumbled. Lockwood nodded and he shone his torch around the ceiling for any other indicators of anything. Plasma or just other signs of a spiritual presence. There didn't seem to be anything and when Demi ran her hands along the furniture and boxes of papers, nothing jumped out at her. No sudden feelings, images or sounds. It was just complete silence but she could feel the Source in her fingertips.

"This is where the source is." Lucy's words were decisive. Demi looked up and the two seemed to share the same thoughts.

"All of this stuff is Mr Hope's," Demi began but then suddenly Lucy gasped and her entire body twisted towards the open door to the hallway. Demi's eyebrows furrowed and then Lockwood stepped closer to the girl.

"Don't let it get to you. Keep active. Go get the bags. Make a circle. I'll check the other rooms with Dem," He ordered. Lucy nodded and Lockwood gestured for Demi to follow him out. She went after him but Lucy asked 'Files or chains?' before they could leave. And Lockwood's response made Demi pause, "Oh, filings."

"Sure? It's still early, it's already this strong," Lucy argued and Demi couldn't help but agree. The death-glow was bright. The Source, the screaming, the temperature and the heavy feeling that was weighing her down. That all indicated chains.

"It's not that strong, plus... I forgot to bring the chains," Lockwood explained and Demi turned on him. Her glare was burning into the side of his face but he ignored it in favour of finishing his conversation with Lucy.

"You forgot to bring the chains?" Lucy asked. Lockwood was leaning against the door and Demi couldn't listen to his excuses. They had no idea what they were walking into and he had forgotten the chains. She went straight to the Hopes' room. It was a standard bedroom. Old patterned sheets and it smelt like perfume that only old women wear. It reminded Demi of her grandma.

"You feel anything?" Lockwood asked from the doorway of the bedroom. Demi didn't say anything at first as she shone her torch around the room. There was nothing that particularly stuck out to her and the tingling in her fingertips had gone now. She then rounded on Lockwood.

"You're unbelievable sometimes," Demi said and he looked at her, furrowed eyebrows and a frown on his lips, "This is clearly stronger than any of us anticipated. If you had just let George do his research, we would have known what we were getting ourselves into." The annoyance laced Demi's tone as she looked at the boy. Lockwood rolled his eyes.

"Filings will be fine. Like I told Lucy, it's not that strong," He attempted to argue but Demi just scoffed. She shoved past him into the next room and he followed after her, "Your anger is just going to feed it." That was true. As much as that annoyed her, he was right. But she couldn't help but be peeved off. If this case killed them all, he would be to blame.

"Fine, I'll be pissed off at you when we're back at home," Demi snapped and then she turned her gaze onto the room that they had just gotten into. And there was a death-glow right in front of them. Her eyes widened and Lockwood let out a soft 'ah'. She glanced up at him and he pulled out his notebook. It was quiet as the two tried to work out what had happened and Demi could hear Lucy coming up the stairs.

Her irritated sigh and then the bags were dropped. Demi got up from where she was knelt and headed out into the corridor. Just as Lucy began to call for the two of them. She pulled out her rapier and then Demi turned and they both saw it. The ghost was floating in the entrance to the study and Demi let out a soft 'fuck'.

"Anthony, get out here, please," Demi snapped. She hoped that using his first name would get him to shut up about the other violent death. They could fill Lucy in about what they had found later. The ghost of a woman was maybe a little more pressing.

"So, perhaps the disturbances weren't caused by Mr Hope..." He seemed to trail off as he appeared beside the pair. Demi had taken a position behind Lucy. Her rapier was still in its holder but her hand hovered over it cautiously.

"No, well done," Lucy said sarcastically though she was trying to keep her tone even, "They weren't." A soft 'ah' left Lockwood's lips and he kept his gaze on the ghost in front of them. The light radiating off the ghost was lighting up the hallway. Her face was obscured but it seemed to be a woman. She was wearing a dress and her feet were off the ground. Her hands held up towards her face. Her hair was long. She probably would have been pretty while she was alive.

"Either of you got anything?" Demi shook her head. There was nothing in particular that was radiating off the ghost but she could feel her fingers tingling. Indicating the ghost and the presence of the Source nearby.

"Haven't tried," Lucy admitted and she gave Lockwood the side eye before immediately looking back at the ghostly woman before them.

"Why not have a go before she gets any closer?" Lockwood suggested as he pulled his rapier from his belt. Demi followed suit, letting it hang by her waist. She knew that she wouldn't be much use stood behind them but the hallway was too small for the three of them to stand together. So, Demi hung back, glancing around for any immediate ways out or just to make sure there were no other threats that would sneak up on them.

Lucy let her rapier fall slightly and she closed her eyes, trying to decipher anything coming from the woman.

"She's in pain," Lucy mumbled. Demi wanted to scold her for not being very specific but she held back any comment.

Lockwood didn't, "Of course she is. She's dead."

"No, something's different." Lucy's eyes stayed closed and Demi watched as the ghost got closer and closer towards them. The fact that the ghost hadn't immediately attacked was a good thing. They were safe for the moment but the closer the ghost got, the more danger they were putting themselves in. And Demi wanted Lucy to just hurry up and get something. Not that she'd say it.

"I can almost..." Lucy trailed off as her eyes shot open. And then the ghost swooped towards the trio and they were all sent flying backwards. Demi's back smacked harshly against the floorboards, her head colliding and she was briefly disorientated until she heard Lockwood shout Lucy's name. The adrenaline kicked in and she clambered to her feet, scrambling for a salt bomb only to discover she had dropped them.

Lockwood had pushed the ghost back into the entrance way of the office and Demi rushed towards the railings where Lucy was clinging onto a painting, barely holding on. The brunette got onto her knees and leant forward. Her left hand clung to the broken railings and she held out her right for Lucy to take.

But her grip was slippy and Lucy's fingers slipped from between hers. Demi shoved herself forward, precariously leaning over the edge of the stairs and grabbed a hold of Lucy's wrist. Then, with unsteady movements hauled both of them back onto the landing. Demi collapsed back onto her arse, her heart thumping in her chest.

And then Lockwood was knelt down beside the girls. He looked between them and Demi glanced over towards the doorway. The ghost seemed to have disappeared into the study now which was good.

"Are you okay?" Lockwood asked. Demi nodded and she clambered to her feet, snatching her rapier up from where she'd left it on the landing. The annoyance had bubbled back to the surface but now it was directed at the ghost not Lockwood, "If either of you feel unsteady, we should go home."

"I'm fine," Demi said stubbornly but the look that she received from the boy made her pause. She took a deep breath and sent him a half-smile before she ran her fingers through her hair. They needed to get this case done. They couldn't lose any more money.

"Lucy?" Lockwood asked as he turned to the brunette. Her face had been contorted between confusion and fear throughout Demi and Lockwood's exchange. And the pair could tell that something had happened. Something that Lucy wasn't telling them.

"I'm fine. I just... When I connected with her, it was different," Lockwood furrowed his eyebrows as he slowly pushed himself to his feet. He held his hand out for Lucy to take and he hauled her up.

"What do you mean?" He asked. Lucy leant back against the wall and she glanced from Demi to Lockwood.

"I saw how she used to be. More than that. It was like I- I could feel what she was feeling," Lucy tried to explain but the face of confusion that she received from Demi made her stumble over her words. She couldn't explain it.

"She's a ghost. Ghosts don't have feelings," Lockwood responded. Lucy sighed and she pushed her hand across her face before she threw it out.

"I know but this one did. It's like nothing I have ever felt before," Lucy said and the look of desperation on her face made Demi almost believe her. She had seen plenty of weird things in her time and after the ring she had found in the park that was letting off energy during the day, she wasn't sure what the rules were anymore.

"You need to calm down," Lockwood responded and Demi turned away. She didn't know how to handle this situation so instead of listening to the two debate, she walked right back to the office. It was a dangerous and frankly stupid idea but she had felt something in that old chimney and if that ghost was a murder victim, then they had to find the dead body. The Source. 

And everything in Demi was telling her that there was a dead body bricked up in the chimney breast in that office. The brunette glanced around the room and snatched up the first vaguely sharp thing she could find - a letter cutter - and ran her fingers across the wall.

There was only one wall where it could be so she just had to feel along and then she felt it. A woman shrieking and Demi winced against it before she stabbed the letter opener into the wall, peeling down the wallpaper.

"Dem, what are you doing?" A hand pressed against her shoulder and she turned back to stare at Lockwood. Concern was etched across his features.

"This is where she went, right?" Demi asked. Lockwood and Lucy exchanged cautious looks before Lockwood nodded his head, "Well, help me get whatever is on the other side. I heard it downstairs." Demi was acting irrational and she knew that but the feeling of heaviness had weighed her down the entire night and the thought of that woman being bricked up in the wall screaming for eternity made the brunette want to break down.

"You're not in the right headspace. You can't do this," Lockwood said quickly and Lucy snatched the letter cutter from Demi's hand, "If she comes back, she's going to feed on your anger and sadness. You need to calm down and let us put down iron filings." There was a sternness to his words and Demi knew they were right. So, with reluctance, she held her hands up and stepped away from the wall.

The iron filing circle was set up quickly and the trio stood in the circle. Lockwood and Lucy used crowbars to pull the wallpaper away from the side. Demi kept the light steady but once they'd got through the first layer, Lockwood stepped back and bumped Demi into the iron filings. Her foot knocking the filings out of place.

"Careful," Lucy said quickly and Demi sighed. She pushed herself back into the circle and then Lucy dropped her crowbar. The brunette began to reset the iron filings while Lockwood went back to pulling the wall away and Demi kept the light steady on him. Demi wanted to pick up the crowbar herself but she knew that Lockwood would take issue with that. She had been too emotional.

"She's back," Lucy suddenly said and Demi glanced back. Right in the corner of the room, the ghost of the woman had begun to reform. That wasn't good. Then all the doors in the room slammed violently.

And Lockwood decided to agitate it, "Boring. You've done that already. Try something new, why don't you?" Demi kicked him in the back of the leg and he glanced back, giving Demi a smirk. She rolled her eyes.

"If I die because of that comment, I'm haunting you for eternity," Demi snapped. Lucy was slowly standing up now. The iron filings had mostly been replaced but it wouldn't keep them very well protected considering how strong the ghost seemed to be.

"Hurry up," Lucy said and so Demi decided to grab a crowbar and she joined Lockwood in pulling away the bricks. But the pair of them were sent backwards as the bricks finally pulled free. And Demi took Lucy with her as they collapsed against the floor, outside of the iron filings.

And the ghost swooped. Demi rolled over onto her side and went to grab her rapier, only to realise that it was on the other side of the room. She scrambled to her feet and scooped it up but only too late. Because by the time she had turned around, Lucy had thrown a magnesium flare and the books that cluttered the room were on fire.

"Lucy!" Demi shouted in annoyance but there was no time. She crossed back to the pair and Lockwood was back on his feet now. The hole Lockwood had created had revealed the dead body on the other side of the wall and they needed to contain it now.

"The body's the source. I'll hold her back. You get a silver net over it. In other words, Plan F," Lockwood said as he glanced between the burning pile of books. The flames climbing high in the room now and the body in the wall sat behind them.

"That's not Plan F," Lucy retorted. Demi glared at them both.

"I don't care about the plans. We need to cover the Source," Demi snapped as she looked between them. Lockwood tilted his head to the side in mild agreement and he grabbed his rapier from his holder.

"Lucy, go," He demanded. Lockwood moved towards the ghost first and swiped his rapier towards her but she masterfully evaded. Demi tried again and the two quickly got into a rhythm but neither of them managed to swipe her before she was swooping for Lucy again. The pair shouted her name in unison and Lucy covered the Source just in time.

There was only one way out of the house now and that was the balcony. Demi had a feeling that this job might just be the one to kill her and all because Lockwood had forgot his stupid iron chains and not let George research. Lockwood grabbed Demi's hand and when they called for  Lucy again, she seemed to lean towards the Source.

"We need to go," Demi said quickly. Lockwood nodded and he dragged them both out onto the balcony, just as Lucy managed to join them. The study burning behind them and Lockwood helped Demi up onto the balcony railings before she looked at him. He joined her on the railings and Lucy took her place beside Demi. Both the girls clinging to the same pillar.

"Are you okay?" Lucy asked. Demi nodded and Lockwood glanced down at the ground beneath them. The thought of jumping off was terrifying Demi but she tried to ignore the feeling.

"Apart from our client's house burning to the ground, absolutely fine," Lockwood mumbled and then suddenly an explosion sounded behind them. Demi knelt down on the railings, her heart thumped against her chest and all that was running through her head was 'I'm going to die here, this is where I die'. Nothing else and she could feel the anxiety tightening her chest, not even aware that the two were speaking beside her. It was only when Lockwood grabbed her hand and pulled her off the railing with him that she even realised what she was doing.

And then she hit the ground.

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