Dan's Hauntastic Haunts Investigates Read online

  Then I moved the cursor to the send button and imagined the email whisking off into cyberspace. It would find Chad, a middle-aged balding family man. Someone who would laugh in my face if I made him such an offer in person.

  But what if?

  What if he wasn’t the person I imagined when I heard his voice over the phone? What if he was as helpful and organized as he appeared? What would it be like to have someone with Chad’s quiet competence at my side?

  Someone reliable and devoted to his work. Someone who didn’t give an inch when I was at my most trying. It was worth a shot. I hit send.

  SIX

  Chad

  I didn’t expect the offer from Daniel. Maybe I should have. Did he feel guilty about costing me my job? Was the offer of the PA gig penance?

  My problem was, the offer was tempting. I didn’t believe in ghosts, but it was clear Daniel did.

  He wanted to help people and his social media presence brought together a bunch of like-minded people who just wanted to help restless souls. I could think of worse life missions.

  He had attached a link to a google doc with the full job description. I clicked the link, double checking it opened through my professional account and not the RedHerring99 one that I used for social media.

  Most of the information fit what I knew of Daniel and his Haunted Holdings company. The job included near constant travel. We would live out of his converted van.

  The schematic attached to the job description said it had two bunks, so I would at least have some personal space. I paused at that.

  If we were sharing such tight quarters, I should out myself to him. All things considered, I doubted it would pose a problem, but better to find out before I gave my landlord notice.

  The thing was, if he had an issue with me, then I’d rather not hear it. Rather not give up the fantasy of him as someone I admired. Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

  The ghost hunting stuff was fine. I excelled at doing research, so that would be a good fit. Helping Daniel with tracking down local history wherever we went sounded simple enough. I was no camera expert, but he had the knowledge to teach me those skills.

  I had no problem handling making calls and scheduling appointments and viewings and getting filming permits for the historical sites he used for his show. Easy work.

  It only paid minimum wage, but it came with free housing. Daniel was offering a chance to see the country. I even got a travel companion I genuinely liked, at least from our interactions so far.

  This would be strictly professional. No fan-boying all over him. No revealing I was a fan. Let alone that I was Dan’s elusive superfan, RedHerring99.

  Red would have to go into hiding. I’d need to be careful not to reveal that identity to him. Shouldn’t be a problem. Though if I was working with him for live events, then Red might become conspicuous by his absence.

  That was a concern for another day.

  I needed a job. This one looked interesting. The pay wasn’t great, but not having to pay rent should offset that.

  I had enough health industry experience to figure out getting my testosterone filled while on the road. Most states didn’t require a prescription for buying syringes and needles. And I could order a three-month supply through my mail order pharmacy. I just needed to stay on top of updating my mailing address. Easy peasy.

  First things first though. I needed to be sure Daniel would be all right hiring a trans guy. And that he wouldn’t require me to disclose that to his fans.

  I doubted he would force me to out myself, but I would have to be careful about where I stored my T. Only film with a shirt on to hide my surgical scars.

  Not that they were super obvious, faded by the years and covered in ink. Nor was Daniel one for topless filming. But it wouldn’t hurt to remember the practical details if I didn’t want to share my business with the world.

  Unless I decided to join him in being out to the fans. I’d need to think about it. Dan’s fans were an accepting group, so maybe I could at least share with the livestream patrons. I was getting ahead of myself.

  Still, it was workable. Before I second-guessed or talked myself out of applying, I shot back a response. I kept it brief—I was interested in the position and he could call me discuss it further.

  It was getting late, so I didn’t expect a response right away. A moment later, my ringtone startled the wits out of me. I almost fumbled the call straight to voicemail.

  “Hello?”

  “Chad? Huh, you sound different when you aren’t in drone mode. Who knew?” Daniel’s familiar voice greeted me.

  “Daniel, hey, thanks for getting back to me so fast.”

  “Oh, it’s Daniel now, is it?” he sounded amused.

  “Sure, I’m not at work, and you don’t strike me as a stickler for formality.”

  “I’m not. You had me convinced that you were though. Just a work persona then?”

  “In part, sure. Like you, the Dan you present in front of the camera is a persona, right?”

  “Okay, sure. And way to blow away my preconceived notions. Next you’ll tell me you aren’t a middle-aged dad who is only entertaining my offer because he’s going through a midlife crisis.”

  “Close, I’m a recent-ish college grad looking for my next adventure.”

  “No shit?”

  “I mean, it took me a couple extra years to get through my program, so I’m twenty-seven, but yeah, graduated two years ago. Worked my way through school at Chorus Insurance.”

  “Ready to moving on to better things? Sounds good. Okay, my man, why do you want the job?”

  “You seem like a decent guy. And I suspect you need someone around to keep you from breaking your neck on location. For serious, dude, in all my years at Chorus you’re the only healthy twenty-something who needed a service rep’s name on speed dial.”

  He gave a self-conscious chuckle.

  “What?”

  “Nothing, it’s just that your work number is on my speed dial, no joke.”

  “Well, if you give me the job we should update that to my cell, huh?”

  “Do you want the job?”

  “Yeah, it sounds like an adventure. There’s just one thing.”

  “Okay, shoot.”

  “I’m trans. I’m not sure about advertising it in the videos, at least not right away. But I figure if we are living out of your van you will figure it out and I’d rather be upfront about it. Is that a problem?”

  “Phew, for a minute there I thought you were going to confess you don’t believe in ghosts. In all seriousness, though, I don’t see why it would be. I mean, unless it would be too hard to get your HRT? Are you on hormones?

  “Quinn was. They were one of my earlier assistants. They were great, but getting prescriptions filled when we were in a different state every month was a pain in the ass for them.”

  I breathed a sigh of relief. I’d seen the videos with Quinn in them. Duh, I should have known Daniel wouldn’t be a bigot. Okay then.

  “Lucky for me, I have a bit of experience working with the medical system. I go through a mail order pharmacy, so I can just change the address as needed, no worries. I’ll figure out the details. Um, but since you brought it up, I actually am a skeptic. Still want me?”

  “Sure, I’m up for the challenge of working with a doubter. Give it a few months and we’ll see if we can’t convince you to believe.”

  “We’ll see about that. So, do we schedule a formal interview next?”

  “No need. The job is yours, if you want it. I know you’re a hard worker and you go to bat for your clients. You’re upfront with me, what more do I need to know?”

  “That we’ll be compatible, since the work is like a never ending road trip?”

  “Half the adventure is getting acquainted,” he laughed. “So, when can you start?”

  “When do you need me? I need to give notice on my apartment, but otherwise there isn’t much to handle on my end.”

  There wasn’
t either. My unit came furnished, and I’d learned to travel light over the years. Between moving in with Kay and college. I figured I could pack most of my stuff into the battered old pair of suitcases jammed in the back of my closet.

  Clothes, my e-reader, a laptop and a few mementos too precious to leave behind, that was pretty much everything. Anything I couldn’t bring I could leave at Kay’s place on my way out of town.

  “Well, I’m still in New Hampshire after the Miller House debacle. Doc says they’re releasing me Tuesday morning. If you can get here, for your first official act as my PA you can retrieve my van, Vanessa, and drive her to the hospital to collect me. I’ll ask Stace to overnight the keys to you if you message me your mailing address.”

  Tuesday morning. It was Sunday night, that only gave me twenty-four hours to pack, and wrap up all the loose ends of my life. Doable. A change would do me good.

  “Can do. Anything I should do to prepare?”

  “Check out the channel. There’s a link in the job description I sent you. No need to watch everything. I’ve got a few years worth of footage uploaded, but watch enough to familiarize yourself with what we do.”

  Easiest homework ever. I’d already watched every webisode of his show on the net. Including the ones on Patreon exclusive to his patrons

  “Roger that,” I said.

  “Great. Pleasure talking to you, Chad. I’ll be in touch. Oh, and welcome to the Hauntastic Haunts family.”

  “Thanks. I’ll email you my address for the keys. See you Tuesday.”

  SEVEN

  Dan

  I was antsy to leave the hospital by the time I got discharged on Tuesday morning. I had a new assistant to meet, a wrap-up video to finish shooting and a site to figure out for next month’s haunting. It should be a helluva day.

  Stacy came through on the key delivery at least. Chad had messaged me about an hour ago that he was at the Miller place and heading to the hospital with Vanessa, as promised.

  I had my fingers crossed that one glance at my home and production lab on wheels wouldn’t scare him away.

  He claimed to have watched some of my videos though, so he’d seen Vanessa on my channel. Still, seeing her in person was different. Drove home that I lived and worked in a six by twelve room and expected him to do likewise.

  I loved Vanessa. I converted her myself with help from my uncle and a college buddy. We’d scavenged discount stores to get good deals on high end looking lightweight finishes.

  Uncle Kurt constructed the custom interior with me. I needed it to look decent for filming. The result had an Ikea Chic esthetic.

  Vanessa boasted full insulation, wiring with solar power, and a 40 gallon freshwater tank. It held enough to last two weeks. An equally large gray water tank and fan for air circulation rounded out my utilities.

  I had a functional kitchenette on the right wall complete with a propane stove and oven combo and an isotherm fridge and freezer combo inset under the bunks. I could store a week’s worth of food on the road.

  We had a nice standard size sink and a pull out cutting board that added counter-space. Overhead cabinets stored dry goods and kitchen gear. Cabinets on the bottom stored cleaning supplies.

  A bathroom complete with a shower stall and porta potty toilet occupied the space behind the driver’s seat. The passenger seat swiveled to face the back and provide extra seating. I’d installed a storage unit over the seats. A curtain separated the cab from the living space when we parked.

  I’d initially had what amounted to a king-size bed in the back, but when I’d first hired a PA I’d converted it into two bunks. It was as simple as cutting into the foam mattress to accommodate a removable partition between the two halves. Each half had a light, an electrical outlet, and a narrow window for ventilation. Overhead cabinets for clothes and personal gear completed the two bunks.

  We had additional storage accessible from the rear, under the bed platform. That’s where I kept my ghost hunting gear, less delicate filming equipment like tripods and lighting kit, minus the bulbs which I stored up front, and a handheld vacuum.

  The left wall between the bed and the shower housed my production gear. My good cameras and lenses had their own padded cabinet.

  I mounted two large monitors to the wall above the narrow swivel-top desk for video editing and filming live streams and any segments I didn’t need to film on location.

  The desk doubled as a dining table, and could swivel out to accommodate up to four people. I had enough room for two chairs. I’d mounted a curtain between the bunk space and the living quarters that doubled as a backdrop for filming.

  A signal booster for my cell ensured we could stay connected to social media even when our film sites were out in the middle of nowhere. It was a sweet setup, and it was mine all mine.

  Investing in Vanessa made it possible for me to support myself and pay an employee with my earnings since I didn’t have overhead costs for housing and office space.

  Solar power met my energy needs, another bill I didn’t have to worry about. I had to be careful when I was running both computer monitors for video editing, though.

  Vanessa was my dream home, but she was still a van and I could understand how my dream might be someone else’s nightmare. And living cheek to jowl with a stranger took some adjusting. Stacy never loved the arrangement.

  Zack and I had a blast with it while it lasted. Chad was right, my life was like an unending awesome road trip. I hoped he would enjoy that as much as I did. Hiring new PAs was a pain.

  When Chad arrived at the hospital, he sent me a text. I replied with my room number. A few impatient moments later, a guy who looked nothing like I had pictured stood in my doorway.

  He wasn’t a middle-aged balding dad type at all. Chad was almost twinkish. Slim, average height, shaggy blond hair left intentionally mussed, clean-shaven cheeks and a wary expression. At least Vanessa hadn’t scared him away.

  “Chad, right?” I asked when he hesitated at the threshold.

  “Yeah, hey, it’s nice to meet you in person.”

  “Same to you. Now what do you say you bust me out of here and we blow this popsicle stand?”

  “Sure, I’ll go check with the nurse and see about getting you released,” Chad said with a flush. Odd. Oh well, at least he was taking the initiative right out of the gate. Just what I needed in an assistant.

  It wasn’t long before Chad returned with a pair of nurses pushing a wheelchair. I stifled a groan of protest. I’d been in enough hospitals not to fight against their discharge policies. The nurses helped me into the chair.

  Chad gathered up all my personal items without being asked. I packed up most of it into my backpack already, but he shoved my charger and phone inside too. Along with a small assortment of cards from well-wishers. I propped the crutches on my lap and Chad wheeled me toward the exit.

  “Home, sweet home!” I said when Chad pulled the wheelchair to a stop alongside Vanessa. I hopped toward the passenger door, keeping my weight off the broken leg. Chad took my crutches once I was in the van and placed them behind the seats.

  “It is an awesome van,” Chad said. “The drive here was smoother than I expected. Although using a camera to back up will take getting used to.”

  “Thanks, she’s my baby,” I patted the dash.

  “And you’re trusting me to drive her?”

  “Not much choice at the moment,” I gestured toward my broken leg. “Besides, splitting the driving responsibilities is one of your primary roles as my PA, even when the doctor gives me the all clear to drive. You still on board?”

  “I’m still here, aren’t I?”

  “Great, so I guess we can start by heading back to the Miller house and getting a few final exterior shots for this week’s video.”

  “You’re the boss, let me just return the wheelchair and we can get going.”

  I settled into my seat and watched Chad walk back toward the hospital. I couldn’t help noticing that my new PA was hot. Totally
off limits, but hot.

  EIGHT

  Chad

  Daniel Collins was even more attractive in person than in his videos. That might be a problem. The camera didn’t capture the magnetism of his full wattage smile.

  It might just be me, but I could listen to his silky voice describing the history of the rundown building we filmed in front of all day. He was so passionate about what he did. It lit him up.

  He gave me a crash course in setting up the camera equipment once we parked on site. Daniel insisted on getting the camera and lenses himself. Once he had what he wanted, I helped him get settled on the creaky old front porch. Then I dragged out the various bags of gear from the back storage compartment under his guidance.

  I set up a tripod for the camera. While Daniel walked me through where to place three big lighting stands, I adjusted them. His instructions for attaching shades to them to diffuse the lighting for the shot left something to be desired.

  More went into this than I would have expected, considering we were filming outside. Still, I knew how to follow directions. It wasn’t too long before I had all the filming paraphernalia arranged to Dan’s exacting standards.

  Then he made me take a photo of the shot on my phone to show him the camera frame, a few more subtle adjustments and we were ready to roll.

  “Hi, I’m Dan Collins with Hauntastic Haunts. At the camera helm today is my brand spanking new PA, Chad Brewer. Say hello, Chad.”

  “Hello,” I squeaked. Daniel winked at me. Good thing the camera sat on the tripod or I’m sure I would have mangled the shot when I jerked in surprise at being included in the video.

  “Behind me is the old Miller House. New viewers, this month’s previous videos feature the Miller House haunting. Click the links below to view those first,” he gestured to where he would add the link after uploading the video.

  “We checked out reports of paranormal activity at this site this month for a few reasons. For one, we here at Hauntastic Haunts love a good mystery and the Miller family disappeared under strange circumstances in the 1890s. We covered the mystery of what happened to them in the first video in this series, it’s quite a story.