A Fortnight at The Commodore: Part 3

Six Days Later

“We now go live with Dawn Cavaday, down in Edgewater.”

“Thanks, Ralph,” the field reporter told her co-anchor back in the studio.

An attractive woman in her late twenties with shoulder-length dark brown hair, Dawn wore a white blouse and a tan pencil skirt. Several buttons tastefully undone provided a hint of her ample breasts that had captivated viewers since her arrival a few years ago from a small Midwestern station.

“I’m standing outside the Commodore, one of the state’s oldest and continuously operated hotels. A local landmark, many of our viewers in the greater Anchor Rock area might not be familiar with the paranormal phenomena rumored to take place within its confines.” The screen switched from a live image of Dawn to short clips showing the hotel’s opulent lobby, luxurious ballroom, and long hallways. “Legend has it that among the Commodore’s ghostly guests is Elroy Yarnold, a former employee who refused to leave when his natural time ended. Elroy is known to provide a helping hand or word when a guest gets lost.”

Two black-and-white pictures of Elroy appeared in the news report.

“Another legend has a tragic tie to Anchor Rock’s native son, Rock Saxon. Allegedly a lover of the dashing actor, Lady Scarlet was murdered in a jealous rage by one of his former leading ladies. Now, her red-hued phantom appears occasionally for a voyeuristic view of young love.”

In his small office on the first floor of the hotel, Martin Diener watched the telecast with a frown. Usually, this sort of media coverage would bring a smile and extra spring to his step. Unfortunately, the general manager knew what came next, and thirty seconds later, his fears were confirmed.

“Food critic-turned-travel host-turned-supernatural explorer Guy Wungle is the latest in a long line of visitors drawn to these rooms by the paranormal reports. Yet, local experts and hobbyists are already debating if the ghost hunter is the unluckiest,” Dawn teased, as the screen jumped to a short reel of Wungle’s past shows and his current one. “Since his arrival last Saturday, Guy’s efforts have been met with protest from locals about his threat to destroy the spirits if they 'Get all Poltergeist with me,' and a series of incidents.”

Diener groaned and threw his head backward as unexpected footage of police cars lined up outside on Tuesday appeared on the screen. Their flashing lights lit up the dusk sky and the nearby buildings.

“On Tuesday night, an attempt to lure the Lady Scarlet out from the shadows in the penthouse suite instead resulted in multiple calls to 911. Callers alleged that a prostitution ring had set up shop on the top floor, or that it sounded like an adult film was being filmed.”

A stern shake of the head and a sigh came in response from Diener. Any remaining respect Martin had for the popular Guy Wungle had evaporated after learning that the television host had directed two of his assistants to have actual sex on the bed of the honeymoon suite with cameras rolling to entice Lady Scarlet to appear.

“A more alarming series of incidents occurred last night. Sources inside the Commodore have alleged that an attempt to draw out the so-called Boiler Room Beast met an unexpected set of booby traps in the hotel's lower levels. Several members of Weird Wards suffered injuries serious enough that they had to go to the emergency room.”

“What the hell is this?” Diener questioned aloud.

The report had switched back to a live shot of Dawn Cavady. She’d moved from directly outside one of the hotel’s front doors to a corner of the building. She started interviewing an Edgewater resident who had strong opinions about a celebrity attempting to harm their favorite spirits. However, the far more troubling aspect for the general manager occurred in the background, where a group of junior high and grade school students assembled for the next protest. The previous picketers had been local kooks, but now the youngsters held signs that said slogans like “Save Elroy” and “Justice 4 Lady Scarlet.”

Shutting off the television, Martin slumped forward onto his desk in despair. The last six days had been one of the roughest stretches of his entire–No, make that the previous two weeks had been rough. The last six days had been an absolute nightmare.

Dealing with the demanding, prickly, and short-tempered Wungle had only been the tip of the iceberg. The bad press from Ronald Gandy’s fundraiser had been worrying, but the complaints from the future governor’s staff sounded terrifying. After Tabitha crashed the event with an over-the-top drunken performance, it had been stated clearly that the Commodore was on Gandy’s shitlist.

That damn girl. She’s wrecked everything. Months of planning, Diener grumbled. Although the wild heiress had been lectured to by her grandparents, Martin had received the harsher chewing out for going along with the younger Mr. Tofflin’s plans. And now, he had to deal with Tabitha’s punishment: a two-week confinement to the hotel. Making matters worse, the redhead had set up camp in her favorite suite while searching for the real thief of her jewelry and to clear Elroy’s reputation.

As if a ghost cares about their reputation–

"Boss, you'd better get out there," Barclay interrupted, jerking his thumb over his shoulder.

“Now what?”

Exiting his office, Diener nearly collided with Jang. The head of reservations wore a panicked expression, which suddenly seemed commonplace for her after years of remarkable calm.

“I tried, sir, but he won’t listen to reason.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Wungle. He checked out,” Jang revealed.

“Oh, hell,” Diener moaned. Despite wishing on a few occasions that the ghost hunter had never arrived, the general manager knew an abrupt departure wasn’t a good thing. Hurrying out of the office area, Martin spotted the television host limping halfway across the lobby.

“Mr. Wungle, what seems to be the problem? Surely, we can iron out any issues,” Diener called over, walking as fast as decorum allowed.

“Iron it out? I’ve had it with this blasted batch of bricks,” the fifty-something-year-old man snapped. “I’ve never been so disrespected in my life. And I’ve gotten divorced three times, and broken off an engagement.”

“I know it looks bad outside, sir, but we can deal with it. Perhaps a bribe of ice cream or candy will send them away,” Diener suggested, grasping for straws.

“What in the hell are you talking about, man?” Wunge questioned before spotting the picket line starting outside the main doors. “Oh, for fuck sake!”

“Barclay! Barclay!” Diener hissed, motioning to catch the concierge's attention. “Tell Radko to stop watching and get those brats out of here. Mr. Wungle deserves to be treated respectfully.”

“Too late for that, Diner,” Guy responded, butchering his last name. “Edgewater and the Commodore are dropping straight to the bottom of my visit recommendations; they’re at the rock bottom by far.”

With that, the television ghost hunter spun around to leave.

“Please, Mr. Wungle, I’m sure we can handle the issues. I will personally deal with whoever disrespected–”

“You know damn well who I meant! I’ve never encountered such…people worse than Thelma, my second wife, but I witnessed evil in this very building. And that girl…she has the most vulgar, smart mouth that I’ve ever met!”

Blanching, Diener decided to throw caution to the wind.

“I fully agree, Mr. Wungle. Miss Tofflin is far too immature for her age. Her parents were rarely present during her childhood, and her grandparents failed to set proper boundaries. I can assure you that she won’t interfere–”

“What? How clueless are you, Dinner? I’m not talking about her! Not that she isn’t part of the problem,” Wungle proclaimed, his face growing a deeper shade of red as he fumed further. “I’m still breaking out in hives from whatever was in that powder that got dumped over my head. Jimmy’s got not only a severely sprained ankle, but also tack marks all across his face. How about I bring up Sal’s second-degree burns, or that Jennifer is threatening a lawsuit over that honeymoon suite fiasco?”

“I…I know it looks like a poor experience. However, I’m sure you can salvage your Edgewater episode if we all push our way through it. My staff is willing to go the extra mile,” Diener vowed.

“Your staff? Your bloody staff has been working against me from the start!” Wungle roared, captivating the audience that Diener only now realized had formed in the lobby. “No. Wait, you know what? I am going to air an episode about Edgewater and your hotel. It’s going to be a showcase of the worst city I’ve ever set foot in!”

Diener stood shell-shocked as Guy Wungle stormed out of the Commodore, followed by a steady march of his crew and their equipment. A cable show depicting his hotel in such a manner might be the worst event to ever happen to Martin Diener, far surpassing his brother’s untimely death and his grandfather’s body disintegrating in that explosion.

“Yang, Monroe, Lisjak, line up!” the general manager bellowed, pulling out his walkie-talkie to address Ungerman in the security office as well.

Once assembled, Diener stared directly into the eyes of his head of reservations, his concierge, and his doorman. His glare ensured they’d listen carefully to his next orders.

“I want this hotel on lockdown. No one is allowed to come or go, got that?” Diener paused while hesitant expressions formed on his staff’s faces. “Do you understand? Full lockdown. I’m going to deal with his problem, once and for all.”

“Um, sir, I don’t think this is the proper course of…” Jang trailed off under the withering glare.

Radko and Barclay shared an unspoken communication. After several rounds of non-verbal back-and-forth, the concierge nodded.

“We’re on board fully, sir,” Ungerman announced.

“Check me if I’m wrong, Marty, but if we lock the guests inside and don’t let them leave, won’t that be considered kidnapping?” Barclay queried. “I mean, it’s your order, so if you want to get locked up behind bars, it’s your life.”

Diener’s face went through a whole series of expressions while the reality of his directive and its consequences hit him. Meanwhile, Radko nodded wholeheartedly with Barclay, while Jang barely nodded. Over the radio, Ungerman stayed entirely silent.

“Oh, forget it!” Diener exclaimed, throwing up his hands before storming back to his office.

Jang waited several seconds to ensure a safe distance between herself and her boss before returning to the front desk.

“Who’s got tonight in the pool?” Radko half-asked, half-joked about the wager over when Diener would experience a nervous breakdown.

The commotion inside the lobby settled down while Radko went outside to watch the young picketers. The always amorous doorman immediately set his sights on the apparent organizer, a redhead with mischievous green eyes and a relatively nice rack in his view. The ginger proved open to his flirtations.

Half an hour passed while Radko attempted to land a date for the following night. Suddenly, his horny interest shifted to an incredible vision who exited a rideshare vehicle. Already well acquainted with the woman, Radko offered to help her carry several shopping bags inside.

“What do you think?” Helena Wist asked, performing a twirl.

Numerous descriptions and thoughts sprang to mind as Radko’s manhood did the same. The beautiful, buxom blonde wore a sexy cherry-red cocktail dress. Extremely low-cut in front, her D-cups strained to stay inside while she hopped up on the sidewalk. Murmurs sounded among some of the older, male picketers. Risking a cheeky look around to the back, Radko saw that the skirt barely covered her bubble butt.

“Very eye-catching, ma’am.”

“Imagine what the matching lingerie looks like,” Helena teased, holding up the lone bag she carried. “Thanks again for the shop recommendation. I’d have never found the place on my own.”

“No need to thank me. Seeing you is…mwah!” Radko sounded, blowing a kiss.

“Aren’t you a sweetie?” Helena responded, patting his cheek slightly.

“He’s certainly a charmer,” the red-haired protest organizer remarked, causing Helena to laugh in agreement as she entered the Commodore.

“Would you like me to bring these up to your room?” Ira Irby inquired, taking the bags from Radko.

“No need. I can carry them myself,” the enchanting blonde replied, directing the porter to place the bags over by the concierge desk.

Hanging up the phone, Barclay nodded a greeting. Taking a moment to blatantly check out the guest, whom she encouraged with a slow twirl, he inquired about the reason for the new purchases.

“Will Mr. Brask be joining you for the evening?”

“He’d better not. Konny and I are through. He’s jetted off to…you know, I honestly haven’t a clue as to where he flew to,” Helena admitted, tossing a hand out. “Whatever, I’m onto the next one.”

“Very good, Miss Wist,” Barclay responded with sparkling eyes. “Uh, I believe Mr. Diener inquired as to the length of your stay. He noted you didn’t set an end date when you checked in on Monday.”

“Oh! Is that a problem?”

“Not at all. This appears to be a slow weekend, and the following week seems set to be similar,” the concierge revealed. “An open-ended stay is usually never an issue, but Mr. Diener can be a bit particular about matters.”

“I totally can see that. He feels like a wannabe control freak.”

“You didn’t hear that from me,” Barclay said, winking and smiling.

“Good! I hadn’t expected to stick around without Konstantin, but I’ve found Edgewater to be surprisingly delightful. Plus, I’m having a swell time hanging around with Tabby. That girl is a riot,” Helena declared, picking up her bags with a grin.

“Have an enjoyable evening, Miss Wist,” the concierge said upon parting.

“He doesn’t know it yet, but I’m going to rock his world. It’s two weeks in the making,” the sexpot teased, walking away. “Toodles!”

Barclay admired the departing view until Helena reached the corner by the elevator banks. And he wasn’t the only one who enjoyed the show.

“Whoa! Who is that gorgeous creature?”

“Potentially your white whale,” Barclay responded, but his Ahab and Moby Dick reference flew over the young man’s head. “Honestly, I’m shocked you didn’t notice Miss Wist before now, Hardy.”

“I did, but she had that sinister-looking guy hovering around her,” the young playboy admitted. “I learned my lesson in college.”

“Ah, yes, that incident,” the concierge recalled. “Are you staying this evening or merely visiting?”

“Staying. I gotta get out of the house. My father has been on a kick since the fundraiser that I need to find purpose in life. I think he’s mostly afraid that I’ll cause a scene like Tofflin did,” the youngest Horch scion relayed.

“If I recall, you did partake in Tabitha’s big moment last weekend.”

“Yeah, I did. Hooked up with a trophy wife in that old cloak room,” Hardy admitted with a shit-eating grin. “Served her old bastard right.”

The concierge spent another fifteen minutes chatting with his favorite guest—on the male side of the spectrum. Eventually, as always, a pretty woman caught Hardy’s attention, leading him to follow her over to the dining room. Shortly afterward, Lonnie appeared with a new problem.

“Uh, I’m not sure if I should call Mr. Diener or maintenance,” the young porter began. “The lights on the 6th Floor are either off in spots or flickering in others.”

“Again?”

“Yeah, Inez is starting to get antsy, and I can’t blame her. It feels kinda spooky and almost looks like it’s already the middle of the night,” Lonnie explained.

“Damn, this is the third time in just over a month on that floor. The 4th Floor also had a similar situation two weeks ago,” Barclay explained, picking up his desk phone. “I’ll call maintenance, but if this persists, they’ll need to call for an outside electrician.”

---

"Ohmigawd!" Helena squealed passionately. Breathing rapidly, the busty blonde raised her head so that she could look down at the awed expression on her young lover’s face. "Your dick feels so good in me!"

The experienced lover felt the slick member twitch inside her pussy. Despite minor concern, Helena figured he was good to go for a little longer. Hell, it wasn’t that long ago that he shot six thick spurts down my throat. I don’t know who’s feeding him, but they deserve a hearty thank you for the delicious treat.

“I bet you never thought I’d be on your dick, did you?"

Beneath her, the polite young man replied to Helena’s question with a quick head shake. He seemed both enthralled by this moment and utterly shocked as the older blonde lifted herself almost completely off his dick before she slammed back down. Helena groaned and grunted at the length piercing her insides. Performing the maneuver twice more, her large D-cups jiggled with each downward drop.

“But I knew. I knew from the moment I met you that I had to take you out for a test ride. You’re just too adorable not to eat up,” Helena revealed. “And that's before I discovered this big, sturdy steel shaft that’s hardly ever been used.”

Taking a moment, Helena leaned with her head hanging forward. With her hair framing her face like an open curtain, she marveled at how great his cock felt inside of her. It certainly wasn’t the biggest she’d ever had. No, he still needed to get wider with its girth, but its long, lean shape still seemed to stretch a spot deep inside her honeypot. She also had to agree with Tabby; there was a wanton wickedness that came with fucking a high school senior who only recently turned eighteen.

“I’m the lucky one, Linus. You get so…ugh…fucking deep…inside me,” Helena panted as she rose and fell on his shaft while her fingernails scratched lightly into his chest.

Meeting his matching pair of blue eyes, Helena placed her hands on her young lover’s chest for leverage. Blowing a strand of hair away from her face, the sex veteran began to bounce up and down, moaning softly as she stared down with a smile at his mesmerized face.

Linus looked to be in heaven. An expression wide with wonder and burning with lust met Helena, which delighted her. Incredibly polite and kind, she vowed to whittle those behaviors down while in bed together. I might not have the time to teach him to be a gentleman in the streets but a beast between the sheets, but I’ll do my best before moving on to the next city.

"Fuck! Oh gawd, your dick is sooo big!" Helena moaned, relishing the size of the cock splitting her in two as she slowly rose up and down on it. Although she might be overacting somewhat, Linus’s rod did feel amazing. Now, she only needed him to stop being so damn quiet.

Grabbing Linus’s hands, Helena held them while bringing her arms in to press against her magnificent tits. Immediately, a smirk formed as she saw his baby blues widen at the way her tit flesh mashed together.

“Oh, yes! You feel so big inside me!” the blonde vixen squealed. “Do you know why?”

Only a slight head shake responded to her question.

"Shit! Yeah, that’s the spot,” Helena moaned. “It’s because your dick is so fucking long, Lucky! Ugh, you're splitting me in two! Look at me!”

Linus shifted his eyes up from her heaving, bouncing tits to her flawless face.

“Or am I feeling this good because I’m so tight? Is that it, baby? Is my pussy tight for you?” Helena questioned, hoping to elicit more talk from the shy young man.

“Uh, y-yeah.”

“Yeah, what? Is my experienced pussy tight enough for you? Does it feel better than your past virgin lovers? Tell me, Lucky. Tell me this is the hottest fuck you’ve ever had,” Helena prodded, enunciating each question with a tightening flex of her pussy around his shaft.

“Yes, oh, gawd yes! This is so hot! I can't believe it! Fuck!" Linus cried out, his fingers locking through hers while his eyes flicked between her sapphire blue ones and her massive, heaving bosom.

“So hot you’ll never forget,” Helena stated, although Linus took it as a question.

“Never. I’ll never forget this…it’s so good!” the young lover grunted, in shock at how amazing her pussy felt around him.

“Ever since Tabby bragged about your size and inexperience, I just knew I needed to be your teacher. I’ve been wet all day thinking about this moment,” Helena revealed, pulling Linus's hands up so that they slipped over her ample tits. To get what she desired, she squeezed his hands into her firm, yet soft, malleable breasts. Helena also encouraged him to pinch her nipples until they shot out like bullets.

Linus moaned deeply at the feeling of his hands cupping and groping her breasts. Leaning back into the mattress, he closed his eyes due to the various overwhelming sensations.

"Ooh!! Fuck. I love your hands on my tits, Lucky Linus, while your dick is in my pussy. Aren't my tits special? Tell me!"

"He… Lena, your tits are incredible!" Linus groaned, amazed at the way his fingers sank into the soft but firm flesh as he squeezed and mauled like an out-of-control beast.

"Mmmm, they're all yours, baby. Oh, I bet you…ummm…wanted to play with them the moment we met, didn’t you?” Helena challenged. “Squeeze my tits, Mr. Lucky. Squeeze them while I fuck myself on your big cock! Squeeze the type of knockers that you won’t find in your high school," Helena purred, as her nails dug down into his chest, as she bounced up and down hard and fast.

“I don’t…ugh…know. You haven’t met the girls…oh, shit…at my school,” Linus shot back, delighting Helena as he finally showed some spunk.

Smiling mischievously, the blonde bombshell leaned down to kiss his lips softly for a moment before she pushed herself back up. Removing his right hand from her breast, Helena used it to slap her ass. A second, then a third, as she instructed the polite high school senior on how she wanted to be treated in bed.

“Is that so?” Helena mewled, smiling down the sluttiest smile she could muster. “I’d like to see which of these tight, young hotties you have hanging off your arms. I think it might be too early for a threesome for you, but I've got so many ideas you'll never have your clothes on again around me!"

The naughty blonde giggled as she felt Linus buck underneath. It never fails. You tease a threesome, and all guys turn into putty.

“I really don’t…not very many…you know,” Linus admitted sheepishly about his lack of experience. He didn’t mention the one girlfriend who cheated on him because he was far too polite to take the initiative. Yet, Helena found his admission adorable and a problem to overcome.

“Aren’t you scrumptious? I’m going to have to drop a line around your school before I leave to let those self-absorbed schoolgirls know what they’re not seeing,” Helena announced, tossing her hair behind her back while smiling wantonly down at Linus.

Reaching around, Helena pulled her long, blonde locks into a ponytail. Then, as she held it up above her head, she proceeded to bounce up and down wildly on his cock. Each powerful slam made the bed shimmy and creak.

“Hell, yeah! I love your big, long, fucking cock in my kitty kat!” the blonde bombshell squealed, speeding her movements up to almost a blur. The hyper-motion caused her hair to swing wildly from side to side while her D-cups flailed even more ferociously.

Encouraged by Helena’s insistent talk and praise, Linus stepped up his game to grab her ass. Using it for support, he met her downward slams with his own upward thrust. Relatively quickly, they settled into a fierce rhythm that had them both grunting, gasping, and panting.

“Shit…fuck…yeah!” Helena chanted, marveling at how Linus showed more energy than the infamous Konstantin Brask. Not that her former fling was any slouch. Konny made up for his lesser stamina with rough power and a considerable girth where it counted.

Grinning down at Linus, she saw once again a look of pure heaven on his face. With his head and shoulders buried deep in the pillow to generate leverage, he drove long, hard pistons up into her steaming pussy. By his tightly squeezed shut eyes and straining face, Helena knew they were both going to cum soon.

“Oohhh!” the blonde shrieked, throwing her head back and pushing her tits out. The calculated move to draw Linus’s attention worked, as his eyes popped open to gasp at her rollicking rack.

Linus erupted first, shooting multiple volleys deep inside his lover. The third burst of spunk triggered Helena’s impending orgasm, which blew the lid off her top between Linus’s fourth and fifth cannon shot. Indecipherable shouts mingled with moaning grunts before Helena collapsed on her lover’s chest.

The spent fornicators didn’t get much time to recover.

Out of nowhere, a commotion sounded close by. Raising her head, Helena barely had time to meet Linus’s mutually confused gaze before the closet door burst open. Immediately looking over her shoulder, the blonde missed her lover’s eyes bug out.

“The fuck?” Helena exclaimed,

Having stood in front of the portrait in the hallway near the elevators and seen the pictures splashed across newspapers and television screens recently, Helena recognized the ghost of Elroy Yarnold at once.

Everything from the clothes to the short beard, hair, and round eyeglasses appeared the same on the glowing gray apparition as in his pictures. However, the phantom porter appeared equally as shocked to find them as they were to see him. A brief linger of the eyes on Helena’s naked rump vanished as Elroy shook those thoughts away. Then, he turned to the left and raced toward the door. Shockingly, the ghost yanked the door open and fled out into the hotel hallway.

“Holy shit!” Helena yelled, grabbing the bedsheet while rolling off Linus. The blonde performed two more rolls until she stood next to the bed with the sheet tightly wrapped around her naked body.

Copying her idea differently, Linus grabbed the pillow next to him and pulled it in front of his groin. Their timing worked perfectly as another commotion from the closet sounded after they’d covered up their private parts.

A stocky teen with short, dirty blond hair and blue eyes shot out of the closet as the door swung open. He immediately caught himself against the opposite wall, catching a glimpse of the two sweaty people on or next to the bed, hastily covered with whatever they'd grabbed.

“Whoa!” the teen responded, putting two and two together.

“He went out the door, Jake!” Linus yelled.

“Right!” Jake Magnum replied, turning to follow the ghost as another loud bang came from the closet.

“You know him?” Helena questioned before a more shocking sight drew her attention.

“Stupid fucking crap!” a disheveled and dirty redhead complained, tumbling out of the closet and onto the floor.

“Tabby?!” Helena exclaimed.

“Oh, hi, hun,” the hotel heiress greeted, standing up while slapping dust off her pants. Then, she noticed Linus on the bed with a pillow covering his groin. “Hey! I didn’t know we were sharing him.”

However, before Helena or Linus could reply, a crackle sounded, which led to another voice from somewhere else to announce, “He’s made a break for the east stairwell.”

“Shit! Gotta go,” Tabitha yelled, opening the door and racing out while bringing the walkie-talkie to her face. “He has to be heading to the 4th Floor.”

Recovering from the startling series of intruders, Helena looked over to find Linus pulling his pants on before discarding the idea of finding his shirt. After watching her lover give an apologetic grin and wave, Helena threw on a robe so that she could find out what the hell was going on.

Helena exited the door in time to see Linus stop and turn around in the partially lit hallway. The blonde noted that the flickering lights and darkened sections had returned from earlier. Far down the hallway, Tabitha skidded to a halt as she listened to whatever came over the communication device. Then, she copied Linus and swung around.

“He spotted Phineas,” Tabby yelled. “And ran onto the 5th Floor.”

“I’m on it!” Linus replied, rushing around the corner that led to the elevator banks. Peeking around the corner, Helena saw him open the door to the nearest stairwell next to the elevators.

“Isn’t this fun?” Tabby asked, running over toward Helena. “C’mon! We gotta catch him.”

“Catch who…what the hell is going on?” the baffled blonde responded, watching as her new friend followed their mutual lover into the stairway.

Unsure what to do, Helena considered going back inside her room to put on more than her robe. Yet, that decision wasn’t hers to make as the ghost of Elroy Yarnold bolted out the door of the other stairs past the elevators. Immediately, he saw Helena and raced down the short section of the hallway that made up the H-shaped hotel.

Suddenly, Jake rushed out the same door that the ghost had emerged from. Helena pointed in the direction where he went, getting a thanks in return. Then, they both heard an update over Jake’s walkie-talkie.

“The web has been sprung. Repeat: the web has been sprung.”

“Roger, Second. This is Third, and I’ll be there shortly,” Jake reported back.

“This is First. I’m in the northeast stairway and will be there as soon as I can.”

“Move your ass, Phinn,” Jake replied, laughing.

Following Jake, Helena heard the door slam open as Linus returned to the 6th Floor. He quickly caught up with her as Jake rounded the corner and stopped with a “Whoa!”

The two followers turned the corner as the door behind them banged open yet again.

“The hell?” Helena questioned, shocked by what she saw.

A man was stuck halfway up the wall, covered in a sticky substance that looked like a giant spider web.

“We have a problem. Somebody else got caught in the trap,” Jake said, speaking into the walkie-talkie. Next, he approached the trapped man. “Hey, man, what happened?”

“I don’t know! I saw Elroy, and then I think Spider-Man appeared,” the man with dark blond hair explained.

“Where did the ghost go?” came a shout from the end of the hallway as a teen with short brown hair and eyeglasses jogged down the hallway.

“He walked directly into the wall!” When asked where, he pointed about a dozen feet down and across from his sticky position.

“We need Tofflin,” the eyeglasses-wearing teen stated, still jogging from far away.

“I’m coming,” Tabby yelled, causing Helena to turn around.

“Miss Tofflin, we need to know where the old service door is and where it goes,” Jake explained as she reached the intersection.

“Over there? Crap, I’m not sure, but I think it has access points on this hallway and the far side. Depends on what’s painted shut,” Tabby said, pointing from where she came from and the other side of the hallway. “What the fuck, Horch? You wasted our trap.”

“I don’t know what’s going on!” Hardy shrieked from where he hung on the wall. “Can somebody please get me down?”

“Second, we need you on the southwestern hallway, pronto!” the eyeglass-wearing teen directed into the walkie-talkie after finally reaching the intersection. Panting, he began issuing further instructions: “Miss Tofflin, can you get Jake into that accessway?”

“Let me find it,” Tabby said, rushing down the hallway.

“I’ll cover the central hallway. Lance, see if you can’t get this guy down, okay?”

“Uh, I’ll try, Phinn,” Lance, aka Lucky Linus, replied, frowning in confusion as he stared at the sprung trap.

“Wait, your name is Lance?” Helena asked, not surprised, since she knew his other name wasn’t real.

“Oh, right, sorry! I forgot to tell you that I found out his real name,” Tabby yelled back, pushing something that swung a narrow section of the wall open.

“Uh, sorry about that,” Lance Nook apologized sheepishly.

“Whatever. It’s not a big deal,” Helena admitted, glancing down at her robe. “Fuck, I'd better get dressed.”

The bewildered blonde turned to walk down the central hallway. She saw the teen named Phinn standing near the elevators, watching the nearby walls.

Suddenly, Helena gasped as a narrow section of the wall ten feet in front of her on the right opened up. And what would you know, the ghost of Elroy Yarnold popped out. He immediately spotted Phinn and Helena possibly blocking his way in either direction. Hesitant, a shout from behind him in the access passage forced his choice. He turned toward Helena.

“Fuck! Lance, he’s headed your way!” Phineas Farris shouted, watching as the ghost raced toward the robe-wearing blonde.

However, Lance wasn’t needed as Helena thrust out her leg with perfect timing to trip the corporeal phantom porter. Reacting swiftly, she stomped a foot down onto his chest before he could rise. Then, she leaned over to whisper, “That’s for messing with my territory.”

---

“What the hell is going on here?” Martin Diener shouted, exiting the elevator with Ungerman and two of his security guards.

Immediately, his voice softened as he reassured the guests who stood in the open doors that everything was perfectly fine and that they should return to their rooms. The pleasant tone vanished abruptly when he noticed several of the people standing around the tied-up ghost.

“You! You damn kids were warned not to come back again,” Diener stated, staring at the three younger teens. “After what you did to Guy Wungle and his people, I’ll see you arrested.”

“Prove it,” Dusty Pinder, a small, brown-haired teen, challenged.

“I can easily prove trespassing. You have no right to be inside this hotel tonight or anytime this–”

“Yes, they did, Marty,” Tabitha announced, smirking. “I gave them permission.”

“You what? Do you have any idea the amount of damage they caused? We lost Guy Wungle and have been all over the news for days. Your grandfather won’t let this slide,” Diener declared.

“He will once I explain that I hired them to retrieve my jewelry and stop the thief who’s been posing as Elroy’s ghost to steal from guests. I believe stopping those thefts will easily outweigh your hurt feelings,” the hotel heiress explained.

“Hired? For what? These are a bunch of seventh-graders!”

“We’ve started the 8th grade,” Jake clarified.

"That's correct. Jake, Dusty, and Phinn might be fourteen, but they're great detectives, too. After my possessions were stolen Saturday night, my new lover, Lance, whom I knew as Lucky Linus, appeared the following day with the three of them. It turns out he's their neighbor and occasionally helps drive them around Edgewater," Tabitha explained.

“Good for him,” Diener replied sarcastically. “That still doesn’t mean squat. I’m the general–”

“It matters, as the three of them have been well ahead of Ungerman’s security people with their investigation of the thefts. They started weeks ago, and had Lance monitor the wedding and fundraiser in the chance that the fake Elroy struck those events,” Tabitha recounted. “However, he’s not the pickpocket.”

“He’s not? Are you going to claim there are two thieves?” Diener mocked, glancing at Ungerman, who shook his head in amusement at the tale being told to them.

“That’s correct,” Phinn stated. “We suspected one of the hotel employees from the start, and conducted surveillance on the likeliest suspects.”

“You what?!” Ungerman roared.

“We had you on our list until we quickly realized that your arrogance and high opinion of yourself wasn’t an act,” Dusty revealed.

“We also considered Barclay, your concierge, to be a strong suspect,” Phinn added. “However, we discovered his secretive meetings and sketchy associations are part of his work duties.”

“Yeah, I followed him two weeks ago to a meeting with a guy we know who sells stolen items,” Jake recounted.

“Oh, I think that was for me!” a voice called out from around the corner.

“Crap. Yeah, Dusty, you’re going to need to get him down. What? It’s your trap,” Lance pointed out.

“Fine! I’ll be there in a bit, buddy!”

“That brings us to our final suspect. We nearly caught him in the act last Saturday, but couldn’t be sure. We didn’t learn about the hotel's old service passages until Miss Tofflin hired us. Those weren’t on the blueprints we looked at,” Phinn said.

“Those old passageways were boarded up years ago,” Ungerman scoffed.

“Not all of them,” Tabby gleefully pointed out.

“She’s right,” Diener admitted, although not happy to. “There are a few that weren’t boarded up and painted over, as they provide the easiest access to the plumbing and electrical wiring.”

“Yeah, I figured that out as a kid while exploring this place,” Tabby revealed.

“As did one of your employees, who predominantly used the ones on the 4th and 6th floors,” Phinn clarified.

“Fine. Which employee are you saying is so smart?” the general manager challenged, glaring at the head of security.

“Dusty,” Phinn said, giving the honors to his friend, who yanked off the ghost mask of Elroy Yarnold.

“Ira Irby!” Ungerman shouted.

“Damn you, Irby. I should’ve known your laziness was a sign of worse attributes,” Diener roared at the porter.

“Yep, I always thought Iron Hands was a creep,” Tabitha stated, proud of herself.

“And I was smarter than all of you, including you, rich bitch!” Irby declared, glowering.

Phinn cleared his throat with an expectant expression.

“You meddling brats only got lucky!”

---

“I don’t care. I want these three juvenile delinquents arrested, Chief,” Diener ordered. “They not only trespassed, but they terrorized Guy Wungle and his crew.”

“Oh, please. They’re the worst ghost hunters we’ve ever met,” Dusty stated.

“Their methods did leave a lot to be desired,” Phinn agreed.

“Now, you see, Martin. You can’t have them arrested for trespassing if Miss Tofflin gave them permission, which her grandfather just approved of over the phone,” Chief Norberg explained. “As for the crimes alleged against those TV people, that’s up to them to press charges over, not you.”

“Any decent lawyer would tell you that,” Jake chimed in, causing Diener’s face to redden.

“I understand that Busybody, Inc. can be considerably obnoxious, but they did catch your thief, Mr. Diener. I’d be somewhat grateful if I were you,” Chief Norberg suggested.

“The what? You mean to tell me that these brats have a name?!”

After several more attempts to convince the police chief to take action against the kids, Norberg announced he needed to head to the station.

“I expect the media will be showing up in both places to get the scoop. And your parents probably don’t want to hear where you’ve been sneaking out to do lately,” Chief Norberg reminded before leaving.

As soon as he left the lobby, Diener jabbed his finger in the direction of the three teens.

“I don’t care what she said,” the general manager growled, gesturing at Tabitha. “You three are banned for life.”

“Now, that doesn’t seem very grateful, Marty,” Tabby pointed out.

“You stay out of this. You have no status in the company.”

“Perhaps we should go upstairs to the top floor, Mr. Diener,” Phinn suggested.

“Why would I do that?”

“So we can show you what we found in the honeymoon suite,” Dusty clarified.

“You should be ashamed of yourself and worried. Ghosts don’t take kindly to impostors,” Jake added.

“I told you ghosts don’t exist,” Phinn hissed.

“What? What nonsense are you talking about?” Diener asked, though his collar suddenly felt too tight.

“We’re talking about the projectors these three found, Marty,” Tabitha revealed. “The ones that someone turns on to scare people in the middle of fucking. My grandfather will surely be pissed about this revelation. It’s a fireable offense.”

“I didn’t…it’s not…it was your father’s idea! I had no say,” Diener insisted.

“Fuck. I should’ve known,” the Tofflin granddaughter groaned.

“You…You can’t pin it on me. I’ll expose your father and everything else he’s up to,”

Diener threatened, backing up. “And…and you brats are banned until you turn eighteen!”

They watched as the general manager stumbled on his way to the safety of his office.

“Don’t worry. You can come here whenever I’m visiting,” Tabby reassured them.

“That won’t be necessary,” Phinn replied.

“Yeah, getting into this place won’t be a problem. I already counted five routes to sneak in through already,” Dusty revealed, grinning.

“Wait, Lady Scarlet and the other ghosts are fake?” Helena asked, finally speaking from where she'd been watching the conversation.

“Yes,” Phinn declared.

“Nope! I saw Elroy plenty of times as a kid. Heard him a bunch since I started partying, too. He helps me when I’m lost or drunk. Not to mention that Desmond’s typing has driven me nuts since I was little,” Tabitha revealed. “And I’m confident that Lady Scarlet watches me sometimes with dates. It’s kinda hot.”

“Really?”

“Jake,” Dusty hissed.

“That only leaves one final piece of business,” Phinn began.

"Oh, right. We should probably let Ms. Imhoff know we don't need the protest out there any longer," Jake realized.

"I can tell Zelda," Dusty offered, turning to walk toward the front doors.

“Hold on. Let's finish this first," Phinn said, stopping Dusty. “Miss Wist, if you’d kindly hand over the bracelet you lifted from Avalon Ashmore during her grandniece’s wedding, we won't report you for the other thefts from the last two weeks.”

“What are you talking about? I didn’t steal anything,” Helena denied.

“We’re giving you an out. I suggest you take it,” Phinn added. “We also know about your thefts during the fundraiser.”

“Ms. Ashmore is a good friend of my grandma, and she’s devastated by the theft. Her former fiancé gave her the bracelet before he died,” Dusty revealed.

“Also, you did help us stop the imposter ghost, and well…Jake and Lance are smitten with you,” Phinn revealed, slightly annoyed with the deal his friends forced him to make.

Helena continued to deny stealing anything.

“Look, we knew who you were as soon as we heard your name,” Dusty revealed. “You crossed paths with a few friends of ours in Chicago a little over a year ago. We met them at camp shortly afterward.”

“Yes, your physical description made a lasting impression on Jake,” Phinn added, dryly.

"Can you blame me? Who's ever heard of a Swedish blonde bombshell jewel thief?"

“And if you hand over the bracelet, we can still be friends,” Tabby added. “You’re fun to party with.”

“Fine,” Helena agreed, reluctantly.