Adam Graves loved his name. When you investigate ghosts for a living, having any kind of macabre name helps to drive your business. Sometimes he was Adam “I find lost” Graves. Sometimes Adam “I spit on your” Graves. To his friends from high school he was still Gravy.

When Carrie Rio had joined the Paranormal Investigators six weeks ago, Adam was instantly smitten with her. Unusually tiny and thin, only the piercing look of her deep blue eyes betrayed her age. Without noticing her eyes, the 23 year old girl could easily pass for 15 or 16 if she tried. Her long brown hair was braided and hung to the middle of her back. Stray hairs stuck out at odd angles, giving the impression she had slept with her hair that way. She didn't look dirty or unkempt, just frazzled. When Adam, as the president of the Paranormal Investigators, spoke to their small group that night, she smiled at him whenever she caught him looking. Normally girls took a quick look at his green hair and dark framed glasses and never looked again. The ones that took time to get know him found him to have a great sense of humor, fun to be around, and while not a prude, that he knew how to treat women with respect. Even so, those relationships seldom went past the friendship stage.

Imagine his surprise when Carrie had asked him to grab a beer with her after the meeting. The unlikely pair had sat at the local bar for a few hours, sipping drinks and chit chatting. At first, Adam tried to play it cool, but as the beer loosened his tongue, he allowed his normal self to shine through, making video game and Star Wars references, and to his surprise she laughed and joked along with him. After just a few dates, she'd shocked him by coming out of his bathroom wearing the Princess Leia bikini. After a few moments of waiting for him to react, she smiled and took his hand, leading the stunned young man to his bedroom. It was the best night of his 25 year old life.

Tonight, at her urging, they were investigating reports of paranormal activity at the old Montello Hotel. Adam usually wasn't keen on following up on drunken teenagers reports of ghosts, but Carrie seemed to have an attraction to the place, so Adam arranged to check it out. The management company at first had turned him down point blank. But after a few days, the man from the management company had called him back and said the owner had agreed to let them going there as long as all the usual liability waivers were signed.

The other member of their group was a hardcore ghost hunter named Jay Jenkins. At 35 he was older than any of the regulars that showed up to the Paranormal Investigators meetings. Stocky, with a neatly trimmed mustache and beard, Jay had a vaguely Hispanic look, but his most noticeable feature was his jolly red cheeks that appeared whenever he got excited. It reminded Adam of how Rudolph's nose turned red when he was nervous or angry. Jay was the muscle of the group, often kicking open doors, moving heavy rubble, and, if they ran into anyone else, protecting the team. Jay was also the first one to believe even the tiniest squeak had to be caused by something supernatural. Not just a believer in ghosts, Jay insisted that a whole range of creatures, such as vampires and werewolves, were just waiting to be found and brought into the public eye.

They'd parked their mini-van in the back of the property and entered the hotel in the rear,

back where the fire had started so many years ago. Adam had researched the Montello before they set out. Seems that the fire started when someone flicked a cigarette too close to where propane tanks were being refilled. The small explosion had started the rear of the building on fire. It had quickly spread to the kitchen, and through the walls and heating vents to various sections of the hotel. A kitchen worker had died at the scene, while another succumbed to his injuries a few days later. Several families staying at the Montello had to be treated for burns and smoke inhalation. There was a long standing rumor that a whole family had perished in the fire, but there were no records to back that up. In fact, the owner, Christopher Jordan, had given many newspaper interviews after the fire stressing that while it was regrettable that some guests had been injured, everyone eventually went home safely.

In any event, it should be an interesting night. Even if they saw nothing, he still got to spend the night with his angel, Carrie Rio.