Page 115 of Checkmate
“More than ready,” she said. “Take me home, Marcus.”
Without so much as a backwards glance at their spouses, they left the house and took their first step towards the future.
Chapter 31
Marcus
SIX MONTHS LATER
“Everyone’s in place, Marcus,” Erica said in his earpiece. “Let me know when you set off and I’ll see you soon!”
Hanging up the phone, Marcus looked up as customers piled onto the new bus, taking their seats. God, he was so nervous. This was the biggest step they had taken so far. Each time, he thought they couldn’t do better and then Erica thought up a new idea.
She had been a miracle for him.
As she liked to say, he was the talent, and she was the brains.
After they returned from Alex’s place, both he and Erica agreed to throw themselves into the business.
The relaunch had been a roaring success. The addition of actors really brought the tour to life, adding a touch of humanity and extra spooks.
Erica herself had taken on the roles of three separate women from history.
First, it was Agnes, the accused witch who haunted the local tavern, still owned by the family who had accused her. Then she became Rose, the woman who caused the deaths of over a hundred families in the days of the plague. Finally, she took on the role of Jenny, the young woman murdered alongside her lover in the hotel room where they conducted their affair.
The customers loved her. Eventually, she got so good she could become all three women in one night, costumes and all. Given her success, Marcus was keen to add more actors to add some more dramatics to the tour. Erica put the feelers out to the local drama school and a bunch of promising young actors came out, happy for the experience and practice.
The tours had become more popular. They had gone from one show a night with weekends off, to working two tours a night, running specials on weekends. They had employees now, actors stayed on, and college students in need of a part-time role. Every ghost on the tour had a dedicated actor. Marcus loved nothing more than seeing his customers get the scares they sought.
They’d managed to keep their costs low and saved every penny they could, working towards their latest venture - the tour bus.
He never would have had this without her.
With that in mind, and determined to make her proud, he climbed aboard the bus and donned his most dramatic voice.
“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard the Ghost Rider! At Phantom Footsteps, we dedicate ourselves to showing you the most famous ghosts of our great city.
“I promise you there are scares to be had. This isn’t a tour for the faint of heart. We can’t guarantee any paranormal activity, but regardless, we’ll get your heart racing. Please keep this in mind and stay safe.
“With all that said, my name is Marcus, and I will be your host this evening. Now, if we’re all ready, let’s go find some ghosts!”
“We did it, we did it, we did it!” Erica launched herself at him, still in her Agnes costume, as she jumped into his arms. He caught her automatically, spinning her around and sharing in her elation.
“We did! This was all you, Erica.” He kissed her cheek as she moved her head, catching the corner of her mouth instead. They looked at one another and chuckled as he released her gently, tucking her hair behind her ear. “Seriously, I couldn’t have done this without you.”
“I wouldn’t have wanted to do this with anyone else,” she said, grinning from ear to ear. “Never in my life did I imagine this would be my job, but I love every minute. I love doing this with you.”
His heart soared at her words, warmth rushing through his veins.
If only she realised what an incredible influence she brought to his world. The past six months had gone by in a blur but in the best possible way. They’d grown closer with every passing day, each other’s biggest support during the fallout of their broken marriages.
Now, he could honestly say she was his closest friend, and the one person he couldn’t and didn’t want to live without.
The growing tension between them was becoming harder and harder to ignore.
“We need to celebrate,” he said, glancing over her shoulder as the guys packed up for the night. “We should get everyone together and go to Pilgrims.”
“That sounds fun,” she replied. “We can go see if the real Agnes is haunting the place tonight.”
