‘A haunted house, Mrs Hunter, is believed to contain ghosts, poltergeists, or even – on a more twisted level – evil entities such as demons.’

‘Bad mojo,’ Mabel Hunter whispered to herself.  A small shiver traced over her and she recalled her mother’s favourite saying, “A goose just walked over my grave”.  Mabel folded her arms below her breasts, cupping her elbows in her hands.

Paul Sawyer was standing at the far end of the room, facing the window.  He was looking down at the small notepad in his hand.  He now looked up at the realtor with an irritated smile forming on his lips.  ‘Not mojo, Mrs Hunter,’ he said, knowing full well the realtor had not intended him to hear what she’d said.  ‘Paranormal activity.’

Mabel Hunter was sixty years old.  She stood at 5ft 9inches with blue eyes and mousey brown hair.  She had been married three times, bore six children – mostly boys – and was positive beyond all certainty that her third husband was right that very moment locked away in some run down motel on the skirts of the highway with some hooker while she stood in a room that felt below average temperature listening to a Paranormal Investigator tell her a hunted house was not bad mojo.

‘Oh,’ she managed without sounding too touchy.  ‘Is there a difference, Mr. Sawyer?’

Sawyer sighed, closing the notepad and slipping it into his inner coat pocket.  He had been a paranormal investigator for too long, he considered.  It didn’t matter how many books he’d written, how many haunted houses he’d investigated, or whatever paranormal activities he might have witnessed over the twenty odd years, at times he still found it hard to believe himself.  Perhaps it was time to retire, maybe try his hand at real investigations.  Not police work but private. Why not? He was pushing 41 but he felt young enough.  Women still looked twice when he passed them on the street.  His striking green emerald eyes were still the most powerful aspect about him.  Yes, change was as good as a holiday as his colleagues had so kindly pointed out while they got him drunk on his 40th birthday and streaked his hair.