Read Ghast Me Gently (Wicked Good Witches Book 4) for Free Online

lighthouse, not really safe for tourists, you know.”
    “Of course. Thanks for the information,” said Michael, suddenly walking away, tugging at William’s side.
    “I could have easily used my power of persuasion and had her show us the rest of the lighthouse,” he reminded Michael as they departed the gift shop and headed out to the parking lot.
    “Yeah, but I was thinking we could just sneak away and do that ourselves. No need to take the woman away from her desk.”
    “Fewer prying eyes,” agreed William, again thinking he should have thought of that himself.
    “You all right, William? You seem a bit, not so on your game today. Worried about Melinda? ” he guessed.
    “The truth is, Michael,” lamented the vampire, “I worry about each of you. But where Melinda is concerned, I admit she takes me to the limit.”
    “You’re not alone.”
    “No, I doubt very much I’m alone in that sentiment. However, I am confident that whatever is going on, it will work itself out. We should give her the opportunity to come out of it herself.” He didn’t believe a word of it, but pretended for Michael’s sake.
    “I suppose. But you’re going to have a hard time stopping Charlie from picking her up and carrying her out of that bedroom if she doesn’t come out on her own, soon.”
    “I almost did that very thing this morning,” the vampire noted dryly.
    Michael chuckled.
    “In the meantime,” William started, “the rosy-cheeked lady behind the desk revealed that a tour was beginning momentarily. If things go as I believe they should, she will remain behind her desk while the lighthouse keeper performs the tour.”
    “Leaving the inner workings of the lighthouse unattended,” finished Michael. “I was thinking I’d keep watch and you go do your super speedy stealthy thingy and take a peek.”
    William lifted his eyebrows in irritation over Michael’s description of his vampire abilities, but in the end, agreed. They first confirmed that the tour had begun and slipped around the backside of the gift shop, searching for the entrance to the actual lighthouse keeper’s living quarters.
    “My suspicions tell me that what we’re looking for would not be located in the keeper’s quarters,” advised William.
    “I’m guessing there’s a basement below the quarters.” 
    William turned the doorknob. It opened instantly.
    “Good old small town values,” mumbled Michael. “No one locks anything.” He stepped away and tried to look as though he were simply checking out the view, while William vanished inside.
    William darted effortlessly through the living quarters and as expected, there was nothing that appeared supernatural in the least. He located an entrance to the basement, also finding it unlocked. He flipped on an old light switch and a string of bulbs buzzed, flickering to life. Thankfully, William could see perfectly in the dark, so the dim lighting did not bother him.
    The only thing in the basement, however, was spare parts for the lighthouse, a generator, a water heater, an old wood stove that was no longer in use and some personal things the keeper had in storage. He searched along the walls, the ceiling and the floor, but saw nothing remotely magical or suspicious.
    Outside, Michael’s phone rang. “Hi, Em.”
    “Hey, so get this,” she started out, excitedly. “That story William told you was easy to locate. I logged onto the historical society’s website and started foraging through the old newspapers.”
    “Sexy and brilliant,” declared Michael.
    “So true,” Emily returned playfully. “But… here’s the super cool part. That little boy was a local. And he’s much older now, of course, but he still lives here.”
    “Really?”
    “That’s not all,” she continued. Michael could practically see her face lighting up as she spoke. “The man’s name is Freddy Collier, and he spends a lot of his time at the Wicked Muddy. He meets his old buddies there to have coffee, play games