Zac and Skye jogged up to the group. A man in blue jeans, a shirt that matched the van, and a windbreaker labeled “LSPI” turned to meet them. His hazel eyes lit up when he saw Zac, or more precisely the camera Zac carried.

“Please tell me you’re our stand in camera guy,” he said.

“Yes,” Zac said, extending a hand to meet the man’s outstretched one, “I’m Zac Rowan. Got a call that you had an emergency? Your usual guy was in some kinda accident?”

“Yeah, damnedest timing. We’ve been trying to get in here for months. I’m Derek, by the way, and on paper I’m in charge of this circus. Who’s this?” He nodded to Skye.

Zac sighed, trying to sound mildly exasperated and embarrassed. “Kid sister. Fan of your videos, and it is unfortunately our parents’ date night, so I have to babysit.”

“Ah. Well, we did call you in at the last minute," Derek acknowledged,"but I’m not sure I’m comfortable taking a minor into this place. It might be structurally unsound, we don’t know. I’ve got a guy coming who can tell us, but it’s risky.”

The rest of the group wandered over, two women and another man. The man had olive skin in contrast to Derek’s pallor. The women were an interesting contrast to each other, one red haired, green eyed and pale as cream. The other had smooth skin the color of warm sand, amber eyes, and a luxurious fall of thick ebony curls. Zac wasted a moment to be glad he was supposed to be a cameraman; he genuinely looked forward to filming these people. They were distinctive and interesting to look at. Just standing around the group had an energy about them that he thought would film well.

“Who’s this?” the dark skinned woman asked. 

“Camera guy and his kid sister. I didn’t catch your name,” Derek said. He turned to speak to Skye. “And don’t take it personally that I don’t want you coming inside. I’m just thinking about liability and how awful I'd feel if you got hurt.”

“Aw, Derek, look how sad you made her though,” the woman said. “What’s your name?”

“Skye,” Skye answered.

She did an impressive impression of a shy fan meeting her heroes. Her voice was soft and uncertain. She glanced up at the group and then away as if shy. She even blushed faintly.

“Oh, we can’t leave her behind. How’s she gonna get home, huh, big guy?" The woman wrapped her arm over Derek's shoulders. "We either lose our cameraman for however long it takes him to find someone else to watch her, or we leave this itty bitty girl all by herself out in the dark.”

“Nora...” Derek trailed off. “Okay, you do have a point.”

“And look! She even brought her own gear. Is that an EMF reader?” Nora asked. “And a backup hand cam.”

Skye ducked her head, and held out the device Murg had given her. “It’s kinda cobbled together, but sometimes it works. It reads the wiring in our house, at least.”

Nora looked ready to melt at the idea that Skye had built her own EMF reader. Derek looked reluctantly impressed.

“Young people do tend to draw paranormal phenomena. Especially teenage girls,” the red haired woman, who must by process of elimination be the psychic, Amy, said. 

“Okay, that’s another good point,” Derek said.

“I promise I’ll be super careful, and really quiet,” Skye said. “You’ll barely know I’m there.”

“We can say she’s our intern,” the second man, who must be Tate, suggested. “She can carry extra flashlights and help man the base. She should be safe enough in there, right?”

Derek, obviously outnumbered and visibly weakening at the wide, pleading look in Skye’s eyes, sighed and nodded. “All right, all right. Just do not get hurt. Do what we tell you, when we tell you, right?”

“Absolutely,” Skye bounced in place, a grin splitting her face for all the world like a child told they were allowed in the toy store. 

“Thanks,” Zac said to Derek. “Don’t worry. She’s not that bad for a little twerp, really. And she likes you guys. So she’ll listen.”

It felt weird to call Death herself a 'little twerp' but it fit the image of a fond but mildly annoyed older brother. Skye grinned and stuck her tongue out at him.

Derek nodded and chuckled. “I get it, man. Got a couple kid brothers myself. We’ll keep a close eye on her.”

“Is this everyone?” Zac asked. “And sorry if I’m running late, I only just got the call like an hour ago.”

“No, no, you’re right on time," Tate assured him. "We’re still waiting for our extra guy. We’re bringing in a contractor this time, on account of how dangerous the building is supposed to be.”

“Here he is now,” Nora said, waving to a large, white van approaching at a cautious crawl. 

A man in coveralls similar to Zac’s and carrying a tool case climbed out of the van. 

“Hey, Bob!” Nora called. “Come meet our brand new intern!”

Zac froze as he recognized him. It was Bob, all right. The same Bob who had just recently staggered away from Four Pines Mall, a survivor of a slasher attack. A member of the Hunt Initiative.

Was this a trap? Should he grab Skye and run, or attack the man and stand ready for battle?

Zac's hand found the hilt of the knife he'd been issued. Was Bob the only Initiative member? What about the rest of the group?

Skye's hand rested, butterfly light, on Zac's wrist and she shook her head once. 

Zac took a deep breath. He'd wait for her signal.

Bob stood frozen a few feet away, eyes locked on Skye. 

“Everything okay?” Derek asked.

“Oh. Uh.” Bob blinked and took a deep breath. “Yeah, I was just thinking I forgot something.” He took a step back, and then asked, “What's with the... the kid?”

“This is Skye,” Nora enthused. “She's our new camera guy's little sister. She's gonna be our intern tonight!”

“Intern?” Bob's voice was remarkably steady, given how dramatically he'd reacted to seeing Skye in the mall. His face was as pale as a dead fish. “Neat." He looked over at Zac. "Hey, uh, wasn't expecting to see you again.”

“You know Zac?” Derek asked. 

Their confusion sounded genuine. And Bob hadn't gone for a weapon and wasn't yelling for backup. Was it possible this was a coincidence?

“We've met,” Zac said, "On another job." He kept his voice steady somehow.

“Right, yeah,” Bob said, finding a smile somewhere and walking forward to join the group. “Yeah, small world, huh?”

“Minuscule,” Zac replied. “I didn't know you were a ghost hunter.”

He thought he only hunted the Hidden.

“Oh, I'm not, not really. But these guys pay well for me to make sure the creepy abandoned buildings don't fall in on them.”

“Plus, he's handy to have around when weird stuff happens,” Tate added. “We're all out here looking for the supernatural, so we might miss something really obvious and mundane. Bob's looking for cracked foundations, missing hinge pins, and gas leaks. He figures out lots of stuff before we end up looking like idiots on video.”

“Well that's neat,” Skye said. Then, because she was maybe just a tiny bit evil, asked, “Do you believe in ghosts, though?”

“I, uh, I keep an open mind,” Bob said.

Zac wasn't sure how to feel about that statement. Watching the man squirm and try to act normal was hilarious, though. It was clear from his actions that he did not want these people to know what he'd been up to with the Initiative. And since he hadn't blown Zac and Skye's cover, Zac was willing to play along. At least until he was sure whether his presence was really a coincidence, or what.

 Derek clapped his hands and rubbed them together. “Well, let's get a move on, we're burning twilight. Bob, would you take a quick look at the main entrance, see whether it's safe to go through that way? Zac, we usually do introduction recordings at the beginning. Would your parents mind us including Skye? Since there's a chance she'll get caught on camera and we want people to know why there's a strange kid in there.”

 Zac glanced at Skye, who lifted and dropped one shoulder. Was it a good idea to show her on camera? Since she was still legally dead and also an agent for some kind of secret organization? Probably not but he couldn't think of a logical objection. 

 Eh, there was probably something Labyrinth could do about the footage.

“I'm sure it's fine,” Zac said. He looked around. “Are we doing that out here?”

“Yeah, pick a good spot and go one at a time," Derek said. "The rest of us start setting up our base. I'm thinking we'll use the old gift shop, since it's right by the entrance, has lots of counter space for our equipment, and there's no reports of activity there so it'll be a good spot to rest while we wait for something to trip our equipment.”

“Sounds reasonable,” Zac said. “Who's first?”

“I'll start,” Nora said. “I can also do a little background on the building. I do most of the 'urban legend' segments. I just love ghost stories, don't you?”

 Actually, yes. 

“Yeah, that's why I was excited to get the call for this job,” Zac said. He looked around. “Oh, that little trellis thing will work great as a backdrop.”

 He pointed, and Nora bounced a little in place. “You're right. It's just broken down enough to be creepy, but still pretty. Good eye. Come on!”

 Nora ran over to the trellis and found a spot to stand. Zac found an angle he thought would work and fiddled around with the camera until the light levels were right. He wanted to catch the way the fading sun reflected off of her hair, and the sparkle of mischief in her eyes. He wasn't sure they'd be able to keep their footage, but until something happened that had to be kept hidden he wanted to do a good job. These people had nothing to do with Labyrinth or the Hidden or whatever, they were just curious and enthusiastic. 

“Ready when you are,” Zac declared. 

“Great! Let's go.”

 Zac flashed a quick thumbs up.

 Nora said, “Hi, I'm Nora, with LSPI! It's great to be back with y'all We've got a great one for you tonight. This,” she gestured grandly behind her, and Zac swept the camera with the motion, “is Fairmount Hospital, one of the most haunted sites in the state! Let me tell you, there are some amazing stories about this place, from the ER nurse who never went off shift even after her death to the ghosts of the entire kitchen staff who perished in a tragic gas line incident. It's said that on moonless nights, like tonight, you can hear the tapping of the nurse's heels on the floor and hear children laugh in the attic ward. I've got so much to tell you, let's get started!”

 Zac waved that the recording was done, and Nora ran back to grab a box of equipment to carry over to the entrance. While they'd been recording, Derek and Bob had opened and inspected the main entrance. Tate jogged over to join Zac.

“Bob says the porch and entryway are sound,” Tate reported. “He's gone in to check the wiring and floors in the lobby and gift shop. Skye got some great footage of Derek opening the door with her little hand cam, so we won't have to do a reshoot on that. She sprawled right out on the ground to get this real cool low angle shot. Super dramatic. She's sure not afraid to get all grubby.”

“She's not afraid of much,” Zac said. 

“That'll come in handy inside. How 'bout you?” Tate grinned. “You scared of things that go bump in the night?”

 Only if those things were armed men coming for him because he wasn't human.

“Nah, not really superstitious or whatever,” Zac said with a shrug. “And I'm not afraid of a little dirt, either.”

 Tate clapped him on the shoulder. “Good to know. Where should I stand?”

 Zac pointed, and adjusted the light levels and focus on the camera. It was a really nice model, much more easily calibrated than the ones he'd used at the school.

 He gave another thumbs up, and Tate started talking.

“Hi LSPI fans, all 15 of you, heh,” Tate shook his head. “No, no, really thanks for all the views and subscriptions. I'm Tate Evans, everyone calls me Tater. We're here at Fairfield Hospital, which has been abandoned for just over ten years now, and never torn down because of budgetary issues and property disputes. Somehow I wrangled us official permission to investigate this site, and we have brought all the fancy toys that go bing and beep. If we can't capture something, there's nothing to capture. But I'm confident we'll have quite a show for you all tonight!”

 Zac lowered the camera and asked, “You arrange the locations?”

“Usually, yeah. Derek's the idea guy, I'm the 'how do we make this happen?' guy.”