The Haunting of Killian McKay

By Leigh M. Lorien

In an effort to reinvigorate the paranormal investigation genre -- and his career -- Killian McKay makes the decision to livestream a ghost hunt in the house where he had his first supernatural encounter as a kid. To make sure things get interesting, he hires a witch to stir up the spirits in the house.

When the witch, Lady Ivana, turns out to be a handsome, muscular, genderfluid man named Ivan, Killian quickly realizes he underestimated just how interesting things can get.

Ivan is the real deal, a witch with herbs and spells and magic, and he knows more about ghosts than Killian ever hoped to learn. Killian wants to know everything Ivan knows, and he wants to know everything about Ivan ... but first, they have to survive the night.

• Language: English
• Publisher: JMS Books LLC
• Release date: Oct 20, 2018
• ISBN: 9781634867634

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The Haunting of Killian McKay

By Leigh M. Lorien

Published by JMS Books LLC

Visit jms-books.com for more information.

Copyright 2018 Leigh M. Lorien

ISBN 9781634867634

Cover Design: Written Ink Designs | written-ink.com

Image(s) used under a Standard Royalty-Free License.

All rights reserved.

WARNING: This book is not transferable. It is for your own personal use. If it is sold, shared, or given away, it is an infringement of the copyright of this work and violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

No portion of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher, with the exception of brief excerpts used for the purposes of review.

This book is for ADULT AUDIENCES ONLY. It may contain sexually explicit scenes and graphic language which might be considered offensive by some readers. Please store your files where they cannot be accessed by minors.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are solely the product of the author’s imagination and/or are used fictitiously, though reference may be made to actual historical events or existing locations. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Published in the United States of America.

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The Haunting of Killian McKay

By Leigh M. Lorien

It was raining, and the Rockland house had holes in its roof. Of course.

It figured, really. His entire career on the line, his entire future teetering on the precipice, and Mother Nature decided to piss all over it.

Killian sighed as a crack of thunder rolled across the sky. The noise would ruin his recordings. They’d never get anything good with the goddamn heavenly bowling team up there rolling strikes every thirty seconds.

Helen’s voice came over the walkie-talkie on his belt. Think it’ll blow over before dark?

Probably fucking not, he replied.

Hey, she said. Don’t stress. It’s ambiance.

It’s bullshit is what it is.

She didn’t reply, but he knew she was probably downstairs laughing at him. He returned his attention to his exploration of the second floor.

The Rockland house was a massive Victorian style building on the edge of Killian’s rural Pennsylvania hometown. Something about Victorian houses just begged for ghost stories. Killian had grown up hearing them all. The house was haunted by the ghost of a 1920’s gangster who’d died in a police shootout. The old guy who lived there in the 1930’s had killed his wife. Someone had taken a dive over the second floor balcony wearing a rope necklace. He knew all the rumors very well. He’d almost become one himself as a kid.

I’m about done with the EMF meters down here, Helen said. How are you up there?

Getting there, Killian replied. The place was too big to carpet every inch with equipment, so they were focusing on hotspots. Master bedroom, kitchen, stairway, main hallway, creepy-ass pantry. Killian hated to waste equipment on the goddamn pantry, but as Helen pointed out, the creepy factor would appeal to the audience.

They avoided the rooms with holes in their ceilings—during the pre-show recording, Killian assured everyone it was because ghosts weren’t likely to be in places so exposed to the elements, but really it was because he couldn’t afford to risk good tech in places so exposed to the elements. Their savings were dwindling rapidly.

Three hours ‘til we go live, Helen said. You ready for this?

He was glad she couldn’t see his face. He was not ready for this.

Show me something no one has ever seen before, and I’ll give you what you want.

The thought of Jason helped bolster him. Smooth as silk, traditionally handsome, and capable of handing out budgets to promising pitches, Jason Eversole had gotten under Killian’s skin from the first moment they met.

Everyone’s seen the shadows and heard the whispers. It’s all very passé, don’t you think?

Jason had come around his desk and leaned his hips on the front of it, his feet nearly touching Killian’s where he sat in the low-backed leather chair.

People watch for the possibilities, Killian said. And the personality. They watch for the host.

Maybe, Jason said, and his pale lips pursed. "But a host alone isn’t enough to carry a show. You need a gimmick.