Raven's Rest

By Robin Wainwright

Starting a new business is never easy. But starting a business around spirits and unsolved mysteries is even harder than ghost hunter Sammie Tamlson ever imagined. When Sammie kicks off Haunted Happenings with her boyfriend, Chris Hanley, she's hopeful that the company will skyrocket to success. After all, people love a good scare and ghost hunts are all the rage right now.

But when Sammie and her new team of ghost-hunters descend upon an old saloon, Raven's Rest, they get more than their share of frights. The town of Raven's Peak may have been abandoned by the living, but the souls who inhabit it have unfinished business. And these angry spirits won't rest until the meddling ghost hunters are gone. Now, it's up to Sammie and Chris to protect their crew before the ghosts destroy everything they've worked for. Will they reconcile with the spirits of Raven's Rest before it's too late?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Robin Wainwright
• Release date: Sep 7, 2021

Robin Wainwright

As a child, Robin Wainwright's Irish mother filled Robin's active imagination with stories of magic and the wee people. Her days were filled with other worlds where magic and the paranormal were an accepted way of life. As soon as Robin learned how to write, she continued her mother's tradition of storytelling. She shared her stories with her mother, but no one else. In 2013, Robin decided to begin sharing her stories with a broader audience and so The Widow's Walk trilogy was born. Robin lives in Southern California with her wonderful husband and two cats. She loves the rain, thunder, and lightning (although she doesn't see much of it where she lives) as well as chocolate, coffee, and Halloween. She continues to write (sometimes with the help of her cats) while sitting in her recliner, appearing to look out her window into her green yard, while in reality her vision is focused on other locales.

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PROLOGUE

RAVEN’S REST HOTEL – RAVEN’S PEAK - NEVADA

So, Mr. Teller, did you enjoy your time with us? Maria Sutter asked.

Mr. Teller smiled and nodded his head, I did. You have a beautiful place here. Although I’m a little disappointed that I didn’t see any ghosts.

Maria struggled to keep the smile on her face. She hated the fact that her hotel was developing the reputation of being haunted. Well, maybe next time, she said stiffly.

I look forward to it, Mr. Teller said, and with a smile, he picked up his luggage and left the hotel.

You know we might want to think about cashing in on this paranormal craze, Maria's husband Bill said. Maria shot her husband a dark look, and he held up his hands in a placating gesture. I’m just saying that it might help us keep the place afloat during the off-season.

Their hotel, Raven’s Rest, was a combination hotel, saloon, and café, in the historic mining town of Raven’s Peak, which was nestled in the mountains above Lake Tahoe in Nevada. During the winter months, the hotel was filled to capacity with skiers looking for good skiing in a unique locale. But during the off-season, from around mid-April until mid-November, Maria and her family struggled to keep the place open.

During those months the hotel would have an occasional guest who stayed because they wanted to see the beautiful scenery or because they had heard that the town of Raven’s Peak was haunted, but most of the time it was just Maria, Bill, and their two adult children Charlie and Trisha in residence. The family had discussed closing up during the off-season as the other local businesses did, but unlike the other business owners, Maria and her family lived year round in Raven’s Peak. If they closed the hotel for the off-season, it would mean they’d have to either commute down the mountain to other jobs or pay for lodging closer to their seasonal jobs. Neither option appealed to Maria.

When Maria and Bill purchased the saloon, they had also bought the Johnston homestead. The Johnston homestead had originally belonged to Carl Johnston, the owner of the now-defunct mine. Maria and Bill had moved their family in and had begun renovations on Suzy’s Saloon, which they had renamed Raven’s Rest.

Just say you’ll think about it, Bill said.

Maria sighed in irritation, We’ve talked about this before. If I believed that this place was haunted, I’d be happy to open it up to ghost hunters, but I’m not going to lie to people, Maria said.

Just because you haven’t experienced anything, it doesn’t mean that it’s not haunted, Bill said. Others have seen and felt things.

Strangers, Maria said. Until someone I trust experiences something that I can verify, I’m not going to believe it.

Okay, okay, Bill said in defeat.

Maria looked sadly at her husband, wishing that she could agree with his desire to promote Raven’s Rest as a paranormal hot spot.

Trisha, would you go upstairs and strip room five? Maria asked. Trisha wanted to tell her mother no, but she knew that her mother would ask her why not, and Trisha would have to admit that room five made her uneasy. Trisha hated that her mother refused to believe that anything haunted the old brothel that they’d converted into guest rooms.

Trisha gathered the cleaning supplies and started up the stairs. As she made her ascent, it felt like the air around her was getting heavier until it felt like she was pushing against an unseen force field, then the smell hit her. She recoiled in disgust and covered her nose in surprise. It smelled as if something had crawled into the walls, died, and was now decomposing. God, she said as she struggled not to gag. She was poised on the staircase frozen halfway between the top and bottom, wishing that she could run back downstairs to her mother’s protective embrace like a frightened child, but she knew that her mother wouldn’t react in a protective way.

Her mom would insist on coming upstairs to see if she could locate the source of the smell, but she wouldn’t be able to smell it. At least, that was what had happened the last time. Her mother had followed her upstairs, stood in the hallway, making loud sniffing sounds, and then she’d turned to Trisha and stated that she couldn’t smell anything. Trisha had been shocked because the horrible smell had still filled the hallway, and she had been struggling to hold down her lunch. Her mother had told her to stop being silly and to get the rooms clean so that their guests could check-in. Knowing that she’d receive no support from that quarter, Trisha swallowed hard and walked up the rest of the stairs.

As she stood in the hallway, the smell slowly began to fade, and Trisha sighed in relief. The narrow hallway contained six doors, and behind each of those doors was a small room with a bed, a chair, and a dresser. There was one communal bathroom located at the far end of the hall. All of the bedrooms made her uncomfortable, but room five was the worst. When she was younger, she had given her brother Charlie her allowance in return for him doing the maid service in room five, but now that they were both older, she was too embarrassed to ask him to do that for her.

Steeling herself, she unlocked the door and swung it wide. When nothing rushed out at her, she stepped across the threshold and looked around. The bed was rumpled, and a pile of wet towels was sitting in the middle of the floor. Grimacing at the intimate nature of housekeeping, she placed the tote of cleaning supplies on the floor and pulled on a pair of gloves. First, she stripped the linen off the bed and added the dirty sheets to the pile of wet towels on the floor. The familiar tasks calmed her frazzled nerves, and she began to hum under her breath. She checked the drawers in the dresser to make sure that the last guest hadn’t forgotten anything, then she sprayed wood cleaner on the top of the dresser and began to wipe a rag over its surface. She picked up the bottle of glass cleaner, aimed it at the mirror above the dresser, and froze in place. The mirror reflected the image of a woman who was standing behind Trisha. The woman in the mirror was thin and very pale. Her long black hair fell around her shoulders in ringlets. Trisha’s eyes locked with the woman’s, and she felt a scream building down deep within her soul, but she couldn’t force it past her frozen lips. The woman’s arm rose to point at Trisha, and she grinned. As Trisha's scream broke loose to pour into the room, the pale woman raised her voice to yell in a horrible mockery of Trisha's terror.

Maria heard Trisha start screaming, and she flew up the stairs to her daughter’s rescue. She rushed into room five and saw that Trisha was lying in a crumpled heap on the floor in front of the dresser.

Trisha, what is it? Why are you screaming? she asked as she rolled her daughter over only to realize that Trisha was unconscious. The screaming continued, and Maria looked around the room in confusion, then she gathered Trisha into her arms.

Leave my daughter alone, she yelled protectively, and the screaming stopped abruptly, leaving the room ringing with silence. Maria sat on the floor with Trisha in her arms and gently rocked her, murmuring soothing words. It’s okay now, mommas here. I’ll protect you.

Momma? Trisha asked in confusion as her eyes fluttered open. She sat up abruptly, struggling out of her mother’s arms to look around the room frantically.

Maria pulled Trisha back into her arms and looked up as her husband Bill rushed into the room. She’s okay, she just had a scare. Trisha pulled away from her mother’s embrace and stood up. She’d had more than a scare, but she knew from her past experiences that her mother wouldn’t understand the depths of her fear. She was shaking as she leaned over to gather up the pile of laundry, but her mother stopped her. Why don’t you go downstairs and get some water? Your father and I have something we need to discuss. We’ll finish cleaning the room.

CHAPTER ONE

THE HAUNTED HAPPENINGS OFFICE – HAVEN, CALIFORNIA

Sammie smiled as she looked over her boyfriend Chris’s shoulder at the monitor of his laptop. It showed the website for their new business, Haunted Happenings.

It looks good, Sammie said.

Yeah, now all we need to do is schedule our first event, Chris said.

Haunted Happenings was going to host paranormal weekends around the country where people would be trained in the best ways to gather evidence and then be able to use their new skills on an actual ghost hunt. Chris’s approach to paranormal tourism was more of a boutique approach than a cattle call. The events were going to be limited to small groups of no more than ten individuals, which would allow for a more intimate and hopefully more meaningful experience for the participants. The original idea for Haunted Happenings had been hatched by Chris and his childhood buddy Dave. Chris and Dave had been looking for investors when they had happened upon Sammie, who had been living in a haunted house in the mountain community of Haven. Chris and Sammie had fallen in love, and when Sammie had inherited some money from her parents’ estate, and the estate of her uncle Peter, she had invested in the company and been made a full partner. She had opened her home, Silver Hart, to both Chris and their new company. Sammie had never been happier. She spent each day with the man she loved as they worked on their future together.

Their other partner Dave was still working as a freelance videographer until their business got off the ground, though he spent most of his free time with Sammie and Chris at Silver Hart.

Do you have any ideas for the locale of our first event? Sammie asked.

I have a lot of places I’d love to investigate, but I think we need to do a trial run somewhere that isn’t going to cost us an arm and a leg to rent. I want to make sure we work out any bugs before we put forward a lot of cash. Do you have any ideas? Chris asked.

Maybe, Sammie said hesitantly. One of the ski resorts I stayed at as a kid was supposed to be haunted, although I never saw anything.

I think renting a ski resort would be kind of pricey, Chris said.

"Normally, I’d agree with you, but this one belongs to a friend of mine. Plus, ski resorts always have trouble keeping their beds full during the off-season. They might be willing to rent it to us for fairly cheap. The downside is that the off-season for skiing is right now, so we'd have to put something together quickly.

Why don’t you give your friend a call and see if they’re open to the idea. If they are, we can work out the details, Chris said.

Wish me luck, Sammie said. Sammie had been raised in the Lake Tahoe, Nevada area. As a child, she had excelled at snowboarding and had lived to hit the slopes. That was until her parents had died in a car crash. Her uncle Peter had swept in and whisked her away to the arid landscape of Phoenix, Arizona. Uncle Peter had become her legal guardian, and he had begun to siphon off money from a trust fund that Sammie’s parents had left for her. Sammie had been clueless about her uncle’s theft until just a few months before she was slated to gain access to her inheritance. She had fled Phoenix, intending to hide from her uncle until her 21st birthday, which was when her trust fund would revert to her control. She had set out for Lake Tahoe, hoping that friends would take her in until she was safely independent, but her journey had taken a detour, and she had landed in Haven.

In Haven, she had found her new home, a house known as Silver Hart. She had met and fallen in love with Chris Hanley plus discovered a new talent, the ability to see and speak with ghosts.

A hopeful yip drew her attention, and she looked down into the hairy face of her puppy, Shaggy Rogers. She had named the puppy after Shaggy from the Scooby-Doo cartoons. She had figured it was fitting since the puppy was being raised in a haunted house by ghost hunters.

Crooning gently, she bent over, picked Shaggy up, and then giggled as he covered her face in happy puppy kisses.

Come on, boy, we’ve got a phone call to make, Sammie said. Since the craziness of her life had settled down, she had been making contact with her old childhood friends and catching up on where they were now. The conversations had made her realize that although many of her old friends hadn’t changed, she had. She couldn’t relate to where they were in life, they chatted about college and were excited about moving away from their parents’ homes. Sammie was already the owner of her own house and partial owner of a new business. It made her sad to think that many of those childhood friendships had ended abruptly when her uncle had whisked her away to Phoenix.

Sammie put Shaggy on her bed and scrolled through her phone to Trisha Sutter’s number. The girls had met when Sammie's family had taken a ski vacation to Raven's Peak. Sammie and Trisha had bonded over their mutual love of snowboarding, and after Sammie had gained her freedom from her uncle, she had reached out to reconnect with Trisha. Trisha had been thrilled to hear from Sammie and had been supportive when Sammie filled her in on what had happened to her. But even though Trisha had been supportive, Sammie hadn’t told her about the ghost stuff. Sammie had discovered that she couldn’t be certain about people’s reaction to the news that she could communicate with spirits. Some people got excited by the idea, while others looked at her like she was a loon.

Sammie listened as the phone rang, and she smiled when Trisha’s cheerful voice answered.

Sammie, how are you? Trisha asked.

I’m good. Yourself? Sammie replied.

Pretty good. What’s up? Trisha asked.

Well, I’m calling in an official capacity for my new business, Sammie said.

Okay, Trisha said hesitantly.

I told you we were putting together an event company, right?

Right. Oh, do you want to book some rooms? I could put Mom on the phone, she’d be thrilled, Trisha said.

Sort of. I didn’t tell you the nature of the events we’re putting together because I wasn’t sure how you’d respond. The name of our company is Haunted Happenings, and we’re going to be hosting paranormal weekends.

Wow, Trisha said.

I know that may seem a little strange—, Sammie started to say, but Trisha cut her off.

No, it’s not that, it’s just that you have amazing timing. My dad has been pushing my mom to open the hotel up to ghost hunters, but she said she wouldn’t do it because she didn’t believe, Trisha said.

You said didn’t believe, Sammie said. I take it that has changed.

Big-time, Trisha said.

Tell me what happened, Sammie said, and she listened intently as Trisha relayed her experience with the screaming woman in the mirror.

Wow, are you okay? Sammie asked.

It’s been a couple of weeks, so yeah, but at the time, I was so scared that I couldn’t move. I have to ask you a question, though. As part of your events, are you planning on making the ghosts go away? I wouldn’t mind it, but since Mom has become a believer, she is gung-ho on this being the solution to our off-season woes. I don’t think she’d appreciate it if you guys drove the ghost away.

No, we won’t do that. We’re planning on teaching people how to investigate the paranormal and then take them on some hunts, Sammie said.

That’s cool, Trisha said. Should I put Mom on the phone? she asked.

Sure, Sammie said.

Sammie strolled back into the parlor where Chris was still working on the website. When he looked up with a question on his face, she gave him a thumbs-up, and he grinned in return. Sammie spoke with Mrs. Sutter and laid the groundwork before she handed her phone to Chris so he and Mrs. Sutter could hammer out the details.

When Chris hung up the phone, he pulled Sammie into his arms and twirled her around the room before planting a big kiss on her lips.

Shaggy pranced into the room and began dancing around their legs, looking for attention. Sammie grinned down at the little puppy, You'd better go pack some Scooby Snacks Shaggy because we've got our first case.

CHAPTER TWO

THURSDAY: RAVEN’S PEAK, NEVADA

Sammie, Chris, Dave, Shaggy Rogers, plus all of their luggage and equipment were packed into Sammie’s new SUV, and they were traveling to the town of Raven’s Peak Nevada. The trip had been a long one, but Sammie had enjoyed spending time with Chris and his buddy Dave.

Chris and Dave had both lost their parents at a young age and had met each other in a foster home when they were teenagers. During the drive, Dave had enjoyed regaling Sammie with stories of his and Chris’s time in the foster care system, and their playful banter had made the miles speed by. Sammie’s excitement increased as Chris steered the car off the highway and onto the road that would climb upwards to Raven’s Peak.

Chris had negotiated a good deal with Trisha’s parents the Sutters, and Haunted Happenings would have sole and exclusive use of the hotel, café, and bunkhouses at Raven’s Rest during their event. The event guests would sleep in the bunkhouses located behind the hotel and investigate not only the hotel but also the surrounding ghost town. Trisha’s mother Maria had told Chris that she would help promote the event with her past customers, and the event had sold out within 24 hours of being posted.

The car was abuzz with nervous excitement as Chris turned the SUV onto the main street in Raven’s Peak. An abandoned church with a dilapidated graveyard dominated the left side of the road. As they passed it, Sammie had to suppress a shiver. She had never liked the church or graveyard, and that was before she had developed her psychic ability. She turned her gaze away from the broken tombstones, fearful of what she might see now that she could see ghosts. The church and graveyard stood alone and isolated on the edge of the small town.

The rest of the town’s buildings were huddled together at the far end of the street. They included a visitor center, a small restaurant, a general store, an ice cream parlor, and Raven’s Rest, which was the only open business.

Sammie looked at Raven’s Rest and smiled fondly as memories of her time spent there filled her mind. Raven’s Rest consisted of a two-story rectangular building with a saloon on the first floor and six bedrooms upstairs. A broad wooden walkway extended from the second floor shading the boardwalk below. When the Sutters purchased the saloon, they built onto the older building. The bar’s original entrance, an iconic swinging double door like those seen in so many western movies, was now enclosed in a breeze way that served as the hotel’s lobby. The lobby joined the older building with a newly constructed café.  Customers could sleep in one of the six bedrooms located on the second floor of the saloon or in the converted bunkhouse located behind the bar and café. The bunkhouse had originally been one large room with bunks for the miners, but the Sutters had converted the bunkhouse into multiple rooms that included private bathrooms, queen beds, and armoires.

Sammie stepped out of the SUV just as the front door of Raven’s Rest flew open, and Trisha rushed out to engulf her in a big hug.

Trisha released Sammie from her embrace and stood back, smiling. It’s so good to see you again, Trisha said.

You too, Sammie said. This place brings back so many good memories. Sammie realized that Chris and Dave were standing patiently, waiting for introductions, and she grinned sheepishly. Trisha Sutter, I’d like you to meet my partners Chris Hanley and Dave Holt.

Everyone shook hands, and Trisha gestured toward the front door saying, Why don’t you come on inside and meet my parents. I have to warn you that Mom and Dad have a thousand questions, so be prepared.

They followed Trisha through the front door that led into a small reception area located between the old saloon and the newer café. Trisha’s mother, a petite dark-haired woman, stood behind the counter, and Sammie grinned when Maria looked up and their eyes met.

Sammie, Maria said as she walked out from behind the counter to sweep Sammie into a tight embrace. How have you been? Maria asked when she let Sammie go.

Life is getting better, Sammie said honestly.

Good, Maria said.

Let me introduce you to my partners. This is Chris Hanley and Dave Holt, Sammie said, gesturing to the two men who were standing behind her.

Hi Chris, Maria said. It’s nice to meet the voice on the phone. Chris smiled and nodded his head in acknowledgment of Maria’s statement, then she turned to Dave.

Hello Dave, it’s nice to meet you too. What part do you play in this venture? she asked.

I’m the tech. I’m in charge of the equipment and helping with the training. I also assist with the ghost hunts, Dave said.

Maria chuckled and shook her head, You folks talk about this stuff so matter-of-factly. Like ghosts are a natural part of your everyday lives.

Considering how much time we’ve spent creating our business, it feels like that’s the case, Dave said.

I have a million questions, but why don’t you get settled first and then we can chat. Bill and I would like to invite you to our house for dinner tonight, Maria said. I made a chocolate chip cheesecake, Maria added with a sideways glance at Sammie, who groaned in response.

I haven’t had chocolate chip cheesecake since the last time I was here, Sammie said. I can’t believe you remembered.

Maria grinned in response and said, 6:00 work for dinner? When everyone nodded, she gestured to the old-fashioned hotel register, Then let’s get the paperwork done, and you can move your stuff in. If you need help, my son is around somewhere.

Little Charlie is still here? Sammie asked in surprise.

Yeah, only he’s not so little anymore, Trisha said. He’s a giant now, well over 6 feet tall.

I guess I won’t be calling him Little Charlie anymore, Sammie said.

Oh, I wouldn’t mind, a deep voice said from behind them, and Sammie spun around to see a handsome blond man filling the doorway.

Charlie? Sammie asked, and when he nodded his head, she stepped forward to wrap her arms around his waist in a hug.

God, you’ve gotten so tall, she said in awe.

You haven’t changed at all, you’re still as pretty as you ever were, Charlie said. Sammie felt herself blush. I can still remember you shredding the slopes, grinning ear to ear, making whooping sounds. Do you still yell when you snowboard? Charlie asked.

I don’t know, I haven’t snowboarded in years, Sammie said.

That’s a shame. You were amazing. You should come back up when we get some snow on the ground, Charlie said.

I just might do that, Sammie said.

Chris watched the exchange and tried not to feel envious. It was obvious that Charlie and Sammie had some shared history that made them feel close. He and Sammie hadn’t had time to create much of a shared history, although the time they had shared had been intense. He plastered a smile on his face and stepped forward with his hand extended to introduce himself.

Hi, I’m Chris Hanley, Chris said. As he approached, he realized that he had to tilt his head back to look into the other man’s eyes,