Too quiet, unnaturally so, like outside. The creak of floorboards, the gentle hum of appliances, perhaps a wump as air conditioning kicked on–all the normal things we should have been able to hear were missing. I looked at Daniel, trying to convey the question in my expression. He understood, shaking his head once. Even his preternatural vampire hearing detected nothing. A murky darkness blanketed the house. Fumbling for a light switch, I was unsurprised to find it didn’t work. Blake held out a hand, palm up, and bounced it three times. At the third bounce a ball of silvery light emitted and hung in the air just above our heads, giving us plenty of light in a localized area. “Looks like a disco ball,” Daniel said. “Yeah, but it’ll be a big help as we work toward staying alive.” Blake topped his bad joke with a snicker. “Both of you shut up,” I grumbled. Traces of ectoplasm hung on the walls like old spider web. Smears of dark energy smudged across the surface of some things but there were no visible spirits in the room.
