Rendezvous at Midnight by Lynne Connolly

We’ll be listening, in case you need help. Tell them he is fine, but he needs to rest. Then come back. He wants you.”
    That was probably the best thing. Michael knew these men and was comfortable with them. She felt him resting in her mind, a gentle presence, reassuring her. Leaving the room quietly, she confronted the grim-faced crew standing outside. Ayesha and the other cameraman and soundman had joined Cliff and Brant.
    Brant glared at her. “What’s going on?”
    She paused. Then inspiration struck. “Security. They were patrolling the area.”
    “Shit, they know they shouldn’t have been there. How can we tell ghostly footsteps from theirs if they do that?”
    Typical. Brant’s first consideration was the show and his business.
    Ayesha touched her arm. “Don’t mind him, honey. How is Michael? Do we need to send for a doctor?”
    Lisa shook her head. “He’ll be okay. It wasn’t too bad of a shock. I must have gotten to him in time. He just needs to rest. One of the security men knows first aid, and he says Michael’s okay.”
    “I never saw them before.” Brant frowned. “I don’t like this. I don’t like it at all. What’s going on in there?”
    “Nothing. The man checked him out. Michael wasn’t even burned by the shock, just laid out for a couple of minutes.”
    “Maybe the spirits don’t like him.” Ayesha’s dark eyes were filled with concern.
    “I don’t think it’s that. He fell earlier, and maybe he slipped again on the floor. It could be something as simple as his shoes, they could be too slippery.” She smiled and found calm in it. “I’ll check them out.”
    “Do that. Can we see him now?”
    “N-no, he needs to rest,” she began, but the door opened behind her and the two men emerged. Now the game would be up. The older man wore an immaculate business suit and the younger one was in expensive casual wear. Neither looked in the least like security staff.
    But when she turned to look at them, she could have sworn they were dressed in cheap navy blue uniforms and blue shirts, with heavy leather belts containing flashlights slung around their hips. She blinked, and she saw them as they had been in the room, but it was hard to dispel the image of the two friendly but definitely blue collar security men.
    “He should be okay, ma’am,” said the older man, his carefully clipped accent turned into a Texan drawl. “You got to him in time to save him. He wants to thank you.” He touched the peak of his non-existent cap. “Weren’t nothin’ much, really.”
    The younger man grinned, showing uneven, yellowed teeth, which she knew he hadn’t had inside Michael’s room. “Good thing we just come on duty, ma’am. George here used to be a paramedic.”
    “Retired,” the older man confirmed. “It’s a young man’s game. This is usually much more peaceful.”
    “Didn’t the last shift tell you not to come here?” Brant demanded.
    The men looked at each other and shrugged. “Nope.”
    “Well if you’re on tomorrow night, don’t come into this part of the ship unless we call you.” Brant sounded more than angry, and Lisa felt indignant for the men. They didn’t deserve that.
    “Won’t be here tomorrow. It’ll be somebody different.”
    “Make sure they know, you hear?”
    They shrugged again and turned away, ambling up the hallway toward the main body of the ship. Lisa blinked. They were ambling, all right, but moving a lot quicker than they seemed to be and if she concentrated, she could see their true forms. She heard a voice in her head.
    You did well. You’ll be seeing us again .
     
    ***
     
    Lisa managed to get rid of the two cameramen and the soundmen by suggesting they go back to work with Ayesha while the spirits were so active. Once Ayesha assured herself Michael was all right, after asking him at least three times if he wanted to go to the hospital, she left with the others in tow but not before declaring the swimming pool off limits, something Lisa