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    103 Results in the "Burned Cover" category


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      13 – Taking Responsibility Takes Integrity

      13 – Taking Responsibility Takes Integrity Cover
      by Tower Curator The first Wednesday of December was a particularly cold and unpleasant day. Winter in Chicago was never pleasant, but a moist, westward wind dragged down what should have been a relatively mild day as it swept over the top of the lake. Cold air wasn’t supposed to carry much moisture, and yet, Erika still felt like she was being lightly glazed over with a layer of ice. Driving her pickup in these circumstances was among her least favorite activities. It was an old junker with rear-wheel drive and next…
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      13 – Silent Hospital

      13 – Silent Hospital Cover
      by Tower Curator “We don’t usually go to hospitals,” Leslie said as he advanced down the dark halls of the building, flashlight sweeping into each room he passed. Erika moved along just behind him, bat resting on her shoulder. “The ghosts too violent or something?” she asked as she checked a room on the opposite side of the hall. The only thing inside was an exam table coated in a thin layer of dust. No ghosts, no cultists. “No,” he said with a small chuckle. “They’re harder to sneak into,…
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      13 – Saying Goodbye is a Complicated Affair

      13 – Saying Goodbye is a Complicated Affair Cover
      by Tower Curator “Why didn’t you text?” “No signal in this place.” Rick did not look happy with that response. Erika wasn’t all that happy with it either. The whole reason she had come here was to get a better feel for these ghost hunters… and to help out and maybe see something interesting, she supposed. Mostly, it was for evaluation. The fact that they had been out here for almost an hour without checking in didn’t bode well. Erika wasn’t all that happy to disparage her gender, but Rick seemed…
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      13 – Interacting with the Opposition

      13 – Interacting with the Opposition Cover
      by Tower Curator The Historical Gallery and Cultural Museum hadn’t changed much since Erika’s last visit. They had to put a wall back together here or there, but Erika hadn’t actually caused all that much damage to the place. The authorities shut down the entire building later that evening, citing ‘gas leaks’. This indicated that some intruders might have gotten in despite her shutting down the portal. If they had made a mess, cleaners had long since tidied it up. The incident made her wonder how they handled…
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      12 - Visions Through the Veil12 – Visions Through the Veil are Often Disturbing

      12 – Visions Through the Veil are Often Disturbing Cover
      by Tower Curator The middle row of the minivan’s seats had been removed, resulting in Erika sitting all the way in the rear. In place of the middle seat, a few racks were bolted to the floor, able to slide around for easy access from the outside when the side doors were open. Upon the racks sat an assortment of equipment. Some were electronic items: EMF readers, motion sensors, microphones with big dishes around them, video cameras of both digital and VHS varieties, flashlights, ultraviolet lights, Geiger counters,…
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      12 – To Value the Time We Have

      12 – To Value the Time We Have Cover
      by Tower Curator Erika sat at the kitchen counter of the Walker rental house. School was out, Thanksgiving was tomorrow, which left several days without her having to worry about pretending to care. She really should just stop going—having a GED meant she wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place—but it was a decent place to meet up with Daniel, hear gossip from Kassandra, and otherwise have some amount of normalcy in her life. She certainly wasn’t getting any normalcy here. Leah—and Erika was…
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      12 – Stalking with The Stalker

      12 – Stalking with The Stalker Cover
      by Tower Curator Erika walked alongside The Stalker, arm-in-arm, casually strolling the sidewalks late in the evening. Erika leaned up against The Stalker, squeezing together as another group passed by in the opposite direction. The streets weren’t crowded, but there were enough people to provide cover, mostly couples on dates heading in or out from the various bars and dives. “What are you doing?” The Stalker hissed as Erika dragged a finger down her spine. “We’re a couple on a date,” Erika whispered…
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      12 – Lonesome Investigations

      12 – Lonesome Investigations Cover
      by Tower Curator “Just wanted to ask about the status of that meeting,” Erika said, seated at her kitchen table with a notebook in one hand and her phone in the other. Carter sat at the table next to her, staring at her wristwatch—though he didn’t seem to do anything with it. Opposite both of them, Daniel had his laptop out, trying to find out the same thing Erika was trying to find out. What happened to The Fixer? “The Hermit has been under increasing stress as of late,” The Adjustment said, calm and…
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      11 – The Hunters

      11 – The Hunters Cover
      by Tower Curator Erika pulled up to the rundown arcade a full hour before midnight, their expected meeting time. The old beater van was still parked around back. Rick’s ride, presumably. Joining it was a motorcycle. Not one of those sleek modern things, but an old-school Harley. The owner clearly took care of it. Most of it was polished up to a shine that gleamed in Erika’s headlights. She pulled up alongside it, hopped out, and was just about to knock on the arcade’s rear door when she heard muffled voices…
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      11 – i – Anna

      11 – i – Anna Cover
      by Tower Curator “I’m going out, Mother,” Anna called out as she laced up her boots. “I should be back before dinner, but just in case I’m not, there is a salad in the fridge, all ready to eat.” The scrape-clack, tap-tap, scrape-clack, tap-tap of Mirabelle’s walker grew louder as she approached, until finally, the hunched woman stopped in the doorway. “I thought you had the day off,” she said, her voice trailing off. “Did the lab call you in again?” Anna patiently smiled as she pulled out a…
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