Still, I hesitated before I spoke. Part of it was pride—there’s always a line of humor with cops and security guards about who’s spooked or getting jumpy. A lot of it may be macho bullshit designed to distract each other from their own fears, kids whistling past a graveyard and all, but there’s a point to it beyond that. It’s a way of checking up on each other. Easing tension. And it was also a way to make sure that the people you relied on in a bad situation weren’t going to crack.

I didn’t want to be thought of as a coward, but worse, I didn’t want to be thought of as unreliable. I liked Oscar, and while I didn’t think he’d make fun of me too much, I did worry he might think a bit less of me. So I was about to just lie and say everything had been fine when Oscar spoke up again.

“Haven’t seen or heard anything weird tonight, have you?”

The lie died on my tongue. Swallowing with some difficulty, I found myself replying in a near whisper. “Yeah. Yeah I have. I was starting to think it was a dream. What the fuck is going on, Oscar?”

His voice was trembling when he spoke next. “I don’t know, kid. But you stay in the clubhouse the rest of your shift, okay? Fuck their patrols. The jarhead twerp is working the day shift tomorrow…well, today…and then I have the night shift with you. We’ll talk more then.”

Gripping my phone harder, I found myself looking at the dimly-lit hallways that led from our station to the shadowy corners of the clubhouse. “No, fuck that. Tell me now. Am I in danger here?”

“I don’t know. I honestly don’t know. I think the clubhouse is safe. I haven’t had anything happen there. But don’t leave it until your shift is over. Or shit, leave the property now if you think it’s best. I just don’t want you getting shitcanned if there’s some explanation for all this, God only knows what that could be.”

I looked at the monitors showing the security camera feeds. Everything looked normal enough out there. “No, I’m not leaving. I need this job. But why can’t you just tell me what the deal is over the phone?”

His tone was harsher this time, almost angry. “Look, I haven’t told anybody about this yet, not really. Still trying to wrap my head around it. And some of it…well, some of it I need to show you rather than just tell you. So just do what I ask and trust me, okay?”