The Cliffhouse Haunting

THE CLIFFHOUSE HAUNTING...When the Blue Lady Walks... Since 1887, the Cliffhouse Lodge has been famous for its luxurious accommodations, fine dining … and its ghosts. Overlooking Blue Lady Lake, nestled among tall pines, Cliffhouse has just been renovated by its owners, Teddy and Adam Bellamy, and their daughter, Sara.Cliffhouse has not always been a place of rest and respite, though. Over the years it has served many vices, from rum-running to prostitution -- and although the cat house has been replaced by a miniature golf course and carousel, Cliffhouse retains its dark history; darkest during the Roaring Twenties, when a serial killer called the Bodice Ripper terrorized the town, and a phantom, the Blue Lady, was said to walk when murder was imminent.Death Walks With Her...Now, there’s a new killer on the loose, and the Blue Lady sightings have returned. The Bellamys are losing maids, and guests are being tormented by disembodied whispers, wet phantom footprints, and the blood-chilling shrieks of mad laughter that echo through the halls of Cliffhouse in the dead of night. The little mountain town of Cliffside is the perfect hunting ground for a serial killer … and the Blue Lady. Police Chief Jackson Ballou has bodies piling up, and between the murders and the mysteries, he can hardly pursue his romance with Polly Owen. And Sara Bellamy may lose her true love before they even have their first kiss.***A new sound threaded into the babble of the brook. Soft, feminine, and distant, like a woman singing from some far-off place, so quiet that he thought he imagined it at first, but it grew until it mingled with the stream’s murmurs. It was the most beautiful music Adam had ever heard and it chilled him beyond measure.Keeping his gaze low, he slowly turned to face the lobby. The smell of the lake had not diminished. The song continued, and as he brought his eyes up, his body froze and his breath hitched.Standing near the brook, smiling at him from over her shoulder, the Blue Lady looked coy, playful. Her hair and dress swam around her like living things.Do you believe in me now? Her lips never moved.Adam blinked hard against the vision.The Blue Lady turned her head away and continued her slow trek, leaving wet footprints behind her even though her feet never touched the ground. As the distance between them grew, the song faded. When she neared the stone wall, she turned to him, smiled once more, moved to a window and disappeared beyond the glass. As she did, her mad laughter shrieked through the lobby.“She’s real,” Adam whispered to himself. “She’s real, she’s real, oh my God, she’s real.”

About the Author

Thorne and Cross are currently writing several novels, including the serial, The Witches of Ravencrest, which appears about every six to eight weeks. Together, they also host the horror-themed radio show Thorne & Cross: Haunted Nights LIVE! which has featured such guests as Laurell K. Hamilton, Christopher Moore, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Charlaine Harris, Jay Bonansinga, Andrew Neiderman aka V.C. Andrews, and Christopher Rice. Thorne and Cross are hard at work on several upcoming collaborations, including a sequel to Tamara's novel Candle Bay, which will feature plenty of vampy action as the Darlings and Julian Valentyn are joined on a road trip to Eternity with Michael and Winter from Alistair's novel The Crimson Corset. It's going to be a harrowing ride!

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