The characters of "Nash Bridges" are the property of CBS and Paramount.  Copyright 2001.                                                   
                                          All Hallow's Eve

Coming to a panting halt in front of the iron gates, Evan looked up to see his partner stumbling to a stop beside him.  Looking through the rusty bars to the large house at the end of the disused path, Evan shook his head.  Of all the places that weasel had to run to on Halloween night, why this one?  Straightening up at the rumble of an engine, he watched at the bright yellow 'Cuda pulled up to the broken curb.  Since Harvey was still trying to catch his breath, Evan broke the news.  "He ran in there, boss."

Joining the others on the sidewalk, Joe stared at the old mansion.  The walls desperately needed a coat of paint, the shutters were all falling off and the pillars that supported the balcony on the second floor seemed to lean drunkenly.  Glancing up at the bright, rising full moon, he suppressed a shudder.  "You've got to be kidding me.  He ran in there?  Did either of you see Dracula wandering around by any chance?  Or maybe Glinda the witch."

Getting his breathing under control, Harvey chuckled.  "Joe, Glinda was the good witch."

"A witch is a witch, Harvey.  Shut up, would you?"

Sharing a smile with his partner, Harvey shrugged and decided it wasn't the time to be baiting Joe.  He turned to look at his boss with raised eyebrows.  "Well, Nash?"

"Halloween is no different than any other night, Joe.  Let's go boys.  The sooner we catch this guy, the sooner we can lock him up and go home."  Nash led the way, pushing open the iron gates, a little surprised at the weight.  "Let's split up.  Harv, you and Evan take the back.  Joe and I'll take the front.  You guys have flashlights?"

He received a nod from Harvey, who was already pulling a small flashlight from his pocket.  Evan just held up his hands and shrugged.  "Hold on, there's an extra light in the trunk."

Finding two good-sized flashlights in the 'Cuda's trunk, Nash tossed one to Joe then handed the other to Evan.  That way, if they got separated, nobody would be left in the dark.  They headed down the weed-filled path and split up.  Harvey and Evan disappeared around the corner and Nash started up the front steps, followed rather reluctantly by Joe.  They had to be careful where they put their feet.  The wooden steps were old and rotting, filled with holes just waiting to sprain an ankle. 

The front door was half open and Nash pressed his back against the wall next to it.  When Joe had done the same thing on the opposite side, they both held their weapons ready.  Nash held up a hand and started counting off with his fingers.  When he got to three, they both spun around.  Nash kicked open the door and turned to cover the left side, while Joe burst through right behind him, covering the right side.  Their sweeping beams of light revealed nothing but dust, cobwebs and broken furniture.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Joe looked at Nash.  "Now what?"

They both turned to point their weapons toward the sound of a noise coming from a closed door at the back of the foyer.  Recognizing the bickering voices, Nash breathed a sigh and dropped his arm.

"Shut up, Harv."

"C'mon, Evan.  It was funny, man.  You should've seen yourself.  I've never seen anyone jump that high because of a rat, before.  For a minute, there, I though you were going to shoot it."

"Shut up, Harvey."

Smiling broadly, Harvey pushed open the door, first giving a low warning.  "Nash, it's us."

"Yeah, I heard you two arguing.  I take it you didn't find him?"  Nash made a mental note to ask Harvey what had happened.  Even in the dim glow of the flashlights, he could see a flush of embarrassment on Evan's face.

"Not a sign of him.  The only thing that's disturbed the dust in the kitchen in the last decade was Evan's little furry friend."

Looking toward the staircase that swept up toward the upper level, Nash listened for any sounds of their fugitive.  Only creaking and the sighs from the wind reached his ears.  "Okay, Harvey…you and Evan take the second floor.  Joe and I'll check out the rest of the rooms down here then meet you upstairs."

"We're on it.  Let's go mighty hunter."  Ignoring his partner's withering look, Harvey led the way upstairs, keeping to the wall where the steps were most stable.

Following behind Nash, a little too close for Nash's comfort though he didn't know it, Joe felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up on end.  Halloween, a full moon and they were searching an old mansion that looked to be straight from a horror movie.  A soft sound from the corner of the room had him spinning in that direction, weapon drawn.  He let out the breath he was holding when he saw it was nothing but a piece of paper being rustled by the wind blowing through the broken window.  Joe had a screaming case of the heebie-jeebies.

Hiding a smile at his partner's obvious nervousness, Nash swept his beam around what had probably been the formal sitting room.  There was no sign of their quarry.  How hard could it possibly be to find a tall, skinny, pale guy with bright red hair?  Feeling Joe's presence behind him again, practically breathing down his neck, Nash decided it was time to split up.

"Joe, we'll make better time if we separate.  I'll take this side of the house, you take the other, okay?"

"Uh, Nash, I don't think it's such a good idea to split up.  I think I'd rather stick to you and cover your back."

"Joe, you stick any closer and you'll be in front of me.  Go on, you'll be fine.  There's no such thing as ghosts, bubba."

"Yeah, well, if some ghost kills me, I'm coming back to haunt you Nash."  Wandering back into the foyer, Joe paused and looked around.  He felt a sudden chill and almost went back in with Nash, but knew he'd never hear the end of it.  Gathering his resolve, he headed through a pair of sliding wooden doors into an empty room. 

After checking a closet to be sure nobody was hiding in there, Joe crept into the dining room.  A decorative, dust-covered chandelier hung from the high ceiling.  He could just imagine what the room had probably looked like in its heyday. 

There was a large, gilded mirror hanging at one end of the room, and Joe caught a reflection of white.  Turning quickly, he saw the image of a woman dressed in a long, flowing gown staring back at him from the mirror.  When he spun around, nobody was standing there.  The screaming heebie-jeebies quickly became a mild state of panic and Joe ran for the foyer.

After finally shaking Joe from his back, Nash continued to search the sitting room.  Finding no sign of anyone having passed through there, he moved on to the library.  Marveling at the number of books lining the shelves, he couldn't believe nobody had removed them from the old house.  Shining his flashlight into every nook and cranny, Nash came up empty.

Opening the French doors in the back of the room, Nash found himself in a solarium.  What had once held beautiful plants and flowers was now filled with dead leaves and a few weeds.  It seemed a shame for such a once beautiful home to be left to decay.

Catching movement out of the corner of his eye, Nash ducked behind a large planter and raised his gun.  He saw a flash of white, and an impression of a woman with blonde hair then she was gone.  Wondering what anyone would be doing in an abandoned house, he ran for the door she'd just passed through…but the library was empty.

"Maybe I should just go check on Joe."  Returning to the foyer, Nash eyed each and every shadow with suspicion.  The spooky house was starting to get to him.  By the wild-eyed look on Joe's face, he wasn't the only one.

                                     ***************************

When they reached the top of the stairs, Harvey motioned for Evan to go right.  Not thrilled with splitting up, Evan shot his partner a worried frown but nodded his acquiescence.  The first door he came to led to a bathroom.  The second and third were closets.  Both were empty.

Hearing a slight noise coming from behind the next door, Evan twisted the knob very slowly.  Taking a deep breath, he thrust the door open and leveled his weapon.  Dirty, frilly curtains shifted with the wind blowing in the open window.  One of the shutters outside the window creaked then banged slightly against the house.

After checking the closet, Evan was sure the sound he'd heard had come from the shutter.  Stepping toward the door to leave the room, he froze when it suddenly slammed shut.  Jiggling the knob, he was spooked when he found that it was locked.  Evan was sure he'd caught a glimpse of someone before the door shut.  If it was his partner's idea of a joke, he was going to kill him.  "Harvey?"

Unaware of Evan's predicament, Harvey checked a room and a bathroom before stopping outside yet another closed door.  Hearing what sounded like moaning, he was careful as he opened the door and stepped into the room.  What he saw astounded him.

Unlike the rest of the house, this room was relatively dust-free.  Several shelves lined the walls, filled with silver framed pictures in black and white and other mementos.  Several china dolls sat on the shelves, along with boxes made of different materials and designs.  A large, beautiful Victrola stood in one corner of the room, and Harvey could almost swear he heard music coming from it…although the turntable was still.  Lit candles, their flames dancing and bobbing, covered the room and cast strange shadows.

What had amazed Harvey the most, though, was the sight of their suspect with one leg through the floor.  He was clutching the clawed foot of an antique chair in an attempt to keep from falling all the way through the floor, and he was moaning quietly.  Harvey couldn't tell if it was from pain, or something else.

Breaking from his spell, Harvey began to laugh.  "Well, Red, what the hell have you gotten yourself into this time?"

"Oh, man, get me out of here!  Hurry, before she comes back."  The red-haired young man stretched an arm toward Harvey in desperation.

Testing the floor, Harvey decided it was safe enough.  Grabbing Red under the arms, Harvey lifted carefully, ready to stop at the first yell of pain.  Once Red's foot cleared the broken boards, he clung to Harvey's jacket.

"We gotta get outta here, man, I'm tellin' ya.  She might come back."

"She who?  What are you talking about?"  As far as Harvey could tell there was nobody else in the house but Red and the SIU team.

"The ghost, man.  A woman in a really funky dress.  She pushed me and I fell through the floor."  Red was pulling on Harvey's arm, trying to get him to leave.  The young man had never seen anything like it before, and he didn't want to see it again any time soon.

"A ghost?  Yeah, right.  You've been sampling your own product, haven't you?"  Clicking the handcuffs around Red's wrists, Harvey shook his head at the kid's flimsy attempt to rattle him.  "Let's go, Rod Sterling."

Dragging the suspect into the hall, Harvey was startled to hear muffled yelling from the direction Evan had gone.  Worried, he pulled Red along with him as he hurried to the closed door.

"Harvey, dammit, you better open this door!  This isn't funny."

Reaching out to test the knob, Harvey was surprised when it twisted easily and the door drifted open. 

Evan was standing on the other side, a little red-faced and more than a little angry.  "Harvey, man, that wasn't funny.  What's the idea of locking me in the room?"

"Evan, I have no idea what you're talking about.  First of all, I didn't even know you were in here.  Secondly, the door wasn't locked." 

"What do you mean, it wasn't locked?  Of course it was locked.  I saw someone slam the door shut and it locked.  If it wasn't you, who was it?"  Seeing Red standing off to the side, Evan grabbed a fist full of the suspect's t-shirt.  "What did you think you were doing, you little punk?"

Prying Evan's fingers loose, Harvey tried to calm him down.  "Evan, it couldn't have been him, he was trapped in the floor in another room.  It was probably the wind that shut the door and it just got stuck or something."

Looking Evan in the eye, Red shook his head.  "It was her, man.  It was the ghost lady.  Take me to jail or whatever you want, but get me out of here."

"Harvey!  Evan!"

Grabbing Red once more, Harvey went to the top of the stairs and looked down to see Nash and Joe standing at the bottom.  "We've got him boss."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Joe backed towards the front door.  "Well, then, no sense in hanging around here, let's go."

Leading the others down the stairs, Harvey was surprised to see the same spooked look on Joe's face that was on Evan's and their suspect.  Even Nash seemed a little uneasy.  As he passed through the front doorway, Harvey felt a shiver run up his spine.  Walking down the front path, toward the gate, he looked back at the house.  Standing in the window of the room in which he'd found Red, was a figure in a white gown. 

Not really sure of what he was seeing, Harvey turned to see the others staring back at him with the same expressions…a mixture of awe, fear and uncertainty.  Without speaking, they all began to walk a little faster.

Once they reached the relative safety of the 'Cuda, the four SIU members looked at the heavy iron gates.  Glancing back at each other, they knew without saying a word that this was something they'd never mention to anyone.  Who'd believe them?

END