Whispering ghost

He stuck the cloth back in Belle's mouth before leaving her side to answer the door. But it didn't take long for him to return while hissing out some incoherent words under his breath.

Removing the rag from between her lips, he inquired with quite an interest, "Where did we drop off?" His smirk was back again. "Oh, I found out through my little friend, who owes me a little too much debt."

Belle's eyes searched around to catch a sight of the friend he mentioned, and when she found none, she returned her gaze back to her captor, who watched her with amusement dancing in his own eyes.

"My friend is a whispering ghost. Nowadays we can get anything from the black market, you know?" Belle's eyes widened at the confession. He continued, "She has been very useful in appraising my stuff before sales. And I wasn't wrong. You have more worth than my previous sales."