She dug in. He didn’t touch his food. Instead, he requested a to-go box and claimed he’d eat it at a normal hour instead of with his coffee.
“So, you’ve been smiling at me. Does that mean you’re taking a liking to me?”
“No, but the ghost sitting next to you likes you enough for both of us,” Ryley answered. “You’d like her. She was a stripper.”
“Come again?” Bane leaned forward.
Ryley pointed her fork toward the empty spot next to him. “She thinks your scrumptious. Wants me to take you home as a pet and treat you like a plaything.”
He glanced in the seat next to him. Surprise registered on his face. “She’s here, right now?”
Ryley nodded. “You sensed her. Your arms got chilled when she appeared.”
Ryley snapped her fingers when Bane hovered his hand in the area next to him. “Let’s stay focused.” She gestured to the resume on the dead guy. “It says the guy was an accountant. The resume doesn’t match the man. He looks more like a bouncer.”
Bane sat back and sipped his coffee. “Yeah, he’s the first accountant to get the drop on me and leave a bruise.”
“Tell him I’ll kiss it and make it better,” Stretch said.
She lifted her brow in a scold.
“Fine, fine.” She held up her hands. “I’ll go for now, but you need to choose between the cop and this one. I’m getting bored.”
“You’re talking to her again, aren’t you?” Logan asked.
She returned her gaze to meet his and grinned. “No. Of course not. That would be rude.” She gestured back to the paper. “Did it hurt your pride that he left his mark, Bane?”
“Logan,” he corrected. “And yes. It did. I’m normally better prepared before I go into any situation.” He sipped his coffee, watching her over the top. “Speaking of, can you talk to all ghosts?”
“If they’re around or if the body hasn’t been buried. With a touch, I can get most answers I need.” She turned her gaze to the paper. “This guy hasn’t been buried. I haven’t been to his funeral.”
“Do you go to everyone’s funerals?”
“Everyone needs a hobby,” she said with a sweet-as-pie smirk.
“You’ll have to explain that later,” Logan said and pointed to the paper. “Are you telling me, that if I get you inside to see the body, this can all be cleared up with a single touch?”
“Maybe,” she answered and continued to eat. “I need my breakfast first. Touching corpses makes my stomach queasy and depletes my energy.”
“I can wait,” Logan said, leaning back in his chair.
“No need.” She smiled up at him.
“But I need to feed you the questions,” Logan said, his brows dipped.
“No. There are only two questions we need to ask. What happened and who did this to him if it wasn’t you.”
“Right,” he said just as his phone rang. He pulled it out of his jacket pocket and glanced at the screen. “Excuse me. I need to take this.”
Logan slipped out of the booth and headed for the door as he answered, “Bane.”
He paced the parking lot while talking. Had Ryley needed to recon, she could have easily talked Stretch into finding out what that call was about. But she didn’t want to know that bad. Not that it stopped Stretch. She was moving outside with him, back and forth across the asphalt. She grinned and reappeared in a flash in the seat across from Ryley.
“He’s making plans to seduce you.”
“No, he’s not,” Ryley answered.
Stretch chuckled. “Yeah I know, but can you blame the guy? You aren’t even showing him any cleavage.”
“Nor do I plan on it,” Ryley said.
“Gah, have I not taught you anything?” Stretch vanished in a huff.
Logan returned, grabbed his jacket, and picked up the file and paper. He dropped some bills on the table. “Sorry, but I have to run.”
“No problem. I’ll call when I have news,” Ryley said.
“You can call me anytime.” He winked. Grabbed his boxes of food and headed for the door.
She met Maggie’s gaze, and the check was delivered instantly. Riley pulled out a fifty-dollar bill and laid it on the table next to Logan’s money.
“Big bills mean big favors,” Maggie said, grabbing the money and slipping it in her apron.
“I need you to call your roommate and see if he can sneak me in to see a body.”
“One you’re trying to cross over?” Maggie asked, already knowing Ryley’s secret.
“That, and I have a couple of questions that need answers,” Ryley said, slipping out of the booth.
“I’ll tell him to be expecting you.”
“Thanks, and stop by the bar soon so we can grab a drink.”
“Absolutely.” Maggie grinned.
Ryley walked out the door feeling ten times heavier than when she’d entered.
“It’s time to deal with you, Logan Bane, so I can concentrate on Rosalind’s issues,” Ryley whispered into the morning air, slipping her sunglasses over her eyes. She got in the car.
Three cars were parked in the coroner’s office parking lot, but the designated space for the Medical Examiner sat empty. Five ghosts were hovering around the entry door. Two were pacing and the other three just looked confused.
Ryley got out and kept her gaze down refusing to make eye contact as she jogged toward the front door. Maggie’s roommate was waiting just inside. He opened the door and held it for Ryley to pass, stopping her at the counter long enough to clip a badge on her shirt.
“We have to make this quick. The coroner is at the dentist but will be here shortly.”
“Not a problem,” Ryley said, following him into the morgue. She didn’t frequent this place. She normally caught the spirits at their funerals and dealt with them there. Forcing them into the afterlife just seemed wrong. Had someone done it to her, she would have returned to haunt them and drive them nuts.
The freezer where they kept the bodies was only partially full. Two ghosts slid through the walls vanishing from sight as she entered. That could have turned into more sleepless nights. If they knew she could see them, they’d never leave her alone. She’d learned that the hard way.
“Who are you looking for?”
“Curtis Jones.”
“Ah yeah, the dastardly accountant that met with foul play,” the assistant said, unlocking one of the metal drawers. He pulled out the slab and unzipped the bag. “You have five minutes.”
“I won’t need that long.” Ryley smiled up at him.
Curtis Jones looked peaceful if it wasn’t for the gash and bruise on the side of his neck. The pictures had shown that he’d been lying in a pool of blood on a street corner downtown.
She touched his shoulder. “Curtis. I’m sorry, but I need to see how you died.”
She closed her eyes, and within seconds the images burned behind her lids. An indescribable chill crept up her fingers, numbing her arm and shortening her breath. She always hated this part, that first contact with the lingering consciousness of a spirt. Ryley fought the shivers trying to rip through her. Muscles popped in her jaw as she tried to keep her teeth from chattering.
Curtis was on a street, only this wasn’t downtown like where he’d been found. This was a suburban street with cookie-cutter houses lining both sides.
Curtis was strolling up the street to the corner where a black sedan with dark tinted windows was parked and waiting.
The driver’s face was cast in shadow.
Curtis leaned down to talk to the guy.
“What happened to your face? Did the cop do that?” the man asked.
“No. I got into a scuffle with the private investigator that found me before I got away and ditched him.”
“Private investigator, huh? Did you go running your mouth, Curtis?”
“No, man. I didn’t tell them anything. All they have is my books, and it’s all in code. They’ll never know. I won’t tell a soul.”
�
��You’re right. You won’t.”
The muzzle of a gun appeared in the low illumination from the streetlight. The guy popped the trunk. “Get in.”
Curtis stepped backward, and the guy got out of the car. “Get in, Curtis, or the next visit is to that lovely wife of yours.”
The man’s face was in the moonlight. A jagged scar marked the right side of his face near his eye. Ryley had never seen the guy before, but she knew who it wasn’t.
Curtis held up his hands and walked to the back of the car and climbed inside. “I’ll tell you everything, please just don’t hurt my wife.”
The man gave a devilish grin. “Yeah, you will.”
His fist came down hard, breaking Curtis’s nose. Blood splattered everywhere and dripped inside the trunk.
“This is not good.” She glanced at the street signs, noting the names, Marietta and Monroe.
In an instant, she blinked, and she was on the side of the road downtown, where the guy with the scar had stopped at a light.
The trunk popped open, and Curtis took off at a run. He only made it three steps before Scar Guy shot him from behind.
The smoke hadn’t even left his gun before he sped away.
Ryley frowned and released her hold.
Curtis’s ghost was staring at her. His eyes were sad. “Why did you do that?”
“It’s time for you to go.” Ryley didn’t care she was speaking out loud.
“I’m not ready. I have to tell Gloria the will is in the encyclopedia,” he said just a light appeared behind him. He glanced back at Ryley one last time. Pain registered on his face as he was sucked into the light and gone for good.
She let out a shaky breath and rubbed her arms. The air in the room was cold enough she could see her breath.
The assistant was staring at her. “I don’t even want to know.”
“Nope, you don’t,” she said and watched as he re-zipped the bag and shoved the drawer back into place, closing the door.
He escorted her out through a side door, just as the coroner parked in his spot. She waited until he went inside before jogging to her car. Climbing inside, she turned up the heat, trying to thaw the chill that settled into her bones. She wasn’t going to last twenty minutes this time. Not enough time to get back to her apartment, and God forbid she pass out in the parking lot. They’d call for an ambulance or worse.
Sending spirits into the light was like running a marathon. One that promised she’d sleep for the next few hours. She drove up the street to her brother’s office and parked the car. She walked in. Janet was at the receptionist's desk, talking to the new girl they’d hired to answer the phones.
“Oh, my,” Janet said, taking Ryley’s arm and helping her inside. Ryley’s energy was almost entirely depleted.
“Should I call an ambulance?” The new girl called out.
“That’s not necessary. I’ve got her.” Janet helped Ryley down the hall and into her brother’s private quarters. She helped ease Ryley down onto the couch.
“Tell my brother I sent Curtis Jones home.”
Those were the last words she spoke before her entire world tunneled into darkness.
Chapter 12
Logan Bane
Bane pulled up to the police station he’d once thought of as his home away from home. His brothers in arms had turned their back on him two years ago when they’d thought he was on the take. He hadn’t been then, but things had changed. He no longer held allegiances with anyone. It was better that way. Safer.
He got out of his car and hit the lock button before hurrying across the street. They’d wanted to question him about the accountant. He knew this day was coming, and it was only a matter of time. Too many people had seen the them fighting.
Tucker St. James promised his sister would work fast. Logan was keeping his fingers crossed.
He pulled the door open when the same chill surrounded him from the diner. Had Ryley sent her ghost to follow him? Or was he losing his mind, too? Both were viable options.
He headed for the attending officer behind the bulletproof glass. The brunette smiled as he approached. Logan had known her intimately a time or two during his career wearing the badge.
“Logan. Well, isn’t this a nice surprise.” She smiled and batted her eyes.
“It’s good to see you, Jenna. It’s been a while.”
She leaned in and gave him a saucy grin. “We can change that.”
He dropped his gaze to her lips. “As tempting as that is, I’m here to be questioned about a murder. Save your reputation and pretend you don’t remember me.”
“Hard to forget those steamy nights.” She winked and picked up the phone, hitting an extension. “Logan Bane is here to see you.”
“Right. I’ll send him into interrogation room one,” Jenna said before hanging up. She buzzed the door, and he pulled it open. “You know the way, right?”
He tapped the counter in passing. “I think I can find it.”
“You were good at finding things,” she said and turned back to the window because someone else entered the station.
Detective Jake Crews was waiting in front of the interrogation room door with a file clutched to his chest. “Harassing the staff, or arranging another date?”
“I’ve got my eye on someone a bit more interesting. Did you know Ryley eats dinner for breakfast? Fascinating woman.”
Crews narrowed his eyes, but only for a second before an inscrutable mask slipped over his face. “Yeah, well, if I were interested, which I’m not, then I won’t have to wait long to make my move once I arrest you for murder.”
“Murder,” Logan said, taking a seat at the table with his back to the glass. “You must need a refresher on how to do your job if I’m the best suspect you have.”
Crews gestured to the other seat facing the glass and waited for Logan to switch before settling into his own. The air between them was thick as smoke from a fire. They’d been best friends once years ago, but those days were long gone.
“We have an eye witness who claims you were fighting with the suspect.”
“And?” Logan asked.
“And the witness said that Curtis Jones got in a punch or two,” Crews said with a smirk. “Care to lift your shirt and show me the bruise he left?”
Logan shoved his chair back. It screeched across the floor as he rose. He lifted his shirt to show the yellowing bruise. “He hit me and then took off. Did your witness tell you that, too?”
Crews shifted his gaze from the bruise to the tattoo. It was a silent reminder of the anger and rage that stood between them. Crews didn’t answer. “Why were you after the guy? Who is your client?”
“Afraid I can’t answer that.” Logan retook his seat.
“Where were you the night of April nineteenth at two AM?”
“In bed with an ice pack on my ribs.”
“Can anyone corroborate your alibi?”
Logan shook his head. “Nope. Afraid not.”
“Sit tight. You know the drill. I want pictures of the evidence,” Crews said.
The door opened, and Jenna poked her head in. She smiled at Logan.
“What, Jenna?” Crews clipped.
“Right.” A blush crept up the woman’s cheeks. “The woman you brought in last night is back. Only it isn’t about breaking into your mother’s house. She has information about Curtis Jones.”
“Thanks. Tell her I’ll be with her shortly,” Crews said and waited for the door to close. He rested his palms on the table. “What is your relationship with Ryley St. James? Is she here to provide an alibi?”
“You arrested her for breaking into your mother’s house?” Logan let out a full belly laugh that filled the room. “I guess I don’t have to worry about which one of us has the upper hand on landing that date. I should be thanking you.”
Chapter 13
Jake Crews
Crews left Logan in interrogation for the forensic guys to take pictures of the bruises before letting him go. Crews needed
more evidence before he could ever put Logan behind bars. Every piece of circumstantial evidence counted, and a fight between him and the deceased was another nail in the guy’s coffin.
Ryley St. James was waiting in the lobby. She was nursing an orange juice. Her face was paler than the day before. He crossed the distance to where she’d been sitting. She stood as he approached.
“What can I do for you, Ms. St. James?” he asked, stopping in front of her.
“I can provide proof that Logan Bane didn’t kill Curtis Jones.”
“And did a ghost tell you that or did you see it yourself?” Jake asked.
“Yes, and yes. Detective Crews, I know where there’s proof.” Ryley crossed her arms over her chest. “This is as close to a silver platter as I’ll ever give you. If you’re interested, you can drive, or I’ll go get it myself and deliver it to the media. Your call.”
Was she for real? Ryley turned and walked out of the building, leaving Jake behind. He followed her out of the building and into the parking lot. She was looking at the motor pool of cars before she turned and headed in the right direction, stopping at Jake’s SUV.
“You must have remembered which one was mine from last night.” He hit the fob, unlocking the door. She climbed into the passenger seat and buckled her seat belt. “I’m afraid we’re going to have to make this quick. I’m meeting your mother in two hours.”
A dig if ever she meant to make one. Jake hadn’t been able to talk his mother out of this crazy idea that Ryley was helping her instead of running some kind of con.
Jake refrained from arguing about it anymore. He’d talked to his mother last night, and she’d confirmed Ryley had permission to be in the house. She’d also confirmed that Ryley refused to take any money, claiming it was a friend helping a friend, and had asked Jake to back off.
He wouldn’t, but he’d be there to pick up the pieces when it was over. He didn’t believe in the afterlife, and he didn’t believe his mom was being stalked. Years of giving therapy to all kinds of crazies might have chipped away at her mind. He’d tried last year to talk her into retirement. She’d done her share for the community.
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