A Ghostly Dare

by Zoey Kane

  “That’s too bad,” she uttered softly. “What a terrible man.”

  They grabbed each other in desperation, their lips mashing together in an explosively hot kiss.

  EIGHTEEN

  “What on earth are you doing?!” Penny said to Spike in horror.

  The old man was brandishing his knife in Claire’s direction, who was frozen in fear. “You’re a lovely young woman, sweetheart, but someone’s not telling the truth. Now be a good girl and tell us where the treasure is.”

  Porsha stared him down in concern and Aloise was ducking against the couch. The Kanes glanced at each other in worry. Penny spread herself across both Zoey and Claire and said, “Put that down, Uncle. You’re not thinking straight.”

  Theona piped in. “I have zhe treasure!”

  All eyes shifted to her in surprise.

  “I didn’t know zhat I had it, but now I do.” She clasped her hands together. “All of zhe framed photos are up in my bedroom, stacked beside zhe wall. I was gathering zhem as mementos, since nobody else seemed to care about such items.”

  Everyone eyed each other with anticipation. With a twitching forward of Porsha’s boot, there was a mad dash for upstairs. Theona wouldn’t be able to keep up, so she simply shook her head in disapproval. She took a seat beside Aloise and smoothed her skirt over her lap.

  The Kanes didn’t care if they came in last in the race. The treasure was never theirs to be had. Still, adrenaline coursed through them in excitement as they ran behind everybody. Who would get to the fortune first? As they ran down the hall, Theona’s door suddenly opened and out stepped Mr. Werner, holding a picture of the MerriWeather ship… and a gun.

  Everybody came to a sudden halt, their lights shining on the thief. “Mr. Werner?” Zoey and Claire said in unison, from the back of the group.

  “Yeah, it’s me,” he said with a calm smile. “I came back to claim mine. The old hag didn’t really think I was going to wait for her to die to get payment, did she?”

  “Well, she is dead!” Porsha said like she wanted to spit on him. “And you are so low.”

  The lawyer guffawed. “Oh, please. All of you have the same motive as me. Greed. Now Mavis knows none of you are worthy of the treasure, and since I found it first, I’m declaring it as mine.”

  “You can’t do that,” Penny said, her fists clenching at her sides. “We’ll tell the cops. You’ll get arrested. You’ll never work another day in your life as a lawyer!”

  “No, I have a plan. And all of you are going to go along with it, because my gun here says so.” He paused, looking at Spike. “Drop the machete, Grandpa! And give it a kick over in that direction.” He pointed with the hand that wasn’t holding the gun.

  “Doesn’t that beat all,” Spike said in resignation, tossing it.

  Zoey thought of her own gun, but held back, remembering patience is a virtue. “What’s your plan?” she asked.

  “First, toss your cell phones over to me.”

  Spike’s clattered to the ground first, followed by both Penny’s and Porsha’s. Claire pouted, staring longingly at her iPhone. “Let it go, sweetie,” Zoey said, sliding her own over to the thief.

  Claire kissed its champagne-colored case and reluctantly slid it on over, too.

  “Good,” Mr. Werner said with another calm smile.

  “I’m so disappointed in you,” Zoey said.

  He seemed only mildly surprised by the declaration. “Now why is that? You don’t know me from Adam.”

  “Because, as Penny said, you’re not an heir, and only have ten percent interest in any treasure. If that is even true. If any of your claims are true.”

  “Would you accept that it’s kinda fun to find treasure, so I thought I would participate in the hunt?”

  “No, because of this other reason. You know exactly where Mavis’s body is.”

  Claire’s big brown eyes looked at her mother in shock. It was all coming together, now.

  Still holding his gun steady, Mr. Werner asked, “What makes you think that?”

  “Because,” Zoey continued, “you killed her to have an opportunity to steal the whole thing for yourself.”

  “That’s quite the theory.” His pale eyebrows went up. “Sounds pretty good too… only, you underestimate me. I’m smarter than that. Got a perfect score on the bar exam.”

  Zoey tossed some strawberry-blond hair behind her shoulder with attitude. “Oh, yeah? Well, did you get a 4.2 GPA in high school, become a state champion track star, and then have the valedictorian title stolen from you by just ten points on one assignment?”

  “No,” he said, narrowing his eyes in confusion.

  “Neither did I!” Zoey said with big eyes. “Claire did.”

  “Mother,” Claire said with an embarrassed huff. “Now is not the time to brag about my scholarly achievements. Although, you forgot to mention my Eugene O’Neill Award for poetry.”

  “Oh, that’s right,” Zoey said.

  “And the fact that I also graduated college with straight A’s.”

  Mr. Werner cut in. “Enough. Nobody try and make a run for it, or I’ll shoot. And if I have a bad aim, I’ll kill one of your friends nearest to me. Understand?”

  Everyone nodded or said yes.

  “Okay then, you will all go with me up to the third level—ahead of me. No funny stuff! I’d rather keep you all alive with no injuries. Head on up those stairs!” He motioned with his gun to get going. “When we get to the landing, I want you to head to the room with the double doors. Remember I’m watching your every move.”

  Everyone quietly climbed the stairs without any sudden movements. All obediently entered the room to the left of the loft, the one with double doors. Finally, they turned to face their captor for further instruction, faces tight with stress and eyes wide with fear.

  Mr. Werner backed out, while closing the doors. “Does anyone doubt that I can shoot you down through closed doors?” They clicked shut. “No funny business!” he called through them.

  Taking his threat seriously, Zoey stepped to the side, away from the doors. She yelled out, “Werner! These doors don’t lock. Are we on our honor?”

  He laughed. “I’m not that stupid. Lawyer—remember?” The doorknobs jostled. “I am securely tying the doors together. I already had it set up, but thanks for asking.” His tone demonstrated pleasure in displaying his genius. “If anyone wants to run at the door to knock it down, that’s doubtful it could work. These old doors are solid. And, I could certainly hear you if you tried.”

  Spike eyed the ladies with a look of defeat.

  The knobs jostled one last time. Mr. Werner happily announced, “All done!” With a teasing tone, he added, “Talk amongst yourselves. Make big plans on how you’re all going to jump me together, tie me up, take turns beating me, and then call the police saying I fell down all three flights of stairs.” Soft footfalls retreated as he laughed. “Ah, you guys are so fun…”

  Only a minute must’ve gone by when there was shouting. “What have you done? Where is everyone?!”

  “That’s Gavier’s voice,” said old Uncle Spike.

  Werner’s response was a muffle.

  “I’ve got a gun, too,” Gavier threatened. “Don’t move.”

  Shots rang out. One-two-three-four-five. Then silence, silence, silence. A thud hit the door and there was a scratching and rattling at the door knobs. The hostages looked at each other, hoping for an explanation. Fear was in their eyes, not knowing what to expect. It felt like fight or flight.

  The double doors got just slightly pushed open with a creak. Flashlights aimed at the empty space between them in expectation. Penny’s bright beam of light shook from her scared hands. Nobody entered.

  All at once, the psychiatrist’s body pushed through the doors and crumpled to the floor. Blood trickled from his shoulder and down his dress shirt’s sleeve. He had been shot.

  “He got me,” Gavier said weakly.

  Everyone hovered around him in panic mode. “Lie
down,” Penny said. “We need to put pressure on your wound.”

  He obeyed. Taking in a fast breath, he said, “I threatened him with my gun, but he wasn’t scared at all. It was like he either didn’t believe my bluff or is a psychopath. Maybe both.”

  The Kanes sighed, looking at each other with knowledge. When the officers had ushered everyone out of the house, they had confided in Mr. Werner about the empty gun.

  “Where is he now?” Porsha asked. Her eyes darted back and forth, between the open doors and her cousin. She put pressure on his wound, and Penny helped.

  “I don’t know, but he’s out of bullets.” Sweat beaded across his hairline. “I thought I was going to die. He tried one last shot at me. Thankfully, it misfired. The hammer clicked against an empty chamber.”

  “Where’s Darla and BonBon?” Claire asked.

  “I don’t know exactly,” he said with concern in his nasally voice. “I told them to stay downstairs, since I heard a commotion up here.”

  “What were you doing back here?” she continued asked.

  “What is this? An interrogation?” Gavier said. “Looking for the treasure. Like everyone else, I presume. We shouldn’t let the treasure go to waste.”

  “Mr. Werner was trying to make you seem guilty of murdering Mavis,” Zoey said, kneeling beside him. “He told me this morning about how you’d harassed his office regarding Mavis’s legal matters.”

  Uncle Spike took off T-shirt and passed it to Porsha. “Stop his blood with this.”

  Moaning a bit, Gavier responded to Zoey’s assertion. “I was worried. I came up here a couple of weeks ago, because after I’d heard about the stipulations of Aunt Mavis’s will, neither Werner nor Aunt Mavis were answering my calls. Now we see why, don’t we?”

  Zoey stood back up. “Okay, you folks are safer in here. Do what you can for Gavier.” She approached the doors, reached down and picked up the rope. “Tie yourselves in, using this. That will keep Werner out if he comes back upstairs.” She tossed it at Spike.

  Then she reached into her waistband holster and took out her gun. “I guess now is the right time for this.”

  Having made up her mind Zoey said, “Okay, I’m going,” cocking the first bullet into the chamber of her semi-automatic.

  “Not without me, Mom.” Claire stepped forward.

  “Oh, no.” Zoey shook her head in worry. “I don’t want you involved, and without a weapon.”

  Claire thrust an outstretched hand in Spike’s direction. “The machete.”

  “I gave it to the thief, remember?” The old man shook his head, anyway, looking at her like she was nuts.

  “Mom,” Claire dropped her hand, “you know in times past, there’ve been moments when I’ve helped rescue you.” She continued pleading her case. “But I promise I’ll stay mostly out of the way.”

  Penny and Porsha helped Gavier lie down comfortably, and put pressure on his wound.

  “All right, sweetie. Stay behind me and be on high alert. You are acting as an advisor only. That’s if we have time to talk.”

  Out the door they went.

  NINETEEN

  The Kanes slowly crept along the upper level’s circular hallway in what was mostly the dark. A creak sounded by the loft, the taped off room being the source. Caution tape dangled down to one side of the door. Milo was curiously hovering beside it, and occasionally pecking.

  “You think he’s in there?” Claire asked, staying closely behind her mother.

  “I guess we’ll see,” Zoey whispered back.

  They neared the door that was open a smidge. The bird flew in. The ladies peeked inside. Rows of small computer and TV screens lined a table, glowing eerily in the dark, each one showing a view of different rooms.

  The ladies looked at each other with confused curiosity. Holding the gun up with one hand, Zoey reached over to quietly push the door open. Werner stepped out, making them gasp in surprise. His eyes went big, seeing the gun that now pointed at his chest. “So you got out,” he said.

  “You know what’s going on,” Zoey said. “You can see us in your screens. You’ve been surveilling us.”

  “Me? Surveilling you? Of course not.” He smiled smugly, nodding toward the room. “Go on. Look for yourself.”

  The Kanes hesitated, not trusting him.

  “Where’s the treasure?” Claire asked, coming forward a step from behind her mother.

  “Treasure,” he said like it was the first time he heard of such a thing. “Oh, you mean the picture of that ship. It has nothing of value to it. I tore open the back and there was nothing. It’s on the floor in there. You can have a look for yourself.”

  “Claire, check his pants,” Zoey said, keeping the gun locked on his chest.

  Mr. Werner gave an amused smile. “This ought to be the highlight of my night.”

  Claire rolled her eyes, and very professionally felt around his slacks. She dipped her slender fingers into each pocket, and came up with a leather wallet, cell phone, and keys. “Nothing else,” she said.

  Keeping her gun aimed, Zoey said, “Where’s your gun?”

  “Gun?” he said. “What gun? I don’t have a gun.”

  “Stop playing games,” Claire said, smacking the back of his head.

  The lawyer’s eyes bugged and his nostrils flared. “I’m not playing any games.” With a tempered voice, he said, “You two, being the crazy and hormonal women that you are, came blazing into the estate with your guns, demanding the treasure. Once you found out there wasn’t actually any treasure, you got in a shootout battle with Mr. Constipaleon and shot the rest of Ms. Mervel’s family out of spite. I, on the other hand, am the lone survivor, and the hero.”

  He swiftly knocked the gun out of Zoey’s hand and it slid far across the hallway. There was a mad dash and scramble for it.

  They were soon in a tangle on the floor, the lawyer mostly lying across them. Claire’s hand was squeezed around the gun’s barrel that faced the wall. Mr. Werner’s had a vice-like grip on the handle. Zoey was trying her best to pry the madman’s fingers off it, one at a time. It wasn’t working too well.

  With a grunt, Mr. Werner said, “Listen, ladies, let’s be reasonable. Let’s not do anything hasty, right? I have the upper hand, since I’m the one mostly on top in this wrestle.”

  Still squeezing the barrel, Claire craned her neck and dug her teeth into his hand clamping the gun. He yelled out in pain. “Ah! Let go! Ow, ow, ow!”

  “Don’t let go, sweetie,” Zoey said with determination, although the weight of the man was crushing her ribs into the floor.

  Suddenly, Mr. Werner released the weapon and took off running for the stairs.

  Claire snatched up her mom’s steely little sidearm without a thought and dashed away. Zoey ran after her, not able to catch up. “Careful with that thing!” she called. “Don’t put your finger on the trigger, unless your target’s in sight!”

  “I see him all right,” Claire called back. A shot rang out.

  Zoey reached the head of the stairs and quickly descended behind them. Theona appeared, climbing up the stairs, tossing crystals. The lawyer flashed a fearful look at the spooky woman and then back at Claire who was closing in. He took a swift turn to the left, heading down the hall of rooms.

  Claire caught up to him. There was nowhere to go, anyway. They were at a dead end. “Track star, remember?” Claire said, rubbing it in his face. Her finger shook over the trigger.

  “I surrender!” He raised his hands high above his head. “You win, okay.”

  Zoey came up behind her daughter. “Good job.”

  The phones and machete still littered the hall. A call started ringing through to Penny’s phone. As Zoey reached down to grab the knife, she also picked up the cell. Everyone was quiet as she answered it. “Hello?”

  “Hi, Penny!” the urgent female voice said. “Watch out! Mitch Werner, the lawyer, is going to steal the treasure!”

  “B.B., is that you? This is Zoey Kane.”

  �
�Oh, Zoey!” B.B. said. “Is everything okay?”

  “Yes, we’ve got him trapped.” She kept her eyes fixed on the situation before her. “Call the police for us. Have them hurry over to arrest him.”

  The madman suddenly charged at Claire, like an angry bull. BANG. The gunshot was deafening, echoing in the dark hallway.

  “Tell them to bring an ambulance,” Zoey said to B.B. “And maybe a body bag.”

  Mr. Werner lay on the ground, pressing his bowels. Blood seeped through his fingers. “Ohhh,” he moaned.

  Claire’s hands uncontrollably shook as she aimed it down at his crumpled form. “You just had to go the extra mile, by making another stupid move. That’s every criminal’s mistake. Didn’t you learn that from being a defense attorney?” she said. “Now you have a hospital stay on top of jail time… if you don’t die first.”

  He just moaned in response.

  Zoey opened the door to Mr. Proctor’s bedroom. “Come slide on in here,” Zoey ordered. “You can do it.”

  Slowly, he wormed his way inside, hate filling his eyes. Zoey shut the door and stuck the machete into the framing, locking him securely away.

  “I just love your knife trick,” Claire said. “Here, take your gun back, please.” She held it out with a pale and weary expression.

  The door opened. Mr. Werner held on to the knob, looking up at them. “Hm, I’m not locked in,” he mused.

  “Dang it,” Zoey said, eyeing the machete in disappointment. “I guess it depends on which way the door swings open.”

  TWENTY

  The Kanes tied Mr. Werner to the bed with a sheet. There were cheers all around the house once Zoey called out, declaring victory. “And the police are on their way!” she added.

  Penny, Porsha and Spike filed out of their double-door hostage room, the LED flashlight happily beaming their path to the head of the stairs. Gavier had the stamina enough to follow behind, Spike’s T-shirt knotted around his shoulder. The Kanes joined them at the second-story landing.

  Theona scrambled to pick up her crystals from various steps below, warning them of slipping and falling. As they entered the sitting area, Darla popped up from behind the sofa, with little BonBon beside her. “Oh, Gavier!” the big woman called out in concern. She waddled over to him and gave a great big hug.