5 The Ghosts in the Audience

by SUE FINEMAN

  Sheryl’s mouth moved, but nothing came out. Steffen backed up a step and watched her try to regain her composure. She thought Ginny came from a poor farming family. As if that would matter to him. He didn’t care if Ginny was rich or poor. He loved her and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

  “Get the hell out of here,” said Charlie, “and don’t come back.”

  Andy and Charlie escorted Sheryl and Carson to his car and Steffen stood on the front porch and watched them drive away.

  Charlie’s hand on Steffen’s shoulder told him Ginny’s brothers were on his side. “I hate women who pull that kind of crap, but she’s one hot babe.”

  “You can have her.”

  “No, thanks. I’ve got my own hot babe.”

  Steffen took a few deep breaths to get his concentration back, then walked to the fireplace and continued the show. “I want to apologize for the delay and thank you for your patience.”

  “So, is she pregnant?” a man called out.

  Steffen shook his head. “No. I broke up with her a few months ago and she didn’t like it, especially when she learned I’d inherited my grandfather’s estate.”

  “Sounds like my ex-wife,” he said. “She ran off with some rich guy. He can have her. She’s pretty, but that’s all she’s got going for her.”

  Steffen had a vision of a pretty redhead crying and begging to come back. “She has red hair, and yes, she’s pretty. But the guy she was with dumped her for another woman and you refused to take her back.”

  “Yep. I got the kids and the house. All she’s got left is her looks.”

  “Her looks will fade,” an older man said.

  Steffen looked at the man whose wife left him and saw his future. “You’ll find another woman, someone who will be faithful, who’ll love you and your kids.”

  “Will she have red hair?” he asked, and soft laughter filled the room.

  Smiling, Steffen said, “No, she’s a pretty brunette.”

  One by one, he spoke with the audience members, until he reached Roland and Phoebe. “Ah, the happy newlyweds. They’re just back from their honeymoon.”

  Applause filled the room, and Phoebe blushed.

  “Roland, you’ll open your own office soon, and your pretty wife will help you get it established. Your first customer will be someone you know. Me.”

  Roland smiled. Andy had asked him to take over his accounting needs when his CPA retired at the end of the summer. Charlie was using the same CPA, and so was Billy. The Kane family businesses alone were enough to get a new practice off to a good start. Now Steffen was offering his business, too. “I would be honored to work with you, Steffen.”

  Steffen moved on to Phoebe. “I know you’ve had some major losses in your life lately, but your parents are both watching over you. They want you to have a happy life with Roland. When the sadness descends, as it will from time to time, talk to them. They’ll send butterflies and the scent of roses to tell you they’re near.”

  “Are they all right now?”

  “Yes. Your father passed quickly, but God had restored his body, and your mother’s pain is gone. She’s at peace now. They’re both at peace.”

  “Thank you, Steffen.”

  He moved on to a mother who’d lost her child to cancer and a grandmother who asked about a health problem, and then a woman with worry in her eyes asked, “Where is my son? He disappeared two months ago, and we can’t find him.”

  Steffen took her hand. In touching her, he sensed her anguish. The police detective she’d spoken with said her son was a runaway, but she feared for his life. “Did you bring something of his, so I can get a reading?”

  She handed him a worn baseball cap. Steffen held it and felt the boy’s presence. The kid had been drugged and raped repeatedly over several days. When the pedophile finished with him, he killed the boy and dumped his body in an old well outside town. But he couldn’t tell her that in front of all of these people. Holding the cap, he said, “His name is Cory, and he was thirteen on his last birthday.”

  The woman’s face brightened. “Yes.”

  “Would you stay until the show is over? This might take some time.”

  “Yes, of course.”

  He wanted to ask her the name of the police detective she’d spoken with, but he didn’t need to ask. Mark Montgomery’s hands were all over this. If he’d looked for the kid right away, he might still be alive. But Mark probably figured a thirteen-year-old boy who wasn’t doing well in school got mixed up with the wrong crowd and left home on his own.

  He finished talking with each audience member, then did a few psychic tricks, like telling a man what he had in his pocket and starting a fire in the big stone fireplace without using a match. Then he ended the show.

  As the room emptied out, he wondered what had happened to Ginny. He hadn’t seen her tonight, but he’d felt her presence and knew she was upset. At work, she was strong and in control, but when she was reminded of the baby she’d lost, that strength wavered.

  Steffen spent several minutes talking with the woman who’d lost her son, getting more details about the search she and her family had conducted. He felt her pain, but he couldn’t tell her how her son died. The police would have to break the news to her after they found his body.

  She gazed into his eyes. “Do you know what happened to Cory?”

  “I see some things the police can check into, people he was with when he disappeared, and locations. I’ll speak with the police tonight, and they can take it from there.”

  She stood and hugged him. “Thank you so much for your help.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Donovan walked over. “Tough one?”

  “Yeah. I hope I’m wrong.”

  “He’s dead?”

  Steffen nodded. “Buried in an old well on a farm. I’ll give Ginny the information I have and let her follow up. Where is she?”

  “She left after that woman’s tantrum.”

  “She heard it all?”

  Donovan nodded.

  Damn! Time to go home and try to undo the damage.

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  Ginny curled in a ball on the sofa. Steffen had a choice to make – Sheryl and kids, or a police detective who may or may not be able to give him the family he wanted. Sheryl was a beautiful woman, but he didn’t love her. Did he? No, of course not.

  Two hours later, after a lot of soul-searching, she knew she could never love another man as much as she loved Steffen. But if he’d be happier with another woman, she’d set him free.

  The front door opened, and he called, “Ginny?”

  “In the living room.” She watched him cross the room and sit on the floor in front of her.

  “Are you going back to Chicago with Sheryl?”

  “No. God, no! I can’t stand the sight of her. She wormed her way into the condo the other night and I had to throw her out. She and Carson seem to think everything I own belongs to them.” He plowed his hand through his hair. “I took Carson out of my will and told Sheryl to get lost.”

  “She’ll give you babies.”

  “No, she won’t. But you will.”

  She sat up and shook her head. “I’m not sure about that.”

  “I am. I’m psychic, remember?”

  A smile pulled at her lips. “I remember.”

  He reached up and gently touched her face. “I can see the future, and I see babies in our future. First, a boy we’ll call Kane. That’s a good doctor name, isn’t it?”

  She laughed. “Kane Marchand sounds more like a cop to me, and Dad would love it.”

  He moved to the sofa to sit beside her. “Honey, you know I come with baggage.”

  “Phillip?”

  He nodded. “I asked Andy to design a guest cottage for the side of the property, but at first, he needs to live with us. He’ll need to know someone is watching to make sure he doesn’t fall into old habits. When the condo sells, Jerry plans to move to River Valley. I promised him I’d find him a good
place to live. And then there are the kids like Sarah that need temporary homes.”

  She gazed deeply into his eyes. “You’re a compassionate man, Steffen Marchand. That’s one reason I love you so much.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  She kissed him. “And I lust after your sexy body.”

  He grinned. “You want to go upstairs with me?”

  “I thought you’d never ask.”

  “Speaking of asking…”

  “Yes,” she said. “My answer is yes.”

  Epilogue

  Three days later, as the sun set over the horizon, police pulled a young boy’s body from an abandoned well on a big farm west of town. Early the next morning, Ginny and her team arrested a man who’d worked on that farm at one time, a known sexual predator, a pedophile who preferred boys.

  Later that day, she sat with Cory’s anxious mother and broke the news. “Steffen Marchand’s visions helped us find a body we believe is your son. We’ll do DNA testing to confirm his identity, but the clothes you described he was wearing match those found on the body, and the hair samples we took from his hairbrush also match. We arrested a man this morning, and if I have anything to say about it, he’ll never be free to harm another child.”

  As the mother sobbed, Ginny added, “I’m so sorry. Steffen said to tell you Cory is at peace now. He drops coins on the floor to tell you he’s here.”

  Ginny left the victim’s home with a heavy heart. She hated these visits, but they were a necessary part of the job. Cory’s mother could bury her son and try to move on with her life, but it wouldn’t be easy. It never was when parents lost a child.

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  Two weeks later, Steffen signed the papers on his new home. He moved a few pieces of furniture and art and the contents of Joseph’s study from the condo in Chicago, and Kayla helped them furnish the empty rooms and put things in order. Sarah helped, too. A few days later, Steffen and Ginny moved in.

  Jerry picked Phillip up from the rehab center and put him on a plane to Columbus. Steffen brought him home and settled him in one of the guest rooms upstairs. Ginny wasn’t sure she wanted a drug addict living with her, but before long, she stopped thinking of him that way. He was Steffen’s cousin, a man who’d taken a few wrong turns in life. Phillip took care of the lawn and flowers and did his share of the cooking and household chores. In some ways, he reminded her of Trevor, the uncle who wasn’t really an uncle, the man who’d lived with her family until he passed away a few years ago.

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  Steffen finalized the sale of the Ballery building. The appraisal came in at one hundred and sixty million, ten million more than he expected. Ballery willingly paid the price.

  Andy had already begun work on Steffen’s projects, the guest house for Phillip and a club where he could put on shows, a place where others could showcase their talent. That extra ten million would more than pay for the construction costs. What money he had left would finance Steffen’s other project, a youth shelter for kids like Sarah and Cory, a safe place to escape the streets or an uncomfortable family situation.

  Steffen wanted to sell the condo and all the fancy furniture and artwork Joseph and Carolyn had accumulated over the years. Jerry agreed to stay there until the condo sold. He interviewed real estate agents and selected one, a woman who specialized in high-end residential property. She faxed the listing agreement to Steffen and he signed it. The list price was just under six million. The appraisals Jerry had gotten on the furnishings added another million.

  One by one, Steffen would rid himself of the property he owned in Chicago. He no longer lived there. He lived in River Valley, Ohio, with the police detective he loved.

  I hope you enjoyed the The Ghosts in the Audience. Please turn the page for an excerpt of my upcoming romantic suspense tale Nightmare in the Woods.

  I’d like to tell you about my next book, a romantic suspense called Nightmare in the Woods. Caution! You might not want to read this one before bed.

  In searching for a friend’s remote cabin in the Oregon woods, Tess Dunlap gets hopelessly lost. She stops at another cabin to ask for directions and steps into a living nightmare. The crazy man who lives there believes God sent Tess to him to be his wife, and he won’t let her leave. He forces her to watch violent movies with him and then emulates what he sees on the screen, with her as his victim.

  When the battered and bruised woman escapes and finds her way to John Paul Thornton’s cabin, he risks his life to get her to safety. He’s compassionate and funny and quickly becomes a good friend, the one person Tess feels she can rely on. Until she discovers what he does for a living.

  John has some serious issues of his own to confront, but there’s a more urgent problem to deal with first. The crazy man hasn’t given up. He’s coming after Tess.

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  NIGHTMARE IN THE WOODS

  by

  Sue Fineman

  Chapter One

  “Get your ass in here, Tess,” Larry called. “Bring me another beer.”

  She took the can into the living room of the dingy cabin and tried to retreat to the kitchen, but Larry grabbed her wrist and pulled her down beside him on the sagging sofa. His fingers dug into her already bruised flesh, but she didn’t dare try to pull away.

  “Watch the movie with me.”

  “All right.” As if she had a choice.

  The movie began and bloody images of a man beating and kicking another man filled the screen. She closed her eyes. Larry’s favorite movie sent cold terror skittering down her spine.

  He grabbed her face and squeezed. “Open your eyes, dammit. Watch the movie.”

  Her eyes snapped open and her heart pounded with terror. The last time Larry watched this movie, it incited him to beat her like the man on the screen beat his victim. She took a deep breath and tried to suck up her courage. She’d need it tonight.

  “Larry, would you like me to make you some popcorn to go with your beer?”

  “Okay.”

  She stood and he pinched her bottom, twisting his fingers to make it hurt more. As if she didn’t hurt enough already. Her eyes filled with tears from the stinging pain, but she didn’t cry out. If she did, he’d hurt her more.

  She had to get out of here. Now. While she could still move. If she didn’t get away from Larry tonight, she’d die in this place.

  Tess put the big iron skillet on the stove, turned the burner on high, and added oil and popcorn. As the popcorn sizzled, she poured oil all over the kitchen floor and backed toward the outside door, praying that the oil and flying popcorn would slow him down enough for her to get away.

  She opened the door, slipped out, and closed it quietly behind her.

  And ran for her life.

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  Larry heard the popcorn sizzle, then a cold breeze hit him. Damn bitch had opened the door. He jumped to his feet and ran into the kitchen, but his feet slid out from under him and he landed flat on his back, with hot popcorn raining down on him. Seething with anger and determined to punish her for trying to escape again, he pushed himself to his feet and turned the stove off. And then he went after Tess.

  Where in the hell had the damn bitch gone this time? Shit! He caught her the last time she pulled a stunt like this, and he’d catch her this time, too. Nobody knew this area better then he did.

  The only other cabin on this road was a good mile away, at the end of the road. Would she go there? Where else? The only other houses within miles were on the other side of the hill or back toward town, and the stupid bitch wouldn’t know how to get there.

  The temperature outside had dropped, and with snow in the forecast, she wouldn’t get far.

  You belong to me, bitch. When he caught her, he’d have to start the training process all over again.

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  Tess huddled behind a big tree near the dirt road and watched the spotlight from Larry’s car light up the woods around her. So close. Too close. If she breathed too deeply, her breath would create a fog in the fr
osty air and he’d see it. Hot tears ran down her cheeks and turned icy cold before they reached her chin.

  Please, God, don’t let him find me.

  The car eased forward and the big spotlight scanned the next section of woods. She stayed frozen in place until Larry’s car moved down the road and out of sight.

  The only other cabin out here that she knew of was back the other way. Did she dare double back and go past Larry’s cabin? She couldn’t walk down the road without leaving footprints in the frost. Her socks had already frozen to her feet and her toes had gone numb. Larry burned her shoes last week, the day she got lost looking for her friend’s cabin. She didn’t know what he’d done with her coat.

  Tess inched her way through the frosty bushes back toward Larry’s cabin, listening for his car. It was so quiet out here in the woods, she could hear the beat of her heart.

  She’d crept past Larry’s cabin when she heard his car coming back. Ducking behind dense bushes, she stayed on her hands and knees, waiting and praying he’d pass on by. The spotlight played on the other side of the road this time.

  If he found her and she lived through it, he’d keep her chained up all the time, not just at night and when he couldn’t watch her. She’d rather freeze to death out here in the woods than endure another torture session in that cabin.

  Something furry rubbed against her hand. She gasped and yanked her hand back. The animal purred, and Tess let out a breath. Just a cat.

  As Larry drove down the road past the cabin, Tess moved steadily through the bushes, stepping mostly on a slippery cushion of leaves and fir needles. Twigs snapped and jabbed her feet, but she didn’t dare stop. She had to keep going and find shelter. Her body grew numb from the cold, and her limbs felt like stiff, heavy pieces of wood. She pushed ahead, trying to keep an eye on the road on her right. Occasionally the moon came out, lighting her way, but the clouds grew thicker. Probably snow clouds.