When I stepped out into the night air, I inhaled the cool, crisp scent. Stars tried to peek out from behind the clouds, but I didn’t think they would win tonight. At least it wasn’t raining.
Few cars or people were out and about as I headed down the sidewalk. The thought crossed my mind that maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to be walking home alone. After all, there was an unsolved murder in town. It could’ve been anyone and they could be walking down the street at any moment. Then again, the officials always looked to the boyfriend first, right? There was a reason they did that. Most of the time the killer was someone the murder victim knew.
I tried to pick up the pace so that I could get home quicker. Just then my cell phone rang and I jumped. Yes, I was slightly on edge. As I released a deep breath, I pulled the phone out of my pocket and answered.
“Hi, Rip, it’s Crystal,” she said.
“Is everything okay?” I asked.
She sighed. “I just got back into my place. Honestly, I don’t know if I can go on living here.”
That was understandable. As I walked and talked I tried to ignore the strong sensation that I was being watched. Just a few more steps and I’d be home.
“I totally understand why you feel that way. You let me know if there’s anything I can do to help, okay?” I asked.
“Sure, I’ll let you know. Thank you for the offer. The reason I called was to let you know that I found a couple more books about hauntings in the living room. I must have missed them before.”
“You’ve been under a lot of stress, so it’s understandable why you would miss them,” I said.
“I never knew that Melissa left them there. They’re not library books, but you might want to check them out. The police didn’t take them, so I assume that I can bring them to you.”
“That would be great, thanks,” I said, as I reached my apartment’s front door.
What else would I discover? Would there be another story about the haunted house at Edgewood?
Chapter 7
The next morning I got up early. Sleep had been almost impossible for me since my thoughts were consumed with everything that had happened. I was looking forward to getting the books that Crystal had found. It might be nothing, but at least I could give them a look. Why had Melissa only left the two books in front of my place and the antique shop? Why not the other books? More than likely it was because they didn’t contain anything important.
The only significant thing I’d found in the two that she’d left was that the same location was featured. With any luck, Brannon and I would soon investigate the Edgewood place.
Yes, I was thinking ahead for the future. That wasn’t something I would have done just a few weeks ago. I guessed meeting Brannon had been a good thing for me. I wouldn’t tell Tammy that though. I still wanted to take things slow. Tammy’s motto was, Carpe diem. She believed I should jump in the deep end. No matter if I could swim or not.
But back to the haunted house at Edgewood that I was currently interested in. I needed to ask around to see if anyone knew any details about this place. Someone had to have more information.
I stepped out into the bright sunshine and headed down the sidewalk. The strange sensation that someone was following me surrounded me. I wondered if some of the ghosts had popped up again. That was usually the way I felt when one of them was around.
As I headed down the sidewalk, I glanced to my left and happened to notice the new book store. Sadly the old one had recently closed and this store had stepped right in to take its place. I’d known that a new book store was coming to town, but I hadn’t known when it would be open. The little green and brown wooden sign in the front window said that it was open now, so I had to stop in. There was no way I could pass a bookstore without going inside, and I had a little time before I had to be at work. I figured I could just pop in for a quick look around.
I stepped into the store and inhaled the rich scent of books. No matter if they were new or old I never got tired of the smell. I was the only one there—not even an employee was in sight. They probably hadn’t expected customers so early.
The place was small and crammed full of books, but it was laid out nicely and each section was labeled so that everything could be easily found. I knew which area I wanted to go to right away. There probably wasn’t anything that I hadn’t seen before, but I had to look anyway. I made my way down the center aisle, looking for the right section. I turned to my left, went down that aisle, and spotted it at the back of the store.
I hurried my steps so that I would have time to look over all the books before heading to the library. The store had quite a selection of books on hauntings and ghosts, so that was a pleasant surprise. Now if only I could find something that I hadn’t read already. I scanned the section looking for a book on Kentucky hauntings. I knew it would be a long shot.
As I scanned the titles, I paused. There was one that I didn’t recognize. I reached out and pulled the book from the shelf. I quickly leafed through the pages and found that the haunted house in Edgewood wasn’t in this book, much to my disappointment. But I decided to get it anyway. It might have valuable information for future haunted house investigations. I tucked the book under my arm and headed toward the register, hoping to find someone to pay for my purchase.
Movement caught my attention so I spun around. That was when I saw a guy at the back of the bookstore. Apparently, he worked here. Oddly, it was the guy who had been at the library. The one who had knocked over all the books. If he worked at the bookstore, then he should be able to find whatever book he wanted on that embarrassing subject. This made me even more curious to find out what he’d been looking for. What book could we possibly have at the library that he couldn’t find here at the new book store?
When he locked eyes with me, he looked like a deer caught in headlights. Apparently he recognized me right away. He didn’t speak though, and he sort of looked as if he might throw up. I couldn’t believe he worked in retail. He was so awkward.
“Hello. I want to purchase this book.” I waved the book.
He really needed to work on his customer service skills.
“Okay,” he mumbled and then headed toward the front of the store.
I doubted I would get much information out of this guy ever.
As he ambled by, I headed toward the front of the store after him. I would definitely ask him questions, even though I doubted he would answer.
We reached the counter and I placed the book down. He peered down at the cover and then up at me. He had a strange look on his face, as if he had seen a ghost. No need to worry. The book wasn’t going to come to life. The ghosts wouldn’t come out of the pages and scare him. He almost acted as if he was afraid to touch it. Yes, this guy was a strange one.
After a couple seconds, he rang up the book and I handed him my credit card.
“So, did you ever find that book you were looking for at the library?” I asked. “It seems as if you could find it here with all of these books. Plus you have access to order any book you want.”
He shook his head, and remained silent. Okay, this was going even worse than I had imagined. After placing the book into a bag, he handed it to me with a giant shove. I guessed that was my signal to get out.
“Like I said before, I can help you find the book if you want.” I forced a smile.
Maybe it wasn’t a new one he was looking for—it was out of print.
For a moment he looked as if he wanted to talk, but for some reason he was being tight-lipped. Of course I couldn’t make him talk to me. Plus, I needed to get to work, so I’d have to let it go. At least I knew where he worked now. And by the name tag on the shirt I knew that his name was Jaden. Surely someone in town could tell me his story. I picked up the bag and thanked Jaden. I knew that he was relieved to see me step out the door.
Other customers entered as I left. A million things ran through my mind as I walked down the sidewalk. Mainly I was thinking about the books Melissa had left a
nd what message she might have been trying to give me. Plus, I thought about the woman I had seen at the tour. I wondered what had happened to the drunk boyfriend Bryce Hawkins. As soon as I got a chance I’d call Brannon and see if he would give me any details. There was always the possibility that a random person had attacked Melissa, but that was rare. That meant I had to look at the boyfriend closely, but I also needed to find out if anyone else in her life could have done this.
Finally I reached the library, stepping past the old cemetery and hoping not to see anything too spooky. Annie would be waiting for me and Jane Austen too. Tammy and Crystal were coming in a little early today, so I knew that they would already be inside. When I walked in Crystal was over in the romance section and Tammy was behind the reference desk. Tammy looked up and waved. Jane Austen popped up as if she had been waiting by the front door for me. She meowed and rubbed her face against my leg.
“Hi, Jane, do you want a treat?” I rubbed her head.
She meowed again.
Annie was standing over by the nearby stacks. She was wringing her hands and I got a ding on my cell phone. I already had it in my hand because I’d known she would text as soon as I walked through the door.
Are you safe? Did anything else happen last night?
I knew she was worried about this recent murder.
“Nothing much happened,” I said.
You’re not just telling me that, are you?
I avoided eye contact with Annie. “Of course not.” I wasn’t a very good liar.
Crystal came from the back of the library. “I brought the books,” she said. “I hope you can figure out something from them.”
Crystal moved around the counter and reached into her bag. She pulled out two books. I took them and glanced at the covers. They appeared to be older, from the Seventies and Eighties. Definitely nothing we had in the library anymore.
“Thanks, Crystal. I have to take a look at them later tonight. I’ll let you know if I find anything interesting.”
She looked optimistic and I hoped that I could give her some kind of resolution. We needed to find answers for Crystal and Melissa. I knew that Crystal was staying with her friend, but she wouldn’t be able to do that forever. Maybe if we found the killer she would be able to go back to her apartment and feel safe living there.
“Rip, you have a call.” Tammy pointed at the phone. As I picked up the phone Tammy mouthed, “It’s Brannon.”
I knew she was happy about that. What she wouldn’t be happy with was that Brannon and I were planning another investigation. Tammy didn’t like it when I went on investigations. She thought it was unsafe.
“Ripley Van Raden. May I help you?”
“Good news,” Brannon said.
My stomach did a little dance when I heard Brannon’s voice.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“I got us in to investigate the house.” Excitement filled his voice.
I’d known if anyone could do it, Brannon would. “That’s fantastic. When do we go?” I leaned to my left, hoping Tammy wouldn’t hear the conversation.
“Day after tomorrow. If that’s okay with you?” Brannon asked.
“That should be fine.” My nerves danced a little more. It was exciting, but scary at the same time. I didn’t know what we would encounter.
After I said goodbye to Brannon, Tammy was waiting for me when I hung up. She drummed her fingers against the counter.
“Let me guess, another investigation?” she asked with her hand on her hip.
I just smiled.
“Just be careful.” She grabbed a stack of books.
***
As I walked down the sidewalk I found myself distracted. I almost missed the turn down the alleyway toward the cemetery.
I’d already picked up the flashlights and was now headed to the graveyard’s entrance. When I was a few steps away, I spotted Mrs. Clatterbuck waiting for me at the gate. Did she have a ghost watch or something? How did she know it was time for me to arrive?
“What do you want, Mrs. Clatterbuck?” I asked.
She pointed her bony finger at me. “There have been some strange and unwelcome spirits roaming around the cemetery and you must get rid of them.”
“I’m afraid I haven’t seen any strange spirits.”
There were always strange spirits around in my opinion, but I didn’t want to get her excited, so I kept my mouth shut.
She narrowed her dark eyes. “Just see that you get rid of them.”
Noise coming from the alley caught my attention I turned around. Jaden, the guy from the bookstore, was headed toward me. What was he doing here?
Just then a few other people turned the corner and headed down the alleyway too. Now I wouldn’t get a chance to talk to him before the tour. Was he going to take the tour as well? It looked that way, since he stood with the rest of the group, gathered around waiting for me to say something.
One other person appeared. She was standing beside Jaden. The mystery woman had returned. Was she with Jaden?
Chapter 8
This time I decided to confront her before she could get away. “Excuse me,” I said.
The group turned and looked in her direction, then looked at me again. By the frowns on their faces, they were perplexed.
“You’ve been on the tour a couple of times now. Is there something wrong?” I asked, trying to sound professional.
The group turned around again and looked in the direction of the mystery woman. Of course everyone seemed totally confused. They probably wondered why I was confronting this woman. This would make them think twice before taking the tour again.
She looked at me blankly, her eyes wide, as if she was a little terrified. I hadn’t meant to upset her. I was just curious why she was following me.
Then she turned and ran. It wasn’t just a slow jog either. It was a sprint, as if she wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. I felt bad if I had terrified her that much. Yeah, I would look bad to the other tour-goers too. They probably thought that I was scaring away customers on purpose.
I asked Jaden, “Do you know her?”
After all, it looked as if they were standing together. He just looked at me and shook his head as if he had no idea what I was talking about.
“I don’t know what she’s talking about,” he mumbled.
Why was everyone acting so clueless?
The tour-goers seemed shocked that I had talked to her before the tour had even started. But I hadn’t wanted to let her get away. My plan to question her hadn’t worked though. I needed to just get this tour underway and forget about the strange woman. When I got a chance I’d tell Brannon about her. Maybe she would finally lose interest and stop doing that.
“Welcome to Devil’s Moon Haunted Tour,” I said.
Starting the tour made me feel better. The stories gave me comfort. I knew my job and I thought I was good at it. Now I would just act as if nothing was wrong. Everyone would forget about what had happened. At least I hoped that was the case.
We made our way through town to the usual spots. I even took the group to the new location, Jill’s shop, A Little Bit of Kentucky. A couple of cold spots popped up, so it seemed as if everyone was happy with the tour tonight, even if no ghosts had appeared. The mysterious woman hadn’t come back, so maybe this time she would stay away for good. Jaden didn’t talk the whole tour. He hung on to my every word. He acted strange, but that was nothing new. He seemed to act that way all the time.
It was time to wrap up the tour for the night. I guided the group back to the cemetery’s entrance. After collecting the flashlights, I thanked everyone for coming. They all smiled and looked as if they’d had a fun time. However, I wasn’t about to let Jaden get away without asking him more questions. I didn’t think he was being honest about not knowing that woman. It looked as if they had come here together. That meant he had to know her, right?
Jaden turned to walk away, but I called out to him, “Excuse me.”
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He didn’t stop, so I had to hurry after him. I practically jumped in front of him. At least then he stopped. I had expected him to just weave around me and keep going. His eyes were wide as he stared at me.
“The woman I asked you about earlier. I’m pretty sure you came here with her. I really need to know who she is,” I said.
Irritation simmered in his eyes. I knew he understood me.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” His voice was a low whisper and I almost couldn’t hear him.
This was incredibly frustrating. What was the big secret with this woman? Why couldn’t he just tell me who she was? I couldn’t force the guy to talk with me. And I couldn’t stand in front of him as if keeping him hostage. I stared at him for a couple seconds, hoping that he would change his mind. That didn’t work though. He wouldn’t even look directly at me. This was just awkward now. I stepped to the side so that he could go past.
Jaden walked around me and headed down the alleyway. Now I stood alone by the dark alleyway. This had been another strange evening. I’d take the flashlights back to the tavern and grab the books. I was looking forward to a cozy evening at home poring over the books for more clues. Plus, I’d try to research more for the Edgewood haunted house we were about to investigate. I wanted as many facts as I could get before we got there. So far, I had very few.
After walking back over to the gate, I grabbed the flashlights and turned around. A presence lingered behind me and I figured it was Mrs. Clatterbuck again. When I glanced back, I realized it wasn’t. Many spirits that I’d seen in the graveyard before stood nearby. In fact, they were walking toward me.
This wasn’t the first time spirits had confronted me this way. But I didn’t think these were the same spirits that Mrs. Clatterbuck had claimed I was upsetting when I’d first come to Devil’s Moon Cemetery. Maybe I should have listened and stayed away.
The spirits continued to move toward me. They appeared more menacing than the ones I’d encountered in the past. I wasn’t sure what to think or do. It was as if I was frozen on the spot. I just stared at them. If they moved any closer to me, I would probably run. I didn’t say anything to them. What could I have said? “Go away?” They wouldn’t listen. I spun around and was knocked to the ground.
Haunt the Haunt, Walk the Walk (Haunted Tour Guide Mystery Book 3) Page 6
