The Ghost and the Leprechaun

by Anna J. McIntyre

  Evan grinned.

  “Just don’t give Hunny any cookies,” Chris told him. “But Joanne has some dog treats out there. You can give her one of those.”

  MacDonald waved his hand toward the door. “Go.”

  Just as Evan reached the doorway, his father called out, “No more than two!”

  Once Evan was out in the hallway, MacDonald looked at Adam and smiled. “That’s what I hear. Have you heard from her?”

  “I spoke to her about an hour ago. She was just getting on the plane. But she doesn’t plan to get here until sometime Tuesday.”

  “She did mention something to me about staying over in Portland so she could go through some of the files from her dad’s law firm,” MacDonald said. They discussed Melony’s move back to town, and then the conversation changed to the missing coins and the FBI agents now interviewing Danielle. They were discussing Chris’s recently smashed car when the FBI agents were finished with Danielle.

  “Hey, Chief, when did you get here?” Danielle asked when she entered the library.

  MacDonald stood up and glanced at his watch, and then looked to the doorway Danielle had just walked through. “About twenty minutes ago. I should check on Evan—”

  “Evan’s okay.” Danielle smiled. “I just ran into him in the hall. He and Hunny just went up to the attic—with Max.” Chris didn’t point out that the last time he had seen Max, the cat was napping in the living room. Plus, he seriously doubted Hunny would willingly go upstairs with Evan if Max was tagging along. He understood Evan and his pup were in truth going up to the attic with Walt.

  MacDonald sat back down.

  Adam cringed. “No offense, but that attic of yours creeps me out. Can’t believe that kid likes it up there.”

  Danielle stifled a grin and sat down on the empty chair.

  “Did Thomas and Wilson leave?” MacDonald asked.

  “Yeah. I didn’t realize you were here until right after they left and I ran into Evan coming out of the kitchen.”

  “So how did it go?” Chris asked. “Any news on the missing coins?”

  Danielle shook her head. “Not really. They asked me a bunch of questions—like if I had insured the coins and the last time I saw them. They also grilled me about Susan Mitchell and how close we are.”

  “Susan? Why?” Adam asked.

  “I think they wonder if Susan and I faked the robbery, but they haven’t figured out our motive.”

  “They have to look at every angle,” the chief pointed out.

  “I suppose.” Danielle let out a sigh. “But whenever I inherit anything, it always turns into a major pain in the butt.”

  “Well, I told you, you should have just let me keep the gold coins,” Adam reminded her.

  Danielle glanced over to Adam and smirked. “Well, they also asked me about you.”

  Adam’s eyes widened. “Me? Why? What do I have to do with this?”

  “They wanted to know about the people who felt they should have gotten the coins,” Danielle explained.

  “And you tossed me under the bus?” Adam fairly squeaked.

  Danielle rolled her eyes. “No. In fact, I didn’t even bring up your name. The only one I mentioned was Jolene, and she’s dead. Then they brought up you and Bill.”

  “Bill?” Adam asked.

  “They must have done their homework. They knew Bill was treasure hunting at Ian’s house for the coins, and they knew you expressed an interest in them. But I explained your grandmother was the one who owned Ian’s house, and she made her feelings about the coins very clear. I told them we were friends, and you wouldn’t steal from me.”

  Wide eyed, Adam stared at Danielle. “You told them that?”

  Danielle shrugged. “Well, I said I didn’t think you would steal from me…now.”

  “Danielle, do you think we could talk in private for a minute?” MacDonald interrupted.

  Curious, Danielle looked at the chief. “Sure. I guess…”

  After Danielle and MacDonald left the parlor for the library, Chris said, “I wonder what that was about?”

  “I just hope it’s not about me,” Adam grumbled. “Like I would know how to break in to a safe deposit box.”

  “So this wasn’t just a friendly visit?” Danielle asked as she closed the door to the parlor.

  “It’s about the missing coins.” MacDonald took a seat on the sofa and watched as Danielle sat on the chair across from him.

  “I sort of figured.”

  “I assume Wilson and Thomas didn’t tell you anything new?”

  Danielle shrugged. “Not really. We talked a little bit about the security footage and how the camera moved off my safe deposit box for several minutes and then went back to its normal position. According to Thomas, this happened in the middle of the night, and they speculate there might have been an earthquake or something that caused it.”

  “Excuse me? An earthquake?”

  Danielle’s right hand absently toyed with her chair’s arm as she explained her recent meeting with the FBI agents. “They said according to the footage captured from the other cameras, no one was in the vault at the time the camera moved. So they figure there must have been some movement under the bank, like an earthquake, that caused the lens to move.”

  “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. There was no earthquake that night.”

  Danielle’s hand stopped fiddling with the chair’s arm. Looking up at the chief, she folded her hands on her lap. “I know that. But I think they’re just trying to figure out what happened to that camera. I got the feeling they’re having the video analyzed to see if anyone manipulated it—the one aimed at the entrance to the vault area. But in the meantime, they’re taking a closer look at me. I get it. It is annoying. But I suppose I understand. This entire thing makes no sense.”

  “The reason I wanted to talk to you alone—I couldn’t really ask you this in front of Adam.”

  “What?”

  “This may sound crazy, but is there any chance a ghost might be responsible for the missing coins?”

  Danielle cocked her head. “Ghost? You think a ghost cleaned out the safe deposit box?”

  MacDonald slumped back on the sofa. “I know it sounds crazy. But something moved that camera, and I don’t believe it was an imaginary earthquake. And there was nothing captured on the other cameras for that time frame.”

  “I suppose—technically speaking—a ghost could do that. Walt can move objects, so I don’t see why a ghost couldn’t turn a lock without a key and even levitate the coins. But why bother moving the camera? It’s not like you can film a ghost. And even if you could, what are you going to do, put him in jail?”

  “Maybe he doesn’t know he’s a ghost?” MacDonald suggested.

  “That is entirely possible.” Danielle considered it a moment. “Can you imagine if a ghost really is responsible for emptying that box, and they didn’t bother moving the camera? Imagine what Wilson and Thomas would be thinking right now if they saw that box open on its own and gold coins floating out.”

  With a quiet yet serious voice, MacDonald said, “The problem is, Danielle, I don’t doubt for a moment you put those coins in the safe deposit box, just like you said you did. But if I didn’t know you, quite frankly, you’d be my prime suspect.”

  No longer smiling, Danielle stared at the chief. “Are you serious?”

  “Think about it. Unless they discover the video to the entrance to the vault was tampered with, then no one could have possibly emptied that box. Even if someone at the bank had a copy of your safe deposit key along with the bank’s, there is nothing on those videos that indicates anyone opened your safe deposit box from the time you rented it to yesterday.”

  “But you said yourself someone moved the camera. It’s possible the gold was taken then.”

  “True. But only if it was something like a—ghost.”

  Danielle considered his words for a moment. With a frown, she looked squarely at MacDonald. “It can’t b
e a ghost. Someone obviously tampered with the video.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “For one thing, even if the camera couldn’t record a ghost, the same isn’t true for the gold. None of those cameras captured the gold mysteriously floating out of the vault. And then there is the shamrock. Whoever took the gold left a shamrock. How did they get the shamrock through the door into the vault without being detected?”

  Thirteen

  Danielle stood with Lily by the front gate of Marlow House as the last of the guests drove away. Behind them the front door was open, and just inside the house stood Walt, who smoked a cigar and waited for Lily and Danielle to return to the house. Max had followed the two young women outside and now wove back and forth around their feet, gently nudging each of their legs.

  “It was a good group,” Danielle said as she reached down to stroke Max’s ears. He stopped, started purring, and leaned into her hand.

  “Yes, it was, but I really thought we were going to have a break until Friday. I didn’t expect a last minute reservation, much less two of them.”

  “Hey, was that your last guest leaving?” a voice called out.

  Danielle and Lily looked up the sidewalk. It was Heather, walking in their direction.

  “Yes, everyone’s checked out,” Danielle said when Heather reached them.

  “Do you know if Chris is home?” Heather asked, looking down the street toward his house.

  “No, he’s at his office,” Danielle told her. “He stopped by earlier and had coffee on his way there. He has some meeting this morning. But I’m glad you stopped by. He wanted me to talk to you about the car.”

  Heather groaned and slouched dejectedly. “That’s what I wanted to talk to him about.”

  “When he was here this morning,” Danielle began, “he told me to tell you to take your car to that body shop downtown across from the grocery store. He’s already talked to them. Just take it down there, and say Chris Johnson sent you.”

  “Danielle, I can’t afford to get my car fixed. I’m just going to have to live with it that way for a while. But I wanted to ask Chris if there was any way we could work out some sort of payment plan for his car.” Heather shifted her weight from her right foot to her left. “If I file an insurance claim, they’re going to drop me.”

  “Chris is paying for the repairs,” Danielle told her. “Just take your car down there, and they will take care of you.”

  Heather frowned at Danielle. “Why in the world would he do that? I’m the one who ran into his car.”

  “Well, for one reason, you did sort of save our lives,” Danielle reminded her.

  “Yes, there was that.” Lily laughed.

  “Not to mention the accident really wasn’t your fault,” Danielle pointed out.

  Standing up straighter, Heather looked from Lily to Danielle. “Are you serious? He really wants to do this?”

  “Sure. Frankly, I was going to offer to fix your car for you if Chris hadn’t,” Danielle told her. “After all, that annoying ghost was on my roof.”

  “Oh, thank you, Danielle!” Heather impulsively grabbed Danielle in a bear hug and squeezed, stepping on poor Max’s tail as she did. The cat let out a loud screech and then took off running to the front door.

  Heather released Danielle and looked up to where Max had run off to. Sheepishly she said, “Oh, sorry about that. I hope Max’s okay.”

  Danielle glanced to the house and then back to Heather. “I’m sure he’s fine.”

  Heather looked up to Danielle’s bedroom window. “Any more ghost sightings?”

  “Hush, you two,” Lily hissed under her breath. “Ian is on his way over here. No ghost talk.” Lily waved to Ian, who was now jogging across the street in their direction, Sadie by his side.

  Crouched behind a rosebush, concealing himself, he watched as the man ran across the street with the big yellow dog. That dog. It was the dog’s fault he had been separated from his gold. Since the pair had moved into the house, he was unable to come and go as he had always done. And now, the gold was missing. But not for long. He would return it to its rightful place, but first, he needed to do something about the dog. What exactly, he didn’t know.

  Looking across the street, his gaze moved to the upstairs window of Marlow House. He thought of the woman he had found sleeping in Walt Marlow’s bedroom.

  “I wonder who she is? What is she doing there?” he asked himself. He then remembered how the same woman had removed a necklace from a wall safe.

  “The necklace,” he murmured. “Where have I seen it before?”

  He thought about it a moment and then smiled. “I suppose it doesn’t matter. I’ll get it too and keep it with my gold.” Looking to the house where the man now lived with his dog, he thought about his hiding place.

  Moving from outside into the house, he went to the guest room and watched as the closet door slowly opened. Kneeling down, he pulled a tool from his leather apron and used it to pry open the floorboard, exposing the empty space.

  “This was a good hiding place for many years, but they’ll just find it again if I put it here. And now, now I need to find somewhere suitable for the necklace.” Returning the floorboard to its place, he used the tool to hammer the nail back into its hole. Standing up, he looked around the room.

  Returning the tool to his leather apron, he said, “I suppose if I can’t figure out how to get rid of that dog, I might as well find another hiding place.” In the next moment he vanished.

  Dave watched as Stephanie fitted the wig on her head. After she turned to him, he let out a low whistle. “Damn, your mother wouldn’t recognize you.”

  Stephanie smiled and made a quick model’s turn to show off her entire transformation.

  Again Dave whistled, his attention on her backside. “That’s an impressive bootie you have there.”

  Stephanie laughed and then reached back and gave her padded buttocks a pat. “Anyone can pad a bra, but no woman really wants a butt this size. But the trick is really in the makeup. My real complexion would never go with this wig color.”

  “I don’t really care how you do it, but you’re the best.”

  Leaning to Dave, she dropped a kiss on his lips. When she pulled away, he frowned.

  “Are you taller?” he asked.

  She giggled and lifted up one of her feet, twisting it at the ankle so he could have a better look at the jogging shoe. “It’s these shoes. Makes me two inches taller. And with the length of these jeans, no one will notice.” She put her foot back down on the floor.

  He shook his head, still looking down at her feet. “They have jogging shoes that make you taller?”

  With a shrug she said, “Technically speaking, these are not really for jogging. Not unless I want to break my ankle. But they are supposed to look like athletic shoes—for short women who want to look taller.”

  “Where do you come up with this stuff?”

  Stephanie grinned and gave him another quick kiss. “You don’t tell me how you open safes, and I don’t tell you my secrets. That way you’ll need me.”

  Dave laughed as he reached out and pulled her to him. Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her mouth. When the kiss ended, he whispered against her cheek, “I will always need you, baby.”

  When he finally released her, he walked over to the desk and pulled out the top drawer, removing a tattered cigar box. Setting it on the desk, he opened it. Inside were several fake IDs, along with a credit card.

  Picking up the credit card, he said, “We know what aliases we need to use this time.” He briefly held up the card, then dropped it back on the desktop.

  “Are you sure the credit card is still good?”

  Dave nodded and picked it up again, looking at it. “I used it to rent the room at Marlow House. And I called Alan this morning to double-check on the available balance. We only need to use it one more time, to rent the car. After that, we can just use cash.”

  “Then let me do my magic on you, and then we
can take the pictures and you can finish making the IDs. You know, you really don’t need to make one for me. After all, the only time we’re going to use it is to rent the car.”

  Dave stood up and tossed the credit card back on the desk. “No, we’re going to do this right. And it’s entirely possible we’ll both be asked to show our IDs when we check into that bed and breakfast. I don’t want to give this Boatman any reason to be suspicious of us. If she is, she’ll never let her guard down.”

  Special Agent Wilson sat across the desk from the bank manager, Alan Kissinger.

  “Our people have finished going through the security videos,” Wilson told him.

  “And are you confident now they haven’t been tampered with?” Kissinger asked.

  “Let’s assume for a moment they weren’t tampered with. Do you have any idea what might have happened to the contents of Ms. Boatman’s safe deposit box?”

  “Like I said before, I have no personal knowledge of what she left in that box when she rented it.”

  “So you are saying you believe the gold coins were never in the box?”

  “I’m just saying they weren’t there when she opened it on Saturday. And I wasn’t even at the bank on the day she rented the box, so I can’t say if she put anything in there or not.”

  “Let’s assume she did put the coins in the safe deposit box. After all, your own employee was adamant that the box was quite heavy when she locked it in its vault. Since none of the security videos we reviewed showed anyone leaving the vault area with a package large enough to hold those coins, in the timeframe beginning from when Ms. Boatman first rented it to Saturday, I have to wonder, could they perhaps have been moved into another nearby safe deposit box?”

  “Are you suggesting someone in the bank found a way to access that box, opened it, and then moved its contents?”

  “I’m simply considering all possibilities. Do any of your bank employees have a safe deposit box in that area?”

  “If something like that happened, exactly how did this employee get into the vault undetected?” Alan asked.