Ghostly Distress (A Harper Harlow Mystery Book 9)

by Lily Harper Hart

  “Yes.”

  “It doesn’t feel wrong.”

  “Well, it is.”

  “You’re absolutely no fun sometimes.”

  “I’m fine with that.”

  MARK CROWLEY WAS THE same age as Mel. They’d known each other since high school and had something of a tempestuous relationship. That was the first thing Jared picked up on as he sat in one of Crowley’s guest chairs.

  “Hello, Mel.” Mark wore an expensive suit and combed his hair to cover a rather pronounced bald spot. “Long time no see.”

  “Yes, I believe our last conversation – and it was a lovely one – was when I came in for a loan two years ago and you told me no,” Mel sneered.

  Jared shifted on his seat, uncomfortable. “Um … you guys know each other, huh?”

  “Unfortunately,” Mel muttered.

  “I didn’t turn you down for that loan because I was trying to be a jerk,” Mark offered. “I turned you down because I didn’t think you needed a mid-life crisis mobile.”

  Mel’s mouth dropped open as Jared fought the mad urge to laugh. “That was a Camaro! It was not a mid-life crisis mobile.”

  “That’s always what a Camaro is,” Mark argued. “I didn’t make up the rules, but I recognized what was going on and decided to save you. You should be thankful, not obnoxious.”

  “Can you believe this guy?” Mel looked to Jared for help.

  “I have to agree on the Camaro,” Jared said. “If any car screams ‘mid-life crisis,’ it’s a Camaro. Well, that and a Mustang convertible.”

  “Oh, I cannot even talk to you.” Mel held up his hand to silence his partner and sucked in a breath. “We’re not here to rehash old problems, Mark. We are here to talk about a new one, though.”

  “Oh, well, I can’t wait,” Mark drawled, steepling his fingers on his lap as he leaned back in his chair. “What stupid thing do you want to buy now?”

  “We’re not here on personal business,” Jared interjected. “We’re here to talk about Maggie Harris.”

  Mark turned serious and his smile slipped. “Yeah. I heard about that. I honestly couldn’t believe it when the news started filtering through the grapevine. She was always such a good worker … I mean, a really good worker.”

  “What can you tell us about her?” Mel asked, clicking his ink pen as he pulled out a small notebook. “I honestly don’t know much about her. She never got in a lot of trouble as a kid. That’s good for her but that kind of leaves me out in the cold.”

  “I’m not sure what you’re looking for,” Mark hedged. “I heard that you were looking at Maggie’s death as a possible murder, but I didn’t really believe it until just now. I want to help, though, so tell me what kind of information you’re looking for and I’ll see if I can point you in the right direction.”

  “That sounds good,” Jared said. “For starters, how was she as a worker?”

  “About what you would expect. She was a teller, which means she did basic stuff. I wouldn’t exactly call it a hard job, but she always showed up for her shift and didn’t try to leave early unless she had an important appointment. She did use all of her sick days every year, though.”

  “Isn’t that what they’re for? To use, I mean.”

  “Yes, but most people bank a few in case they get seriously ill,” Mark explained. “Maggie was the opposite. She used all her days and would try to get more whenever possible.”

  “I thought you said she was a good worker,” Mel challenged.

  “She was. She was also a big fan of partying. Both her and Heather liked to take three-day weekends quite often. Since this is a bank and we already get three-day weekends more than most people, I’m sure you can imagine how that went.”

  “I guess,” Jared agreed. “So, Heather and Maggie were party mongers by nature. Do you happen to know who they hung around with?”

  “I think they had a regular crowd that met at that one bar over on Hall Road in Macomb County.” Mark screwed up his face in concentration. “They met twice a week. It’s that bar with all the games. Um … Dave & Buster’s, I think that’s what it was called.”

  “I know the place you’re talking about,” Jared said. “I’ve been considering taking Harper and Zander there one day over the winter. I’m always looking for things to entertain Zander.”

  “I think their group isn’t set as much as it’s just a known thing that people meet at that bar,” Mark said. “As far as who Maggie hung around with, I mostly saw her with Heather. She dated occasionally, but I don’t think she stuck with one guy for more than a few weeks.”

  “Was that her choice?”

  “That’s a good question.” Mark licked his lips. “Listen, I don’t want to speak ill of the dead, but Maggie was the type who wanted very specific things from men. She wasn’t a bad girl, but she was a bit … um … materialistic.”

  Jared and Mel exchanged a quick look.

  “I don’t know what that means,” Jared said after a beat. “Can you be more specific?”

  “She was always looking for someone with money,” Mark replied. “She didn’t care about age or looks, but she cared about money.”

  “Oh.” Jared didn’t know what to make of that. “So she didn’t have a regular boyfriend, but she was looking for a specific type. Can you think of anything else?”

  “I really can’t.”

  “Just for clarification, did Maggie have access to the vault?” Mel asked.

  Mark immediately started shaking his head. “Only the managers and floor leaders have access to the vault. They’re intermediaries between the tellers and me. If you’re thinking that someone killed Maggie for access to the vault, there’s no way. She didn’t have a key.”

  “Okay. Thanks. We’ll be in touch.”

  HARPER AND ZANDER MADE a stop before heading home and it was to the one place Harper didn’t want to see again until next Halloween. Unfortunately for her, she knew that wish wouldn’t be answered because the cemetery would essentially be her second home for the next week.

  “I just want to check to make sure that we can lead another tour tomorrow and they’re not answering the office phone,” Harper said as she climbed out of Zander’s truck on the side road that led to the main cemetery building. “You can wait here for me. I shouldn’t be more than five minutes.”

  “Fine. I don’t want to talk to Douglas anyway.”

  Harper snickered. “He’s not so bad. He’s just a little … peculiar. What do you expect from the guy who willingly runs the cemetery?”

  “He’s still weird.” Zander changed the radio station and smiled when Celine Dion’s voice took over. “Oh, I love this song even though it reminds me of Titanic.”

  “I thought you hated that movie.”

  “If she’d just moved over on that stupid piece of wood they both could’ve survived and you know it!”

  Harper grinned. She loved winding up Zander. “I know. Just for the record, listening to Celine Dion is kind of stereotypical for a gay guy. You know that, right?”

  “It’s not stereotypical. She sings like a dream.”

  “Yeah, yeah.” Harper shut the truck door and passed in front of the vehicle. To save time she planned to cut through the very thin woods so she could check the building herself. Instead, she caught the glint of metal through the trees and cut to her left.

  Zander noticed she was going in the wrong direction and rolled down his window. “Where are you going?”

  “There’s a car or something over here.” Harper furrowed her brow and didn’t bother glancing over her shoulder. “I just want to see.”

  “There’s no car,” Zander scoffed, killing the engine of his truck and hopping out. “That’s just an empty … oh, that is a car.” He made a face when he walked through the line of trees and frowned at the small Ford Escort. “Why would someone park a car here?”

  “That’s a very good question,” Harper murmured as she moved to the window and peered inside.

  Zander tried to op
en the door but it didn’t work. “It’s locked.”

  “Yeah, but what does that look like to you?” Harper pointed at a folder sitting in the middle of the passenger seat. “Isn’t that a Whisper Cove Banking & Loan folder?”

  Zander nodded. “What do you think that means?”

  “That maybe this is Maggie’s car. I mean … I didn’t ask Jared about it because it didn’t really occur to me that it might be an issue, but if this is Maggie’s car, maybe she drove herself here.”

  “Does that mean you’re calling Uncle Mel and the boy wonder?”

  Harper smiled as she fished for her phone. “I’m totally telling Jared you see him as Robin in his partnership with Mel.”

  “Good. I find it funny when his head twists around like that kid in The Exorcist. Tell him to hurry. Your food is going to have to be warmed as it is. You don’t want Jared blowing his entire night on work when you have a special event planned for him, do you?”

  Harper shook her head. “Good point. I’m on it.”

  9

  Nine

  Harper was a ball of nerves as she waited next to the car for Jared and Mel. They arrived ten minutes later, but she was dancing on the balls of her feet when Jared cut through the trees.

  “I think this is Maggie’s car.”

  Jared arched an eyebrow as he took in her excitable countenance. “Okay.” He stared at her for a long beat and then shook his head. “Good find, tiger.”

  Harper realized he was teasing her and made a face. “I’m sorry. I just … got worked up.”

  “It’s okay.” Jared lightly chuckled as he circled the car, using his hand to block out the sun as he pressed his face to the window and looked inside. “That looks like a folder from the bank.”

  “That’s what I said.”

  “Well … good.” Jared flicked his eyes to a bored-looking Zander. “How come you’re not as enthusiastic about finding the car as your partner in crime?”

  “Because I have better things to do.” Zander held up a paint sample sheet. “What do you think of this one? It’s called ‘Bright and Shiny People’ and I think it has a warm glow.”

  Jared’s smile faltered. “Absolutely not. “Are you trying to kill me?”

  “I’m not going to rest until your kitchen is pink.”

  “Then you’d better find someone to turn you into a vampire because that’s never going to happen,” Jared shot back.

  “Can you guys stop making all that racket?” Mel complained as he moved to the back of the vehicle and tapped the license plate information into his phone. “I don’t see why you guys always have to make things so dramatic.”

  “We’re on the same wavelength, Uncle Mel,” Zander drawled as he flipped through the paint samples. “What do you think of ‘Pleasant Day Pink’?”

  Now it was Mel’s turn to make a face. “I think no man wants his kitchen to be pink, kid,” Mel replied dryly. “That’s a chick color.”

  Zander’s disdain was withering. “I’m a man and I happen to love pink. Are you suggesting I’m not a man because I happen to be gay?”

  Mel balked. “You know that’s not true. You’re my favorite nephew.”

  Zander snorted. “I’m your only nephew.”

  “That doesn’t mean I’m not genuinely fond of you.” Mel meant it. “Pink is a girl color, though. It makes men think of … soft things … and a kitchen shouldn’t be a place to think about soft things.”

  Harper cocked her head as she met Jared’s gaze. “Does pink make you think of soft things?”

  Jared shook his head. “No. You make me think of soft things. When I look at you, though, I see blue.”

  “Really?” Harper was intrigued. “When I look at you I see gray, but not a weak gray. It’s more of a strong charcoal gray. I wonder why that is.”

  “I know why I see the blue,” Jared supplied. “It’s because of your eyes. I always associate you with blue because of what I see when I look into your eyes, and now that is my favorite color.”

  Harper beamed. “You’re so sweet.”

  Jared returned the smile. “I do my best.”

  “Just out of curiosity, what was your favorite color before it changed to blue?”

  “Ironically, it was gray.”

  Harper’s smile grew. “I think we’re a good match.”

  Jared lightly tapped her forehead as he gave her a quick kiss, ignoring the way Mel groaned and the annoyed face Zander made. “I think we are, too. What do you have on the license plate, Mel?”

  “It’s Maggie’s car,” Mel replied, moving to the driver’s side of the vehicle and looking inside. “It’s locked. We could break the window, but I think it would be smarter to have the state police tech team take it and go through it.”

  “I think that’s our best bet, too.” Jared idly ran his hand up and down Harper’s back. He tried to be professional at work but sometimes forgot. “I’m kind of curious how it ended up out here. Do you think that means Maggie drove herself to the cemetery?”

  Harper was intrigued by the prospect. “I don’t know. Why would she do that? Plus, I got the feeling that she was drinking pretty heavily at the party. She probably shouldn’t have been driving at all.”

  “We talked to Mark Crowley at the bank,” Mel volunteered. “He said Maggie was a decent worker but interested in partying as much as possible.”

  “That’s not all he said,” Jared reminded him. “He also said that Maggie was on the lookout for a rich man to get in good with. Apparently she didn’t care about looks or personality. Money was key to her.”

  “Huh.” Harper rubbed her hands together, uncomfortable. “I didn’t know Maggie very well even though I was only a few years older than her. She always struck me as shallow. I was feeling bad about thinking those things about her when I realized she was dead … but now I’m starting to wonder if she was even more shallow than I realized.”

  “I think that shallow is probably a good word.” Jared stared into the car a second time. “It doesn’t look as if there’s much in there, but we might luck out. For all we know there’s something in the trunk.”

  “Just out of curiosity, why would Maggie drive herself to the cemetery on a Friday night after the barn party?” Zander queried. “I mean … if her whole thing was hooking up, why would she come here alone?”

  “We don’t know that she came here alone,” Mel argued. “She could’ve had someone with her.”

  “She might not have even driven her own car,” Jared added. “For all we know something happened at the barn and whoever killed her panicked and drove her here.”

  “You make it sound like an accident,” Harper countered. “I don’t think what happened to Maggie can be misconstrued as an accident.”

  “Oh, don’t misunderstand, I don’t think it was an accident,” Jared clarified. “We got the autopsy results. There was no hesitation when it came to doing the deed. That doesn’t mean someone didn’t panic after killing her, though. We simply don’t know what we’re dealing with.”

  “I guess.” Harper rubbed the back of her neck. “Do you need anything else from us?”

  “No.” Jared shook his head. “I shouldn’t be too far behind you. Go home. Get comfortable. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  “That’s the plan.” Harper gave him a quick kiss. “When you do get off, come to the new house, okay? I’ll be waiting for you there.”

  Jared furrowed his brow. “You will? How come?”

  Harper’s face split with a genuine smile. “It’s a surprise.”

  “Really?” Jared’s curiosity was officially piqued. “Then I will be there as soon as I can.”

  “I’m looking forward to it.”

  “I am, too,” Zander said, turning a paint sample sideways. “I’m now leaning toward Salmon Surprise.”

  “Ugh.” Jared made a face. “I’m not painting my kitchen Salmon Surprise.”

  “You’re absolutely no fun.”

  “Yeah, yeah.”

  JA
RED WAS ABOUT SEVENTY minutes behind Harper and when he let himself into the new house, he couldn’t help being surprised given the number of candles she’d lit and placed around the living room.

  He grinned when he saw the air mattress she’d inflated – and proceeded to make up like a bed – and he didn’t spy the picnic basket on the floor behind the couch until he was already stripping out of his coat.

  “This looks nice.”

  Harper poked her head into the room and smiled. “You’re here. I’m glad. I was starting to get a little worried.”

  “I was as quick as I could be.” Jared draped his coat over the back of the couch and pursed his lips as he studied the room. “Not that I’m not impressed by what you’ve done here – and I really am, so don’t get the wrong idea – but what’s the occasion?”

  Harper, holding a large cooking spoon in her hand, shrugged. “I thought we could use a night alone.”

  “Are you worried that I’m about to snap and kill Zander?”

  Harper shook her head. “I’m worried that I’m about to snap and kill Zander.”

  Jared chuckled as he shuffled closer and gave her a quick kiss. “You’re a strong woman to put up with him day in and day out.”

  “I love him.”

  “I know.”

  “He’s a pain in the butt, though.” Harper shook her head to dislodge the dark thoughts threatening to derail the evening. “Sit down on the blanket. Dinner is almost ready.”

  Jared studied the spoon with interest. “You cooked? How did you have time for that?”

  “I picked up sandwiches and soup from the diner and heated it up. That’s not cooking.”

  “You make it look good regardless.” Jared smacked a loud kiss against her cheek and moved to the picnic blanket to sit, his eyes falling on the air mattress. “So … are you trying to seduce me or something? If so, you shouldn’t worry about putting too much effort into it because I’m pretty much a sure thing.”

  Harper chuckled from the kitchen, her back to Jared as she worked. “I thought we could use a night alone. I brought some catalogs and my laptop.”

  “That sounds … fun.” Jared wrinkled his nose. “Are you saying you don’t want to seduce me? I was so looking forward to that.”