Ghost Who Came for Christmas

by McIntyre, Anna J

  “That drawer always sticks,” Danielle lied. “I doubt she put anything in it.”

  Brian abandoned the top drawer and reached for the one below it. It opened. “It’s empty.”

  A clap of thunder momentarily distracted Walt. He looked to the window. In that instant, Brian tried the top drawer again, giving it a quick jerk. It flew open, almost falling out of the cabinet.

  “What’s this?” Brian pulled the stained rug from the drawer and looked at it.

  “Is that blood?” Joe asked. He and Brian looked to Danielle.

  “Have you ever seen this before?” Brian asked.

  “Yeah… it’s my throw rug.”

  Brian handed the rug to Joe while asking, “Where do you normally keep it?”

  Danielle pointed to where the rug had been before Walt had moved it. “On the floor by the bed.”

  “Do you know what the blood’s from?” Brian asked.

  Danielle shook her head.

  “Where was the rug the last time you saw it?” Joe asked.

  Danielle pointed back to the space on the floor.

  “I’m assuming it didn’t have blood on it the last time you saw it?” Joe asked.

  “It didn’t,” Danielle lied. She watched as Joe touched his finger to the red stain.

  He paused and looked up. “This is still wet.”

  Danielle’s eyes widened. She looked at his finger, now red tipped. “What?”

  “Whatever this is—blood or something that looks like blood—it’s still wet. Whoever put this rug in the drawer couldn’t have done it that long ago,” Joe said.

  “How many suitcases did Anna arrive with?” Brian asked.

  “Just the one on the bed.”

  “I’m assuming she brought clothes, cosmetics with her.” Brian glanced around the room. “None of which appear to be here.”

  “She didn’t wear the same outfit everyday, so she obviously had clothes in her suitcase,” Danielle said.

  “How long was she supposed to stay for?” Joe asked.

  “Until after the New Year. She already paid, in cash.” Danielle glanced from Joe to Brian. “She also left the things we got her for Christmas.”

  “You got her a Christmas present?” Joe asked.

  Danielle nodded. “I got stockings for all the guests, filled them. And they ended up exchanging gifts. Little things—but I can’t imagine Anna would leave hers behind.”

  “It looks like she decided to leave, but for some reason left her suitcase behind,” Brian said.

  “And the rug?” Joe asked.

  “Maybe she cut herself, got blood on the rug. Looks like she left in a hurry. Probably shoved the rug in the drawer because she didn’t want to clean it,” Brian suggested. “If Anna put the rug there, then it means she hasn’t been gone that long.”

  Danielle shook her head. “Strange. Maybe she did leave. But why leave her suitcase?”

  “Who knows why people do things,” Brian said with a sigh. “But it looks to me like she simply decided to move on. You said someone dropped her off. Maybe that someone picked her up last night. Maybe she decided she didn’t like her suitcase any more, shoved her stuff in a sack. Who knows?”

  “Of course, someone else might have put this rug in the drawer,” Joe suggested.

  “What are you thinking?” Brian asked.

  “Maybe we should talk to one of the guests, Chris Johnson.”

  Danielle frowned “Chris?”

  “You did say Lily saw him coming from her room last night, and I heard him threatening Anna at the diner,” Brian told her.

  Danielle didn’t respond immediately. Finally, she said, “I know you think Chris threatened her. And even if he did, which I’m not convinced was the case, he wasn’t the only one who had an issue with Anna.”

  “Who else had a problem with Anna? Richard? You mentioned you saw him leaving the attic last night,” Brian asked.

  Danielle looked up into Brian’s eyes. “Peter Morris, of Earthbound Spirits.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  “What does Morris have to do with your missing guest? Did they know each other?” Joe asked.

  “No, I don’t think so. But Richard’s a member of Earthbound Spirits, in fact he was a friend of Isabella,” Danielle explained. “When Morris was here on Christmas Eve, he started grilling me about Anna—asking me if she and Richard were involved.”

  “Are they?” Joe asked.

  “Aside from seeing him come down from the attic last night, I never noticed anything between them—between any of the guests in fact—other than friendship. But you need to understand, Earthbound Spirits preys on people like Isabella and Richard—vulnerable, young, wealthy people who have no family—”

  “Like you?” Joe said, his expression somber.

  Narrowing her eyes, Danielle glared at Joe. “I said vulnerable, Joe. I’m fairly certain one reason Morris stopped in here the other night was an attempt to get close to me—intending to exploit me like he did with Isabella and Richard. But I’m not interested in what he’s peddling. So no, not like me.”

  “And what does this have to do with Anna’s disappearance?” Brian asked.

  “I’m not saying it has anything to do with it. I’m just suggesting, if you’re looking for people who might have wanted to hurt Anna—or make her disappear—I would put Morris on top of the list. From what I understand, Anna didn’t like Earthbound Spirits, and she told Morris so.”

  “How do you know that?” Brian asked.

  “Anna told me,” Danielle lied. I can’t very well tell them Walt overheard her ripping into Morris.

  “So she didn’t like Earthbound Spirits, so what?” Joe asked. “I don’t like them either.”

  “If Morris thought you were getting chummy with Richard, and afraid you might be able to influence him, then maybe he’d want to get rid of you too. After all, members of Earthbound Spirits typically leave their estates to the organization. Look at Renton. Even Isabella was going to, until she had a change of heart,” Danielle explained.

  Brian scribbled some notes into his book while Joe silently considered what Danielle had said. When Brian finished writing he said, “The fact is, there’s really no sign of foul play here. Chances are, Anna decided it was time to move on. Who knows, maybe she’s the type who enjoys drama—what woman doesn’t?”

  Danielle arched her brows. “Drama?”

  “You know, the attention, the mystery.” Brian closed his notebook. He glanced down at the rug. “As for the blood, maybe she cut herself. But we can’t really go accusing Earthbound Spirits of anything, based solely on the fact she didn’t like them.”

  “I never implied anything nefarious happened,” Danielle said with annoyance. “I simply wanted you to be aware she had basically vanished, in case some unidentified woman shows up in the hospital or something. I’m worried about her.”

  “If something nefarious happened to her, I’d be more apt to look at your Chris Johnson,” Brian told her. “I don’t care what anyone says, he was threatening her. And he’s staying at Marlow House, not Morris.”

  Joe glanced down at the stained rug. “Would you mind if I took it?”

  Danielle shrugged. “I guess it’s okay.”

  “While we’re here, we should probably talk to your guests. Maybe we can figure out where Anna went,” Joe said. “Brian’s probably right, but we might as well talk to everyone while we’re here.”

  “Okay.” Danielle glanced over to Walt and then looked back at Joe and Brian. “They’re probably still in the living room. You want to talk to them there?”

  Joe shook his head. “I’d rather we talk to them individually. One of them may have seen something they’d feel funny talking about around the others. Can we do it in the parlor?”

  Brian and Joe talked to Lily first. Other than verifying Danielle’s story about seeing Chris coming down the attic stairs, she provided no other clues to help them determine where Anna may have gone. They then spoke to Jessica,
followed by Ian, and then Kelly. None of the three were able to shed any new light on where the missing woman could be.

  While Brian and Joe questioned each person, Walt sat on the edge of the parlor desk, watching and listening. After Kelly left the room, it was Patricia’s turn. She took a seat on the sofa and faced Joe and Brian.

  “Danielle’s concerned something may have happened to Anna. If she went outside for some reason in this storm, she could have gotten hurt and needs help,” Joe explained. “Or maybe whoever dropped her off picked her up last night, and she went home.”

  “How can I help?” Patricia asked.

  “If we knew a little more about Anna, we could call her family or one of her friends. Maybe they’ve heard from her. If Anna doesn’t show up for the rest of the week, we really won’t know if she’s a missing person or just decided to go home,” Brian explained.

  “I’m sorry, I have no idea how to contact her family.”

  “Do you know where she lives?” Joe asked.

  “Anna was friendly, she was always asking us questions about our families—our lives. She seemed genuinely interested in everyone. But she really didn’t talk about herself. The only thing I really know about her, is that she once lived in Portland. Whenever I would ask her specific questions, especially about her family, she would change the subject.”

  “How did she get along with the other guests?” Joe asked.

  “Chris and Richard? Fine. We all get along.”

  “Did you ever notice anything going on between her and either of them?” Brian asked.

  Patricia frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “Something more than friendship,” Joe suggested.

  Patricia shook her head. “No, not at all.”

  “So she treated them the same, didn’t seem to prefer one over the other?” Brian asked.

  Patricia considered the question a moment before answering. “It isn’t that she shows a preference for one over the other, she just treats them differently.”

  “In what way?” Joe asked.

  “Anna’s much younger than I am. I’m probably old enough to be her mother—if I had her as a teenager, that is.” Patricia smiled. “But she’s a very self confident young woman. A dominate type. I never felt any of us intimidated her.”

  “Why should she feel intimidated?” Brian asked.

  “I’m not saying she should feel intimidated. I just meant, being a young woman, coming to a place where you don’t know anyone, I could see how that might be intimidating. Even though she was here by herself, she was never shy. She initiated conversation with all of us. Reminded me a little of a cruise director, you know, wanting to make sure everyone was having a good time.” Patricia smiled.

  “How did you mean she treated the men different?” Brian asked.

  “Anna treated Chris…well, more like a colleague. I noticed she was a little more bossy with Richard. Maybe bossy isn’t the right word. Domineering maybe? Liked to give him advice. She liked to give me advice too. Which I always found fairly amusing, considering her age. But I never noticed her do that with Chris.”

  “Did you feel either Chris or Richard was romantically interested in her?” Joe asked.

  “No.”

  “Did she argue with either of them?” Brian asked.

  “No. I don’t recall any tension between any of them. Why is this important? Do you think Chris or Richard did something to Anna?”

  “We’re just trying to understand all the players,” Brian explained.

  “Do you know anything about Earthbound Spirits?” Joe asked.

  “Who?” Patricia frowned.

  “Did you meet Richard’s friend, Peter Morris, at the open house?”

  “You mean the older gentleman with the dark hair?”

  Joe nodded. “Yes.”

  “Richard introduced him to me, but I didn’t really talk to him. Why?”

  “He’s the founder of Earthbound Spirits. You never heard of the organization before?” Brian asked.

  “No, I don’t think so.”

  Richard sat on the parlor sofa, where Patricia had been sitting ten minutes earlier.

  “We understand you were probably the last one to see Anna last night.”

  Richard fidgeted nervously. “Me?”

  “You went up to the attic last night, didn’t you? After everyone went to bed?”

  “I…I went up the stairs, but I didn’t go into the attic…I didn’t see Anna.”

  “Why did you go up there?” Brian asked.

  “I wanted to talk to Anna about something. It was stupid of me. When I got up the stairs, I realized if I knocked on her bedroom door in the middle of the night she might get the wrong impression. So, I came back downstairs. Figured I’d talk to her today.”

  “What did you want to talk to her about?” Joe asked.

  “I wanted to ask her about something she said.”

  “What was that?” Brian asked.

  “Private things.”

  “What do you mean private things?” Brian pressed.

  Richard stared down at his hands; they fidgeted nervously on his lap. “She told me things that had happened to me. But they didn’t.”

  Brian frowned. “I’m not following you.”

  Richard looked up at Brian. “She reminded me of things that happened when I was a child. But those things never really happened to me.”

  “Are you saying she made up stories about you?” Brian asked.

  Richard shook his head. “Not exactly. They were dreams I had. She knew.”

  “Well, that was weird,” Brian said after Richard left the room.

  “Just a little,” Joe agreed.

  “I think we’re wasting our time. If this woman can see into dreams, maybe she’s down on the beach doing some pagan rain dance.” Brian shut his notebook and started to stand up.

  Danielle popped her head in the parlor and asked, “You want me to send Chris in now?”

  “Give us five minutes, and then send him in,” Joe told her.

  When Danielle left and closed the door, Brian asked, “Why? We’re wasting our time.”

  “You heard Johnson threaten her. There’s blood on the rug. Do you really think she’s out walking in the rain?” Joe asked.

  “So what do you want to do?” Brian asked.

  “I want to find out more about Johnson, I don’t trust him.” Joe picked up his travel mug and wiped the outside of it with his shirttail, until it shined. Gingerly holding the mug by its rim, he set it on the end table next to the sofa.

  “Are you doing what I think you are?”

  “Hey, I learned the trick from you.” Joe grinned.

  “We understand you were the last one to see Anna last night,” Joe told Chris, who sat on the parlor sofa.

  “How do you figure that?”

  “You were seen coming down the attic stairs last night, after everyone went to bed,” Joe explained.

  Chris shrugged. “So?”

  “Why were you up there?” Joe asked.

  “Just talking.”

  “Was it common for you to go up into Anna’s room at night, when everyone was asleep?” Brian asked.

  “If you’re trying to insinuate there’s something going on between Anna and me, you’re way off base. We were talking, that was it. Purely platonic.”

  “What were you talking about?” Joe asked.

  “Nothing particular.”

  “Did she mention anything about leaving, or going anywhere?” Joe asked.

  Chris stared at Joe for a moment. Finally, he shook his head. “No. But I got the feeling she was the type of person who does things impulsively. So, I suppose, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to imagine she’d just take off if the mood suited her.”

  Joe started to cough. He glanced around, and then looked over at the end table next to Chris. He coughed again and pointed to his stainless steel mug. “Could you please hand me my water.”

  Ten minutes later, after they told Chris he could go
, Brian and Joe stood alone in the parlor. Walt watched as Joe gingerly held the rim of the stainless steel travel mug. Joe looked at Brian and said, “Let’s get out of here.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Danielle closed the front door after Joe and Brian said their goodbyes and headed down the front walk toward their car. She turned away from the door and came face to face with the remaining occupants of Marlow House.

  “Well? What are they going to do?” Lily asked.

  “I don’t think anything. Chris was right; this really isn’t a missing person’s case. She hasn’t been gone that long, and Anna is an adult, she has the right to take off if she wants. But they said they’ll keep an eye out for her, in case she’s stranded in the storm.”

  Lily scowled. “That’s it?”

  “I’m sure she’s fine,” Chris chimed in.

  Danielle shrugged. “It’s past noon, why don’t you all go into the kitchen and have some lunch. There’re plenty of leftovers. Joanne can help. I need to make a couple phone calls. I’ll be out in a minute. Who knows, maybe Anna will be back before you finish lunch.”

  Danielle stepped into the parlor and closed its door. Turning around, she faced Walt.

  “I probably shouldn’t have called the police or let Joe take the rug.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “If the blood was still wet, then it must have been a recent cut. I think if anyone was in the attic this morning playing slasher, we would’ve heard it.”

  Walt chuckled. “I don’t know about you, but I never considered the blood on the rug was from anything other than a cut on the foot or something like that.”

  “I know, but Joe took the rug, and you know how when he or Brian get involved in something like this, everything gets twisted. And more often than not, it means I get arrested.”

  “I don’t think they’re going to arrest you for anything.”

  “Maybe not. But I wish I hadn’t called them. I keep thinking, I want to move past all the misunderstandings of the last six months, and then something like this happens. Maybe I’m just paranoid.”

  “Where do you think Anna is?” Walt asked.