An Isle of Man Ghostly Cozy Collection - DEF

by Diana Xarissa

  “And how is your new girlfriend?”

  “My new girlfriend? What makes you think I have a new girlfriend?”

  “You told me that you did,” Fenella reminded him.

  “Oh, yes, well, it didn’t work out. She didn’t understand me at all. Not like you do. You and I were perfect together.”

  “We really weren’t,” Fenella told him. “And I’m afraid I must go.”

  “Must you? I miss you.”

  “I’m sorry, but you need to move on.”

  Jack sighed. “I’m still hoping you’ll change your mind.”

  “I won’t,” Fenella said firmly before she put the phone down. “Unless I fail my driving test,” she added softly.

  Mona laughed. “Even if you fail your driving test a dozen times, you won’t be moving back to Buffalo,” she said. “You’re under the island’s spell now. There’s no breaking it. I should know. I tried many times, but no matter how often I left, I always came back.”

  “I can’t imagine wanting to break the spell,” Fenella replied. “It’s too wonderful here to ever want to leave.”

  She went back to her anxious pacing, but the conversation with Jack had been the perfect distraction. Mona was right. No matter what happened with her driving test, she wasn’t going back to Buffalo. That helped to put the whole ordeal into some sort of perspective. When Mel pulled up in his driver’s training car a short while later, Fenella was feeling almost ready for her test.

  “Right, you’re going to drive to the test center and park the car,” he reminded her. “Then I’ll go in with you and we’ll wait for the examiner. I can’t leave the building with you once the examiner comes out. I’ll wait for you there, and then I’ll drive you home, whether you’ve passed or failed. Whichever the outcome, you’ll be too distracted to drive after the test.”

  Fenella nodded and then put the car into gear. It stalled immediately. She looked over at Mel and began to laugh. “Maybe that’s that out of the way,” she said hopefully. The drive to the test center went by without incident after that and the wait inside didn’t take long at all.

  “Just read me the number plate on the red car, please,” the examiner said as he and Fenella began to walk toward Mel’s car.

  Fenella read out the letters and numbers in a shaky voice. As she settled behind the steering wheel a moment later she wondered what the examiner would do if she pulled off the road during the exam to stop and throw up. The next hour was a complete blur to Fenella and when she emerged from Mel’s car in front of her building at the end of it, she was glad Mel had driven her home.

  “How did it go?” Shelly asked.

  Fenella blinked at her friend, who was standing at the curb, staring at her. “I passed,” she said softly. “With only two minor faults.”

  “I knew you’d do it,” Shelly exclaimed. She pulled Fenella into a hug, and then the pair walked into the building together. “I had total confidence in you,” Shelly said in the elevator.

  “That’s easy to say now,” Fenella suggested.

  “But it’s true. You’ll see,” Shelly replied.

  Fenella let them both into her apartment and then gasped. A huge bouquet of balloons was sitting in the middle of the living room. Most of them had “congratulations” written across them.

  “See? I knew you’d do it,” Shelly laughed.

  “What would you have done if I’d failed?” Fenella demanded.

  “Dragged you out to lunch somewhere and then dashed back to get the balloons. But I’m so glad I didn’t have to do that.”

  “I am, too.”

  “Was it horrible?”

  “I don’t think so. I really don’t remember much about it. The examiner didn’t want to talk to me, but I think I babbled at him the whole time anyway. I know I mixed up left and right at one point, but I realized it in time and managed to change lanes without too much difficulty. I’m just so glad it’s over.”

  “And now you can take Mona’s car for a spin.”

  “Yeah, one of these days.”

  The phone rang, cutting across the conversation. Fenella reached for it and then stopped her hand. She really didn’t feel like speaking to anyone at the moment. If it was important, whoever it was would leave a message.

  “Ah, yes, good afternoon,” a familiar voice said. “This is Lance Thomas. I’m happy to meet you for a drink tonight. I hope it won’t be too much bother, but if you could meet me at my flat at seven, perhaps we could walk to the pub together? I believe that would work better for me. I’m in 312. I’ll see you around seven.”

  7

  Fenella frowned at the answering machine. “I should call him back and tell him no,” she said to Shelly. “Why is meeting at his flat more convenient? It certainly isn’t any more convenient for us.”

  “We definitely need to take Peter with us,” Shelly replied. “I’ll ring him now and make sure he’s available.”

  “I can call Lance back,” Fenella offered.

  “It probably isn’t worth fussing over,” Shelly said after a moment. “And I’d rather not start the evening with a disagreement. Let’s just meet him at his flat. Maybe he’s worried about walking into a strange pub on his own. He didn’t really strike me as the type to spend much time in pubs.”

  “You may be right, but I still think he’s being rude.”

  “Yes, he is, but let’s not compound that by being rude back. I’m far too happy for you to be worried about Lance Thomas right now.”

  Fenella laughed. “I’m pretty euphoric myself,” she admitted. “I want to go out and celebrate.”

  “Do you want to try taking Mona’s car out?”

  “Oh, goodness, no. I’m not ready for that. It’s probably going to take me at least a few days to work up the nerve to even sit in Mona’s car.”

  “The battery is probably flat, anyway,” Shelly said thoughtfully. “It’s been sitting in the garage for a long time.”

  “I hadn’t thought of that. And I’m not going to think about it today. Let’s go and do something crazy instead of worrying about such things.”

  “Crazy? Like what?”

  “I don’t know. I feel all giddy and slightly sick to my stomach. What I really need is a good roller coaster or something.”

  “We don’t have any roller coasters,” Shelly told her. “But we could go to the park in Ramsey and go down the big slide there.”

  “That will do,” Fenella agreed quickly.

  A few minutes later the pair were heading for Ramsey. “Once you stop feeling sick, maybe we could get some lunch at the café,” Shelly suggested. “And ice cream after.”

  “That sounds perfect,” Fenella laughed. “I feel like a little kid again for some reason, which doesn’t even make sense.”

  “It’s because you’ve finished taking driving lessons,” Shelly guessed. “Which makes today like the last day of school.”

  “You could be right,” Fenella agreed.

  The long slide at the park in Ramsey was full of small children, and Fenella felt silly waiting in line to go down it. Instead, she and Shelly took turns on a small zip line and then went on the swings for a short while.

  “That was harder work than I remember,” Fenella said after she got off her swing. “I’m definitely ready for some lunch.”

  The pair ate at the small café and then had double scoops of ice cream while they walked around the large boating lake.

  “Let’s get a pedal boat,” Shelly suggested after they’d finished their sweet treat.

  “Sure, why not.”

  After boating they played a round of crazy golf before heading back into Douglas.

  “Let’s get dinner at the Italian place near home,” Shelly suggested. “Then we can walk back and collect Lance before we go the pub.”

  “What about Peter?”

  “Oh, I’ll text him from the restaurant.”

  They were walking from their building to the restaurant when Fenella’s phone rang. She glanced at the display
and then stopped walking.

  “It’s Daniel,” she told Shelly.

  “So answer it,” Shelly replied.

  “Hello?”

  “Fenella? I just wanted to ring to ask how the driving test went. It was today, wasn’t it? I thought that’s what you told me, anyway.”

  “It was today, yes, and I passed.”

  “Oh, excellent. Congratulations. The island has a very low pass rate, actually, so well done.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t tell me that before,” Fenella laughed.

  “I hope you’re out celebrating, then?”

  “I am. Shelly and I are going to have dinner and then go to the pub.”

  “I would have thought that Donald would have wanted to help you celebrate.”

  “I’m not sure he even knows I had the test today.”

  “Really? Well, as I said, congratulations.”

  “Thanks.”

  There were a million other things that Fenella wanted to say, but she bit her tongue. Then she heard a voice on the other end of the line.

  “Daniel? Are you finished? I’m still waiting,” the woman’s sing-song voice carried down the line.

  “I’m coming now,” Daniel replied. His voice sounded muffled, as if he’d slipped the phone into his pocket without disconnecting first.

  “Hurry,” the woman called, laughing.

  A moment later the phone went dead in Fenella’s hand.

  “What’s wrong?” Shelly demanded, staring hard at Fenella.

  “Nothing. He just called to see how my driving test went. I’m flattered that he remembered, really.”

  “What else did he say?”

  “Nothing, nothing at all.”

  “So why did your face go white and your smile disappear?”

  Fenella sighed. “Some woman called his name and told him to hurry up,” she told her friend.

  “It was probably just a work colleague.”

  “It sounded a lot friendlier than that.”

  Shelly pulled Fenella into a hug. “I’ve half a mind to ring that man and tell him what I think,” she said crossly.

  “Yeah, since I’m here, going out with Donald and Peter and anyone else who comes along,” Fenella replied. “Daniel has every right to get involved with someone else. We even agreed to that before he left.”

  “That doesn’t mean he should, though.”

  “I’m spending time with Donald.”

  “Yes, but that’s different.”

  “Why?”

  “Because we all know you don’t really like Donald. We all know you’re in love with Daniel, you just aren’t ready to admit to it yet.”

  Fenella wanted to argue, but she couldn’t seem to find the right words. “Well, maybe it’s time for me to give Donald another chance,” she said after swallowing hard. “It looks as if Daniel isn’t sitting around missing me.”

  “Should we still get dinner or do you want to go home?” Shelly asked.

  “Dinner, and wine,” Fenella replied. “We’re celebrating, remember?”

  The food at the restaurant was excellent, and Fenella did her best to put Daniel and the phone call out of her head. She and Shelly shared a bottle of wine as they ate.

  “I shouldn’t be drinking, not when I have to face Lance later,” Shelly said after her first glass.

  “Maybe he’ll be easier to deal with after a few drinks,” Fenella suggested. “Maybe I should have a few and then text Daniel and ask him how his evening was.”

  “Or maybe I should take your phone away from you before you do something stupid,” Shelly suggested.

  “Yeah, that would probably be better,” Fenella agreed. “I’m not going to do anything stupid, though. I’m just going to enjoy dinner and some wine and then keep you company while you talk to Lance. I won’t drink any more at the pub.”

  The pair talked about nothing much as they cleared their plates. It seemed as if one or the other of them wanted to avoid nearly every possible topic of conversation.

  “I never texted Peter,” Shelly exclaimed after they’d paid the bill and were making their way out of the restaurant.

  “Text him now, just spell everything very carefully,” Fenella suggested with a giggle.

  Shelly laughed. “I’m not drunk, I’m just a little bit happy.”

  “I’m happy, too. Really, really, really happy. I should call Donald and see what he’s doing tonight. Maybe he’d like to help me celebrate passing my driving test.”

  “I’m definitely taking your phone away from you,” Shelly said. “Donald is the last thing you need right now.”

  “Why? He’d probably buy me something extravagant to help me celebrate. Knowing Donald, he’d buy me a car.”

  Shelly laughed. “He probably would, if he thought it would help his cause, but you don’t want to sleep with Donald.”

  “Mona would, if she were me. Maybe I should be more like Mona.”

  “Mona had a wild reputation, but she wasn’t nearly as wild as everyone believes. From everything she told me, I think she was a one-man woman, and that man was Maxwell Martin.”

  “What did Peter say about tonight?” Fenella asked.

  “He’s going to meet us in the corridor in front of room 312,” Shelly replied after looking at her phone. “Then we won’t have to face Lance alone.”

  “I just hope Lance is alone. If his friends are with him, I’m not going to be polite.”

  “You don’t have to be polite to them. They don’t deserve it.”

  Fenella nodded and then stopped as she felt a little dizzy. She hadn’t really drunk that much and she’d eaten a large meal, but with all of the stress of the driving test and the excitement of passing it, perhaps she’d overdone it. Daniel wasn’t a factor, of course.

  “Good evening,” Peter said a moment later as the women walked off the elevator on the third floor of their building. “And many congratulations to you,” he said to Fenella. “I must tell you that I really wouldn’t fancy taking my driving test again at my age. I’ve had so many years to pick up bad habits. I’m pretty sure I’d fail for at least some of them.”

  Fenella laughed as she gave the man a hug. “Thank you for not saying that until I was done with the test.”

  “Mel said he knew you could pass, as long as you stayed calm. He said you were one of the best students he’s ever had, once you got over your fear of the manual transmission,” Peter told her.

  “Did I ever thank you for introducing me to Mel?” Fenella replied. “He was a wonderful teacher and very patient with me.”

  “You’re very welcome.”

  “It’s quarter past seven,” Shelly interjected. “I don’t want Lance angry at us for being late.”

  “I told you he was nearly half an hour late for lunch and didn’t even mention it,” Fenella replied. “I don’t care if we are late.”

  Shelly nodded, but she quickly walked to 312 and knocked on the door. After a minute, she knocked again.

  “He isn’t home,” she said angrily. “After all of that, he isn’t even home?”

  “Maybe he forgot that we were meeting here and went to the pub,” Fenella suggested. “Do you want me to walk over and check?”

  “I think we should all stick together,” Shelly told her. “I don’t want to be standing here on my own if he suddenly opens the door, that’s for sure.”

  “Peter can wait with you,” Fenella suggested.

  “Then you’d have to walk into the pub by yourself,” Shelly pointed out. “And Lance’s friends might be there.”

  “It’s only next door,” Peter said. “Let’s all go, and then if he isn’t there, we can come back here. It will only take two minutes to check.”

  No one could argue with that, so they all got back on the elevator and rode down to the lobby. There were only three people in the pub and they were all strangers, at least to Fenella.

  “He’s just gone out somewhere and forgotten all about us,” Shelly said as they walked back into their build
ing again. “We should just forget all about him and get on with our lives.”

  “Let’s try his apartment one more time,” Fenella said. “I’m just drunk enough, and mad enough, to tell him what I really think of him. After that, I suspect he’ll stay well away from both of us.”

  Shellly laughed. “This should be fun,” she said as they stopped on the third floor again.

  “The door is open,” Fenella said as they walked down the corridor. “It wasn’t open when we were here a few minutes ago.”

  “Maybe he just got back and he left it open for us,” Shelly said.

  “I don’t like this,” Peter said. “Hello?” he called loudly from the doorway.

  “Lance, what are you playing at?” Fenella shouted, knocking on the open door.

  “This is crazy,” Shelly said in a loud whisper. “Why are we even bothering? Let’s go home.”

  “We can’t leave the door open like this,” Fenella replied. She knocked again. “Lance? What’s going on?”

  “He’s probably just in the loo,” Shelly said.

  They all stood quietly in the corridor, trying to hear sounds of movement from the apartment.

  “This is making me nervous,” Fenella said after a few minutes. “I think we should call the police.”

  “The police? That seems a bit extreme,” Shelly replied.

  “If the apartment door weren’t open, I’d agree,” Fenella told her. “But something feels off about this.”

  “I could go in and see if I can find Lance,” Peter suggested.

  “No, that’s the worst thing you could do,” Fenella replied. “You might contaminate the crime scene.”

  Shelly laughed. “You’ve found one too many dead bodies. This isn’t a crime scene, unless you think missing out on drinks at the pub is a crime.”

  Fenella shook her head. She felt completely sober and very worried. If Daniel had been on the island, other woman or not, she would have called him immediately. As it was, she wasn’t sure whom to call.

  “Just ring 999,” Peter suggested. “They’ll send the closest constable.”

  “Yes, that’s probably for the best,” Shelly said.