by Rose Pressey
“Pick up, pick up,” I said.
Unfortunately, my call went to his voice mail. I hadn’t planned on that. Now what would I do? My plan B would be to call Caleb. I felt as if someone needed to know about this immediately.
Movement caught my attention, and I thought it was Ama’s grandpa. He was over by the wooded path, probably still hoping that Ama would follow him and go back to the other dimension. It hadn’t happened so far, and I doubted she would do it now.
Van jumped from my arms and took off running toward Grandpa. I screamed out for Van to stop, but he didn’t listen. He ran for Grandpa with all his energy. Van was lightning-fast, and I wasn’t sure I would be able to catch him. Usually, he never did stuff like this. Nevertheless, I ran after him, all the while yelling at him to stop. Unfortunately, he wasn’t listening to me. I had hoped maybe he would stop when he reached Grandpa. When Grandpa headed farther down the path, I knew that Van would continue to pursue him.
Ama yelled for her grandfather to stop as she ran behind me. We reached the path, and I tried to keep my footing as I yelled for Van to stop. Once at the river, Grandpa and Van stopped. I tried to catch my breath.
“Why did you do that, Van?” I asked.
Ama was behind me. “Why did you do that, Grandpa?”
Before the grandfather had a chance to respond, a noise came from over my shoulder. My breath caught in my throat, and my heart sped up. I spun around, hoping to find the source of the sound. Movement caught my attention. I spotted Mark as he stepped out from behind one of the nearby trees. It felt as if someone had punched me in the stomach. I was having a hard time breathing. So it was him after all.
Mark had just successfully lured me back here to the scene of the crime. And I would inevitably meet the same fate as Erica. Without uttering a word, he raced toward me. I tried to run over and grab Van because there was no way I would leave him behind. Even in a case of life or death.
Maybe we should jump in the river. Could I swim with him to safety? No, that was definitely a bad idea. I wasn’t a good swimmer. My only hope was to get down that path and back to the fair area, where someone might see us. However, I didn’t get a chance to reach Van before Mark caught up with me. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me backward until I fell onto the ground. Now he was on top of me. His hands were wrapped around my neck.
Why was he doing this, and how would I save myself? It seemed impossible to break away. Van was biting Mark’s ankle, but it didn’t seem to faze him at all. What would happen to Van once I was gone? Would Mark attack the dog for biting his ankle? Ama screamed for someone to help. But unless there was another psychic around, no one was going to hear her. I checked around, trying to think of something that would get Mark off me.
My hands clawed at the dirt underneath me as he tightened his hold on my neck. The pain was terrible as I struggled to breath. I scanned my surroundings, hoping that maybe I would find something to grab and possibly hit him with it. Maybe that would lessen his grip on my neck enough for me to get away.
My hand made contact with glass. When I glanced down, I saw that I had found a bottle. A bottle of root beer, nonetheless. Thank goodness, Danny had been out here again littering. That was not normally something I would say, but I was so thankful. My hand was wrapped around the bottle’s neck. Now I had one chance at smashing Mark over the head with it. If this didn’t work, there would be nothing else.
With all my strength, I swung my arm with the bottle, making contact on Mark’s head. It did the trick. He fell off me immediately and tumbled to the ground, clutching his head. I managed to scramble up from the ground. Van was already on the path, waiting for me, as if he knew that we were going to run.
“Get out of here,” Ama screamed. “Before he gets up and grabs you again.”
I ran as fast as I could to the path. I headed down it with Van running behind me. All of a sudden, I smacked right into someone’s chest. My gaze traveled up, and I realized Pierce was right in front of me.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
I pointed at Mark as he tried to get up from the ground. “He’s the one who killed Erica, and he was just trying to strangle me. I smashed him in the head with the root beer bottle.”
“Stay right here,” Pierce said.
He took off down the path toward Mark with his gun pulled. I watched in stunned silence as Pierce pulled Mark up from the ground. Pierce had Mark in handcuffs within ten seconds.
“What’s happening, Celeste?” Caleb asked from over my shoulder.
I spun around and realized that he’d just walked up. “Pierce just arrested Mark for killing Erica. He tried to kill me too.”
“What are you doing out here?” Caleb asked.
Now was not the time for asking questions like that.
“It’s a long story . . .” I released a deep breath.
“I’m willing to wait,” Caleb said.
“Van ran out down the path, and I was trying to catch him. The next thing I knew, Mark was here too, and he was trying to strangle me.”
“How did you get away?”
“Danny’s trash. He left another bottle. Well, I assume he was the one who left the bottle.”
“I’m just so glad you’re all right.” Caleb embraced me in a hug.
Pierce was walking up the path, guiding Mark toward us. I didn’t want to face Mark again. Terrifying thoughts filled my mind when I remembered how close I’d come to being strangled.
“My, that was scary, Celeste. With your quick thinking, you saved yourself. I’m happy that you’re all right.” Ama scowled at Grandpa. “It’s all his fault for luring you back here to begin with.”
“Don’t be too hard on him. He had no way of knowing this would happen. He was just trying to get you to go back to the other side.”
Van sat at my feet. I scooped him up and hugged him tightly. Caleb and I followed Pierce down the path as he led Mark away. Thank goodness, this was over. Now everyone could feel safe again.
We reached the end of the path and spilled back into the fair area. Activities were still going on as usual. No one had a clue what had just happened down by the river, though it didn’t take long for people to notice that Pierce was leading Mark out in handcuffs.
People were stopping to watch the scene. Police cars had arrived in the parking area now. Sirens wailed, and flashing lights swirled. Ama and her grandfather walked behind me. I just hoped that I would be able to help them resolve their argument. Caleb and I stepped just to the edge of the parking lot and watched Pierce as he stuffed Mark into the police car. In the back seat of the cruiser, Mark rocked from side to side, thrashing around as if trying to escape the handcuffs. A shiver raced down my spine.
“I can’t believe this happened,” Caleb said. “Wait. I should believe it. You worked really hard to find the killer. You’re an excellent sleuth, Celeste Cabot.”
CHAPTER 26
After the event, remember to calculate your profit. Don’t panic if you had a loss. You’ll do better next time. Maybe a ghost will help you.
“I’m relieved that’s over,” Ama said.
“Me too,” I said, forgetting that the others couldn’t see her.
At first, everyone around seemed confused, but I supposed some of them remembered that I sometimes had ghosts hanging around.
“Well, now that that’s over, I think we should leave,” Grandpa said.
“No, I think that we still have unfinished business here,” Ama said.
What could that unfinished business possibly be? Though I didn’t want to burst her bubble and tell her I thought everything had been solved.
“I’ve put up with this long enough now. I think it’s time for you to come back with me,” Grandpa said.
Ama crossed her arms in front of her chest, as if pouting. “I’m not going anywhere.”
I really had to do something to bring these two together.
“If you guys will excuse me for a minute, I need to speak with the ghost
s.”
Caleb gestured with a wave of his hand.
Pierce winked. “Sure, go right ahead.”
“You guys can come with me.” I motioned.
Grandpa scowled but ultimately came with me. Ama was still pouting, with her arms crossed in front of her. Nevertheless, she came along with me too. I had no idea what I was going to say to them. But I had to get these two together.
“Where should we go to talk?” I whispered. “Maybe that nearby oak tree.”
Ama and Grandpa shrugged. “Fine, the oak tree it is.”
Once at the large tree, I kept my front facing the tree so that no one would notice me talking, although I was sure that facing the tree seemed strange enough to anyone who was watching. They probably thought I was completely nuts. Lucky for me, though, everyone was still paying attention to the police presence, so I would probably go unnoticed for a while.
“Okay, what can I do to get you two together? I want you to get along. After all, you’re family, and I know you love each other. What do you say? Shouldn’t you all make up now?”
“It seems like you want to get rid of me,” Ama said.
“No, absolutely not. I love having you around, but I imagine you have other things that you need to take care of on the other side. You seem like kind of a guardian angel, and I think someone else might need your help.”
“I know no one needs her help on this side,” Grandpa said. “We just need her to come back to the other side.”
Okay, clearly this wasn’t working. I had to think of something else. The two were at an impasse, staring at each other and unwilling to budge. And I was caught in the middle. Telling Ama that I didn’t want her here would hurt her feelings, so that wasn’t an option. And I enjoyed her company, but I knew it wasn’t right for her to stay around. She was stubborn, just like her grandfather, though.
Suddenly, I realized Ama was becoming more and more see-through. I wasn’t seeing her as a complete living person. Now she appeared sheer, like a projected image. Ama must have noticed my strange reaction.
“What’s wrong, Celeste?” she asked.
“I can see right through you.”
Ama peered down at her hands and saw what was happening.
“What’s happening?” A revelation came across her face. “Oh . . . I know what’s wrong.”
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Now that I’ve helped you, it’s time for me to go back. I’m not strong now. I need to go back and recharge my energy. I’m fading fast.”
Grandpa tossed up his hands. “Thank you. It’s about time I got you to leave. Now it’s time that you go.”
“Not so fast. I have to say good-bye to Celeste first. I’ll be back to see you, Celeste. I promise. This isn’t really good-bye. It’s only good-bye for now.”
“I hope this isn’t good-bye. You take care, okay?”
“Don’t worry about me. You take care of yourself. You’re always getting into trouble.”
She’d barely finished the sentence when, right before my eyes, she disappeared. I spun around to see if Grandpa had disappeared as well. Yes, he was gone too. They’d gone back to the other dimension in a blink of the eye. Poof... they’d disappeared. I didn’t get a chance to say a proper good-bye.
I raced around to the other side of the tree, hoping I’d find them there. Sadly, there was no sign of them. I’d wanted them to go because I knew that was the right thing, but now I was sad.
“Celeste, are you all right?” Caleb’s voice carried through the air and around the tree.
When I stepped back around, I found Caleb standing there. I knew I looked quite frazzled.
“The ghosts are gone,” I said.
“Well, that’s a good thing, right? You wanted them to leave?”
I released a deep breath. “Yes, but I thought I’d get a little more time before they left.”
“How do you know they’re gone?” he asked.
“I was talking to Ama when all of a sudden she began to fade. Poof, she was gone. Grandpa left with her.”
“Did they go back to the other dimension?” Caleb asked.
“I don’t know for sure if they did, but I think their time and energy here ran out.”
“Well, I suppose she wanted to help you, and that’s exactly what she did. So that’s why she was able to leave. I’m sure once they’re in the other dimension, they’ll work out things between them.”
“She said that, once she’s saved up enough energy, she might reappear,” I said.
“Well, at least you’ll know how to deal with them if they come back,” he said.
When I checked across the way, I spotted Pierce. After a couple of seconds, he headed our way. Now the two men stood beside each other.
“Did you get things worked out?” I asked.
“I don’t know if Pierce and I will ever have things worked out, as you say,” Caleb said.
I placed my hands on my hips. “I think you guys could be really good friends.”
“I don’t know about that,” Pierce said.
“You have a lot of things in common.”
They eyed each other up and down.
“Like what?” Caleb asked.
“Oh, I don’t know . . . investigating murders.”
“That’s probably about all.”
“What will it take for me to get you together?” I motioned for the men to follow me.
They walked behind me as we headed back over toward the festival. My parents stood with my brothers. Of course, my brothers were showing off their trophies for coming in first and second in the hot dog eating contest. Just as we reached everyone, Sammie rushed up.
Sammie grabbed me in a hug. “Oh, my gosh, Celeste, I heard what happened. How are you? Have you calmed down? Did he hurt you?”
“I’m not hurt, but I think it’ll take a while for me to calm down.”
“Are you sure you’re all right?” She touched my neck, checking for injuries. “I mean, that was a pretty traumatic thing that happened.”
I waved off her concern. “I’ll be just fine. At least, the killer is going to jail.”
We focused on the police car. Officers moved around the scene. Festivalgoers waited for more action from the cops.
“Mark’s going to jail, thanks to Celeste and Van,” Caleb said.
“And the ghosts—which, by the way, are no longer here.”
“They left?” Sammie asked with wide eyes. “Wow. Well, I’m just glad that you’re all right.”
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be just fine as long as I can paint and I have Van.”
“And as long as she can investigate murders,” Pierce said with a wink.
We watched as the police car with Mark in the back pulled away. Karla had been staring in shock at the entire scene. I supposed it was just a coincidence that she was here at the craft fair at the same time as Erica. I wasn’t even sure that Erica had been aware that Karla was here. As for Danny? Well, the fact that he was a litterbug had saved me. Without that bottle, I would have never been able to hit Mark over the head. I wouldn’t have been able to get away.
“Maybe I need to offer Danny a thank-you for leaving that bottle by the river,” I said.
“How about you give him a thank-you gift of some more root beer?” Caleb said.
“I like that idea. Though I’m pretty sure he’d be suspicious of anything I gave him. He’s just a little strange but ultimately harmless, I suppose.”
I’d been almost convinced Danny was the killer for a long time. Until I’d found the camera with the photos of the river and saw Erica wearing the exact same clothing from the day of the murder. Then I knew that I’d found the killer.
Movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. Karla was rushing away from the festival. The memory popped into my head. How had I almost forgotten? She had gone to Mark’s car. Plus, she had followed me. I didn’t have answers as to why she’d done this.
I hurried over to Pierce and touched h
is arm to capture his attention. “Karla followed me. I meant to tell you. Plus, I found the camera in Mark’s car with the photos. She went to his car as well and got something out of it. She was extremely comfortable getting into his car, like they knew each other. I think she might be involved.”
I pointed in her direction. She noticed my movement and ran. Pierce sprinted away toward Karla. In another second, Caleb ran after him.
I stood with my family as we watched the scene unfold. Soon Pierce had reached Karla. She spun around, facing him. She acted as if she might actually lunge at him. I could’ve told her that wasn’t a good idea. Caleb approached at that point. They stood in front of her, waiting for her next move. Pierce must’ve said something to Karla because she held her hands up. Pierce moved toward Karla. Next, she placed her hands behind her back. Within seconds, Pierce had her in handcuffs.
“Wow, that was something to behold,” Stevie said.
“And you wonder why I worry about you,” my mother said.
“It is dangerous,” Sammie said.
“You’re not helping,” I said with a shake of my head.
“Well, it’s the truth,” Sammy added.
Pierce guided Karla over to another police car. They’d arrested her in less than ten minutes.
“Well, I believe this is proof that you should have avoided this festival,” my father said. “I told her to stay away from this place, but she never listens to me. She’s just like her mother.”
My mother rolled her eyes. Caleb walked back over to us.
“What happened?” I asked.
“Pierce confronted her with the information you’d given him.”
“What did she say?” Sammie asked.
“She basically confessed that Mark and she had conspired to commit the crime,” Caleb said.
“But why would they do this? I mean, why would they want to do that? I can see why Karla had a motive. What about Mark?” I asked.
“Mark is a disturbed individual, obviously. Karla paid him money because she wanted to get rid of Erica.”
“Well, that makes sense. I can’t believe that she admitted it,” I said.
