The Ghost Who Was Says I Do

by Anna J. McIntyre

  Danielle glared at the woman. “Have you just threatened to hurt Max?”

  “I’m simply expressing my intention to use whatever legal means are open to me to exterminate any pests on my property.”

  “I think you need to leave,” Walt told her.

  “Just keep the cat in your house.” The woman turned and started to walk away but then paused and turned back to the door and said, “And you might want to consider a new business. One that is not run in a residential neighborhood.”

  When the woman turned her back to Walt and Danielle again, her cloche hat flew off her head, which was an amazing feat, considering there was no wind blowing. An imaginary gust of wind sent the hat spiraling toward the street, just out of the woman’s reach as she raced to catch it, chasing the stubbornly elusive hat all the way down to the sidewalk, down the street, and back to her house.

  Together Walt and Danielle stood on the front porch and watched their new neighbor chase her hat.

  “Walt, did you do that?” Danielle asked with a sigh.

  “Well, I couldn’t hit her, could I? She is a woman; it would not have been very gentlemanly of me.”

  Danielle stood in the kitchen, waiting for Walt to finish his little chat with Max so they could head to the police station. The cat sat on the floor by Walt’s feet, looking up to him.

  “She threw a rock at you?” Walt asked.

  Max silently stared at Walt, his black tail swishing back and forth.

  “Just stay out of her yard. Remember how it used to be for you before you moved here? How some of those people treated you?”

  Max continued to stare; his golden eyes blinked.

  “Next time it might be something worse than a rock. Just stay out of her yard. And whatever you do, never eat anything over there or take food from her. Okay?”

  Max meowed.

  “Walt, if you weren’t here, I keep wondering what I would do about poor Max. He would be miserable locked in the house. He’s too old to become a house cat. But I would be constantly worrying about him if I left him outside, never knowing what that woman might do. I can’t believe she’s our new neighbor!” Danielle said as she drove the two of them to the police station.

  “I just hope Max listens to me.” Walt sighed.

  “You mean he might not?”

  Walt glanced over to Danielle and smiled. “Max is a cat, Danielle. I have made him fully aware of the danger. I’ve explained he is not allowed to go in her yard. But he is a cat.”

  “You keep saying that. He is a cat. What does that mean?”

  Walt chuckled. “Even before my—gift—in communicating with animals, I recognized the difference between cats and dogs. Dogs want to please. Cats, not so much. If Max decides it’s amusing to torment your new neighbor, a threat of reprisal on her part is not going to stop him. Why do you think they say cats have nine lives? You seemed to understand all this earlier when Ian asked why we wouldn’t put Max in the wedding.”

  “I just figured this was different, sort of like how Eva and Marie got Bella to help distract Chris’s uncles.”

  “One thing I have learned,” Walt said, “is that cats can be extremely protective of their humans. They are often underestimated in that regard, and many people think only a dog will come to a human’s defense.”

  Danielle glanced briefly to Walt and smiled and then turned her attention back down the road again. “I agree. I remember watching a video of a cat online who went after a dog who was attacking his owner. It was epic. That snappy little dog was going after the kid, and the cat just flew at the dog and chased him away.”

  “Max would do that for you,” Walt said.

  “Then why won’t he just agree to stay out of the neighbor’s yard?” Danielle asked.

  “Because they are two different things. One is about your safety and the other is about his. Think about little Bella, who is so much smaller and physically weaker than Hunny. A pit bull Hunny’s size could kill Bella in a second if she wanted to. But does that stop Bella from tormenting the poor dog?”

  “True. I guess cats like to live on the edge.”

  Walt reached over and patted Danielle’s knee. “There is one thing to consider. Max is older and more street smart than Bella. If you’ll notice, he tends not to tease Hunny to the same degree as when Hunny was a pup. Max is more aware of the risk. So hopefully, he’ll be more reluctant to test your neighbor.”

  When Danielle pulled into the parking lot at the police station, she spied Joe and Brian stepping out of the front entrance. As she and Walt walked toward the station a few moments later, they came face-to-face with the police officers, who were on their way to a patrol car.

  “Hi, Joe, Brian,” Danielle greeted them.

  “Morning,” Walt added.

  Brian nodded. “Good morning.”

  Joe looked Danielle up and down briefly and then looked over to Walt for a second and back to Danielle. “How are you feeling?”

  Danielle smiled at Joe. “Things are great.”

  “You getting enough rest?”

  Danielle frowned. “Why, do I look tired or something?”

  “No, you look fine,” he said hastily. “It’s just, umm, I know how busy you are, running the bed and breakfast, planning a wedding. Are you still waiting until Valentine’s Day to get married?”

  Danielle glanced to Walt, who returned with a shrug, and back to Joe. “What do you mean waiting?”

  “Umm…I don’t know. Thought you might just decide to elope. Weddings take a lot of time and money. The most important thing is the marriage, not the wedding.”

  “What in the hell was that about?” Brian asked Joe as the two got into the patrol car a few minutes later.

  “I just think if Danielle is pregnant, it’s irresponsible of her to wait; she should get married now.” Joe shut the car door.

  Putting on his seatbelt, Brian looked over to Joe with a frown. “Irresponsible? What are you talking about?”

  “Two consenting adults don’t need to be married,” Joe began.

  Brian chuckled. “Like you and Kelly?”

  Joe glared at Brian and shoved his key into the ignition. “I’m just saying that once you drag a child into a relationship, then your priorities change. The child should be your first concern.”

  “What are you saying, Joe?”

  “They should get married now if Danielle is pregnant, and not wait for when it’s convenient for them. Kids have it hard enough without the stigma that your parents had to get married.”

  “Joe, you were born after the 1950s, why are you living there?”

  “I think Joe needs a vacation,” Danielle told the chief when she and Walt walked into his office. She closed the door behind them.

  MacDonald stood briefly and shook Walt’s hand before settling back behind his desk. “Why do you say that?”

  “I guess he doesn’t think we should spend our money on a wedding,” Danielle said as she took a seat.

  “What?”

  Danielle shook her head. “Never mind. He just says the strangest things sometimes.”

  Walt handed the chief the envelope with the letter. They had already called him on the phone, informing him of the situation.

  “So this is it?” MacDonald asked, removing the folded page from the envelope. He began to read. Danielle and Walt sat silently, waiting for him to finish.

  When he was done reading he stood up. “Do you mind if I keep this? I’ll make you a copy.”

  “Are you going to check for fingerprints?” Danielle asked.

  “The chances of getting good prints are slim, considering everyone who has already read it,” the chief began.

  Danielle sighed. “It happened so fast. The letter got passed around before we realized that probably was not the smart thing to do.”

  “I’m not saying we won’t be able to get something. But right now, I can’t justify spending resources on having this tested. But, if they do contact you again and something more comes of this
, I would feel better having this,” the chief explained.

  “So we just do nothing?” Danielle asked.

  “To me, this sounds like an extortion letter. I expect the person to contact you again with demands, not blow up your car. At least, not yet.”

  “Gee, that makes me feel better,” Danielle grumbled.

  Nine

  It wasn’t Ian’s snoring that woke her. It was the fact she had to use the bathroom. Still groggy, Lily tossed the blankets to one side and sat up in the bed, careful not to wake her husband. She assumed it was the middle of the night considering the only light came from the glow of a nightlight in the hallway. It made its way through the open doorway. Plus, the curtains were dark, with no sign of sunlight slipping in. But once she placed her feet on the floor and glanced at the alarm clock on the nightstand, she groaned. It was 7:23 a.m.

  Lily sat there a moment and closed her eyes. She really needed to pee, but she also wanted to take that pregnancy test, and she wanted it as accurate as possible. According to the instructions, that meant she needed to take the test during her first trip to the bathroom of the day—which would be now.

  Why didn’t I bring that pregnancy test home with me? She had intended to return to Marlow House when Ian was not around and bring the test home and hide it for the morning. But then the day got away from her, and she had decided she could just as easily take the test at Marlow House. That sounded fine last night, yet not so much right now.

  With a reluctant sigh, Lily stood up and put on her slippers. She opened the drawer to her nightstand and pulled out a flashlight, making an unintended rattling sound.

  “Where are you going?” Ian mumbled. He rolled over in the bed to face her.

  “Just to the bathroom,” she whispered. “Go back to sleep.”

  “You taking a flashlight with you?”

  “Umm…I’m taking Sadie out.”

  Sadie, who had been snoozing in the nearby dog bed, lifted her head and looked at Lily, her ears perking up.

  “She has to go out?” Ian asked, still not totally awake. “Want me to take her?”

  “No. I got this. Go back to sleep,” Lily whispered.

  With a groan, Ian rolled over and resumed his snoring.

  Lily headed for the door and almost tripped over Sadie, who was no longer in her dog bed, but at Lily’s side, her tail wagging. Looking down at the golden retriever, Lily let out a sigh and muttered, “I guess you’re coming with me.”

  Pearl Huckabee had been awake for an hour already and was on her second cup of Earl Grey tea. The first cup had been hot, the second lukewarm. Placing a scone on the saucer with her teacup, she headed to the living room.

  She hadn’t turned on any house lights yet; instead she enjoyed the fireplace’s glow. From her perspective, turning on unnecessary lighting was a waste of energy. With logs burning in the fireplace, she had both heat and sufficient light. It wasn’t that she couldn’t afford to pay the utility bill, but she believed it was wasteful to spend money unnecessarily.

  Walking to the living room window, saucer with teacup and scone in hand, she opened the curtains. It was still dark outside, but the sun would be coming up shortly. Just about to turn from the window, she spied a light zigzagging across the street in her direction. Quickly ducking behind the curtain, she stayed there just a moment before peeking back out the window and peering into the darkness. Whoever was out there would not be able to see her anyway, she reminded herself.

  Setting the saucer on a side table, she snatched up the scone and hurried to the front door and eased it open, ever so gently, so as not to be heard or seen. Taking a nibble of the scone, she looked outside. Whoever was out there stood by her neighbor’s side gate. Pearl patted her sweater’s front pocket, making sure her cellphone was close at hand. She then grabbed the baseball bat she kept in her umbrella stand by the front door. Pearl didn’t play baseball, but she did like to protect herself. She slipped outside and closed the door behind her and made her way down the front steps of her porch.

  Slinking through the near darkness, hiding behind shrubbery, Pearl clutched the baseball bat in one hand and held the scone in the other. She listened.

  “Sadie, calm down. You’re going to have to stay in the backyard while I go in,” Pearl heard a female voice say. She then heard a whining sound.

  Whoever is breaking in has a dog with her! Pearl thought, moving closer to the wrought-iron fence separating her yard from Marlow House. Hiding behind a shrub, she looked through the fence. The rising sun broke some of the darkness, allowing her to see into her neighbor’s side yard. She spied a dark figure fiddling with the side door while the shadow of a large dog stood nearby. The next moment the door opened and the intruder slipped inside the house, leaving the dog outside.

  “Oh no!” Pearl gasped, pulling her cellphone from her pocket and shoving her half-eaten scone where her phone had been. Frantically she dialed 911.

  On the other side of the wrought-iron fence, as Pearl was busy reporting the break-in, Sadie’s ears perked up and she looked south and cocked her head. Forgetting her mistress’s command to stay, Sadie took off running, easily slipping through the side gate, which had not been relatched after they went into the yard.

  Sadie’s sudden appearance startled Pearl, who dropped not just the cellphone, but the baseball bat, which rolled away. It was impossible to retrieve the bat, not without getting around the dog.

  Crouching before Pearl, with its butt in the air, the golden retriever made a series of hopping motions, as if preparing to jump on the woman.

  “Stay away!” Pearl shouted. On the cellphone, now on the ground nearby, the dispatcher could hear Pearl’s cries and relayed the urgency to the patrol car already heading to the house.

  Looking frantically from the dog to the nearby toolshed, Pearl remembered the scone. Taking it out of her pocket, she broke off a piece and tossed it to the dog, who quickly gobbled it up. Smiling in satisfaction, Pearl continued to tear off pieces, tossing them to the dog while leading it to the toolshed. Once there, Pearl hurriedly opened the door and tossed the remainder of the scone inside. Taking the bait, Sadie rushed into the shed, only to have the door slammed shut on her.

  The next moment the police car pulled up in front of the house.

  Just as Brian Henderson stepped out of the police car, a woman rushed in his direction. He had never seen her before, but he assumed she was the one who had made the 911 call, as she had identified herself as the neighbor to the south of Marlow House. Considering what the dispatcher had told him she had overheard, he assumed the threatening perpetrator had been scared off by the approaching police car.

  “Thank heavens you’re here, officer!” the woman said as she rushed to him.

  “Are you Pearl Huckabee?” Brian asked.

  “Yes!” She nodded.

  “Which way did he go?” Brian looked around cautiously, his hand prepared to draw his gun.

  “She’s still in the house. At least, it sounded like a woman.”

  Brian frowned. “The dispatcher heard you shouting for someone to stay away from you.”

  The woman nodded frantically. “Yes. It was the dog.”

  “Dog?”

  Pearl pointed up into her yard, to the small outbuilding. “I locked him in the toolshed.”

  “Dog? The intruder brought her dog with her?”

  “It’s a very big dog. I don’t know what might have happened to me if I hadn’t been able to lure him to the toolshed.”

  Brian glanced to Marlow House. “So tell me what you saw.”

  Pearl pointed across the street. “I looked out my window and saw a light coming across the street.”

  “A light?”

  “I assume it was a flashlight.”

  “Then what happened?” Brian asked.

  “She broke into the side gate.”

  “How do you know it was a woman?” Brian asked.

  “I heard her. She told her dog she would have to stay outside or she might
wake up the people who live there. Oh, I remember, she called the dog Sadie!”

  “Umm…Sadie?” Brian tried not to laugh.

  “The woman broke into the side door of the house! I could see through the fence. She’s in there now! You need to hurry. She could be upstairs murdering them as we speak!”

  “And this dog, you say it’s in your shed?” Brian asked.

  “Yes!”

  “Why don’t we let the dog out,” Brian suggested.

  “Are you going to shoot it?” Pearl sounded delighted at the idea.

  “Umm…no. I don’t think Ian would appreciate it.”

  “Ian?” Pearl frowned.

  “He lives across the street. That’s where Sadie lives,” Brian explained.

  “So the woman stole the dog and now broke into Marlow House!” Pearl gasped.

  “Umm…I don’t really think so.”

  They heard someone whistle. It was coming from Marlow House’s side yard. Pearl rushed to the fence and looked through it. “She’s outside, looking for the dog!”

  Brian walked to the fence and looked through it. Since the sun had barely risen, he couldn’t quite yet make out her features, but by her size and shape, he had no doubt about the identity of Pearl’s intruder.

  “Let the dog out,” Brian told Pearl.

  “Aren’t you going to go arrest that woman?”

  “Not today.” When Pearl made no move to release the dog, Brian walked to the toolshed and opened the door. Sadie rushed out and started to bark at Brian and Pearl.

  “You let him go!” Pearl shouted.

  Lily’s first thought after stepping out of Marlow House’s back door was that Sadie had ignored her command to stay and then had entered through the doggy door after Lily had gone to the bathroom. She groaned, thinking Sadie was probably already in the attic, waking up Danielle and Walt, but then she heard Sadie’s bark. It was coming from the neighbor’s yard.