by Terri Reid
“Mary told me that it was Ian’s research that ended up helping you move Hannah on,” he said. “Really, that’s all she told me.”
Bradley nodded and then motioned Dave toward the dining room table so they could sit down. “Don’t you think it’s strange that we all know Ian?” Bradley asked, sitting across from Dave and opening up a notepad.
Dave shook his head. “No, I don’t,” he replied. “I sought Ian out because he was studying the paranormal. And Ian was introduced to Mary because of the same thing. I don’t think there’s a huge community of people who can see and talk with ghosts, so perhaps we’re drawn to each other.”
“That makes a lot of sense,” Bradley said, and then he flipped open the file folder with the names Alex had given him. “And speaking of seeing and talking to ghosts, what happened with Harry?”
“Other than scaring the hell out of Ashley, Harry was easy to speak with,” Dave said.
Bradley looked up from the file. “Ashley?” he asked.
“Yeah, she opened the door for us, just when Harry was carrying the photo of his wife across the room,” Dave said. “I talked to her and made sure she got back to her squad car safely. She was okay when we left.” Then he paused for a moment and grinned. “Just don’t ask her to go inside that house by herself.”
Bradley chuckled. “Poor Ashley,” he said. “I remember the first time I encountered a ghost. Turned my world upside down.”
“Well, Harry was a cooperative and chatty ghost,” Dave said. “He just wants to move on and be with his wife. He said that he was in fine health, proven by the check-up required for his life insurance policy that the investment group offered to purchase for him.”
“Wait, an investment group offering a free life insurance policy?” Bradley asked.
Dave nodded. “Yeah, I wondered about that too? Can we go after them?”
Bradley jotted down a few notes and sighed. “Since the coroner ruled Harry’s death from natural causes, it’s going to be tricky. And, it’s not illegal to ask members of a group to get life insurance.”
“Just really strange,” Dave added.
“I wonder how many other guys on the list were also part of the group?” Bradley asked.
“We could take the list back to Harry and find out,” Dave suggested.
“Great idea,” Bradley said. “I’ll let Mary know we’re going.”
Chapter Twenty-nine
“Mary, go already, I don’t mind at all,” Katie Brennan said, standing inside the doorway of Mary’s house. Mary was on the porch, with her jacket on, giving her friend last minute instructions.
“He might cry…” Mary began.
Katie sighed. “I know what to do with babies when they cry,” the mother of seven replied.
Mary nodded and sighed. “Thank you, I know you do,” Mary replied. “I’ll be right across the…”
“Mary, I know where you’ll be,” Katie said. “I’ve got my computer, and I’ll keep myself busy. Go!”
“Are you sure…”
Katie rolled her eyes. “Mary…”
Mary nodded. “Sorry! Sorry, you’re right,” she said. “Okay, I’ll be back…”
Smiling and shaking her head, Katie started to close the door on her friend. “Good-bye,” she said before she closed the door.
Mary laughed. “Okay, good-bye,” she replied.
Turning and jogging down the steps, Mary hurried across the street to the mansion. She opened the wrought iron gate and closed it behind her, examining the gate carefully. “Roses,” she said finally. “I think it needs roses planted next to it, to make it less scary.”
“I always thought roses would be lovely,” Maybelle said, appearing next to her. “But I never got around to planting them.”
Mary smiled at the elderly ghost. “What color would you have planted?” she asked.
Maybelle laughed with delight. “Really, after all the turquoise on the walls, you’re going to get my opinion about color?”
Mary chuckled. “Well, I understand the wall color was for a good cause,” she said. “So, I don’t doubt your taste at all.”
“Why thank you, my dear,” Maybelle replied. “That’s such a relief. I always was partial to red roses.” She sighed. “I suppose that’s the romantic in me.”
They walked up the path to the house together and climbed the steps in companionable silence. When they reached the door, Mary unlocked it, and they both stepped inside.
“Why didn’t you tell me about Gilbert?” Mary asked.
Surprised, Maybelle didn’t react for several long moments. Finally, she sighed and shook her head. “How did you find out about Gilbert?” she asked sadly. “You know he broke my heart.”
“He did?” Mary asked. “How did he do that?”
“He went along with my father’s schemes, even though he knew I was opposed to them,” she replied. “I thought he cared about me, but he only cared about money.”
“Well, that’s odd,” Mary replied. “That’s not what I discovered.”
Maybelle met Mary’s eyes. “What did you discover?” she asked.
Mary shrugged. “I discovered that your father threatened Gilbert,” she said.
“What?” Maybelle exclaimed.
“Your father told Gilbert that if he tried to go to the authorities about his scheme, he would make sure that your name was brought into it,” Mary said, watching the old woman’s face. “You would have been ruined.”
Maybelle’s eyes rounded, and she shook her head in disbelief.
“My father wouldn’t have…” she paused and shook her head sadly. “I’m sorry. Yes, he would have ruined me if it would have deflected the blame from him. He wasn’t much of a father.”
“Well, it could have been that he was bluffing,” Mary replied sympathetically. “He probably knew how Gilbert felt about you and realized he had Gilbert over a barrel with that threat.”
Maybelle shook her head. “How Gilbert felt about me?” she asked. “What do you mean?”
Mary studied the elderly ghost. She had no idea that Gilbert had been in love with her and, Mary decided, it wasn’t something she should reveal. It’s much better for things to take their own natural, or supernatural course, as the case may be, she thought. They’re going to have to discover their feelings on their own.
Finally, Mary shrugged. “Well, perhaps I made an assumption,” she replied. “But, the fact that Gilbert is still here must mean something.”
“Gilbert is still here?” Maybelle exclaimed. “But…but he died years ago.”
“He may have died, but he didn’t leave,” Mary said. “He’s still dealing with the mess your father left both of you.”
Maybelle looked over at the door that led to the parlor. “Is he in there?” she asked.
Mary nodded. “Yes, he is,” she said.
“I never went in there,” Maybelle said, her voice low. “I never wanted to be reminded of what my father did, so I avoided that room.”
“I can’t blame you,” Mary said. “I don’t think I’d want to be in there either. But perhaps, knowing that Gilbert is stuck here too until everything is put to right, we might want to try and move things along a little quicker.”
Maybelle studied Mary for a long moment and then she nodded. “I’ll certainly have to think on that,” she said, fading away. “I certainly will.”
In a moment, Mary was alone in the hallway. “Well,” Mary said, exhaling sharply. “Let’s hope she thinks on that quickly.”
Chapter Thirty
When Bradley pulled the cruiser up behind Ashley’s patrol car and parked, Ashley immediately jumped out of her car and hurried back to meet him.
“Chief,” she said quickly. “Is there anything I can do for you?”
Bradley smiled at Ashley and shook his head. “No, thank you,” he said. “Dave and I just need to go back inside the house for a few minutes.”
Ashley took a deep breath. “Would you like me to accompany you?” she asked.
Bradley was impressed with her courage and loyalty to him. If he had been in her shoes, he didn’t know if he would have made that offer. “No, that’s okay,” he replied. “I think we can handle it.”
He saw the relief on her face and bit back a smile. He’d make sure he assigned someone else to watch the house as soon as he and Dave were done inside.
Once they entered the house, Dave laughed softly. “She’s a good cop,” he said.
“One of the best,” Bradley agreed. “And I’m getting her reassigned as soon as we’re done here.”
Dave glanced over at Bradley. “And you’re a good Chief,” he said.
Bradley shook his head. “Been there, been freaked out by that,” he replied with a smile. Then he looked around the room. “So, is Harry here?”
“You can’t see ghosts?” Dave asked, surprised.
“No. Only when Mary touches my arm,” he said. “Then, somehow, her abilities transfer to me, and I can see them.”
“Well, that’s weird,” Dave said.
“Like seeing ghosts is normal?” Bradley countered.
Dave laughed and nodded. “Touché!”
Dave glanced around the room and saw Harry, still forlornly staring at the photo of his wife. “He’s in the recliner,” Dave whispered. “Looking even sadder than before. I don’t think he even noticed we came into the house.”
Dave walked closer to the recliner. “Hey, Harry, buddy, you okay?”
Harry turned slowly and looked towards Dave. “I’m sorry?” he asked slowly. “What did you need?”
Dave squatted down next to the old man and shook his head. “This is tough, isn’t it?” he asked kindly.
Harry nodded. “I wasn’t ever afraid of dying because I knew that my Sophie would be there waiting for me,” he confessed. “But, you know, this…this waiting. This is pure hell.”
“Yeah. Yeah, I can see it would be,” Dave said. “I want you to know that we’re working on solving your murder. As a matter of fact, I brought the Chief of Police along with me.”
Harry looked beyond Dave to where Bradley stood looking in their direction. “He can see me too?” Harry asked.
Dave shook his head. “No, he just knows that I can see you,” he replied. “But he’s got some questions he’d like to ask you.”
“Sure, if it gets me to my Sophie faster, I’ll answer anything he wants me to,” Harry replied.
Dave turned and motioned to Bradley. “Harry said that he’s happy to help,” he said.
Pulling a sheet out of the folder he was carrying, Bradley came over and looked in the direction Dave looked. “Hello, Mr. Harrington,” Bradley said. “I’m Chief of Police Bradley Alden, and I’d like to ask you a few questions.”
Harry looked at Dave. “Polite sort of fella, ain’t he?”
Dave grinned and looked up at Bradley. “Yeah, he’s real polite,” he said. “And good at what he does.”
“Okay, shoot,” Harry said.
“Harry says you can ask him the questions,” Dave relayed.
“I have a list of names, and I was wondering if you could tell me if any of them are part of your investment group,” Bradley began.
“Can’t,” Harry interrupted.
“Can’t what?” Dave asked.
“Can’t what?” Bradley repeated.
“I can’t tell you who is in the investment group,” Harry replied. “We took an oath.”
Dave sighed and looked up at Bradley. “He took an oath,” he said. “They aren’t supposed to reveal who else is in the group.”
“What exactly did the oath state?” Bradley said.
Dave turned back to Harry.
“I promise that I will never tell anyone the names of the other members of this investment group, upon my honor,” Harry repeated. “I swore. I can’t do it.”
Dave repeated the information to Bradley and, to his surprise, Bradley smiled and nodded.
“It’s important to keep your word,” Bradley said to Harry. “Even if they might be responsible for your death.”
Harry looked uncertain. “What does he want me to do?” he asked Dave.
“I don’t know what he wants you to do,” Dave replied pointedly, looking at Bradley. “It seems that we’re at an impasse.”
Bradley shook his head and passed the sheet of paper to Dave. “No, Harry’s oath said that he couldn’t tell anyone the names of the other members,” Bradley said. “It didn’t say anything about pointing them out.”
Harry chuckled. “Now, there’s a clever cop,” he said. “Let me take a look at that sheet.”
In a few minutes they had their answer, nearly all of the elderly men who had died had also been members of Harry’s investment club.
“So, you think they’re responsible?” he asked.
Bradley shrugged. “Well, I think this is far too coincidental that they or at least someone who’s a part of the group is not accountable.”
“Where did you hear about this investment group?” Dave asked.
Harry thought about it for a moment. “I think it was an email,” he said, then he shook his head. “Or a phone call. I can’t remember exactly.”
Dave turned to Bradley. “They contacted him through an email or phone call,” Dave repeated.
“They initiated the first contact?” Bradley asked. “You weren’t looking for a financial advisor?”
Harry shook his head. “No, I talked to the folks at the bank, and they gave me some good advice about a blind trust,” he said. “Then, these fellas call me and tell me that they can help me make much more money than just interest.”
Dave turned to Bradley. “They contacted him and told him he could make more money than just interest,” he said. Then Dave turned back to Harry. “Which bank did you use?”
Harry told Dave the name of the bank and Dave repeated it to Bradley.
“You didn’t tell anyone else about your money?” Bradley asked, just to confirm.
Harry shook his head. “Not a soul,” he confirmed
Dave shook his head. “No one,” he replied.
“Can you tell me where the investment group met?” Bradley asked.
Dave repeated Harry’s answer, and Bradley jotted it down.
“Thank you so much,” Bradley replied. “This is going to be very helpful.”
“What are you going to do next?” Harry said.
Dave echoed Harry’s question. Bradley looked in Harry’s direction and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Harry,” he said regretfully. “But that’s confidential at this point. But, I’ll let you know as soon as I can.”
Chapter Thirty-one
A few minutes later, Dave and Bradley were back in the cruiser headed back to Bradley’s house. They rode in silence for a few moments when, finally, Dave turned to Bradley. “So, when you mentioned to Harry that the investigation was confidential, what you meant was you have no idea what you’re going to do next, right?” Dave asked.
Bradley nodded and sighed. “Well, I’ve got some ideas,” he said. “But all we have is a bunch of circumstantial evidence that doesn’t point to a crime.”
“Sometimes circumstantial evidence is the most interesting,” Dave replied.
“But you can’t take it to court,” Bradley argued.
Nodding, Dave glanced out the window in thought and then turned back to Bradley. “Okay, we know that the list you have is peppered with people from this investment club, right?”
Bradley nodded. “Yeah.”
“And the investment club gave everyone a free life insurance policy, right?” Dave continued. “And, if the pattern holds, the investment club contacted the investors initially. So, they were wooing clients.”
“Nothing illegal about that,” Bradley said.
“But there is something illegal about selling or giving away confidential information about blind trusts and investments,” Dave said.
“We don’t know that happened,” Bradley replied. “For all we know, Harry could have told
the furniture salesman that he just got a bunch of money when he bought his new recliner. You mentioned he recently did some remodeling. Anyone coming in or out of his house would have known he was spending money, and quite a bit of it.”
“Okay, yeah, you’re right,” Dave admitted. “So, what’s next. It’s not like we have a lot of witnesses.”
Bradley pulled the cruiser in front of his house and turned to Dave. “What did you just say?” Bradley asked.
“It’s not like we have a lot of witnesses,” Dave repeated. “We need someone to corroborate Harry’s information.”
Bradley reached back in the for his folder, pulled out a piece of paper and waved it in the air. “I’ve got a list of dead people,” Bradley said.
Dave stared at Bradley and nodded slowly. “Yes. Yes, you do,” he said, wondering if the poor police chief had finally cracked. “And it’s a nice list too.”
Bradley snorted and then shook his head. “No. I mean, you and Mary can check these guys out,” he said. “See if they can give us the information we need.”
“Great idea,” Dave agreed. “But we still have the testimonies of a bunch of dead people. That’s not going to get us anywhere in a court of law.”
“But it will narrow down where we have to look,” Bradley said. “And maybe one of them heard something or saw something that will give us more than what Harry did.”
Nodding, Dave thought about what Bradley had said for a moment. “You know, that could work,” he agreed. “But how are we going to find these guys? They might not have died at home, like Harry.”
“I was thinking about what you and Mary said, about the people in the office at Maybelle’s,” Bradley said. “Ghosts haunt places they’ve been…that whole farmers haunt barns kind of thing. What if we go to the investment club and see if they are hanging around there?”
“Won’t it be kind of obvious if we show up there and start talking to the air?” Dave asked.
“I thought that we could go at night,” Bradley said, then he shook his head. “But, you’re right, they would only show up when they were used to showing up. Sorry, bad idea.”
“No,” Dave said slowly. “Not a bad idea at all.” He turned toward Bradley. “There have been some studies that show that new ghosts, recently dead spirits, haven’t figured out their patterns right away, which is why people often report seeing recently dead spirits visit them in their homes. These guys haven’t been dead all that long.” He shrugged. “It couldn’t hurt to try.”