Purrfect Haunt

by Louise Lynn

  Hazel slipped into the hallway, making as little noise as she could manage.

  The sound came from down the hall, and she held her breath as she crept toward it.

  At first, she thought it came from the crime scene, but a quick glance told her that room was empty, though Cameron’s blood still stained the hardwood floor.

  Another pattering of steps rang out, and Hazel spun toward them.

  Anthony Ray tugged the leash.

  They turned a corner, and Hazel froze.

  Creak. Creak. Creak.

  The sound came from upstairs.

  Her blood felt like ice.

  Going up there was likely an awful idea; so, of course, Anthony Ray was all for it.

  He darted up as far as he could, and Hazel followed. Any hope that it was a deputy faded. She didn’t think they’d go up there. What reason would there be?

  When they made it to the landing, she noticed the door at the end of the hall was open a crack, while the rest were closed.

  She’d seen something similar in a movie with a masked killer.

  Anthony Ray didn’t understand the relevance, and charged for it.

  “Wait!" she whispered, but hurried behind him nonetheless.

  He pushed the door open with his paws, and Hazel screamed.

  Emma was sprawled there, a great gash in her throat, and it oozed with deep red blood.

  She turned and ran.

  Hazel wasn’t sure how long it took her to burst out of the mansion’s front door, but her breath clogged in her throat and her lungs burned.

  Patricia sat on the porch again, her mug of tea long finished, and glanced at Hazel with a concerned expression. “Oh dear, you look as if you’ve seen a ghost. Have you?"

  “I need a medic. Medic! Emma’s in the third floor bathroom, and she’s hurt and…" Hazel managed as she struggled to breathe normally.

  Patricia stood. “What? I never saw Emma step foot in there. Are you sure you’re alright, Hazel?"

  Hazel didn’t bother answering that, because Deputy Simmons heard her and rushed over. He didn’t need to be told twice what to do, and soon enough, Sheriff Cross and three deputies charged into the house.

  Hazel hesitantly followed.

  As they neared the bathroom door, she frowned.

  It was closed, and she most certainly had not shut it in her rush to get help.

  “In here?" Sheriff Cross asked.

  Hazel nodded, and gripped Anthony Ray’s leash in her fist.

  Deputy Simmons threw the door wide, and they all stared for a long moment.

  Hazel blinked three times and shook her head.

  The bathroom was clean. No blood or dying Emma on the floor, just slick white tile.

  Sheriff Cross looked at her, a frown on his brow. “Are you sure it was this room?"

  “Of course, I’m sure! She was here. Her neck was slit. I swear! I know what I saw!"

  She didn’t realize she was shaking until Sheriff Cross put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed.

  “It’s okay. I believe you," he said, though the deputies behind him didn’t look like they shared his belief. “Deputy Simmons and the others are going to sweep the house to make sure she’s not hurt someplace. That’s an order."

  The deputies filed out, opening doors on their way and peeking in each room.

  Emma wasn’t in any of them.

  Hazel nodded tightly. “Thanks, but I don’t understand how this happened. Where is Emma? Who saw her last?"

  Sheriff Cross shrugged. “I’ve been in the garden. I take it you weren’t joking about the secret passage?"

  Right. The secret passage.

  Hazel almost forgot. “No, but it doesn’t lead to Dora’s room. I thought the killer might have used it that night, but it goes from the study to Mr. Pearl’s bedroom. So we still have no clue how the crime was committed. Or who did it."

  He looked about as put out as she felt with that news. “That isn’t the only problem. The body in the garden is human, and it doesn't have a head."

  Chapter 18

  "Maybe the head rolled away?" Hazel said and gave Colton a strained smile as they pulled up to her parent’s house that evening.

  The afternoon had gone by in a blur.

  The deputies didn’t find any sign of Emma, Josh or anyone else in the house. Patricia claimed the last she saw Emma, the young woman was headed from the caretaker’s cabin to get something from Patricia’s car.

  Even more troubling, Tess’s whereabouts were unknown during the same time. She’d gone to use the restroom, and never returned to Deputy Simmons. When Tess did reappear, she was wandering near the lake and talking in rhymes.

  Nobody knew what to make of it.

  Now, the Halloween Fair was the next day, and they weren’t any closer to finding the culprit. Not to mention, they might even have a second victim—if they could find her body.

  The deputies were still searching when Hazel and Colton left.

  She didn’t think that night was a great time for a family dinner, but her mother had insisted. And Colton said he could take a couple of hours off to eat before he got back to work.

  Sheriff Cross shook his head. “It’s possible, but the M.E. doesn’t think so. It’s more likely the head was never buried there in the first place. The rest of the body is too well intact."

  Hazel didn't like the sound of that, especially because she knew the sort of rumors it would start.

  The headless ghost of Massacre Mansion was now officially confirmed. At least, that's what people would say. People like her mother and Patricia.

  "I don't think we should tell my parents or Esther about this until we have more information," she said as she stepped up the walk to the front door of her family home.

  Colton nodded. “I thought the same thing. In fact, I told all the deputies to keep a lid on it until the investigation is wrapped. Oh, the M.E. also said the skeleton is at least a hundred years old."

  That was even worse. It put the body at the exact right time to have been buried when the Pearl family lived there. But if it was related to the murders, there was no proof.

  Hazel didn't have a chance to knock on the door because it swung open as she reached for it.

  Violet beamed at them and took Anthony Ray's leash from Hazel's outstretched hand. “Finally! You guys took forever. And we know why," she said, her eyes going wide for a moment before she slipped back inside.

  With the autumn chill in the air, Hazel didn't blame her.

  "What do you mean you know why?" Colton said as he stepped in and removed his coat.

  Violet chewed her bottom lip, a habit she had when she didn't want to say something she knew might get her in trouble. "Mrs. Hart just got off the phone with Patricia Corning and she told us everything that happened this afternoon. Why? Is it supposed to be a secret?"

  Hazel and Colton looked at each other. He didn't need to say anything for her to read his expression perfectly. It read: this is how things get worse.

  She agreed with the sentiment completely.

  Esther's daughter, Ruth, was the next to join them. She ran around the corner and threw her arms around Hazel’s waist in a tight squeeze before running over to do the same to Colton. "You found a skeleton in a garden? With no head? What happened to the head?" she asked and stuck her tongue through the gap in her front teeth.

  "Ruth, you’d better not be asking any unsavory questions. What did I say?" Esther called from the kitchen.

  "No talking about skeletons or dead bodies at the dinner table. But we’re not at the dinner table. We’re in the hallway." She got that devilish grin on her face, the one that was distinctly from the Hart side of the family.

  Colton looked torn between telling her the truth and pulling a Sheriff Cross line that declined to comment.

  Hazel decided to step in and save him the trouble. "I think when your mom says no skeleton or dead body talk at the table, she really means all evening. And Sheriff Cross has had a long hard day."
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  Ruth frowned. "Haven't you had a long day too, Auntie Hazy? You found a bloody ghost and it vanished," she said and wiggled her fingers in the air to symbolize Emma's body vanishing.

  Hazel frowned, and wished her imagination wasn't so vivid. In that moment, she caught a flash of what she'd seen. Her gut clenched. She didn't think Emma could possibly still be alive, unless it had been some trick of the light. But what sort of trick of the light made it look like a body was laying in the bathroom?

  "Hazel has had a long day too. We're just here for dinner," Colton said and gave her a tired smile.

  "That means he's not going to share any good information. Typical Uncle Colton," Violet said and pulled Ruth back toward the dining room. "Come on, let's help set the table."

  With minimal grumbling, Ruth complied.

  However, it wasn't as simple as that to get the adults not to ask them questions even with Esther’s ‘no bodies at the dinner table’ rule.

  Thankfully, their mother hadn't been the one to cook. Hazel knew right away from the harassed look Esther threw her and the meal they were having. It was an elaborate soup cooked in whole pumpkins. It smelled savory and a little bit sweet, and Hazel's mouth watered and her stomach grumbled just looking at them in their individual bowls.

  "You didn't have to go all out for the family dinner this time. We could've just done Mexican or something," Hazel said and gave her sister a quick sideways hug.

  Esther returned it. "I was stress cooking. All the rumors flying around, and everyone keeps asking me what's going on, as if I know. Why don't they just ask you?"

  Hazel assumed it was because she hadn't been at her studio all day. “Well, you're the friendly face of the Hart family, so maybe that's why?"

  “Hey!" Their mother said and swatted them each playfully on the arm. "I think I'm the friendly face of the Hart family. Patricia is incredibly upset. Have they found that Emma girl?"

  Hazel shook her head, and glanced around the kitchen. It looked like her father had snagged Colton and dragged him away to explain a set of photos on the wall. Good. It would keep them occupied for a time.

  "No, and, honestly, it doesn't look good for Tess. She wasn't around when Emma disappeared, and when they found her, she was acting, well, weird. But she's usually weird. When I talked to Emma earlier, she claimed Josh Hopkins fought with Cameron the night before he died," Hazel said and the sensation in her stomach worsened. “And last I saw Josh, he was looking for Tess."

  Hazel didn't want to believe it, but it seemed like Tess was at the center of everything involved. And she kept walking away without a scratch while other people had a lot more than scratches.

  Her mother shook her head swiftly. "No. I already told you Tess would never harm anyone. She's practically a pacifist. I don't care what it looks like, someone is pulling the wool over your eyes to make it appear that way."

  Hazel sighed. "Someone would have to have a pretty big axe to grind against Tess to do something this elaborate. Especially killing one person and possibly two," she said in a hushed voice.

  "Axe to grind? That's in poor taste," Esther said as she put the finishing touches on their meal.

  Hazel shrugged. “What we need is a strong motive for the crime. And Tess is the only one who sticks out in that respect."

  Her mother shook her head and wouldn’t say another word about it.

  Once they all tucked in for dinner, the conversation moved toward the food, which was delicious. Enough so that even Ruth and Violet appreciated it, pumpkins and all.

  However, the conversation died and the adults kept glancing at each other sideways, waiting for someone to bring up the inevitable.

  "Ruthie? Didn't you have something you wanted to show Violet?" Esther said sweetly as she rose to fetch dessert.

  Hazel had spied it in the fridge when she was getting out their drinks. Some sort of mousse parfait that looked even more delicious than the ones she sold in the bakery. Esther really had been stress cooking if she made that.

  "You're just trying to get us to leave so you can talk about bodies at the dinner table," Ruth said and crossed her arms.

  Violet snorted. "I'm with her. I understand you don't want an eight-year-old here, but I think I'm old enough. Especially since me and Milo have been watching the old Ghost Hunters Extreme videos with Michael. And yes, Uncle Colton, I’d already finished my homework when we did it."

  "Is it about a body?" Colton asked.

  Violet shook her head. "It's about Cameron Killian. I know he just got horribly killed, but he was a real piece of work. Those videos Josh sent you are of Cameron bullying his crew and doing an insane number of retakes. He did nothing but tell them how worthless they were, and how he's the reason the show was succeeding. And he constantly complained about Xtreme_Skeptic. Like, all the time. He blamed everything on that guy, and said he was going to find out who it was if it was the last thing he did," she said and crossed her arms.

  Hazel raised her brows at that. The Ghost Hunters Extreme crew seemed close knit, but if there had been such animosity between them, that gave both Emma Grand and Josh Hopkins a motive to want Cameron dead.

  "Was that it?" Colton asked.

  Violet nodded again. “Not quite. Milo said he could find out where Xtreme_Skeptic is posting from, if that helps. But he has to wait for them to post another blog or video."

  Hazel straightened in her chair, and she noticed Colton perk up as well.

  “That would be helpful. Text us what he finds ASAP," Colton said.

  Violet smiled for a moment. “Also, I just want to say it's unfair. Fifteen is way older than eight," she said and headed out of the room with Ruth.

  At the last moment, Ruth turned around and stomped her foot. "I'm almost nine," she said, spun again, and the girls disappeared upstairs.

  Hazel's father took a sip of his wine. "Well, Ruthie is right about one thing. She is almost nine."

  Hazel couldn’t help but laugh.

  As dessert was served, Esther's rule quickly flew out the window.

  Especially when their mother started in on the ‘ghostly vision’ Hazel had seen that day. "You should've heard Patricia this evening. That may not have been Emma. It could be a spirit in the house playing tricks if that place is as dark as Tess claims." Maureen Hart said and took an oversized bite of her mousse. It left a smear of chocolate on her lip, and she swept it away with her tongue.

  Hazel felt herself rolling her eyes and stopped. "Just because the body was gone doesn't mean it was a ghost. Emma could be hurt or dead, and we have no clue where she is. There was a secret passage in the house, but the deputies checked it, right?"

  Sheriff Cross nodded somberly. He hadn’t participated in the conversation, and Hazel could tell he was trying not to.

  "A secret passage?" Esther said.

  "Did you check the blueprints to see if there are any other secret passages?" Her father asked.

  Hazel furrowed her brow. "Blueprints? How do we have the blueprints to the Pearl House?"

  Her father gave her that knowing smile, like she should have the answer to this question yet didn't. "The library. They have a section of historical blueprints for all the original homes on Lake Celeste. I'm sure the Pearl House is among them. I looked at it before because Patricia has always been so close-mouthed about the property. She wouldn't even let me look around," he said and shook his head.

  "I'm glad she didn't with everything that's been going on," Maureen said. "That ghost might've picked you off, Edgar!"

  Edgar Hart scoffed, but didn't say anything else.

  It was too late to go to the library now, but Hazel made a note to ask Marcus about it first thing tomorrow. He probably had a better idea of where to find the blueprints than she did, even if he was new to town. "That's a good idea, dad. We’ll check it out, right?" she said and nudged Colton in the elbow.

  He nodded and finished his dessert. “The Sheriff’s Office is doing everything we can, and that information is helpful. The meal
was delicious as usual, Esther. Thank you for having us."

  Maureen’s eyes narrowed. "Oh, don't you pull that sheriff business on us. You owe us an explanation."

  Hazel had a sinking feeling in her stomach, and it had nothing to do with the unsolved crime or the possibly ruined Halloween Fair.

  Colton dabbed his lips. "There are a few people of interest, and I'm not going to comment about them at this time."

  "One of them had better not be Tess. And I hope you have somebody watching over her. With everything going on, she could be in danger!" Maureen said.

  Hazel wondered who would win in a stand off between the two of them. They were both uncommonly stubborn, but her mother had more experience.

  Colton sighed. "I have deputies looking over both Patricia Corning and Tess Turtledove."

  What he didn't mention was that Tess's whereabouts had been unaccounted for during one crime and possibly another. That didn't look good.

  Maureen's shoulders slumped. "I know you're doing everything you can, but you have to understand how difficult this is on Tess. After everything she's been through."

  "What do you mean everything she's been through?" Hazel asked and leaned forward. She’d long since finished her dessert and honestly wished for another, though she wouldn't say that to Esther because that would earn her a disapproving frown.

  Maureen got that secretive look and chewed the inside of her cheek.

  Their father rubbed her back. "I told you it was best to tell them everything right off. And there you go thinking you needed to keep her secret."

  "What secrets?" Esther and Hazel said at the same time.

  "I knew about Tess and Cameron Killian, all right? Not because she told me about their history together, but he’s been bothering her for years."

  Hazel knitted her brows and glanced at Colton. "He was bothering her? Didn't Emma say it was the other way around?"

  Maureen’s lips pursed. "Oh yes. That Emma girl did say it the other way around, and I wouldn't be surprised if Cameron Killian lied and said that's the way it’d happened. But he was sending her harassing emails and texts for ages. That's the reason she got rid of her cell phone. Did you think it was because she doesn't enjoy modern technology? Of course not. Tess is extremely active in the online tarot communities, but every time she got a new phone or new email, Cameron would somehow track her down and start harassing her under it. Insisting she watch his show. Rubbing in how successful he was and how sad it was that she left him. I told her on many occasions she needed to go to the police, but she refused. And then he came back to town and this happens! I know what it looks like, but Tess didn't hurt him," she said and crossed her arms.