“You did good,” Ryley said, collapsing into a patio chair. Samantha sat with her.
“Is he still alive? He made me do it. He made me seduce the coach. He threatened my mom’s job. He said he’d claim she was a pedophile and slept with him. I had no choice.”
“Phillip took his own life. He was a troubled kid.”
Tears formed in Samantha’s eyes.
“They’re going to arrest me as an accessory because I didn’t tell on him.”
“Everything will work out. I know two really good lawyers if it comes to that, and I promise I’ll help you and your mom with the fight.” Sometimes the punishment didn’t fit the crime. Ryley had learned that the hard way.
Chapter 40
One Month Later
The anniversary of when she shot her father had come, and with it, her father had left a note on her car written in a handwriting that made her entire body shake. “One day, you’ll wear a matching scar.”
He was getting bolder with each anniversary.
She pulled the hair net off her head and the gloves off her hands in the back room of the food kitchen. Samantha had just arrived and was stowing her things under a stainless steel counter.
“Do you need help moving, Ryley?” Samantha asked.
They’d become friends since that day Samantha had called the police. Ryley had looked after her like she was a little sister. She’d hired the best attorneys in town in the event the cops charged Samantha with anything. They hadn’t.
It was the first good deed she’d used Wilson’s money for. Sometimes bad stuff in life happened to good people. Ryley had witnessed it firsthand.
That was why she’d agreed to Wilson’s terms. To make the world a less crappy place. She could do that. She’d already started.
“I’ve got movers coming. That’s why I’m cutting out early, but I’ll be back tomorrow.”
“Call me if you need anything.” Samantha hugged Ryley. The unfamiliar action made Ryley freeze.
When was the last time she’d let anyone hug her? Logan, Jake? Her mother? She couldn’t actually recall being touched like this.
“This is a hug. Hug me back,” Samantha said.
Ryley patted the girl’s back.
“You’ll get used to it,” Samantha warned.
Ryley walked through the building toward the front door. She froze at the sight of Felix Wilson standing in the doorway. The smell of alcohol was overwhelming. His thread-bare suit was wrinkled. The stubble of his five-day shadow was growing in.
He stumbled and caught himself on the table next to him—the gun in his hand loosened from his grip and landed with a thud against the table’s surface.
She forgot to breathe and took an unconscious step backward.
He straightened. His words came out with a slur. “You’re a damn thief.”
The door behind him shoved open, and Logan Bane stepped around him, headed in her direction.
“Ryley,” Bane said, not realizing the situation
She didn’t answer. She swallowed hard, afraid to move. Afraid that Felix would open fire on the innocent people in the room.
Anger tore through her and as if sensing the situation, all talking in the room stopped and turned in their direction.
Bane followed her gaze as he turned, finally realizing what he’d walked in to. He drew his gun and had it pointing at Felix. “Put the weapon down.”
Felix didn’t comply.
“Who is he, Ryley?” Bane asked, keeping his eyes on the threat.
“The other Wilson. The one who leaked my name to the media”
“They wanted me to apologize, can you believe that? Apologize to a common thief.” Felix waved his gun around. People at the tables moved farther away. Peter was ushering them into the kitchen area.
She fisted her hands, digging her nails into her palms to defeat the urge to choke him with her bare hands. The creepy spider things appeared on the ceiling. Their whispers grew louder in her ears fighting the sound of her racing heart.
“Felix, I know you're upset, but we can come up with a resolution, just put the gun down.”
“You screwed me out of making millions in that land deal.” Felix’s eyes narrowed to slits. He lifted the gun, and it waved with his unsteady balance.
“You kill me, and it goes to my heirs, not to you. I’ve already signed the paperwork. All you’ll get out of this is spending a lifetime in jail for my murder. You don’t want to do this.”
The door opened again. Felix spun on unsteady feet toward the homeless guy and his ghost as they walked in.
Ryley charged Felix, not giving him another chance to take a shot at anyone. She kicked, knocking the gun from his hand seconds before Bane threw an uppercut, knocking the drunk to the ground.
The homeless guy scuffled back out the door and out of the way as the crawlies followed excitedly behind him.
Peter stepped out of the kitchen with the phone pressed to his ear. “The police are on the way.”
Ryley doubled over and crouched, hugging her knees. The one time she could have used the Taser for anything other than a brick, and it had been packed in her bag.
Bane grabbed a napkin off the table and picked up the gun by the butt and set it on a table out of Felix’s reach before tucking his weapon away beneath the hem of his shirt.
The police showed within fifteen minutes. They took Ryley’s statement, along with everyone that had witnessed the altercation.
Ryley and Bane had been released, and he was walking her to her car.
“Why were you here tonight?” she asked, meeting Bane’s gaze. “My brother still paying you to follow me?”
“No, but I came bearing a surprise. Crews and I wanted to do something nice for you, seeing how you kept me out of jail and saved his mother’s life.”
“Oh?”
He handed her a file like the million she’d seen in his office. “You wanted to know about that little boy in the cemetery.”
“Adam Bell.” She said his name as if it were someone she talked to everyday. She’d been trying, every day. Talking to the trees had been more like it. On good days Adam had shown up and yelled at her to leave. On bad, he ignored her completely.
“Sad story for those that remember. He and his family were killed. What most people don’t know is that he had a baby sister in ICU. Adam had been distraught about not being there with her.
“She’s his unfinished business?”
“I believe so, and she’s meeting you at the cemetery.” He glanced at his watch. “In twenty minutes.”
Hope blossomed in Ryley’s chest, mixing and mingling where that had been anger only moments ago.
“Thirty minutes. I need to hurry.” Ryley clicked the fob on her car and climbed inside without even a thank you.
Ryley strolled across the parking lot toward the woman sitting on the bench. Her hair was short, and in a pixie cut. Her red hair was dotted with lines of grey. She rose as Ryley approached and held out her hand. “Ryley St. James? I’m Roberta Bell.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Ryley said, gesturing to the bench. “I’m not sure what all Logan Bane told you about me, but…”
“He said you could see ghosts. He said you’ve been seeing my brother and that he’s giving you a hard time.”
“Bane really does suck at keeping my secrets.” Ryley grinned. “But everything he said is true. Your brother is here.”
“My grandmother told me stories about them. I was just a baby and too young to remember, but she shows me pictures. She said my brother was adamant that he needed to be in the hospital with me. That it was his job to protect me when I was sick.” She tightened her grip on the aged teddy bear in her hands. “He insisted I have Mr. Bear in my crib to protect me when he wasn’t there.”
“That had to be hard,” Ryley whispered as a chill surrounded her. The leaves overhead rustled.
“It was, but my grandmother gave me a good life, and she filled it with love and her memories of my
family.”
“He’s here,” Ryley said.
“Right now?” She glanced around.
A chill surrounded Ryley in the late evening air. She glanced up and pointed to the tree above them. “Up there.”
Roberta rose from her seat and glanced up into the tree. She clutched the bear to her chest.
“It’s okay, Adam.” She lifted the bear. “The bear protected me from all the bad times and comforted me when no one else could. You were the best big brother I could have ever asked for.”
Adam appeared next to her.
“He’s standing in front of you now,” Ryley said.
“You found her?” Adam glanced in Ryley’s direction.
“I promised to help you with your unfinished business. You kept her safe all these years. It’s time for you to go see your mom now.”
“I love you, Adam,” Roberta said as a tear slid down her cheek. “Give mommy and daddy a hug. Tell them to hold my place.”
Adam glanced over his shoulder. A sad smile covered his face. “The light is here.”
“You should walk into it. Your mom is waiting on the other side,” Ryley said.
He turned to leave and then glanced over his shoulder and toward where the building. “There are others behind those walls. They follow the purple-haired man around. Some aren’t so nice.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Ryley said. “Go see your mom. You’ve waited long enough.”
“Thank you, Ryley. I left your car in your hiding place. I won’t need it anymore.”
He vanished. Ryley sighed, feeling like she did every time she helped a spirit into the light a little empty, like a barren spot had opened in her soul. “He’s gone home.”
The woman pulled Ryley into her embrace and hugged her tight. “Thank you for saving him. For seeing him. For not giving up.”
This hugging thing was getting easier.
“You’re welcome,” Ryley said, clearing her throat.
Arguing with Adam had been part of her daily routine. To see him gone made her happy, and a bit sad.
“I’m sorry, but I really need to go,” Ryley said.
“I’m going to sit here for a while and remember,” Roberta said, reclaiming her seat and hugging the teddy bear tight.
Chapter 41
The hiding place. She’d never forget the hiding place.
Her dad wouldn’t find her now that she was moving onto the Wilson farm. His chance had been stolen.
Ryley agreed to sign the paperwork from Mr. Wilson’s will. Oscar was in charge of most everything, and she liked it just fine. He’d even hired the moving company to help move her things.
The movers were taking down the last of her things to load in their truck. One popped his head in. “Is that everything, Mrs. St. James?”
“Just the Dawn painting.” Ryley pointed to the painting that symbolized her life, still wrapped in a blanket against the wall. “Please be careful with that. Anything else that I find, I’ll take in my car.”
He nodded and left her alone.
Ryley’s phone rang with Oscar’s assigned ring tone. She answered and pressed the phone to her ear. “Are you on your way?”
“Yeah, just grabbing the few remaining items.” Ryley grabbed the torn slips of order forms that Maggie had given her from the diner. The number of people looking for her had tripled since the last time she’d stopped in to eat. There were a ton of people in need of someone like her that could deal with ghosts. She slipped the names and numbers deep into her pocket.
“I picked up the steak. It’s time you meet your new fur baby, Ringwald.”
Ryley grinned. “I can’t wait. I’ll see you soon.”
She didn’t have many memories in that apartment. She hadn’t made any on purpose. She stepped into the bathroom. It had been cleaned to shine even brighter than when she’d moved into the place. This bathroom was much cleaner than the one that had brought her here.
Memories of the diamond theft were what brought her to this point in time. She’d watched the dead man hide the diamonds in the ceiling, intent on coming back to get them.
He never had the chance before he died.
But she did.
She climbed up on the toilet and moved the panel in the ceiling just as he’d done in the warehouse bathroom. She reached around, patting the area, and grabbed the straps of a bag. It fell against her chest. The weight was unfamiliar in her hands. She replaced the panel and hopped down. Unzipping the bag, she glanced at the little race car inside and smiled.
Adam had indeed found her hiding spot.
A black velvet bag sat next to it. She loosened the strings to view her treasures inside.
Twenty nice-sized diamonds were tucked securely in place. A few of them had been used to buy the bar. The last one was spent just two days ago to buy the Dawn painting. The price was worth it.
She’d hocked it to pay for the painting she admired. It would stand as a reminder and beacon each day that she wasn’t all good, nor was she all bad. She was some place in between, kind of like the ghosts she could see.
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About the Author
Kate Allenton loves reading and writing everything, romance, mystery, and suspense while including a supernatural flare.
She offers a reading escape where strong women with special abilities have to fight for their happily-ever-after and sometimes the line between good and evil is blurred.
Most of her books are set in Florida because she craves sunlight. If she had to choose between being psychic or having a super power, she’d pick psychic every time.
She was a 2014 Rom Con Reader Finalist in Romantic Suspense for her book, Deadly Desire (Carrington-Hill Investigations). In 2017 her book, Maid of Honor, in the Wedding Dreams Box Set hit the USA Today Bestsellers List.
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Other Books By Kate Allenton
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FRACTURED MINDS SERIES
Stalked Justice (Book 1)
Killing Justice (Book 2)
Hunting Justice (Book 3)
Stolen Justice (Book 4)
Hacking Justice (Book 5)
Broken Justice (Book 6)
Guarding Justice (Book 7)
CREE BLUE PSYCHIC EYE
Dead Wrong (Book 1)
Deadly Vows (Book 2)
Dead Famous (Book 3)
Deadly Ties (Book 4)
Deadly Bliss (Book 5)
Deadly Flirtations (Book 6)
THE HEX SISTER MYSTERIES
Witch Unleashed (Book 1)
Witchy Trouble (Book 2)
Witch Bait (Book 3)
Witchy Warning (Book 4)
Witchy Past (Book 5)
Witch Hunt (Book 6)
BENNETT SISTERS
Intuition (Book 1)
Touch of Fate (Book 2)
Mind Play (Book 3)
The Reckoning (Book 4)
Redemption (Book 5)
Chance Encounters (Book 6)
Destined Hearts (Book 7)
BENNETT DYNASTY
Rotten Apple (Book 1)
Pay Dirt (Book2)
Down & Dirty (Book 3)
Hard To Hold (Book 4)
Sour Layer (Book 5)
Train Wreck (Book 6)
THE OTHER BENNETTS
Controlled Chaos (Book 1)
Finding Chaos (Book 2)
Killing Chaos (Book 3)
Reclaiming Chaos (Book 4)
THE PHANTOM PROT
ECTORS
Reckless Abandon (Book 1)
Betrayal (Book 2)
Untamed (Book 3)
Guided Loyalty (Book 4)
CARRINGTON-HILL INVESTIGATIONS
Deception (Book 1)
Deadly Desire (Book 2)
SOPHIE MASTERSON SERIES/ DIXON SECURITY
Lifting the Veil (Book 1)
Beyond the Veil (Book 2)
Veiled Intentions (Book 3)
Veiled Threats (Book 4)
THE LOVE FAMILY SERIES
Skylar (Book1)
Declan (Book 2)
Flynn (Book 3)
Reed (Book 4)
Landon (Book 5)
Alexis (Book 6)
Gabe (Book 7)
Jackson (Book 8)
LINKED INC.
Deadly Intent (Book 1)
Psychic Link (Book 2)
Psychic Charm (Book 3)
Psychic Games (Book 4)
Deadly Dreams (Book 5)
TIME SWEEPERS
Time Watch (Book 1)
Time Keepers (Book 2)
Time Rogue (Book 3)
STAND ALONE READS
Maid of Honor
New Year’s Negotiation
Hell Bound
Mystic Tides Box Set
Mystic Luck Box Set
Mystic Kiss Box Set
Karma
Hard Shift
Not My Shifter/ Sinfully Cursed
Grave Wrong (Lost Souls Society Book 1) Page 19