Murder Ghost Foul: The Complete Mystic Springs Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series

by Mona Marple

  Across the room, I saw a flash of movement and watched as one of the relatives raced for freedom.

  “Stay here!” I shouted to the others, and raced after the escapee.

  Luckily, I was confident that I could guess where they were heading, and when I saw that they had apparently disappeared into thin air, I patted the walls and found the doorknob, then turned the lock.

  I cleared my throat and addressed the crowd.

  “There’s no better way of revealing your guilt than to attempt to get away during an interrogation,” I said.

  Bess was in tears across the room.

  “Bess, my only question about you was whether you really were as nice as you seemed. I guess the answer is yes. It’s honourable to try and protect someone you love from punishment, but this isn’t your cross to bear.”

  Bess choked back the tears and returned to her seated position on the floor, where she clutched her knees to her chest and rocked gently.

  I unlocked the hidden door and held it open.

  “Did you forget that you’d removed the handle from the inside of the door at the top? Come back out and join us.” I called.

  Reluctant footsteps descended the steps and the killer returned to view.

  “You started by stealing jewellery, but the theft was always things belonging to guests. That was the first big clue that the pretend ghost was a member of the family. You needed money, didn’t you?”

  The killer stood before me and nodded.

  “Gambling?” I asked.

  “No,” Sidney croaked as he emerged out of the staircase.

  “What was it, then? Why the need for money?”

  “I made some bad investments. I was offered an opportunity to get in right at the beginning. It all sounded good. Too good to be true, I guess, in hindsight. I said I’d put in $50,000, but the man came back and said all of those small investor spots had been taken. He said he’d try and get me another slot, but it was tough as the demand was so high.”

  “You didn’t tell me this,” Petunia whispered.

  “I knew you’d say no! You’ve always said I have no money sense!”

  “I wonder why,” she muttered under her breath.

  “Let me guess. He found you a spot and took your money?”

  Sidney grimaced. “He said the only spot left required a $500,000 investment.”

  “Oh, Lord have mercy,” Petunia crumpled in on herself.

  “I didn’t have that kind of money, but I was so desperate to be part of the investment by that stage, I said yes. I had to take out huge debts to raise the money. It was all fine because I was promised a quicker return with the higher investment. I was assured I’d have it all back within six weeks, with 100% interest!”

  “And how long ago was that?” Petunia asked.

  “Almost a year ago,” he admitted.

  “So you stole the jewellery to make back the loan repayments?”

  “I didn’t plan to. The first time it happened, I was cleaning one of the rooms and there was this ridiculous necklace just left out on the bedside table. Asking to be taken, really! I slipped it in my pocket and pawned it. The ghost idea seemed like a good cover. I even thought it might increase our bookings. I thought people would like to stay in a haunted winery.”

  “But it had the opposite effect, didn’t it?”

  Sidney nodded. “I realised then that I couldn’t clear a half a million dollar debt with stolen jewellery. The only way out was to sell this place.”

  “And how did Libby get involved?”

  Sidney looked down at his striped socks and shook his head. “Now, that really was a shame. She should never have got wrapped up in it. She was already emotional, the poor girl. I didn’t know why, of course. Now I know it was because Tammy had broken up with her. I thought she’d already left, but she came back in here for her purse and she saw me coming out of the staircase in my robes.”

  “Robes?” Tammy asked.

  “I wore them when I was being the ghost, just in case anyone spotted me. She took one look at me and worked it all out. She was going to tell you all, and I couldn’t let her. So I grabbed the nearest thing I could find, and told her I was going to kill her.”

  “Oh my,” Petunia groaned.

  “What did you grab?” Heidi asked.

  “It was the William Shakespeare bust,” Sidney said. He glanced at the object that sat on the side table right by the hidden staircase door. It was large, solid and would easily have inflicted fatal injuries.

  “Daddy, not my Shakespeare bust!” Bess exclaimed from the floor.

  “I didn’t use it! I had no intention of using it! I just needed to scare her so she didn’t say anything!”

  “Let me guess. She ran out into her car and crashed in her panic,” I said.

  “Yes. Exactly that. I promise you I never meant her any harm,” Sidney said.

  “And instead of saying ‘honestly, it’s the ghost’, I believe that Libby’s dying words were ‘Sidney is the ghost’,” I said.

  “Poor Libby,” Petunia murmured.

  “Poor Libby!” Tammy mocked with an eye roll.

  “How did you work it out?” Sidney asked.

  “The staircase was a big clue. The night my wedding dress was damaged, I followed someone in a dark cloak through the downstairs of the house until they disappeared. Then you were at the top of what I thought was the only staircase. In a way, you showed yourself that night to cast suspicion away from yourself. And it worked, until I discovered the staircase. It normally has a knob on the upstairs door too, doesn’t it?”

  “It does. I removed it because the net was closing in. I wondered if I might be capable of locking someone in there and leaving them to rot,” Sidney said with a sad sigh.

  “Daddy!” Bess scolded him.

  “You were capable of it. You locked Sage and Patton in there,” I reminded him.

  “Oh, no. I went back after just a few minutes but they’d already got out. I assumed they had managed to walk through the walls. Ghosts do that, don’t they?”

  “Not all of them. Enough of this, I have a wedding to prepare for. Taylor, take him away.”

  15

  As I did the fourth version of my wedding make-up, there came a knock at the bedroom door.

  “Come in!” I called.

  The door opened and two young women beamed at me.

  “Auntie Connie!” They exclaimed in unison, and I bolted out of my seat to hug my nieces.

  “Sandy? Coral?” Sage gasped as she returned to the bedroom from the en suite.

  “Hey, momma!”

  “What are you doing here? What… how… what…”

  “Well, you did say it’s customary for the bridesmaid to receive a gift. I hope this is a good one,” I said.

  Sage flapped her hand in front of her face to calm herself. As a ghost, she couldn’t cry, but she still felt the emotions that normally went along with crying.

  “My girls! Oh my, there’s never been a better surprise!”

  “It’s so good to see you!”

  I returned to the dressing table and gave Sage some time to catch up with her daughters.

  After what felt like hours of high-pitched chatting, laughter and tears, I turned back around to face them and join in the catch up.

  “Connie, are you nervous?” Sandy asked me.

  “Not really. I’m just ready to get it done with now!” I admitted.

  “Where’s the dress?” Coral asked.

  “Ah, now that’s a funny story,” I said.

  “It’s not the least bit funny,” Sage said.

  I explained what had happened and laughed at the shocked expressions on the girls’ faces.

  “Well, this is weird, but we might be able to help,” Sandy said. She and Coral glanced at each other, nodded, then reached for a dress bag among their luggage.

  I watched as they unzipped the bag and pulled out a blast from the past.

  “Is that my wedding dress?” Sage screamed.r />
  “It is! We thought maybe we’d have some time to reminisce, and the photos really don’t do it justice,” Sandy explained.

  “Wow. It’s even more stunning than I remember,” I gushed. I approached the dress as if it was about to shatter, and traced a finger along it’s fine lace and silk.

  “You can wear it,” Sage offered.

  “Oh, no way. This thing is worth more than my entire wardrobe of clothes put together. There’s no way I’d risk damaging it.”

  “Don’t be silly. A beautiful gown is meant to be worn. I’d love to see you in it!”

  “It probably won’t even fit. I’ll stretch the material and ruin it,” I said, although I didn’t truly believe that. I had been a bigger build than Sage for a lot of my life, but my recent health kick had really seen me tone up.

  “Connie, I’m not letting you walk down the aisle in jeans when there’s a wedding dress begging to be worn. I can’t be involved with a fashion disaster like that. Now, get the dress on!”

  I giggled and allowed the girls to help me step into the dress.

  By the time I’d patted it down and turned to Sage, to ask what she thought, she was doing the best impression of someone crying that I’d ever seen.

  “You’re so beautiful!” She sobbed.

  I laughed and inspected my reflection in the mirror. I looked every bit the princess. I felt like a million dollars.

  “Come on, let’s go and get me married,” I said and we all burst out into shrieks of excitement.

  The dining room had been transformed, with an altar in between two sections of chairs.

  I’d expected the room to be empty apart from Taylor and the official who would marry us, but as I entered, I saw all of my closest friends gathered to celebrate.

  I choked back tears in a determined effort not to ruin the final make-up that Sage had approved.

  At the end of the altar, by the room’s bay window, stood my fiancé and our children.

  Scarlett and Axel took one look at me and launched themselves down the aisle. I bent down and hugged them, as desperate to see them after a night apart as they were to see me.

  “Love you,” I whispered into their heads, the words as natural as breathing.

  I grinned at the people who had surprised me with their presence. Violet and Ellie sat next to each other and were both in tears. Atticus floated around at the side of the room with Patton. Even Nick was there, and who knows where he had flown in from for the occasion. He reached out and squeezed my hand.

  I had to take my attention away from the guests. I’d catch up with them later, and I couldn’t wait.

  But right then, there was a handsome man waiting for me and I was ready to say I Do.

  THE END

  Stay up to date with Mona Marple’s latest news and upcoming releases by joining her weekly eMail at:

  http://www.monamarple.com/vip-readers

  Author Note

  Thank you for reading this box set. I know that time is short - and precious - and I appreciate you for spending some of your time in Mystic Springs.

  Mystic Springs was my second series, and I love the place and characters dearly.

  What would happen if the living and the spirits had a special place they could share?

  That was the question that started Mystic Springs.

  As I write this author note, it’s February 2021 and England is in the third COVID19 lockdown.

  I was going to write that I’d love to go to Screamin’ Beans for a cup of hot coffee. I’d spend an hour or two sitting in a corner people-watching.

  The truth is, I’d love to go anywhere at the moment - and I guess you would too.

  One thing I’m very grateful for during these strange times? Books.

  I’ve always been a bookworm, from childhood when I was a very frequent visitor at the library, and now more than ever I’m reminded on the power and magic of losing myself in a book.

  I hope this box set allowed you to escape, too.

  And I wish you health, happiness and a future rich with good reads!

  With love,

  Xoxo Mona