Friends and Frauds (An Isle of Man Ghostly Cozy Book 6)

by Diana Xarissa

  “Maybe, instead of Anne Boleyn, I’ll write something about the island,” she said as she dropped the bags in the back of Shelly’s car.

  “That could be fun. It would easier to do the research, as well.”

  Fenella nodded. “I’ll have to think about it. I’ve no idea what I’d write about.”

  “You should talk to Marjorie Stevens,” Shelly told her after they were both back in the car. “She’s an expert on the island. I’m sure she’d have lots of ideas for you.”

  “You’re the second person to suggest that I need to meet her. I’m going to have to track her down.”

  “She isn’t hard to find. She works at the Manx Museum and she’s nearly always there. They aren’t open on a Sunday, or I’d suggest we could go there next and I could introduce you.”

  “Another day, then,” Fenella said. “But what shall we do now?”

  “It’s too early for dinner. How about a drive along the coast? I’d suggest the House of Manannan, but there are four tour buses in their car park and I’m not sure I want to deal with crowds today.”

  “A drive sounds perfect. And then you need to find somewhere nice for dinner.”

  “There’s a wonderful little restaurant in Port St. Mary that I never get to,” Shelly replied. “If we’re hungry when we’re down that way, we could go there.”

  The pair chatted about food and the weather and the stunning scenery as Shelly drove them south. After a filling meal in Port St. Mary, she drove them back to Douglas.

  “And now we should take a trip to the pub,” Shelly suggested as she parked in the garage under their building.

  Fenella hesitated. “I’m not sure I want to drink, not with my driving test in the morning.”

  “It’s at eleven. If you have one drink now, you’ll have sixteen hours to get it out of your system before your test.”

  “I’m being silly,” Fenella admitted. “But I’m really worried about the test.”

  “What’s the test like in the US?”

  “When I took it, more than a few years ago, we had to drive around a big parking lot. It was really all about being in control of the vehicle. You had to do a three-point turn, or rather a turn in the road, and you had to park between two cones, but there wasn’t any other traffic and you never got above about five miles per hour.”

  “So very different to here,” Shelly said.

  “Yes, indeed. I can’t even imagine a driving test that takes forty-five minutes. What are we going to talk about for all that time?”

  Shelly laughed. “Driving examiners aren’t really there to make small talk.”

  “Yeah, I know. Mel keeps telling me that. But I talk when I’m nervous. It drives him crazy, I’m sure. I just hope I get an examiner who doesn’t mind.”

  “Just hope he or she doesn’t think you’re doing it to hide your bad driving.”

  Fenella sighed. “Do you think that would work?”

  “No, I don’t,” Shelly chuckled. “But you’ll be fine. You’ve been driving for years and years. All you’re doing tomorrow is proving that you’ve learned to drive on the proper side of the road, that’s all.”

  With Shelly’s words ringing in her ears, Fenella agreed to a short visit to the pub. Just inside the door of the Tale and Tail, which was only a short walk from their building, she stopped and looked around. The pub was probably her second favorite place in the world, after her apartment. It had once been the library in the large seaside mansion that was now a luxury hotel. The hotel’s owners had opted to leave the library largely untouched. Walls of shelving held thousands of books on every wall. A large bar had been built in the center of the room, but that was the only thing that had changed from when the space had been a library. A handful of cat beds were scattered around the ground floor, and the pub’s many cats could be found lounging in them, when they weren’t demanding attention from the pub’s patrons.

  “Your usual?” the bartender asked as Shelly and Fenella approached the bar.

  “Yes, please,” Shelly replied.

  They took their glasses of wine up the winding staircase to the upper level. There, small clusters of couches and chairs surrounded tables, most of which were close enough to the walls to allow visitors to peruse the bookshelves as they sipped their drinks.

  Fenella slid into a chair and sat back with a sigh. “This is exactly how I imagine heaven will be.”

  Shelly shook her head. “In heaven they’ll have waiter service up here.”

  Fenella laughed. “Yes, okay, that’s probably the only improvement I’d make, though.”

  “Would you want young sexy male waiters?” Shelly asked.

  “I don’t know. Maybe it would be nice to have intelligent waiters who could talk about the books with me instead.”

  They debated the relative merits of each type of waiter as they sipped their drinks, and then Fenella insisted on going home. “I’m sure a second drink wouldn’t hurt, but I’d rather not find out,” she told Shelly. “As it is, if I don’t pass, I shall blame this one for my failure.”

  “At least now you have an excuse for failing,” Shelly replied. “But you’re going to pass. You just need to have confidence in yourself.”

  That was easy for Shelly to say, Fenella thought the next morning as she paced around her apartment. It was only nine o’clock, but she’d given up on sleeping after a restless night and had showered and dressed already.

  “Why can’t you need walking?” she asked Katie, who gave her a startled look and then dashed away.

  “I should go and see if Winston needs a walk,” Fenella said to no one.

  “For goodness sake, just calm down,” Mona said. “It’s only a driving test. You’ve taken them before.”

  “Yes, but the US one was a lot easier.”

  “Except you were only a child then and you’d only driven for about ten hours in your entire life before it, right? You’ve a great deal more experience now and you’re a good deal older.”

  “I know you’re right, but I’m still incredibly nervous.”

  “What’s the worst thing that can happen? You can fail and have to take the test again. At least if you do that, you’ll know what to expect the next time. You’re making this far too difficult for yourself.”

  “I know I am,” Fenella sighed. “But I can’t stop worrying.”

  The phone rang before Mona could reply.

  “I woke up this morning and something told me that I had to call you,” the voice on the other end of the phone said.

  “What do you want, Jack?” Fenella asked.

  “I simply wanted to hear your voice. As I said, I woke up and knew that something was wrong. What is it?”

  “Nothing is wrong, Jack. Why are you even awake? It’s like three o’clock there, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, but I couldn’t ignore how I felt. Something told me that you needed me.”

  “Well, that’s very kind of you, but I’m absolutely fine.”

  “Are you, though? I mean, I know you. You wouldn’t want me to worry, even if there was something wrong. You can tell me about it. I know you better than anyone, after all.”

  “Jack, we haven’t seen each other in over six months. We’ve both moved on. You don’t know me at all anymore.”

  “Tell me what’s bothering you,” he said.

  Fenella hesitated. “I have my driving test today,” she said after a moment.

  “Aha! And you don’t think that I know you better than anyone? I’m what, three thousand miles away and I still knew how you were feeling. Even after six months, and from a distance, I still can sense your emotions.”

  Since you never knew what I was feeling when I was in the same room with you, I’m not impressed, Fenella thought. “How kind of you to still care,” was what she said. “But I’m fine, truly I am.”

  “I didn’t realize you’d have to take the driving test again. Is it very different from the US one?”

  “Yes, very,” Fenella replied. “And I don
’t want to talk about it.”

  “Oh, yes, no, of course not. What shall we talk about, then?”

  “How are you?”

  “Me? I’m doing okay. I miss you, though. I told Sue and Hazel just the other day that I’m sure you’ll be back soon. You’ll want to be back for the start of the new semester, won’t you?”

  “The new semester? In September? No, I won’t be back for that. I’m not coming back. I love my life here,” Fenella said patiently. She’d told the man the same thing in every phone call since she’d been on the island, but he still didn’t seem to believe her.

  “Sue and Hazel said that, too, but I think I know you better than they do,” Jack replied. Sue and Hazel were two other professors at the university where Fenella had formerly taught. That was where she’d met Jack, who was already teaching there when Fenella was hired. Fenella suspected that both women were interested in Jack, but he seemed oblivious to that.

  “How are Sue and Hazel?” she asked.

  “Fine, fine. Sue is having some surgery next month, but apparently it isn’t anything too serious. Or maybe it’s a little serious. I can’t really remember. And Hazel’s mother just died. Or maybe it was her mother-in-law. I forget.”

  “Hazel isn’t married.”

  “Yes, I know that.”

  “So she doesn’t have a mother-in-law,” Fenella said, swallowing a sigh.

  “Oh, dear, you’re probably right. It must have been her mother, then. I hope I was suitably sympathetic. I never know with these things.”

  “And how is your new girlfriend?”

  “My new girlfriend? What makes you think I have a new girlfriend?”

  “You told me that you did,” Fenella reminded him.

  “Oh, yes, well, it didn’t work out. She didn’t understand me at all. Not like you do. You and I were perfect together.”

  “We really weren’t,” Fenella told him. “And I’m afraid I must go.”

  “Must you? I miss you.”

  “I’m sorry, but you need to move on.”

  Jack sighed. “I’m still hoping you’ll change your mind.”

  “I won’t,” Fenella said firmly before she put the phone down. “Unless I fail my driving test,” she added softly.

  Mona laughed. “Even if you fail your driving test a dozen times, you won’t be moving back to Buffalo,” she said. “You’re under the island’s spell now. There’s no breaking it. I should I know. I tried many times, but no matter how often I left, I always came back.”

  “I can’t imagine wanting to break the spell,” Fenella replied. “It’s too wonderful here to ever want to leave.”

  She went back to her anxious pacing, but the conversation with Jack had been the perfect distraction. Mona was right. No matter what happened with her driving test, she wasn’t going back to Buffalo. That helped to put the whole ordeal into some sort of perspective. When Mel pulled up in his driver’s training car a short while later, Fenella was feeling almost ready for her test.

  “Right, you’re going to drive to the test center and park the car,” he reminded her. “Then I’ll go in with you and we’ll wait for the examiner. I can’t leave the building with you once the examiner comes out. I’ll wait for you there, and then I’ll drive you home, whether you’ve passed or failed. Whichever the outcome, you’ll be too distracted to drive after the test.”

  Fenella nodded and then put the car into gear. It stalled immediately. She looked over at Mel and began to laugh. “Maybe that’s that out of the way,” she said hopefully. The drive to the test center went by without incident after that and the wait inside didn’t take long at all.

  “Just read me the number plate on the red car, please,” the examiner said as he and Fenella began to walk toward Mel’s car.

  Fenella read out the letters and numbers in a shaky voice. As she settled behind the steering wheel a moment later she wondered what the examiner would do if she pulled off the road during the exam to stop and throw up. The next hour was a complete blur to Fenella and when she emerged from Mel’s car in front of her building at the end of it, she was glad Mel had driven her home.

  “How did it go?” Shelly asked.

  Fenella blinked at her friend, who was standing at the curb, staring at her. “I passed,” she said softly. “With only two minor faults.”

  “I knew you’d do it,” Shelly exclaimed. She pulled Fenella into a hug, and then the pair walked into the building together. “I had total confidence in you,” Shelly said in the elevator.

  “That’s easy to say now,” Fenella suggested.

  “But it’s true. You’ll see,” Shelly replied.

  Fenella let them both into her apartment and then gasped. A huge bouquet of balloons was sitting in the middle of the living room. Most of them had “congratulations” written across them.

  “See? I knew you’d do it,” Shelly laughed.

  “What would you have done if I’d failed?” Fenella demanded.

  “Dragged you out to lunch somewhere and then dashed back to get the balloons. But I’m so glad I didn’t have to do that.”

  “I am, too.”

  “Was it horrible?”

  “I don’t think so. I really don’t remember much about it. The examiner didn’t want to talk to me, but I think I babbled at him the whole time anyway. I know I mixed up left and right at one point, but I realized it in time and managed to change lanes without too much difficulty. I’m just so glad it’s over.”

  “And now you can take Mona’s car for a spin.”

  “Yeah, one of these days.”

  The phone rang, cutting across the conversation. Fenella reached for it and then stopped her hand. She really didn’t feel like speaking to anyone at the moment. If it was important, whoever it was would leave a message.

  “Ah, yes, good afternoon,” a familiar voice said. “This is Lance Thomas. I’m happy to meet you for a drink tonight. I hope it won’t be too much bother, but if you could meet me at my flat at seven, perhaps we could walk to the pub together? I believe that would work better for me. I’m in 312. I’ll see you around seven.”

  7

  Fenella frowned at the answering machine. “I should call him back and tell him no,” she said to Shelly. “Why is meeting at his flat more convenient? It certainly isn’t any more convenient for us.”

  “We definitely need to take Peter with us,” Shelly replied. “I’ll ring him now and make sure he’s available.”

  “I can call Lance back,” Fenella offered.

  “It probably isn’t worth fussing over,” Shelly said after a moment. “And I’d rather not start the evening with a disagreement. Let’s just meet him at his flat. Maybe he’s worried about walking into a strange pub on his own. He didn’t really strike me as the type to spend much time in pubs.”

  “You may be right, but I still think he’s being rude.”

  “Yes, he is, but let’s not compound that by being rude back. I’m far too happy for you to be worried about Lance Thomas right now.”

  Fenella laughed. “I’m pretty euphoric myself,” she admitted. “I want to go out and celebrate.”

  “Do you want to try taking Mona’s car out?”

  “Oh, goodness, no. I’m not ready for that. It’s probably going to take me at least a few days to work up the nerve to even sit in Mona’s car.”

  “The battery is probably flat, anyway,” Shelly said thoughtfully. “It’s been sitting in the garage for a long time.”

  “I hadn’t thought of that. And I’m not going to think about it today. Let’s go and do something crazy instead of worrying about such things.”

  “Crazy? Like what?”

  “I don’t know. I feel all giddy and slightly sick to my stomach. What I really need is a good roller coaster or something.”

  “We don’t have any roller coasters,” Shelly told her. “But we could go to the park in Ramsey and go down the big slide there.”

  “That will do,” Fenella agreed quickly.

 
A few minutes later the pair were heading for Ramsey. “Once you stop feeling sick, maybe we could get some lunch at the café,” Shelly suggested. “And ice cream after.”

  “That sounds perfect,” Fenella laughed. “I feel like a little kid again for some reason, which doesn’t even make sense.”

  “It’s because you’ve finished taking driving lessons,” Shelly guessed. “Which makes today like the last day of school.”

  “You could be right,” Fenella agreed.

  The long slide at the park in Ramsey was full of small children, and Fenella felt silly waiting in line to go down it. Instead, she and Shelly took turns on a small zip line and then went on the swings for a short while.

  “That was harder work than I remember,” Fenella said after she got off her swing. “I’m definitely ready for some lunch.”

  The pair ate at the small café and then had double scoops of ice cream while they walked around the large boating lake.

  “Let’s get a pedal boat,” Shelly suggested after they’d finished their sweet treat.

  “Sure, why not.”

  After boating they played a round of crazy golf before heading back into Douglas.

  “Let’s get dinner at the Italian place near home,” Shelly suggested. “Then we can walk back and collect Lance before we go the pub.”

  “What about Peter?”

  “Oh, I’ll text him from the restaurant.”

  They were walking from their building to the restaurant when Fenella’s phone rang. She glanced at the display and then stopped walking.

  “It’s Daniel,” she told Shelly.

  “So answer it,” Shelly replied.

  “Hello?”

  “Fenella? I just wanted to ring to ask how the driving test went. It was today, wasn’t it? I thought that’s what you told me, anyway.”

  “It was today, yes, and I passed.”

  “Oh, excellent. Congratulations. The island has a very low pass rate, actually, so well done.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t tell me that before,” Fenella laughed.

  “I hope you’re out celebrating, then?”

  “I am. Shelly and I are going to have dinner and then go to the pub.”