by Mya O'Malley
“Friends.”
Naomi stood and smoothed her shirt. She walked over to the small table to grab her jacket. “It’s been nice. Thank you for the wine.”
“And thank you for keeping an ear out for Holly.” He stood to walk her to the door.
Bryce led her outside and walked her halfway to her property. “Everything looks okay. I don’t think that Nick fellow is lurking around anywhere.”
“Thanks for walking me out. Have a good night, Bryce.” She turned to leave, her mind still on the near kiss.
She had walked for a moment or so before she heard his voice calling out to her.
“Naomi?”
She paused, gazing back at him.
“If you weren’t dating someone, would you have let me kiss you?”
He stopped her dead in her tracks. Good thing for the darkness, because her face flushed warm. There was no appropriate response. If he was standing any closer, he might have heard her heart pounding in her chest.
“Good night, Bryce.”
Chapter Eighteen
Naomi
SHE CLOSED THE door gently behind her, taking a moment to stand and think about her evening. It had been one of the best nights she had in a while. If only she and Ryan could capture the passion that was thick in the air back at Bryce’s house. Had they ever been able too? Not that long ago Ryan had kissed her with such intensity, but the air still hadn’t been charged with so much energy.
“Oh, what am I going to do?”
As if Zelda understood her dilemma, she meandered over, pushing against her legs. Naomi scooped her up, pressing her close. Swaying gently, Naomi closed her eyes. What was that sound? At first she wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but the eerie crying grew louder.
Was it crying or was it singing? Naomi couldn’t be sure. She hugged Zelda tighter, feeling her scalp prickle. Zelda squirmed out of her embrace, howling.
What was that?
In a trance, Naomi followed the sound toward the bay window in the next room. There, sitting before her, was the vision of a blonde woman, her face covered by her own long hair. If only she could just make out her face, Naomi could see for sure if it was Maggie.
The melody shifted, growing even more melancholy with each breath. Mesmerized, Naomi watched as this spirit stood, facing her. Naomi still couldn’t see her face.
Naomi couldn’t have run if even if she had wanted to. She had to be sure. She needed to know right here, right now, if this was her.
“Maggie?”
The figure stopped short, not moving.
She tried again. “Maggie, is that you? Please. Show me your face. I want to help you.”
Still no movement from the spirit, but a faint cry could be heard. Naomi attempted to rub her chills away. She had asked for this, encouraged this interaction with the ghostly woman.
“Maggie. It’s you, isn’t it? What do you want?”
The apparition drew closer, slowly making its way toward Naomi. She could stay or she could bolt. Her legs were glued to the floor, as heavy as lead. An unearthly white met her gaze. The ghost lifted her arm, her fingers spreading out, reaching out to Naomi.
She gasped for breath, tried to steady her pulsing heart. Naomi squeezed her eyes shut as she felt the ghost touch her face, turn it to the side. Naomi cried out, fear pumping through her body. For the first time she wondered if this spirit was capable of violence, capable of harming her.
It was time. She needed to see her face.
Opening her eyes slowly, Naomi gasped. Clear blue eyes met her. Eyes that held so much sorrow it nearly brought Naomi to her knees. She was stunning, even in her ghostly form.
“Maggie,” Naomi whispered. “My God, it’s you.”
Before her eyes, Maggie’s face transformed from hauntingly beautiful to an agonized gray. Her sockets were hollow. Sharp cheekbones melted to a skeleton form.
Naomi closed her eyes tightly, hoping to block out the grotesque image before her. She could feel the frigid air. The ghost was still close, crying an earth- shattering howl. Mentally, Naomi counted to ten.
Anything to attempt to take her mind off the horrifying image before her.
Once the wailing ceased, Naomi breathed. When she couldn’t stand waiting it out another moment, Naomi dared a look.
The air was still chilled, but warmer than it had been seconds before. Maggie was gone. She knew exactly where the spirit had gone. She hustled to peek out the window. A white shadowy form floated through the graveyard then disappeared.
One important piece of the puzzle was now confirmed—even though it had been horrifying to uncover the fact.
The ghost was indeed Maggie T. Field.
Now the rest of the investigation could fall into place. Naomi grabbed her cell, but then looked at the time. It was after eleven p.m., too late to call Maggie’s parents to inform them of the incident. Her heart still pounded furiously.
It was not too late to call Ryan.
He picked up the call after several rings. “Hey, Naomi.”
“Oh, I’m glad I didn’t wake you. I figured you might be asleep.”
“Nah. Sleep doesn’t come easily for me anymore.”
She supposed his active mind must have a difficult time shutting down. Honestly, it was a stretch to even imagine him sleeping.
“I have something important to tell you. Very important.”
“Well, are you going to tell me or not?”
She waited a moment before continuing. “It’s Maggie.”
“Excuse me?”
“My ghost. I’ve confirmed the fact that it’s Maggie. I saw her, Ryan. Saw her. Do you hear what I’m saying?”
“Whoa. Slow down. First of all, I thought you didn’t even know what she looked like.”
“Yeah, I may have forgotten to tell you that I saw her photograph when I was at her parents’ house. I saw the ghost’s face tonight and it was Maggie. Without a doubt.”
He blew out a breath. “Wow. Are you sure?”
“I just said I was.”
“So now what? Did she say anything?”
“No, she didn’t. But she was crying, singing a sad melody.”
“What were the words to the song? Could you understand anything?”
Naomi thought back to the melancholy voice. “No. It was more like humming, then wailing. Listen, I think we need to put more pressure on the police department. I felt her agony, her sadness. She’s trying to tell me something.”
“That would have to come from Maggie’s parents, though. What we need to do on our end is try to find out who the boyfriend was. Somebody has to know.”
That was exactly what they needed to do. Her gut was telling her this had everything to do with the boyfriend.
“Ryan, brilliant idea. Let’s jump on that tomorrow.” She had an idea. “Let’s head back over to the parents’ house, ask if we can borrow Maggie’s picture and show it around town.”
“Good plan. Maggie’s parents didn’t say anything about the ex-boyfriend when you spoke with them?”
No, they didn’t, but she hadn’t asked. “No, I just assumed from the news coverage that the parents had never met him. It couldn’t hurt to ask though.”
“Right. We’ll have a full day tomorrow. Have a good night, Naomi. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Good night.”
Naomi just realized that all of this ghost business and thoughts of Bryce had served the purpose of freeing her mind from worries of Nick.
But now she had another concern.
Her shoulders slumped as she brought her mind back to Ryan.
There had been no talk of missing her, wanting to touch her, kiss her again. Maybe Ryan just wasn’t wired in a romantic way for the long run. And if he wasn’t, was that okay? After feeling firsthand with Bryce what attraction could do to her, it was an important question.
Were she and Ryan better off being just friends?
Chapter Nineteen
Maggie
PREP
ARING FOR HER position at the college was both exciting and stressful. There was so much she needed to do to get ready. Books to order, plans to write, aligning her plans to the curriculum. This was an important step in her career. If she aced this experience, perhaps she could get a position at a more prestigious school. Like the one by the river.
When R.J. had called earlier, offering to take her hiking up on the cliffs, she probably should have declined. She had too much to do.. But she and R.J. were growing closer, much closer, and she justified her decision by telling herself it would be good to take a much needed break.
Her ex-boyfriend hadn’t let up. Dead air and then the hang up. Public outings with R.J. were still few and far between, as her anxiety was still high. She wouldn’t feel comfortable if her ex spotted them together again. That kiss back at the restaurant still played in her mind. She didn’t need to give him anything else to fuel his fire.
More than once Maggie had thought to involve her parents, but each time she spoke to them they had seems so happy. She didn’t wish to add stress to their lives.
The doorbell sounded. R.J. Shoot, she wasn’t even ready yet. Checking the clock on the wall in her tiny office, she sighed. Losing track of time was somewhat of a problem for her lately. R.J. was always punctual; she wondered how he did it.
“R.J.” She smiled at the sight of him, standing there in his green T-shirt and jeans.
“Ready to go?”
“Just give me a minute, okay? I kind of lost track of time.”
Hurrying to her bedroom, she smiled to herself. R.J. was special. He was what her mother called “a catch.” One day soon she would break the news that they were more than just friends. Her parents had met him a handful of times, and she knew they would definitely approve.
Maggie did her best to rush. A day of play and then back to having her head in the books. It seemed like a fair exchange.
“Ready?”
“Wow. You look amazing.”
She blushed. “I’m just wearing jeans and an old top.”
He grabbed her hand, and they headed to the car. Maggie glanced at R.J. as he drove toward the river. He was uncharacteristically quiet.
“You okay?”
“Yes. Now that I’m with you, I am.” His wide smile put her at ease.
They arrived at the cliffs, parking in the upper lot. “Ready to conquer your fear of heights again?”
Maggie laughed. “I thought I had already done that the past few times we were up here.”
“I suppose that was a start.”
“A start? Are you out of your mind?”
“Come on. Let’s go.”
Maggie opened the door to get out and took a deep breath. The day was spectacular.
“Hey, what are you up to?” Maggie peered into the window of the car.
Reaching into the backseat, he uncovered a picnic basket and a bottle of wine.
“Just a little snack for us.”
“You are unbelievably sweet,” She blushed as he moved around the car to meet her.
R.J. tickled her side and then pulled her close. He leaned his head down, kissing her softly on the mouth.
Maggie closed her eyes and gave in to the deep sensation of R.J.’s kiss. She barely heard the sound of people approaching from the woods.
“Later.” R.J. mussed her hair.
“Hold on, I want to grab my cell. Take some pictures, you know?”
Maggie grabbed her cell and slipped it into her back pocket. The parking lot was now empty, except for the sound of a distant car approaching.
R.J. grabbed Maggie’s waist, pulling her in for another kiss. “Hey! There’s a car coming.”
He released her, wiggling his brows. “You’re in trouble later. Lots of trouble.”
“Promise?” Her heart swelled. She was falling in love with him. It hit her at that exact moment. She had thought she was in love once before, years earlier, but this was different. She was in love. This was true love.
R.J. gazed down at her, his eyes serious. “You bet.” He kissed her with more intensity.
The dark car stopped, parked in a spot far from them, but it still made Maggie uneasy to think that someone could be watching them kiss.
“Come on. Let’s go.”
Naomi
BRIGHT AND EARLY the next morning, Naomi was at Virginia and Tom’s door. Ryan said he would catch up with her later, that he had some essays to grade, which was fine. She had spoken with Maggie’s parents alone before, and she could do it again.
“Naomi.” Virginia Field pulled her in for a quick hug. Tom was close behind.
“I hope you don’t mind me coming back again so soon.”
“Like we told you on the phone earlier, it’s fine. We’re always up by seven a.m. anyway,” Tom commented.
Naomi followed them into the kitchen where they had coffee and bagels waiting on the table.
“Hungry?” Tom asked, pulling out a chair for her.
“Famished. Thank you.”
“How do you take your coffee, dear?” Virginia placed a spoon on the napkin beside her.
“Milk and sugar. Thank you.”
Again, Naomi felt the warmth from this house, from Virginia and Tom. Maggie was blessed to have had such loving parents.
“Now, Naomi. It’s not that we don’t love visiting with you, but something tells me you have a reason for your visit,” Tom stated.
“I was wondering if I could ask you a favor. Could I please borrow Maggie’s photograph? I’d like to show it around town, see if it sparks anything.”
“Of course. What are you thinking? That someone may have seen something?”
“I don’t know, Virginia. You never know. Another thing I wanted to speak with you about was her dating life.”
Tom shook his head. “We didn’t know much about the man she had been dating. Of course, she was living on her own, but I would have liked to think she would have told us if she were serious about the man. Besides, from what we know, they had broken it off.”
Unless she wasn’t ready for some reason. “There’s nobody else you could think of, no one at all?”
Virginia shook her head firmly. “Not that we were aware of. It was like we told the police. The only odd thing was that she had missed her usual visits to us leading up to her accident.”
This grabbed Naomi’s attention. She opened her purse and grabbed her pen and notepad. “Please, go on.”
“She would always stop by on Saturday mornings for breakfast. No exceptions. It was our special time.”
Naomi’s heart sped up. “And how many weeks had she missed? One? More?”
Tom sipped at his coffee. “Oh, at least three or four in a row. Right, honey?”
“Yes. I suppose it was quite a few times she had missed. We asked her if everything was okay and she sounded fine.”
“What reason did she give for cancelling?”
“Oh, once or twice she had work to catch up on. Another time she claimed her stomach wasn’t feeling well.”
This new information must be relevant, somehow. “But it was out of character.”
Both parents spoke at once. “Definitely.”
“Okay. So let’s think. Maybe this is about a guy. A guy she became all consumed with?”
Virginia shook her head. “It wasn’t like her to shut her family out.”
“Unless she wasn’t comfortable telling you about him or bringing him here.”
Tom bit his lip. “It doesn’t sound like our Maggie. Maybe she was just busy, like she said.”
Perhaps.
“Wait a minute,” Virginia began.
“What is it?”
“I’m sure it’s nothing, but she did have a friend. A very good male friend. Nothing romantic was going on between them, though I always thought they would make a great couple.”
Why hadn’t she mentioned this earlier?
“You met him?”
“A few times, yes. He was quite striking, actually. Tall, dark, and handso
me. I used to say he was a real catch.”
Naomi’s pulse picked up. “What was his name?”
“R.J.”
“R.J., okay. What’s his last name?” She scribbled his name down on her notepad.
Virginia turned to face her husband. “I don’t think she ever mentioned a last name, did she, dear?”
Tom stood to pace the floor. “No, no she didn’t. We should have asked her, dammit.”
“Now Tom, I don’t think it means anything.” She frowned slightly, looking down at the floor.
“What is it, Virginia? What’s wrong?”
“I’m sure it’s nothing, but I just got to thinking that it was odd.”
Naomi leaned forward, her senses on high alert. “What? What was odd?”
“R.J. never showed up at any of the services.”
That did seem strange, if they were good friends. “Well, did he call you? Reach out to you in any way?”
“No. Nothing.”
“We should have insisted upon a last name!” Tom bellowed from across the room, his hands in tight fists.
“No. It wasn’t him, he would never have hurt Maggie, I’m sure of it.”
“How well did we even know the guy? He showed up with Maggie a few times for breakfast, that’s it.”
“Tom, you didn’t notice the way she spoke of him, the way he looked at her? They cared for one another. He didn’t kill her.”
Naomi glanced back and forth at the interaction between Maggie’s parents. This R.J. may not have killed her… but then again he may have. Just because Virginia didn’t sense any foul intentions, on his part, didn’t mean a thing. Plenty of people were talented at hiding their dark sides. Just look at Nick in the beginning of their relationship.
This latest piece of information was crucial. Even if he was innocent, Naomi had to find this R.J., because perhaps he could tell them more about Maggie. A good friend would know if there was a boyfriend and if she knew anyone at all who owned a boat.
“Tell me anything else you can remember about R.J. What did he do for a living, where did he live?”
“We don’t know. Damn, we don’t know a thing about this friend of Maggie’s. What kind of parents does that make us?” Tom’s face fell.