Ghostly Interests

by Lily Harper Hart

  “Shut up, Zander,” Gloria snapped.

  “Who is she?” Jared asked, turning his attention to Mel.

  “This is Gloria Harlow,” Mel said, his voice shaky. “She’s Harper’s mother.”

  “That’s right,” Gloria said. “I’m her mother … and you have no idea how ticked off I am.”

  “Am I supposed to be frightened about that?”

  “You’re supposed to realize that I’m going to … mow your ass,” Gloria said, miming some activity that looked more like pushing a shopping cart than anything else.

  “Why did you arrest Harper?” Zander asked, turning to Jared.

  “She was breaking into Annie Dresden’s house.”

  “That’s not your jurisdiction,” Zander pointed out. “You don’t have the authority to arrest her.”

  “I have the authority to arrest anyone breaking the law,” Jared countered. “She was breaking the law. I don’t care what she says – or what tall tales she comes up with to excuse it – but those are the hard facts. I saw her get the key from under a pot and open the door.”

  “That’s not breaking and entering,” Zander said. “She had a key.”

  “To a dead woman’s house.”

  “She probably had permission to enter,” Zander sniffed, crossing his arms over his chest. “You can’t arrest her if she has permission.”

  “And who gave her this permission?” Jared asked. “The dead woman? If you’re going to tell me that I’m going to arrest you for lying to a police officer.”

  “Wait just a minute,” Mel said, holding his hand up. “You can’t arrest Zander. He’s only here because he’s worried about Harper.”

  “Go ahead and arrest me,” Zander hissed. “I can’t wait until that little tidbit gets around town. You’ll be fired faster than Julia Nixon’s panties get tossed every Friday night.”

  Now Jared was the one who was confused. “Who is Julia Nixon?”

  “She’s the town … .” Mel broke off, searching for a kind word to use.

  “Tramp,” Gloria supplied.

  “I was going to say bike,” Zander said.

  “Bike?” Jared arched an eyebrow.

  “Everyone gets a ride,” Zander said, making a face. “Please don’t tell me you’ve never heard that joke.”

  “Not used to refer to a … woman,” Jared said.

  “I’m not going to stand for this,” Gloria said. “I want my daughter released right now.”

  “I’m not done questioning her,” Jared replied, refusing to back down even though he felt woefully outnumbered.

  “What are you even asking her?” Zander asked.

  “I want to know how she knew where to find that key and how she knew how to look for the book bag Annie was carrying the night she died,” Jared said. “Until she gives me satisfactory answers she’s staying here.”

  “Annie told her,” Zander said.

  “Annie is dead.”

  “And Harper talks to ghosts,” Gloria said. “Oh, don’t bother looking at me that way, Melvin. I know you don’t believe it. Heck, I didn’t believe it the first few times she did it. It’s true, though. She only went to that house because she wants to help Annie.”

  “She should’ve waited for me,” Zander grumbled. “I could’ve served as lookout so this didn’t happen. I wonder why she didn’t tell me she was going.”

  “Because she knew you would cancel your date to watch her instead,” Gloria said. “How was your date, by the way?”

  “He talked with his mouth full of food.”

  “Oh, well, better luck next time.” Gloria patted Zander’s arm for a moment and then turned back to Jared. “Let my daughter out now or I’ll make you pay.”

  “Ma’am, I have no reason to hold your daughter – other than the fact that I think she needs mental help – as long as she tells me how she found out that information,” Jared said. “I don’t want to keep her here.”

  “The girl’s ghost told her where to find that information,” Gloria said. “She’s not lying to you.”

  “I don’t believe in ghosts, ma’am.” Jared was firm.

  “I don’t care what you believe in,” Gloria said. “I care about my daughter and she’s not spending one more minute in this … rat hole.” Gloria snapped her fingers in the direction of her date. “This is Walter Shanks and he’s an attorney. Walter, go get them.”

  Walter’s already pale face drained of color. “What?”

  “You’re a lawyer,” Gloria said. “Get my daughter out of here.”

  “I’m a tax lawyer,” Walter said. “I can only help her if she’s hiding funds from the IRS.”

  “Why is this happening?” Gloria screeched.

  JARED let himself into the small interrogation room after a few more minutes of small town theater in the lobby. He was quiet when he opened the door, and Harper obviously didn’t hear his return.

  “That’s something, but I’m not sure what I can do about it now,” Harper said.

  “What’s something?” Jared asked.

  Harper jumped, swiveling quickly and meeting Jared’s eyes. He didn’t miss the redness surrounding her blue orbs and realized she’d been crying in his absence. His heart rolled at the thought, although he couldn’t figure out why.

  “Nothing,” Harper muttered, lowering her head to her arms.

  “Have you been crying?”

  “My eyes are just tired,” Harper said. “It’s past my bedtime.”

  Jared glanced at the wall clock. It was barely eleven. “You have some visitors in the lobby,” he said.

  “Zander?”

  “And your mother,” Jared said, smirking when he saw Harper’s shoulders stiffen. “She’s … fun.”

  “Did she bring her date with her?” Harper asked, resigned.

  “Yes, and she was very upset to find out he’s a tax lawyer instead of a real lawyer,” Jared said. “They’re out there fighting about it right now.”

  “Oh, well, good,” Harper said. “Once I’m done serving hard time I’ll never hear the end of that. I guess I’m getting a double dose of cruel and unusual punishment.”

  Jared grinned despite the surreal situation. For a mentally unbalanced woman, she had a funny sense of humor. “Are you sticking to your ghost story?”

  “It’s the only story I have.”

  Jared exhaled heavily. “Okay. You can go.”

  Harper stilled. “What?”

  “You can go,” Jared said. “If I try to keep you here any longer I’m going to create an … incident … according to Mel. He’s terrified of your mother, by the way.”

  “My mother is terrifying to everyone … including me,” Harper replied.

  “She seems worried about you,” Jared said. “She also believes all of this ghost business.”

  Harper pushed her chair back and turned so she could face Jared. “I know you think I’m crazy.”

  “I think that’s a strong word,” Jared said. “I think your belief system is … different. I’m not saying you’re crazy.”

  “You’re not saying it because you’re worried I’ll sue you,” Harper said. “Don’t worry. I’m not litigious.”

  “In that case you might be crazy.” Jared was going for levity and even though Harper shot him a weak smile the expression didn’t make it all the way up to her eyes. “Zander will give you a ride home. You can pick your car up tomorrow morning. We had it towed here.”

  “Great,” Harper said, glancing around the room. “Where is my purse?”

  “Up at the front desk.” Jared cleared out of the way so Harper could move past him. She was almost out the door before she turned back.

  “I know you’re not going to believe me and that’s your right,” Harper said. “If you’re looking for Annie’s car, though, the last place she saw it was on the east side of the library. She was telling me right before you came back that she remembers someone coming up behind her in the parking lot. She thinks she dropped her keys underneath the car.”


  Jared shifted, surprised by Harper’s words. “I … okay.”

  “Have a nice night,” Harper said, pulling the door open and stepping into the hallway.

  Jared watched her go with conflicted eyes. “Sleep well,” he murmured to her back.

  Thirteen

  Harper woke up hoping the previous evening was nothing more than a bad dream. She rolled to her side, stretched, and then frowned when her eyes landed on the hoodie draped across the back of her vanity chair. It definitely wasn’t a dream.

  She climbed out of bed, resigned, and after a quick trip to the bathroom to splash water on her face and brush her teeth Harper found Zander standing over the stove in the kitchen with a spatula in his hand. “Hello, Jailbird,” he teased.

  Harper didn’t bother mustering a smile. “Hello, Butthead.”

  Zander’s face softened. “Are you okay? You were really quiet when we left the station last night. You didn’t want to talk then and I let it go, but I think we should talk now.”

  “What is there to talk about?” Harper asked, sliding into one of the chairs around their round kitchen table and reaching for the carafe of juice so she could pour herself a glass. “What are you cooking, by the way? That smells amazing.”

  “I’m making omelets,” Zander said. “I ran out to the market while you were still sleeping and picked up fresh eggs, mushrooms, cheese, onions, and tomatoes.”

  “We really need to shop more,” Harper lamented.

  “I think we do okay,” Zander said, arching an eyebrow as he kept one eye on the omelet pan and the other on his best friend. “Tell me what happened last night.”

  Harper reluctantly launched into the tale, knowing full well that Zander wasn’t going to let it go until he got the full story out of her. When she was done, Zander let loose with a low whistle and fixed her with a serious look. “That’s a lot of information,” he said. “Well, we’ll start with Annie. I’m glad she finally talked to you and I’m relieved she’s not traumatized. If she can help with this investigation we should be able to help her move on that much quicker.”

  “I feel bad for her,” Harper said. “She thinks she would still be alive if she wasn’t such a rule follower. She wishes she’d been more of a rebel when she still had the chance.”

  “Do you wish you were more of a rebel?” Zander asked sagely.

  “I am a rebel,” Harper scoffed. “I talk to ghosts.”

  “That doesn’t make you a rebel,” Zander argued. “That makes you talented.”

  “I don’t think Jared Monroe sees it as a talent.”

  Ah, there it is, Zander internally mused. It wasn’t Annie’s problems plaguing Harper – well, at least not entirely. It was Jared Monroe. Zander knew something was going on there even if neither party wanted to admit it. “Harper, we both know that it takes people some time to come to grips with what you can do. He doesn’t understand that what you see is real. He will eventually realize that you’re as talented as you are beautiful.”

  Harper ran a hand through her morning-tousled hair. “I don’t think he’s ever going to see me as talented and he certainly doesn’t see me as beautiful. He thought the pajamas I wore to Annie’s house last night were cute, though.”

  “Those things are a travesty,” Zander shot back. “They make you look fifty.”

  “Maybe I feel fifty.”

  “Maybe you’re feeling sorry for yourself this morning and you should let it go,” Zander suggested. “There’s no reason to be all … morose.”

  “I’m not being morose.”

  “You’re pouting,” Zander said. “That’s the same thing as being morose. This is like when you were fourteen and realized not every guy was going to be as handsome and charming as I was and there were going to be a lot of fish in the sea you were going to have to throw back.”

  “You always take the long way around everything,” Harper complained. “We both know Jimmy Durand dumped me for Natalie Archer because she had bigger boobs. I wasn’t pouting. I was resigned to my fate.”

  “You stuffed for a month,” Zander replied. “It looked like you had lumpy socks in your bra.”

  “I did have lumpy socks in my bra.”

  “That’s why it looked like you did,” Zander said, flipping the omelet. “You’re not fourteen. You don’t have to stuff. You filled out naturally. I know you’re feeling sorry for yourself right now, but there’s no reason for it. You’re a beautiful woman … even if you don’t want to admit it right now.”

  “Why are we even talking about this?”

  “Because you think Jared Monroe looks at you and sees a crazy woman who runs around in her pajamas talking to ghosts,” Zander replied, not missing a beat.

  “That is what he sees.”

  “He sees more than that,” Zander said. “I’m curious why you care what he thinks, though. You said you weren’t interested in him.”

  “I’m not,” Harper scoffed.

  “I think you might be,” Zander said. “That’s neither here nor there until he gets his head out of his rear end, though. For now he’s off limits because he doesn’t understand about the outer limits.”

  “Nice play on words,” Harper muttered.

  “Harp, I love you more than anything in this world,” Zander said. “We can only handle one catastrophe at a time, though. For now, I think we should focus on Annie. The Jared stuff will work itself out when the time is right.”

  “How many times do I have to tell you I’m not interested in Jared Monroe?”

  “Just until I believe it,” Zander said, scooping the omelet onto a plate and using the spatula to cut it in half so he could divvy it up between them. “I … .” He didn’t get a chance to finish what he was about to say because the back door opened at that precise moment and Phil Harlow let himself into the kitchen. He didn’t look happy.

  “Hi, Dad,” Harper said.

  “I don’t even know why we pretend to lock the doors in this house,” Zander said. “Everyone just lets themselves in whenever they feel like it.”

  Phil grabbed one of the plates before Zander could stop him. “This looks good.”

  Zander sighed and shoved the second plate toward Harper before returning to the stove so he could cook another omelet for himself. “Help yourself, Phil.”

  “Thanks, Zander,” Phil said, either missing the sarcasm or opting not to acknowledge it. He sat down in the open chair next to Harper and dug into his omelet. After tasting a sample of Zander’s culinary genius, he poured himself a glass of juice and then fixed his full attention on his daughter. “I’m totally pissed off at you.”

  “Oh, good,” Harper deadpanned. “I thought this morning couldn’t get any worse. I was wrong. What did I do to you?”

  “You got arrested last night and didn’t bother calling your only father,” Phil said. “Do you have any idea how that made me feel?”

  “I didn’t call anyone,” Harper said. “I didn’t get the chance.”

  “You called your mother,” Phil challenged. “Sandy Hannigan said Gloria and her new boy toy showed up to bail you out.”

  “I wasn’t charged with anything so I didn’t have to be bailed out.”

  “I wouldn’t call Walter a ‘boy toy’ either,” Zander said. “He’s more like … a building block. One of those ones that’s a knock-off, though. He’s not a name brand block.”

  Phil snorted, winking his appreciation in Zander’s direction. “Did Harper call you when she got arrested, too? Why am I always the last one to know?”

  “I told you I didn’t call anyone,” Harper said.

  “She’s telling the truth,” Zander offered. “My mother called me because someone saw Harper being led into the police station. After my mother was done giving me an earful she called Gloria. Harper didn’t call anyone.”

  “Oh,” Phil said, brightening considerably. “Well, that makes me feel a little bit better.”

  “Why?” Harper asked.

  “I don’t like being the forgot
ten parent,” Phil replied. “I know it’s normal for children to take sides in a divorce, but I never thought you’d take your mother’s side.”

  “First off, I’m not taking anyone’s side,” Harper said. “Second … I would never take her side even if I was taking sides.”

  Phil reached over and tousled Harper’s already snarled hair. “That’s my girl.”

  Zander exchanged an amused look with Harper and then turned his full attention to the new omelet. “So, Phil, I heard you’re threatening to beat Gloria’s new boyfriend up.”

  “Who told you that?” Phil asked, narrowing his blue eyes.

  “Someone down at the basketball court said you were, and I quote, threatening to put a boot in Walter’s ass for stealing your woman,” Zander said. “I thought you wanted the divorce.”

  “I do want the divorce.”

  “Why are you calling Mom ‘your woman’ then?” Harper asked.

  “Because we’re not divorced yet and I don’t like anyone taking what’s mine before I’m ready to give it up,” Phil said. “That’s not the way things work.”

  “You and Mom have been haggling over everything – including thumbtacks – since you announced you were getting divorced,” Harper said. “I’m starting to think it’s not going to happen.”

  “It’s happening,” Phil countered. “I can’t wait to get rid of that woman.”

  “If you say so,” Harper said, finishing off her omelet and downing the rest of her glass of orange juice. “I’ll hop in the shower first,” she said. “We’re going to have to drive together to work until I can pick up my car.”

  “We’ll stop and get it before we go to the office,” Zander said.

  Harper dropped a kiss on her father’s forehead as she moved past him. “It was nice seeing you, Dad. You know you can drop in for other reasons than accusing me of favoring Mom over you, right?”

  “That’s not what I was doing,” Phil protested.

  “Well, it was nice seeing you anyway.” Harper shuffled down the hallway.

  Phil waited until she was out of earshot before turning to Zander. “What’s going on? Why is she so depressed?”

  “She has a crush on the cop who arrested her,” Zander said. “She’s convinced that he thinks she’s crazy because of the whole ghost thing.”