Taryn felt chilled to the bone. What he said summed up one of the thoughts that traveled through her mind on a daily basis. What if she and David were soul mates but weren’t meant to be together in this life? What if he was just one of many she was supposed to find, like her grandmother and Aunt Sarah?
What would she do if he wasn’t the one? It would rock the entire core of her foundation; Matt was the only rock-steady thing she had. Without him, she would lose her footing and everything around her would crumble–of this she was sure. It had happened before.
There was something else she needed to get off her chest, though.
“This motel I’m working at, there’s something there,” Taryn said with hesitation. “I don’t want you to think that just because I’ve worked at haunted places in the past I think there are ghosts everywhere, but there is something at this one.”
“If you say there is, then I believe you. Has the old gal picked up on anything,” he asked, gesturing towards Miss Dixie in her spot on the coffee table.
“Yes, a few things. And I’ve heard and seen things myself.”
She quickly gave him a rundown on what had happened so far and David listened, giving her his full, undivided attention. When she finished, he tapped a little rhythm on her foot with his fingers as he gazed across her living room and contemplated her story. The casual movement was done casually, like a habit, and it provided an extraordinary intimacy between them that Taryn found disconcerting.
“Well,” he said at last, “in the time I’ve known you I have found that these things don’t generally find you and communicate with you unless there’s a reason. Am I off base here?”
“No. They do seem to have an agenda.”
“Then it would seem to me that whatever this is in need of something,” David said. “He or she or it desires something from you. The fact that it followed you home is different, of course. This apartment has nothing to do with the Black Raven Inn, Parker Brown, or Ruby Jane.”
“That we know of anyway,” Taryn pointed out.
“Right; that we know of.”
“The thing that was in my apartment today, that didn’t feel like Parker. He was a gentle soul. Everyone said that.”
David gave her a questioning look.
“Okay, so I’ve done some research on him since getting this job,” Taryn confessed. “A lot. And David, I think he was murdered. I don’t think he died the way they said he did.”
“I wouldn’t jump to conclusions and assume that this entity must be Parker, though. That motel has been around for a long time,” David said. “Parker is its most famous resident, of course, but there were others. Hell, doesn’t the old motel sign say something like, ‘Stay where the legends stayed’?”
“Yeah. Of course, they weren’t legends when they stayed there–they were down-on-their-luck singers who were looking for a break so that they wouldn’t have to hock their instruments.” Taryn stopped and then looked down at the floor. “Parker was clean at the end. I don’t think he would’ve gone back to that stuff he was doing. And even I feel weird after working there. Maybe there is something to the motel.”
David’s face paled to an ashy chalk; she could almost hear the wheels turning inside his head. Whatever he was thinking, however, he remained vague. “Who knows what else has happened in it. Please be careful. You don’t know what you’re dealing with here. You be sure to stay with that bodyguard of yours. I have a feeling about this one. I don’t think it’s going to go well.”
“Ghosts can’t hurt me,” Taryn whispered, unexpectedly seized with a slow burn of dread that scraped at her stomach and throat, burning both. “They can’t.”
“What if it’s not a ghost?” David asked, his face engraved with concern. “I’d worry about this, Taryn. I worry about you. Haven’t you noticed that with each job you get, things get harder; the division between you and that other world gets weaker?”
Taryn bowed her head. She had.
“At what point does it just become too much? What’s your breaking point?”
Taryn didn’t know. But there were days when it felt awfully close.
When she opened her eyes, Taryn was in her bed. The duvet was pleasantly cool against her bare legs and the soft cotton of her favorite T-shirt laid against her chest.
She sat up and looked around, confused at the late-afternoon sunlight that smiled dimly through her blackout curtains. When she reached for her phone, she found it on mute.
She didn’t remember going to bed. She didn’t remember removing her dress, although now she saw it folded gently over the back of an antique chair in the corner of her bedroom. She didn’t remember putting on the T-shirt or undressing at all. When she felt her chest, however, she was pleased to find that she was still wearing her bra.
So she hadn’t gotten completely naked in front of David. That was good. And she was wearing underwear that covered her entire bottom, not one of the little slutty pair that she sometimes wore for kicks.
The socks she’d been wearing were across the room in the hamper by the door. She could see them from the bed. Her jewelry, including her grandmother’s ring, was in a little glass dish on her nightstand.
So sometime during the night she’d gotten undressed, put on her favorite T-shirt, folded up her dress, put things in the dirty clothes, shut her curtains, removed her jewelry, and muted her phone. And she didn’t remember any of that.
Frightening.
A glance at her phone told her that it was 4:30 pm.
“Oh my God!” Taryn shrieked, jumping to her feet. She had missed a whole day’s worth of work. And Aker would’ve waited on her. She hoped he hadn’t waited long.
After throwing on her robe, which had somehow made it to the foot of her bed from the hook behind the bathroom door, Taryn darted into the kitchen.
“Caffeine. Coke,” she chanted. “Must have Coke.”
A handwritten note on the refrigerator door had her coming to a halt.
Dear Taryn,
You drifted off last night and I didn’t want to wake you. It seems like all you needed was my foot-rubbing talent! Ha! Anyway, don’t get mad but once I knew you were out for good I took you to your room and tried to make you comfortable. I know it probably sounds weird now, but once I found a T-shirt I thought felt soft I closed the curtains and the room got pretty dark. I promise I didn’t peek or cop any (unnecessary) feels. I stayed on the couch so there wasn’t any funny business.
It’s a little after noon now and I am getting ready to leave to catch my flight. I called your body guard and we both agreed you needed the rest. I turned off your phone so that you could get rest, in case any telemarketers or bill collectors called (not implying that you don’t pay your credit cards on time, of course). I hope you sleep for awhile. You were looking pretty comfortable when I left. I checked on you throughout the night to make sure everything was okay.
If you need anything, please ask. You know I’ll be there in a heartbeat.
Love,
David
Nineteen
Taryn was amazed at how much good a whole night’s rest was. Her mind was calmer than it had been in days and even her body pain was somewhere at a manageable level.
She took a good, long look at the painting she’d done of the courtyard and barely remembered working on it.
“What the hell happened to me?” she asked herself, shaking her head. She didn’t know, but she didn’t want it happening again.
Her phone buzzed, an email notification, and she walked over to her computer to check it out.
“Can meet at the Parthenon in twenty minutes,” the message read.
Taryn glanced at her watch and moaned. It would take that long for her to drive there. Still, it might be the only chance for her to meet with Griff Townsend, former night manager of the Black Raven Inn.
After quickly typing back a reply, Taryn ran a brush through her hair and then pulled a newsboy cap snugly down to her ears.
She didn’t have tim
e to do much else and was soon on the road towards the expansive lawn that surrounded one of Nashville’s most popular landmarks.
The Parthenon was built to scale and while perhaps not as awe-inspiring as the original of the same name, still pretty interesting. It was popular for couples on picnics, families who wanted to let the little ones run around, and college kids playing a game of football.
When Taryn pulled up and parked, she was happy to see that it wasn’t as crowded as it could be.
She didn’t have any trouble recognizing Griff; he looked pretty much as his message said he would. The man who ambled towards her was tall and reedy. The long beard that nearly reached his waist might have been ridiculous on the thirty-year old’s lean body ten years ago, but now beards and flannel shirts (the “lumberjack look” Taryn called it) were back in style again.
“Griff, I hope,” Taryn grinned after waving him over.
“At your service,” he replied.
He had a bit of a deep northeastern accent that made Taryn wonder how he’d found himself all the way to Nashville, much less a desk worker at a seedy motel.
“I was hoping we might be able to sit down a bit,” she said.
He nodded and Taryn began leading him the way to the cement steps at the foot of the towering replica of the Greek monument. From their seats they had a view of the entire park. Only mothers with young children were out at the moment. Taryn figured everyone else was either working or trying to sleep off the night before.
“So you’re wanting information about the old motel,” he ventured.
“Yeah,” Taryn replied. “I have a few questions about it. You’re the only one I could get in touch with.”
“Not surprised,” he said. “Most of the other guys have gone on to greener pastures. Some on the other side of the great holy river, if you know what I’m saying.”
Taryn nodded.
“I’m particularly interested about Parker Brown’s death,” she began.
Griff laughed. “Of course you are. They all are.”
Taryn decided to ignore that quip and forge ahead.
“I was wondering if you heard anything about his death, anything that sounded odd. Like maybe,” she paused for a moment to collect her thoughts. “Like maybe he didn’t do it.”
“You think he was killed?”
“Well,” she replied, feeling lame at the suggestion. “Maybe.”
“Ma’am, with all due respect, nobody can force you to take drugs. Talented as the guy might have been, he was chasing the dragon just like the rest of them,” he snorted.
“Chasing the–“
“Chasing the dragon,” he finished for her. “Means trying to keep the high going, trying to recreate that first-time feeling. Lots of ‘em do it, few succeed.”
“I know he died before you were born, just like me, but wondered if you’d heard any stories.”
“Like what?”
“Like how he was found, what he’d been doing earlier that evening, if he was dead on arrival,” she answered. “Things like that.”
“Found by a woman,” Griff replied. “They called her a girlfriend. She supposedly wasn’t with him at the time of the overdose but came later. Called the cops and front desk and then left. Nobody talked to her. She just kind of vanished into thin air.”
“A woman?”
“Yeah, said she was his girlfriend. Truth be told, I think she was probably more of a hanger on. You know what I mean?”
Taryn shook her head no.
“Happens a lot. Men and women both like to cling to these celebrities, get as much as they can from them, and then move on when the well dries up.” Griff shrugged. “That’s what it sounded like to me. A real friend woulda stayed around, you know?”
Taryn said she did. “Anything else?”
“I always heard that if they’d been called sooner he would’ve lived. That time was wasted, especially if he had somebody with him.”
The thought pained Taryn greatly. To know a tragedy could have been prevented was awful. Poor Ruby.
Unless…unless Ruby had been the “girlfriend” there with him.
“One more thing,” Taryn said as she watched the young mothers slowly pushing the strollers around the walk paths. It was a beautiful day; the sun was shining high in the sky. She was glad to be out in it.
“Shoot.”
“I know a lot of paranormal investigators and people were there over the years. Did you ever hear or see anything in the motel, and especially in Parker’s old room?”
Griff snorted and lowered his head, shielding his eyes from hers. “Ma’am,” he said at last. “You couldn’t pay me to go inside that room. Lots of good housekeepers felt the same way.”
“Yeah, why?”
Griff shook his head then visibly shuddered. “There’s something about that whole place that’s just not good. Me? I used to be a pretty happy guy, pretty optimistic. Came down here to a studio musician. I play lead guitar, you know.”
Taryn smiled encouragingly.
“After three months in that place I started losing all focus. Barely wanted to get up in the morning, much less play. After three years I wanted to slit my wrists. Still trying to work out some of the inner demons I picked up there.”
“Why didn’t you just leave? Why’d you stick around?”
Griff winced. “Cause something like that, it gets under your skin. Makes you think there is nothing else out there, that life just ain’t worth living. Makes you think it’s all you have.”
Now it was Taryn’s time to shudder.
“I gotta tell you this, though,” he added. He looked up and stared at Taryn with green, watery eyes. “If you’re in there now then my advice is to get out and get out fast. Have you started losing sleep yet?”
Taryn nodded. Griff appeared troubled.
“Then it might just be too late. It might already have you.”
With a full night’s sleep under her belt, the things that stalked her in her apartment seemed to be quietened, if not altogether silent.
Taryn did her best to ignore the strange sounds that plagued her, the flashes of light that blasted across the room. She kept her phone close to her hand, ready to dial Matt in an instant should anything happen.
Whatever was there, however, left her alone. It came close enough to let her know it was there, but never close enough to actually bother her. She put on her invisible blinders and worked diligently on her painting, allowing her music to drown out what it could.
A woman had been there with him, she thought. If not with him when he died then soon after.
Had it been Ruby? Had she been the one to find him in the motel room? And, if so, then why hadn’t she told anyone?
Or had she been there with him all along?
Taryn meant to find answers to her questions, even if they were answers she didn’t like.
Twenty
She was on her way to meet with Ruby, this time at the Loveless Café–a place known for its southern comfort foods. It generally closed early in the day but it was staying open for Ruby’s visit.
“Nobody usually bothers me when I’m out,” Ruby had told her over the phone, “but this will give us a chance to talk. I’ve been going there for a long time.”
Taryn drove down the road with a lot on her mind. She’d called David but he must have already been on the plane; she’d gone straight to voicemail. She’d left a message instead, thanking him for taking care of her the night before and once again praising his lecture.
Then she’d called Matt and told him about what had happened.
“I don’t know that I’m real happy about another man sleeping in your apartment and seeing you in your skivvies,” he’d laughed thinly, “but I’m glad he was there to help. You needed that rest and if it couldn’t be me there, then I’m glad it was a friend.”
“He is a friend, Matt,” she’d sworn.
“Yeah, I know. It’s taken me months to get used to that fact, but I know. But still…”
“’Still’ what?”
Matt hesitated before speaking. “If something did change, if you started feeling differently… I wouldn’t blame you. You’ll always be my best friend and I’ll always love and support you, no matter who you’re with. I truly just want you to be happy.”
“I love you, Matt,” Taryn said sincerely. “I don’t want to be with anyone else.”
And that was true; she’d always loved Matt. A life without him was unfathomable.
The Loveless Café was a small building on the side of the road. It looked like a little farmhouse from the outside. On the inside, it smelled like biscuits and bacon. A lot of country music singers and other transplants who relocated to Nashville from small, southern towns had flocked there to be reminded of Mama’s cooking and home. Taryn’s mother, who’d been into whole foods and gluten free stuff long before they were popular with the hipsters, had not cooked such meals.
But her grandmother had.
As Taryn entered the modest, unpretentious dining establishment she was instantly transported back to her Nana’s old farmhouse outside of Franklin–a place that always carried the aroma of fresh flowers, lavender, baby powder, and grease. The whiff of country cooking made her homesick for the woman who had mostly raised her.
Ruby Jane was the only diner but she’d have been easy to spot regardless. Something about her just glowed; that was the only word Taryn found close to fitting and even it didn’t accurately describe the woman’s aura.
Today, Ruby wore skinny jeans, a black turtleneck that was tight enough to be an extra layer of skin, and a bright pin shawl wrapped around her neck. Her long hair with its striking streaks of silver cascaded down her back, long enough for her to nearly sit on it, and it sparkled with tiny diamonds from the sunlight that streaked in through the window and captured it with its rays. She looked like a fairy–ageless and ethereal.
Black Raven Inn: A Paranormal Mystery (Taryn's Camera Book 6) Page 14