“Yes, he confronted her in the cabin and she rejected him. He attacked her, choked her. It was pretty awful. How did you know?”
“I’m not sure I can do it justice. I wish I had filmed it.” He said, letting her hands go to run one through his hair. It looked so soft, Daphne wanted to reach up and touch it too, but she kept her hands clasped. What was wrong with her? She was not going to let herself be attracted to this man. “It was really spooky to watch.”
Daphne wanted to hear more, but she was worried about Chris and what he might do. “So Chris left here knowing Russ was with Stephanie before she died and that he attacked her?”
“Yep.” Eric said.
“We need to find him before he does something to Russ.”
Since neither knew the path that Chris took, they reversed direction and headed back the way they had come. They soon came to a fork in the path that neither remembered seeing. “Which way?” Daphne asked. The connection with Stephanie had sapped some of her energy, but she knew she needed to find Chris.
“The town is on the left, so we’ll stay on the left path.” Eric suggested.
They walked for awhile, then Eric said, “I think this might have been the wrong way, it is taking too long.”
Daphne agreed. “Should we turn around?” She looked at Eric who was looking around.
“Wait, I think I see something. Let’s keep going.”
The path dumped them into an open area containing two massive structures. They were only one story tall, but each was the width and length of a football field. They were made of wood and glass and inside they could see hundreds of plants. Outside one of them was a truck with Dunning’s Landing Nursery on the door and several plants in the bed. “Greenhouses.” Daphne said. “These must be Craig’s greenhouses for the nursery.”
As she spoke, one of the doors opened and Sheila came out. “Lost?” She asked, her ponytail swinging as she turned to lock the door before turning back to grin at them.
“Yes,” said Eric and Daphne together.
“I’ll take you back. Where were you coming from the Dunning house?”
“The cabin,” Eric said.
“Ah, easy to miss the trail, it’s a bit hidden. When you reach the fork in the road, it is to the far left, blocked from sight by a bush. If you don’t know its there..” She broke off dragging Eric and Daphne to the ground behind the truck just as blast exploded around them. “Somebody is shooting at us!”
“At us?” Eric asked lifting his head up to look, but Sheila pulled him down again as another blast sounded.
“I think so,” Sheila said as she pulled out a walkie-talkie. “Anybody there?”
“Yeah Sheila what’s up?” Came a voice Daphne didn’t recognize.
“Call my Dad, tell him someone is hunting in the woods and that they just took a couple shots at us. We’re outside the greenhouses.”
“Right away.”
Within a few seconds his voice came back through. “Your dad’s on his way. He’s close by; you should be hearing his siren.”
He was right, — the sound of approaching sirens reached them, as did the sound of someone running away through the woods.
Soon the sheriff’s car screeched to a stop next to the truck. The door opened on the driver’s side and the sheriff slipped out, duck-walking to where the trio huddled.
“You all alright?” The sheriff asked as he approached Eric.
“Yes,” Sheila answered. “I think the shooter is gone though. We heard someone running away back into the woods.”
The sheriff removed his hat and raised it up past the truck bed. Nothing happened. He raised it further and further, with no result. He then eased himself up to look over the bed of the truck. Hearing nothing, he rose a little higher and kept going until he was standing and in full view of the woods. Nothing happened. “I think you’re right. I think whoever it was is gone. Maybe they realized they weren’t shooting at deer.”
“I don’t think they were trying for deer, I think they were trying for us, or at least one of us.” Sheila disagreed. “I could hear them loading the shotgun. They couldn’t have been too far away, so they were close enough to see us.”
The sheriff studied her before circling around the truck and heading toward the woods. “Any idea of the shooter’s position?” He asked his daughter.
She joined him as they walked back and forth into the woods. At one point they stopped, the sheriff crouched to examine the ground. “Somebody stood here. They were wearing boots, probably a man, but could be a woman with big feet. The leaves are trampled into the ground and it looks like a section of a boot mark here.” He stood up and they walked back toward the others. “I say you’re right, whoever was doing the shooting wouldn’t have mistaken you for deer. I wonder which of you was the target.”
Sheila followed her father’s car back out of the woods where she dropped Eric and Daphne off at Eric’s house. As Daphne stepped down from the truck, she teetered. Eric grabbed hold of her arm to keep her upright.
“Are you alright?” He asked with a hint of panic and searched her face. “Did you get hit?”
“I’m not hurt. I’m just exhausted.” Daphne explained, lowering her voice so Sheila couldn’t hear. “Connecting with ghosts zaps my energy. Worrying about Chris and getting shot at boosted my adrenaline, but its wearing off. I need to lie down.”
Eric reassured Sheila and let her drive away before turning back to Daphne. “Come inside. You can rest on the couch.”
Daphne shook her head. “We need to find Chris, make sure he doesn’t do something stupid.”
He considered her some more and shook his head. “Nope, you look like you’re about to drop. You need to lie down. I’ll look for Chris.”
Seeing as Daphne was tempted to slide to the ground and curl up in a ball, she knew she was too exhausted to argue. She needed some sleep, just a few minutes, and then she could help. “Ok, but I only need about twenty minutes. I just need to recharge.”
She felt him lift her up just as she lost consciousness.
Chapter Eighteen
Sometime later, Daphne awoke to voices talking low nearby. She felt a rush of panic: she had no idea where she was. She sat up, glancing around the room. She was lying on a navy blue sofa, and a soft blue and white afghan had been tucked around her to keep out the cold. The room was small and cozy with two recliners across from her, a coffee table in-between covered in magazines. Against the far wall was a fireplace, and on the mantle were several pictures. One of them was of Eric, standing in his cap and gown. Thoughts of Stephanie, Chris, Eric and the cabin flashed through her mind and she realized she was at Eric’s house. She grimaced, remembering how she had lost consciousness. Eric must have carried her into the house. The smell of brewing coffee had her forcing her embarrassment aside. She needed the caffeine. And she needed to know how much damage she had caused by connecting to Stephanie.
She found Eric and his mother sitting at the dining room table. At least she assumed it was his mother. The woman sitting with Eric as he ate a sandwich was considerably different from the woman who had accosted Chris in the store, even though it had only been an hour or so. Gone were the baggy sweats, the fly-away hair and the deathly pallor. It was obvious that Nicole had not only managed some sleep, but had taken significant care with her appearance: she was now wearing slacks and a sweater, her hair was styled and her makeup expertly applied. The smell of his sandwich reached her, and her stomach growled precipitating her arrival.
They both turned to her. “Feeling better?” Eric asked.
Daphne nodded, “How long was I out?”
“About forty-five minutes.”
“Are you hungry?” Nicole asked as Daphne’s stomach rumbled again. Laughing, she said “Yes, you are, I’ll make you a sandwich. Sit, sit,” she said indicating a chair across from Eric.
“T
hank you,” Daphne said to Nicole’s back as she passed through to the kitchen. She turned to Eric and whispered, “What have you told her?”
“Everything,” Eric said simply. “I made her walk with me into town to pick up her car and I told her all of it.” He grimaced. “I hope its okay that I told her about your gift. I had to, I didn’t see any way around it.”
“And she believes me?”
“I do,” Nicole said as she came back in, carrying a turkey sandwich on a plate along with a glass of iced water. She sat it down in front of Daphne before taking her seat and picking up her own sandwich.
“I had a good cry,” Nicole said. “I’ve been crying off and on for the past four and a half years. It’s hard to let go of the hope, but at the same time I feel a huge weight has been lifted. I finally feel like I’ve been released from this limbo so I can take control of my life again. Thanks to you.” She gave Daphne a smile, it still had some sadness at the corners and in her eyes, but she was not the same person who had accosted Chris in the parking lot.
Daphne smiled back before turning her attention back to Eric. “Did you find Chris?”
He had taken a big bite of sandwich, so he only shook his head.
Nicole spoke for him. “Once we picked up my car, we drove around and looked everywhere we could think. We didn’t see him. We figured if he was going to be anywhere though it would be around here. His aunt’s house is on the other side of the nursery, so if Russ shows up, it will likely be there. His car is still there, so he hasn’t left town. I checked with Pamela, and she hasn’t seen him since last night at the party.”
“We should go outside and watch for him,” Daphne said, starting to rise, but Nicole motioned for her to sit back down.
“We stopped by the nursery and asked Sheila and Craig to keep an eye out. Craig is working in the Christmas tree lot, so he has the best view of Pamela’s house.”
Daphne sat back down. “What did you tell them?” She asked before taking a bite of her own sandwich.
“Mostly the truth, that Chris was convinced Russ killed Stephanie. Craig said that you had already told him and his parents about seeing Stephanie’s ghost. We didn’t tell Sheila any details, but my guess is that Craig already did. He tells her everything. Chris’s car is still parked where he left it, so he hasn’t gone far, either. I tried calling his home, but no one answered.”
“Do you think you can tell us what you learned from Stephanie?” Eric asked. “I was only able to follow your side of the conversation you had with her, and then just her side of her conversation with Russ.”
“Of course. I should have remembered that. When I connected with Miguel, Brandon said he only heard my side and that I sounded like Miguel.”
“You sounded just like Stephanie. It was weird, but amazing.”
“I’ll start at the beginning,” Daphne said, “Stephanie arrived at the cabin in the woods to wrap the presents she had bought for Chris.” Remembering Stephanie’s pleasure as she examined the gifts, Daphne frowned. “She bought him a pen set and a key chain: Ellen at the stationery store confirmed that. The keychain seemed familiar to me as she was wrapping it. But maybe it was just familiar because I was looking at it through her eyes. But I didn’t have the same feeling about the pen set.” She shook her head. “Probably doesn’t matter.”
“Wait,” Nicole said. “Stephanie bought Chris presents the day she disappeared?”
“Yes, Ellen said they were a graduation present. Her dad had let Stephanie buy a pen set with a matching key chain at cost.”
Nicole turned to Eric, “did you know about this?”
He shook his head, “not until Daphne mentioned it.”
“Why didn’t the sheriff say anything? I thought he looked into her disappearance? Wouldn’t he have suspected something if he discovered that Stephanie had bought a gift for Chris? Why would she buy him a gift if she planned on leaving him?”
“Maybe he thought she bought it for him as a going away present instead?” Daphne offered.
Nicole grumbled a reluctant “maybe” before gesturing Daphne to continue.
“While Stephanie was wrapping the presents, Russ showed up. Stephanie told him to leave. She said that she was expecting Chris to arrive soon, by 2:30.”
“But Chris was on the Senior Trip to the lake and wasn’t expected back until later that evening.”
Daphne nodded. “That’s what Russ told her. She told him that Chris had been in contact with her, that he was planning on meeting her at 2:30.”
“I remember hearing that through you. Chris heard it too. He denied sending her a text, and I believe him. I don’t think he contacted her.”
“Russ tried to convince Stephanie to go with him. He showed her a duffle bag full of money. Told her that it belonged to his father and that he found it, he offered her a way to leave Dunning’s Landing and never have to worry about money again. But she rejected him. That’s what ticked him off, he attacked her.”
Eric frowned at Daphne but didn’t say anything. Daphne knew he had heard more from Stephanie’s side of the conversation, but Daphne wasn’t going to tell Stephanie’s mother how Stephanie had used Russ to get Chris. Eric locked eyes with her and nodded his agreement to keep this information from his mother.
“So she’s been dead since the day we all thought she had left town with Russ.” Nicole said. “So he was responsible for taking Stephanie away.”
“He denied seeing her,” Eric said. “Both when Chris confronted him and then when the sheriff questioned him, he not only denied taking her, but denied even seeing her that day. But I guess he would.”
“Instead he tried to blame Chris. He had me believing that Chris had harmed her. I owe that boy an apology. I could kill Russ for this.” Nicole picked up the now empty plates and took them into the kitchen.
Daphne turned to Eric, “So could Chris, which is why we need to find him before he finds Russ.”
Chapter Nineteen
Eric nodded and after telling his mother where they were going, lead her outside. Chris’s car was still parked across the street. Seeing his car brought back the memory of the key chain. She realized where he had seen the key chain before: Chris had one just like it.
“Eric, the key chain, the one I saw Stephanie wrapping. Chris has one just like it.”
“Maybe Chris found the presents and kept them?” Eric supplied.
“Maybe,” Daphne agreed. But Chris didn’t mention the key chain or the pen set when they had been talking to Ellen.
“You didn’t tell my mom about Stephanie using Russ to attract Chris.” Eric accused her.
Daphne grimaced, “I know, I couldn’t. It’s possible that she only said that to get Russ to leave her alone.”
Eric shook his head. “I always wondered why she dated Russ. I never liked the guy, although I did feel sorry for him. Stephanie was a planner. If she wanted something bad enough, she would figure out the best way to get it, create a plan, and then follow it through to the end. I doubt she would have considered Russ’s feelings, she saw that dating Russ was the best way to get Chris’s attention. Considering how much they despised each other, it was probably a good plan. They each went out of their way to humiliate and hurt the other as much as possible.”
“So Russ and Chris didn’t like each other prior to Chris dating Stephanie?”
“I think they’ve hated each other since they first met in kindergarten. I have no idea what started it. Always thought it was odd that they weren’t forced to reconcile considering how close Pamela and Debbie were. But then again Russ didn’t go to live with Pamela until he was in high school.”
“What happened to his parents?”
“Russ witnessed his father strangle his mother.”
“My god, that’s horrible. Poor kid.”
Eric quirked an eyebrow at her. “That poor kid later killed Stephan
ie.”
“You’re right. Sorry. I wasn’t connecting the two of them. But I guess it makes a sense in a sick way. Like father, like son.”
“It was rumored that Russ’s father learned his wife had been cheating on him, which is why he killed her.”
“So when Russ realized Stephane had just been using him, he let his temper take over. She didn’t see it coming, not until it was too late.”
They sat in silence for awhile. Daphne scanned the park, the parking lot of the nursery and the road for any sign of Chris. Nothing. Eric seemed lost in his own thoughts.
“Watching you trying to talk with Stephanie was interesting, but seeing you connect to her was thrilling.”
Daphne looked at him. “I’ll have to take your word for it.”
He shook his head. “No, you don’t. I’d like to film it sometime, if you connect to another ghost. I’d like to film the whole thing, you talking to the ghost and then connecting to him or her.”
“Why?”
“Haven’t you wondered what you look like to when are connected to someone?” Eric pushed. “You said yourself that you asked your brother to describe it to you. If I filmed it, you could see for yourself.”
Daphne shrugged. “Maybe, but I doubt we’ll have the opportunity. I don’t see this town having too many ghosts.”
“What if you connected to Stephanie again?”
“I’m not sure I can. It would depend on if she’s still around. Miguel left as soon as we learned the truth about what happened to him. Stephanie may have moved on as well.”
“Oh. Think about it though. If you get an opportunity again, I’d like to film it. However, if you don’t have me do it, you should get someone to, I think it is something you should see.”
The Ghost Maker Page 12