Ghostly Town (A Ghost Hunter P.I. Mystery Book 4)

by Aubrey Harper

  She closed her eyes and held the letter open in one hand while she held the other hand over it. The room was quiet as we all waited in anticipation for her to find out anything we could use.

  “I sense someone close by,” she said. “Actually, I sense two someones right behind you.”

  Maybe Lady Rosanna was sensitive to the dead after all?

  “Yes. It’s just two ghosts,” I said. “But that’s not why I’m here. Directly anyway.”

  Lady Rosanna opened one eye in what looked like amusement. “So you have gifts of your own, I presume?”

  “Yes. I can see the dead. I’ve been helping them move on for years. Right now I have the ghost of Charles Mathers here.”

  “Mr. Mathers? Oh it’s awful what happened to him, isn’t it? Do you think the letter writer could be connected to his death?”

  “Well, that’s what I’m here to find out,” I said. “The only reason I’m here now helping Charles is because of that letter. If I hadn’t gotten it, I wouldn’t be in this town, I don’t think. So, did you sense anything?”

  “Yes,” Lady Rosanna said. “But it was very faint. I believe it was a woman that wrote this. I believe she might be an older lady.”

  Then Lady Rosanna actually looked at the letter. “Oh my goodness,” she gasped.

  “What is it?” I asked her. “Did you get a psychic vision? Of the future, maybe? Are more people going to die?”

  “Oh, no,” she said slowly. “The thing is, I don’t need to tune in psychically to know who wrote this letter. I recognize the handwriting.”

  Charles went around the table and looked at the letter himself. But then he just shrugged his shoulders.

  “Do you know who wrote it?” I asked her.

  “Not off the top of my head,” she said. “But I can certainly find out.”

  She got up then and looked through a couple of boxes in the corner of the room. “I get dozens of letters from various people. Most of them want a free reading or to know if their significant other is stepping out. Some of them, however, aren’t so pleasant. Some are outright belligerent. People telling me that I’m doing the devil’s work and that I’ll burn in hell for all eternity.”

  “You think the person who sent me that letter is one of those people?” I asked her.

  “I can’t say I really remember. You see I get so many letters, I skim through most of them. Some of them I know by the first sentence that they aren’t worth reading. All I remember of this particular letter is the excellent penmanship. I thought it was all very old-fashioned. Not to mention the stationary. Very fancy. Almost as if it came from a time when letter writing was the main form of communication.”

  As fascinating as all of this was, I just wished that Lady Rosanna would hurry up and find the letter already. Of course, I did not voice my concerns. I didn’t want us to be thrown out and have nothing to show for it.

  “Ah, here it is,” she finally said, after what seemed like hours.

  She looked over the letter from her stash and compared it to the one I had given her. “Yes, this is the same handwriting. I’m no expert on the matter, but I believe we’ve found your mysterious letter writer.”

  She handed me the other letter. Anne Sibley was the name on the return address.

  I quickly read over the letter. “It says here that she has regular contact with the dead,” I said.

  Lady Rosanna shrugged her shoulders. “I get letters from all kinds of people that think they’re gifted. Most of them are just bored of their lives, or outright delusional in some cases.”

  “Can I copy this?” I asked her.

  “Take the letter,” Lady Rosanna said. “I certainly don’t have any use for it. And if it will answer questions about poor Mr. Mathers’ demise, then all the better.”

  “How much do we owe you?” Kane asked as we got up to go.

  Lady Rosanna touched his arm. “Not a thing, young man. It’s been my pleasure.”

  “I think Lady Rosanna might have a crush on you,” I said to Kane once we made our way out to the street.

  “Do you think?” He asked, looking completely oblivious. “I thought she was just being nice.”

  “Nice isn’t the word I would use,” I joked.

  “Anne Sibley,” Charles said. “Why does that name sound familiar?”

  “We’re soon going to find out,” I said to Charles, even though I pretended like I was talking to Kane.

  Kane gave me a questioning look but then realized what was happening.

  “Oh, that’s right. Sure,” Kane said, pretending like he was part of the conversation. This wasn’t his first time doing this. While I didn’t much care what anyone in Silver Bells Cove thought of me, Kane did make me look a little less crazy if he was right next to me while I was having an involved conversation with Rebecca while walking down the street.

  I put Anne Sibley’s address into my phone. I used the inn as our starting location because it wasn’t too far away from the psychic’s house.

  “It looks like it’s only a couple of miles from here,” I said.

  Charles looked at the address. “That’s a quiet part of town. Not many tourists frequent that area.”

  It would be nice to get away from the hustle and bustle of it all. I wasn’t a huge fan of people to begin with. And now, being surrounded by them while they mostly made a mockery of my line of work, I definitely needed a breather.

  We got in the car. Kane was driving while I looked out for street signs and any wayward pedestrians that might have wanted to make the town their permanent home.

  Charles and Rebecca decided that they’d rather go there the ghostly way, mainly because Charles didn’t trust himself in a moving vehicle.

  “I’m afraid my body isn’t as solid as it used to be,” he said.

  “It takes some practice,” Rebecca admitted. “Come on, Charles, I’ll show you how to fly instead.”

  I found it amusing that all the people in the town that were there to see ghosts completely ignored Rebecca and Charles standing there in broad daylight. More than a few times, they even managed to walk right through poor Charles, who seemed quite annoyed by the whole spectacle.

  It didn’t take long for Kane and me to arrive there by car. Just as Kane parked, I saw Rebecca and Charles in the distance. Rebecca flew gracefully while poor Charles kept falling to the ground. I let out a laugh.

  “What’s so funny?” Kane asked.

  I told him what I saw and he laughed, too.

  “He is new at this,” he reminded me.

  We waited for them to arrive. I didn’t want to do this without Charles here. It took them quite a bit longer than I anticipated to catch up with us.

  When Charles landed a few feet from me, he actually fell to the ground. He dusted himself off before realizing that a ghost couldn’t really get any dust or dirt on his clothes.

  “That was an experience,” Charles said.

  Rebecca landed gracefully next to Charles. “Did you have fun?” She asked him.

  “That’s one word for it,” Charles said. “Now, are we ready to get to the business at hand?”

  I looked up at the Victorian up the hill. “I suppose we are,” I said.

  Rebecca and Charles took the lead this time. They wanted to check out the place before we had a chance to even ring the bell.

  Just before I went to ring the bell, a ghostly head pooped out of the door.

  “She’s home,” Rebecca said.

  “Geez, Rebecca! I thought I told you to stop doing that.”

  “Don’t be such a drama queen, Meredith. Now, are you going to ring that bell or not?”

  I rolled my eyes but did just that.

  It took a while for the old lady to come to the door. Being so old, I thought she would have a caretaker there, but apparently not.

  “Oh, it’s you,” the old lady said when she saw me.

  “Anne Sibley, I presume?” I said.

  The old lady looked more annoyed than anything. “Howe
ver did you find me? And are you the one that sent these two my way,” she said, pointing to Charles and Rebecca right behind her.

  “I thought she couldn’t see us,” Rebecca said. “I mean, she completely ignored us when we came inside.”

  “That’s because the dead are more trouble than they’re worth. I’ve done my share for them over the years, and let me tell you, it’s a thankless job. Now whenever I see someone that’s dead, I just ignore them and eventually they go away. Thinking that all the stories they heard of a woman that can see and talk to the dead were false. It’s worked all these years until now that is. What brings you here, young lady?” Anne asked me.

  I handed her the letter.

  “I thought I had sent this letter anonymously,” she said, looking it over. “However did you manage to track me down?”

  “You left your name and address on this letter,” I said, showing her the letter she had sent to Lady Rosanna.

  “I should have known. She’s a dreadful woman and even a worse psychic. I wrote to her thinking she’d help me protect myself from certain spirits, but all I got back was a canned response. Something about booking an appointment and preferably bringing cash along. At my advanced age? Pfft. I don’t think so. Either way, please do come in. These old bones aren’t what they used to be.”

  She led us, very slowly I might add, to a cozy living room that looked like it hadn’t been updated in at least fifty years. There was even one of those old televisions there, with an antenna and everything.

  “I didn’t think they still made these?” I said, pointing out the TV.

  “They don’t,” Anne said and then sat in what looked to be her favorite chair.

  “Ask your questions and then please leave,” she said.

  “Well, before I do, I think I can help you with your little spirit problem. Why not just put a circle of salt around your property?”

  Anne let out a chirping laugh. Then she started to cough. Then she resumed laughing.

  “Did I say something funny?” I asked the old woman. I was starting to think that she might not have been all there.

  “I know about the salt and the iron, you silly girl,” she said. “I wanted to be protected from most pests, but I did not want to bar access to all spirits in my home.”

  I ignored the jabs and just focused on the task at hand. “Why did you send me that anonymous letter? How did you know that Charles was going to die and why did you want me here when it happened?”

  “I didn’t. Yes, I wrote the words, but they were dictated to me,” she said matter-of-factly as if it were the most natural thing.

  “By whom?” Charles asked her.

  “By my late husband,” she said. “You may be familiar with him, Mr. Mathers. You were the one that caused his death after all.”

  Six

  “That…that can’t be,” Charles said. “I would remember…”

  “So comforting that you could forget the love of my life so easily,” Anne said.

  I looked at Charles.

  “What’s your husband’s name?” Charles asked Anne.

  “Why don’t you ask him yourself,” she said and looked behind Charles.

  A middle-aged man came into view. He was see-through, just like Charles and Rebecca.

  “Carl. My name is Carl Sibley,” he said. “Do you remember me now, Mr. Mathers?”

  Charles seemed to recognize the name. He looked deep in thought, probably trying to place it. “How long ago was this?” He finally asked Carl.

  Carl looked to Anne.

  “It was twenty years ago now,” she said. “My husband and I went to one of your séances. A spirit came through, claiming to be his long-dead sister. She warned him that he should be careful because she saw an accident in his future. After that, my poor Carl became paranoid and could barely function. It culminated in him having a car accident because he was so afraid that he would have one. You killed him, Mr. Mathers, with your irresponsible words.”

  “I only pass on the message,” Charles said in his defense. “I usually don’t have control of what comes through once I’m in trance.”

  “And that’s an excuse?” Carl said.

  “Of course not,” Charles was quick to say, “but you knew the risks before you came to see me. I always tell people not to participate if they’re not ready to hear the truth. Also, I always warn people that the spirits aren’t without fault. Though in this case, it appears the spirit of your dear sister was right.”

  Carl looked like he was ready to lunge at Charles but he managed to keep hold of himself.

  “I don’t get one thing,” I said. “If your wife could see ghosts, why did you go to Mr. Mathers in order to speak to your sister?”

  “Carl’s sister was not a ghost,” Anne said. “She was already on the other side. Though I don’t think that was his sister Mr. Mathers here made contact with that day. But that’s beside the point. I did not have the sight when we went to that séance. I only got it after that horrific car accident. It took my husband, but it gave me the ability to see him. That was the only saving grace that came from that experience. Of course, then other dead people started to make themselves known and I had to help them. At first, I thought God had given me the gift to help the dead, but I soon realized that none of it mattered. My husband was still dead. And even though I could still see him, it was not the same. And it’s all your fault, Mr. Mathers.”

  “That’s awful, Anne,” I said, trying to appear sympathetic. I mean, it was awful what happened but I wasn’t so sure if Charles was the only one to blame. “But what I don’t understand is why am I here?” I turned to Carl. “Why did you send me that letter?”

  “My wife and I heard of your talents from a mutual friend. Your reputation precedes you, Ms. Good,” Carl said. “I wanted your help. This town is full of restless spirits and I thought you could help us release them.”

  “That’s not the only reason, is it?” I said. “I mean, couldn’t Anne have done that?”

  “I’m not long for this world,” Anne said. “I’m no help to anyone even if I wanted to be at my age.”

  Charles looked from Carl to Anne. “But how did you know I was going to die? Did you do something?”

  Anne shook her head. “If I was going to do something, I would have done it long ago. The news of your death reached my husband. Apparently, you have some enemies in the spirit world, Mr. Mathers. Good luck moving on to the next world. Once I pass, my husband and I will leave this wretched world once and for all. You, on the other hand, shall forever be barred from entering the realms of bliss that await all good people. You’re a murderer, Mr. Mathers, and you will be punished.”

  Charles looked distraught by what he was hearing. Rebecca put a ghostly hand on his shoulder. “Don’t listen to her,” she said to Charles. “She’s just a bitter old woman with too much time on her hands.”

  Carl stepped forward. “You will not speak of my wife in such a manner,” he said to Rebecca.

  “Sorry, dude, I didn’t mean it like that,” Rebecca said. “But you have to admit that you guys are blowing this whole thing out of proportion. It’s not Charles’ fault that you couldn’t handle a simple warning to drive more carefully.”

  “How dare you?” Carl said, stepping forward.

  “Enough!” I said before the ghosts could start tearing into each other, even though it would have been quite the sight to see. “Why is everyone ignoring the obvious question here?”

  The dead and the living looked at me expectantly.

  “Geez, guys,” I said. “Isn’t it obvious? Who are these supposed enemies that predicted Charles’ death? And might they be the ones actually responsible for it?”

  “Well, that’s not my problem,” Anne said. “Carl only made me write that letter because that’s what he was told to do.”

  “By whom?” I asked Carl. I didn’t like the idea that there was some secret cabal of spirits and that I was on their radar. Especially if they were capable of murder.
/>
  Carl actually backed away a couple of paces. “That’s not for me to say,” he said.

  “I have ways that will make you talk,” I said. “But I’d rather not use them.”

  “Not if you can’t find me,” he said and disappeared through a wall.

  Charles quickly followed after Carl and disappeared out of sight as well.

  “Do you want me to follow them?” Rebecca asked.

  “No, it’s fine,” I said. I turned to Anne. “I’ll see myself out. Thank you for being so forthcoming.”

  “They’re your problem now, young lady,” she said. “Good luck. You will need it.”

  “I don’t know what to say,” Kane said when we were out of that house.

  I looked around but couldn’t spot either Charles or Carl anywhere.

  “I hope Charles doesn’t get into too much trouble,” I said to Rebecca.

  “I offered to follow them,” she said and shrugged.

  I turned to Kane. “I might be in over my head. I thought we were dealing with a simple murder. But now a cabal of spirits working behind the scenes might be involved.”

  “I gotta admit,” Kane said, “but that sounds a bit far-fetched, even for you. Are you sure Anne and her husband weren’t lying to you to cover up a murder? Maybe Anne poisoned Charles’ tea or something.”

  “Well, if she did, it’ll hopefully show up on the autopsy report. Should I call the police station and tell them to test for any poisons they can?”

  “Hmm, I think it would be better if that request came from Henry,” Kane said.

  “You’ve got a point. But what should I do in the meantime? It’s not exactly like I have any clues to follow. You’re a private investigator. Got any ideas for me?”

  “Maybe interview a few mediums?” Kane offered. “Maybe they’ve heard of these mysterious spirits?”

  “That’s actually a good idea,” I said to Kane.

  “You say that like it’s a surprise that I would ever have a good idea. That hurts.”

  “Oh, Kane. Just shut up and drive while I look for any mediums in our immediate vicinity.”

  Rebecca got in the back seat while I googled mediums and the town name on my phone. Not surprisingly, a lot of names came up.