by C. D. Gorri
Not her ghosts.
Not her problem.
She could just give Vie the thumbs up and let her have her weekend fun. Maybe the kitchen would have something she could eat to tide her over until tomorrow. No way did she actually want to encourage more ghostly hangers on and that’s what she’d get if she didn’t isolate in a quick minute.
Weaving through the maze of partygoers, she found herself in the kitchen. Trying to get out of the way of the small army of cooks, she sidled toward the back door and stepped outside to catch her breath.
In the farther side of the yard, workers finalized touches on a portable dance floor, while others placed tiki torches and a whole lot of chairs. Someone was also taping something on the floor. No doubt, it was a scene from one of the whodunit moments of the weekend.
The door shut and as the silence descended, she heard voices coming from the recesses of the yard. Night had fallen, so it was hard to see against the tiki lights, but she pressed herself into the shadows so she didn’t disturb whoever was there in case she shouldn’t be outside.
“I can’t believe we still didn’t find anything.” The clunk of something metal hit the ground. “Damned fools were supposed to have buried it in the family cemetery.”
“We didn’t come all the way out here to work for these jerks for nothing. I know the money’s here.”
Money? What?
“Stupid ghosts. We find that deed and it’s the end of the line for them. Can’t play pranks if there’s no house to haunt, can they?”
Stifling a giggle, she sobered up as the man’s words resonated.
Was he threatening to light the place on fire?
Oh God.
She thought back to what she’d read in the folder about the property and what happened to the people who lived here originally.
Murder.
The woman at the tea house told her the place had been owned by Lowell’s family. They had been murdered, but at the time no one had been charged with the crime.
What were they looking for?
She supposed they could have been playacting for the crowd, but if that was the case, where were the people to witness them stomping out of the woods with shovels?
No. This wasn’t part of the weekend’s planned activities. She was sure of it.
Zoe blinked, trying to get smaller and shrink deeper into the shadows as the voices drew nearer.
“Come on. We’ll try again after they go to bed. We better get in there and fraternize with the guests. They’ll be wondering where we were.”
Her heart beat faster and she rubbed at her arms to stifle the chill that had come over her. They weren’t acting at all.
Ghostly children ran by but she paid them no mind. They weren’t focused on her, so she didn’t want to draw attention to herself.
Where would the men draw the line in their quest for what they were searching for?
And just how much money or whatever it was, were they talking about?
Zoe nibbled on her lip, torn between running inside and dragging Vie into what she’d just learned or calling Laurel. Laurel always knew what to do.
The thunk of another door shutting below the stairs leading to the kitchen made her catch her breath, then release it.
As she pushed off from the wall, she caught another otherworldly glow out of the corner of her eye. It was coming from the back of the yard near the tree line.
“Who’s there?”
Gripping the stair railing as the figure drew closer, she almost tripped on her own feet as soon as her eyes made sense of what they were seeing.
Chapter Five
Lowell was pissed. He’d been traipsing around the woods and his family’s boneyard for hours, trying to foil the two men attempting to steal his heritage. A missing shovel, a shove into an open grave…anything to make it harder on the idiots from reaching their goal. And it was fucking exhausting.
At first, he wasn’t certain about the intent of the new usurpers, but until they hired these two, it had only been refurbishing, party planning and nothing more.
But these two were a whole different kettle of fish.
And it smelled rotten.
“Looks like they done gave up. At least for now.” Diesel wiped a hand across his ghostly brow. “If’n it was me, I’d just run them over with the Bentley. That would fix 'em.”
“It would.” He couldn’t deny that. But then they’d have more ghosts to deal with, and these two wouldn’t be friendlies. Not to mention the fact that it was a huge strain on his faculties to interact with the living in such a way. A few scares here and there…now that was one thing. Driving a car? That would knock him out for days and he didn’t have that kind of time.
There was an urgency he hadn’t felt since the early days and he didn’t like it one bit. Change was in the wind, and he wanted a voice in what happened to him and the people, or rather, ghosts, in his care.
“You best get back. See what’s happening with the guests.”
“What about you?” Lowell glanced over at Diesel, where he sat perched on his grave.
“I’ll stay here awhile. It’s quiet.”
He sighed. “Don’t be too long. We’ve got some haunting to do. Besides, Mrs. Pennyweather will be looking for you.”
The older man harrumphed and twisted his mustache.
“Tell the old battle axe I’ll be on my way when I’ve a mind to. Besides, McChesney is probably at her beck and call, anyways.”
Lowell suppressed a chuckle. The two sparred like an old married couple. If only they would actually admit they cared about each other.
The other man settled in, pondering the stillness of the cemetery. Lowell envied him. He would have rather stayed but something was niggling at him.
Why a murder mystery weekend?
And of all times, why now?
They couldn’t see them, only the pranks and haunts he and the others manifested, so they might not have a clue who was in the house at all.
If they had any idea, the fixer upper duo would have probably run screaming. Three kids from the sanitarium days shuttled past him, chasing a woman in a nurse’s uniform. And another couple of girls streaked by, in a rush to some unknown bit of mischief.
“Be careful, now.”
They giggled and continued on, just as naughty dead as they were alive.
Lowell chortled and started walking. Some things never changed. He could make out the lights of the house through the trees, and saw one of the guests come outside as the two gravediggers approached the house. He sped up, concerned that the woman would come to harm if they saw her there in the shadows, but they were too interested in their own conversation to give her any mind.
But then he got closer and his footsteps wavered. Awareness landed a cold punch to his gut.
“Zoe,” he whispered. She looked even lovelier than she had at the tea house. He hadn’t been able to resist talking to her then, and now just the chance of seeing her once again had the blood rushing through his spectral veins.
No other woman had ever captivated him like she had. Just a touch made him feel like he had come home, but the feeling of comfort was washed away by a creeping dread. Those men were after something and he didn’t want her anywhere nearby when things got ugly.
What in the world was she doing here?
Chapter Six
It couldn’t be him. Could it? Zoe wrapped her fingers around the railing and blinked.
“Lowell?” Her feet moved, almost of their own volition. Knees wobbling, she was down the stairs and three steps into the lawn before she knew what she was doing.
He was here.
Like…in front of her and not just a figment of her imagination.
How many nights since she’d seen him had she dreamt about his sexy smile or the way it felt to rest her head on his shoulder?
It had only been a blink in time, but the connection she felt with him was something that was hard wired, and try as she might, she couldn’t shake it. And n
ow here he was. She didn’t believe in coincidences.
He was just as sexy now as he’d been the night at the tea house and all she wanted to do was bury herself in his arms. From the moment they’d kissed, she’d found a kindred spirit in him, and the chance to see him again was a burst of adrenaline to her already jolted system.
She had to tell him what she heard, before anyone was hurt. More than anyone, she knew that ghosts were grounded to more than just a place. It was also a moment in time that kept them there. A purpose. An energy.
But what happened when the center of that energy was destroyed?
Could he and any of the other spirits she’d seen here be displaced forever?
The thought gave her a distinct chill.
No.
She couldn’t let that happen.
He was a ghost. She had to remember that. But even still, she couldn’t resist talking to him, at least one more time.
Lowell strode closer, his form more transparent than when she first saw him at the tearoom, but there was no mistaking it.
It was him.
Tall and imposing, he moved across the lawn like he owned the place, and he wasn’t entirely glad to see her.
She swallowed and had to force herself not to take a step back.
“Zoe. What are you doing here?”
“I should be asking you the same thing. Why didn’t you tell me you were a ghost?” she demanded, staring up into his startling blue eyes.
Anger and hurt alternated, but she had to admit she was thrilled to see him again.
He sighed, running his hand through his hair. “It’s a long story.”
“I’ve got time.”
The sound of a door opening startled them both.
Lowell’s eyes widened and he shook his head. “No. You don’t. Not if they see you out here.”
“But…” He led her out of sight as two voices carried on the night air.
“That woman from the magazine brought a damned ghost hunter.”
They were…they were talking about her!
“Barney said she came out this way,” a rough voice growled. “I’m not losing my fortune to some twit who talks to dead people. If anything, we use her to find what we’re looking for.”
A chill went through Zoe.
Who were these men?
“Lowell?”
He shook his head and urged her back around the house with a movement of his head.
“Come on. I need to get you back inside. It’s not safe for you out here.”
“What are they looking for?”
But even as she asked the question, she remembered the file on the house.
A missing deed.
A supposed treasure.
And several murders…
There had to be something of great value for them to go to that much trouble.
“Wait. Lowell?” She stopped, her hand covering her mouth in horror. “You. This is your house? But…”
A crunch of pine straw alerted them that they were not alone.
“Come on.” He moved around the front of the house and urged her up the stairs.
“Boss.” The phantasmagoric shape of an older man drifted into view, startling her as she climbed onto the porch.
“What did you find out?” Lowell frowned.
“They’re here to work the event. That’s all. But they’ve been digging around the graveyard and poking around the attic. Youngsters saw them in the trunks and such. Mind, I think they’ll hit the basement next.”
Lowell swore. “Mrs. Pennyweather won’t like that.”
“Who’s the girl?”
Zoe cleared her throat. “I’m Zoe. Who are you?”
He gave her an appraising look. “McChesney, ma’am. At your service. Nice to speak with one of the living.”
Despite herself, Zoe smiled.
“They know she can hear us,” Lowell told the other man.
“Do they now?” He craftily rubbed his chin, looking out into the night. “Before I took this job, I was a soldier in the war.”
“Which war?”
“Now, girlie, it ain’t polite to ask a feller his age.” The ghost winked and she let out a nervous giggle.
“If we don’t do something about these men, there’s a real danger someone is going to get killed.”
Zoe swallowed. “And that someone is going to be me if they think I know the location of whatever it is they’re searching for.”
“No one knows it.” McChesney shrugged. “Lowell never told none of us.”
“And they killed you for it.” The retort popped out before she could stop herself and both men stared at her like she’d just run stark naked across the yard.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have…” Heat slid up Zoe’s face.
“Mr. McChesney. Lowell. Pardon me, sir.” A twenty something male orderly apparated up through the lawn.
“Geoff. What’s going on?”
“They’re about to go down to the cellar. Most of the guests are asleep, but they know she isn’t in her room.”
“Oh, God.” Zoe gulped. This was supposed to be a weekend retreat, not a fight for her life.
“We have to protect her.” The expression on Lowell’s face turned dark and he motioned for Geoff to go.
“How?”
“Protect who?” Randall appeared next to her, draping his arm around her shoulders like she could feel it. “And who were those men who just barged into our room?”
Lowell’s eyebrows shot up. “What?”
“Lowell, this is Randall, my resident pain in the ass. Randall, this is…”
“Wait. Lowell? As in the guy you’ve been mooning over since the Ghost Walk?” Randall crowed, his grin getting wider with each second.
“Shut up!”
“Oh my God!” He turned to Lowell and grabbed him by the upper arm. “Do soooomething about this girl. Kiss her again and put her out of her misery. All she does is read those horrid romance novels, moon about you, and watch hideous romantic comedies on Netflix. It’s barbaric.”
“Netflix?”
“Never mind,” Zoe bit out. “We kind of have a problem.”
“Oh, now what? I mean, other than those men pawing through your underwear. I mean, really. Did you have to bring granny panties to a getaway weekend. I can’t unsee that, you know.”
“Randall!” Zoe shrieked, completely forgetting where they were and the fact that they were supposed to be hiding.
“They also saw Vie’s file on the house.”
Shit.
Shit.
Double shit.
“Now you done it, girlie,” McChesney groaned. “They’ll be coming for you now for sure.”
“Oh no!” Tears prickled at her eyes. “I gave us away. I’m sorry.”
“It’s not us I’m worried about.” Lowell ran his fingers down the side of her face and for a moment, she could almost feel him.
She sucked in a breath. “I’m worried about all of us. If they don’t get what they want, they’re threatening to burn the place down just to spite you.”
“Did someone get their undies in a twist because the place isn’t haunted enough? I mean, really. It’s crawling with ghosts. Those two urchins are still in your bathtub. Even the potted plants have eyes. It’s creepy. No offense.” Randall snorted.
“None taken.”
“Mr. Mercer?” Geoff appeared once again.
Randall turned his attention to the orderly. “Wooo. Who are you?”
Geoff cleared his throat.
“The lad is right,” McChesney offered. “We need to get the lassie out of sight until we can plan our next move.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Well, you can’t go to your room. They’ll find you in no time.”
“There you are!” A rotund woman in a housekeeper’s austere dress appeared before the group with a pop.
“Oh!” Zoe gasped, stepping into Lowell’s arms. This time, a whisper of sensation sped across her skin
.
Damn, but he felt more real every time she got close enough to touch him.
“It’s almost time. The veil is getting thinner.”
“So it is.” Lowell grinned. “Mrs. Pennyweather, I could kiss you.”
A pink tinge colored her round cheeks. “Oh. Now I don’t think your lady friend would like that very much.”
“On the contrary, my dear. I think you’ve given us the solution to our problem,” McChesney declared.
“What did the daft old cow say now?” A rangy man with greasy hands and a mechanic’s uniform wandered from out of the gloom.
“Daft cow? I’ll give you a cow, you irritable old badger!” Mrs. Pennyweather closed her chubby hands into fists and narrowed her eyes.
“Can we come back to that later? As much fun as it would be to watch her upend his sorry arse, I believe we have a more pressing issue.” McChesney sighed, his attention turning toward the house.
“He’s right. They both are. No wonder I can almost feel you.” Zoe couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought of it before.
Halloween was only a few minutes away. Technically. The barrier between the living and the dead was paper thin for her on a good day…but this…this was something else.
“Do you need me to move something for you? If they’re searching for it, I can help hide whatever it is.”
“No, lass. That’s what they’re hoping for.” McChesney walked down the front porch steps and out into the yard. “The rest of the guests are sleeping. Best turn our assets into their liabilities.”
Lowell grimaced. “It’s worked before. But never this close to being flesh.”
“Exactly.”
Zoe wasn’t sure what they were talking about, but she was fairly sure the men who were after them weren’t going to be happy about it.
Chapter Seven
Time edged closer to the veil slipping and touching her was all he could think about. What it didn’t explain is how she reacted to him when he was in the tea house the other night. Like, she felt him beneath her hands.
And how he could feel her.
They were on entirely different planes.