The Guest is a Goner

by Carly Winter

  “Thanks!” I said, sticking out my tongue out at Ruby when he turned his back to me.

  Relief swept through me as we exited the building with my ghost trailing behind us, humming a tune I didn't recognize.

  Canyon Coffee was just a few doors down and Adam held the door open for me. I inhaled deeply as the smells of coffee, sugar, and cinnamon engulfed us. Overstuffed leather couches and magazine racks littered the room, the walls had been painted in warm colors, and a large fireplace sat in the middle of the room. The place reminded me of a cozy living room; it was one of my favorite stores, especially in the winter months.

  We waited in line and once we got up to the counter, Ruby said, “I know I'm not supposed to say anything to you, but if you don't get one of those strawberry custard doodads, you are foolish.”

  I glanced over at the display case and my mouth began to water. Usually, I avoided looking in there as I didn't want to tempt myself. Yet, one of those strawberry custard doodads did look delicious. The calories alone would mean I probably couldn't eat the rest of the day.

  “Live a little bit,” Ruby said. “I can see you want it. One isn’t going to kill you or put you up a pant size.”

  Before I knew it, I had ordered the treat and a coffee, then practically salivated all over it as we walked over to a couch and sat down. The first bite caused me to groan and quickly take a second.

  Adam burst out laughing. “I wish I'd gotten one of those now.”

  “It's delicious,” I said, covering my mouth with my fingers. “I haven't had any sugar in months.”

  “Uh-oh. Between the caffeine and the sugar, are we going to have to scrape you off the ceiling?”

  “Let's hope not,” I replied, then took a sip of coffee.

  We sat in silence for a few moments as I scarfed down my strawberry delectable that I swore was made by angels and dropped down from the heavens. I wasn't sure how to bring up the murder, but thankfully, Adam did.

  “So, what do you want to know?” he asked. “I'll tell you what I can.”

  I'd actually given his question a lot of thought and it frightened me that someone could have been in my house without me knowing it. “I know the sheriff said he thought Mr. Gonzalez was poisoned. I was wondering how that happened.”

  Adam furrowed his brow. “Well, he ingested something.”

  “So there weren't any needle marks or anything like that?”

  It didn't seem a struggle had taken place in the bedroom where he'd died. Nothing had been out of place, but I needed to be sure.

  “No. We think the poison was slipped into the smoothie cup. Why do you want to know?”

  “I was scared that someone had come into my house while I slept and poisoned him. I imagine if that were the case, the room would have been trashed from a fight, because who's going to sit around and allow someone to stick a needle in them?”

  “Ah, I see,” Adam said. “Well, we don't know who put the poison into his cup. There are few times it could have happened after he arrived in town.”

  From what I knew, it could have been during his visit to the smoothie shop, his altercation with Stan, or when he’d checked in with Darla. Of course, the sheriff's office had made it clear they suspected me as well since I‘d been alone in the house with him and had lied, thanks to Ruby.

  Speaking of which...

  I glanced around the immediate area to find her hovering over an older woman's shoulder on the next couch reading the paper. “Lady, you read slower than a blind slug,” she muttered as she waited for the woman to flip the page.

  Turning back to Adam, I met his gaze. “Am I still a suspect?”

  Jeez, he had prettiest, blue eyes. So warm.

  “The sheriff thinks so, but I don't,” he replied with a shrug. “If I did, I wouldn't be here.”

  That was a relief. At least I had one cop on my side. “I'm not guilty.”

  “I know. You don't have the makeup of a killer, unless you're some type of psychopath, which I don't think you are.”

  Tears actually welled in my eyes as I glanced down at my coffee cup. Perhaps I was a psychopath, but I'd never admit it. No one else I knew talked to ghosts. “Thank you. I'm actually nervous being at the house alone.”

  “Because of your ghosts?”

  I glanced over at Ruby and shook my head. “No. It just makes me scared to think someone could have come in while I was sleeping and killed Mr. Gonzalez. But you've helped to put my mind at ease. I appreciate it.”

  My phone rang and both of us looked at it. Jumping Jack's Jeep Tours came up on the screen. The only reason he'd be calling was to either tell me he had sent someone over to stay with me, or he needed to cancel our ride in the afternoon. “I need to take this.”

  “Sure. Go ahead.”

  I picked up my phone. “Hi, Jack.”

  “Hey. Listen, I need to reschedule our ride. I had another group come in for a tour.”

  “Of course.” I certainly wasn't going to be upset about him filling his time with money-making clients. “You let me know when.”

  “Sounds good. Probably tomorrow. I'll talk to you later.”

  I hung up and smiled at Adam as I set down my phone.

  “Are you two dating?” he asked. His question caught me off guard and I could only stare at him a moment. His cheeks reddened slightly, and he suddenly became even cuter. “Sorry, I don't mean to pry.”

  “No, I'm not dating Jack,” I blurted, finally able to find my voice. “We're friends. That's it.”

  Adam nodded, then rose to his feet. “I better get back to work. But I was wondering if you’d be interested in maybe going out with me one day?”

  I also stood and nodded, trying to play it cool when really I was a jumbling mess of nerves and excitement. “I'd like that,” I said softly.

  “Great,” he said, smiling like I’d just made his morning. “Once this investigation is put to bed, I'll give you a call.”

  As he walked out the door, Ruby stared at me and shook her head. “Bernie, you don't date cops!”

  “Mind your own business,” I muttered.

  “Excuse me?” The older woman sitting on the couch said, glaring at me over her glasses. “What did you say?”

  “Sorry. Nothing. Just talking to myself.”

  Dang Ruby. I had to stop having conversations with her when others were around.

  But, holy moly... Adam wanted to date me?

  In the past, after Jack had introduced us, we'd said hello a few times in passing around town and ran into each other on the hiking trails. I'd always put my business first and really didn't want to date, but with Adam, I may just change my mind.

  My outlook on life would have drastically improved... if I didn't have a murderer hanging around my peripheral vision.

  Chapter 13

  The next morning, I stood on the second floor of my house and stared out the window at the end of the hallway at the oh, so important car that someone didn't want me to go near which was still parked in my back lot. Why had they left it? Why didn’t they come and get it? And more importantly, why hadn’t the police taken it away? They obviously didn’t know about it, and I couldn’t tell them. My caller had made it clear if I did, I’d die.

  All I wanted was for the darn car to disappear. My stomach twisted with unease and my chest actually ached from my nervousness. I'd been caught up in something I didn't understand and I hated the sudden turn my life had taken into chaos and the unknown.

  I preferred my life orderly and predictable. Things had changed so dramatically after being hit by lightning. I could now see my ghost. I'd grown somewhat accustomed to having her around, but when I thought about it, I wanted to run screaming from the building. Her being the exact opposite of me in personality also wore on my nerves. I loved her, but if I were being honest, she only added to my anxiety. Now I was also stuck in the middle of a murder investigation and I had to find a way out.

  Speaking of orderly, my house was anything but. Although I had tried to i
gnore it for the most part and relax a little, I simply couldn’t. I hated my things in disarray. I turned back to the guestrooms, deciding it was time to clean up the mess the police had left. Dismissing it any longer wasn’t an option.

  “Honey, you really need to take a chill pill,” Ruby said as she appeared at the top of the stairs. Having a ghost materializing at the end of the hallway should absolutely freak me out, but it didn't. “The stress is pouring off you like a thick sludge. You're going to get wrinkles before your time.”

  I studied her features as I approached. Ruby had never had many wrinkles, her face always soft and smooth, except for the laugh lines that pinched as she smiled at me. I, on the other hand, possessed a worry crease between my brows that never seemed to dissipate, no matter how many creams and treatments I slathered on. “I'll feel better once the house is in order.”

  Ruby reached her hand out to me, and we both watched the ghostly fingers brush right through my arm as a chill traveled from my wrist and down my spine. “Honey, there's more to life than a clean house.”

  “I know that,” I said gently as tears of helplessness welled in my eyes. I wanted to be like her and forget it all, but I couldn't. “Right now, it's the only thing I can control, so I'd appreciate you allowing me some space to do what I need to in order to feel slightly better about everything instead of lecturing me on how uptight I am.”

  Her mouth opened in surprise, as if she wanted to say something. Finally, she just grinned. “Of course. But don't forget about our ATV ride this afternoon!” She faded away.

  I spent the next few hours cleaning up the mess the cops had made, except for the room where Mr. Gonzalez had died. With most of my house finally in order, I felt much better about my life in general. Ruby had always insisted I had OCD—even when I was younger—which had also occurred to me more than a few times in my adult life. I hated disorganization and silly things like the towels not being stacked with the folds facing outward, half-filled salt and pepper shakers, or toilet paper rolls that fed from underneath instead of the top.

  I also hung out my closed sign. Until I knew exactly what had happened in my house and who was responsible, I didn't want strangers coming and going.

  Standing out in the hallway by the death room, as Ruby had called it, I stared at the closed door. Even though I lived with the dead, going into the bedroom where Mr. Gonzalez had died scared me just a bit. It shouldn't, but it did. I slept in the very room where Ruby had died and I never gave it a second thought. Probably because I never believed in ghosts before moving in.

  “He's not there,” Ruby said. “He's gone to the other side. I already told you that. Lucky son of a—”

  I pushed open the door half expecting Ruby to be wrong and for me to come face-to-face with a very angry spirit. If I had died from drinking a smoothie, I'd be very upset. However, I was met with another mess the cops had left and a blast of stale air.

  They'd really done a number on the white and yellow room. Every single drawer had been pulled out and laid on the floor, the bed and nightstand shoved from the wall.

  “You shouldn't move those by yourself,” Ruby said. “You'll throw your back out. You should ask Jack to come help you.”

  I was thinking more along the lines of Adam, but she'd made it very clear she didn't approve of that potential relationship. “If I can't do it on my own, I'll call someone.”

  Satisfaction roiled through me when I finally got the bad back against the wall after a long struggle. Again, it was something I could control, and even though I had a line of sweat across my brow and a few pulled muscles in my back, I'd powered through and situated the furniture where it was supposed to be. A definite win in my day.

  After everything was in its place and I'd made the bed, I stepped back into the hallway and shut the door.

  “Is it time yet?” Ruby asked, appearing right next to me.

  With a yelp, I jumped backward and hit my arm against the wall. “Ow!” I yelled, rubbing my elbow. “Don't sneak up on me like that!”

  Ruby chuckled and shook her head. “Okay, I'll stop it. Just so you know, you're stealing one of the few joys I have left. Being dead is an absolute bummer.”

  I pulled out my phone and glanced at the clock. Jack hadn't called, so I assumed our scheduled ride was still on. Frankly, I'd rather have skipped it, but I'd promised Ruby and didn't want to disappoint her. “Yes, it's time,” I muttered. “Let's go. And remember to please be quiet when we get there so I can concentrate on what he’s saying to me and not make a complete fool of myself.”

  “Woohoo!” Ruby yelled in my ear as we followed Jack through town on the ATV. He sped along a little faster than I would have liked, but slower than Ruby would have preferred. “What's wrong with you two? Crank this baby up and let's see what it’s got under the hood!”

  “How about you be quiet so I don't crash?”

  “I'll be fine if you do!”

  Shaking my head, I realized sometimes she didn't quite understand that despite my helmet, I was still made of flesh and blood and could end up a street stain, while she couldn't. “I might not be fine if I crash.”

  Not that the thought of hurting herself would have stopped her from pushing limits while alive.

  “Good point. Drive carefully. Take care of yourself, and I'll keep the old trap shut.”

  Finally.

  The wind whipped across my cheeks as we left the main road and made our way up into the hills. I fell back a little bit more to allow Jack's cloud of red dust to settle so I didn't eat dirt. As the machine rumbled beneath me and we climbed the crimson mountain, I took in the desert beauty around me.

  Towering red rocks spanned hundreds of feet up in the air. Little yellow sagebrush flowers, and beautiful Saguaro cacti stood on the sides of the trail, their bent arms seeming to wave at me. The sun shone in the blue sky above and warmed my bare arms.

  Why didn't I do this more often?

  “Hang on!” I yelled as I hit the gas. Ruby squealed in delight behind me. Glancing down, I saw her ghostly arms around my waist, yet her body reminded me of a cool pack as it rested against my back.

  “Faster, Bernie!” she yelled in my ear, and I obliged.

  I noted a place in the trail up ahead where I could overtake Jack, and I floored it. We flew over bumps in the terrain and I struggled to keep the ATV under my power, yet, I didn't want to slow down.

  “Eat her dust, loser!” Ruby yelled as we passed Jack and headed up the steep hill.

  When we reached the place where we could go either right or left, I pulled over and waited.

  “You're crazy!” Jack said with a chuckle, coming to a stop beside me. “I thought you were going to crash!”

  He wasn't the only one. I was one jerk of the handlebars from completely losing control and rolling down the hill in a mess of flesh and metal. And it had felt great. “Where to now?”

  “I thought we'd head to the right,” Jack said. “There's a really pretty view of town, and someone just cut the trail.”

  “Doesn't the parks department have to do that?” Ruby asked. “Not that I'm up on all park rules, but I thought it was their job.”

  “Good question,” I said.

  Jack stared at me, his brow furrowed in confusion. “I... I didn't ask you anything.”

  Dang it!

  “Let's head to the right like you suggested,” I said, ignoring his comment. Maybe if I pretended everything was fine and I didn't sound like a crazy person, he wouldn't question me about my other conversation.

  Jack nodded and turned right. I followed at a distance, enjoying the vast desert scenery below us. Three years ago, when I'd discovered Ruby had willed me her house, I hadn’t been certain I wanted to move from Louisiana to Arizona. I'd be leaving my family and starting fresh. That both scared and thrilled me, so I had decided to go west and stay for a month to get a feel for the town and area. Of course, I had great memories of being with Ruby during the summers I had stayed with her, but I had no doubt things
would be different without her.

  At first I had missed her so badly, I’d simply walked around the house and cried. But slowly, I began to meet people, really see the area from an adults' point of view, and fell in love with the desert, towering red rocks, and outdoor activities. Sedona quickly became my home.

  “It's so pretty, isn't it?” Ruby said. “I've missed this so much.”

  “I don't come out here often enough,” I replied as I came to a halt and turned off the engine, wanting to take in the view just for a few moments before catching up to Jack again. “It's so relaxing.”

  “You don't do anything, honey,” Ruby said. “You're either cleaning up after a guest, working on the marketing for the next one, or fretting over something else. You should be proud of what you've built, but your life is passing you by. You need moments like this... moments that take your breath away.”

  A hawk screeched from above and the rumble of Jack's motor up ahead slowly faded. A light breeze caressed my cheeks. The stillness and quiet of the desert seemed unworldly and almost deafening.

  Of course, she was right.

  I stared at the vast expanse for another moment, then started the engine. The hum broke the silence and my moment of reflection. Perhaps I did need to save up and get my own ATV. I loved being out in the desert and riding until my heart raced.

  When I parked behind Jack, I heard him curse as he bent over. I cut my motor and walked over to him.

  “I hate when people leave their garbage around like this,” he said, picking up a Sarah's Smoothie cup. “It really makes me mad.”

  Glancing around, I realized we'd literally driven to the end of a ledge. Ruby walked past me to the edge and then turned to me.

  “Hey, Bernie!” she called. “Watch this!”

  I screamed as she jumped.

  Chapter 14

  “What?! What's wrong?” Jack yelled as he glanced around, his eyes wide in fright.

  Ruby appeared next to me in a fit of giggles as I dropped to my knees. “I'm dead, girl,” she said. “And tethered to you. Remember? I'm not going anywhere.”