The Guest is a Goner

by Carly Winter

  Adam nodded, as if everything I was saying made perfect sense.

  “Then you started asking questions about how I found him. Ruby had me tell the story about the guest wanting me to wake him from the nap, but I wasn't home when he arrived. Darla Darling checked him in and I never saw him alive. I told the sheriff about that.”

  “Huh. Okay.”

  “But it gets worse,” I said, taking a long sip of my coffee. “Much worse.”

  “Go on.”

  “Well, I realized I was a suspect and decided to solve the case. I told you all of this, but Stan from As the Pins Drop got into a fight with Gonzalez about his driving. Before Mr. Gonzalez checked in, he went to Sarah's Sensational Smoothies, and the poison was in the cup. Then this couple showed up at my house... the Thompsons. They lied to me about everything and we overheard them in the grocery store saying they were going to pick up the package and leave town.”

  “What package?”

  “I'm getting to that.”

  “Okay, go on.”

  I took a deep breath and tried to order my thoughts. It was pointless. I just needed to talk whether I made sense or not. “I got a phone call that said I needed to stay away from the car parked out in back of my house. It's Mr. Gonzalez’s'.”

  “No, we recovered his vehicle.”

  I shook my head. “No, you didn't. Someone besides me lied to you. His car is parked the back lot right next to mine. Ruby told me where his car was, and I went out to look at it, thinking there may be something in it that would tell us why he was murdered. While I was out there, I got this strange call... it was a mechanical voice telling me to stay away from it. Someone was watching me.”

  “Did you look inside?”

  “No. I ran back into the house.”

  “Why didn't you call the police?”

  “They told me if I did, I'd end up like Mr. Gonzalez.”

  Adam ran a hand through his silky blond hair, and I could see his aggravation growing.

  “So, I was thinking that the package the Thompsons referred to was the car, or something in the car.” I continued. “But to backtrack for a second, when I went out for a ride with Jack, he took me to this place way up in the mountains, an overlook on a cliff off a trail that had just been cut. I could see my house. It was the perfect spot for someone to watch me from, and there was garbage up there, as well as an outline of someone lying in the dirt.”

  “You think someone was watching your house from the ledge?”

  “It's a possibility,” I said with a shrug. “I also wondered if Jack had something to do with this whole mess. Did he take me up there to give me a warning that people were observing my every movement at home? Or was it a coincidence?”

  “Did he say anything to make you think one way or the other?”

  I shook my head. “No. But when I realized I could see my house, I got really scared. It may have been my imagination, though.”

  “Okay. Wow, Bernie.”

  “I'm not crazy,” I said. “You have to believe me.”

  “Is there anything else?”

  I noted he didn't agree or disagree with my proclamation, but I had to convince him I had a full set of marbles.

  “Yes. Last night I took Ruby out to the car. She can move through things like doors and walls. She went inside it and didn't see anything except some garbage, but then someone—a man—showed up and chased me into the desert. We went out in the middle of the night, so someone was watching me. They knew I was out by the car.”

  “Chased you?”

  “Well, I'm not sure if he actually ran after me, but he came around to the back lot and stood between the cars and the house, blocking me from heading inside. I ran.”

  “Did you get a look at him?”

  “No,” I said, picking up my coffee cup. “It was dark.”

  “Is that why your face and hands are scratched up?”

  “Yes. I was terrified and running for my life.”

  Well, I thought I was. I didn't even know if my supposed attacker had tried to give chase, or if he just wanted to scare me.

  I couldn't meet Adam's gaze as I sipped my java. Please don't think I'm nuts. Please help me.

  “So, Bernie, who do you think is behind all this?”

  “I don't know, Adam. Darla checked him in. Stan argued with him. Sarah poured him the smoothie that had the poison. Jack brought me up to the outlook over my house, which could mean nothing, or it could have been a warning. The Thompsons lied about everything and were talking about 'the package.' It could be any of them, or someone I'm not even aware of.”

  “Do you think Darla's involved?”

  “At first I didn't, but now I'm not sure. She was so mad at me when I gave her name to the police, and now she's furious because she thinks I'm trying to steal Jack away from her. The two aren't related in any way that I can see, but she's not talking to me. Maybe she and Jack are in this together somehow?”

  I felt his stare on me and I shifted in my seat. All I wanted was for someone to believe me, to help me untangle myself from this mess.

  “Okay, let's go,” Adam said, getting to his feet.

  Oh, heck. Was he arresting me?

  “W-where are we going?”

  “We're heading to the scene of the crime,” he replied, sticking out his hand. “Back to your house.”

  I placed my palm in his and he pulled me off the couch, then reached for his strawberry treat. “I'll eat this on the way.”

  “What do you want to do at the house?” I asked when we were out on the sidewalk.

  “Well, first, I want to meet Ruby.”

  “You believe me?” I asked, tears welling in my eyes. “That she exists?”

  Adam shrugged and took a bite of the pastry. “I don't know. I remember when I was there when you found Mr. Gonzalez, there was something strange going on. Your house felt... different somehow.”

  “That's her!” I said. “When she's near you, it smells like marijuana and lavender!”

  Adam chuckled and shook his head. “I had to arrest her once for marijuana possession. She was out at Cathedral Rock smoking and reading a book.”

  “That sounds like something she would do.”

  We continued on our way in comfortable silence. I liked being with Adam, and for the first time since the killing, I felt somewhat safe.

  My heart raced as we walked up the pavement to my front door. With shaky hands, I inserted the key and the panel swung open. Taking a deep breath, I walked inside.

  I waited for Ruby to make an appearance, but the house remained oddly quiet. Even Elvira didn't show herself.

  “Ruby?” I called, setting down my keys. “Can you come out, please?”

  Adam slowly strolled around the living room, his arms crossed over his chest as his eyes darted from the ceiling to every corner of the room.

  Ruby came rushing down the stairs, the purple mumu swirling around her legs. “Oh, thank goodness!” she yelled. “We have to get out of here, Bernie!”

  “What's going on?” I asked, my voice dropping to almost a whisper as fear clenched my throat.

  “Up there!” Ruby shouted, pointing to the second floor. “There's a man hiding upstairs!”

  Chapter 19

  I slowly backed up toward the front door, my heart thundering, my hands shaking. Someone was in my house?

  “What's going on?” Adam said, hurrying over to me. “What happened?”

  “Ruby says there's a man upstairs,” I whispered.

  Adam's eyes widened as he unclipped his gun safety on the holster. “Who is it?”

  I turned to Ruby, who now stood next to me.

  “I don't know. He's got a ski mask on,” she said. “I tried to scare him, but every time I rushed him, he started sneezing. My guess is he's allergic to lavender. He's not going anywhere.”

  “She says he's got a ski mask on,” I said. “She can't identify him.”

  “What room is he in?” Adam asked, his gaze focused on the staircas
e.

  “First door on the right,” Ruby replied. “The room where Gonzalez died.”

  I repeated Ruby's answer, and Adam nodded.

  “How did he get in?” I whispered.

  “Through the back door,” Ruby said. “He broke the window, turned the knob, and waltzed right in.”

  Adam glanced at me expectantly, and I parroted Ruby once again.

  “Bernie, I'm going to call for backup, which means there’ll be at least a half-dozen cops here again,” he said. “Then, I'm going to go upstairs and take down that guy. I don't want to shoot him, but I will. Chances are someone is going to be hurt. So if this is some type of prank, you need to tell me right now.”

  “It's not,” I said, tears welling in my eyes as I wrung my hands. “I swear to you, I'm not crazy and I have no idea who is up there.”

  He studied me a moment, then nodded. “You need to wait outside,” he whispered as he opened the front door. “Head out into the street. In fact, get away from the building. There's only one reason why someone would be in your house, and that's to hold up their promise of killing you.”

  “Oh, heavens,” Ruby yelled, throwing her hands up in the air. “If I weren't dead, I'd be having a coronary right now!”

  “Not so fast,” a deep voice said from the top of the stairs. The figure, dressed in black from head to toe, was pointing a gun at us. His voice sounded unnatural, as if he were trying to disguise it. “Nobody leaves.”

  I stared at him as he strode down the staircase, both terrified for my life and horrified I didn't recognize him. Who was it?

  Three men had been on my list of suspects: Jack, Stan, and Bob Thompson. Unfortunately, all were built similarly and my intruder wasn't speaking in his normal voice. Being covered head-to-toe in black didn't allow for me to notice any distinct features.

  Adam's hand inched slowly down to his gun and rested on the handle. “Put down the weapon,” he ordered, his voice strong. “I don't want to hurt you.”

  “You won't hurt me,” the attacker said. “So, I'm going to explain exactly what's going to happen.”

  “Put. Down. Your. Weapon,” Adam said again, his voice having taken a deadly tone. “I will shoot you.”

  The man raised his gun and pointed it in my direction. Ruby moved in front of me, as if her ghostly form could stop a bullet. “As I was saying, here's what's going to happen. You two are going to sit down on that couch and stay there.”

  “Don't do it!” Ruby screamed. “He'll shoot you once he gains compliance!”

  “He might shoot if we don't comply,” I muttered.

  “What did you say?” the gunman asked.

  “Nothing. Sorry. Talking to myself. I do that when I’m upset, anxious and having my life threatened.”

  His beady eyes stared at me through the small slits in the facemask. “Sit down, you annoying troll.”

  While I didn't appreciate being referred to as a troll, I hurried over to the couch and took a seat with Adam trailing right behind me.

  “Why doesn't Adam just shoot him?” Ruby said, standing face-to-face with the attacker. “Why is he sitting there like you just invited him for tea on a Sunday afternoon?”

  I glanced over at Adam, and didn't see what Ruby described at all. Beads of sweat dotted his upper lip, his breath shallow. He still had his hand on his weapon. Maybe he was waiting for the right time to make a move?

  “Put your gun and the radio on the table, copper,” the intruder said. “And no funny business, or I'll give old nosey a third eye.”

  That would be me. The nosey troll. The insults simply kept getting worse.

  Adam carefully slid both onto the table, then sat back against the cushions.

  “You have to keep him talking, Bernie,” Ruby said. “They never shoot when they're talking.”

  Geez. How many times had she been held at gunpoint?

  “If it's who I think it may be, he'll want to tell you how clever he is,” Ruby continued as she walked around him. “I wish I could grab this hood off him. I'd smash his face in and—”

  “I know who you are,” I lied. “If you're going to kill me, you might as well tell me what's in the car and why you murdered Mr. Gonzalez.”

  “Really? You think you know me? I don't believe you,” he asked.

  “It's obvious,” I said with a shrug. “I figured it out. I just need to know why you murdered him.”

  “A little situation got out of control. I think he may have been trying to steal my business.”

  Okay, who owned businesses in my suspect list? Almost everyone. Dang it!

  “That wasn't very nice of him,” I ventured. “The product can't be as good as yours.”

  He chuckled and shook his head. “That remains to be seen. Now shut up while I think of what I'm going to do with your bodies. Maybe a murder-suicide will work best here. Secret lovers or something like that.”

  I exchanged glances with Adam and noted neither of us were too keen on the idea.

  “Keep him talking! He can't talk and think at the same time!” Ruby yelled.

  “You were using the overlook to watch the car, weren't you?” I asked. “At least tell me I'm right about that.”

  “Oh, you were right,” he said, his voice deep and gruff. “It's the perfect spot to keep an eye on the car.”

  “So you saw me go out last night.”

  “I did, but not from the ledge. I was watching the house from the street. It was pure luck I walked around the back to find you.”

  What horrible timing. If I'd waited an hour, or gone out earlier, he may not have noticed. Not that it had done any good. I still wouldn't have known what was in the vehicle.

  “Why didn't you just take the car right after you killed him?” I asked. “Wouldn't that have been easier?”

  “It would have, except he didn't follow the plan. He was supposed to leave town after getting the smoothie and die on the road, but he didn't. Instead, he died here and I didn't have the keys to the car. I figured I had at least a twelve-hour window to sneak in and grab them. I didn't think you'd disturb him until it was time for him to check-out, but you found him early and called the cops.”

  Wow. I really foiled the grand-master plan without even realizing it. Well, Ruby had. I never would have barged in on Gonzalez except for Ruby mentioning he was dead.

  He lowered the gun to his side and tilted his head. “Why did you go into his room?”

  My intruder was just as confused about it as the police had been. I glanced at Adam and then at Ruby. Did I tell him about her?

  I marveled at the way he continually altered his voice, yet, I felt I knew him, which meant that my original suspect list had been correct.

  “I foiled his plot!” Ruby squealed. “It's probably a good thing, or you would have had a stranger in your house, which would have been very dangerous for you.”

  “What's in the car?” Adam asked.

  The attacker raised the gun again, this time aiming it at Adam. I shut my eyes for a moment. The thought of Adam not making it through this was so upsetting, I wanted to throw up.

  “It's none of your business, copper.”

  Something in the way he spoke resonated with me and I stared him down. After a moment, he lowered his weapon again. I reached over and squeezed Adam's hand, hoping he got the message that I was about to deliver his chance to take down the murderer. Well, if my plan worked. Honestly, I was relying on a lot of shock value and hoping I'd guessed correctly.

  “Ruby, who do you think this guy is?” I asked loudly, turning toward the front door as if I spoke to someone standing there. “I believe you have a name for me.”

  The intruder's gaze flickered from the door and back to me.

  “Ruby?” he muttered. “She's dead. What the heck is wrong with you?”

  “Yes, she is,” I said quietly. “Except, she's not. Her ghost is here. She told me she never liked you... Stan.”

  I slowly stood, praying I was correct. “In fact, she's right behind you, re
ady to make your life miserable.”

  The intruder turned around and in one swift movement, Adam jumped on the coffee table and lunged off it, landing on the gunman.

  They wrestled and Ruby stood over them cheering Adam on. “Get him, copper! Don't let this jerk win! Dang, I love a good fistfight!”

  Adam slammed the attacker's hand down on the floor and the gun skidded away. I hurried over to pick it up, then grabbed Adam's weapon and ran into the kitchen. After I hid both under the sink, I returned to the fight, ready to jump in if necessary, but thankfully, Adam had subdued him.

  And I'd been right.

  Adam pulled off the mask to reveal Stan and his bloody nose.

  As Adam cuffed him, Stan glared at me with such hatred, I wilted under his gaze and a chill of fear washed over me. But it was over. I was no longer in danger. I plopped down on the couch and sighed in relief the stress and fear oozed from me and tears tracked down my cheeks.

  “Let's hear the story from the beginning,” Adam said, helping Stan to sit upright. “Tell us everything.”

  I listened intently as the man told his tale.

  He'd been selling marijuana for years out of As the Pins Drop, and I remembered Ruby mentioning it when I visited him that day. There had been rumors someone else may be moving into town to give him some competition, and Stan had been on the lookout. He did have a driving altercation with Mr. Gonzalez on the freeway, and they'd actually pulled over and exchange words. That was when Stan smelled the drugs in the car and decided to take them in case he’d found his competitor. However, he also knew that the highway through Arizona was one drug smugglers used frequently and he couldn't leave Gonzalez alive, or he might have a cartel after him. Besides, he needed to teach Gonzalez, a horrible driver, a lesson. What better way to do that than to grab his product?

  When Gonzalez pulled into town, Stan realized he had the opportunity to throw together a plan.

  He followed him to Sarah's Sensational Smoothies, but the car was locked. Since Stan was dating Sarah, he was allowed in the back. With so many customers out front, Sarah had brought back smoothies to blend with the extra mixer. When he realized she had Jose's, he waited for her to deliver some of the completed smoothies up front and offered to help with the mixing. Then, he slipped rat poison and some of Sarah's pain medication into Jose's cup, which he found on the shelf and in her purse. Stan planned to follow Jose out of town, wait for him to pull over on the side of the highway, and then steal the drugs.