by K E O'Connor
Ghostly Business
Lorna Shadow Cozy Ghost Mystery, Volume 5
K.E. O'Connor
Published by K.E. O'Connor, 2017.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
GHOSTLY BUSINESS
First edition. June 24, 2017.
Copyright © 2017 K.E. O'Connor.
Written by K.E. O'Connor.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 1
“If we take out this old fireplace, the room will be much bigger. This could be a great sized living room.” Zach Booth tapped his knuckles on the top of the crumbling fire surround.
“I sort of like that fire. It adds character to the place.” I did a slow pivot as I looked around the room of the house we were considering buying. All the rooms had lovely high ceilings and a spacious feel. And the place was empty, so we’d be able to buy it quickly. I should have adored it, but couldn’t shake off the sensation I was being watched. Every time I turned my back it felt as if there was a pair of eyes boring into my shoulders.
“We can keep the fireplace.” Zach walked over and wrapped his arms around me, resting his stubbled chin on my shoulder. “What impression do you get of the place?”
I gave a shrug, not wanting to let him down when he’d worked so hard to get us through the door of the house as soon as it came on the market. “Like we might be spied upon in bed.”
When Zach asked me about the feel of a place, he wasn’t talking about the vibes of the house, and if it felt cozy and loved. He wanted to know if any ghosts were living there. My ability to see ghosts had been a sticking point in our relationship, but Zach was slowly coming around to the fact that if he loved me he had to at least tolerate the ghosts. We’d decided to buy a house together, but one that had no resident ghosts in it. This was proving trickier than I thought it would. We were on our tenth house, and every time I'd viewed a property I'd seen a ghost. It sometimes felt like they were stalking me.
“There are plenty of other places we can view,” said Zach. “I only suggested this one because the location is so good."
“It’s a great location, nice and central.” I leaned back against Zach, relaxing in his embrace and enjoying the feel of his strong arms holding me tightly. This was a good step in our relationship, and it would be the first time I’d ever shared a house with a boyfriend. I had to admit, I was nervous about the move, but it was coupled with excitement. If only we could find a place we loved that didn't come with any ghostly sitting tenants.
“Let’s check out the dining room.” Zach took my hand, his calloused palm feeling warm and solid. As a gardener, Zach would always be a little rough around the edges, but I liked him that way.
We walked out of the empty living room and across the hallway, into the dining room. There was no furniture in this room, but the large bay window let in plenty of light, and dust motes danced around in the autumn sunshine as I checked out the space.
Flipper and Jessie bounded into the room, chasing each other in play. Flipper turned towards Jessie and ducked down, before bouncing up and out of her reach. Jessie’s dark eyes sparkled and her black fur gleamed in the sunshine as she gave a bark of pleasure before chasing after Flipper.
“Those two have given it their seal of approval,” said Zach, grinning as he watched the dogs playing.
“They’ll live anywhere, so long as they have each other.” I turned and ran a hand down Zach’s face. “Same goes for me. I don’t mind where we live, just so long as we’re together.”
“So, if I suggest a tent in the middle of Dartmoor, you’d be happy with that?” Zach grinned at me as he tucked a strand of my dark bob behind my ear.
I snitched my nose at him. “You’re pushing this relationship too far by suggesting a tent. And we’re not the only ones we need to consider here.”
“The dogs won’t mind a tent.” Zach’s grin widened.
I jumped as I heard the sound of stamping footsteps over our heads. “I wasn’t talking about them.” My best friend, Helen Holiday stomped around upstairs, her voice high and angry. And I knew the reason for her frustration, it came in a tall dark package, just like Zach. But this particular package had confidence oozing out of his pores, and never let Helen get one over on him.
“You don’t need the room with the attached bathroom. Look at the state of you, you can’t spend more than two minutes a day in the bathroom. I doubt you even have a shower in the morning.” Helen’s voice grew closer as her feet pounded down the stairs, closely followed by another set.
“We can share the room.” That was Gunner Booth, Zach’s older brother.
We were all buying a house together, and so far, the four of us hadn’t been able to agree on where we wanted to live and what we wanted. I kept seeing ghosts in the houses; Helen complained that the bedrooms were too small and she needed an attached bathroom; Zach wanted outside space so he could hone his already amazing horticultural skills, and Gunner, he was easy. He just needed a place to rest his head and plenty of food in the refrigerator. But he liked teasing Helen every time she set her sights on one of the bedrooms.
Helen charged into the dining room, bright pink spots of color on her heart-shaped face and her lips pressed together. “Gunner is not having the room with the attached bathroom.”
“He’s only teasing you,” I said. “I bet if you ask him nicely, he’ll give up his claim on the bedroom.”
Gunner strolled in behind Helen, his hands shoved into his dark jeans pockets, and a smug smile on his face. “As to your accusation about my grooming habits, Helen, I look this good naturally, but still like the idea of an attached bathroom.”
I had to stifle a laugh as Helen stamped her foot.
Gunner grinned at her response. “You're protesting too much about this bathroom. Or maybe you're just getting over excited at the prospect of seeing me hanging out in the kitchen in only my towel.”
“As if I’d want that.” The color on Helen’s cheeks increased and she shot a glare at Gunner.
“Give me the attached bathroom and you’ll never see me naked.” Gunner waggled his brows at Helen.
I shook my head. Part of me wanted to tell them to stop fighting, but I was also enjoying seeing them banter. Every time they spent time together, Helen would get flustered and Gunner would get extra cocky. They had to like each other, and although Helen had never said anything to me, she was into Gunner. But there was the dilemma, Gunner was not her usual type. He lived in jeans and T-shirts, had a rough London accent, and worked for the Police. He was not Helen’s idea of an upper-class gentlemen who wore cravats and spoke with a cut-glass English accent. But there was something between them, and when we had time alone I was determined to grill Helen about what she really thought of Gunner Booth.
I smiled up at Zach. I’d already found my dream man, and now we just needed to find a house together.
“Lorna, tell Gunner he can’t have the bedroom,” said Helen, shooting me a pleading look.
“None of you can have any of the bedrooms in this house,” I s
aid. “I’m not sure this is the place for us.”
Gunner groaned and tipped his head back. “This place is great. Plenty of rooms, we can move in quickly, and it’s less than an hour for me to get to work.”
“Lorna’s not feeling it,” said Zach. “And we’ve got more places to view before we make a decision.”
Helen shot Gunner another glare before walking over to me. “More ghosts?”
I looked around the room, not seeing anything otherworldly but knowing something was lurking not far away. “There's something here. I can’t put my finger on it, though.”
“Have you looked upstairs yet?” asked Helen. “The rooms are lovely.”
I could tell she liked this house but didn’t want to pressure me into a decision on it, knowing how badly ghosts could affect me. “Not yet. We thought we'd let you and Gunner have the bedrooms first.” I winked at her.
“In his dreams,” muttered Helen. “Take a look up there. Maybe you’ll feel better once you’ve had a look around everywhere. You can put your mind at rest that there’s nothing lurking in the walls.”
I looked over at Gunner and saw he was staring at me with a curious expression on his face. My ghost seeing abilities had been mentioned to him before, but I’d never told him I could see ghosts. It wasn’t an easy topic of conversation to bring up, but was something that needed addressing before we made our living arrangements permanent. I didn’t want him to think I was losing my mind when he wandered in and discovered me talking to myself.
“Okay, we’ll have a quick look at the bedrooms.” I gestured to Zach, and we left Helen, Gunner, and the dogs in the dining room.
“Don’t be pressured into buying because Gunner and Helen like the place,” said Zach. “Gunner will sleep anywhere. And his work takes him all over the country, so he can’t complain about where we’re based.”
“It is a nice house.” I trailed my hand along the antique wooden banister as we walked up the stairs. It needed some redecoration, but other than that it was a solid building. But I just wasn’t feeling love for the place.
We checked out the first two bedrooms and one bathroom. So far, everything looked ordinary, but the sliver of unease I felt remained with me.
Zach pushed open the next bedroom door and walked in. “This would make a nice main bedroom. We’d get the early morning sunlight in here.”
I walked in behind him and stopped, my hand flying to my mouth to stifle a gasp. Standing in the corner of the room was a ghost carrying his head under one arm. It looked like something out of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, with a large ruffle around the stump of his neck and long, dark stringy hair on the head tucked into the crook of his arm.
“What do you think?” Zach turned to me.
“I think it’s time to leave,” I said, not able to tear my gaze from the ghost. “And I’m never going to sleep in this room.”
Zach raised his eyebrows and turned to look at the corner I was staring at. “An unwanted guest?”
I scrubbed my hands up and down my arms. “One without a head.”
Zach opened his mouth and then snapped it shut. “Right. Let’s get out of here. We can carry on the house hunting another day.” He grabbed my elbow and hurried me out of the room and back down the stairs.
Helen had her back to Gunner and was staring out the dining room window as we re-entered the room. Gunner was sitting on the ground, his legs stretched out in front of him, and Jessie was sitting next to him, enjoying having her ears tickled.
“This isn’t the house for us,” said Zach.
“Weird vibes upstairs?” Helen turned away from the window.
“The weirdest,” I said. “Sorry to disappoint you both.”
“It’s fine.” Gunner got to his feet. “Helen convinced me this isn’t going to be our love nest while you were gone.”
“It will be your final resting place if you keep on with that nonsense,” said Helen.
Gunner laughed and held his hand out to Helen. “You can only resist me for so long, gorgeous.”
“I’m planning on making it forever.” Helen played with her blonde curls and then looked away from Gunner.
My mobile rang and I pulled it out of my bag. I recognized the number, it was the agency I found some of my personal assistant jobs through. And I’d been waiting for this call. They were interested in hiring Helen and me at a beautiful sounding castle in Yorkshire, home to wild moors and dramatic scenery. I was hoping the jobs would be ours.
“Lorna, it's Josie. Hope you're having a lovely day so far.” Josie's over-the-top bubbly voice sounded too loud in my ear.
“Great, thanks. Any news on the Gillan Castle jobs?”
“Happy to say Lady Cordelia Babington was most impressed with the CVs she received from you and Helen. She has collected your references and would like you to start immediately.” Josie trilled brightly down the phone.
I smiled at Helen and gave her a thumbs-up. “That’s great news. We’re house hunting not far from Lady Cordelia’s castle, and we brought our bags just in case she decided to make use of us. We just need to collect them from the hotel we’re staying at and can be with her by the end of the day.”
“She will be pleased,” said Josie. “I’ll email you the details, but you know everything about the salary and working conditions. And Gillan Castle is so beautiful, you’ll feel as if you should be paying her for working there.”
I shook my head at Josie’s enthusiasm. She might be able to work for free, but I needed a salary, and so did Helen. Especially if we were both going to be investing in a property with Zach and Gunner. “Tell Lady Cordelia we’ll be there within three hours.”
“I knew I could rely on you, Lorna,” said Josie. “Let’s hope this time you get to stay for a while. I’m sorry about what happened at your last place.”
I grimaced as I recalled my last employer, Lady Reynold, who’d been stuck in a gentrified past and not able to see all the weird things going on around her, including the fact her son had an unhealthy obsession with his sister and it led to him killing both her and her lover. I’d stuck the job out for eight months as Lady Reynold got used to her son being found guilty for murder and sent for extensive psychiatric evaluation, followed by a lengthy prison sentence. But there was only so much snapping and coldness Helen and I could bear, and we’d given in our notices and left as soon as we could.
“We weren’t the right fit for Lady Reynold,” I said, deciding diplomacy was the most mature route to take. “I’m sure things will be lovely at the castle, and we’ll fit right in.”
“I did have a bit of trouble persuading Lady Cordelia to let Flipper come with you,” said Josie, a note of worry in her voice.
“That’s not open to negotiation,” I said. Flipper went everywhere with me. He was my early warning detection device whenever there was a ghost around. Although, it looked like today he’d been too busy playing with Jessie to let me know there was a headless ghost in one of the bedrooms.
“Don’t worry, I persuaded her Flipper had to come,” said Josie. “But I need to warn you, there are a lot of cats in the castle. How does Flipper feel about felines?”
“Flipper loves cats,” I said. “He always tries to make friends with them whenever he sees one out on our walks.”
“Well, I knew you were an animal lover, so figured the cats wouldn’t be an issue for you.”
“A few cats aren’t going to be a problem. And Flipper will be happy to have the company when I’m working.”
“It sounds perfect for you,” said Josie. “I’m emailing through the details now and will give Lady Cordelia a call to inform her you’ll be arriving this afternoon.”
We said our goodbyes and I shut off my phone.
“Did you say Gillan Castle?” asked Gunner.
“That’s right,” I said. “Have you heard of it? It’s a Grade One listed building, and such a gorgeous pile of ancient stone. When I saw the vacancies come up, and they fitted both of our skill sets, I had to go for
it.”
“I’ve heard of it,” said Gunner. “Isn’t it supposed to be the most haunted castle in the country?”
Zach narrowed his blue eyes and looked at me. “Is that right?”
Helen shushed Gunner and waved her hands at him. “He doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Gillan Castle isn’t haunted. I bet they say that to bring in the tourists.”
“It might be a little haunted,” I said reluctantly. “It is over five hundred years old. There will have been a few people who died within the castle walls.”
“Were you aware of all these ghosts before you applied for the jobs?” asked Zach.
“The ghosts won’t be a problem.” I linked my arm through his elbow. “You know me, I ignore them unless they ask for help.”
Gunner’s intelligent gaze shot from me to Zach. “I’ve been meaning to ask you about the ghost thing.”
I felt Zach’s arm muscles twitch and bit my lip. This could get tricky.
“Another time,” snapped Helen. “All you need to know is Lorna is amazing and Zach is lucky to have her.”
“I am.” Zach grinned down at me, the tension easing, and kissed my forehead.
“I’m not doubting that.” Gunner looked at me. “But I keep hearing about ghosts. Do you really believe in them?”
I looked over at Gunner and nodded. “I’ll tell you all about it one day.”
“That’s a story I’m looking forward to.” Gunner rubbed the stubble on his chin.
Zach bent down until his mouth was by my ear. “Just make sure you keep out of the ghosts’ way in this new job. I don’t want you getting into any trouble. If any ghosts start causing problems, let me know.”
“Are you going to call your ghostbusting friends to come in and help me?” I kissed his cheek. “You know what I do. But I won’t go looking for any problems. Chances are most of the ghosts in the castle will be old memories, ghosts just acting out the same behavior over and over because that’s what they’ve always done. Ancient history that won’t impact on me.”
“If there are any missing their heads like the one upstairs,” whispered Zach, “get out of there. You don’t always need to go in and save the day.”