Walk this Way, Haunt this Way (Haunted Tour Guide Mystery Book 4) Read online

  As I made my way back to the front of the house I pulled out my cell phone. Luckily, it said there was service. I dialed Brannon’s number and listened to it ring.

  “Pick up, pick up, pick up.”

  I didn’t want to seem crazy and call 911. I was starting to have a panic attack though. At least I hoped that was all that was wrong.

  When my call went to Brannon’s voicemail I figured I had to call someone else for help. Would Tammy be able to get the door open from the other side? I would call Meredith and have her bring a key. Why hadn’t I thought of that before? See, there was nothing to panic over.

  As I dialed the number I felt a presence behind me. When I looked over my shoulder, I spotted the black shadow coming at me. I fell to the floor hard. The thing was attacking me. If only I had called someone sooner. Now I was doomed. This was surely what had happened to Alex. As much as I hadn’t wanted to be the next victim… that was exactly what had happened. The walls started to close in on me. I was losing it. Was this it for me? Everything went black.

  ***

  Light flooded my mind. I opened my eyes. Brannon was standing over me.

  “Rip, talk to me. Can you hear me?”

  Finally it registered what had happened and where I was. Brannon helped me sit up.

  “What happened?” I asked.

  “I found you here. I traced the call when you left the strange message.”

  I hadn’t remembered leaving a message. All I remembered was being stuck in the house. I looked over my shoulder. The front door was wide open.

  “Did you kick the door down?” I asked.

  “It was unlocked and I just came in,” he said.

  I shook my head. “Everything was stuck. I couldn’t get out of this place.”

  “How about we get you out of here now?” Brannon helped me to my feet.

  As we headed out the door, I said, “Wait.” I reached down and picked up my bag with the cupcakes. “Okay, we can go now.”

  He chuckled. “We could always get you another cupcake.”

  “And waste this one? No way.”

  I was happy to be outside. The sky seemed brighter and the air fresher than ever before. We headed down the sidewalk toward Brannon’s car. When I glanced back at the parlor one more time, I thought for sure I saw someone by the side of the house.

  “Someone is there,” I said.

  Brannon looked back. “Where?”

  “I don’t know, they went around the side of the house. Maybe they locked the door when I was in there.”

  “Wait in my car, okay?”

  I nodded and headed toward his car as he went to investigate. I really didn’t want him going around there by himself. But I knew that was something he was used to doing. I tapped my fingers against the leather seat nervously. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity but was really only a couple minutes, Brannon came back from around the house.

  “What did you find?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “Nothing. It was all clear.”

  Now it seemed as if I was imagining things. Not only had the doors been unlocked, but I’d also thought people were lurking around the place. Maybe I needed a nap. At least I still had my chocolate cupcake. I’d never been a comfort eater until recently, but if ever there was a time this was it. Brannon drove me home. So far I’d turned to cupcakes and grilled cheese. Next, I’d be eating right out of the ice cream carton with a serving spoon. Perhaps exercise would be a better stress reliever for me.

  “You’re being quiet,” he said when we pulled up in front of my place.

  “Just thinking about what happened,” I said.

  “Well, don’t think about that. You need to relax and take your mind off it.”

  “I guess you’re right.”

  Brannon walked me to the door and kissed me goodbye. He had to get back to work. I hated that I had called him away over something that was obviously nothing. When he drove away, I saw the black shadow sitting in the back seat of the car with him.

  Now I was freaking out. I had to let him know that he was completely correct. Though I suppose he already knew that since he’d been the one to tell me about the ghost following him in the first place. I had to warn him that this thing was with him. I knew I’d seen something.

  Chapter 19

  Brannon arrived for our date. He came up to my door to pick me up. I knew the smile completely covered my face when I saw him. He wore a suit. I’d never seen him so dressed up. His tie was blue with a red diamond pattern and his shirt was crisp white. I glanced at his shoes and noticed that he’d had them shined. I was glad that I’d worn my little black dress. Since he’d said we were going someplace nice I’d figured sweats and a worn out t-shirt wouldn’t work.

  The restaurant was the nicest one in town. Needless to say, I had never been there. The prices were way too expensive for my paycheck. Brannon said he wanted to treat me though, which I thought was really sweet. He really didn’t have to do that.

  “Things have been better than they’ve ever been in my life since meeting you, so I want to take you some place special.”

  That was even sweeter. I was pretty sure my cheeks were red. He seemed a little bashful the whole time he was saying it. The feeling was mutual though. I’d never been happier since meeting him. I’d all but forgotten that I’d come back to Devil’s Moon because of a failed relationship.

  The building was one of the oldest in Devil’s Moon. It was in a Federal-style brick home. Outside was a patio with lights strung up for a romantic touch. Too bad it was too cold to sit out there. Maybe we could come back in the summer. I’d have to save up for that.

  Brannon found a parking space and then opened the door for me. He smiled as we walked across the lot toward the restaurant. “Thanks again for coming with me tonight.”

  We stepped inside and were immediately greeted by the hostess. The inside was nicer than I’d imagined, decorated with old bourbon barrels. Pictures of the town from the 1800s decorated the walls. Soft hues were the color theme. Old chandeliers cast a romantic glow around the room and candles flickered on the tables.

  “Do you know the history of the building?” Brannon asked.

  “Since it’s not on my tour I haven’t studied the history much.”

  “Maybe the place is haunted and you could add it to the tour,” he said.

  “That would be great. It’s never easy to ask people if their place is haunted. Some people don’t want to talk about it.”

  The hostess took us across the room to the table.

  “How’s this table?” She gestured.

  Brannon looked to me for confirmation.

  I nodded. “It’s perfect.”

  He held the chair out for me and I sat down. We now had a nice view of town from our table by the window. Before looking over the menu I had to check out the view. The lights from the other businesses twinkled like stars. Music played softly in the background. People walked up and down the sidewalks. It was a peaceful evening and I was enjoying my night off. Finally I picked up the menu.

  “What looks good?” Brannon asked over the top of his menu.

  Sadly, not much looked good. I never liked the fancy stuff. Give me a grilled cheese and tomato soup and I was happy. I supposed I was just a simple girl. I wouldn’t let Brannon know that I didn’t like the sound of anything on the menu. He’d been so happy to bring me here. I’d eat whatever they brought and pretend I liked it. Maybe I would enjoy it after all.

  “I think the honey bourbon-glazed chicken sounds good. What about you?” I asked with a smile.

  “Nice choice. The grilled steak with caramelized onion sauce is calling my name.”

  I placed my menu down. “Do you really think there might be a ghost in the place?”

  Brannon looked around. “It’s old enough.”

  “So what about the spirit that’s following you? Where do you think you picked up the spirit?”

  Could he have gotten it at one of his investigations? Br
annon had a spirit following him around before we went to the asylum, so it couldn’t have been attached to him there. Unless he had been there before going with me.

  “I thought about that a lot. There were a few places, but I haven’t been on many investigations. Work has been busy.”

  I took a sip of water. “Maybe if we go back to the asylum you could get rid of it.”

  “Do you really think it would be that easy?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t see why not. I would say that it wouldn’t hurt to try, but what if we pick up even more spirits by going back?” I definitely had reservations about returning to the building.

  Brannon leaned back in the chair. “Why me? Why would it attach to me?”

  “Maybe you remind the ghost of someone they knew during life. There are many reasons why. Sometimes I think it’s totally random too.”

  “I guess it’s something I’ll have to think about,” he said.

  I wished I could help him make that decision. The waitress brought over our food.

  “This smells delicious,” Brannon said with a smile.

  I was glad that he was having a good time. I hoped this took his mind off the ghost problems. Plus, the murder investigation.

  Surprisingly, my food looked kind of good too. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all. I took a bite of the chicken and it was delicious. I wouldn’t like it too much though since it was unlikely I’d have it again anytime soon. Maybe I could figure out how to make this on my own. Maybe I could make a gourmet meal for Brannon. I’d never been much of a cook.

  We were quiet for a bit while enjoying the food. Brannon winked at me as he chewed. Just then I felt something. It didn’t feel right and my anxiety returned. Just when I thought we could have a relaxing evening. Now I had that familiar feeling I had when a ghost was around. I looked up and noticed the dark shadow standing right behind Brannon. I was speechless, but he happened to notice the look on my face.

  “Is something wrong with the food?” he asked.

  I pointed over his shoulder at the ghost behind. Slowly he turned to look. A few gasps rang out around the room. Obviously others had seen the ghost as well.

  “What do we do now?” I asked.

  Everyone was frozen. I expected the thing to attack at any moment. When Brannon stood from the table and turned around the thing disappeared. I released a deep breath, but then I realized the thing could still be anywhere in the room. It could be just waiting for a chance to attack. So far I didn’t see anything though. Maybe it was gone for good.

  Finally, Brannon sat back down. People around the place were watching us. As if we had somehow brought the thing in the restaurant. Okay, so we probably had brought it in. Now that it was gone and things had settled down they perhaps just thought that their eyes had been playing tricks on them. They possibly thought it had just been a shadow from the street. I knew differently.

  I didn’t know how I’d missed it before, but when I looked across the way I spotted Heath and Candace. Maybe I’d been too distracted by the ghost to notice them the first time. I knew they’d seen me though. They were both staring at us.

  “We have an audience,” I said.

  “Yeah, the whole room was freaked out,” Brannon said.

  “No, Heath and Candace are here. They’re watching us.”

  I was looking down at my plate right now. Brannon looked over at them. He was going to let them know that he wasn’t intimidated. That was okay for him, but I didn’t like the way that they were staring at me. I wanted to get out of there. After the ghost and now this, I figured it was time to go.

  I stood from the table. “I think we should go.”

  “No, we can’t let them chase us out of there. That’s not the way it works, Rip.” Brannon motioned toward my plate. “You haven’t finished your dinner. And with these prices that would be a shame.”

  Brannon smiled, trying to ease the tension. I sat back down and placed the napkin on my lap. I released a deep breath. “You’re right, we should stay.”

  I supposed the best thing to do was to just ignore them. I took another bite of food, but I felt eyes on me the whole time. Maybe it was just my imagination. Finally, I couldn’t stand it any longer and I had to look over at them to see what they were doing. I was right, they were watching us. Not only were they watching, but they were headed our way.

  “They’re coming over here,” I said out of the corner of my mouth.

  Brannon looked up just as they approached the table.

  “Good evening, Officer Brannon and Ripley.”

  They smiled but I knew it was forced.

  “I didn’t know you two were friends,” Candace said.

  Brannon cast a quick glance my way. “Yes, we are.”

  “Are you enjoying dinner?” Heath asked.

  “It’s a great place. What about you all?” Brannon asked.

  “It was fabulous, although we are looking forward to getting out of town. No offense.”

  They looked at me. I quirked an eyebrow.

  “None taken. We’d love for you to get out of town too,” Brannon said.

  This was why Brannon was so great. I wished I’d thought to say that too. I knew they were offended by what he’d said.

  “Well, nice seeing you,” Candace said.

  They hurried away from the table. “That’s one way to get rid of them,” I said.

  “Works every time,” Brannon said. He tapped his fingers against the table. “I wonder if they have something to do with the haunting.”

  “Well, there was that one other thing,” I said.

  He looked at me. “What’s that?”

  “The ghosts were following them on the tour. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. So maybe you didn’t get the ghost from that building after all. Is it possible you got the spirit from one of them?”

  “I should ask them about the spirits. They have to know that something is going on,” Brannon said.

  “I can go with you if you want to talk with them. Even though I don’t really want to be around them. Something about them really gives me the creeps.”

  “I’ll have to think about what I want to ask first,” Brannon said.

  At least the restaurant was back to normal now. Nothing else had happened since they had left. Brannon and I managed to finish the food. Although it didn’t taste as good once all that had happened. We decided against the dessert, even though it looked better than anything else on the menu. I guessed I had a bit of a sweet tooth anyway.

  The staff was giving us some strange looks on our way out. I wasn’t sure if it was because of the ghosts or because of the murder investigations.

  I looked around as we walked across the parking lot. I expected to see Heath and Candace watching us. Maybe they were hiding. They gave me the creeps. Luckily, I didn’t see them. Brannon and I got into his car.

  “Do you see them?” I asked.

  Brannon buckled his seatbelt. “Do I see who?”

  “I take it by your comment then that you don’t see them.” I adjust the strap of my seatbelt.

  “Is it Candace and Heath?” Brannon asked.

  I released a deep breath. “The ghosts are watching us.”

  Since it was dark out I had to look hard in order to actually see them. They were there though. Watching us and probably waiting for a chance to attack. I knew that Candace and Heath had to be nearby.

  “The ghosts are peeking out from around the trees,” I whispered, as if the ghosts would hear me.

  Brannon turned the ignition. “They’ll have to work harder than that to get us.”

  We pulled out of the parking lot and I released a sigh of relief. Brannon had a way of making me feel as if things would be all right. It was a short drive to my place. Brannon pulled up at my place. He walked me back upstairs.

  “Would you like some pie? Since we didn’t get dessert at the restaurant.”

  He smiled. “I’d like that.”

  “I have ice cream too.” I pulled
my keys out as we walked toward the door.

  Chapter 20

  As I headed away from the library the next day, I spotted Jeanette. Part of me wanted to talk to her. Maybe I should just be bold and ask her what she knew about the murder. Did she know Patrick? She didn’t seem as approachable as the other documentary team members. Of course it was hard to imagine Jeanette being less approachable than a group that consisted of a corpse, a blackmailer, and a possible double murderer. Then again sometimes the quiet ones were the ones you had to watch out for. I wasn’t sure if that was true, but I’d heard it in the past. Maybe she was being quiet so as not to draw attention to herself. That was definitely possible. She had no idea I was behind her.

  Jeanette was busy on her cell phone. Probably texting. If she wasn’t careful she would walk into something.

  Just then a strange feeling fell over the area. I looked to the left and the right and noticed the shadowy people. They were following her too. They walked close behind her, not even paying attention to anything or anyone else. How could Jeanette not know they were behind her? I wanted to yell at her to look behind her.

  “Pay attention, Jeanette!” I whispered.

  She glanced up. Whew. Maybe she would now realize. Then she went back to the phone. I couldn’t believe she didn’t sense the creepy feeling. Since she hadn’t noticed the ghosts, I knew they were moving in on her. They were ready to attack.

  The ghosts swooshed forward and Jeanette fell forward onto the sidewalk. Her phone went one way and her purse went the other. She never knew what had hit her.

  As soon as she hit the ground the ghosts had disappeared. Was that all they’d wanted? To hurt or scare her? I was scared and they hadn’t attacked me. Thank goodness none were behind me. I had to help her.

  “Jeanette, are you okay?” I called out.

  I wasn’t sure if she heard me because she didn’t look back. She was still on the ground. I thought she was too dazed to know what to do next.