Walk this Way, Haunt this Way (Haunted Tour Guide Mystery Book 4) Page 16

  I clicked through to Google. “I might as well turn this off.” That was when I noticed at the top of the screen that she was still logged in to her email. “Bingo. Look, she’s still logged in to her email.”

  “Ah-ha,” Tammy said. “Click on it.”

  Of course I felt bad for snooping on her, but this was life or death. I had no choice really.

  I clicked on the link and pulled up her email. “Oh, there’s an email from Alex.”

  “Click on it quick,” Tammy said.

  I stood from the table. “You look. I’m too nervous.”

  Tammy didn’t waste a second jumping in front of the computer. Though her hand shook as she clicked on the email. “Oh, they’re talking about meeting and doing the documentary together.” Tammy quirked an eyebrow. “That’s not good.”

  “This isn’t enough information to put Jeanette at the scene of Alex’s death. Jeanette came here as part of Alex’s documentary team, so for all we know that email could have been from years ago. Is there a date on the email? What is the time and location of their intended meeting?” I asked.

  It gives her a motive. Annie sent a text.

  “Yes, it does give her a motive,” I said.

  Tammy nodded as if she was responding to Annie too. “That puts her at the scene of his death and gives her a motive for Alex’s death.”

  “It doesn’t explain why she would kill him though.”

  “Maybe he didn’t want to do the documentary with her after all.”

  “That could definitely be a possibility,” I said.

  “You should look through more of her emails.”

  I felt really weird about doing that, but I’d already gone this far. What was a little more snooping at this point? I hoped Jeanette didn’t walk back into the library for her agenda and catch us looking at her email.

  “Keep a look out for her in case she comes back for the agenda,” I said.

  Tammy saluted. “Gotcha.”

  I clicked though the email again, but it looked as if she had deleted most everything except for spam.

  “I think she just forgot to delete this email. Everything else is gone.”

  “She could never be a spy,” Tammy said. “She’s terrible at this.”

  After looking through the sent items and finding nothing, I clicked off the email.

  “I wish we knew her password so we could look again.”

  “I’m definitely not logging in again even if I did have it,” I said.

  “Are you all going to stay over there forever or are you going to help me do some work?” Monica placed her hands on her hips and glared at us.

  “We’re coming,” I said with a forced smile.

  It wasn’t fair for us to leave her for too long. Even though she was good at disappearing for long stretches of time. When I went to look for her she would always pop up as if she sensed when I was coming for her.

  “So none of this means Jeanette killed him.” Tammy sighed.

  “It doesn’t narrow our list of suspects, that’s for sure,” I said.

  Someone cleared their throat from behind us. I spun around in the chair expecting to see Jeanette. Instead Candace was standing behind us. Her small eyes narrowed. I had no idea how long she’d been standing behind us, but by the look on her face, I assumed it had been long enough that she’d overheard part of our conversation.

  “Did I startle you?” Candace asked in a mocking tone.

  She knew she had startled us. She was just gloating now. I pushed to my feet, trying to block the computer screen. I supposed it was too late for that though.

  “Can I help you with something?” I asked.

  Candace stared for a moment and then asked, “I wondered if you would have time to go to dinner with me this evening.”

  Something told me this wasn’t her original reason for stopping by. The way she looked at me made me nervous. She must have sensed my hesitation. “I just have a few questions left to ask about the tour.”

  I eyed her for a moment. I supposed we would be in a public place. What could go wrong?

  Finally, I said, “Sure. What time?”

  “How about seven?”

  “That’ll be fine,” I said.

  “Great. See you then.” She gave a little smile and then walked away.

  “Wow, what do you think that is all about?” Tammy asked.

  “I guess I’ll find out.”

  “You should have Brannon go with you.”

  I shook my head. “If he’s there then she probably wouldn’t talk. Maybe there’s something she wants to tell me, or maybe I can get her to share something that she wouldn’t if he was there.”

  “Sounds like you have this all planned out,” Tammy said.

  “Not really, but just a few thoughts,” I said.

  Tammy and I walked away from the computer.

  “Why is she still in Devil’s Moon anyway?” Tammy asked. “She doesn’t have to be here. She wasn’t even here when Alex was murdered.”

  “Maybe because she was close to Alex. She definitely has a motive for murder. There was money involved and they’d had an argument about it.”

  Tammy sighed. “Well, if you won’t ask Brannon to go then I’m going with you. I can sit at another table and she won’t even know I’m there. I just think you need backup.”

  I smiled. It was nice to know I had friends who had my back.

  Annie sent another text. Heath just returned a book.

  I frowned. “Why would he do that? He doesn’t have a library card. Are you sure it was him?”

  Annie pointed toward the window. Have a look. He just did it, so he’s probably still walking down the sidewalk.

  I rushed over to the window so that I could catch him before he got away. Sure enough, when I looked out I saw him walking down the sidewalk. I hurried over and looked in the book return. Luckily, there were only a couple books. Had he left one or both?

  “Did he leave one or two, Annie?”

  I’m not sure, but I think one.

  I took the books over to the computer so that I could see who had checked them out last. Annie followed along beside me. I typed in the title and was shocked to see the name that popped up. Monica had been the last one to check out the book. The other book was for someone I didn’t know. He could have found the book and simply returned them. But this was too big of a coincidence. Had they met somewhere outside the library? I would have to ask Monica, but she probably wouldn’t be truthful with me.

  Annie had another report for me on Monica. She’s telling a patron that she’s in a documentary.

  “Is that right? What kind of documentary? Just the one for the tour?” I asked.

  No, she told the woman that she’s the star of an upcoming documentary. She didn’t say what it was about though.

  “She’s probably just saying that to impress the woman. Next she’ll be telling everyone that she has her own reality show.”

  What’s a reality show? Annie asked.

  Annie had learned a lot about current events, but she still didn’t know a lot about TV shows.

  “It’s just a show about someone’s life as they’re living it. Interesting.”

  Just then Monica walked up. I figured this was the perfect opportunity for me to ask about this.

  “Who were you talking to?” Monica asked.

  Her question had caught me off guard. “Oh, I was just talking to myself.”

  She quirked an eyebrow and looked at me like I was crazy. Monica went about her work, but I followed her.

  “I want to ask you a question.”

  She sighed. “What’s the question?”

  “Did you happen to lose a library book? One that you checked out.”

  She chuckled. “Me? I’m careful with my books.”

  “Really? Then why was someone else returning your book?”

  She looked as if she had been caught with cash in hand as she escaped a bank heist. “I guess I left it somewhere.”

  I
figured she’d say that.

  Chapter 26

  Now that I had Jeanette’s agenda I wasn’t sure what to do with it. I assumed it wasn’t evidence since it really didn’t show anything of significance, therefore I didn’t need to turn it in to Brannon. I knew that I had to get it back to her. Maybe I could just leave it in the Lost and Found. Eventually she would come back for it, right? Then I would feel guilty because I knew who it belonged to and I hadn’t tried to get it back to her. Before I did anything though I would take a closer look at it. Now that I had it back at my office I could really snoop without getting caught. It was necessary to snoop. Not that I liked to do it or anything. My grandmother Claire loved to snoop. People said I was like her in a lot of ways but I didn’t think that was one of them.

  As I flipped through the book, I didn’t notice anything that stood out. But at the back of the book was a bunch of blank pages. Only one wasn’t blank. There was a map of all the places on my tour. I didn’t know what to think about this. It was kind of creepy, but then the documentary had been in all of those places. I supposed it wouldn’t be unusual for her to have that info written down.

  When I didn’t find anything else I closed the book. Just then Monica opened the door. I probably looked as if I had just gotten caught doing something wrong.

  She eyed me suspiciously. “We need your help out front.”

  “I’ll be right there.”

  She stared for a moment and then left the room. I shoved the agenda in my desk drawer and then left the room. I’d have to figure out how to return it later. The rest of the day had been so busy that I hadn’t had time to think of the murders. It was time for me to meet Candace.

  As I headed toward the door to leave Annie sent a text.

  Be safe. I don’t think Candace is being honest with you.

  “I promise I’ll be safe, Annie,” I said.

  Annie looked uncertain as I walked out. Truth be told, I was uncertain too. I would never tell Annie though. She’d just worry.

  Tammy was waiting for me on the sidewalk outside the library.

  “I just need to go by the salon real quick and then I will meet you at the diner.”

  “I’ll be waiting.”

  “Don’t go in there without me, okay?” Tammy quirked an eyebrow.

  “I promise I won’t go in there without you.” I made an invisible x across my chest with my index finger.

  Actually, I might go in there without her. She would be mad, but if it meant missing out on something I couldn’t stay outside until she got there.

  Tammy went one way and I went the other. Monica was sitting in her car watching us. She was strange sometimes. Well, a lot of the time. I headed down the sidewalk, walking as fast as I could. I needed to get over being uncomfortable with walking the streets of Devil’s Moon because I had a lot more of that to do later this evening. Finally, the diner came into view. I was a little early, but that would give me time to wait outside for Tammy. I hoped Candace didn’t see me standing out there. I didn’t want her to see me walk in with Tammy either.

  As I neared, I saw that Candace was standing outside waiting for me. She waved and smiled as if we had been friends for years. Candace wasn’t the only one I saw. Well, she was the only living one on the sidewalk right now. I hadn’t expected to see ghosts at the diner. I’d been there quite a few times and I’d only see a couple of things. Since this group of ghosts had been following Candace, Heath, and Jeanette, I figured this was the reason one was there now. Candace moved closer to me. A couple of the ghosts disappeared behind a nearby tree. A man on the other side of the street looked in that direction. He must have seen it out of the corner of his eye. I was kind of surprised at how calm I was being about seeing all these ghosts. I mean, a couple at a time was spooky, but this was beyond that.

  “I’m glad you made it.”

  “It’s not a long walk from the library,” I said.

  “It’s a beautiful walk. Such a lovely little town.” She looked around.

  I wondered what I would say to stall. I couldn’t tell her that Tammy was joining us. I supposed I would have to just go in. Maybe I could sneak back out to meet Tammy.

  “I suppose we should go in now?” I gestured toward the door.

  “Actually, I wondered if it’s okay if you’d show me something in the graveyard first? There was a headstone I wanted to ask about.”

  “I know a lot of them. Maybe you just want to ask me.” My anxiety rose.

  She waved her hand dismissively. “I don’t think I would remember to tell you which one. That’s something I would have to show you.”

  I glanced around to if see if Tammy was coming. She was nowhere in sight. That uncomfortable feeling hung on for dear life.

  I supposed it would be okay to just go over there real quick. I told myself that everything was fine.

  “Sure, I guess that would be okay.”

  I glanced around one more time before finally starting down the sidewalk with Candace. Something about this just rubbed me the wrong way. It was like she was trying to lure me away from the diner. We passed the tavern and turned down the alleyway toward the graveyard. Darkness surrounded us and it seemed creepier than usual. We finally reached the graveyard. The owl hooted from the treetop. Maybe he sensed something was off too. She followed me to the gates. It made me uneasy with her walking behind me. I wanted to keep my eye on her.

  I opened the gate and we walked through. “So which stone is it that you had questions about?”

  The chuckle in her voice made my skin crawl. “I hope I can find it again. It was just so interesting.”

  All the stones looked fairly common. Nothing stood out to me as unusual.

  “It’s toward the back of the graveyard. Over by that tree, I think.” She pointed.

  It figured. I wanted to hurry up and get out of there, now I would have to walk all the way to the back. I’d even welcome a visit from Mrs. Clatterbuck right now. Candace stayed behind me as we walked across the spooky landscape. I didn’t know how to tell her politely that I didn’t like that she was walking behind me. Chills prickled along my arms and the back of my neck.

  “Is it around here?” Uncertainty sounded in my voice.

  “Just a little further, I think. Over by that oak tree.”

  If we didn’t find it soon then I was going to tell her we would have to come back tomorrow. It would be much easier in the daylight. I weaved around a couple more headstones and over toward the tree. The owl was up there still watching us.

  “Is it that large one over there?” I pointed. “It has a statue of an angel of top. That’s kind of unique.” Sure, a lot of the tombstones had angels, but I was trying to hurry her along.

  She didn’t respond. I turned around, but she was gone.

  “Where did you go?”

  This was too weird. I wasn’t sticking around here. Not tonight. The vibe was just too eerie this time. I spun around to leave, but someone grabbed me from behind. Their grip on me was so tight that it hurt my arms. I couldn’t see who had me. I screamed, but I wasn’t sure if anyone would hear me. I definitely wasn’t going down like this.

  “If that’s you then you will be sorry for doing this,” I said as I struggled to get the upper hand.

  Either Candace had been lifting weights and hiding the muscles under her clothing, or the person who had me was much stronger. That was when I remembered a move that Brannon had shown me. I maneuvered my arm and motioned it right where I could slam my elbow into my attacker’s ribs. My attacker let out a groan and that was when I spun around and kicked him in the groin. He wore a mask, but I knew it was a man. When he was down on the ground I ran through the graveyard. The ground was wet so I slipped a few times. Luckily, I made it to the gate without being caught. I ran toward the alleyway. I glanced back but didn’t see him.

  I reached for my cell phone, but it wasn’t there. It must have fallen out of my pocket during the attack. Where was Candace? It was as if she had taken me to the grave
yard on purpose. She’d known that the attacker was waiting for me. She hadn’t anticipated that I could fight off an attacker. Lucky for me because there was no telling what would have happened. More than likely I would have become the next murder victim in Devil’s Moon.

  I ran down the alleyway toward the tavern. It was the closest business. Where was Tammy? She was probably looking for me. I rushed into the tavern. People standing around looked at me strangely. I must have looked a mess. I rushed over to the bar. The guy behind the bar looked at me wide-eyed.

  “Is everything okay, Rip?”

  I didn’t want to go into the details right now. It was too much to handle.

  “Not exactly. Is it okay if I use your phone?”

  “Sure, no problem.” He grabbed the phone and placed it on the bar or me.

  As I dialed, I kept looking over my shoulder. I was freaked out that the attacker would find me in here. I explained what had happened to Brannon. Well, I gave him the short version. He was on his way. I felt lost without my phone. I wanted to talk with Tammy, but I hated to ask to use the phone again.

  There was no way I was going out there with the possible killer looking for me. My tour would be cancelled until they found this person. The key to finding my attacker would be finding Candace.

  As I stood at the bar I noticed something out of the corner of my eye. I knew before I even looking that the ghosts were in the tavern now. I thought about not looking but, I was curious. I just had to take a quick glance. When I looked to my right I spotted the ghosts. They were standing on the staircase that led to the second floor of the building. They were just hanging around up there watching everyone. No one looked that way so they had no idea the spirits were keeping a watch over the tavern.

  People were staring again when Brannon pulled up with the lights and sirens going. He rushed into the tavern. I was waiting by the door for him. A few other officers joined us right after that.

  “We’re going to look for her.”

  “I’m going with you.” I hurried after him.

  “That’s not a good idea, Rip.”

  “Well, I don’t want to stay here by myself.”