2 The Haunted Fixer-Upper Read online

  Reed took my hand in his. “I know you have a big heart, but we can’t save them all.”

  “What happened to the place?” I asked eagerly.

  My anxiety mounted. It always happened when I thought about a potential fixer-upper.

  “I heard lightning hit it.” He released a sigh, then continued. “It wasn’t salvageable. There’s nothing you could have done to save it.” He squeezed my hand lightly.

  I didn’t respond. He was right though. Sometimes it was unavoidable. That didn’t make me any less sad though. A noise sounded from my right and I jumped, moving closer to Reed. I’d use him as a shield if I had to.

  “What was that?” I clutched my chest. “I swear, Reed. Why did you have to put ideas in my head?”

  “Me? You had ideas in your head long before I came along.” He chuckled.

  I snorted.

  “It was probably just another deer,” he said, taking my hand again.

  “Yeah, that or Bigfoot coming to make us his lunch.” I scanned the area like a skittish animal.

  “Do they eat humans?” Reed asked.

  “How the heck should I know? But I sure don’t want to take a chance on finding out.” I picked up my pace. “Come on. Let’s try to get out of here before we’re something’s lunch.”

  “We’ll be fine, don’t worry.” He squeezed my hand reassuringly.

  Up ahead was another gravel road. Overgrown bushes almost completely concealed the area. Trees lined the path like guards watching over the entire area. What adventure would that road lead us to?

  “Where does that lead?” I asked as I pointed in the general direction.

  “That’s the driveway for the plantation.” I heard disappointment in his voice. He cared about the old houses too. Whether or not he wanted to admit it.

  Oh, great, we had to walk past the thing so I’d feel even worse. Or walk past what was left of it. That family reunion was sounding better by the minute. I hoped they had a lawn chair under a shade tree for me with plenty of lemonade.

  I swatted at a bug. “How old was the place?”

  He shrugged. “I think it was built sometime around 1810.”

  “Why is it out here in the middle of nowhere? Why aren’t there any other houses?”

  “It was one big farm. I heard they’re trying to develop the area. It won’t be long before there are plenty of houses around here.” A hint of disappointment tinged his words.

  “I just hope they don’t take down too many of these beautiful trees.” I looked skyward toward the top branches.

  We neared the gravel drive and I spotted a tall iron gate. It had intricate details of roses and leaves swirled within the whole thing. Both sides stood open just a little so I stepped closer, then turned around to look at Reed.

  “I know that look in your eyes. We’re already really late. Are you sure you want to spend even more time wondering around the ruins of a haunted plantation?”

  “Six months together and you still have to ask me that question, really?” I shook my head.

  He nodded. “Good point. I guess a few more minutes won’t matter. Heck, maybe they’ll send a search party to come find us.”

  “We couldn’t get that lucky,” I said around a forced smile. It was hard to feign enthusiasm.

  I pushed the gate open wider and moved through. The long driveway was shaded by tall oak trees and more pine trees behind them. It was like another world—a private secluded world tucked away from the hustle and bustle.

  As I soaked in the scenery, I pictured myself spending a lot of time in a place like this. Never mind that the nearest Piggly Wiggly was a good drive down the road. It would be worth it for this kind of peace and quiet, although if the serial killer’s ghost came around I’d probably think twice. I didn’t mind ghosts, just not ghosts of serial killers. If I didn’t want to run into a serial killer in real-life, I sure didn’t want to meet one in the ghost form either.

  I wiped the back of my neck and fanned myself as we continued toward the ruins. It was a good length down the driveway until I spotted something up ahead. I’d never seen anything like it.

  Chapter Three

  What was I seeing between the trees? A part of the house?

  “I thought the house had burned down?” I asked as Reed moved along beside me.

  “That’s what I heard,” he said.

  We stepped close, and that was when the full scope of the home came into view. Every inch of it appeared to be intact. Well, except for the sagging roof over the porch. It was as if the house had just jumped out and yelled surprise.

  “It looks like it’s all there to me,” I said as I tugged on Reed’s arm.

  I was practically bouncing with each step. The place was stunning with a stone and brick façade, giant columns and a wrap-around porch. The house was stately and breathtaking. But most of all, it looked lonely. If Reed wouldn’t think I was completely bonkers, I probably would have broken down in tears right then. That house needed me. I knew it the minute I set my eyes on it.

  “This place is amazing,” I whispered.

  “I must have gotten the wrong information,” he said as we stepped closer.

  Sure, the place was run down and in need of a lot of attention, but it was still standing and as far as I could tell, there was no fire damage. That was more than enough to work with.

  “Let’s go inside,” I said as I started up the steps.

  Reed grabbed my arm. “We don’t know how unstable the inside is.”

  I looked at him. “Well, there’s only one way to find out, right? How will we ever know if we don’t go inside?”

  “Why don’t you let me go in first?” Reed asked with an exasperated look.

  I glared at him. “You know I’m not going to let that happen, right? I don’t need you to protect me. I can handle myself just fine.”

  He let out a deep breath. “Yeah, just like the time you almost got yourself killed by a deranged realtor.”

  “Oh, here we go again. What is that supposed to mean? This situation is a little different from that, don’t you think? One little incident with a madman and I never hear the end of it.”

  He studied me for a moment, then said, “I’m just trying to help, that’s all.”

  “Well, you’ll help by not standing in my way as I go into the house.” I pushed past Reed.

  “Let it be known that I think this is a bad idea,” he said in a unusually calm tone.

  His calmness was an act and I knew it would only be a matter of time until he started with his warnings again.

  “Duly noted,” I said from over my shoulder.

  “At least let me go in first, would you? Let a guy feel like a guy.” His expression tensed.

  I rolled my eyes. “Fine.”

  I made a sweeping gesture with my arm and directed him to go first.

  “Thank you.” Reed stepped to the door and grabbed the handle.

  The knob rattled and shook, then fell off in his hand. I snickered, but he didn’t acknowledge my teasing. Reed pushed the door open and a tornado of dust almost knocked us flat on our butts. I waved my hand in front of my face and stepped inside, coughing.

  “Don’t forget to look down and watch your step,” Reed said between coughs.

  I gave the floor a quick glance. “The hardwood looks like it’s in really good shape, considering,” I said.

  Reed nodded. “Yeah, I thought the place wasn’t even standing anymore.”

  Reed and I moved from the foyer into the dining room. A grand crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling. Cobwebs cascaded down from the arms of the fixture as if it had been decorated for a Halloween party. Plaster from the ceiling and the walls were cracked, littering the floor with powdery dust. I followed Reed as he made his way back across the room and toward what I assumed was the kitchen. Once I stepped across the threshold into the room I let out a deep sigh. It was just a shell of a room. No cabinets or appliances. I guessed someone had gutted the place a long time ago.
/>   Someone had been in the house recently because there was an empty coffee container tossed on the floor. They hadn’t done much work in the room for a while though since spider webs had taken residency in the corners. There were some unusual changes to the inside of the home though. The décor looked almost medieval, like a castle.

  “What do you think is going on in here?” I asked as we stood in the middle of the room.

  Reed shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s kind of weird. I would say some kind of cult has been using the place, but it doesn’t exactly look like that either.”

  I rubbed my arms to get rid of the goose bumps that had popped up. It was far from cold in the room, so I wasn’t sure where the cold breeze had come from.

  “Oh, great. Way to freak me out even more.”

  Reed moved closer and took my hand in his. “Let’s check out the rest.”

  Reed and I moved back through the kitchen toward the front of the house and stepped into the parlor. A huge fireplace set against the far wall with a large stone mantel. The plaster in that room looked as if it was being repaired. An empty bucket and a few tools set in the corner of the room.

  “It looks like someone was working in here recently.” I walked over to the staircase banister and placed my hand on it. It wobbled back and forth.

  Reed took one look at the staircase and said, “There is no way I’m letting you even attempt to go up there. There’s stubborn and then there’s crazy. Those stairs aren’t stable and I won’t even go up there.”

  I held my hands up in surrender, then folded my arms in front of my chest. “I wasn’t going to try it. Give me a little bit of credit, okay.”

  “I think we’ve seen enough for now.” Reed wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close.

  “Yeah, I guess. But I’ll be back,” I said wistfully.

  Reed and I walked toward the door. Maybe it was my imagination at work, but I felt as if someone was walking behind me. I glanced over my shoulder, but saw nothing. My mind was playing tricks on me. I stepped out onto the porch, watching my step so I didn’t twist my ankle on something. The sensation of someone following me stopped once I reached the porch.

  As we walked away from the house, I glanced back over my shoulder, then turned back around to meet Reed’s gaze. I’d felt his eyes on me.

  “I know that look in your eyes. And I’m not sure it’s possible.” He crossed his arms in front of his chest.

  “What do you mean you’re not sure it’s possible? Because it needs too much work? It doesn’t need all that much,” I said.

  “I think it might be cheaper to build a new house.” A smile played at his lips.

  I scoffed. “You always say that. You are so dramatic.”

  “Me? You’re one to talk. Besides we don’t know if the house is for sale or not. Can you afford it?” Reed stared up at the house.

  “We can find out if it’s for sale. And they have to want to sell this place for cheap.” I looped my arm through his and flashed a wide smile.

  “Yeah, they may want to sell it for cheap, but it won’t be cheap to fix it up.”

  “Fine. If you don’t want to try an adventure.” I studied my fingernails.

  “I want to try adventure. My idea of adventure is going on vacation and trying something new. Your idea of adventure requires a whole lot of work.”

  “Work never hurt anybody,” I warned with a waggle of my index finger.

  Reed stared for a beat. “You got me there.” He ran his hand through his thick hair. “Are you sure you can afford it? How would you fix it up? Where would you live? I’m assuming you’d stay in Bay Pine while you worked on the house.”

  I shrugged. “Of course, we’d have to.”

  His blue eyes widened. “We?” He scoffed and waved his hands. “Oh, no. I’m not signing up for this.”

  I crossed my arms in front of my chest. “And just why not?”

  He searched my gaze, but didn’t answer.

  “See. You don’t have a reason why not.” I smiled, proud of my astuteness.

  Reed turned his back to me and let out a low groan that sounded like a baby bear. The air was still and we were still sweating buckets. It probably wasn’t the best time to have this conversation, but I’d never been good at knowing when to start a battle. After a couple seconds, he turned around to face me. Before he said a word, a brick fell off the front of the house and tumbled to the ground. A cloud of dust filled the air in its wake. Reed smirked as if to say, That’s why not.

  “Minor problem.” I waved it off. “Listen, first we need to find out if the place is for sale. We may be arguing over nothing.”

  He paused, then said, “You have a point. It’s probably not even for sale.”

  “It looks like someone has been doing a little bit of work anyway. Someone is probably planning on fixing it up.” My tone sounded more like I was trying to convince myself.

  Reed snorted. “Well, they’re not doing a great job of it.”

  “We did this once before. How bad can it be?” My mind had a crazy mixture of hope and fear.

  Even though I asked the question, I couldn’t help but think that usually something bad does happen when someone asks how bad can it be?

  We made it halfway down the drive and I turned around for another look at the magnificent place. I hoped it really was for sale. My stomach did a little dance just thinking of the prospect. The house seemed to be reaching out to me. It didn’t want me to leave… and I didn’t want to abandon it. I drank in its stately beauty. I envisioned how beautiful it could be with a little tender loving care. It needed someone to give it the love it so deserved. I wanted the house more than I’d ever wanted anything.

  “Come on. It’ll be getting dark soon. We need to get out of here.” Reed touched my arm.

  “Before the ghost of the serial killer gets us, right?” I laughed nervously.

  Movement beside one of the tall pine trees caught my attention. For a fleeting moment, I thought I saw a man watching us. But either I was seeing things or he had just disappeared. Was it the rumored serial killer ghost? No, that was just a story the kids had used to scare each other. I wouldn’t fall for such nonsense.

  Reed and I slipped back through the iron gates and onto the gravel road. I didn’t mention seeing the man. It was probably a trick of the eye anyway. And I didn’t need Reed teasing me about being paranoid. But what if what I’d seen was real? Maybe there had been a man watching us, and not a ghost, but a real man. Maybe someone was living in the old house. I had so many unanswered questions about the place. Where would I even start to find the answers? I knew the most important question though: was the place for sale? Maybe Reed had been right about not getting involved with the place, but I couldn’t help myself. It was like the old plantation was speaking to me. How could I turn my back on it?

  Chapter Four

  We’d only made it a little way down the road when Reed’s cell phone rang. The sound startled me in the silence. We looked at each other and laughed as he pulled it from his pocket.

  The person’s voice boomed from the other end of the line. “Where the hell are you?”

  The loud male voice sounded more like a bear.

  “The truck broke down and we’re walking.”

  I walked beside Reed as he explained where we were located in relation to the main road. The tall trees were throwing my sense of direction off. I trusted that Reed knew where he was going and the road we were walking on really did lead somewhere. Leaving a trail of breadcrumbs didn’t sound like such a crazy idea now. After Reed explained where we were located and how we’d almost hit a deer and then the truck had practically caught on fire, he stuffed the phone back in his pocket.

  “Well, we’re in luck, my cousin Frank is on his way.”

  “Thank goodness. I wouldn’t want that serial killer ghost to chase us,” I said around a grin.

  On the outside I was joking, but on the inside my thoughts were jumbled. Sure, I believed in ghosts, but what
I’d seen couldn’t have been a ghost. The man had been too real… a real, living and breathing person. My thoughts wandered back to the house for a moment, but then returned to the strange man I’d seen in the woods. I was probably making more of the incident than I needed, but the man had had an odd haunted look in his eyes.

  “Are you doing okay?” Reed asked.

  “Yeah, but my feet are starting to hurt. I should have known better than to wear new shoes.” I glanced down at my white sneakers. They wouldn’t stay that way for long.

  With any luck, Reed’s cousin would arrive soon to pick us up. The mosquitos were making a buffet out of my legs and arms. If the tow truck would come haul his uncle’s truck away to the nearest junk yard we’d be back in business.

  After another couple minutes of walking, the loud roar of an engine caught our attention. Up ahead I spotted a truck headed our way. The blue Ford pulled up beside us. A man who appeared to be in his early forties with espresso-colored hair and a crooked smile was behind the wheel. When the truck came to a stop he rolled the window down and motioned for us to hop in.

  “Y’all are going to have a heat stroke out here. Jump in. I got the air cranked,” he said with a deep Southern drawl.

  I squeezed in between Reed and his cousin. Frank was a large guy, at probably six foot five and over two hundred pounds of muscle—a solid man with thick dark hair like Reed’s. Luckily, Reed had said it wasn’t much further to Frank’s home. The space in the truck’s cab was minimal with both men on either side of me and I felt a little claustrophobic.

  The sun was getting lower in the sky and we’d missed most of the reunion already. Darn, I really hated that. Okay, that was mean of me, but I hadn’t been looking forward to the awkward event in the first place. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to meet Reed’s family. I really did want to get to know them. But it was just that reunions always made me feel out of place… a bunch of people who were family to each other, yet strangers to me. That was one of the weirdest situations to be in.

  I had tuned out the guys’ conversation while I daydreamed. When Frank pulled his truck down the long gravel driveway, I snapped back to reality.