Ghoul of My Dreams (Larue Donavan Series Book 4) Page 5

  Panting as if I was losing a marathon, I rushed out of the house and over to the car. Mindy stared at me with wide eyes as I ran toward her. I slowed down long enough to finally peek over my shoulder. I’d been confident something was behind me, but nothing was there.

  “Is everything okay?” A frown snapped between Mindy’s eyebrows.

  After catching my breath, I held up the key fob like it was a trophy, and said, “I’m fine.”

  Not wanting to worry her any more than she already was, I decided not to share the cabinet door fiasco with her. I pushed the key fob and it still didn’t work. I cursed under my breath, but Mindy released an expletive that the neighbors probably heard. I didn’t know what to do to get in the car.

  “This one isn’t working either,” I said.

  The words had barely left my lips when suddenly the doors unlocked. Mindy and I exchanged a look of shock. I was at a loss for words. Marilyn and Roger stood in silence, too.

  I didn’t want to risk being locked out again, so we hurried into the car. The thought crossed my mind that the same thing could happen again. What if next time the doors wouldn’t unlock and we were in the car? What if the doors wouldn’t unlock and we were stuck in the car like sardines in a tin can. Okay, I needed to calm down and not panic. I had to be strong for Mindy. After starting the car, I backed out of the driveway.

  “What do you think is going on?” Mindy asked.

  “I guess there might be something wrong with your locks.” I kept my eyes on the road.

  I knew if Mindy looked in my eyes, she would know I didn’t believe what I’d just said.

  “I guess I’ll have to get it checked out,” she said.

  Everyone was silent for the short drive to my house. I guess we were all thinking about what had happened. At least I knew we could relax a little at my place. After parking Mindy’s car behind mine, we all climbed out of the car and hurried inside before the rain came down harder. The drops were falling at a steady pace now.

  When I stepped into the living room, Roger was already waiting by the TV. Without saying a word, I grabbed the remote and flicked it on to his favorite channel. At least it kept him entertained.

  “For Roger,” I said to Mindy when I noticed her surprise.

  “He watches TV?” Mindy asked.

  I shook my head. “It’s better than him talking.”

  Mindy laughed. “Is Marilyn here?”

  I gestured beside me. “She helped me get ready for my date.”

  Mindy eyed me up and down. “You look great by the way. I feel bad about messing up your evening.”

  “Thank you, and don’t worry about it.” I waved my hand. “We’ll go out another night.”

  “Will Callahan be upset?” she asked.

  “You know Callahan is a sweetie pie. He just wants to know you’re not upset. Now how about we go into the kitchen?” I said, trying to talk over Roger’s yelling at the TV.

  “Good idea,” Mindy said.

  Now it was just the girls hanging out.

  “How about we have strawberry daiquiris?” I wiggled my eyebrows.

  “You get the mix and I’ll find the vodka,” Mindy marched toward the cabinet.

  “I haven’t done this for years.” Marilyn leaned against the counter.

  Mindy and I exchanged a look.

  “I’m going to change into my sweats. I’ll be right back. Marilyn, you can keep Mindy company? Why don’t you tell her about your movie Some Like It Hot,” I said with a smile.

  I hurried into my room to change out of the blue dress. I would have to save it for another day. When I passed through the living room again, Roger was still in the same spot on the sofa.

  Mindy had already made the drinks and was pouring them into my favorite glasses. The ones with the swirly stems and red, yellow, and blues stripes around the top. I plopped down in the chair across from Marilyn and took a big gulp. This day seemed to have twenty-five hours and it wasn’t even bed time yet.

  After licking the daiquiri from my lips, I asked Mindy, “Did anything else happen at your house?”

  “Nothing other than it felt as if I was being watched.”

  At least it seemed as if Mindy was feeling better now. Maybe I’d left the spirit at her house. I would have to get it out of there though. She had to go home eventually.

  “If anything was there, it’s probably gone now.” I hoped she didn’t ask why I thought that because I would not have a logical answer. I wanted to make her feel better.

  “Can’t you tell the thing that’s there to get out?” Marilyn asked.

  I knew she’d seen the spirit I’d seen.

  “If there is an entity there, then I don’t think he will listen simply by me asking. I would have to do something more severe.” I took another big drink.

  Just then the sound of footsteps came from overhead.

  Mindy pointed up. “Is someone up there?”

  “No, unless Roger went up there. I just saw him in the living room, though. Why would he be upstairs?” I asked.

  “We should go check on him,” Mindy said.

  “I’m glad he’s leaving me alone,” Marilyn said.

  I pushed to my feet and headed toward the living room. Marilyn and Mindy were right behind me. The television was still playing, but Roger wasn’t around.

  “I guess he went upstairs,” I said.

  We inched through the living room and into the hallway. I motioned and Mindy paused.

  “I’ll go up and see what he’s doing,” I whispered.

  Mindy nodded, but she seemed a little tense. Just when she’d started to feel better, now Roger wanted to show off.. I would tell him to cut it out. I didn’t want any more games tonight. We’d all had a long day and I wasn’t in the mood for it. I climbed the stairs to my second floor which was just two bedrooms and a small bathroom.

  “Roger, are you up here?” I called out.

  He didn’t answer. It was just like when I’d found him. Apparently, he felt like it was time for another game of hide-n-seek.

  Chapter 7

  Once at the top of the stairs, the footsteps sounded again. Yes, this was a lot like what had transpired at the house with Roger. I couldn’t believe he was doing this again. I would let him have it when I caught him. I marched down the hallway to the bedroom on the right. When a rustling noise came from the other side of the door, I figured this was where he was. I wasn’t even going to call out to him. I would pop in and then give him a piece of my mind. After grabbing the knob, I swung the door open. To my surprise, Roger wasn’t there. He must be hiding again.

  I tiptoed over to the closet so he wouldn’t know I was about to catch him. I grabbed the handle and yanked it open. Roger wasn’t there either. I pushed the clothing I had hanging in there to the side to make sure he wasn’t at the back. No sign of him. He must be under the bed. I flung the comforter up from the floor and peeked underneath. Still no Roger. That meant he must be either in the bathroom or the other bedroom. After easing out of the room, I went to the bathroom first. I inched into the small space and grabbed the blue and white striped shower curtain.

  With one swift movement, I yanked it back. “Ah-ha!”

  No Roger. He thought he was being so clever. He was probably in one spot and immediately disappearing when he heard me coming. I needed to be quieter.

  There was only one room left. Now, I was really angry I’d had to chase Roger all around the house. I would forget about being quiet. I stormed into the other bedroom. Unfortunately, Roger wasn’t there either. He must have already gone back downstairs. I was too tired to play his game tonight. I massaged my temples, trying to keep the dull headache from growing.

  I was ready to leave the room, but I instantly had that creepy feeling I wasn’t alone. There was someone or something there with me. I was afraid to turn around, yet I knew I had to. I wasn’t so sure this presence was Roger. It felt much more powerful than his manifestation had ever felt. I stood frozen on the spot, unsure of what
to do next. I decided I would spin around quickly before the thing had a chance to slip up on me. I inhaled a deep breath,preparing myself for what I might see.

  On the count of three, I would turn around. 1… 2… 3… I turned around. I spotted it instantly. There was a chair in the corner of the room and there was someone sitting in it, except the person had a sheet over them… like they were wearing it for trick or treating.

  “Roger, is this your idea of playing like your Casper the Friendly Ghost? Well, it’s not funny and I don’t have time for games right now. Take it off and let’s go,” I said with my hands on my hips.

  I marched over to the chair, stopping a few steps away. That same eerie feeling surrounded me. It felt like when I’d found Roger at Elisa’s house, except the creepy factor was intensified by about a hundred. I’d never been this creeped out by Roger. Why wasn’t he saying anything? What if it wasn’t him under there? I swallowed hard and inched a couple steps closer. I was right up next to the chair now. Roger or whoever was under there still hadn’t moved an inch.

  “You’d better come out. I’m starting to get really agitated,” I said.

  Apparently, that was of little concern to the person hiding beneath the fabric. I was stalling, but I knew I had to pull that sheet off. This little game had to end. I willed myself to be strong. I’d been dealing with the paranormal for years. Surely, I could handle a prankster ghost. It was freaking me out though that this ghost wasn’t even moving. My heart rate increased and my stomach fluttered with anxiety.

  I reached out toward the sheet. “Okay, Roger, I gave you a chance. I’m not playing nice any more. I gave you a chance, you should have taken it.”

  I grabbed the sheet and yanked on it. It fluttered to the ground. I gasped and stumbled backward, managing to remain upright. There was no one there. How had the ghost gotten away without me even seeing a glimpse of him? I was almost sure this was Roger up to his shenanigans again, but in the back of my mind I knew it had felt different. If this was Roger then he had a lot of explaining to do. In all the years I’d been dealing the paranormal, I’d never had a spirit play that kind of trick on me. I stared at the chair for a moment longer and then decided it was time to get out of there.

  That was when I noticed the hat on the floor by the window. Where had that come from? I stepped closer, then reached down and picked it up. It was a beige fedora style hat. It wasn’t mine and Roger hadn’t worn a hat. I glanced around the room. A chill went down my spine. I examined under the bed and in the closet, but no one was there.

  I knew I probably shouldn’t tell Mindy about this, but I had to tell someone. I clutched the hat and went back down the hallway toward the stairs. It felt as if someone was walking behind me the entire time. I kept glancing over my shoulder, but there was nothing visible. If the spirit was really there, then he was hiding from me. That was when I remembered where I’d seen the hat before. The spirit that had attacked Mindy had been wearing it. Now, she would really freak out when I told her.

  Apparently the entity had followed us here.

  “Why don’t you show yourself?” I asked. “Are you a coward?”

  With the way it had attacked Mindy, maybe I shouldn’t provoke it. But, I was mad. How dare he do that to my best friend and then mess around with me.

  “I want you out of my house now,” I demanded.

  Silence surrounded me. I expected the spirit to pop up at any moment.

  “Larue, are you coming back down?” Mindy called out from the bottom of the steps.

  “Coming,” I said, trying to sound calm.

  I hurried down the stairs. When I reached the last step, Roger was standing behind Mindy. Marilyn was on the other side of her. They all stared at me expectantly.

  “What’s that?” Mindy pointed at the hat in my hand.

  I showed her the fedora. “I found this upstairs.”

  Her eyes widened. “My gosh, it looks like the one Freddy Kruger wears.”

  I hadn’t thought of that, but it did.

  “Whose is it?” she asked.

  Here came the hard part.

  “I think it belongs to the spirit that attacked you.”

  She immediately tensed up. “Oh no. He’s here? He came here for me? Why is he doing this? Why does he want me? Is he like Freddy Kruger? Is he coming for me in my dreams?”

  Mindy was freaking out. I had to calm her down.

  “Who is Freddy Kruger?” Marilyn asked.

  “It’s a fictional character,” I explained in a hurry.

  I tried to hide the hat behind my back so Mindy couldn’t see it again until I had a chance to stash it somewhere. I knew I shouldn’t have told her about it.

  I led Mindy with my other hand toward the living room. “Here, let’s go sit down.”

  I stuffed the hat in the table drawer once we got into the living room. I grabbed the remote and turned off the TV. That was enough sports for Roger for one day. He actually seemed concerned about Mindy which surprised me.

  I sat beside her on the sofa. “Take a couple deep breaths. This spirit is not Freddy Kruger and he’s not coming for us in our dreams.”

  Her brows knitted together in a frown. “Are you sure?”

  I nodded. “I’m positive.”

  Mindy was still tense, but it seemed as if she had calmed down a bit. Speaking of calm, there were no other footsteps and things were quiet. I hoped it stayed that way.

  “We need to get some sleep,” I suggested.

  Mindy’s eyes widened. “You realize what happens when you go to sleep, right?”

  “Yes… we get rest. There is no spirit coming for you in your dreams.” I shook my head.

  She sighed. “Well, just the same, there is no way I am sleeping upstairs by myself.”

  I guess I couldn’t blame her for that.

  “You can sleep with me.” I pointed my finger at Roger. “Keep the comments to yourself.”

  He held his hands up. “I wasn’t going to say anything.”

  I knew that was a lie.

  “Larue, I can keep a watch out while you all sleep. Will that make Mindy feel better?” Marilyn asked.

  I nodded. “That is very sweet. Thank you, Marilyn. Marilyn is going to watch for the spirit. She will wake me if he comes around. Does that make you feel better?”

  Mindy wrapped her arms in front of her waist as if giving herself a comforting hug. “Yes, that helps. Thank you, Marilyn.”

  “You’re welcome, darling,” she said.

  Mindy and I went to my room. “This is kind of like a weird slumber party,” she said.

  “Yes, it’s like Halloween you spent the night because someone told you girls were being sacrificed that night.” I pulled pajamas from my dresser drawer.

  “The source had seemed creditable at the time,” she said as she removed the pillows from my bed.

  After brushing my teeth and changing into my pink pajamas with the little white bunnies, I climbed into bed. While Mindy was in the bathroom, I laid there staring at the ceiling. Great, now all I could think about was Freddy Kruger. Marilyn appeared next to me. I knew what she wanted. The mattress moved down as she sat by my feet. The novel was on the nightstand by my bed. When Mindy came out of the bathroom and caught me reading aloud, I had to explain to her what I was doing. Mindy smiled and climbed under the covers. Now I was reading to both of them. I wasn’t sure at what point I’d dozed off to sleep.

  The dark shadow appeared to float right through the doorway. The light coming from under the bathroom door gave just enough glow to highlight the shadow’s silhouette. It glided across the room toward the bed. This was definitely the man from earlier. He wasn’t wearing the hat now though. Had he come back for the hat?

  Even though it was dark I knew he was staring right at me… his green eyes glowed in the dark. My body was frozen as if I was paralyzed. He moved closer and closer and now he was right beside me. The smell of rotten leaves assaulted my nostrils. He leaned down and put his face right in front of
mine, yet I still couldn’t move. What did he want?

  I had to scream or move. There had to be a way to get away from him. Willing all my strength, I finally jumped up in bed. The man was gone and Mindy was asleep beside me. How had that happened? How much time had passed? Had I fallen asleep? The book I’d been reading to Marilyn and Mindy was still on my lap.

  My heart beat fast and sweat trickled down my forehead. Apparently, it had all been a dream. It was all that talk of Freddy Kruger. Surprisingly, I’d rarely had a ghost come to me in a dream. I especially didn’t want it to happen if that ghost was going to be mean. I peered at the clock. It was four a.m. There were still a couple of hours until time to get up.

  I laid back in the bed and tried to take my mind off everything. I needed to think of something else. Happy things. Callahan popped into my mind. Thoughts of him always made me happy. I tried to think of the bookstore, but that made me remember the spirit peeking in the window. I didn’t know when I finally drifted off again, but I woke when the sun came streaming in the window and splashing across my face. Movement caught my attention to my left and I thought for sure I spotted Roger drift out the door. Had he been in the room?

  I would be extremely angry if I found out he’d come in here. Where was Marilyn? I guess she couldn’t keep an eye on him all the time. Mindy was still asleep, so I eased up and headed for the bathroom. I wanted to finish my shower before she needed it. When I was finished, Mindy was already awake.

  “Hey. Are you feeling better?” I asked.

  She sat on the side of the bed. “As long as that ghost isn’t here.”

  I moved over to the closet to pick out my outfit. “No sign of him. I bet he’s long gone now.”

  She quirked an eyebrow. “Yeah, we’ll see about that.”

  I pulled out a navy blue pencil skirt and a white short-sleeved blouse with a fitted waist.

  Mindy shuffled toward the bathroom. “I’m taking a shower.”

  “I’ll start breakfast,” I said.

  She peeked around the door. “Oh, can you make French toast?”

  I smiled. “Sure.”

  Once Mindy was in the bathroom, I slipped out of my robe and into my clothing. Navy blue flats would complete my outfit. Usually, I wore jeans, but since I was surrounded my Marilyn’s glamor all day, I decided to dress up a bit. I rushed through putting on makeup and pulled my hair back into some semblance of a style. Before I made breakfast, I needed to find Roger and Marilyn. I moved through the hallway and over to the living room.