Ghoul of My Dreams (Larue Donavan Series Book 4) (22 page)

Chapter 26

The sun shone bright the next day. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Everything seemed a lot brighter now that the dark shadows were gone. Well, at least
I
thought they were. I was already at the bookstore and the ghosts were still with me. So far, I hadn’t seen any sign of the dark shadow. And, the ones following Bethany around seemed to have gone away, too. It looked as if our plan had worked. Stone had doubted me, but I had proved him wrong. Now, I wondered what the ghosts would do? Would they stick around?

I wasn’t taking any chances with the dark shadows though. I had to do something to at least keep them away from my home and bookstore. After encountering the evil entity and knowing what it was capable of, I decided to use a bit of magic. I needed a ward around the place to keep the bad things away. I’d done it several times, but the spells potency faded with time. I’d just give the place a little refresher. I did the spell by myself, so maybe I wasn’t even doing it correctly, although it did seem to help for a while.

“What are you doing, Larue? Trying to burn the place down?” Roger waved his hands across the flickering flame of the candle.

Surprisingly, he was able to produce a nice size wind for a ghost. The flame danced a bit, but didn’t go out.

“I’m casting a spell to keep the bad spirits away.”

“It’s a little late for that, don’t you think?” He smirked.

I flashed him one of those smirks he’d been giving me for days. “The spirits could come back. Duh.”

His mouth twisted to one side, as if he couldn’t believe I’d talked to him that way. I sprinkled the ginger into the water. This was supposed to banish the evil.

“Protect this space from evil spirits. Ones with bad intentions may not enter. Stop them at the door. Protect this space from evil spirits. So mote it be.” I repeated the words several times.

Marilyn sighed. “I hope it works, Larue. You’ve dealt with enough bad for a lifetime.”

I knew the spell wouldn’t last forever, but it was better than nothing. I just never knew when another bad one would be waiting for me. 

Mindy breezed through the door with the usual spring in her step, poised to ask me to come to class tonight. She wore her workout gear of black tank and black yoga pants with bright pink sneakers. I needed a break after what I’d been doing with the portal. I still didn’t have all my energy back. I doubted Mindy would buy that excuse and allow me to skip Zumba though. Mindy held up the bag of blueberry doughnuts. That was usually the sign that meant I was headed for class that night.

“I brought you doughnuts,” she said in a sing-songy voice.

I immediately pulled one out of the bag and sunk my teeth into it, accepting her bribe of sweets.

“Wow, taking on the demons must’ve really increased your appetite. You need a trough or something.”

I laughed. “Hey, you bring me my favorite doughnuts, what do you expect? And, yes, fighting evil is a lot of work. I need my energy.”

Mindy gestured with a tilt of her head. “So, are they still here?”

“We’re right behind you, babe,” Roger said.

He was feeling really macho since he’dgone into the portal with me
.

I motioned to them with a tilt of my head.

Mindy glanced over her shoulder. Marilyn waved and Roger winked. James just looked like his usual grumpy old self.

“What about the dark spirits? Have you seen any of them?” Mindy asked.

“No, thank goodness, I think they’re gone for good.”

“What about Callahan? Is he okay?” Mindy asked.

“Things are back to normal with him, too.” I smiled.

“He was really upset after what happened.” She picked at the edge of her doughnut.

“I don’t even want to think about it. I’m glad it’s in the past now.
”

“Are they still behind me?” Mindy whispered as she glanced over shoulder.

“No, they’re over by the window talking. It appears they’re in a deep conversation. I don’t know what they’re planning.” I narrowed my eyes. “Yes, they’re definitely planning something.”

“You don’t know what they’re going to do about going into the light?” Mindy asked.

I shook my head. “No. They act as if they aren’t ready to go anywhere.”

Marilyn was no longer wearing her iconic dress. When I asked her why, she said she decided she wanted to be herself, which meant casual jeans and a baby blue sweater. She looked more relaxed and at ease. 

“What will you do with them?” Mindy asked.

I looked toward the front of the room to make sure they weren’t listening. The ghosts were still engrossed in their own conversation
.
“Well, I usually wait for them to decide when they want to leave. That’s worked in the past. Now, I’m not so sure. If they don’t decide to go, I’ll have to try to persuade them to leave.”

“Or, you could let them stay around,” Mindy said and then took another bite of doughnut.

“Great, but what will I do when more ghosts enviably show up?” I asked.

Mindy chewed and then said, “You have a point.  Maybe they could hang out here in the bookstore when the new ghosts appear.
”
 

“So, they’d be haunting the bookstore?” I asked.

Mindy shrugged. “Yeah, why not? They were haunting other locations before they met you. Why not just haunt here?”

I took another bite while I pondered the thought. “That would be too many ghosts for me to talk to. They take a lot of energy. Plus, they would never stay here. They follow me home. Instead of the crazy cat lady, I’m the crazy ghost lady.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right about that.” She glanced at them again. “But, they do act as if they’re staying, don’t they?
”

The door opened and grabbed our attention.

Mindy’s dad walked in. “Hey, ladies! Guess what?”

Mindy and I exchanged a look.

“He seems excited,” I said. “What’s going on?”

She shrugged. “I have no idea.”

He approached the counter. The ghosts came over, too, wanting to know what he had to say.

“What’s the big news, Dad?” Mindy asked.

“I’m going to the Marilyn Monroe museum in Hollywood. I can’t wait to see everything.”

Marilyn moved closer to him. Her eyes widened. “You’re going to a museum for me?” she asked as if he could hear her.

“That’s cool.  When do you leave?” Mindy asked.

“Yes, when
do
we leave?” Marilyn asked.

My eyes widened. Mindy noticed, but didn’t ask since her father was there.

“I’m leaving this afternoon.”

“So soon? When did this happen?” Mindy asked.

“A friend of mine won a couple tickets to Hollywood when he entered a contest. Someone else backed out, so he asked if I wanted to come along. Of course, I said, ‘yes.’”

“Of course,” Mindy said.

“I thought I’d stop by and tell you.” He leaned over and kissed Mindy on the cheek. “I’ll bring you both a souvenir.”

“Thanks, Dad. Have fun.” Mindy seemed surprised at his sudden trip.

“Thanks, Mr. Winters,” I said
.

“Thanks for everything, Larue, but I have to go with him. I’ll see you later.” Marilyn waved.

“Marilyn, we still have a few chapters left in the book.” I pointed to the novel on the counter beside me.

A luminous smile lit her face. “I’ll be around, Larue.”

I wasn’t sure what that meant.

“Bye, kid.” Marilyn winked at Roger.

“But, Marilyn, you can’t leave me.” He ran toward her.

She waved over her shoulder as she followed Mindy’s dad out of the store. “I have to go.”

Roger rushed back over to me and waved his hands in front of my face. “You have to stop her.”

“I can’t do that,” I said. “You’ll be fine without her.”

“She was the girl of my dreams,” he said in a pouty voice.

“You’ll met someone else,” I said.

He slumped his shoulders. “Yeah, right.”

James patted Roger on the back. “Larue’s right. You’ll find someone else.”

“Marilyn Monroe just left with your dad.” I brought Mindy up to date on the ghostly activity.

“You’re kidding?”

I quirked an eyebrow. “Would I kid about something like that?”

Mindy laughed. “No, I guess not. Why did she go with him?”

“She said she wanted to see the museum and go back to Hollywood.”

“Well, that
is
her home. I wonder if she will stay.”

“I have a feeling she will.”

Mindy picked up her can of Diet Coke. “I’m off to class. So… I’ll see you tonight?”

“What’s tonight?” I frowned.

“A new class that will really help firm your butt.” She patted her backside.

Roger laughed and I glared at him.

Mindy waved. “See you then.”

I fell back onto the stool behind me. Butt firming? I didn’t like that sound of that.

Chapter 27

I was placing books on the shelf when I noticed a bright light. The glow was so intense that it bounced off the wall in front of me. I turned around and saw that the light was coming from the ceiling. I’d seen it before with the other ghosts. A beam came down to the floor, growing wider at the bottom. Who was the light for? Was it for Roger or James? Neither one had mentioned anything about leaving. I thought they would have told me before they left. I walked over to the counter which was closer to where the light had appeared.

James turned to me. In that moment I knew then that it was him who had intentions of leaving.

He nodded. “Thanks for everything, Larue, it’s been fun, but it’s time for me to go.”

“I’m confused,” Roger said. “Where are you going?”

“It’s time to go to the next dimension.” James motioned. “And, you’re coming with me.”

“I am?” Roger asked.

James nodded. “Yes, you are. You’ll love it. I promise you will meet a girl who you’ll like even better than Marilyn Monroe.”

“I don’t know if that’s possible,” Roger said.

“Just trust me.” James placed his arm around Roger’s shoulders.

Roger frowned and said, “I’ll miss you, Larue.”

I wiped away a tear. “I’ll miss you, too, Roger.”

Saying goodbye was always the hardest part even though I needed them to move on. I got attached to the ghosts while they were here. That was when I remembered I had a few unanswered questions before they left.

“Wait, James. You never told me why you were really here,” I called out.

I’d always thought he’d eventually reveal something to me, but now he was leaving without saying a word. Didn’t he have unfinished business he wanted help with? What about Roger? He’d never really said why he was hanging around either. Was it to find the girl of his dreams?

A sly smile spread across James’ face. “I’m your spirit guide, Larue.”

I quirked an eyebrow. “Why didn’t you say something?”

James eyed Roger. “Roger was supposed to be Stone’s spirit guide, but he wasn’t doing the job. Now he’s going back for more training before he returns.”

My mouth dropped. I hadn’t expected that bit of information. Roger stood by James and then they started walking toward the light. It didn’t take long until they were completely immersed within it and then they disappeared. Within seconds, the light grew smaller and was completely gone. I didn’t get the all the answers that I had wanted. Did Stone know Roger was his spirit guide? I knew I had several, but I’d never had one show up like James.

The store was quiet. No customers had come in yet. It was still early. I was all alone once again, but that probably wouldn’t last long. It never did. There was always a ghost not far away waiting for a chance to talk to me. They just needed someone who could hear them. I was that person. Who knew which ghost would show up next. Would another celebrity ghost come by? That had to stop at some point. Not that I minded at all because it was kind of fun and really cool.

***

I was kind of sad when I didn’t have anyone to talk to while I worked. A couple of customers had come and gone and I was finishing up paperwork at the register when the door announced another arrival. When I glanced up, I spotted Stone coming toward me. I knew something was up by the look on his face. It seemed like everyone was picking today to leave town. Now that the paranormal job was over, there was no need for him to stay.

“I thought I would stop by and thank you for everything.” Stone’s smile seemed to come a lot easier now. His expression seemed so much lighter now that this was all behind us.

“Why do you want to thank me? I should be thanking you. You’re the one who helped me get rid of the dark shadows.”

“Well, technically, I’m the one who caused the dark shadows to begin with,” he said.

“I’m not going to argue with that. You do have a point there.”

He laughed. “You aren't going to fight me on that one? Seriously, thanks for everything.”

I smiled. “I’m just doing my job.”

“One you’re good at,” he said. “If you ever need anything, just let me know, okay?”

I nodded. “I promise I’ll give you a call. I hope they never come back. Will I ever see you again?”

He reached out and touched my hand, which caught me off guard because he’d never done anything like that before. Well, other than the whooper of a kiss he’d planted on me.

“You’ll most definitely see me again. I have some business to take care of, or I wouldn’t leave now.”

I wondered if his business had anything to do with more dark shadows.

“Are you going to talk to your mother before you leave?” I asked.

It was none of my business, but I really wanted to know.

“There’s no time for that now. I’ll have to do it some other day,” he said.

I really hope that he meant that because I felt like he should work out whatever problems they had.

I picked at a piece of paper on the counter, wondering if I should bring up the topic.

Finally, I said, “Why did you kiss me?”

His cheeks turned slightly pink. “About that… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. It was the situation. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

I wasn’t sure I believed him, but what else could I say?

I nodded. “Where are you going?”

He studied my face for a moment, and then said, “Another small town.”

It didn’t seem as if he really wanted to share those details.

I stepped out from behind the counter. “You have to give me a hug before you go.”

I wrapped my arms around him. He was tense at first, but then he relaxed. He held on to me for a while, as if he hadn’t hugged anyone in a long time.

Finally, he broke free. “I have to go now.”

With that Stone walked out the door.

I wondered if I really would ever see him again.

The end.