Read Haunted Renovation Mystery 1 - Flip That Haunted House Online
Authors: Rose Pressey
Tags: #paranormal mystery cozy mystery women sleuths paranormal romance romantic mystery paranormal
He stared me right in the eyes and I stood
immobile. In a fraction of a second, he disappeared. Bracing myself
for another encounter, I gulped in air, then blew it out. What
happened to our souls once we’d passed away always held my
fascination and I was getting a lifetime’s worth tonight. I ran
over to the window, praying he wouldn’t pop up in front of me,
giving me a heart attack, and searched for him.
I spotted the ghost on the front lawn—the
light from Reed’s house making him barely visible. The silent
stranger walked across the yard, to a place near the front steps.
He pointed downward to a location on the ground. A chill ran up and
down my spine, as I stared wide-eyed at the eerie scene from the
parlor window. What did he mean? Not knowing what he wanted from me
was incredibly frustrating. But if I felt like that, then how did
he feel? It wasn’t a question of if he felt emotion, because I knew
by the expression in his eyes, he did. I’d always thought of the
scientific aspect of the afterlife…until now. Witnessing the spirit
amazed me and left me without a doubt that there was something more
when we passed from this world. As I watched in awe, he moved
toward the house, then, vanished as quickly as he’d appeared.
I wanted to know the ghost’s identity. An
overwhelming need to help him pervaded me. No one should ever be
dealt his fate. I needed to hit the library and search for answers.
Maybe I’d discover something about the obvious tragedy that had
taken place on the property. Something had happened to him, I felt
it. Did he die in the house? His soul was trapped for some reason
and I needed to know why.
Tomorrow, I’d visit the library. There had
to be information about the history of the house. No sooner had I
grabbed my purse to leave, when again, another loud bang rang out.
The sound came from underneath the house this time—in the basement.
I eased back to the foyer and peered around the corner. The
basement door was cracked-open. I inched over and stood at the top
of the stairs, peering down at the black hole in the ground.
“Hello,” I called, as if anyone would
answer.
Darkness enveloped the space and it was hard
for my eyes to adjust. The only light was a single bulb at the
bottom of the stairs and I’d have to make my way to it in the dark.
Why wasn’t there a switch at the top? The small light provided from
the open door at the top of the stairs would have to guide my way.
Doubts filled my mind as I placed my foot on the first step. My
teeth chattered as my nerves set in. Had the ghost lured me along
just to lock me down there? For all I knew, it was an evil spirit
pretending to need help in order to trick me. I knew little about
demons…I’d seen
The Exorcist
before, and I didn’t want any
part of that.
I continued down the steps, easing deeper
and deeper into the dark pit. I held my breath, waiting for
something to jump out at me. My hand clutched the railing in a
death grip as I descended. I moved slowly so I wouldn’t lose my
footing. When I made it to the bottom step, without breaking a leg,
I stepped onto the dirt floor. The space was pitch-black—I could
barely make out my hand in front of my face. A sickening knot in my
stomach returned, I’d grown accustomed to the feeling for the past
few days. The sliver of light let off little glow, but just enough
to see my destination. I inched across the floor. After what seemed
like an eternity, I reached the bulb and yanked the string. Dim
light shone around the space.
It was even scarier than I had remembered.
I’d come down once when I first looked at the house and had vowed
never to return again. Now look at me…standing down here by myself
in the middle of the night. Well, except for the ghost who, at the
moment, was nowhere in sight. I shuddered at the thought of
encountering little creatures…namely, rats. As I stood there eyeing
the ground for any sign of a rodent, I realized I had no clue what
I was down there for. Did the ghost live in this gloomy space? Not
the best living conditions, to say the least. Although, I’d seen
some bachelor pads that didn’t look much better. With that thought
in mind, I had no inkling what to do next. I inched around the
space. It was eerily void of anything. The further I moved, the
more darkness surrounded me. The small bulb didn’t provide ample
light to illuminate the entire basement.
After a minute of glancing around, I decided
being down there was pointless. Whatever he had wanted to tell me,
I wasn’t sure I’d ever figure out. A loud noise drew my attention
to the top of the stairs. Was someone up there? Maybe the ghost or
Reed? I climbed the stairs, glad to put distance between the gloomy
space and me. I eased the door shut and looked around. Still no one
but me.
After a second, a glimpse of movement out of
the corner of my eye caught my attention. I walked into the parlor
and peered out the window. A silhouette darted from the side of the
house. It didn’t take a hammer over my head to know someone had
been peeping in the window watching me. And it wasn’t a ghost this
time. My skin crawled. The scariest part?—the person was dressed
all in black just like the person I’d seen running from Cooper
Payne’s building.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
I ran to the far wall and huddled in the
corner. A smaller window was next to me. I inched my head over and
looked out into the darkness, trying to ascertain where the person
had gone. My body trembled. I scrunched down low, hoping to hide
from the trespasser—I didn’t want whoever was out there to know my
movements. The small sliver of light from Reed’s porch light did
nothing to illuminate the area. I couldn’t tell where the person
went or in what direction. In the distance, a dog barked and I
wondered if his howling was at the mysterious black silhouette.
A knock rapped at the door and I nearly
jumped out of my skin. I froze. What was I thinking coming here in
the middle of the night with a killer on the loose—and after me?
Clearly, not one of my better ideas. I inched across the room, my
back pressed close to the wall. As I neared the door, a soft voice
called out.
“Bama?”
“Lacey?” I ran to the door “Is that
you?”
“Yeah, let me in.”
I yanked open the door. “What are you doing
here?”
Lacey and her husband stood in front of the
door. “We went to a late movie. We saw the light on and your car in
the drive as we drove by and decided to stop. What are you doing
here? You said you were staying home tonight.”
I stared at her. “I couldn’t sleep.”
She scowled. “You look like you saw a ghost.
Have they been gliding around tonight?” She looked over my
shoulder.
“Um…no.” My thoughts were muffled.
“What is it?” she asked.
I tried to catch my breath. “Someone was
messing around at the side of the house. I think they’d been
peeping in the window, watching me.” I pointed to the window.
“Bastards,” she said.
Lacey turned and looked at Rob. He looked
out over the dark yard. “You shouldn’t be here alone. Come on.
We’ll follow you home.”
“I’ll check around the house,” Rob said.
I nodded. “Let me turn out the light and
lock the door.”
Lacey waited while I hurried through the
rooms and flipped the switch on the chandelier. After I secured the
front door, she grabbed my arm and led me down the steps to the
car. My teeth chattered, but at the same time, my palms were
sweaty. I scanned the darkness as we rushed across the drive. She
closed my door, after I jumped in, then leapt in her car.
Rob ran back from around the house. He
nodded. “I didn’t see anything.”
“Maybe I was imagining things.”
“I don’t think so,” Lacey said. “Come on,
let’s go.”
With my hands still shaking, I pulled out of
the driveway with Rob and Lacey following close behind. When I
glanced in the rearview mirror at Reed’s house, no lights shone.
Had he seen us? As I made my way home, still shaken up, I was at my
wits’ end. I wasn’t sure if calling the police would help, but I
knew Lacey would insist. It hadn’t helped any in the past,
though.
“Your taillights are broken,” Lacey said as
I climbed out of my car.
“Are you kidding me?”
“Nope. Take a look for yourself.” She
pointed.
I moved around to inspect the damage. The
bulbs dangled out from the broken encasements. The red covering was
shredded by an unknown weapon. Thank goodness Lacey stopped by and
had followed me home. If the Rosewood Police had stopped me, I’d
probably not only have gotten a big fine, but spent the night in
jail. They were just looking for a reason to arrest me.
Lacey put her arm around me. “Come on. Let’s
get you inside.” She gestured for Rob to follow. He jumped out and
trailed us.
Stars sparkled overhead and the night air
was nippy. A slight breeze drifted past. Thoughts of the creepy
person lurking in the darkness filled my mind. I’d never really
liked the dark anyway—add a deranged killer to the mix and I was
terrified. Was this person trying to kill my car or me? Or just
intimidate me?
Once safely inside, Lacey picked up the
phone with force and determination that said,
don’t mess with
me
.
“I’m calling the police to report this. Just
leave everything to me,” she said as she punched the numbers on the
phone.
She was right to make the call, though. If I
called Sheriff Bass one more time, he would arrest me for
harassment.
Rob paced as we waited.
“They’re sending an officer out to take a
report. In the meantime, we need to make sure all of the blinds are
shut and windows locked.”
Something my mother constantly had warned me
about.
“Why would someone vandalize my car?” I
asked as I moved from window to window.
Lacey shrugged. “Maybe it was just
teenagers. I’ve heard of some break-ins around this area.”
“Maybe.” I sighed.
“I can fix those tail lights for you,” Rob
offered.
“Thank you. I think it’s almost time for a
new car.” I rubbed my temples.
“It is a little dinged.” Lacey laughed.
“I have an old bike out in my garage you can
use.” He grinned.
“I may take you up on your offer.”
A few seconds later, the cruiser pulled up,
its headlights illuminating the room as he parked.
Rob peeked out the window. “The police are
here.” He moved to the door.
“Here goes. This should be interesting,” I
said. Lacey gave a look of sympathy.
“Thanks for coming so quickly.” Rob held the
door open.
I cringed when I saw the same officer
saunter through the door. The smirk was already plastered on his
face. He looked even less interested the second time around,
although I hadn’t thought it possible. We sat huddled in my tiny
living room. The officer took the seat across from the sofa. He
pulled out his pad again and sat ramrod straight, probably from his
too stiff uniform. His shirt was so starched he probably couldn’t
help but sit at attention. The badge on his chest sparkled under
the light. He positioned the pen over the paper.
I explained every detail and he scribbled,
never looking up. But his eyebrow arched more with every other
word. What was it about the Rosewood Police Department? They seemed
downright uninterested to me. No doubt, I was a regular topic of
discussion at their headquarters.
“So what you’re saying is this person was
dressed in all black. It was dark and you couldn’t make out any
more than that? Kind of like the night you found Payne, huh?” he
asked with a smirk.
“That’s right.” I smirked back.
How about
a taste of your own medicine?
“Will you patrol the area Officer Butcher?”
Rob asked, trying to save me from being carted off to jail.
“Yes, we’ll do what we can,” he answered
evasively, while glaring at me. “We’ll be in touch.” He tipped his
hat. “I’ll let myself out.”
“Bama, I don’t think you should patronize
the police.” Lacey said, closing the door.
“I’m sick of not being taken seriously,
Lacey.”
She stretched her arms around me, then
hugged. “I know you are. I’m sure they’ll find who did this, but in
the mean time, we don’t need you in jail.”
She was right. I could safely say I wouldn’t
enjoy jail. I’d never been and never wanted to, for that
matter.
“You’ll be all right?” Lacey asked.
“I’ll be fine.”
“Having the cops in the area should scare
them away,” she offered. “Do you want to spend the night at my
house?”
I didn’t bother to tell her I doubted the
sincerity of his promise of patrolling.
“No, no.” I waved off her offer. “I’ll be
fine. Thanks for everything, y’all.”
“Lock the door behind us,” she warned. “And
no more investigating or out at night by yourself.”
I nodded and waved them off, then clicked
the deadbolt. I shouldn’t have gone to the house. I’d secretly
hoped Reed would be around—I didn’t have the nerve to go to his
house.
Why had he kissed me and walked out?
Chapter Thirty-Eight
The next morning, I tidied up my house and
even worked on the project for Julia Cooper—in spite of her
potential murderer status—before my trip to the library. As crazy
as Julia was, I had to keep my end of the bargain and help her. She
never mentioned that she knew Nick, or acted as if anything was
wrong. Probably part of her strategy.
After what seemed like a million calls, I’d
managed to locate a beautiful antique desk in Louisville for her
romantic office. I left a message to let her know the good
news—thank goodness, she hadn’t answered. After the dreaded call
had been placed, my stomach rumbled, so I sipped the rest of my
coffee and devoured a strawberry Pop Tart, the kind with icing and
little sprinkles on top. Wishing I could eat the second one in the
package, I brushed the crumbs into the trash, then placed the
package back into the pantry. I grabbed my coat and purse and
headed for the door.
As I ambled out, my phone rang.
“Alabama, how’s it going?” Sam asked.
“Okay.” I sighed. Could she sense my lack of
enthusiasm?
Should I tell her about my latest
encounters? After all, we were a team. If she withheld info from
me, I’d be ticked.
“Sorry I didn’t call sooner, but I was busy
reviewing evidence.” Her tone held a bit of irritation.
So, she was mad at me for not helping. I was
kind of involved in a few personal matters at the moment. Couldn’t
she give me some slack?
“Sorry I didn’t help. I’ve been busy with
the house and all.”
Not to mention, running away from a
murderer.
She didn’t acknowledge my apology. “We
should have all the data we collected ready soon. We caught some
stuff. Have you done any research on the house yet?” She asked.
“No…not yet. I’m headed to the library right
now. I think I may be on to something. The ghost is definitely
trying to communicate with me. I saw an apparition.” I had to tell
her. I’d want her to do the same with me.
“Get out, what happened?”
“I can’t talk now. I’ll fill you in
later.”
“Alabama,” she exclaimed.
I
really
couldn’t talk. I wanted to
be at the library as soon as they opened.
“Did he send thought impressions to you? Or
somehow use mental telepathy to allow himself to be seen? God, I
want details.” She wasn’t known for her patience either. “How was
he dressed? Was it really a full apparition? An ecto-mist?”
“I gotta go,” I said.
“Wait, at least let me tell you about the
evidence.”
Normally I enjoyed listening to Sam talk
about evidence, but I had other pressing issues.
“Please. I’ll hurry,” she pleaded.
I sighed. “All right. What did you
find?”
I did want to know.
“I love talking about this stuff,” Sam said
excitedly.
“I know you do, so get on with it. Did you
get anything good?”
“We did get a couple of things. Nate
captured a nice looking mist on film. It formed in the foyer and
lingered for a few seconds. It’s a good piece. We didn’t get any
evidence of a full body apparition or anything. I’m never that
lucky. But we did capture an EVP.”
“What does it say?” I looked at my
watch.
“It’s a male voice and you can clearly hear
him say the word
Help
. I got it right here.”
“That’s amazing, Sam. Listen, I’m glad you
called. I’m sorry I have to be so brief.”
“You sure you still want to hunt for
ghosts?” She asked.
“Of course. Things are crazy now with this
house. It will settle down soon.”
“I guess.”
Sometimes Sam expected too much.
“I’ve got another call coming in.” I lied.
“I’ll call you later.”
“Remember to keep your mind open because a
ghost will seek out an open-minded person.” She rushed the
words.
Especially if that person was
really
emotional
.
“I gotta go.”
“If he has a message to convey, he’ll find
the most receptive person. Looks like that person is you—”
I cut her off. “Thank you, Sam. I’ll call
you soon.”
Did she forget I was aware of all the
paranormal details?
“Alabama—”
I hung up. Not a move Miss Manners would
recommend, but necessary in this situation. I whizzed onto the
street in front of the library and parked next to the front
entrance. A three-story stone building with carved spires, no one
needed a sign to know it was the library. As I hurried up the
stairs to the building, I glanced all around and over my shoulder.
Why did I feel as if eyes followed my every move? I hurried along
the sidewalk toward the old structure. I paused in front of the
entry, looking over my shoulder one last time as if I was in the
witness protection program.
The tall, carved mahogany doors were hard to
pull and I struggled with one. A tall, wiry man burst out from the
other side and I scrambled over to slip through before the door
shut. The cold air inside made me wish I’d worn my coat—instead of
a light cardigan. Shelves stretched out as far as my eyes could see
and I felt a bit overwhelmed. So many dark nooks and crannies,
getting lost could be easy. I loved books, but research, not so
much. With so much information, I didn’t know where to begin my
search for details.
As I wandered up and down the aisles of
books aimlessly, the realization hit me that I had no idea what I
was looking for. It was at that moment, I began to question my
decision of even setting foot in the place to begin with. Another
one of my non-thought-out plans. Nonetheless, if I didn’t locate
anything in the library, I did have another brilliant idea. At
least I thought it was a brilliant idea. Checking out the
courthouse and searching land deeds may turn up something. In the
meantime, I stood in the middle of the room, staring at nothing in
particular. I should at least attempt to find something. I started
with the newspapers.
“May I help you?” asked the elderly-man
behind the long gray counter. He pushed his bifocals up along the
bridge of his nose to catch a better view of me.
“I’m hoping to do some research on the
history of my house. I was wondering if you knew of any
sources?”
He cleared his throat, then asked, “Where do
you live?”
“I’m remodeling the old mansion on Maple
Hill Road.”
“Oh, yes. Maple Hill…a beautiful home. It’s
a shame they built all those houses around it.” He positioned his
glasses slightly higher. I guess he wanted a good look at the crazy
woman who’d bought a haunted house.
“Yes. Yes, it is.” I grinned.
“You should talk to the town historian. I
can give you his name and number if you’d like. I think he would be
a great help to you.”
“Wow. That would be wonderful.”
Maybe I was finally getting somewhere. Why
hadn’t I thought to contact a historian myself?
The old man pulled out a scrap of paper from
a large stack beside the computer and grabbed a pen with his
arthritic hand. He scratched down the name and number, then neatly
folded the paper, as if it were top-secret information, before
handing it to me.
“Thank you so much.”
“You’re welcome, sweetheart.”
He flashed a huge smile exposing his
dentures, and then gave a wink. After the wink, his head moved down
and his eyes made a beeline to my chest. Ugh. The old man felt me
up with his eyes. Men really are all just alike—no matter the age.
He was a flirtatious old fossil.
After checking out a couple of home
renovation books, I sat in front of one of the many computers lined
against the wall. Aside from the teenager a few computers down, the
library was empty. I clicked the mouse and was disappointed when
all that popped up in the search results were the facts from the
historic registry. Maybe I didn’t know what I was doing or maybe
there wasn’t other information available, I had no idea. After a
few more minutes of poking around on the computer, I figured I’d
give the historian a call. My trip to the courthouse could wait.
The historian may save me the trip and provide a lot more info.
As I stood and pushed my chair back to its
original spot, the distinct feeling someone watched me took over. I
looked around, scanning the aisles for a person. Then I spotted
him. My heart sped up and my legs shook. Across the library stood
Nick Patterson and he watched me. His arms lay stiff to his sides
and he glared at me as if he’d just stepped off the screen of a
slasher movie. My blood chilled, freezing my muscles in place. He
wore his all black uniform. A blank stare spread across his face.
He held my gaze for a moment, then abruptly turned and disappeared
behind a shelf of books. We’d definitely made eye contact and
recognition splashed across his face. He knew it was me, and once
again, I knew his being there wasn’t a coincidence.
I darted down the row next to me and peered
through a gap in the books. No one appeared to be near, so I made a
dash for the door and bolted out. Scanning the area around me, I
looked over my shoulder. Nick Patterson was nowhere in sight—thank
goodness. I ran to the car faster than I’d ever ran in my life—my
high school PE coach would have been proud. If I could have hopped
across the hood of the Volvo to the other side, I would have. I
scrutinized my surroundings like a secret service agent. A group of
children on the sidewalk looked on, pointing me out to their
teacher. Probably asking why the crazy lady was running.
I started the car and whirled the steering
wheel around. My knuckles turned white as I grasped the wheel. In
the rearview mirror, I caught a glimpse of Nick as he burst from
the library door. My stomach twisted and sweat covered my forehead.
I had almost been attacked in the freakin’ romance and mystery
aisle. Not only was I terrified, I was angry, too. Why was this guy
after me? What did I do? Besides discover Payne’s cold dead
body.
Now more than ever, I wanted answers. My car
couldn’t move fast enough to put distance between me and Nick
Patterson. After driving a good distance away, I picked up my cell
phone and dialed.
“Hello?” the business-like male voice
asked.
“Mr. Baird. My name’s Alabama Hargrove. I
own the old house on Maple Hill Road.”
I didn’t know if I should feel proud of that
statement or cry.
“Oh, yes. Maple Hill Road. What can I do for
you?”
“I’d love it if you could tell me a little
history about the house.”
“Yes, yes. I do have some information I can
share. Would you like to stop by sometime?” He asked in a cheerful
voice. It was nice to talk to someone in a good mood for a
change.
I glanced in the rearview mirror again. A
small green car followed in the distance, but no mysterious blue
sedan. “I’d love to. When is a good time?”
“Well, I have appointments all day, but I do
have some time now. Could you come by?”
“Perfect. I really appreciate this.”
I memorized his address and clicked off the
phone with excitement. How lucky was I to have found him? My search
at the library would have been a bust if not for him. Even if I’d
been ogled by a geriatric to get the number.