The Ex Who Saw a Ghost (Charley's Ghost Book 4) (15 page)

It creaked then slid open.

The living room had probably once been comfortable and inviting, but Carstairs’ wife and daughter had been dead a long time. A raggedy brown afghan covered most of the faded pattern on the beige sofa that might have started out in life as white. An empty coffee cup sat on a dusty table beside a recliner with a sagging seat. A black phone rested next to the coffee cup.

“In here!” Charley called.

Amanda lifted the receiver of the phone and was relieved to hear a dial tone. She punched in 911 and laid the receiver down. Someone would come to investigate. With any luck, they’d get there in time.

She followed the sound of Charley’s voice to the master bedroom. A patchwork quilt lay half on and half off the king size bed. The rumpled sheets looked as if they hadn’t been washed in a while. But the gun cabinet that covered almost an entire wall was dust free and filled with guns…shotguns like the one Carstairs had used to shoot Jake, rifles to hunt deer, and revolvers. No automatics and no polymer.

She slid open the glass doors, took out a Smith and Wesson .38 and checked the cylinder to be sure it was loaded.

“Omigawd!”

Amanda spun around at the sound, finger on the trigger.

Teresa threw her hands up and repeated, “Omigawd!”

“Sorry.” Amanda lowered the gun. “I didn’t hear you come in. I guess I was…” She indicated the weaponry.

“It kind of freaked me out to see all those guns.”

Amanda stuck the revolver in the waistband of her jeans. Not her favorite place to keep a weapon, but it would do for the moment. She lifted a Remington 870 pump shotgun from the rack, checked to be sure it was loaded, then extended it to Teresa. “This is the most devastating close-range gun around. Even if the guy’s hopped up on meth, this will take him down.”

Teresa licked her lips, cleared her throat and finally, tentatively, accepted the gun, holding it as if it were a piece of firewood oozing termites.

“Right hand here on the grip, left hand on the slide.” She positioned Teresa’s hands. “When you’re ready to shoot—” she moved Teresa’s right finger to the slide release button just in front of the trigger guard—“press this, pull the slide toward you and push it forward. That chambers a round. It may be all you have to do because just the sound of that can cause someone to have a heart attack. If the person doesn’t keel over immediately, lift it to your shoulder, point in the general direction of your target, and squeeze the trigger. It will spray lead pellets over a wide area, pellets like the ones that hit Jake in the shoulder and took him down. You don’t need to aim, just point.”

Teresa lifted the gun to her shoulder then lowered it. “Press the button, pull this thing back, shove it forward, lift to my shoulder and fire.”

“Pull, push and fire again until your target is on the ground or you run out of ammo.”

Teresa swallowed. “And if I run out of ammo?”

“If you don’t see his spirit leaving his body,” Charley said, “grab the barrel and smack him with the stock.”

Teresa grimaced. “Got it, I think. Okay, okay, Parker, we’re coming!”

Amanda chose a Winchester 30-30 rifle for herself.

“Look at you,” Charley said. “We’ve got our own personal SWAT team.”

Amanda didn’t quite share his enthusiasm. They’d come out to talk to a ghost or two, not to rescue Lila from some sniper hiding behind trees who might even have night goggles. She could only hope her 911 call brought the sheriff’s department fast and, in the meantime, that Charley, Parker and the rest of the ghosts could help them steer clear of stray bullets.

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep.

The line from Robert Frost’s poem flashed through Amanda’s mind as they stepped off Carstairs’ back porch. The woods before them were definitely dark and deep. Lovely wasn’t a word she’d use to describe them, however. Scary, intimidating, creepy…but not lovely. Maybe if she hadn’t known a killer was hiding somewhere in their depths.

A few yards from the back door a leafless tree reached skeletal arms toward the night sky. A breeze rustled the dead leaves still hanging onto a large oak. The usual chorus of night song was silent. That alone was enough to signal danger.

She descended the last step from the porch and Charley darted in front of her. “You forgot to close the door. I tried to close it, but I can’t. You need to do it.”

“I left the back door and the front door open for a reason. When the cops come to investigate the 911 call, they’ll be able to figure out we went into the woods. Maybe they can find us.”
In time to save us.

“Don’t worry,” Charley said. “If they don’t find us tonight, when everybody converges on the property tomorrow, they’ll find us then.”

Almost to the trees, Teresa halted and looked back. “Really, Charley? You think we’re going to be here all night? Are you planning to get us killed so you’ll have company?”

“No! I didn’t mean it like that. I just…”

Amanda and Teresa waited.

“Come on, Parker, let’s scout ahead then report back.” Charley darted away, his faintly glowing form disappearing then reappearing as he progressed through and around the trees and underbrush.

Amanda touched the bulk of the revolver beneath her jacket to assure herself of its presence then tightened her grip on the rifle. “Well, I guess we should follow them.”

“Yeah.” Teresa swallowed so loudly Amanda could hear. “Parker says he can take us to Lila. Then all we have to do is be with her and she’ll be safe.”

Amanda scowled. “Really? That’s all we have to do? Do you think he was such an annoying optimist in life?”

“I think he probably was. He also says he doesn’t think the gun man will kill all of us.”

“He doesn’t
think
the man will kill
all
of us? I feel so much better now.”

“He says that would be too many bodies to get rid of before the horde of lawmen descends tomorrow.”

“That is so comforting.” Amanda drew in a deep breath of the cool night air. Under other circumstances, she would describe it as clean, fresh, and invigorating. Tonight it was chilling. “All righty, then. We’re off.” She straightened her shoulders, lifted her chin and strode through the dry grass and leaves of the small clearing into the wooded area, each step taking her farther toward a woman who might be in danger and the man who was putting her in danger.

Though the land was flat and not heavily forested, there were enough trees that someone intent on murder wouldn’t have a clear enough view to shoot from a hundred yards away. That would make him easier to spot. Much of the ground was covered with dead leaves and grass so it was unlikely someone could sneak up on them without being heard. On the other hand, anyone already waiting would hear them and be able to hide behind a tree. They could still venture past someone lurking in the shadows, prepared to blow them away.

Not exactly the way Amanda would have chosen to spend her evening.

She ducked under a low-hanging branch. A spider web grazed the side of her face. She shuddered and brushed it away. Yucky, but if it was the worst thing that happened tonight, she’d be thrilled.

She plunged through the woods. The sounds of her own heavy footsteps in her motorcycle boots and Teresa’s lighter tread behind her made it impossible to hear anyone else. Or maybe her heart was pounding so loudly it drowned out all other sounds.

Charley’s glowing form rushed up. “We found her!” He sounded breathless. Since he had no breath, was that possible? “Come on! Parker’s with her.” He beckoned them forward. “And try to walk a little quieter. You sound like a herd of buffalo.”

“We don’t have the benefit of being able to walk a foot above the ground,” Amanda grumbled.

He made no comment but lowered himself so he appeared to be walking on his ankles. Soundlessly, of course.

They followed him to an old, barely visible trail. In the faint moonlight, Amanda would not have spotted it had he not pointed it out.

“Parker, we’re on our way!” Charley yelled.

Amanda flinched even though she knew only she and Teresa could hear him. And Parker.

A shot exploded through the still autumn air and someone screamed.

Teresa shrieked and grabbed Amanda’s arm.

“Your gun!” Amanda whispered. She lifted her own rifle and looked around, ready to fire.

“Press the button,” Teresa mumbled, “pull this thing back—”

“Not yet!” All that stuff about not letting untrained people handle guns suddenly made a lot more sense. Maybe giving Teresa a loaded gun hadn’t been such a good idea after all. “Just hang onto it and be ready. I’ll let you know when.”

Charley appeared in front of her, his faint glow pulsing. “Somebody’s shooting at Lila!”

“Parker says the shooter’s chasing her!” Teresa reported.

Footsteps crunched loud and fast, coming toward them.

Lila or the killer or both?

Another shot, the sound crashing around them, closer this time, followed immediately by a brief, strangled scream.

The footsteps stopped.

Amanda held her breath.

Charley didn’t move.

Teresa didn’t speak.

The darkness deepened, wrapping the night tightly around them, threatening to smother them in its shadows.

Charley was the first to recover. “Come on!” He beckoned them forward.

Amanda ran. Not an easy task in her boots, but if she didn’t maintain momentum, she might stand in place, frozen by fear.

Teresa panted behind her.

After this was over, maybe they should both take up aerobics, get in better shape.

If they survived this.

“She’s hurt!” Charley called.

In the clearing just ahead Charley darted toward a prone figure. The woman’s blond hair splayed around her head, dull in the darkness. At the edge of the clearing a man in camouflage lifted his rifle to his shoulder and aimed at her.

“Stop!” Amanda shouted. She raised her own rifle and fired over his head, into the trees.

The man looked at her and shifted the barrel of his gun in her direction.

She racked another shell into the chamber and aimed. No more warning shots.

The man cursed, turned and ran into the trees.

Damn. Wouldn’t make a good self defense plea if she shot him in the back.

“Lila!” Teresa squatted on the ground beside the woman. “Are you hurt?”

Lila groaned and lifted the hand that clutched her abdomen.

Gut shot. That was bad.

“Go get help, Teresa,” Amanda instructed. “I’ll stay with her.”

“You go,” Teresa said. “Parker wants to talk to her through me.”

“There’s a man out there with a big gun, and if he comes back, what if you get confused and push before you pull? Parker can talk to her later.” Though when she looked at the amount of blood on the ground beside Lila, Amanda wasn’t sure there would be a
later
for her.

“I can talk to Parker!” Charley settled on the other side of Lila. “Uhh, she’s bleeding a lot.”

“That looks bad,” Teresa said.

“Go! The sheriff’s people may already be at Carstairs’ house. If they’re not, hang up the phone and call for an ambulance. Hurry! Leave the gun and run as fast as you can.”

Teresa stood. “I can’t run very fast.”

“Then walk fast. Crawl fast. I don’t care, just get help!”

Teresa crunched away into the darkness.

Amanda knelt beside Lila.

“It hurts.” She coughed.

Amanda refrained from mentioning how bad cigarettes were for that cough. She pulled off her motorcycle jacket and placed it on the wound, holding it as tightly as she could in an effort to stop the flow of blood. “Hang on. Help is on the way.”

“It’s my fault,” Lila whispered.

“That you got shot? I don’t think so.”

“I didn’t know he was a senator’s son. I thought he was just another homeless meth head, a man nobody would miss, like the others.”

“Are you talking about Steven Anderson?”

“Parker wants to talk to her,” Charley said.

“I don’t really care,” Amanda snapped. “Parker, I’ve about had it with you. You had plenty of time to talk before this. If you’d told us who killed you, this might not have happened. Lila, what about Steven Anderson?”

Lila rolled her head from side to side. “Stanley was mad, so mad. He put Parker in the well for me and then the cops found him and the senator’s son and now it’s a big deal and his client paid him for one more hunt. I didn’t want to bring him another man but he said I owed him. It’s not good to owe Stanley.”

“What? Stanley put Parker in the well? Another hunt? What are you talking about?”

“Parker gave me money so I didn’t have to work for Stanley, but then…” She blinked a couple of times and tried to sit up. “Parker?”

A chill darted down Amanda’s spine. Was Lila calling to Parker’s memory for comfort or could she see him? If she could see him, did that mean…?

Amanda gently pushed her back down. “Lie still until the paramedics get here. Did Stanley kill Parker?”

The tears flowed freely down Lila’s face. “Parker, I didn’t mean to shoot you.”

Amanda drew in a deep breath. That answered her question.

“He says he knows it was an accident,” Charley said quietly.

“My whole life was awful until you came along. I really believed you were my brother and I loved you so much. You were the best family I ever had. When you said I wasn’t really your sister, I didn’t want to live.”

Was Lila babbling nonsense or revealing secrets? “You aren’t really his sister?”

Lila lifted a hand to her forehead and groaned.

“What’s she talking about, Parker?” Charley asked. He listened for a moment. “Ross is such a forensics geek, he’d never have accepted her without a DNA test, so Parker had one done and found out they’re not related.” His voice was unusually soft. Amanda would have called it
sympathetic
if she’d thought Charley was capable of that emotion. “When he told her, she ran in the bedroom, grabbed the gun and pointed it at her head.”

“You tried to stop me, and I don’t know anything about guns. I’m sorry. It just went off. So much blood. I had to put Mama’s rug down to hide the blood. Every time I see it, I remember.” She began to sob.

The rug in her bedroom. She’d sunk down onto it, not because she was dizzy from drugs but because she was grieving for what she’d done.

“He’s comforting her.” Charley looked at a point in space beside Lila.

Lila drew a shaky hand over her eyes, making an ineffectual attempt to wipe away her tears. “I’m so glad you’re not mad at me.”

Amanda was pretty sure it wasn’t a good sign that Lila could see Parker.

Lila’s features suddenly relaxed as if the pain had abated. The corners of her mouth twisted slightly upward. “You talked to my mother? Did you ask her why she put your daddy’s name on my birth certificate if he wasn’t my daddy?”

The eerie silence again settled around them with Lila’s ragged breathing the only sound.

“His dad was nice to her mother,” Charley said, “took care of her, drove her to the hospital to have her baby. She didn’t want Lila’s real father to have any rights to her because he ran out on her when he found out she was pregnant. When the doctor asked for the father’s name, she gave the name of the one man who’d been kind to her.”

Lila’s eyes welled with tears again. “My real daddy didn’t want me?”

Charley’s glow brightened. “He says her real father was an idiot, that he missed out on a great daughter.”

Lila’s pain-filled gaze turned toward Charley. “Who are you?”

Oh, damn. Now she could see Charley too. That didn’t bode well at all.

“I’m with her.” Charley pointed to Amanda.

Lila bit her lip and looked away from Charley, back to the empty space next to him. “I want to be your family, Parker. I want to be your sister.” She lifted her hand into the air and gave a weak smile. Her gaze softened and became unfocused. “I want to be with you.”

Amanda pushed her hand to the ground. “Don’t even think about it. You’re staying right here until Teresa gets back with somebody to help you.”

“Amanda,” Charley said, “I think—”

“Shut up, Charley. Lila, look at me. Stop looking at Parker. Look at me.” She waved her free hand in front of Lila’s face. “Over here! Land of the living. Stay here. Want a cigarette? I’ll get you a cigarette if you’ll stay here and smoke it.”

Lila blinked and for an instant her eyes focused on Amanda. “A cigarette?” she whispered. “I’m trying to quit. Parker helped me quit smoking and using meth, but then I shot him and had to ask Stanley to help me get rid of the body and I was weak, so weak. I went back to cigarettes and drugs. I was only strong when you were here to help me.” Soft light radiated from her body.