Page 81 of A Deeper Darkness

If only that were the case. Susan didn’t believe in ghosts. She believed in heaven, and hell, and purgatory for those who did bad things but could eventually be redeemed. But she didn’t think the dead lingered behind, haunting their loved ones.

Seeing that picture crooked was enough to make her doubt everything she’d believed in for her entire life. But that was wishful thinking. She told herself that, even though her flesh was crawling.

She turned on the overhead light and walked to the wall. Straightened the picture. As she turned to leave she noticed it swung back down to the right, crooked again.

That was strange.

She straightened it again. As she watched, the frame slowly slid to the right.

Goose bumps paraded up and down her arms. Then she thought of that movie, the one with Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze, and shook her head. This wasn’t a penny sliding up the wall. Eddie wasn’t invisible in the room, using all his ghostly energy to push the picture off its center. There was a totally rational explanation for why the picture wouldn’t align properly.

She took the photo off the wall and flipped it over. The backing was bulging, that’s why it was listing.See,she told the universe. She pushed on the hard cardboard to try to pop it back in place, but it wouldn’t budge. Something was making it protrude from its regular spot. The back was stuck, too. She tried and tried to get it to pull out, with no luck. Just as she decided she needed to grab a pair of pliers, it suddenly gave way. The backing came off with a rapid slide, and several pieces of paper fluttered to the ground.

She knelt and picked them up. Felt the breath leave her body.

The pages were from Eddie’s journal.

The doorbell rang.

Shit. Karen was here.

Susan folded the pages in half and shoved them in her back pocket, and slid the backing into the frame. She put the picture back on the wall, saw that it now hung straight and went to the front door.

Karen Fisher looked like hell. The rain had just begun to fall, but it was picking up in earnest. Karen’s dark hair was wet already, and her voice shook from the chilly air.

“Oh, my God, Karen, what’s wrong? Come in, before the rain gets worse.”

Susan hustled Karen into the foyer and shut the door behind them.

“Thank God you were home. I didn’t know where else to go.”

“What’s wrong?”

Karen looked exhausted. Black circles paraded under her eyes, and she smelled the tiniest bit like alcohol. And cigarettes. When had she started smoking?

“I just… Susan, can we sit down?”

Susan felt the alarm coming off Karen. Something really was wrong.

“Of course. Of course. Come on into the kitchen. Can I make you some coffee? Tea?”

Karen followed her into the kitchen. Out of habit, Susan turned to the stove and started to fill the kettle.

“No,” Karen said. Her voice wasn’t shaking anymore. “But you can tell me why you never shared the truth with me. Why you didn’t come straight to me when you found out Eddie killed my husband?”

Susan set the full kettle down on the stove with a thump. “What in the hell are you talking about, Karen? Eddie didn’t kill Perry. He loved Perry.”

“Don’t take another step, Susan. I’m warning you.”

Susan heard the menace in Karen’s voice. She stilled in her tracks, then turned slowly toward the woman.

Karen had a Glock pointed at Susan’s chest.

Without thinking, Susan gasped and started to back away.Holy Mary, mother of God, what in the hell was Karen doing with a gun?

“Stop!”

Susan stopped.