Page 47 of Peach Cobbler Confessions

911! Come to Kent Noble’s house quick! Carlotta is stuck in the window!

He texts right back.Lemon.

The dancing ellipses start up again.Be there fast as I can. If you’re in the house, get the hell out. And I know you’re in the house.

I certainly will get out, Judge Baxter. Just as soon as I get what I came for.

A tiny giggle lives and dies in my chest as I text back once more.

Bring butter.

I traipse back into the office and a spray of tiny red stars appears as Collette Jenner materializes before me in all her hip-hugging crimson dress glory. Her hair is down in luscious auburn waves, and her lips are glossed with the same cherry hue.

“Boo!” She blows me a kiss in the process of trying to scare the pants right off of me.

“Boo to you. I just came from the bakery where I ate my previous weight in cobbler. Would you mind throwing in a few blueberries once in a while? I’ve been craving a variety.”

“Duly noted.”

Carlotta yelps for Collette, and it only incites the cobbler-laden poltergeist to giggle.

“I’m sorry I can’t help you, Carlotta,” she trills so loud the house vibrates with her ghostly wail. “But not to worry. I have a feeling you won’t grow old while stuck in that wall. So hush up. Lottie and I have some serious investigating to do. Now, whose house are we in, and more importantly, do you think they have ice cream in the fridge?”

I make a face at her. “Kent Noble. He seemed to be holding something back when I met him earlier at the studio and Jade mentioned this is his primary office. Let’s look around. Everett is on his way to help with the screaming banshee stuck in the bathroom wall, and I figure he’s going to zip over in a flash, so we only have minutes to find something incriminating.”

Collette lights up the room with her dizzying display of stars—enough to light up an entire solar system—and I get right to work, taking pictures of files after files, the inside of the desk drawer, the books on the shelves, the calendar on the desk, the large plaque that readsUnsolved Mysteries Tonight Best in Entertainment Award, and just about anything I can. I’ll have to sort out all the details later.

Collette tries to smack me on the arm, but her hand slices right through me.

“Lottie, look at that.” She points to the floor where a small chest sits near the trash can. “I bet that’s where the evidence you’re looking for is stored.”

I avert my eyes. “More like his girly magazines.”

Regardless, I get on my knees to check it out.

It stands about a foot and half tall and is just about as twice as wide. It seems to be made of weathered wood and looks as if someone plucked it right off a pirate’s ship. A rusted lock secures it shut, and I give it a wiggle and giggle but nothing exciting happens.

“I can’t open it. It’s rusted shut,” I grunt while struggling with the lock.

“Well, don’t just sit there, get a paperclip or something.”

“Good idea.” I motion to the desk. “Hand it to me, would you?”

Collette quickly retrieves a paperclip and I try my hardest to pry the dang thing open, but it won’t budge.

Carlotta yelps and I can feel my body heat rising. I stand and kick my heel over the rusted lock three times hard and, sure enough, the entire metal clamp holding the lock on falls right off.

Collette shrugs over at me. “That works, too.”

“I’ll say.” I fall back to my knees and open the chest. Inside sits a plethora of items, odd things like a couple of pieces of cloth, a dark blue handkerchief or pocket square with gold triangles dotting it, and a small plastic bag with something long and stringy in it. I reach in to pluck the bag out. I shine my flashlight over it and a small scream works its way up my throat.

“GAH! HAIR!” I howl while holding the glossy lock between my fingers. “Is it strange that I prefer corpses to human hair?”

Collette bats it out of my hand. “That’s truly disgusting, Lottie. And I’m with you on the whole corpse thing. Come to think of it, I bet I was a beautiful corpse.”

“You were,” I say, shrugging up at her. It’s true. I should know. I was there when Collette bit the big one.

I quickly rifle through the rest of the things and freeze solid when I see a plastic identification badge with the smiling face of an older man that readsGerald Watson, Wilson Township School District.