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THIRTY-ONE

Kaely put her glass down. “You’ve seen her?”

He nodded. “I’m not the only one who’s run across her. She seems to be hanging around the cabin.” He gulped. “I planned to rent it out to tourists, but there’s no way people will stay there if word of this gets around.”

Steve’s body language made it clear to Kaely that he was really worried. His body was rigid and his jaw tight. He kept clenching and unclenching his hands. How long had this been going on?

“Why is someone out there, pretending to be a ghost?” Kaely asked him. “What are they trying to accomplish?”

“I have no idea,” Steve said. “It doesn’t benefit anyone.”

“How long has it been going on?” Erin asked.

“Stories about a ghost have circulated ever since Emma Watcher was killed,” Steve said. “They died out for a while. Then they started back up during the sixties and seventies. Of course, this is what I’ve been told. I didn’t live here then. After I bought the cabin, the stories started again. I’m afraid it’s going to be impossible for me to rent it out.”

“I’m not sure you’re right,” Erin said. “I knew people who would purposely search for hotels or B&Bs that were rumored to be haunted. If you advertised it as haunted, you could probably keep it rented all year long.”

“I know about some of those people,” he said, sniffing the air as if he smelled something rancid. “Not the clientele I’m looking for. I wanted the cabin to be a beautiful, restful retreat for the busy executive. The elite.” He shook his head. “You know the kind of people I mean.”

She knew exactly what he meant. She bit back a sharp retort. This was Noah’s friend. She didn’t want to offend him.

“Is there anyone in town who is opposed to this idea?” Erin asked. “I mean, the cabin is built on the site where William Watcher’s home stood. Maybe it’s related to that history?”

Steve nodded. “‘William Watcher slew his wife. Slit her throat with his butcher knife. Now she wanders Watcher Woods. A ghastly visage in a cloak and hood. If you should hear her mournful cries... you will be the next to die.’”

Although she’d heard the poem before, a chill ran through Kaely. She looked up to see Avery standing next to the table with a coffee cup and a pot. She put the cup down in front of Steve and poured coffee into it. Then she set the pot down on the table.

“Everyone in town has heard the story,” Avery said. “But no one I know has ever actually seen her. Even so, you wouldn’t catch me anywhere near that cabin.” She directed her attention to Steve. “Sorry, but I’m not big on ghostly apparitions haunting the scene of a gruesome murder.” She looked around the restaurant, which by this time was almost completely full. “This place is ghastly enough for me.” Avery looked at Erin and hesitated a moment. Then she said, “Look, I really don’t want to trouble you, but my copy of Dark Matters is in my car. If I bring it in, could you sign it before you leave?”

“Sure, not a problem.”

“Thank you.” She winked at them and left, checking on a table not far from theirs.

“I really hate that poem,” Erin said. “I hated it when I heard it the first time. I hated it when I repeated it to you,” she said looking at Kaely then at Steve, “and I hate hearing it now.” She leaned forward. “Look, I’m not sure if ghosts exist or not, but the realistic side of me is pretty sure our so-called ghost is someone who doesn’t want the cabin to be turned into a rental. Which is weird since there are so many rental properties in this area.” She pointed at Kaely. “The next time we see her, I think we should leave the cabin and chase her down. I’d like to have a talk with our ghostly friend.”

“I’m in,” Kaely said. “And I’m sorry I doubted you the first time you told me about her.”

Erin shrugged. “I understand. Just don’t do it again.” She tried to hold back a smile but failed.

“I won’t,” Kaely said. “Trust me.”

Erin laughed. “Actually, I’m not sure you should trust everything I say.”

“Well, you can trust this one,” Steve said. “Look, I wouldn’t advise going after it. I mean... just in case.”

Kaely didn’t respond. What could she say? Did Steve actually believe the ghost of a woman murdered two hundred years ago was roaming the woods, trying to find someone to kill?

“Thanks, Steve,” Erin said. “We’ll be careful. But please, see if you can think of someone who might have some kind of grudge against you—or against the idea of you renting that cabin, okay?”

“I will.” Steve gulped down the rest of his coffee and got to his feet. “Nice to see you ladies. You have my number if you need anything. And don’t worry about the storm that’s coming. If it turns out to be anything more than a few inches of snow and you lose your electricity, like I said, the generator will come on. Also, there’s a large pile of wood behind the house, although you shouldn’t need it. There’s quite a bit already inside.”

“Thanks, Steve,” Kaely said. “We really appreciate it.”

“Sure. Tell Noah I said hello.” He turned and left.

“Wow,” Erin said. “Some great place you picked out for me to take it easy. Murders, ghosts. What else do you have lined up for me?”

“Seriously, this wasn’t the plan.” Kaely sighed. “I mean, look at the name, Sanctuary. It sounded like such a peaceful place to be.” She paused. “How are you doing, by the way? You seem relaxed.”

Erin’s eyes widened. “I... I feel fine. To be honest, I haven’t even thought once about being afraid to leave the cabin.”

Kaely smiled at her. “Well, that’s not surprising.” She waved her hand around. “Agoraphobia is neutralized by the color pink. You probably didn’t know that.”

Erin laughed. “Not sure that’s true, but so far, so good.” She blinked away tears. “Thanks, Kaely. I feel better now than I have for a long time.”

“I’m so glad. Look, after we eat and shop, let’s have a nice, comfortable evening indoors, just talking, okay?”

As she said it, Kaely wondered if there was such a thing as a peaceful evening in Sanctuary, Tennessee.

They were in town, snooping around. It didn’t matter. They wouldn’t find anything. They thought they were smart. But they’d never met anyone like him before. He had already prepared his next offering. If they really were smart, they’d figure it out before he came for them. Well, for one of them, anyway. The other one? She didn’t fit into his plan, but couldn’t he just excuse her death as collateral damage? He saw no other choice.

Time was ticking away for the famous author and her friend. Before long, they would both be dead.

After a remarkably tasty lunch, Erin and Kaely poked around the small, quaint town. Erin found that love for Dolly wasn’t limited to the diner. They stopped by a shop called Wildflowers. The owner, Kathy Flood, introduced herself and explained that she’d loved Dolly Parton ever since she was a child. The shop was named after one of Dolly’s songs, which played over and over through the store’s speakers. Erin enjoyed it until about the sixth or seventh time. Still, she found herself humming along after a while.

The store was filled with Dolly memorabilia and lots of bling. Most of it wasn’t Erin’s style, but she found a silver bracelet and a nice quilted throw that she could use on cold winter nights.

Kaely bought some postcards but didn’t see anything else she wanted.

By the time they left, they knew that Kathy was divorced and had a son who wouldn’t speak to her. Erin wondered if he simply couldn’t stand listening to “Wildflowers” one more time. Kathy only had one employee, a young woman who looked a little frantic. If Erin worked there, she’d be frantic too.

After they left Kathy’s shop, they found a couple of other places that were surprisingly Dolly free. A cute boutique named The Little Sparrow. It wasn’t until they left that Kaely informed her that “Little Sparrow” was another Dolly Parton tune.

“I feel like I’m trapped in some kind of Dolly Parton nightmare,” Erin mumbled as they walked a little farther down the street.

“Just ignore it. We found some cute shirts in the last place. Let’s just be thankful for that.”

“Sure.”

“I’d like to run over to the post office,” Kaely said. “I need some stamps.”

“Seriously? Ever hear of email? Texting?”

Kaely laughed. “I want to mail the postcards to Noah.” She shrugged. “Don’t judge me. We haven’t had a vacation in years. I’m sending him photos of Sanctuary and the area around it. I intend to write wish you were here on them.”

“Man, you really are sad,” Erin said with a smile.

The post office was only two blocks away, so it didn’t take them long to get there. It was housed in a small building with only two clerks. You could fit at least five of Sanctuary’s post offices into the one she frequented in St. Louis. Although it wasn’t as high tech, it was obvious that the two clerks took their jobs seriously.

“Can I help you?” the man behind the counter said. He looked to be in his thirties, tall, thin, with black glasses that sat on the edge of his nose. His badge read Allen Dunne. The woman working beside him was a wisp of a thing with delicate features and large blue eyes. Probably early thirties. Erin glanced at her badge as well. Olivia Gregson. A bad habit from her days on the force. When showing up at a crime scene, they would need the names of the people working in any stores or businesses. She checked them out now automatically, without thinking.

“I need some stamps,” Kaely said. “A book of twenty?”

“Do you need anything?” Olivia asked Erin.

Erin smiled at her. “No, thank you.” Since there wasn’t anyone else standing in line, she felt as if she needed to say something else. “So, how long have you worked here?” she asked.

Olivia blinked quickly and for a moment, Erin wasn’t certain she was going to answer her.

“I’ve been here for three years,” she replied. Her voice was light and soft. “Allen hired me. He runs things and does all the deliveries. I help him, and I take care of the desk when he’s gone.”

That was a little more information than she’d expected, but Erin smiled at her.

Olivia reached under the counter and brought out a large spiral notebook with pages that contained pictures of different kinds of stamps.

“Just pick out what you want,” she said to Kaely.

“Wow. Lots of great choices,” Kaely said. She finally settled on some cute stamps with snow globes.

“Good choice,” Olivia said. “They’re my favorite.”

As she got a page of stamps out and Kaely paid for them, a man came in the front door and headed over to a bulletin board on the far wall. Before he could tack it up, Allen called out to him.

“There’s a certain uniformity,” he said. He came out from behind the counter and headed toward the board. The man stopped and waited for him to take the piece of paper from his hand.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” he said.

Allen moved the notices around and then put up the man’s flyer. “There. That will work.” Then he turned toward the man. “Always check with me first before putting things on this board,” he said in a stern tone. “Otherwise, everything will be out of order.”

“Again, I apologize.” He looked toward Kaely and Erin and rolled his eyes. Erin turned away, trying to hide her smile from Allen.

“A lot of tourists stay here,” Erin said to Olivia. Getting mail to them must be a challenge.”

“It can be,” Allen said brusquely, cutting off Olivia’s response. “Most people only stay for a week or two, but some stay all summer. Then they don’t tell us when they leave.” He returned to his place behind the counter. “We take all the mail to the hotels and resorts. They separate it and give it to their guests. That helps. Of course, the rentals can be confusing. When people like you stay in a rental for a short time and give their address to friends and family, unless the owner notifies us, it can make our jobs harder.”

The way he said it was as if she and Kaely were purposely out to get him. She couldn’t help but glance at Kaely who raised her eyebrows.

“We’ll be staying at Steve’s cabin for five more days,” Erin said. “But I doubt we’ll get any mail.”

“No, we shouldn’t,” Kaely said, frowning. “But I just realized something. With the storm coming, maybe I’d better fill out a couple of the cards I bought and mail them now.” She looked at Allen. “Is that okay?”

He nodded. “Of course. You can sit there and prepare them if you’d like.”

He gestured to a small round table with two chairs near the window. Kaely paid for the stamps she’d selected, and they walked over to the table and sat down. Erin gazed out the window while Kaely quickly filled out two cards. There had been more people walking down the boardwalks when they’d come into the post office. She wondered if the streets were beginning to clear because of the impending snowstorm. She was still amazed at how well she felt about being out, around people. Of course, being with Kaely helped a lot since she felt safe with her. But still, she saw this as a step in the right direction.

Although she and Kaely didn’t have far to go, Erin decided to speed things up some.

Kaely got up and took her cards back to the counter. Erin watched Olivia, who kept glancing at Allen. It didn’t take much insight to understand that Olivia had a crush on her boss. She found it surprising, since Olivia was lovely, and Allen had almost zero charm and treated all of them as if they were something that had to be dealt with as quickly and with as little effort as possible. He was nice looking, but his manner, the way he looked at everyone, and the unattractive glasses balanced on the edge of his nose made it hard to see anything appealing about him. He barely nodded when she gave him the postcards.

Kaely had turned around and was headed back toward her when Erin noticed Allen picking up the postcards Kaely had handed him and passing them to Olivia as if they were something that needed to be disinfected. He looked over at Erin and she quickly looked away, but she was pretty sure he knew she’d been watching him.

“Thank you for coming,” Olivia called out in her high, sing-song voice.

“It was nice to meet you, Olivia,” Erin said, careful to leave Allen’s name out.

“Well, that was interesting,” Kaely said when they stepped out onto the sidewalk. It felt as if the temperature had dropped several degrees just while they were inside. Erin couldn’t wait to get back to the cabin where it was warm.

“I think our friend Allen has quite an ego,” she said.

“Actually, my guess is he feels very inadequate,” Kaely responded. “That’s why people like him have to look down on everyone else.”

Erin nodded as she pulled her jacket closer. “That makes a lot of sense. Do you profile everyone you meet?”

Kaely sighed. “Yes. Sorry. Bad habit. I just can’t seem to turn it off.”

They decided to head for Grady’s General Store and get their groceries, but before they could reach their destination, they stopped when they heard someone call out their names. They turned to see Adrian hurrying toward them. From the expression on his face, Erin was pretty sure she knew what he was going to say.

“There’s been another one,” he said. “Dale and Lonzine found her a few minutes ago. I’m on my way there now. Do you want to come with me?”

There was a part of Erin that wanted to tell him no, but she knew she couldn’t. She looked over at Kaely whose expression mirrored her own feelings. Was this ever going to end?