Ghostly Ordeal Read online

  “It is,” Gloria agreed. “I still need to see you.”

  “Why?” Harper was instantly suspicious. “Did you do something? If you vandalized Dad’s property again I’m going to tell Mel the truth if he questions me.” Since her parents were mired in the world’s longest — and most bitter — divorce, Harper’s mind actually jumped to what she considered the worst possible scenario. Her mother had been increasingly bold when it came to messing with her father.

  “This has nothing to do with your father.” Gloria was firm. “It has to do with me.”

  “Is something wrong with you?”

  “Well ... .”

  Harper’s heart sank. “Are you sick?”

  Jared, who was in the middle of trying to tickle his fiancée again, stopped playing and turned serious. Harper and her mother weren’t especially close, but the illness of a parent was always a concern. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  Harper shrugged instead of answering. “Mom, you need to tell me what’s going on. I can’t help unless you tell me the truth.”

  “Yes, well ... .” Gloria made a throat-clearing sound on the other end of the phone. “The thing is, I’m at Carl’s house. You remember Carl, right? What am I saying? Of course you do. We’ve been dating for a few weeks now.”

  Carl Gibbons. That was his name and about the only thing Harper remembered about him ... other than he combed his hair in a ridiculous way to cover his bald spot. He was a divorce attorney, which is how her mother met him. She never dated her own divorce attorneys, but she was more than happy to erase a business relationship right from the start so she would be free to see whomever she wanted.

  “I remember him.” As far as Gloria’s dates went, Carl bothered Harper less than most ... although that wasn’t saying much. “Why are you calling if you’re with your friend?”

  “Because he’s dead ... and I’m pretty sure he was murdered.”

  Whatever she was expecting, that wasn’t it. Harper’s heart plummeted. “Are you serious?”

  “Yes. I need your help.”

  She needed more than help, Harper surmised. She glanced at Jared, who obviously couldn’t hear Gloria’s end of the conversation and was still operating under the assumption that something was wrong with her physically.

  “Give us a few minutes, Mom,” Harper said finally, resigned. “Jared is with me. We’ll be right there.”

  “Oh, thank you so much.”

  “We’re going to need an address.”

  Two

  “I don’t understand.” Jared dutifully climbed into jeans and a T-shirt without complaint, grabbing a comfortable flannel shirt from the closet and shrugging into it as he watched Harper mull over two sweaters. “Why would your mother call us instead of 911 if her boyfriend is dead?”

  Harper shot him a withering look. “I would think that’s rather obvious,” she said. “You’re a cop.”

  “I am,” he agreed. “It’s just ... how does she even know he’s dead? Maybe he’s unconscious and needs an ambulance.”

  “We’ll find out soon enough.” Harper settled on a black sweater and tugged it over her head, the ends of her hair standing on end thanks to the buildup of static electricity. “Do I look okay?”

  Jared pinned her with a dubious look. “As compared to what?” he challenged. “Your mother isn’t going to critique your outfit at the scene of her boyfriend’s death.”

  Harper wasn’t so sure about that. “You never know.” She finger-combed her hair as she strode through the house and collected her boots at the front door. “Come on. I think she’s freaking out.”

  Jared was directly behind her and didn’t need urging. “I’m right here.” He looked her over with a studied gaze, making his mind up on the spot. “Maybe you should stay here and let me check on her, huh? I promise I’ll call the minute I know something.”

  “Don’t even.” Harper’s cheeks flushed with annoyance. “I know you think I need to be taken care of, but I’m perfectly capable of handling my own mother. That’s not going to change.”

  “And here we go,” Jared muttered. “I don’t want to fight. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. Most women would be happy to have a man who stands by them no matter what. I guess you’re not most women, though.”

  “Are you just figuring that out?”

  Harper shot him a look before grabbing her coat from the closet. “Let’s go. I promised her we wouldn’t be more than a few minutes.”

  “I’m coming.” His earlier mood a distant memory, Jared slipped into his coat and grabbed his keys from the small console table that rested against the foyer wall. “We’re going to talk about this later, though.”

  “I’m looking forward to it.”

  THE DRIVE TO CARL GIBBONS’S house took ten minutes despite the fact that it was less than a mile away. The roads were atrocious, and even though Jared had four-wheel-drive, he found himself struggling to make it through intersections because the plow trucks hadn’t yet been through the side roads.

  “This is a mess,” he muttered as he navigated a particularly high drift. “I don’t think anyone should be out in this.”

  “My mother needs help.” Harper’s tone was shrill, her knuckles white as she gripped the door handle and stared out the passenger side window. “She wouldn’t have called unless she was desperate. She only calls to nag or when something is really bad.”

  And that, Jared realized, was the true crux of the problem. Harper was a barking mess because she couldn’t wrap her head around her mother’s fear. Jared knew Gloria on a cursory level — the woman was always pleasant to him and mentioned over and over that she was glad he’d found Harper so her daughter didn’t have to spend the rest of her life alone — but he wasn’t all that familiar with the woman’s moods. Harper was careful to make sure they didn’t cross paths too often. Jared was convinced that was for his benefit because Gloria was obviously a difficult woman to deal with.

  “It’s going to be okay, Harper.” Jared’s voice was low and soothing as he pulled onto the correct street. “Whatever is happening ... I’m sure it can be easily explained. Heck, maybe he’s not even dead.” He chose to look on the bright side of things despite their circumstances. “It’s possible your mother didn’t get close enough to check. You know how she feels about icky things.”

  Despite herself, Harper let out a low laugh. “That’s true. Maybe he’s just sleeping very deeply.”

  “There you go.” Jared wanted to reach out and capture her hand, show her some reassurance, but the roads were too treacherous to risk it. “What do you know about this guy? I can’t remember if I’ve met him or not.”

  “You have.” Harper made a face. “He was the one we went to dinner with a few weeks ago, the one at the steakhouse.”

  “Ah, the one who told us that steak made men more virile in bed.” Jared smiled at the memory. “I believe we had fun imitating him later that night. I wanted you to dress up in a steak bikini and test his theory.”

  “Yes, I remember that, too.” Even though she was agitated, Harper’s lips curved. “I’m sorry for yelling at you earlier. It’s just ... I’m used to people giving me grief about what I do. I tend to ignore it as much as possible, but it’s not always easy.”

  “I understand that.” Jared slowed his truck as he struggled to read the house numbers. “I don’t believe I’ve ever said a thing about what you do, though. I mean ... I guess I did that first time I had you in for questioning. I was suspicious of you then, but it’s not because I didn’t trust you. I’d simply never heard of anyone really having your ability.

  “I didn’t doubt you very long,” he continued. “I figured out you were telling the truth within days and I’ve always been on your side ever since that moment. Always. I’m going to stay on your side for the rest of our lives. That’s why I asked you to marry me.”

  “And here I thought it was because of how cute I look in my fuzzy winter pajamas.”

  He snorted. “The fuzzy pajamas are o
nly a bonus. As for the rest ... I know you’re good at what you do. I don’t doubt for a second you’ll bring money into the household. That doesn’t mean I can’t help you occasionally, or you can’t help me, for that matter. Once we’re married, we’re going to have joint accounts, right?”

  “I guess.” Harper was thoughtful as she tapped her bottom lip. “I still have to keep my business account with Zander. You know that, right?”

  “I do. It’s not an issue. I’m going to be your husband, Heart, not your lord and commander.”

  “Yeah.” She looked more relaxed as he pulled into the driveway. “That’s Mom’s car.” She leaned forward.

  “It looks like she’s been here a little bit.” Jared glanced around. “There’s already an inch of snow on her car.”

  “It’s really coming down.”

  “Not that fast.” Jared continued staring forward for a bit before killing the engine of his truck. “Come on. Try not to stomp around the house and leave snow anywhere — or touch anything — in case this really is something we need to worry about.”

  Harper nodded, grim. “Okay. Thanks for doing this.”

  “That’s what I’m here for.”

  “I thought you were here for my afternoon delight.”

  “That, too.”

  GLORIA WAS A FLUTTERY MESS when she opened the door.

  “I don’t know what to do,” she announced when the couple stepped into the entryway of the two-story abode. “I think he did this to make me crazy. There can be no other explanation.”

  “He did this?” Jared arched an eyebrow. “Are you saying he committed suicide?”

  The look Gloria shot him was straight out of a how-to book on making your future mother-in-law hate you. “I have no idea. I’m not an expert on these things.”

  “Would he have committed suicide?” Harper asked.

  “Oh, right.” Gloria rolled her eyes so hard it was a miracle she didn’t fall over. “I’m such a heinous hag to deal with he had to kill himself to get away. That’s what you’re saying, isn’t it?”

  “Not even remotely.” Harper looked to Jared for help, uncertain. “I don’t know what to do.”

  “Ignore her.” Jared wasn’t in the mood to deal with Gloria’s brand of histrionics. “We need to focus on the problem at hand. Where is he, Gloria?”

  Gloria extended a shaking finger toward a door on the right. “He’s in there ... and it’s not pretty.”

  Jared regarded her for an extended beat and then walked in that direction. He honestly wasn’t sure what he would find on the other side of the door. Gloria was known for blowing things out of proportion. In her world, for example, a paper cut was the same thing as a bayonet wound. Still, what he found waiting for him in the living room was enough to make his blood run cold.

  “Son of a ... .” He viciously swore under his breath as he stepped over the threshold, his mind going a million miles a second.

  “What is it?” Harper asked, pressing close to his back so she could find an angle to peer around him. “Is he dead?”

  “He’s definitely dead.” Jared swiveled and caught her wrists before she could sneak around him and taint the scene. “This also wasn’t suicide.” He was calm because of his job training, but he felt weary just thinking about the list of things he needed to check off. “I need you to do me a favor.”

  Harper stopped struggling to see the body and focused on him. She knew he wouldn’t be asking unless something was really wrong. “What do you need?”

  “I need you to force your mother to sit on that bench in the foyer and not touch a thing. It’s important. You need to sit with her. I also need you to call Mel, tell him what’s going on here, and ask him to get the medical examiner.”

  Harper had no trouble understanding that Jared was deadly serious ... which meant the scene on the other side of the couch was probably something out of a horror movie. “Okay. Um ... how did he die?”

  “Badly.”

  “Jared ... .”

  “I can’t focus on that right now.” He was firm. “I need to go by the book on this one. I’m sorry. Can you just do as I asked?”

  She nodded without hesitation. “I’m sorry about this ruining our day. I’m sorry about the fight earlier, too.”

  “It wasn’t really a fight.” He meant it and kissed her forehead before digging in his pocket for a pair of rubber gloves. “You can’t go wandering around the house. That’s especially true for your mother. Can you please keep an eye on her? It could be very important before everything is said and done.”

  Realization dawned on Harper. “You don’t think she did this, do you?”

  “Of course not. I just need to make sure that we cover our bases. That means you need to help me.”

  “Okay.” Harper knew better than to argue. Jared was in official mode now. That meant he was focused on his job. “I’ll call Mel first thing. Hopefully he will be able to get here despite the roads.”

  “Faster is better,” Jared agreed. “I’ll be in here. Just ... don’t wander around. Promise me.”

  “I promise.”

  MEL KELSEY WAS A MASS OF exaggerated growls and annoyance when Harper let him in through the front door.

  “This had better be good,” he announced, his cheeks a rosy shade of red. “My cruiser got stuck about three blocks down and the county road crews are going to have to get it out. I already placed a call.”

  “Oh, no.” Harper felt horrible for him. In addition to being Jared’s partner, he was also Zander’s uncle. She’d known Mel since she was a small child and was quite tight with him. “That’s terrible. I’m sorry.”

  “Yeah, well ... what are you going to do?” Mel removed his gloves and slipped them into the pocket of his coat. “Where is Jared?”

  Harper pointed toward the living room. “I don’t think it’s good. He’s being really quiet.”

  “Which means it’s definitely not good,” Mel agreed, his eyes briefly traveling to Gloria. “And why is your mother here?”

  “She was dating the guy,” Harper replied. “He’s a divorce attorney. She came over to visit and found him.”

  “I see.” Mel was growing increasingly uncomfortable with the situation as the facts came to light. “Well, I’ll go in and talk with Jared and then we’ll take it from there. The medical examiner is coming, but he’s going to be way behind me. He’s still at least thirty minutes out. Can you keep an eye out for him?”

  Harper bobbed her head. “I’m on it.”

  “Thank you.” Mel kept his smile in place as he entered the living room, but it evaporated quickly when he caught sight of the body on the floor. “Holy ... .”

  “Yeah.” Jared rolled his neck until it cracked. “It’s ugly.”

  “He’s obviously been stabbed,” Mel observed as he circled the body. “I’m guessing a good four or five times.”

  “Yeah. There’s too much blood to get a good number,” Jared agreed. “We’re going to need the medical examiner to determine that.”

  “Still, we’re talking a great deal of rage here.” Mel was fixated on the dead man. “His eyes are open, which means he was alive during the attack.”

  “Definitely,” Jared agreed. “Given the way the blood is congealed, I’m going to guess he’s been dead about twelve hours or so. Maybe a little longer.”

  Mel did the math in his head. “Then we’re talking after midnight.”

  “I’m thinking probably about two in the morning, but we obviously need that confirmed.”

  “Obviously,” Mel echoed, making a tsking sound with his tongue. “What do we know about this guy? I mean ... I think I’ve seen him around a time or two, but I don’t believe he’s a fixture in the community. At least he doesn’t hang around the same places I do.”

  “Carl Gibbons.” Jared was matter-of-fact. “He’s a divorce lawyer who just happens to be dating Gloria. I don’t believe she used him for her divorce, but we’ll have to check and make sure. I know she’s careful about not dat
ing the guy who is currently handling her case.”

  “The case that will never end,” Mel muttered. “I swear, she and Phil have been divorcing each other for what feels like forever.”

  “I’m guessing Harper would agree with that assessment.”

  “Speaking of Harper ... .” Mel darted a look in the direction of the door to make sure nobody was listening before continuing. “You realize that Gloria is going to be a suspect in this simply because she was dating the man, right?”

  Jared was uncomfortable with the question. “I don’t know that. I mean ... can you imagine Gloria doing this?”

  Mel answered without hesitation. “Yes.”

  “You can?” Jared was taken aback. “But ... no way. She doesn’t like getting dirty.”

  “That doesn’t mean she didn’t do this. She’s a vindictive woman. Just ask poor Phil.”

  Jared made it a point not to take sides between Harper’s warring parents, but when it came down to it, if he had to choose a favorite, Phil was going to win every day of the week. While the tempestuous man wasn’t always thrilled with Jared’s romantic overtures toward his daughter, he was still easier to get along with than Gloria, who seemed to be the lead conductor on the judgmental train.

  “I can’t see her doing this.” Jared was firm. “I mean ... what’s the point? She switches boyfriends like she does purses. She never keeps one for more than a few weeks. I couldn’t even remember if I’d met this guy until Harper reminded me.”

  “She’s still a suspect.” Mel refused to back down. “I mean ... think about it. The fact that she was the one who discovered the body is enough to haul her in for questioning ... which is definitely something we’re going to have to do.”

  Jared was uncomfortable with the sentiment. “What we need to do is go through his files,” he corrected. “He’s a divorce attorney. I’m betting he’s alienated half the people in town just because of what he does for a living. It’s far more likely the husband — or wife, for that matter — of a recent client did him in because he or she was upset regarding a financial settlement after a divorce.”