Ghost Hunter (The Middle-aged Ghost Whisperer Book 2): (Ghost Cozy Mystery series) (3 page)

Chapter 5

I was back outside Constable Decker’s house just before dawn the following morning. I parked the car under a large bottle brush tree and poured coffee from my thermos into my travel mug. I felt a whole lot better once the first mouthful had gone down. I was already feeling caffeine deficient, but I was usually asleep at this time of day so it wasn’t as if my body was expecting coffee.

I hoped Decker’s wife wouldn’t notice my car, given that it had been there the previous day. I hoped she wasn’t an observant type. If Decker had been the one who had been murdered, she would no doubt be on edge, and likely suspicious as well. I would have to tread carefully.

I had no idea the hours of shifts that police worked, and I wanted to make sure that Decker was indeed the one who had been murdered. If it was another officer, then I was wasting my time with my stake out of Decker’s house.

Stake out
. I should have brought some donuts. I had the coffee, but on all the stake out movies I had seen on TV, they always had donuts and plenty of food. I had forgotten the donuts. In fact, I had forgotten to bring food at all. At least I had coffee, and that was the main thing.

Two hours later, and I was as bored as a person could be. There was no sign of movement whatsoever, no sign of Decker, no sign of his wife. Mercifully, the garage door rolled up and a woman I assume was his wife drove down the driveway, turned right, and drove straight past me. She didn’t even so much as shoot me a glance. There was no sign of her husband.

Now at least with the wife out of the way, I would do my best to make contact with Constable Decker, or if not Decker, then whoever the spirit was that I had felt the previous day. It was unusual for me to reach out to a spirit. In my job as a clairvoyant medium, I always waited for the spirits to contact me. It was only after I had first met Alum, and he had asked me to help him with his investigation, that I had started to reach out to spirits.

To my surprise, I had found that I had some skill in the matter. I reached out with my mind as best I could to search for the spirit whose presence I had felt.

He wasn’t long in coming. The spirit was a man, but he wasn’t coming forward. “Are you Constable Decker?” I asked him. I felt a little pulse of something akin to electricity, but there was no response. I did not get the slightest impression as to whether the answer was ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

This spirit did not want to come through, and I had no idea what to do. “Are you Constable Decker?” I asked again, and again the response was the same—nothing.

“I’m Prudence Wallflower,” I said loudly, and then stifled a giggle when it occurred to me that the tone of my voice would have no effect on the spirit. I pushed on. “I’m a friend of Alum Mullein’s,” I said. “I’m a clairvoyant medium, and I need to find out where Alum’s being held. His partner, Detective Stanfield Kelly, was the one who shot him.”

The sensation that the spirit did not hear what I had to say was palpable. Yet, I could feel him moving forward. I had the impression that he wanted to speak with me, but that his death had been such a shock. This spirit wasn’t doing well at being dead, but nevertheless, one thing was clear. This was the spirit of Constable Decker.

That realization brought with it a measure of relief. I figured that if I could keep trying to contact him, he would come through sooner or later. Nevertheless, sitting outside his house wasn’t the optimal place to try to make contact. His bedroom, his favorite chair in the living room, or a favorite location would be far better, but this was the best I could do. Just then my phone rang. I reached for it with some annoyance and then looked at the caller ID. It was Barbara.

“Do you want to meet me in town later for lunch?” she asked. “When you’ve finished your business?”

“That would be wonderful, thanks,” I lied, “but I’m in Tamworth.”

“Again?” Her tone held annoyance, frustration, along with a hint of disbelief. “But you were in Tamworth yesterday!”

“Yes, and I’m in Tamworth again today,” I said. “It’s to do with my work. It’s unavoidable.”

“It’s always unavoidable with you, Prudence,” Barbara said tersely.

I shrugged. I knew there was nothing I could say, nothing that would be polite, at any rate. Alum had said I should get a new set of friends. Still, I lived in a small country town in the middle of nowhere, and people, let alone potential friends, were in short supply. I was already on a break from Constance.

And, speak of the devil, she called me as soon as I hung up from speaking to Barbara. I considered not answering, but then curiosity as to what she wanted got the better of me. “Hello?” I said warily.

“Oh Prudence,” she gushed, “I was thinking about what you said about us taking a break.”

I waited for her to continue.

“I was giving it some thought,” she said.

“Yes, you just said that,” I pointed out.

“Well, only boyfriends and girlfriends take a break and have some space from each other, so I thought it wasn’t appropriate that we did.”

I scratched my head. “Did what?” I asked grumpily.

“I don’t think we should take a break,” Constance said rather too loudly. “Have I ever told you that I’m an expert in psychology? My professors wanted me to help people.”

I interrupted her. “Yes, Constance, you’ve told me that story several times. You have in fact called me while I’m working, and I can’t talk now.”

As was to be expected, Constance took no notice of my words and chatted on in a booming voice. By way of response, I turned off my phone when she was in mid-sentence. I was beginning to think I would rather speak with spirits than to people.

Just then, the alarm on my phone sounded. It was a reminder that I did, in fact, have to speak with a person. I supposed the universe had a cruel sense of humor.

My agent had emailed me the night before, saying he had to speak with me urgently. I had at once emailed back and said I would be in Tamworth the following day. I asked him what it was about. He simply responded that ten in the morning would suit him if it suited me. He did not say what the urgent matter was. I figured it was bad news. Now, I’m normally not a pessimist, but agents usually don’t summon their clients to their offices to give them good news.

I had a feeling that the day was about to go downhill from here. I typed his address into my GPS and followed its directions with a sigh.

My agent, William Snipe, was in his seventies, but looked a good twenty to thirty years younger. I expected he would have been able to pay for a lot of work on his face. He used to be a good agent, but lately I’d been beginning to have my doubts. I had suspected that he had been lured away by clients who could make him much more money. And that would be fair enough, if he hadn’t neglected me.

The trouble was, I didn’t know of any other agents who handled clairvoyant mediums.

I took a right, as directed by my GPS, and silently told myself not to expect the worst. After all, things were looking up. Alum was alive, and for that I was more than grateful. I hadn’t been able to get my head around the fact. It seemed too good to be true. Of course, there was always the danger that he might not stay that way for too long.

With that depressing thought, my heart sank to my stomach.

I was in no better mood when I reached the parking center close to my agent’s office. It was a veritable labyrinth of gloom, complete with low ceilings, and I’m claustrophobic at the best of times. The other drivers attempting to navigate the labyrinth appeared angry and some were abusing each other, yelling out their windows and blasting their horns.

Just as I was in despair of finding a parking place, an elderly lady slowly reversed. I nipped in as fast as I could, only to attract the glares of another driver who had been making a beeline for the same place. I promptly decided that next time I visited my agent, I would park several blocks away. It would be better to walk a few miles in the heat than have to negotiate this gloomy tight parking garage.

I found myself on the top floor of the mall, and I had to negotiate bustling crowds before I found my way to William’s office. It also was on the top floor, and had the not so enticing view of a brick wall outside the only window. My agent’s receptionist looked like she had swallowed a bucket load of lemons. Nevertheless, she told me to go straight in.

William narrowed his eyes when he saw me. “Sit down, Prudence,” he said as he attempted to smile. I held my breath, wondering what was coming next.

He wasted no time coming to the point. “Prudence, I’m afraid I have some bad news. Some of your booked venues have suggested that they might be canceling.” He folded his arms, leaned back in his chair and studied me.

I was somewhat confused. “Are they canceling or not?” I asked him.

He picked up his pen and tapped it against his chin. “I don’t know quite yet,” he said. “I was hoping to have the answer for you by today, but I’m expecting to hear from them at some point. I’ll let you know as soon as I hear.” He took a deep breath, and continued. “It’s just that there are so many international clairvoyant mediums coming to town, and New Zealanders as well.”

New Zealanders were international, but I didn’t point that out. After all, I wasn’t the Get The Facts Right Police.

“Is that the only reason?” I asked him.

He nodded. “Yes, and there are also more clairvoyant mediums than ever doing shows. Why, there are about ten of them doing the circuit in Newcastle at the moment. That’s too many of them to make a living for everyone. There’s an oversupply of clairvoyant mediums at the moment.”

I rubbed my temples. I could see the writing on the wall, and I didn’t know what else to do. I’d been making a living, a secure if not a great living, as a clairvoyant medium for some years now and I didn’t know what else I could do. I didn’t know what sort of businesses would employ someone of my age. I couldn’t type to save myself, and I’d be no good in sales. I was also mathematically challenged. Really, all I was good at was being a clairvoyant medium. I instantly thought of other jobs I could do to make money. I could go thrift diving and sell the goods on eBay, or I could start a dog walking business. I tried to stay positive, and quell my rising fear.

My agent shot me a look of concern. “Don’t look like that, Prudence. It might not be as bad as all that. I’m not saying that everyone will cancel.”

“Look, William,” I said firmly, “this is my sole livelihood. If I can’t book enough to live on, then I’ll have to quit, and look for work elsewhere. I have a mortgage, and two cats.” I was embarrassed to hear my voice shaking, and I dug my fingernails into my hand in an attempt to stop the tears that were already starting to fall.

William looked discomforted, but said no more for a while. Finally, he spoke. “That might be for the best, Prudence, if you did look for other work. I really think the days of making a living as a medium in this country could be coming to an end, at least for you.”

I nodded, excused myself, and hurried back to my car. After turning the wrong way about three times, I finally made my way out of the parking garage.

I was about to head home, but then I thought that I might as well go back to Constable Decker’s house. After all, I was in the area, and I could make the most of it. This time, a neighbor was out mowing his lawn, and he kept shooting glances in my direction. I figured that I shouldn’t stay long at all. I would make one more attempt to contact the spirit, and then leave, before the cops were called to me. I would have a hard time explaining what I was doing parked outside a murdered cop’s house on two consecutive days.

This time, the spirit did come through, although not very clearly. He said one word, ‘Cyclops’.

It was the word I had heard before, a word Brady Wayland had told me after his sister had murdered him. I had thought it was to do with Brady’s case, but now I realized it had something to do with Alum. Yet I had mentioned the word to Alum, and he’d had no idea what it meant.

The neighbor shot me another look from over his hedge, so I prepared to drive away. Just as I did, Constable Decker’s spirit came through more clearly. Again, he said the word, ‘Cyclops’.

Chapter 6

When I got home that day, I spent hours thinking about what I would do if I could no longer continue to make a living as a clairvoyant medium. I sure hoped it wouldn’t come to that, but if it did, I wanted to be prepared.

At the end of several hours, I was no further advanced in my plans. All it had given me was an awfully sore neck. I decided I needed a long hot bath—and a nice glass of Shiraz—to force myself to relax. I poured in a good quarter of a bottle of lavender bubble bath, and then as the scent of lavender wasn’t strong enough for me, I added half a bottle of lavender essential oil that I usually kept for the oil burner.

By the time the bathtub was full of bubbles, I was feeling a little less stressed. I undressed and lowered myself into the bathtub, displacing many of the heavenly bubbles, my glass of wine beside me. I reached for my wine and took a sip.

Half a glass of wine later, and my predicament didn’t seem so bad. I still hadn’t heard from my agent, but there was no use worrying about something that might never happen.

At any rate, I had more pressing matters to worry about, namely Alum. I was delighted that he was alive, more than delighted, but I had to do everything I could to make sure he stayed that way. I was the only person with whom he could communicate, and his partner would want to make sure he could finish off the job before Alum could tell everyone that he was the one who shot him.

I tried to push those thoughts from my head. I sank lower into the bubbles, just as Alum suddenly manifested in front of me.

I let out an involuntary squeal, and lowered myself even further into the tub.

Alum gasped and covered his eyes with both hands. “I’m so sorry, Prudence!” he exclaimed. “I had no idea I’d appear right here! Um, I didn’t see anything, truly,” he added in a guilty tone that didn’t sound entirely convincing.

“That’s okay,” I squeaked. To what degree had the bubbles covered me when he appeared? I couldn’t be sure. I could almost hear my face turning beet red.

I was about to suggest that Alum leave the room while I got out of the tub and made myself presentable, but then I realized that he could vanish at any second. I would just have to stay in the tub, as awkward as it was. Alum must have been thinking the same thing, because he hurried to fill me in. “I think I’m getting better,” he said.

“That’s great,” I said.

Alum shook his head. “Not so great, because when I do get better, I’ll be stuck at the safe house and won’t be able to speak with you any more.”

“Do you have any news? Did you find out anything else?” I asked hopefully.

“No.” His tone was sad.

“I have news,” I said, almost rising out of the bathtub before I caught myself and slipped back into the tub. “I found out that it was Constable Decker who was murdered.”

Alum made to move forward but stopped himself. “Are you sure?”

I nodded. “Yes. I went to Tamworth yesterday. Oh, I forgot to tell you that I googled the names of the two officers that you gave me, and found their addresses online. Constable Summers did return home, and then I went to Constable Decker’s house. I didn’t see him at all, and I waited there for hours.”

“But that doesn’t mean he was the murder victim,” Alum said. “He could’ve been anywhere.”

“Let me finish,” I said, with a wave of my hand. “Yesterday, I sensed the spirit of someone newly dead outside Constable Decker’s house, and so I went back there today. He didn’t come through clearly, but I realized today that it was the spirit of the constable. He also gave me the word ‘Cyclops’.”

“Cyclops?” Alum’s eyebrows shot up.

“Yes, that word again,” I said. “Do you have any idea what it means?”

Alum was quiet for a few moments before answering. “No,” he said. “I haven’t heard it mentioned at all since I’ve come out of the coma, and not before, for that matter.”

“So are you completely out of the coma now?” I asked him. I didn’t know the first thing about comas, but I had googled them since Alum told me his news. There seemed to be so many variables.

“I assume so,” he said, “but I keep going into a deep sleep. I’m still too weak to speak and I’m still far too weak to hold a pen. I assume that’s why I’m having more trouble coming through to you, because I’m actually getting better.”

“But that’s great news!” I said, but Alum interrupted me.

“It is and it isn’t,” he said. “The timing is everything. I need to tell them that it was my partner, Stanfield Kelly, who shot me and is involved in the cocaine gang, and if he happens to find out I’m still alive before I’m able to communicate with them…” His words hung on the air, and with that, he vanished.

I tapped my forehead, my pleasure at seeing Alum now gone. He was right. I was the only person who knew the truth about his partner, and I could hardly march up to the police and tell them I was communicating with Alum while he was in a coma. There was only one option open to me, and that was to find out where Alum was. If I could find out where he was and go there in person, the police would have to listen to me. I would make them listen to me.

I shook my head. It seemed such a crazy plan, but what other option was there? The only one I could think of was to call the police and tell them what I knew, but I could be speaking to the police who were involved with Stanfield Kelly. No, it was clear; I had to find the safe house and tell the police there in person.

I wanted to get out of the bathtub and dry myself, because there was no way I was going to relax now. I reached for the towel, but my fingers couldn’t quite close over it. What if Alum reappeared when I was stark naked and part way through getting out of the tub? I didn’t want to frighten the man. I carefully placed bubbles over all the pertinent places, made a dive for the towel, and wrapped it around me. I dried myself hurriedly, thinking he could reappear at any moment.

No sooner had I gotten dressed, than I heard a sound from my living room. I knew it wasn’t my phone, because I had turned it off in order to take a relaxing bath. That meant it was an email. I hurried to my laptop and stared at the screen. It was the email I had been waiting for from my agent. With trembling hands, I clicked on it. It read:

‘
Prudence, it’s bad news after all. I wish I had better news for you. Those venues have canceled, as I feared might happen. But don’t despair, it might just be a temporary situation. There are several international clairvoyant mediums coming to this country, and when they leave, business could well be back to usual. So there might not be any immediate cause for concern, but I’ll keep you posted as to any development. All the best, William
.’

Before I could process the news, there was an urgent knock on my door. I caught my breath. Surely not Constance?

I hurried to the door and flung it open, but there to my relief, was Barbara on my door step.

“Your cat’s on the roof!” she said urgently.

“But how?” I said. Then I remembered I had left the bathroom window open to let out the steam as I had no exhaust fan in there. With all the excitement of Alum appearing, I had forgotten to shut it and one of the cats must’ve escaped. I ran back into the bathroom and shut the window.

Barbara was still waiting for me by the front door, so I followed her out the door and looked up on the roof. Sure enough, there was Lily on the roof meowing and looking quite scared. Not far from her was an oversized, enormous brushtail possum. “Don’t go near that possum!” I called to the cat. “They have very sharp claws, and it’s much bigger than you are!”

Barbara looked at me as if I was crazy. “Your cat doesn’t understand what you’re saying, you do realize, don’t you?”

I shrugged. “But I have to get her down. Keep an eye on her, will you, and I’ll go and get a ladder.”

As I left to get the ladder, I could hear Barbara muttering that this would never have happened if I had a man. When I returned with the ladder, she was still muttering the same thing.

“How would a man stop the cat going up the roof to chase a possum?” I asked rather snappily.

“A man would get the cat down for you, Prudence,” she replied waspishly. “You shouldn’t be living on your own.”

I rolled my eyes. I thought perhaps I should add Barbara to my Most Not Wanted list, along with Constance.

I gingerly climbed up the ladder. The ground underneath it was slightly uneven so it wobbled. “Hey, Barbara, could you hold that ladder for me please?” I asked.

Barbara did as she was told. When I reached the roof, I climbed onto it, and then Lilly moved further out of range. The big possum hadn’t moved, and just continued to survey the situation. I was concerned that Lily would go after the possum, because they did indeed have very sharp claws and could be quite aggressive if threatened. “Here kitty, kitty,” I cooed at Lily, but in response she turned her back on me and stalked in the direction of the possum.

“Shoo!” I hissed. The possum just sat there, but Lily ran over toward it. I scrambled up the roof in the direction of both of them, and lunged for Lily. That scared the possum, and Lily as well. The possum ran in one direction, and Lily ran in the other. She ran to the silver birch tree near one corner of the house and nimbly climbed down it, leaving me alone on the roof.

“You don’t need to worry now, Prudence,” Barbara called out. “Lily is safely down.”

“I know that,” I said through gritted teeth. “But now I’m stuck up on the roof.”

“This wouldn’t happen if you had a man,” Barbara pointed out for what seemed like the millionth time.

I muttered some very rude words under my breath, and headed back for the ladder. The roof was quite steep, and it had been easier to go up than down. “Hang onto that ladder again, will you?” I called out.

I managed to maneuver from the roof to the ladder, but it wobbled as soon as it had my full weight on it.

Soon I was on the ground and Lily was sitting at the foot of the ladder, smirking at me. I grabbed her and headed inside, with Barbara hard on my heels. As annoying as her words were, I couldn’t help but feel as if she were right. It would be nice to have a man, Alum specifically. I like my own company, but it was hard to do everything myself, with no support, no one to talk to, no one to fetch my cat from the roof. And some love in my life wouldn’t be such a bad thing, I had to admit.

Alum to me seemed to be the ideal man, but he was in mortal danger. And even if his partner were brought to justice, would Alum even know who I was when he wasn’t in his spirit-state?