Larue Donavon 3 - The Ghoul Next Door (2 page)

When the words left my lips, a mist
materialized in the corner of the room. I watched the form of a
person take shape. It was a man in his mid-thirties. He was wearing
a gray pin-striped suit and looked as if he’d stepped straight out
of the Fifties. He had a cigarette dangling from his lips, but no
smoke came from the tip. He puffed, then smiled at me.

“
The name’s Grant Fine. I’ve
been a resident of Magnolia since 1919. That’s the year I was born…
a good year in-deed. Those were the good old days,” he said in a
gravelly voice.

So much for a relaxing evening—I knew
the ghosts would find me somehow. If they didn’t come to me, I went
to them.

“
It’s nice to meet you, Mr.
Fine. My name is Larue Donavan and I’ve been a resident of Magnolia
since 1987. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, why are you
in my friend’s attic?” I asked matter-of-factly.

“
That’s none of your
business,” he snapped.

I scoffed. “So that’s how it’s going
to be.” Who did this guy think he was? “Look, this is my friend’s
house. You’re on her property. I think you owe her an explanation.”
I glared at him.

I hated being mean to the ghost, but
sometimes it was the only way.

“
I don’t owe her anything.
Why should I tell her anything?” He took another drag from his
ghostly cigarette.

“
It’s the polite thing to
do, that’s why,” I said, crossing my arms in front of my
chest.

He tapped ashes off onto the floor,
but they disappeared before they even hit the ground. “I’m dead.”
He looked me straight in the eyes. “I don’t have to be polite
anymore.”

What was I supposed to say to that? He
had me there.

“
Well, whatever you say, but
you can’t stay here in her home. If you tell me why you’re here
maybe I can help you. I’ve done this a time or two.” Hmm. That
sounded weird. Maybe I needed to clarify what it was that I
did.

“
That’s thrilling, but I
don’t need your help. I’m fine. Mr. Fine.” He cackled at his
joke.

I glared. “I don’t think you
are
fine
. You’re
dead and hiding out in an attic, smoking an imaginary cigarette.
That’s not my idea of fine.”

I hated to be so blunt. The truth
hurt, but I had to tell him. He didn’t answer, and before I asked
another question, he disappeared in a puff of smoke just like rings
floating up from his fake cigarette.

I looked around at the space. Was he
hiding behind a box? No way had he left. I didn’t trust him. If he
had gone, I knew he’d return. I had to help Mindy. She was my best
friend and I couldn’t let her down.

“
I know you’re still up
here. Come on out.” My voice carried across the space.

No answer.

“
Come out, come out,
wherever you are,” I sang.

I was now playing hide-and-seek with a
ghost. Awesome. I walked around the attic, the floor creaking with
each step. I picked up Mindy’s discarded Ab Roller and set it to
the side. Peeking around a dress form and finding nothing, I
figured it might be time to give up. From all the way downstairs, I
felt the tension flowing up from Mindy and Callahan. I knew they
were wondering what the heck I was doing. I had to
hurry.

After looking around the small space,
and not finding my cranky ghost, I had no choice but to leave him
up there. Sweat beaded on my forehead. I had to get out of there
before I had a heat stroke. I knew this ghost was playing games
with me. Before I gave up for good, or gave up the ghost rather, I
stepped out of the attic, pretending to leave. I’d play his game
better than he did. I waited a few seconds, then eased back in.
Sure enough, he was back in the corner, lounging against the wall
and puffing on that ghostly cigarette. He thought he was so smart.
I would outsmart him.

“
Ha, I got you.” I
pointed.

He scowled. “What the hell do you want
with me? Leave me alone.”

“
I told you what I want. I
want you to leave this house.”

“
No!” He tossed the
cigarette on the ground and crossed his arms in front of his
chest.

Was he pouting? I felt like if I
offered him an ice cream cone he would leave just like a
kid.

I wiped my forehead. “Look, it’s hot
in here. Why don’t you come with me and we can discuss this
situation in depth.”

There was no way he would agree to
this, but what other options did I have? I had to at least
ask.

He looked me up and down. “Yeah, okay.
You’re good-looking enough. I guess I can go with you.”

I rolled my eyes. “Gee, I’m flattered.
Thanks a bunch.”

I made my way back down the stairs
with Mr. Fine breathing in my ear.

When I reached the bottom step,
Callahan and Mindy rushed over.

“
What happened?” Mindy
asked.

“
Okay. Try to remain calm…”
I said.

That was like telling her to try and
not eat a piece of chocolate. It wasn’t happening—we loved our
chocolate. There was no way to break this to her gently. Her eyes
couldn’t get any wider.

I continued, “There was someone in
your attic.”

“
Oh my God. A living
person?” she screeched.

Callahan started up the stairs, but I
grabbed his arm to stop him.

“
No, no. It was a spirit,
but he disappeared. I’m pretty sure he’s gone.” I crossed my
fingers behind my back.

Okay, I hated lying to her, but there
was no need to cause her any more stress right now. She’d been
through so much lately.

I quickly added, “I just think he was
in the wrong house. It happens from time to time… nothing to worry
about.”

Mindy scowled. She didn’t look
convinced.

“
Do you want to spend the
night with me?” I asked the question, but I secretly didn’t want
her to take the offer. I was a terrible best friend, I know. But I
wanted alone time with Callahan. If Mindy really needed me though,
I’d drop everything to help her, and she knew that.

Mindy looked around the room, then
back at me and Callahan.

Her shoulders slumped as she exhaled.
“I guess I’ll be okay here. If you’re sure the spirit is
gone?”

I glanced to my side. Unfortunately, I
was all too sure that the spirit was no longer in the attic because
he was invading my personal space at that moment. Mr. Fine winked
at me, then took another puff from his cigarette. Maybe all those
cigarettes were the reason for his passing. I had to get rid of him
soon so that I wouldn’t have the constant cigarette smell following
me around like a dark cloud. I was allergic to the
smoke.

“
Did the ghost say anything
to you?” Mindy asked.

“
Like I said, I think he was
just a little confused and didn’t know why he was here.”

Mindy nodded.

Mr. Fine snorted. “Yeah, that’s it.
Why don’t you lie to her some more? You’re not a very good friend,
are you?”

What a mean and nasty ghost. That
comment was so uncalled for, but by his smug expression, I knew he
didn’t care.

“
You call me if you need
anything,” I said.

I hugged Mindy tight, then Callahan
kissed her on the cheek.

Mindy folded her arms in front of her
chest. “If that ghost comes back I’ll be at your front door again
before you can say annoying best friend.”

I laughed. “Don’t knock next time,
just use your key and come on in.”

***

Mr. Fine made the trip home with us.
No big surprise there. He sat in the middle of the backseat, but it
wasn’t as if he had a choice. Callahan had made it to the passenger
side before Mr. Fine had a chance to call shotgun. Unfortunately,
Mr. Fine didn’t remain quiet, but honestly, had I really expected
him to shut his trap? None of them ever did. He started off with
the coughing—I knew he was only pretending to have something stuck
in his throat, because really, he was dead. How sick could he be?
Then he started with the humming, which turned into whistling. The
noise was getting on my very last nerve. I had precious few nerves
to spare at this point. An endless stream of annoying ghosts had
made me zip through every single nerve I had.

My little farmhouse on the outskirts
of town sat under a canopy of tall oak trees. It was just the right
size for me with three bedrooms, two baths, and a cozy fireplace in
every room. I loved opening the windows in every room and listening
to the rustle of the leaves. The house was barely visible under the
cover of night as we drove up the gravel drive. Nighttime had
hidden the bright orange, yellow, purple and green leaves that
filled every tree too. The smell of sweet apples, fallen leaves and
pumpkin still hung in the air though.

We’d barely pulled up to my front door
when my new ghost friend jumped out from the backseat, as if I’d
invited him in or something. “Make yourself at home,” I wanted to
yell sarcastically. But I didn’t want Callahan to think I was
totally nasty to the ghosts though, so I refrained.

Mr. Fine didn’t even wait for me to
open the front door. When Callahan and I entered the foyer, he was
already making his way up the stairs. The hardwood floors creaked
as we stepped across the threshold. Thankfully I’d remembered to
leave the little lamp on the table next to the door turned on
because otherwise the house was pitch black. I’d stubbed my toe one
to many times before I finally decided to do something about
it.

“
Hey, where do you think
you’re going?” I yelled.

Callahan froze in his
tracks.

“
Oh, sorry, I wasn’t talking
to you. I was talking to the ghost.” I pointed toward the
stairs.

Callahan looked, but, of course, saw
nothing. I could only imagine how it was for others who didn’t see
the spirits like I did. A wee bit confusing.

“
Right. The ghost.” Callahan
nodded.

I pointed at Mr. Fine and gave him a
warning glare. I’d chase him up those stairs if I had
to.

“
You are not hiding in my
attic. That’s just weird. So knock it off.”

What was with ghosts and attics?
Callahan frowned in utter confusion.

“
Get down here and act like
you’re alive right now or I will drag out my sage and cleanse your
butt into the light right now. Do you understand me?” I pointed to
the spot on the floor beside me.

Callahan chuckled. “I take it we have
a testy ghost with us?”

“
Unfortunately, yes, we
do.”

Mr. Fine stood midway up the stairs
with a scowl across his face.

After a couple seconds, he finally
said, “I’ll come down there, but don’t think because you’re some
fancy psychic that you’re going to bully me and tell me what to do
all the time.”

“
Well, I think as long as
you’re hanging out in my house that I have the right to tell you
what to do,” I said.

Callahan stood beside me staring
straight ahead as if he didn’t know what to say or do.

Callahan turned to me. “Larue, I don’t
want you to think you have to keep secrets from me. When there are
ghosts around us, just tell me. I can handle it. Give me some more
credit, okay?”

I answered with a nod. “I guess it
just takes some time for me to get used to the idea that you know I
talk to the dead.”

After keeping my special talent a
secret for so long, it was hard to let it be out in the open like
that.

Callahan stepped closer and wrapped
his arms around my waist. “If it’s a part of your life, then I love
it.”

That was the first time he’d mentioned
the ‘l’ word. Was it too soon? Okay, he hadn’t said he loved me,
but was he headed in that direction? How did I feel about him? I
couldn’t deny that what I was feeling might be love. Thankfully,
Mr. Fine had left us alone at this special moment. Well, at least I
thought he had. I hadn’t seen him since Callahan had pulled me
closer. He was probably hiding out in the attic. That was so
weird.

Giving up on trying to control my new
ghost guest for the night, I left him to entertain himself while
Callahan and I slipped off to the bedroom. It was like sneaking
your boyfriend into your room when your parents were home. It was
ridiculous that I had to hide from a ghost like a teenager. Mr.
Fine could sneak off to the attic if he wanted, as long as he left
us alone tonight.

Callahan started the fireplace,
warming the room and casting a soft glow across the butter-colored
walls. I waited for him by the bed.

When Callahan neared, he pulled me
into his arms, then glanced around. “Are we alone?”

I wanted to say: define alone. But
that wouldn’t have been the answer he wanted, so instead I said,
“Yes. We’re completely alone.”

I didn’t have the heart to explain
that ghosts could pop up at any moment or even make themselves
invisible.

With those words, he pulled me against
his hard body and placed his lips against mine. He gently traced
the contour of my lips with his tongue until I couldn’t stand it
any longer and I had to kiss him with full force. I ran my hands
down his shoulders and along his arms, relishing in the feel of his
hard muscles. He threaded his hands through my hair, then held my
face with his powerful hands.