The Dark Man (24 page)

I fly up from the kitchen chair and lean across the granite countertop, grabbing for my cell phone, and in a bizarre act of universal kismet, it’s already vibrating in my hand by the time I pick it up.

Who in the hell would be calling at this hour? The caller ID shows a Virginia number, with a Hampton Roads area code, to be exact.

There’s no doubt who’s calling—and I already have an idea why.

Impatient, I answer, “Hello? Hello?”

“Ford?”

“Detective Thomas.”

“Sorry to call you so early. I wasn’t sure if you were still in town and forgot about the time difference—”

“Ellen.
Azeraul
. Gardner,” I blurt, interrupting him. I’m excited and out of breath. The name comes out in punchy gasps.

“Well, holy shit, son. You chase ghosts for a living, are you psychic, too?”

“What? Psychic? No, I …”

“Coulda fooled me. Thought I might give you a heads up, but it doesn’t sound like you need it. How’d you come by that info?”

I give him the short version of my morning, leaving out Caribou and the “Taxes 2015” folder, and explain how it was a random act of curiosity that led to my discovery. “I’m assuming it’s connected, Detective, I just don’t know who did what.”

“That’s what we’re looking to find out. Those tapes you gave us—you caught what we needed, though you didn’t know it at the time. Or, as you apparently discovered, you gave us a lead that we absolutely can’t ignore. I’ve got some uniforms on the way to Mrs. Gardner’s house right now.”

“You think she did it?”

“I’ll get to that, but first, let me apologize again for not being upfront about Craghorn’s history.”

“Water under the bridge, Detective. You were doing your job. I get it.”

“Not an excuse. I wouldn’t put my own men in danger and I can see why you got pissed. I’m at fault here, no ifs, ands, or buts. And besides, after having been attacked myself, and then listening to your investigation files, I realized just how dangerous and careless it was on my part. I’ll make it up to you somehow.”

“It’s certainly not a play-date in the park, but I’m still marking you down for one favor owed.”

“Good. Second, I listened to
all
six
hours of your audio. Goddamn spine-chilling, Ford, and I can’t believe you do this for a living. I wouldn’t have a single pair of underwear without brown stains.”

“Takes practice. I couldn’t be around murder victims all the time like you guys.”

“Point made. Anyway, listening to the EVPs, what caught my ear, and what you stumbled on, is the fact that Ellen Gardner, the wife of the former mayor of Virginia Beach, used to be Ellen Azeraul.”

“Right. So how’s it all connected? Did she kill Louisa?”

“Don’t know yet, but I’ve got a five dollar bill riding on it.”

“A whole five bucks? Remind me not to take you to Vegas.”

The man has a hearty, genuine laugh. I didn’t think he was capable. “The biggest thing, to me, was hearing Louisa’s voice saying, ‘still love her.’ It’s a bit disjointed because she seems to be answering questions out of order, like answering something you haven’t asked yet or giving a delayed answer to something you asked previously.”

“It happens. There are quite a few theories that suggest spirits are functioning within a different realm of time, and they may be experiencing it as a whole rather than a linear progression but—whatever. What does it mean? Are you telling me—”

“That Louisa Craghorn was having an illicit affair with Ellen Azeraul Gardner? It’s a distinct possibility. My theory is that Louisa lied about who she was having an affair with in her diary to protect her secret lover. So easy to redirect attention by having the secretary be with the powerful boss. No brainer, even. We can submit your audio as evidence, although I expect the judge will toss it out. Either way, it’s enough to warrant bringing her in for a round of questions. Could be the former mayor found out about it and had someone off Louisa, or could be that Ellen was done with her and wanted her gone before she said something. Whatever the case, we’ll get to the bottom of it. We may have just broken this thing wide open, Ford. Thank you.”

“No problem. I do what I can.”

“I’ll be in touch. Oh, and don’t speak a word of this to anyone. Ongoing investigation and all that. Keep that favor card handy, bud.”

The line clicks before I can say anything else.

Dead silence signals the end of another investigation, but there is so much more out on the horizon, out there in the beyond. I should be used to this by now, but the finality of it leaves me speechless, and if I had been able to reply, I imagine it would’ve been something like, “Cool. See you on the other side.”

Los Angeles, California

555-682-8307

Contact: Dane Argyle

A match made in heaven (or hell) brings America’s most popular ghost-hunting team to the silver screen

LOS ANGELES (August 1, 2015) – Spirit World Productions, Inc., is thrilled to announce that it has begun preliminary production of the most anticipated documentary in the history of paranormal investigations. The film’s executive producer, Carla Hancock, states, “We couldn’t possibly be more thrilled that the former lead investigators of
Graveyard: Classified
, Ford Atticus Ford and Mike Long, have enthusiastically agreed to reunite for this feature-length film. We absolutely can’t wait to get started.”

Ford, the
enfant terrible
of paranormal reality shows, recently came under harsh criticism and public scrutiny for the events that occurred on the night of October 31, 2012, when then-five-year-old Chelsea Hopper suffered a violent and ferocious demonic attack during a live episode of
Graveyard: Classified
. The upcoming documentary, according to Ford, will once again focus on the Hopper House in Ohio, where he and the former show’s technical wizard and co-lead investigator, Mike Long, plan to research, investigate, and clear the house of any “evil entities” that are present.

Long says, “This isn’t about us. It’s about Chelsea. It’s
for
Chelsea. Redemption. Vengeance. We’re going to march in there and take that [expletive deleted] thing down. We want the whole world to see us win.”

Barring any production delays, filming is set to begin in early September, and in an unprecedented, enthusiastic, team-powered effort, Spirit World Productions has planned for a nationwide theatrical release on December 25, 2015. Hancock says, “We’ll be working around the clock. It’s a crazy timeline, and nearly impossible, but I’m confident we can pull this off for the holiday season. We fully expect some terrifying consequences to this paranormal investigation because Ford and Mike Long are going to war with a demon, but what better way to celebrate a feel-good time of the year than with two heroes getting much-deserved payback for a little girl?”

The project has yet to be titled, but set aside Christmas Day 2015 to witness history.

Dear Reader,

Hello! Ernie Lindsey here, writing as Desmond Doane. I hope you had as much fun reading the first installment of the
Graveyard: Classified
series as I did writing it. Just like Ford Atticus Ford, I’ve been infatuated with the paranormal since I had my first experience with a ghost around age ten. It’s been a while, so my memories are slightly clouded, but I know what I heard.

Many of my current readers have asked, “Why the pseudonym?” and it’s a fairly easy answer. My intent, writing as Desmond Doane, is to keep my paranormal mystery novels collected and focused on a single genre, like having your whole family under one roof. I tend to write mysteries and thrillers under my own name, but the
paranormal
stories will be contained within Desmond’s realm.

Plus, Desmond is way cooler than I am, and it’s good to have him around. If you’d like to check out the multiple series and novels I’ve written as myself, be sure to visit
my author page
on Amazon or
learn more about me on my website
. (I give away a ton of books for free over there, so be sure to check out the preferred reader mailing list.)

The Dark Man
is book 1 in the series. To be notified when the next novel is released, visit the following link:

Desmond Doane and the
Graveyard: Classified
series

No matter what name I’m writing under, it’s an honor to have you read my fiction. Without an audience, an author is just a person clacking away on a keyboard, making up stories about fictional people. We wouldn’t be here without you, the wonderful friends and fans that escape into the worlds we create.

If you’ve enjoyed this novel, you can help make a difference in its success. An honest review on Amazon does wonders, and Desmond certainly wouldn’t mind if you shared it with your reading friends and family members. If you know anyone who enjoys shows like
Ghost Hunters
or
Ghost Adventures
, Desmond is positive they would be entertained by this, too.

My sincere thanks go out to those who helped with
The Dark Man
for their support, encouragement, and many hours of reading early drafts. The biggest thanks of all go to my wife, who kindly endures all the voices in my head.

Thanks so much again for your time, and I’ll see you on the other side.

All best,

Ernie/Desmond