The Ghoul Next Door

chapter Twenty-Seven

When I pulled into the driveway, I dialed Mindy’s number. She picked up on the first ring. I probably sounded like a crazy woman as I explained about the letter, the books, and the missing necklace. Needless to say, Mindy wasn’t happy that I’d taken so long to tell her about such important things in my life.

“Do you have any suspects who you think may have taken the necklace?” Mindy asked.

“Well, let’s see.” I tapped my fingers against the steering wheel. “Of course, there’s Jane Howe. The one who applied for the job and Cooper hired. She was in the restaurant right before it happened, so that puts her near the scene of the crime. But as far as I know, she doesn’t know what kind of car Callahan drives. Then there’s Callahan’s ex-girlfriend, since she sent the letter. She definitely knows what kind of car he drives, but why she’d break into the car, I don’t know.”

“Maybe she just wanted to vandalize it, but when she saw your purse that made her mad, so she decided to take it.”

“That’s a good thought. Definitely a possibility,” I said.

I ignored Mr. Fine’s annoying tapping of his fingers against the car seat. Candy Cherry was yammering on to Elvis about how tough her life had been. I overheard her say, “They expected me to actually get a job. Can you believe that?” Poor Elvis.

“Anyone else on your list?” Mindy asked.

I pointed at Mr. Fine, warning him to be quiet with the annoying noises.

“Let me think, let me think.” I tapped my finger against my chin. “Hmm. Well, the only other person I can think of is Beth.”

“Beth?” Mindy squeaked. “Why would she break into Callahan’s car?”

“She kept going on and on about the necklace, talking about how much she liked it. She saw me put it in my purse. What if she decided she wanted it for her own?”

“Hmm. The plot thickens,” Mindy said.

“Of course, that’s assuming the person who took it knew us. It could have just been a random crime, which is more than likely what happened.” I tried to reassure myself… but that nagging thought lingered in the back of my mind.

“Odds are, yes,” Mindy agreed. “We could do some sleuthing and try to find out more information.”

I chuckled. “I wouldn’t even know how to begin to do that.”

“I’ll talk to Beth and casually see if I can get any details from her,” Mindy said.

“Well, please be careful of what you say, I don’t want her to think I’m accusing her of anything.”

“Oh, I’ll be careful, I promise.” The tone of her voice told me that maybe I shouldn’t trust that promise. “Do you want me to come over?” she asked.

“No, I guess I’ll get some sleep. We have another long day ahead of us tomorrow.”

“Call me if you need anything,” she said.

“You know I will.” I chuckled.

I’d listed everyone I could think of, and like Mindy had agreed, someone could have just been looking for something to steal. But that same persistent thought in the back of my mind told me that wasn’t the case. I knew it was someone related to the destroyed books and the shadow at my home. I had a feeling it was related to Callahan’s ex-girlfriend. I needed to confront her about the letter.

She probably wouldn’t be able to hide her devious deed if she’d done it. Were Jane and Callahan’s ex-girlfriend in on this together? That was a real possibility. Either that or I was being a paranoid freak. All the black magic had finally gotten to me and they’d be coming to fit me for my strait-jacket any day now.

I just hoped I didn’t receive any more letters. Enough was enough. I needed a break from the craziness. How I longed for the days of selling books and talking to the occasional ghost—just your run-of-the-mill lost soul. I’d help them cross over and all would be well. But no, that was apparently a thing of the past. Was I doomed to deal with this kind of chaos for the rest of my life?

There had to be a way to get things to settle down. If I figured it out, I was for sure treating myself to a spa day. No ghosts, no demons, no witchcraft. Nothing. It would be a complete Larue day.

I found myself thinking about Beth. How much did I really know about her? Was she acting like a guilty person? Should I mention the necklace to see how she’d react? Surely she wouldn’t be able to hide her guilt if she’d taken the necklace. Maybe I should just leave the questions to Mindy.

When I got out of the car, Elvis was waiting for me on the front step. I still couldn’t get used to the fact that Elvis was hanging around.

“There was something in your house when I went in. I decided to wait out here until you got out of the car. I didn’t want to interrupt your phone call. I also didn’t want to interrupt your date with Callahan tonight so I tried to keep my distance.” He winked.

How sweet was he? But the look on this face told me that something was wrong.

“Something is in the house?” I asked, stepping onto the porch.

“It looked like a caped figure. I chased after it, but it disappeared.”

My heart thumped. “Where did you chase it to?” I asked.

“It left through the kitchen wall.”

When I stepped inside the foyer, the muddy footprints glared back at me. That same strange vibe hung in the air like a thick fog over a lake. The muddy steps trailed across the floor, but they hadn’t come from anywhere. They started right in the middle of the room. A dark spirit had been in my home. I knew the prints were not of this world. Was this the dark shadow I’d seen? Cooper’s words echoed in my mind. Had the evil pulled me to the other house? Was that the reason I’d been asked to Jennie Blake’s home? If so, why?

After looking around every inch of the house and finding nothing, I immediately took out my sage. I went from room to room saying a prayer to keep out the evil. It was all that I could do. I’d tried calling Zach Duncan, my mentor, but he didn’t answer. Nor did Karyn answer when I tried her number. I’d have to try again in the morning. For now, all I could do was go to bed and try to sleep. Maybe sleep would take away the agitated feeling that I couldn’t seem to shake. As I dozed off, I thought I heard the muffled voices of the ghosts, but I couldn’t make out what was being said. Then I drifted off.

The next morning, I woke feeling stranger than I ever had. Even my favorite comforter wasn’t comforting. The sun shone brightly through the window and I groaned.

“You look dreadful,” Candy Cherry said from the foot of my bed.

I tossed at pillow at her. “Yeah, well I still look better than you. You’re dead.”

She shot daggers at me with her eyes, but didn’t have a retort.

I rolled over and picked up the phone from my nightstand and dialed Karyn’s number one more time.

When she picked up on the second ring, with slight panic in my voice, I explained what had happened with the shadow, the footsteps, and the witch’s ball. I couldn’t bring myself to tell her about the necklace yet.

“This is disturbing, Larue, and I’m glad you let me know,” she said.

“I’m kind of at a loss as to what to do next.” I slipped into my robe.

“I’m in town now. Why don’t I stop by and take a look at the witch’s ball and we can talk?”

“I didn’t know you’d come back,” I said.

This revelation sent chills down my spine. Not that she had to tell me what she was doing, but I figured it was something she would have mentioned right away. Was that Karyn who I’d seen at my house? She would have mentioned it right away, right? And why would she have been there in the first place? I didn’t want to scare her, but she might have a doppelgänger.

“Do you have the necklace?” she asked.

Wow, that question smacked me in the face. I wasn’t sure how to tell her this, so I guessed I just had to come right out with it. The words were stuck in my throat for a few seconds until I finally forced them out.

“I can’t find the necklace.” My voice was just above a whisper.

“Oh, Larue. This is bad.” I heard the frown in her voice all the way through the line. “If this is truly black magic being used against you, then it is very powerful. You won’t be able to perform magic to get rid of the spell like you need to without the necklace.”

Not the info I’d wanted to hear. But nonetheless, I supposed I had to hear it at some point.

“Do you have any idea what may have happened to the necklace?” she asked.

I paused, then finally answered, “I kind of do. Well, yes… I think it was stolen out of Callahan’s car.” I felt a little better just getting it off my chest, although she probably felt pretty darn lousy now.

When I said it out loud, it sounded even more irresponsible. The necklace was a valuable item that she’d trusted me with and I’d treated it as little more than a plastic ring I’d gotten out of a bubble-gum machine.

“Did you report this to the police?” she asked.

“Yes, I did, and they told me they’d let me know if they found it. But they didn’t sound very optimistic.”

“I’ll make a few calls and see if we can cast a spell and try to trace it.”

Maybe now she was beginning to rethink asking me to be the coven leader. I clearly wasn’t cut out for the job.

“I’ll see you in a few,” she said and then the line went dead.

I wasn’t looking forward to continuing the conversation.

I busied myself by pacing across the living room floor. Thoughts whirled in my mind, creating a frenzy beyond what I’d ever experienced before.

Elvis moved beside me as I walked back and forth across the room. “Larue, just remember this: when things go wrong, don’t go with them.”

I glanced over at him. “What do you mean?”

“Just don’t let people bring you down with them, that’s all.” Elvis adjusted the large jeweled belt on his white suit.

Who was he talking about? Or did he mean people in general.

Before I had a chance to ask, a knock sounded at the front door. I hurried over and ushered Karyn into the living room. The electricity in her aura had always been powerful and it was even more apparent now. Karyn didn’t look like a stereotypical witch. She had long blonde hair and no green skin or warts. Not to mention that her fashion sense was impeccable.

“How have things been?” she asked when she walked through the door.

She wore jeans that looked very expensive and a blue T-shirt with a white and blue polka-dotted scarf around her neck. Karyn oozed style.

“Please come in. Can I get you some coffee?”

Karyn followed me into the living room. “No, thank you. I had two cups already this morning. I’ll be bouncing off the walls soon.”

I handed Karyn the box with the remains of the witch’s ball. “Like I said, the ball showed up and everything went crazy again.” I ran my hand through my hair. “I think a demon has been around me.”

“A demon?” Her eyes widened.

“It could be the same one from before when Becky Schultz placed a spell on Mindy and Callahan. Maybe that evil spirit had nothing to do with Becky, or if it did, she’s back again.” I paused, then added, “I’ve been fighting off a dark spirit. It’s trying to attack me, as if I have a demon trying to possess my body.”

She stared for a minute, then said, “Larue, I don’t think it’s a demonic possession. Or if it is, it’s been placed on you with a spell… and I don’t think it’s Becky again. I say this because I sense the magic around you. You have to break the spell.”

I waved my hands. “Oh no, no more spell-casting.”

I couldn’t get away from the magic lately. What happened to just working in my bookstore and talking to a few ghosts here and there? Life had been so much tamer when I just hung around with a few spirits. But something had changed not long ago and my life had been nothing but chaos ever since.

“I’m afraid it can’t be avoided,” Karyn said.

“I have to think of another way.” I shook my head.

“Do you have any idea who is responsible for the other strange things happening? Has anyone said anything?” she asked. “Any other strange things happening that you forgot to mention?”

“Well, of course I’m doing the show and there are tons of spirits there… a particularly bad demon too.”

“Larue, you know what I suggest, but it won’t be easy without the necklace.”

I let out a deep breath. “What can I do to break this spell if I don’t find the necklace?”

“First, I need to find out exactly what spell this is. Then you’ll have to perform a spell to counteract this one. I have faith that if anyone can do this, you can, Larue. You just need to break this cycle once and for all.”

I wasn’t sure breaking this cycle once and for all was possible for me. This must just be how my luck was going to be from here on out.

“I need to talk with a few people. I’ll call you soon,” she said, walking toward the door.

“Thanks, Karyn.” I hugged her and watched as she marched down the steps toward her car.

Just as Karyn left, my cell rang. “We’re on our way. How are you feeling?” Mindy asked.

I’d almost forgotten about the show. I had to hurry if I didn’t want people to think I was one of the ghosts. My appearance would frighten people more than any ghost.

“Ugh. I guess I’m fine.”

She chuckled. “You don’t sound convinced about that. This is taking so much out of you and I hate it.”

Before I had time to change my mind, I said, “I have to decide between the show and the store. I don’t know if I can do any more of the show. There is no way I can continue to do both.”

Mindy sighed, then said, “It’s not an option. I think you know which one you’ll pick. The store means everything to you.”

I nodded, even though I knew she couldn’t see me. “You’re right. It does mean everything to me. There’s no way I can go on without Book Nook. I can’t let my grandparents down. They worked hard for that store. I won’t disappoint them. I’ll have to tell Matt that I can no longer do the show. He can find someone else to replace me or just use Cooper.”

Mindy paused, then said, “I know you can’t continue, but it is just a couple more days. Can you push through?”

Just a couple more days? That was easy for her to say. “I don’t know.”

“Maybe you should give it one more shot before you give it up. If there is a demon involved, this is exactly what it would want. If someone placed a spell on you, then this is exactly what they wanted to happen… to affect your life. Don’t let them do that.”

Reassurance filled her voice, but was that enough to make me change my mind?

“There comes a point where you can’t fight it anymore, Mindy. You have to walk away and let them have it. Move on with your life. I can’t let them take everything from me.”

“Do you want me to tell them that you can’t do it?” she asked.

When she asked the question, it hit me. I wasn’t a quitter. I had to continue to fight. What had I been thinking? She was right, I had to fight.

“I’ll be waiting outside for y’all. Let’s kick some demon butt.”