Haunting Danielle 27 The Ghost and the Mountain Man Bobbi Holmes (best pdf ebook reader for android .TXT) 📖

“So does this mean I might need to get you bail money?” Chris asked after the server took their order and left the table.

“I’m glad you find this amusing,” Heather grumbled.

“Well, just be grateful Brian knows about us, or my offer might not be so much in jest.”

“I feel horrible about Ginny,” Heather said as she absently poked at the ice in the water the server had brought to their table when coming to take their order.

“Just stay away from her,” Chris said. “At least until we know Caitlin has moved on,” Chris warned.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Heather grumbled, giving her ice another poke with the tip of one finger.

Chris and Heather had finished lunch and returned to the Glandon Foundation offices, when Kelly met Joe for a late lunch at Pier Café. The two had already placed their order and sat together at a booth.

“Ginny is so upset. I can’t believe the chief’s not going to do something,” Kelly said.

“I don’t think there is anything he can do. It’s Ginny’s word against Heather’s.”

“Well, I take Ginny’s word,” Kelly insisted. “I always thought Heather was a little weird, but I never imagined she would attack someone. Or that Brian would cover for her.”

“I don’t believe Brian covered for her,” Joe insisted. “Brian is not like that. He will not cover for someone who breaks the law, not even a friend.”

“How can you say that? He obviously helped Heather remove any evidence of her outburst,” Kelly said.

“According to Brian, nothing was out of place when he got there. So if anyone put the place back together, it had to have been Heather before he got there.”

“Yeah, that’s pretty much what the chief told Ginny,” Kelly said. “Not that Heather put the place together, but that when Brian got there, nothing was out of order. Millie suggested Heather had some sort of breakdown.”

“Breakdown?” Joe frowned.

“Yes. That their time in the mountains was more traumatic than they let on, and that she snapped and just sort of lost it at the museum. I suppose that’s possible. And that might explain why Brian is covering for her.”

“I don’t believe Brian would cover for Heather if he believed she broke the law.”

“He might if he was trying to protect her because something happened up on that mountain. Something that sent Heather over the edge,” Kelly said. “And if that’s the case, I just hope Brian knows what he’s doing. What happens if Heather ends up hurting someone? She could have killed Ginny today if one of those things had hit her just right.”

Twenty-Eight

Thursday evening Eva Thorndike stood in the portrait wing of the Frederickport museum, admiring her painting. For security reasons, this area of the museum had limited hours and heightened security because of the valuable portraits on display. Yet at this hour of the night, they locked down the entire museum.

Eva, who had been a famous silent movie star during her lifetime, had also performed in the theater. She had met the artist of these paintings during her time in the theater. Many people had compared her likeness to the Gibson Girl, a pen-ink-illustration of Charles Dana Gibson. The artist had captured this resemblance in Eva’s portrait.

She turned her attention to Walt’s painting and smiled. It made her happy that her old friend no longer stumbled in the darkness but was back on the path to fulfil his destiny. With that thought, she decided to pop down to the cemetery. It had been the last place Walt had seen the spirit, and if the spirit had not moved on, perhaps she might find him there and learn what he hadn’t told Walt.

A few moments later Eva stood in the Frederickport cemetery. The evening breeze rustled the treetops, while the crescent moon dimly lit the sky. She gravitated toward the older section of the cemetery, and that was where she found him, standing over the grave of Nanny Benson Becker. Or at least, she assumed it was him, considering his beard and manner of dress, the faded denim pants, worn flannel shirt, boots and floppy hat.

“Someone you know?” Eva asked.

The spirit of the man turned and faced her. He looked her up and down and said, “Yes. My sister, Nanny. Who are you?”

“I’m Eva Thorndike, a friend of Walt Marlow’s. I would like to talk to you.”

He shook his head. “I don’t understand any of this. Is he a ghost? Are you? What am I?”

Eva reached out one hand and said, “Come, let’s talk. I can help you. And you can help my friend.”

Together Bud and Eva sat in the moonlight in the cemetery, close to his sister’s headstone. After Eva explained his new reality—along with Walt’s—she asked him to explain a few things. Before he did, he shook his head in confusion.

“I can understand about me. I think I’ve known for a long time but refused to accept the fact. And if I understand about me, then understanding about you is easy. But what you tell me about Walt Marlow, that I can’t seem to fathom.”

“I imagine when you move on, you’ll have more clarity with what I’ve told you. I understand some things are easier to comprehend on the other side.”

He studied her a moment and then asked, “Why aren’t you there? Why are you here?”

Eva flashed him a soft smile. “Because, like Walt has his destiny, so do I. While there are common rules, common structure and order, there are no absolutes. Normally our path is to continue on, as I believe yours is. Yet for me, I still have things to do here.”

“And for Walt?” he asked.

“His path was interrupted, and they gave him another chance.”

“Why isn’t everyone given a second chance? I didn’t want my life to end when it did.”

“Because your journey has not been interrupted in the same way as Walt’s. Your personal journey continues on the other side.”

He frowned. “I don’t understand.”

“You will,