Gem of a Ghost: A Ghost of Granny Apples Mystery (10 page)

“But she did blow into my ear,” Phil stated with emphasis. “Just now and before.”

Emma shook her head. “She can’t blow. Not really. But she can cause the air around her to move. It takes a lot out of her though.” She put an arm around Phil’s shoulders while she explained. “Today, when Joanna thought she was being forced back down into her chair, Max was doing it. He was causing the atmosphere around Joanna to weigh her down. But right after that, he disappeared again. He’d used up his energy. Even petting Archie is like that. Granny isn’t really petting him but moving the air around his belly so it feels like a caress. It’s exhausting for her, but she loves doing it.” She gave Phil a squeeze. “But not to worry, Granny will be back and her old self soon—at least I hope so. I wanted to ask her why she didn’t want me to help that other ghost.”

“Whoever that is,” Granny answered, her whispery voice coming out of nowhere, “she’s up to no good. She’s killing people, Emma. I don’t want you messing with her.”

“Granny’s back,” Elizabeth told the men before reporting Granny’s words to them.

“Yes, but only her voice,” said Emma as she stood up.

Emma walked toward the fireplace, hoping to hear Granny better. “But I have to help that ghost if I want to help Lainey. It seems to go hand in hand.”

Elizabeth continued to report the conversation to the men.

“Granny and I are on the same page here, Emma,” Phil announced. “I saw what that vengeful ghost did to that poor girl today.”

Emma thought about Summer’s fall and what she’d just explained to Phil and her parents. “And now I’m pretty sure Summer didn’t slip. I believe that ghost pushed her over the railing using the same technique Granny uses to blow into your ear.”

She looked down at the ring still clutched in her hand. “She murdered Summer Perkins the same as if she’d shot her through the heart, and she’ll keep on murdering unless we find out why and stop it. It’s likely the spirit in the diamond was the reason Max Naiman died in that car accident.”

“You think it might be a curse or grudge against the Naimans specifically?” asked Emma’s father.

“I doubt it, Paul,” answered Phil. “The girl who died today didn’t seem to be related to them.”

“But she was wearing the ring that belonged in the Naiman family,” Paul pointed out.

Emma paced in front of the fireplace as she tried to remember what Joanna had told them about the ring. She spun back around to Phil. “Didn’t Joanna say the ring was a vintage piece she’d found?”

“I believe she did say that.”

Going to where she’d dropped her bag, Emma retrieved her cell phone and placed a call to Joanna Reid. She only reached voicemail. “Joanna,” she recorded. “Emma Whitecastle. I think I know what might have killed Max and Summer Perkins, and tried to kill poor Lainey. I need to talk to you as soon as possible.” After giving Joanna her cell phone number, Emma ended the call.

“You think the police have contacted her yet?” asked Elizabeth. “She might not know about Summer unless she saw it on the news.”

“Hard to say, Mother, but even if she doesn’t know, mentioning Summer’s death might compel her to return my call, if only out of curiosity.”

Going down her list of recent calls, Emma hit the number for Serenity Place. When someone answered, Emma gave her name and asked to speak to Dr. Kitty Garvey, saying it was important and had to do with Lainey Naiman.

She was told Dr. Kitty was out but she could leave a message. “Please ask her to call me.” Again, Emma left her number.

“Is that the Dr. Kitty Garvey who is married to Dr. Michael Garvey?” Dr. Miller asked.

“Yes, Dad. Do you know them?”

“I met them many years ago at a medical conference.” He turned to his wife. “Remember, dear, they sat at our table during dinner one night, and later we all played bridge.”

Elizabeth Miller rooted around in her memory as if looking for a pair of lost gloves. “Was that the winter conference on Kauai?”

“Yes.”

“I do remember them. They were both psychiatrists, and as I recall, she had just had a terrible skiing accident and was in a cast. Was mad as can be that she was in Hawaii and couldn’t snorkel.”

“Dr. Kitty does have a noticeable limp,” Emma reported.

Dr. Miller leaned back in his chair and rubbed his hands together. “If it’s the same pair of doctors I’m thinking of, they were quite adamant about treating depression and other mental conditions naturally.”

“What do you mean, Dad?”

“Naturally—without drugs except as absolutely necessary. I remember them being quite passionate about it. Said doctors and patients both were too eager to put a bandage on problems with drugs instead of getting to the root. Can’t say I disagree.”

“The few people I saw at Serenity Place didn’t look under the influence of drugs at all. You would have thought they were on vacation at a spa with regular exercise and art classes.”

“Exercise,” Dr. Miller repeated. “I recall the Garveys were very big on exercise being a major part of therapy. Wholesome food, lots of physical exercise, and digging deep to discover and face personal demons.”

Emma thought about Dr. Kitty’s comment about hooey. “I wonder how the Garveys would feel about facing an angry ghost?”

thirteen

“Have you decided what
to do with that ring?” Phil called out to Emma. He was tucked into Emma’s bed, reading, while he waited for her to finish brushing her teeth.

Emma came out of the bathroom, her electric toothbrush humming inside her mouth like an industrious bee. She stopped it and pulled it out. “Still thinking about it. Might offer to keep it for Lainey until she’s out of Serenity. Then again, she might want me to give it to her mother.” She stuck the toothbrush back inside her mouth and ducked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. A minute later, the humming stopped.

Phil glanced at the clock on the nightstand. Emma had been in the bathroom a long time. Putting down his book, he climbed out of bed to investigate. He put his head close to the closed door but couldn’t hear anything. He softly knocked. “Emma, you okay?”

No reply.

Opening the door, Phil found Emma sitting on the closed lid of the toilet, lost in thought.

“Hey, Fancy Pants,” he said in a gentle voice. “What’s up?”

Emma turned her head slowly to look at him. It took her a second to return her thoughts to the present. When she did, she smiled. “You look quite fetching in those PJ bottoms and spectacles, Cowboy.”

Phil sucked in his gut and patted his thick chest with its sparse blanket of gray hair. “Ya think? Or is that just some crazy ghost talk?”

Emma’s smile faded into overcast clouds. Turning her head away, she stared at nothing in particular, her hands clasped together.

Phil took a seat on the wide, rounded side of the custom tub across from her and leaned forward, wrapping his large hands around hers. They felt hot to his touch. “Are you feeling okay, Emma?”

She continued staring at her closed hands. “Yes, I’m fine.”

“Somehow I’m not convinced.” Keeping one hand on hers, he felt her forehead and cheeks. “Your hands are burning up, but you don’t have a fever.”

She pulled her hands away from his and opened them. Inside was Lainey’s diamond ring. “It’s the ring, Phil. It’s giving off heat.”

“I thought you put that in your parents’ safe downstairs.”

“I was going to, but …,” her voice trailed off, and she returned her attention to the ring.

Phil wasn’t happy knowing her answer to his next question even before he asked it. “You want her to come out of the ring, don’t you?”

Emma looked up, her blue eyes returned to clarity again. “Yes, Phil, I do. Until I talk to her, I can’t help anyone. I’ve been trying to get her to come out. She did it at the condo, so I know she can if she wants.”

Phil took off his reading glasses and rubbed his eyes. “Emma, I’m worried about this ghost. She seems more dangerous than any you’ve encountered before.”

“But I need to know more about her, Phil. I think if I put on the ring, I might be able to connect with her.”

Phil dropped his glasses and jumped to his feet. “No, Emma.” Remembering Emma’s parents were in their bedroom on the other side of the house, he lowered his voice. “You know damn well wearing that ring has caused people to die.”

She scrunched her face up at him in challenge. “Are you going to forbid me, Phil?”

He stooped down to pick up his glasses and stayed in his crouch longer than was necessary, his eyes cast down at the gleaming tile floor. When he looked up, his displeasure was clear. “No, Emma, I’m not going to forbid you. You’re not a child. I simply want you to consider the consequences and the people who would be devastated if something happened to you—Kelly, your parents, even my aunt and uncle.”

“And you?”

He stared into her eyes, his unhappiness replaced by fear. “I’m at the top of that list, Emma. The King of the Hill. I’d be lost without you. Next to my boys, you’re my reason for getting up each day.”

She leaned forward and kissed him, letting her lips linger on his. “I’ll be fine, Phil.”

He pulled away. “Don’t make promises you might not be able to keep. Until you know more about that damn ghost, you don’t know what it’s capable of.”

“Then help me.”

“How? By keeping you away from balconies, cars, and sharp objects?”

“Yes.”

Phil did a double take. “You’re serious.”

“Yes, Phil. I am.”

Without answering, he turned on his heel and went into the bedroom. He plopped down heavily on the edge of the bed, his feet planted firmly on the floor to display his stand on the matter. Emma followed, the ring clutched tightly in her hand, as if that alone might prevent the ghost from escaping like a firefly.

“Phil, I need your help.” Emma stood in front of him and placed a hand on his bare shoulder. “Please.”

Not mollified, he asked, “What exactly did you have in mind?”

“I want to slip the ring on, and—”

He cut her off. “Absolutely not.”

She removed her hand. “At least hear me out first.”

Phil crossed his arms in front of his chest. “I’m all ears.”

“Now that your ears are open, how about opening your mind a little?”

He uncrossed his arms, but his brow remained suspicious.

“That’s better. What I propose is that I slip on the ring and see what happens, but only with you here. If anything bad starts, you can grab the ring and pull it off my finger. We could do it tonight.”

“What if the ghost doesn’t want to come out and play? Except for Summer, didn’t the others wear the ring awhile before it started haunting them? It might not be as instantaneous as you want it to be.”

She took a seat next to him on the bed and opened her hand. In her palm the ring looked like a harmless, large stone—beautiful but hardly deadly. “I realize that, but the stone is different tonight. It’s buzzing with heat and energy. I also think since the ghost revealed herself once, she might do it again, especially to someone like me.”

With a sigh, Phil put an arm around Emma. “Why don’t you wait and ask Milo about this first?”

“I dropped him an email before we went to dinner, and he responded shortly after we returned home tonight. He said it’s very rare for ghosts to take up residence in inanimate objects. He’s only seen it twice, and it was pretty benign.”

“So since he doesn’t know much about it and can’t advise, we’re flying solo on this?” Phil’s face darkened.

“Yes. Milo said he wants to see it, but I’m afraid if we wait until he returns in a few weeks, the ghost might decide to leave the ring and start hurting people more frequently. Without knowing her motive, we don’t know what to expect.”

“What about Granny? Wouldn’t it help if she were here for this?”

“Maybe, maybe not. She hasn’t been around since your little demonstration in the den. I tried calling to her while I was in the bathroom, but nothing.”

Emma dropped the ring. “Ow, it’s getting hot again.”

“Let me get this straight,” Phil said as Emma bent to pick up the ring. “You want to slip on that bit of voodoo and have me stand by to make sure you don’t do anything stupid, beyond wearing the ring in the first place.”

Using the folds of her nightgown, Emma held the ring between two fingers. “Pretty much.”

“I have a stipulation, Fancy Pants.”

Emma frowned. “I knew you would.”

“I’ll do it, but if nothing happens, you only try it again when someone’s around. You do not,” he held up an index finger in front of her face, “I repeat,
do not
put that ring on again unless someone is with you. And by ‘someone’ I do not mean Granny. I mean someone physically able to stop you from doing something crazy.”

“I promise.” Emma stood up and looked around the room. “I think maybe I should sit in that chair.” She pointed to an armchair in the corner upholstered to match the drapes.

“You want to do this tonight, right this minute?”

“Yes, Phil, I do. The ring is ready. I can feel it.”

Giving in, he shook his head. “There goes a good night’s sleep and god knows anything else we were planning to enjoy tonight.”

Emma had been in
the chair for over an hour, and so far nothing had happened. Lainey’s ring was on the ring finger of her left hand. Her finger was slightly smaller than the ring, which moved about easily. Phil had been comforted by that, seeing it would be easier to slip it off in the event something dangerous occurred.

Phil yawned. It was just after midnight. Emma felt her own eyelids droop with sleepiness. “Maybe we should call it a night,” she suggested.

“You won’t get any argument from me.”

Getting up from his post on the edge of the bed where he faced Emma’s chair, Phil went to her and offered her his outstretched hands. She took them and let him gently pull her to her feet and into his embrace. He kissed her.

“Not everything can be resolved in one night, Emma. That ghost had a big emotional day, just as we did. She could be recharging her battery for her next move.”

“You may be right.”

Both beat, they crawled into bed. “Are you going to take that thing off?” Phil asked, noting the ring on Emma’s finger.

She considered the jewelry, resting now without the heat or buzz of earlier. “No, I think I’ll leave it on. Maybe the wearer has to have it on a bit before the ghost does anything.”

Phil looked skeptical.

“Don’t worry,” Emma assured him. “You’re right here. If I make a move, you’re sure to know it.”

Emma turned to her side and Phil snuggled up behind, wrapping a protective arm tightly around her. “If you so much as belch,” he told her, “I’m going on alert.”