Suze Fox steps over with her short vanilla-blonde hair swept past her eyes. “Congratulations, Wiley. You got another one. I tried to warn you, Miranda. But some women just have to learn their lessons the hard way.”
“I’ll say.” I glare over at him for pulling off the financial coup.
Someone calls Meg’s name from behind, and my sister gives a friendly wave. Meg heads their way before coming back with three women in tow—two of them living and one of them very much not living, a redhead covered in shimmering navy and silver stars.
“Lot, if you don’t mind taking a moment from the madness, there’s someone I want you to meet. ”
“Gah!” It’s not every day my hair stands on end when I see a ghost, but seeing that we’ve just buttoned up one homicide, I’m not so anxious to hop into another.
“Bowie, Lola,” Meg says, nodding to the girls before us. Both women have medium-length dark hair, reddish brown eyes, and they’re both cute as a bug in a rug. “This is my sister, Lottie, that I was telling you about. Lottie, these are two of the girls I met up in Starry Falls yesterday at the wrestling event. Bowie Binx and her sister, Lola.”
“Nice to meet you,” I say while having a hard time dragging my eyes off of the dead among us.
Greer and Winslow head this way and pull the seemingly friendly ghost dressed in dark tattered clothes off to the side to have a word with her. I’m assuming to size her up, but they seem to be chattering away as if they know one another. Wouldn’t surprise me. Greer is sort of a social butterfly. It turns out, death doesn’t really knock that sort of thing out of you.
Meg leans in. “Lot, I’m going to tell it to you like it is. There was a murder up in Starry Falls yesterday, and I told Bowie if anyone can help track down the killer it would be you.” She glances briefly over her shoulder. “And if you’ll all excuse me a moment, there’s a murder I need to tend to myself.” She takes off in Wiley’s direction.
Personally, I’m rooting for the homicide.
“I’m so sorry about the homicide,” I say, shaking my head. “But I’m sure the sheriff’s department would be much more help than me.”
Bowie leans in hard. “The murder was just a ruse, Lottie.” She gives a hard blink. “I mean, there was a murder, but that’s not why we’re here. Your ghosts have been talking to our ghost and we’ve learned that you’re transmundane just like us.”
Lola gives a frenetic nod. “Don’t worry. We won’t blow your cover. We don’t want ours blown either. We’re sibylline. Or at least I am. Bowie got bonked on the head by a pumpkin, and now she’s part sibylline and part supersensual like yourself.”
“Oh my goodness.” My mouth falls open as I try to digest this all. “This is amazing. So you know this ghost?” I point to the redhead with the flowing gown.
“That’s Hazel.” Bowie nods. “She was alive until she wasn’t last October, and she’s been haunting the Mortimer Manor ever since. Believe it or not, she’s not why we’re here either.”
Lola shrugs. “My sister opened Pandora’s box about a year ago, and we’ve been paying for it ever since.”
Bowie cringes. “She’s not wrong. The long and short of it is, I’m on the run from both the feds and the mob. And we’ve got problems with the mobsters up the wazoo. Your ghosts clued Hazel in on the fact that not only do you know your way around the dead, but you know your way around the Canellis and the Lazzaris, too.”
Lola nods like mad. “We can see you’re busy, but we’d love to pick your brain sometime.”
Bowie takes a deep breath. “We’d love to meet up. My freedom and my life just might depend on it.”
“You bet.” No sooner do I say the words than Bowie’s eyes grow vacant, and she’s stiff as a board.
“She’s having a vision!” Lola says as she takes a step back to better inspect her look-alike sister.
Bowie gives a sudden gasp and blinks as if she were just coming to.
“What did you see?” both Lola and I ask in unison.
Bowie squints over at me. “Say, you’re not wanted by the law, are you?”
My cheeks burn with heat. “My husband is a judge, and in that respect, I’m quite often wanted by the law.” I leave out the tiny detail that I still feel as if I’m dating Noah. It’s a long sordid story that I’d never want to bore them with. “You didn’t see anything inappropriate, did you?”
She shakes her head. “I saw you pleading with a sheriff’s deputy.”
“Oh, that was just my boyfriend, Noah. He’s perfectly harmless.”
The two of them cock their heads as they try to absorb my words.
I’m about to introduce them when I spot a trio of deputies entering the B&B, along with Sheriff Jack Turner and Detective Ivy Fairbanks by their sides.
Jack waves someone over from the center of the room, and soon we’re joined with Noah and Everett.
“What’s going on?” I ask as a crowd begins to gather our way.
Jack takes a deep breath as he looks to Noah and Everett.
“I’ll have you two know that my department has conducted a thorough review of evidence as far as the removal of Florenza Canelli’s body from the morgue goes, and as it turns out, we have evidence that suggests the two of you were involved. I’m sorry to do this, but it’s a formality that cannot be avoided.” He gives a long blink. “Detective Fox, Judge Baxter, we’re here to place you both under arrest.”
The room breaks out into a flurry of whispers.
“No!” I call out as the deputies step forward. “There has got to be some mistake.” Even though I know darn well there isn’t.
“I’m sorry, Lottie.” Jack looks as if he would take it all back if he could. “But there’s no mistake.” He looks to both Noah and Everett as he leans in and whispers. “Now, I know you’re not flight risks, but I need to put on a bit of a show for the Canellis.” He leans back. “Cuff ’em!” he bellows, and the deputies get right to doing just that. I watch as the men I love are jostled with their hands behind their backs while a set of silver bracelets are latched onto both of them.
Everett glowers over at Noah, and Noah closes his eyes a good long while. I can see the heavy guilt he feels written on his face.
Ivy smirks my way. “Why do I get the feeling you’re in the middle of this mess, Lottie? Don’t bother answering that. I’m sure the more we dig, the more bodies we’ll discover—namely yours.”
The deputies quickly navigate Noah and Everett to the door.
“Dad, look this way!” Evie shouts as she snaps pictures like mad. “This is so freaking cool!”
“This is not cool,” I tell her. “Noah, Everett, tell them to stop.”
Everett shakes his head my way. “There’s no stopping what comes next.”
“I’ll take the fall,” Noah mutters his way.
“You don’t get to say a word,” Everett growls the words out, sharp as razors. “Don’t you dare so much as utter your name. You’re in my territory. I’m in charge. Lemon, call Fiona. Tell her to meet us down at the station.”