Roses Are Red; He's Dead (A Mellow Summers Paranormal Mystery Book 9) (4 page)

A rustling noise caught my attention. Knowing I shouldn’t check it out, I kept walking. It happened again, this time, more insistent. Maybe I could just peek. No! No, I was not going to give in. My night was ruined enough.

It happened again. It was so loud and persistent that I jumped. Looking around, I didn’t see anyone. Against my better judgment, I followed the noise. Wearing heels while walking on water soaked mud is not a good idea. Of course you’re probably thinking, “Duh, Mel.” But how was I to ignore it? Something strange was going on and I wanted to know what it was, and why it followed me.

Ignoring the fact that my nice shoes would need to be tossed, I pursued the persistent sound. I pulled back the branches of a shrub and there it was: the same dead body. Whistling drew nearer. I whirled around and found Chad walking towards me. When I turned back to the body, it had gone.

“Hey, Mel,” said Chad.

“Hi,” I muttered, still wondering where the corpse had gone.

“What are you doing here all alone?”

“I was just getting some air,” I said, still bewildered about what had just occurred.

“Oh. I’ll walk with you.”

Since the body had disappeared, again, I knew there was no point in me telling anyone that I had found it, especially after the last two instances. “Thanks,” I said.

“Are you sure everything is all right?” asked Chad. “You seem a bit rattled.”

“Well, this weekend isn’t turning out the way I wanted it to,” I said.

“Oh?”

“Yeah. When I went to the spa I found a man that was slumped over. I could have sworn that he was dead, but when I got help he wasn’t there.”

“Embarrassing,” said Chad.

“And just a few minutes ago, I could have sworn the same person was in the ladies’ room at the restaurant over there.”

“Did you tell anyone?”

“That’s the thing. When I found someone, he had gone.”

Chad got a pensive look on his face.

“You don’t believe me.”

“It’s not that, but it sounds a bit fantastic, don’t you think?’

“Yeah, that’s what Greg said.”

“Your boyfriend?”

“Yes, he’s grabbing dinner.”

“What did the man look like? The man you found.”

“Well, he was short, somewhat bald, beer gut, and would give the zombies on
The Walking Dead
a run for their money,” I replied.

“That sounds like Billy,” said Chad. “He works around here—janitor. I would usually find him sweeping, or vacuuming the halls. He’s the quiet type—not a lot of friends. Come to think of it, I haven’t seen him lately.”

“Really?”

“Not for a day or two. He could have just taken them off. Been known to do that. Disappear for a couple of days. Tell you what, I’ll look into it, if you promise to quit finding dead bodies.”

“Deal.”

We said goodbye and I went back to the cabin.

Only a single lamp lit up the living room when I walked in, tossing my key on the table near the entrance with a loud plunk. Crunching footsteps alerted me that Greg approached. His erect and hurried demeanor indicated that he was in an irate mood, courtesy of me. The door opened and he stepped inside, shutting it with a bang.

“We can curl up on the couch and eat,” I said, trying to brighten the dismal atmosphere.

Greg handed me the Styrofoam cartons that contained our supper. “I’m not hungry.”

He went into the bedroom, turned on the light, and undid his tie. I watched as he tugged on it in exasperation, feeling guilty for ruining the perfect evening he had planned. I had lost my appetite as well. I shoved the food into the refrigerator and went to the bedroom. Greg had just finished brushing his teeth when I walked in. He said nothing. I decided it was best if I left him alone until he had cooled off.

I went into the bathroom and pulled off my earrings, while I turned the faucet on so that the water could heat up. As I scrubbed the makeup off my face, I heard Greg give a shout.

“What?” I said, walking out of the bathroom.

Greg stood next to the bed, holding the covers up, while lying on the mattress was the same corpse that had plagued me since we had first arrived.

“That’s him!” I shouted. “That’s the man that I keep finding. That’s the corpse that keeps disappearing.”

I snatched Greg’s phone off the bedside table and snapped a picture, just in case the body vanished again. “We need to call the authorities before he up and disappears again.”

“I’ll go get someone,” said Greg.

“No, you stay here. I’ll go get someone.”

“You had to go and ruin it,” whined a male voice.

I stopped in my tracks and looked around. “Who said that?”

“Me, you idiot.”

“Well, I can’t see you,” I said.

A figure appeared before Greg and I, and it looked just like the dead man in our bed, complete with the bear belly, poking through the stained, and washed out, shirt.

“I wanted only you to find my corpse,” said the stranger, “but you had to go and ruin it by bringing in others. Now you have him involved.” He pointed a stubby finger, with a chewed nail, at Greg.

“Well, I don’t care if you’re not happy,” I snapped, placing my hand upon my hip. “You’ve been making me look foolish all day. I’m calling the cops.”

“No, don’t,” pleaded the man. “I don’t want their grubby, little hands all over what’s left of me.”

Ignoring him, I picked up the phone and dialed the lobby. “Yes, this is Mellow Summers in Cabin 12. I need to report a dead body… He’s in my bed… No, it’s not a prank. Look, just call the police and inform them that a murder has taken place.”

I hung up and glanced at Greg. “Sorry,” I mumbled.

The local police showed up within 15 minutes after I had contacted the front desk about the “guest” in our bed. Greg and I each threw on a pair of jeans; neither of us wanted to answer the door in our bedclothes. A harsh knock on our cabin door alerted us that they had arrived.

“Miss Summers,” said the officer, as Greg opened the door.

“Right here,” Greg said, pointing at me.

“You reported a dead body,” said the officer.

“Yes,” I replied. I led him and his partner into our bedroom where, thankfully, the body still remained. If it had disappeared again, I don’t know what I would have told them.

Billy stamped his feet in the corner of our bedroom as the two officers walked in and checked the body. Soon a medical examiner arrived followed by paramedics. They investigated the body, took the liver temperature, and determined that the cause of death was most likely due to a severe blow to the back of the head; a conclusion that would be finalized back at the morgue.

“Do you know this man?” one of the officers asked Greg and I.

“Yes—yes, you do,” said the ghost.

I did my best to ignore him. The last thing I needed was to be talking to a ghost, while being questioned by the police. That usually earns you a first class ticket to the psych ward.

“No,” I said.

“Are you sure?” asked the officer.

“She said she didn’t know him,” Greg replied. “Neither of us saw him until tonight when we discovered him in our bed.”

“Where were you yesterday afternoon?” asked the officer.

“What?” said Greg. “You don’t think we did it, do you?”

“Sir, please just answer the question.”

“We were back home, packing, and preparing for our trip here.”

“Can anyone vouch for that?”

“Yeah, my boss,” Greg snapped.

I placed a gentle hand on Greg to calm him down. “Officer,” I said, “my employer can verify that I was at work yesterday afternoon. I have a roommate who can vouch for us, that we were with her last night. We did not arrive here until this afternoon. I am certain that you can talk with the lady who handles check-ins; she can verify our time of arrival.” I gave the officer Mr. Stilton’s phone number and Jackie’s.

“Now, several eyewitnesses have said that you claimed to have found a body soon after your arrival,” said the officer.

Uh-oh. I knew that my afternoon activities were going to come up. “I was at the spa earlier today, yes. While there, I thought I had seen a dead body, but it was gone when I managed to get help. Everyone told me that I had probably imagined the whole thing, and since I was a bit drowsy from the incense, I agreed with them.”

The officer didn’t believe me. “Witnesses say that you claimed to have found a dead body in the restaurant this evening.”

There was no talking my way out of this. I had made a scene there. “Yes,” I said. “I had spilt wine on my dress and went to the ladies room to clean myself up. While there, I saw a man slumped over and jumped to conclusions.”

“An interesting series of events, considering that you now have a corpse in your bed.”

“Now wait a minute,” interrupted Greg.

“Excuse me,” I said, “what are you insinuating?”

“Let’s follow the chain of events, shall we? You claim to have found a dead body this afternoon and it disappears. Then, you claim to have found the same body this evening. Now, it shows up in your cabin, in your bed.”

“That is an outrageous assumption,” yelled someone from the crowd that had gathered outside our cabin. People moved aside as Patrick stepped out. “How dare you accuse her of murdering that poor man.”

“I wasn’t accu—”

“Oh, no?” said Patrick. “You sounded like you were.

“Sir, I must ask you to—”

“Maybe you should quit accusing her of placing the body in her own bed and find out who actually killed him and placed him there.”

“Sir—”

“She was with my wife and me this afternoon and we saw them at the restaurant this evening. After a bit of commotion, she left.”

“By yourself?” the officer turned towards me.

“Yes,” I replied. “I came back here.”

He gave me a suspicious look.

“I did run into Chad, an employee here, and he walked me to my cabin.”

“A romantic meeting?” asked the officer.

“Now just…” I began, but Chad stepped out of the crowd and cut me off.

“No, it was not romantic. I saw her walking alone out here, looking upset, so I asked if there was anything I could do. It is my job to ensure that our guests are happy here. If I see one that is clearly not, I immediately ask them if there is anything I can do. It was strictly plutonic. Besides, I only walked her back to her cabin.”

“Do you often walk strange women back to their cabins?” asked the officer.

“Yes, I do. It’s my job to ensure their safety, as well as their happiness here. Honestly, officer, if you were in my position, would you have done any different?”

The officer didn’t respond.

“He did it!” hissed the ghost in my ear. “Chad killed me. I know he did.”

I shifted uncomfortably, trying to ignore him.

“You seem nervous,” said the officer.

“Just tired,” I replied.

“Of course she’s tired!” shouted Patrick.

Aimie grabbed his arm and whispered something in his ear, probably to quiet him down before he got himself arrested.

“I am calm,” he said to her.

A commotion arose as a plump little woman shoved her way to the front of the crowd. “Oh, dear! Oh dear!” Emily’s graying hair squeezed out of the mass of gathered bodies. “What is going on here? Can’t you hurry this up? I have a business to run and can’t have a dead body around.”

“Ma’am,” replied the officer, “we’re doing our job as fast as we can.”

“Officer,” said Greg, “we answered your questions. May we go now?”

“Yes,” said the officer, “but remain available in case we have any further questions.”

“Come with me,” Emily led us away, back to the main building, which had been the original bed and breakfast before the expansion. She pushed us inside and led us to the lobby, her flustered steps clacking on the floor as she walked. “Oh dear,” she kept mumbling to herself.

“We don’t want to be any trouble,” said Greg.

“Oh, you’re no trouble at all,” said Emily.

“I’m telling you that that Chad guy killed me,” said the ghost.

I glared at him, hoping that he got the message to shut his mouth.

“Oh, you’re no bother at all,” said Emily as she scrolled through screens on her computer. “But we do need to get you some new accommodations. Can’t stay in that cabin. Oh, no. Ah, here we are. The honeymoon suite.”

“We really don’t…” I began, but she cut me off.

“No, no, don’t worry about it.” She entered some information on her computer. “It is our finest room. And no charge, really. In fact, I am going to refund your money.”

“You don’t need to,” said Greg.

“I insist,” Emily replied. “Finding a dead body in your room. How awful! No, this is on the house. Anything you wish, whether it’s from the kitchens, the restaurant, or anything, charge it to the honeymoon suite and I’ll take care of it.”