The Death Planner (Storage Ghost Murders Book 6) (14 page)

Chapter
34

Beth
moved forward and snatched the basket from Grace. “Grace! Are you alright?
You’ve gone very white and your hands are shaking.”

Grace
swallowed and tried to speak. It was hard to collect her thoughts as Jenny was
screaming in her ear, “It’s her! It’s the bride! I remember her!”

Beth
put the basket on a nearby table. She put her hand on Grace’s elbow and said,
“You need to sit down. Is this the way to your living room? I’ll make you a cup
of tea, you look like you need one.”

Grace
managed to smile, and she managed not to wince as Beth touched her. It couldn’t
be Beth! Beth just couldn’t be the bride, she just couldn’t. Jenny must have
made a mistake.

Beth
steered Grace into the living room and towards the sofa. She sat her down and
then sat next to her. Jenny flew around the living room, her hands in the air,
warning Grace to get away from Beth.

Beth
smiled and looked around. “I do like how you’ve decorated your home.” Her
glance landed on the files and papers scattered on the carpet. “Oh, what’s all
that? Are you working on something?”

Grace
leapt out of her seat. She couldn’t let Beth see Jenny’s files. She knocked her
handbag off the side of the sofa in her haste. The contents scattered on to the
floor. Grace’s heart missed a beat as the headset rested at her feet. She hoped
against hope that Beth wouldn’t see it.

Beth
pointed at the headset. Her voice was calm as she spoke, “Grace, what’s that?
May I have a look at it?”

Jenny
shrieked, “Don’t give it to her! She’ll strangle you with it! Just like she
strangled me!”

Grace
slowly picked the headset up and turned towards Beth. Beth took the headset and
smiled. “I think I’ve seen something like this before, a long time ago. Where
did you get it?”

“I
found it in a locker, at an auction.” Grace could hardly speak. There was a
strange buzzing noise in her head and she couldn’t think clearly.

Beth
studied the headset, still smiling. She looked at the files again. “What
exactly are you working on? May I have a look?”

Grace
could only nod. She glanced towards the living room door. If she suddenly made
a run for it could she make it out before Beth? Jenny came to Grace’s side.
“You’ve got to phone the police! You’ve got to get out of here!”

Beth
knelt on the carpet and looked at the files. Her smile stayed firmly in place
as she read the contents. She pulled Grace’s laptop closer and looked at the
pages that Grace had open. She was still smiling but the atmosphere in the room
had changed. Grace’s heart was racing so much that she felt like it would
explode. She took a tiny step backwards.

Beth
looked her way, still smiling. “Grace, you have been busy. Have you worked it
all out?” She laughed. “Of course you have, I can tell from the terror on your
face. Why don’t you sit down and we can talk about this.” Beth returned to the
sofa and patted the seat next to her. It hadn’t escaped Grace’s notice that
Beth was still holding the headset in her gloved hand.

Part
of Grace still hoped that it was all a mistake. She sat on the sofa, but as far
away from Beth as she could.

Beth
indicated her head towards the files. “What have you found out about me?” She
grinned and held up the headset. “And do you know what this has got to do with
me? It’s like some sort of quiz, isn’t it? Come on, Grace, talk to me.”

Grace
cleared her throat. “I think that you’re the bride on all those website pages.
The files, and the headset belonged to Jenny Lorrimer. She was murdered at a
wedding five years ago.” Grace cleared her throat again, her words didn’t want
to come out. “I think you killed Jenny. I think she found out something about
you.”

Beth
laughed. She curled the lead of the headset between her fingers. “Very good.
What else have you found out? What’s that list for? The one from Alwyn and
Green?”

“Jenny
used them to supply particular food at certain weddings.”

Beth
nodded. “Of course. That would be me and my mango allergy. You’d be amazed how
much food has it in, particularly cakes and desserts. I have to be very
careful.” She laughed again. “I met Jenny at my first wedding, it was in
Manchester. But you probably know that. It was such a lavish affair! Thomas
spent so much money on it. I was fond of Thomas but I didn’t love him. I
married him for money. There’s no need to look so shocked, Grace, a lot of
people marry for money.”

“Thomas
died a short while after your wedding. Did you …?”

“Kill
him? Of course I did. I had to make it look like an accident. It was easy.”
Beth tutted. “He lied to me about his money. He spent all that money on the
wedding but none of it belonged to him. He’d had to borrow it. As soon as the
wedding was over he told me that he was broke, and that he was in massive debt.
I couldn’t have that! I had to get rid of him.” She gave Grace a direct look.
“It’s incredibly easy to kill someone and to get away with it.”

Jenny
sat on the carpet next to Grace’s side of the sofa. “You have to leave, I don’t
like the look in her eyes.”

Beth
said, “I had to leave Manchester. People started to spread rumours about me
being a gold-digger. I came to Leeds and soon got involved with another rich
man. Paul Clarkson.” She shivered. “Not much to look at, but plenty of money. I
had to keep away from the organising of the wedding because I recognised Jenny
from the initial meeting that she had with Paul. I nearly walked in on them and
gave my identity away! Jenny was there at the wedding but I made sure our paths
never crossed. Wedding veils come in very useful! It was sort of fun.” She
smiled at the memory. “I had to get rid of Paul quickly, he was getting on my
nerves. So I came up with another way of killing someone. Again, it was so
easy. I could write a book on it.”

“Didn’t
the police question you? Didn’t they run checks on your name?”

“I’ve
no idea. But I changed my name every time.” Beth gave Grace a wry smile as if
they were sharing a joke. “That’s what tripped me up at the last wedding. I was
talking to that dim-witted waitress, I think her name was Elsa. She told me she
was named after her grandmother, Elizabeth. I told her that my real name was
Elizabeth too, and that I liked to change my name sometimes. I told her I’d
used Libby, Belinda and Isobel. They are all derivatives of Elizabeth. That’s
when Jenny Lorrimer appeared. She heard us talking and I could tell by the look
on her face that she was working something out in her mind.”

Jenny
nodded. “I remember now. Elsa asked the bride if this was her first wedding and
she said yes. I knew she was lying. I remembered her from the Manchester
wedding.”

Beth
laughed again. Grace didn’t know how she could find all this so amusing. Beth
said, “You should have seen the look on her face as she realised who I was. And
when I told that Elsa person that I hadn’t been married before … well! You
should have seen Jenny’s face! I knew she’d worked it out. I saw her on her
phone later on, probably checking up on me. I knew I had to kill her. It was
easy.”

Grace
said, “What about Frankie? Are you planning on killing him too?”

Beth
nodded. “I’m sort of addicted to it. It’s like a hobby. I do like Frankie, he’s
cute. I checked up on him when he came to look for a watch. He’s got some money
but not enough for me to hang around long.” She held up a finger, looked at her
engagement ring and said, “Working at a jewellers is a good place to meet rich
men. A tip for you there, Grace.” She shook her head. “But, of course, you
won’t be going anywhere. I have to kill you too.”

Beth
suddenly lunged forwards, the headset lead held taut between both her hands.
Grace was prepared. She jumped to her feet and ran towards the door. And
straight into a grim-faced Frankie.

Frankie
stared coldly at Beth. “Lay one finger on my sister and I’ll strangle you
myself.”

Chapter
35

Pearl
sat at the kitchen table later that day and demanded that Grace tell her again
all about Beth. She listened, and tutted, and scowled and added her opinions
throughout. “I can’t believe it. She looked so friendly, so normal. I don’t
know why I’m surprised through, I’ve seen it all before. And the police are
going to deal with everything now?”

Grace
nodded. “I gave them all the evidence that I had. I told them what Beth had
confessed to. And Frankie added what he’d overheard.”

Pearl
shook her head. “Poor Frankie. I don’t normally feel sympathy for him but this
is going to take its toll on him. Where is he now?”

“He’s
gone out with Big Bob. He put a brave face on and he kept telling me he was
alright. But I know he isn’t. He didn’t know her long but he fell for her hard.
I’ll have to keep an eye on him. Pearl, why do you think Frankie went to that
particular jewellers? It was after I found Jenny’s things. Of all the jewellers
in this town, Frankie went to the one where Jenny’s killer worked. Is it a
coincidence, or do you think Frankie is picking up on something too?”

Pearl
shrugged. “Who knows? Tell me again about Jenny. Did she completely disappear?
She hasn’t come back, has she?”

“No.
She waited until the police had taken Beth away and then she did that glowing
thing that ghosts do. As she disappeared she told me that she could see her mum
and dad.” Grace quickly blinked away a tear. This wasn’t the time to think
about her own parents. “I haven’t told you yet, but I went to see Elsa when the
police had left. Angela was there at Elsa’s house and I told them everything. I
gave Elsa the headset and Jenny’s files.”

“What
about Jenny’s money? Did Angela sort anything out for Elsa?”

Grace
smiled. “She certainly did. I wouldn’t like to get on the wrong side of her.
And she reported Letty and Giles to the police. She said they shouldn’t get
away with tricking Elsa. Angela said she’ll help Elsa set up her own flower
shop.”

Pearl
nodded. “Good. That’s worked out well.” She looked at the table and said
casually, “Have you heard anything from Derek?”

“I
have. I phoned him and told him everything.” She looked at her watch.
“Actually, he’s going to call round soon.”

Pearl’s
head snapped up. “Here? You could have warned me! I could have changed!”

There
was a knock at the back door. Grace got up and let Derek in. He chuckled and
said, “What a day you’ve had! Another murder investigation tied up.”

“With
your help. Please sit down.”

Pearl
called out, “Hello, Derek.”

Derek’s
eyebrows rose. “Hello Pearl! I’m receiving you loud and clear.”

Pearl
let out a noise that sounded suspiciously like a giggle.

Grace
sat opposite Derek and said, “I’ve got a proposition for you. And it involves
Pearl.”

“You
have?” Derek asked.

“You
have?” Pearl repeated.

Grace
looked at Pearl and said, “I think you know what I’m talking about.”

Pearl
shook her head. “No! You can’t ask Derek to do that.”

“Do
what?” Derek asked. “Pearl, do you need my help with anything?”

“She
does. There’s a crowd of ghosts who keep bothering her, they need help. And she
won’t let me help them.”

Pearl
said, “It’s not that you can’t help them, you’ve got enough to do with helping
the people who have been murdered.” She waved her hand in the direction of the
wall. “Those ghosts have other problems. Things they should have sorted out
before they died.”

Derek’s
face lit up. “I can help them! I’ll be like a supernatural detective! Oh, that
sounds like great fun!”

“I’m
not sure,” Pearl said. “It could be dangerous.”

Derek
rubbed his hands together. “Good! Pearl, I need to do something, something that
makes me feel alive. Come on, what have you got to lose? Give me a try!”

Grace
laughed at Pearl’s expression. She’d never seen the old woman looking helpless
before.

Pearl
continued, “Maybe you’re right. You can hear me, Derek, and I think you’ll be
able to hear the other ghosts, but it would help if you could see ghosts too.”

Grace
frowned. “How is he going to do that?”

Pearl
looked from Grace to Derek, and then back again. In a quieter voice she said,
“I have to perform an intimate act with him.”

“Pearl!”
Grace shot out.

“Oh
dear,” Derek said.

Pearl
tutted. “I don’t mean that! Grace, get your mind out of the gutter! I have to
kiss him, that’s all.”

Derek
smiled. “I’ve never been kissed by a ghost before. Go on then, Pearl, pucker
up.”

Grace
knew she should look away, but this was something she didn’t want to miss.

Pearl
moved over to Derek and tenderly kissed him on his lips.

Derek
blinked and then slowly smiled. “I can see you, Pearl. You’re beautiful.”

Pearl
waved a hand at him. “Don’t be getting all soppy on me.”

Derek
looked around the room and rubbed his hands together. “Right! Let’s get on with
it! Where’s the first ghost?”

“Are
you going to start now?” Grace asked.

“There’s
no time like the present.” Derek looked at Pearl again. “You’ve got lovely
eyes, kind eyes. Are you going to help me with the ghosts?”

Pearl
nodded.

Grace
said, “Pearl can’t leave this building. You’ll have to come here if you want to
talk to her.”

Pearl
put her hand on Grace’s arm. “I haven’t been entirely honest with you. I can
leave the building. I didn’t want to come with you because I wanted you to deal
with the murder cases on your own. I knew you’d gain confidence if you worked
things out on your own.”

“Oh.”
Grace blinked and stared at Pearl. Pearl gave her a small smile and looked
away. Grace’s eyes narrowed. “What else haven’t you told me?”

Pearl
looked back at Grace. “These ghosts have been murdered too. I didn’t want to tell
you that because you’d insist on helping them. They aren’t attached to any
items, not like the locker ghosts. They’ve come to this shop because they’ve
heard about your gift.” She looked at Derek. “There’s quite a lot of them. Are
you sure you want to help?”

Derek
nodded. “The more the merrier!”

Pearl
stood behind Derek and put her hand on his shoulder. “Derek, I think we’re
going to make a good team.”