The Ghost of Marlow House (Haunting Danielle Book 1) (5 page)

Danielle moved into the master bedroom
while Lily took a room down the hall. Lily’s plan was to stay in Oregon for the
summer and then return to California come August, to start a new school year.

It wasn’t until Danielle carried her
last suitcase into her new bedroom did Walt appear to her again.  He’d
disappeared in the attic, shortly after announcing they needed to have a chat.

“This is my room,” Walt said after he
reappeared.

“You mean this
was
your room.”
Danielle tossed the suitcase on the bed and opened it. She began to unpack,
moving her clothes from the suitcase to the dresser.

“No, it’s still mine.” Walt sat on the
edge of the bed and watched her.

“Then why don’t you have any clothes in
your dresser?” Danielle filled one drawer then opened another.

“You know why.”

“Yes, about that.” Danielle stopped
unpacking and looked at Walt. “I thought you left. I told you to follow the
light. Did you get lost or what?”

“There was no light, Danielle.”

“Then where did you go?”

“Back up to the attic. I found your
departure speech tedious.”

“Sorry. I was just trying to help. So
what is it I need to do before you can leave?”

“I need you to find out how I died. What
happened to Angela?”

“Angela, your wife?” Danielle closed her
now empty suitcase and sat on the bed with Walt.

“Yes. None of this makes any sense to
me. I can’t leave until I find out what happened.”

“You mean you can’t—or you won’t?”

“I…I don’t think I can.”

Danielle studied Walt’s sober
expression.  After a few moments considering his request she let out a sigh.

“Okay, I’ll see what I can find out.
Unfortunately, the Internet isn’t hooked up yet so I can’t go online. I guess
I’ll have to do it the old fashioned way and take a trip down to the local
newspaper office.”

“Internet?” Walt frowned.

“Oh….that’s right. I guess you missed
the television too.”

“Television?”

“Wow, you really have been trapped in
this house for a long time. Okay, I’ll see what I can find out. But I’ll have
to do it tomorrow.  And then you’ll leave?”

“You seem very anxious to get rid of
me.” Walt pulled his feet up on the bed and leaned against the headboard.
Folding his arms across his chest he studied Danielle.

“Don’t take it personally.” Danielle
stood up. “But sharing the house with you and Lily… she would eventually catch
me talking to you, assume I’m talking to myself. And, well, things tend to get
uncomfortable after something like that happens.”

“How many others have there been?”

“You mean spirits—ghosts?” Danielle
asked.

“Is that what I am, a ghost?”

“I suppose it’s the most common term.”
Danielle picked the empty suitcase off the bed and set it on the floor.

“So how many?” he asked again.

“I don’t know, ten maybe.” Absently,
Danielle wandered around the bedroom looking at the furnishings as she talked
with Walt.  Along the far wall was a fireplace, and near that a small sofa.
Walking along the backside of the sofa she ran her fingertips over its satiny
upholstery.

“I take it your friends and family are
unaware of these…communications?” Walt’s eyes fixed on Danielle. Instead of
farmer pants, today she wore fitted short slacks, showing off shapely calves.
Instead of wearing her hair loose, it was pulled back in a fancy braid. When he
had first met Angela he thought she was the most beautiful woman in the
world—fair, petite and everything he believed a woman should be. Danielle
looked nothing like Angela, yet he found her oddly appealing.  It wasn’t lust—
exactly
—this
stranger stirred in his loins—for if he understood things correctly, he no
longer possessed loins. Whatever the sensation, he found it compelling.

“The first time was my grandmother. I
was just a child.” Danielle sat down on the sofa. She looked up and found Walt was
no longer lounging on the bed. Instead he stood by the fireplace, leaning
casually against the mantle, smoking a slender cigar as he had yesterday. She
could smell the sweet scent of tobacco. While she abhorred the stench of
cigarette smoke, she found this scent pleasant. Reflexively, she glanced back
at the bed, where he had lain moments before, then to the fireplace where he
now stood.

“And you never told anyone?” he asked.

“I told everyone. My cousin Cheryl
called me a liar and my parents didn’t take the incident too seriously,
considering my age and the fact it was my first experience with death. It
wasn’t until the next time a few years later that I learned sharing my
experiences wasn’t a good idea. A neighbor boy was killed, and he desperately
wanted me to tell his parents he was sorry for disobeying them, and taking his
bike out. He wanted me to tell them he was okay.”

“And did you?” Walt puffed the cigar and
then exhaled. White gray smoke curled around his face before dissolving into
the air.

“Unfortunately, yes.  My parents were
furious. His parents thought I was a horrible person, trying to mock their
loss.  When I became so insistent that I had talked to the boy’s spirit—that I
wasn’t making it all up—well, my parents took me to a psychologist.”

“They committed you to an asylum?”

“God no—
fortunately
. But I
suppose if I hadn’t learned to tell them what they wanted to hear, who knows
what would have happened. After that, I pretty much kept it to myself. It
seemed like the easiest thing to do.”

“And you never told anyone ever again?” 

“No…” Danielle paused a moment. “No, not
until Lucas.”

“Who was Lucas?”

“Lucas was the first person I opened up
to about this….
gift
. I mean after that unfortunate experience. I suppose
it is a gift. I don’t know, maybe a curse.” Danielle leaned back in the sofa
and stared up at the ceiling.

“Weren’t you ever afraid, Danielle?
Young ladies I know would be quite horrified to discover themselves alone with…
a ghost.”

Danielle shrugged. She remained quiet
for a few moments, still staring up at the ceiling, considering his question.
“The first time it was my grandma, and I suppose it was more comforting than
scary. Maybe if I had been older the first time it happened, maybe it would
seem…I don’t know…more unnatural.  A couple of times it was a little scary, but
that had more to do with the spirit at the time.”

“I take it I’m not scary?” Walt smiled
down at Danielle. She lifted her head and looked at him. His blue eyes seemed
to twinkle.

“Not particularly.”

“I’m not sure if I should be flattered
or offended.”

“I have a question for you.”

“Go ahead, ask.”

“Do you want to leave here? After all,
you’ve been hanging out for almost ninety years. Didn’t you say your last
memory was 1925? According to the attorney handling my aunt’s estate, this
house has been vacant that long.”

“Yes, that’s my last memory.”

Wait a minute
,
Danielle told herself
. If Walt died in 1925, and if the attorney is correct,
the house has been vacant since then. Then my aunt probably didn’t move into
the house with her mother. But why not? If her mother was a single woman,
cleaning houses to support herself, then why wouldn’t she move into this house?
 

“What are you thinking?” Walt asked,
noting Danielle’s look of concentration.

“Kathrine O’Malley obviously inherited
this house. Does that mean she inherited your entire estate?”

“According to the terms of my will, yes.
But that was only if Angela preceded me, which I don’t believe she did.”

“Let’s assume Kathrine inherited your
entire estate—was that, well…a lot of money?”

“Some would consider such a question
crude.”

“Oh please, don’t get all proper on me.”

“Yes, it was a considerable amount of
money.”

“Enough to, say…keep this house and then
pay for another place to live?”

“Certainly. I assume your question is
about more than the size of my estate.”

“I was just wondering why Kathrine
O’Malley never moved into this house. You don’t remember her living here. And
the timeline indicates the house has been vacant since around the time of your
death. I just figured a single mother struggling to support her daughter would
move into the house she had inherited. I didn’t take into account she’d also
inherited your entire estate, which meant she could afford to live wherever she
wanted to and still keep this house.”

“Yes, she could. However, I still can’t
come to terms with the fact she inherited my estate.  I know I would have
remembered Angela’s death. I’m certain of that. It makes more sense to me that
Angela eventually saw Roger for the man he really was, and that Kathrine
O’Malley continued to work for my wife, and because of her loyalty, was left
this house.”

“If that was true, wouldn’t you have
seen Kathrine and Angela here?”

“I don’t know. Would I? Do you know for
certain how this all works? And who knows, perhaps Angela decided to stay in
Portland after my death. That makes more sense. After all, this was only her
home for a few weeks.”

“I suppose you have a point. I’ll look
into it tomorrow and see what I can find.”

“Who are you talking to?” Lily asked
from the doorway.

“Lily…how long have you been standing
there?” Danielle glanced from Lily to Walt. Walt gave her a little shrug.

“Long enough to hear you say you were
looking into something tomorrow.” Lily walked into the room. She looked around
and wrinkled her nose then asked, “Have you been smoking?”

“Smoking?”

“Yes. It smells just like the cigars my
grandfather used to smoke.” 

“You can smell that?” Danielle looked
back at Walt.

“So you have been smoking up here!”

“No…I…well I smell it too. Thought I was
imagining things,” Danielle lied.

“No….” Lily took a deep breath and
closed her eyes briefly. “Definitely cigar…but not a disgusting one. Some can
be so gross. That is…well sort of spicy and sweet.  But if you say you haven’t
been sneaking cigars…”

“Don’t be silly. Of course I haven’t
been smoking cigars. This is an old musty house. Probably some old scents
lingering.”

“Or maybe a ghost!” Lily used the same
tone she used for her students when reading a spooky Halloween story.

“Ghost?” Danielle squeaked.

“I will take that as my cue to leave. I hope
you young ladies have a most enjoyable afternoon. I will anxiously be awaiting
to hear what you have to say.” Walt then disappeared.

“Well, this is an old house. Remember I
told you I had wild dreams last night?”

“Yes.” Danielle eyed her friend curiously.
Lily seemed more amused than alarmed over the idea of a ghost.

“I dreamt this house was haunted—by that
cute guy in the painting. What did you say his name was? Walt Marlow, yes
that’s right. Walt Marlow.”

“You dreamt this house was haunted?”

“Yes. I wish I could remember more of
it. Don’t you hate forgetting your dreams? Funny thing, I forgot about it but
the cigar smoke—it triggered my memory. I can’t recall much of it, other than we
were living in this house with Walt Marlow. It’s sort of a jumble, but then he
was a ghost. Damn. I really should have written it down.”

“Well…I don’t think there is a ghost.”

“Are you sure? Sounded like you were
talking to someone!” Lily teased.

“Oh, I was just thinking out loud,”
Danielle lied. “I was thinking of all the things I need to do to get this house
in order.”

Standing at his front window, Ian
Bartley looked across the street at Marlow House. Movement in its attic window
caught his eye. Glancing upward he saw what appeared to be two women. Just as
they moved away from the window his cellphone rang.

“Yeah,” he answered his phone, still
looking out the window. “Yeah…I’m settled in but just my luck, looks like I’m a
few days too late…yeah she’s here…no there’s someone with her, another woman…I
think they were watching me…through some sort of telescope, from the attic… I
don’t think they know…I have no idea who the other woman is…right…I seriously
doubt that, nothing in my research indicated she was gay…late twenties I would
guess…yeah they’re good looking, why?...right, a threesome, you do have an
overactive imagination. Please stay focused…perhaps…maybe it’ll work out better
this way, but the fact is we really don’t have any other choice….right…I’ll be
careful…I’ll check back later…”

Ian ended his call and tucked his
cellphone into the back pocket of his denims. Moving away from the window he
called out to his golden retriever as he grabbed a shirt he’d tossed on the
back of the couch the night before. He slipped it on.

“Good girl, Sadie.” Ian leaned over and
gave the dog an affectionate pat after she bound into the room, playfully
leaping at his feet.  “How about we play a little game, girl? You ready for a
walk?” Sadie wagged her tail, dashed around in a quick circle and headed to the
front door.

Following Sadie, Ian grabbed his Cub’s
baseball cap from the coat rack, fitted it on his head, and then grabbed the
leash off the floor. Without putting the leash on Sadie, Ian opened the front door.
The golden retriever dashed outside, yet stopped when she reached the end of
the walk leading to the sidewalk. She looked back at Ian, waiting for him to
reach her.

Holding the leash in his hand, Ian
walked down the street, Sadie close by his side. When they reached the intersection,
Ian looked both ways then crossed the street, and walked back up it, in the
direction of Marlow House. Just as he reached Marlow’s House’s side yard he
gave Sadie a silent hand gesture. She dashed off, disappearing into the trees
behind the house. He glanced around to see if anyone was watching, then hastily
made his way to the front gate of the property. Finding it unlocked, he let
himself in and made his way up the walkway to the front door.  Standing on the
front porch of Marlow House, Ian rang the bell. A few minutes later a petite redhead
answered the door.

“Hello,” Lily greeted with a smile.

“I’m really sorry to bother you like
this,” Ian told her. “But I was walking my dog and she must have seen a
squirrel or something because she took off in your back yard. I didn’t want to
trespass but…”

“Oh sure, come on in,” Lily said
brightly, opening the door wider and motioning for Ian to enter. “Come on
through the house and you can get her.”

Just as Ian entered the house and closed
the door behind him, he noticed a brunette standing quietly behind the redhead.
She glanced down at the leash in his hand.

“I guess a leash doesn’t work very well
if it isn’t attached,” she said.

Ian glanced down at the leash and
smiled. “She’s usually pretty well behaved.”

“Oh, she’s just messing with you. I’m Lily,
and this is my friend Danielle. This is her house.” Lily flashed Danielle a
glance, as if to say,
lighten up girl
.

“Nice to meet you Lily, Danielle. I’m
Ian Bartley; I’m staying in the house across the street.”

“Really? Are you just visiting the area?”
Lily asked.

“I’ve rented the house for the summer.
I’m a teacher—you know, summers off and all that.”

“Really? I’m a teacher too! What do you
teach?”

“Lily, don’t you think you should take
him to the back door so he could get his dog, before it gets lost.”  Danielle
interrupted.

“Oh, you’re right.” Lily blushed, and then
motioned for Ian to follow her as she led him to the door leading to the back
yard. Ian flashed Danielle a smile and followed Lily. Taking in his surroundings,
he attempted to memorize all that he could see.

When Lily opened the back door Sadie was
waiting patiently on the stoop.  Wagging her tail, Sadie gave a little bark
then charged into the house when she spied Ian.

“Good girl,” Ian cooed as he dropped to
his knees and secured the leash to Sadie’s collar. “But you shouldn’t have run
off like that.”

“What a beautiful dog, can I pet her?” Lily
asked.

“Certainly.” Ian released hold of the
leash, allowing Sadie to walk to Lily. Dragging the leash behind her, Sadie
sniffed Lily’s outstretched hand then eagerly accepted the caress. Lily dropped
to her knees and playfully rubbed the dog’s furry shoulders.  Sadie responded
with a sloppy kiss across Lily’s face.

“She likes you,” Ian announced.

“Interesting that she was waiting at the
back door,” Danielle said. She stood nearby observing the scene.

“She must have heard my voice,” Ian
suggested.

“What do we have here? A dog in my
house?” Danielle heard Walt say. She turned and found him standing on the other
side of the room. Sadie cocked her head at the sound of the new voice. Wiggling
from Lily’s hold, she ran to where Walt was standing and started barking.

“Sadie, what’s wrong?” Ian frowned. He
and Lily watched as Sadie appeared to be barking at the wall, her back to them.

“Shhhh…that’s okay girl,” Walt said
gently, leaning down to give her a pat. Instead of his hand stroking her fur,
it moved through her head. Pulling his hand back quickly, Walt cursed. Sadie tilted
her head curiously, stopped barking and sat down. Looking up at Walt, she
wagged her tail.

“Well that is the damnedest thing,” Ian
grumbled.  Walking to Sadie he picked up the end of the leash.

“Maybe she saw a mouse or something,” Lily
suggested, walking to his side.

Danielle glanced curiously from Walt to
Sadie.
The dog can see him, amazing.

“I’m really sorry for barging in this
way,” Ian said, now holding onto the leash. “Maybe I can make it up to you ladies.
I understand they have great homemade ice cream at a shop on the pier. I’d be
happy to treat if you’re interested. Sadie and I were just heading down there.”

“I haven’t seen the pier yet and I love
ice cream.” Lily smiled.

“I appreciate the offer, but I’m going
to be pretty swamped. But don’t let me stop you two,” Danielle said.

“Actually, I should take a rain check.” Lily
sounded disappointed. “We just moved in today, and I should probably finish
unpacking and help Danielle get settled in.”

Ian glanced around. “Really? Looks like
you’ve lived here a while.”

“No. We just started moving in today.
Actually I’m just staying for the summer—like you. What grade did you say you
teach?”

“I think your friend likes him,” Walt told
Danielle. Danielle glanced at Walt and rolled her eyes.

“What do you teach?” Ian countered.

“Second grade.”

“Second grade? I teach…high school
English.”

“High school? I’m afraid I wouldn’t last
very long in high school. I did some subbing before I started working for my
current district, and I hated subbing at high schools, but I think middle
school was the worst.” Lily cringed.

“Well…that’s why we need summers off,
right?” Ian grinned.  He then turned to Danielle and asked, “So are you
planning to live here full time?”

“Yes,” Danielle answered.

“She’s turning Marlow House into a bed
and breakfast,” Lily announced.

“Really? An inn? Interesting. Do you
have a target date for an opening?”

“Not really. Like Lily said, we just got
here and I wasn’t even sure this house would work.”

“You mean you hadn’t seen it before?”

“No.”

“She inherited the house from her aunt,”
Lily blurted out. Danielle flashed her friend a cool look yet Lily failed to
grasp Danielle’s displeasure.

“It looks like a fascinating property.
When you have time, perhaps you could give me a tour.”

“Tour? I suppose that would be possible.
Maybe in a few days, when we get settled,” Danielle said.

“The man is lying. He isn’t a teacher.” Walt
said before vanishing. Sadie began to whine, looking around anxiously.

“I think I better go now.” Ian glanced
down at Sadie. “I’ve taken too much of your time.”

“Good lord, Lily,” Danielle said after
Ian and Sadie departed. “Don’t you teach your students about strangers and
dangers?”

“What are you talking about?” Lily asked
while she peeked out the window and watched Ian and Sadie walk down the walk
toward the street.

“The man is a perfect stranger and you
just let him in the house?”

“He was looking for his dog.”

“Come on Lily. Haven’t you discussed the
help me find my puppy ploy
with your second graders?”

“Oh don’t be silly,” Lily scoffed. “I
knew he was our neighbor. It’s not like he was just any stranger off the
street. He was the one I saw with the spotting scope. And trust me Dani, if
you’d seen the boy without his shirt, you would’ve let him in the house!”

“Lily, sometimes you drive me crazy!”
Danielle tossed her hands up in defeat.

“Danielle, have you considered the fact
you’ll be regularly welcoming strangers into your house once you turn this
place into a B and B? And not just for a brief visit—they’ll be spending the
night. When I leave in August, you’ll be sleeping in this house with strangers.
All alone
. If me letting the neighbor in the house makes you so nervous,
maybe you need to reconsider your plans.”

When Danielle didn’t respond, Lily gave
a shrug and told her she was going to go finish unpacking. Danielle watched Lily
walk up the stairs.

“Are you reconsidering your plans?” Walt
asked a moment later when he reappeared. He and Danielle stood alone at the
landing of the staircase.

“I don’t know. Why did you say he wasn’t
a teacher?”

“Because he’s not.”

“How can you you tell?”

“The dog told me.” Walt sat down on one
of the steps.

“The dog? You talked to the dog?”
Danielle sat down next to him.

“She didn’t actually talk to me. Dogs
don’t talk you know. It was more, well a communicative exchange, so to speak.”

“She could see you.”

“Obviously.”

“Why would he lie about being a
teacher?”

“I don’t know. Sadie didn’t say.”

“Sadie?”

“The dog. Her name is Sadie. She wasn’t
chasing a squirrel, by the way. He used that as a ploy to meet you. Smart dog.
Well trained.”

“So can all animals see you?”

“I don’t know. She’s the first one I
remember seeing since…well, since I last remember being alive. What’s your
experience with this?”

“You mean the other times I talked
to…well ghosts?” Wrapping her arms around her bent legs, she rested her chin on
her knees.

“Yes.”

“I don’t really recall…well, that’s not
true. Remember when I said there were a few nasty souls I crossed paths with?”

“Yes.” Walt mimicked Danielle and
wrapped his arms around his bend legs, resting his chin on his knees. He wore
the same vintage gray suit—era 1925—that he’d been wearing every other time
she’d seen him.

“I had a cat when I was in high school.
She’d hiss up a storm and the back on her hair would bristle whenever he—one of
the nasty spirits—appeared in my bedroom. Which fortunately, was only two
times.”

“If he comes over here again—and judging
by the way your friend was responding to him, I’ve a feeling that will be
happening fairly soon—encourage him to bring his dog along. Make her welcome.
I’ll see if I can find out why he’d lie about his profession. Unfortunately,
the dog seemed rather fond of the guy.”