Page 23 of My Blind Date is a Ghost

“Wait!” I call out, but Beverly beats me to the door.

“Cora!” she calls out the door. I start to go past her, to chase Cora down and bring her back, but Beverly grabs my arm. “No, let her go. She needs to be alone right now.”

“Are you sure?” I ask anxiously. “She’s afraid and upset. She’s in a new world she doesn’t fully understand.”

“She will come back,” Beverly says, pulling me inside, and I let her. She locks the door and turns the “open” sign to “closed.”

I sigh and watch through the door as Cora disappears down the street. I know that Beverly must be right. She’s Cora’s family and the most experienced witch in town. I have to trust her judgement. Still, the idea of Cora being out there alone and afraid sets me on edge.

“Just give her a little space,” Beverly says. “Dianna, go get a broom and start sweeping all this up. Parker, go turn off the fuses and find a box of bulbs.”

They nod and set about their tasks. I think for a moment that Beverly probably could just snap her fingers and clean the mess up and set everything right, but she seems to want to get Dianna and Parker out of earshot for a moment.

“You need to find out how Cora came to be here,” Beverly tells me, “no matter what she says.”

“I don’t want to upset her further,” I say.

“She’s scared and not thinking rationally,” Beverly says.

“That might be true,” I say. “But she has a right to know what is going on.”

“We just have to be more careful about the things we say and do,” Beverly says. “Don’t suggest she might die again. She’s terrified at the prospect.”

“So am I,” I say. My heart seizes and I shut my mouth, afraid I’ve said something inappropriate.

“Oh, is that so?” Beverly asks, crossing her arms and quirking an eyebrow.

“Well, aren’t you?” I say, trying to deflect.

“Of course,” she says, “but I’m family.

I shrug. “Well, I’m a detective. It’s my job to care about the people of this town.”

“Sure, sure,” Beverly says dismissively. “I’m sure it’s nothing more than that. It’s not like you care about her or anything.”

“I do care,” I say, “but as a…a friend. A keeper of the peace. A protector of this whole town.”

Beverly purses her lips and nods. “Of course.” There is a long pause. “Tell me, Detective, you aren’t seeing anyone, are you?”

“You know I’m not,” I say.

“Fine, fine. But what I mean is, you aren’t interested in anyone, are you? You aren’t ‘talking’ to anyone, as the kids would say.”

I roll my eyes and sigh. “No, Beverly, I’m not talking to anyone. I haven’t dated anyone since moving here. I’m still kind of an outsider.”

She nods slowly. “You know I have a bit of a reputation for setting people up with their soulmates.”

“I’ve heard,” I say. “But don’t get any ideas. When I fall in love, it will happen on its own time, in its own way.”

“That’s how it is for all my couples,” Beverly says. “I just…give them a nudge in the right direction.”

“Well, don’t bother nudging me right now,” I say. “I’m kind of busy. I need to find out how to help Cora.”

“Fine, fine,” she says, waving her hand dismissively. “So, what are you going to do now?”

“I’m not sure,” I say. I’m quiet for a moment as I try to get into the mindset of an investigator. “I looked into her death a bit. How much do you know?”

She shrugs. “Only what was passed down in family lore. I’ve never actually looked into it myself, at the records. Jeremiah Holland was a werewolf, but he was also a…rather odd character. He couldn’t hold down a job. He didn’t talk much. I wonder…” She sighs.

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