Page 13 of The Accidental Ghost

Ralph’s insides warmed. “Her name’s Blanche Devereaux, in case you were wondering.”

He grinned. “Like the Golden Girl?”

“One and the same. She was my favorite.”

“Really?” he asked, cocking his head in thought. “Mine was always Rose. I always thought she got such a bum rap for being so positive, but no one could turn a bad situation around the way Rose could.”

She fought using her hand to fan herself. Rose was his favorite. If she’d ever had to contain a breathy sigh, now was the time. He made her knees melty.

“She was also impossibly naïve.”

“And that’s a bad thing how?”

Nina skidded to a stop in front of them, kicking up snow, thwarting any further Rose talk. “Look at who got the fuck out of my castle.” She rooted around in her hoodie pocket and pulled out a small satchel. With one fell swoop, she yanked the sheet off Ralph and hurled fairy dust at her.

Ralph coughed, swatting at the flying particles before straightening. “Can you see me now?”

Nina nodded. “Clear as flippin’ day. So what does this mean, Ghostbuster?”

“It means she can leave. She’s not tethered here. I don’t know why she landed here, if maybe she was brought here, but that’s not as important as the fact that she can travel.”

“Travel? What the fuck does that mean?”

“Some ghosts are attached to a person. They can’t go anywhere their host doesn’t go.”

“Welp, it’s good to know I’m still single,” Ralph said on a laugh.

Shamus looked at her in the fading light of the afternoon, his hair extra silver under the bruised purple and blue sky. “Were you ever married?”

“Are you?”

Had that bold question come from her mouth? Wanda wasn’t kidding when she said your brain no longer had control of your mouth when something like this life-altering happened to you.

“Not anymore. I was, though. For fifteen years.”

His gravelly voice made her shiver. She wanted to ask what happened, but Nina jammed her face between the two of them.

“Listen, it’s great you two wanna get to fucking know each other, but this isn’t The Dating Game and I’m not Chuck Woolery. Quit twirling your hair and batting your eyelashes and let’s get this show on the fucking road. Or don’t you want to get your cat and see if something at your apartment might help you hit the highway to Heaven? Because if you don’t, I do.”

Instantly, Ralph pulled her finger from her hair in guilt, looking down at her feet, still in her ballet slippers with drops of rusty red on them.

Blood?

Was that her blood?

Did it matter?

You were murdered, Ralphie. Don’t you want to know who did it?

Shaking off her thoughts, Ralph nodded. “Of course… I want to see if there’s something that’ll help me move on, and of course I want to get Blanche.”

And then she wanted to sit on her comfortable couch, pull her favorite blanket around her, and cuddle with her cat. Fall asleep with the sounds of the city as her lullaby.

Nina pointed as a dark Suburban pulled around front. “Then float your ass to that big SUV and let’s ride. I got shit to do.”

Wanda popped the passenger door open with a smile in Ralph’s direction. “I can see you! Yay!” She wiggled her finger. “C’mon, honey. Get in. Let’s go get your cat!”

Her stomach gurgled and her heart raced. Sort of. More phantom pain, maybe?

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