Page 11 of Ghostridden
“Gilgamesh. Gil. And I’m not sure when he became such a flirt. Usually he disdains all strangers, but he was downright polite to Ricky and actuallypurredfor Tia Sofia. He hated my ex-boyfriend.”
She flashed me a grin as she gave Gil one last skritch and stood up, brushing her hands on her slacks and decorating them with more ginger fur. “What can I tell you? He’s obviously a good judge of character.”
I thought about Greg and his latest passive-aggressive shenanigans. “Yeah. I probably should have listened to him the first time he hissed at the jerk.”
She tilted her head. “I’m guessing you didn’t invite me in here just to meet your cat.”
“That would be a no.” I gestured to the library doors. “Take a look at what greeted me this morning.”
She stepped past me, expertly evading Gil’s attempt to trip her by flopping in front of her feet, and looked inside. Her eyes widened, and she shot a look at me that I couldn’t interpret. “You found it like this?”
Was that accusation in her tone? Did she thinkI’ddo something like this to a house that I’d lived in for less than twenty-four hours? “Yes. I came downstairs around 6:30 or so. I never heard anything. I slept in the main suite, although on the floor in the turret.”
She hunkered down again, prompting Gil to try to climb onto her knee. She petted him absently as she gingerly lifted one of the torn pages. She studied it. “Is this the only book that was destroyed?”
I nodded. “Others might have been damaged a little from being tossed around, but that’s the only one that had its pages ripped out, as far as I can tell.”
“Interesting.” She shifted Gil aside and stood. “Is this all?”
I glared at her. “Isn’t it enough? I mean,lookat it.”
She raised both palms in a placating gesture. “I’m not belittling it, trust me. I’m just trying to determine the full scope. Did you call the police?”
“Not yet. I was about to, but…” I bit my lip and glanced away.
“What is it?”
I sighed. “The thing is, I just got into town. I’m barely moved in. I don’t know anything about what the environment is here. I mean, aren’t most small towns pretty insular? Don’t they close ranks against strangers and newcomers?”
The corners of her lips twitched. “Ghost has its idiosyncrasies, but corrupt, bigoted law enforcement isn’t one of them. We don’t have a town police force, just one of the county deputies who’s stationed here, but she’s a good sort, and the sheriff believes in the rule of law.”
“Good to know. But what I mean is, if I were to… cast aspersions on anybody when they’re well known in town and I’m a cypher? Let’s just say I’m planning to make this my home. I don’t want to get off on the wrong foot by making enemies my first day.”
“What aspersions would those be?”
“Well…” I swallowed convulsively. “The only people who know I’m here are you, Ricky, Sofia, and the person next door who keeps peeking through her curtains at me. Oh, and Carson.” I grimaced. “Actually, his welcome is what made me dial into the we-don’t-want-your-kind-here cliche.”
Her brows drew together. “Why? What did he do?”
I laughed weakly. “He mistook me for a burglar when I was trying to get in the front door and threatened to tase me.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m not sure Carson owns a Taser. But I’m sorry that was your introduction to Ghost. We’re actually a pretty friendly place. Sofia and Ricky are much more the norm than Carson, especially since he moved to Richdale to open his real estate practice.”
“What about”—I jerked my thumb at the Craftsman—“the window peeper?”
This time, she laughed, a full, rolling belly laugh that would have fit somebody twice her size. “That’s Professor DeHaven. Patrice.”
My eyebrows shot up. “Professor? Professor of what? Covert surveillance?”
“No. She’s actually an adjunct professor of parapsychology at Richdale University.”
“Parapsychology? You mean, like ESP and voices from beyond the grave?”
She waggled one hand. “Among other things.”
“Is that even a thing?”
“It is in Ghost and Richdale. Patrice also owns the needlework-slash-occult shop in town.”
