Page 30 of All You Want
“Anyone else in here?” I ask.
“No,” Linx replies. “Tami’s in shock. She says she saw a ghost.”
“Huh.” I point the flashlight above the doorway and spot the scaffolding. “No one is up there. If they climbed down, they would have to have stepped in this blood.”
“This is horrible. It’s all over me,” Tami wails. “How can I wash all this blood off of me? It sprayed all over me. It won’t come off.”
Since the hotel appears to be clear, I tuck my gun in the holster and reach for Tami. “Are you hurt? Tell me what happened.”
“A ghost threw blood on me. I slipped and fell. It was horrible.”
“A ghost? What did he look like?”
“It’s a she. Pickaxe Polly,” Tami exclaims. She’s breathing so fast and flapping her hands, I’m sure she’s hyperventilating.
“Slow down.” I put a hand on her shoulder. The blood is drying and feels sticky on her skin.
“I can’t. I saw her. She was looming over me with an axe, ready to chop my head off.”
I don’t know if she seriously believes it or saw an intruder she mistook for a ghost, but the first order of business is securing the victim.
“Tell me if anything hurts,” I ask.
She shakes her head, her eyes wide and blue, and her face is streaked with red liquid, although none of it seems to be oozing or spurting.
“Linx, did you see this person?”
“I didn’t see anyone but a cat. It jumped over Tami and ran up the stairs.”
“How big was the cat?” I know it’s silly to ask, but as a police officer, I have to be thorough. For all I know, it could be a man or woman in a cat suit.
“A tiny kitten,” Linx says. She kneels next to Tami, getting her jeans stained. “I think Tami’s having a panic attack.”
“I’m not panicking.” Tami’s huffs are getting faster and shallower, and she’s showing signs of hyperventilating.
By now, a few of the guys from the bar are standing at the threshold, gaping inside. “Sheriff, what happened? Why’s Tami all bloody?”
“Did someone attack her?”
“Stay back,” I command. “Linx, you’re deputized to keep everyone away from the crime scene.”
My sister is used to me deputizing her, so she gets up from her crouching position, puts her hands on her hips, and squares off against the gathering crowd.
They respect her. Everyone in town does.
I turn my attention back to Tami.
“Try to slow your breathing. Can you get up?”
“Help me?” she says weakly.
I put my hands underneath her armpits and lift her. Her feet slip and slide, and she sags against me.
“What hurts? Do you need a doctor?”
She rolls her eyes back, and I’m sure she’s about to faint, so I sweep her into my arms, getting the bloody substance on me.
“Linx, lock up the property and stick up the crime scene tape. I’m taking Tami to the hospital.”
