Jared flashed her a tight smile, but it didn’t make it all the way to his eyes. “It seems likely.”
“But?” Harper could read him better than most and knew he was holding something back. “You think it’s real blood, don’t you?”
“I don’t know.” Jared cocked his head as Harris joined their small group. He was agitated by the man’s constant presence but did his best not to show it. “Here’s the man who can tell us, though.”
“Oh, were you talking about me?” Harris puffed out his chest and preened. “I’m flattered.”
“Actually, we were talking about the blood on this tombstone,” Jared countered, studying the man closely for his reaction. “Is this part of your show?”
“Blood?” Harris furrowed his brow and stared harder, ultimately letting loose a dramatic sigh. “I told them to be more careful with the props. I guess that’s something that’s going to have to be added to the list, too, huh?” He shook his head and made a tsking sound. “It’s a work in progress. I believe I told you that.”
“Uh-huh.” Jared licked his lips, briefly focusing on Harper before pressing forward. “You’re sure it’s fake blood, right?”
“Of course it’s fake blood. We looked up the recipe on the internet. There’s a guy who does horror movies for a living who gave us an ingredient list that he swore would make realistic fake blood.”
“It seems to have worked,” Harper noted.
“Definitely.” Harris’ smile widened. “Wait ... it really has worked. This is amazing.”
That wasn’t the word Jared would’ve used to describe what he was feeling, but he nodded all the same. They were at a murder-mystery event after all. Fake blood was supposed to be part of the package. “I’m guessing I wasn’t supposed to find it this soon.”
“Not during the tour,” Harris agreed. “It’s okay, though. It’s simply something to jot down for future reference. I want to be able to take into account all the pratfalls and potential landmines that we might trip over, and this is a good start.”
“Well, glad to be of service.” Jared dusted off his hands as he stood. “Should we finish the tour?”
“Absolutely.”
This time, instead of letting Harris kidnap her for the walk, Harper deliberately kept close to Jared. As if reading her mind, Jared linked their fingers while offering an indulgent smile to Harris. He seemed friendly enough, and yet his message was clear. He would be walking with Harper this go-round, and he didn’t intend to be separated from her.
As they advanced toward the cemetery exit, a hint of movement on the south side of the plot caught Harper’s attention. She slowed her pace, her eyes drifting in that direction, and she was taken aback by the quick hint of shadow that became clear beneath a crop of trees.
“What is it?” Jared asked, her distraction confusing him. “Do you see something? Do they have actors out here already?”
“I ... don’t know.” Harper couldn’t drag her eyes away from the spot. The shadow had disappeared almost as fast as it appeared, and yet she could still feel eyes on her. “I thought I saw something.”
“A ghost?” Harris asked from the front of the group. He looked positively thrilled at the prospect. “Did you see a ghost?”
Harper hesitated and then nodded. Harris probably had people following the group, hiding in the shadows, to give the appearance that ghosts were not only present but prominent. It was likely all part of the show. “I definitely saw a ghost.”
Harris beamed. “This is totally going to work, right?”
Harper was getting tired of the question, but she didn’t have the heart to crush his dream. “I think it’s going to work. Good job.”
THERE WAS A BREAK IN THE ACTION after the tour. Harris explained the event would officially kick off in a few hours and urged participants to take some downtime and relax. Harper and Jared jumped at the chance to put some distance between them and the campground and volunteered to run to the general store in town. When Zander found out that there would be a grocery run, he insisted on being included. Harper had a sneaking suspicion he was more interested in perusing the hair-care aisle than anything else, but she knew better than trying to omit him from the excursion. Because he didn’t want to be the only one left behind, Shawn also joined the crew, which meant it was a very familiar foursome that walked through the automatic doors of the smallest grocery store Harper had ever seen in real life.
“Oh, well ... .” She was taken aback. The entirety of the store could’ve fit in the meat department of the Whisper Cove Kroger. “This is ... cute.”
Jared shot her a sidelong look. “You really aren’t an outdoor girl, are you?”
Harper balked. “This is a store, not the great outdoors.”
“This is what a store looks like in a less populated area,” he noted as he grabbed a handheld shopping basket from the stack on the floor and handed her one. “This is not out of the ordinary.”
Harper nodded. “I get it.” She totally didn’t get it, though. There was no bakery ... or deli ... and where was the Starbucks so she could grab a cup of coffee? She never thought she would become a corporate coffee girl, but Zander had converted her. Now she wanted her skinny mocha … really badly.
“Well, I don’t get it,” Zander groused, glancing around. “How do people live like this? It’s ... frightening. I mean, it’s like every bad end-of-the-world movie I’ve ever seen, in here.”
“You’re definitely an inside boy,” Shawn noted, grinning as he grabbed a basket. “I guess it’s good that I’d already prepared myself for this, huh?”
“You’d prepared yourself for what?” Zander challenged.
“That I would be alone if the zombie apocalypse ever came to fruition.”
“Hey!” Zander’s eyes fired. “I would totally survive the zombie apocalypse. Not only that, but I would be Daryl ... just with better hair and clothing choices. Oh, and I
