Ryley closed the file and set it on the table. “Rosalind, what makes you think Kitty’s stalking you?”
Rosalind sat down on the couch and cupped the wine glass in her palms. There was hesitation in her eyes, as if she was afraid.
“You can tell me. I won’t judge,” Ryley said.
“Kitty died two weeks ago, and I haven’t gotten much sleep since then.” Rosalind sipped her wine. “There are noises in the night that wake me up, banging of my pots and pans. I’ve woken up to find her standing over my bed pointing a finger at me. She lunges and then disappears before she reaches me. The other day, I was in the shower, and when I got out, there was a word written in the condensation on the mirror.
“What word?”
“Bitch,” Rosalind said, lifting her gaze to Ryley’s.
“Any reason she would be mad at you?”
Rosalind took another sip of her wine. At the rate she was drinking, she’d finish the bottle before Ryley ever got all the answers.
“Maybe she thinks I didn’t help her enough. Maybe she blames me for her passing. I don’t know. All I know is her visits are escalating, and I need her to stop, or it’s my funeral you’ll be attending.”
“Was there anything you might have missed in her file? Any reason for her to believe you didn’t care?”
Rosalind shook her head. “Kitty was coming out of her depression. She’d found a new reason to live and be happy.”
“Did she tell you what that reason was?” Ryley asked.
“She said it was too soon to say. She didn’t want to jinx it.” Rosalind rose from her chair. “Listen, I can’t stay here. Last night at the hotel was the first real night of sleep that I’ve had. So, I’m going back there.”
“I understand,” Ryley said. “Do you mind if I stay for a while?”
“Of course not.” Rosalind smiled. “I’d appreciate it if you did.”
“I’d like to visit Kitty’s house so I can meet her family. Most times, unsettled spirits linger around the people they love.”
“Of course. I promised to stop by tomorrow evening. Will you be free?”
Ryley nodded. Reading of the will was scheduled for one in the afternoon. She would only be there long enough to tell the attorney she wasn’t interested and then leave. “That works for me.”
Rosalind grabbed her purse and the overnight bag and headed for the door. “Just lock up when you leave if you don’t stay the night.”
“Not a problem. I still have your key,” Ryley said, following Rosalind to the door.
Ryley watched from the front steps as Rosalind got into her car and drove off. She had time to kill while waiting for Kitty to manifest. If it was really Kitty. Ryley grabbed her laptop out of the car. She locked the front door behind her and rested her back against the wood and stared into the living room.
Kitty Lynch had a violent streak. Had Rosalind missed something in their sessions?
Ryley plopped down on the couch and pulled out her laptop. She typed in the names on the Bells’ headstones. In seconds, she had lots of article options to pick from. She clicked on the first, and her breath hitched. It was an uploaded news article from the sixties. The family had been slaughtered on Christmas eve. The case was still cold and unsolved.
Her shoulders slumped, and she shut her laptop and grabbed Kitty’s hefty file. Ryley flipped to the first meeting Rosalind had with her patient. It was about her marriage and how things were falling apart. Three reports later, the husband joined them to talk through issues. He’d only showed up for another two more sessions before he disappeared out of the notes.
“Where did you go, Christopher Lynch?” Ryley whispered, kicking off her shoes. She laid down on the couch and continued to read through every gritty personal detail to get a feel for the stalker.
There was a gradual decline in Kitty’s behavior until Rosalind had remarked that Kitty seemed different. That report was dated six months before her death.
Ryley tried to force her eyes to remain open. When all the words blurred, she rested the file on her chest and closed her eyes. She just needed a few minutes to relax her strained eyes.
Something startled her awake. God, it was cold in the room. She lay frozen on the couch, straining to hear what had woken her up. The file that had been resting on her chest was gone. The perfectly contained reports were now scattered in disarray around the floor.
“Well, aren’t you a powerful one.” Ryley sat up, trying to make sense out of what she was seeing. Ghosts needed a ton of energy to manipulate objects, and this had the strength of an emotional poltergeist.
Ryley slid off the couch onto her knees and scooped up the papers, trying to get them in some type of order. “You’re obviously pissed. Why don’t you show yourself so we can talk about it. I don’t bite.”
Ryley was met with silence until she heard the squeak coming from behind her. She turned just in time to see the kitchen shutters over the bar move back into place.
“There you are.” Ryley left the file and headed for the kitchen. She rounded the corner and froze.
A butcher knife protruded from the wall, with the blade holding up Kitty’s picture.
A chill blew through Ryley, freezing her to the bone and whipping her hair into her face. Another bang sounded from somewhere else in the house.
Fear slithered down Ryley’s spine. Her supplies were in her car, and something was telling her this ghost wasn’t leaving without a fight.
Chapter 16
Ryley went to her car and grabbed her supplies.
The flame from the lighter flickered as she lit the bundle of sage. Smoke drifted in the air.
“Playtime is over,” she called out and proceeded to sage every nook and cranny inside the entire house.
The sage left a thick, smoky haze, the likes of which
