The Ghost Who Wasn't (Haunting Danielle Book 3) Read online

  The Ghost Who Wasn’t

  Bobbi Holmes

  Robeth Publishing, LLC

  Contents

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  The Ghost Who Wanted Revenge

  Haunting Danielle Series

  Bobbi Holmes

  Unlocked Hearts Series

  The Coulson Series

  Also by Bobbi Ann Johnson Holmes

  The Ghost Who Wasn’t

  (Haunting Danielle, Book 3)

  A Novel

  By Bobbi Holmes

  Cover Design: Elizabeth Mackey

  Editor: Vivian Delchamps

  Copyright © 2014 Bobbi Holmes

  Robeth Publishing, LLC

  All Rights Reserved.

  This novel is a work of fiction.

  Any resemblance to places or actual persons,

  living or dead is entirely coincidental.

  www.robeth.com

  For my mother-in-law, Doris.

  You are missed.

  Chapter One

  Isabella sat sideways in the Tahoe’s backseat, propping her bare feet up on the middle console. She had never traveled in the back seat before this trip, which wasn’t surprising since it was her car. She had to admit it was roomier than what she expected, yet she would still prefer to be the one behind the wheel. But that was not going to happen—Hunter insisted on doing all the driving.

  Judging by the road signs she’d noticed before pulling into the rest stop, they weren’t far from Palm Springs, California. Isabella had never been to Palm Springs before, and she certainly never imagined she would get there this way.

  Stretching out, she leaned against the inside of the right rear car door and looked out the side window, where Hunter stood in the parking lot with Claire, arguing with Justina. They’d left the windows down so she could easily hear what they were saying. Hunter claimed it was the alternator but Justina insisted they just needed a new battery.

  As she listened to them argue, she wondered what Hunter saw in Claire. The woman desperately needed a day at the salon to bring some style to her long stringy hair. Only a good cut would eliminate the split ends, which were probably the result of too much peroxide. The white-blond shade was not a good look for Claire’s olive complexion. By the amount of dark roots showing, it was obvious she hadn’t been to the hairdresser in a long time. Considering her hair’s condition, Claire probably got the color from a box purchased at the drug store and not from a salon.

  And then there is the matter of Claire’s face. Isabella immediately felt guilty for such an unkind thought. Unkind but true. Claire’s hazel eyes were too small for her face and her nose too large. Hunter didn’t seem to mind, yet Isabella thought that had to do more with Claire’s figure. She was a petite thing, maybe five foot three inches, with a tight little body. While she wasn’t voluptuous, she was well toned with ample curves. Hunter seemed to like it, considering how he couldn’t keep his hands off her.

  Justina was far better looking than Claire. She reminded Isabella of a poor man’s Angelina Jolie—one dressed in faded baggie denim overalls and a tie-dyed tank top. Isabella had an idea Justina might prefer girls. She wasn’t sure, and she certainly wasn’t going to ask.

  Isabella had been trying to figure out their ages. At first, she guessed they were in their mid-forties—at least twenty years older than she was. But after a few days traveling with the threesome, she began wondering if they were younger, maybe in their thirties. Considering their lifestyle, she wouldn’t be surprised it they weren’t as old as she initially suspected. Drugs, booze, and cigarettes tended to age a person, and they embraced all three vices.

  “Maybe we should just get another car,” Claire suggested.

  “You might be right, but exactly where do you expect to get a car out here?” Hunter asked.

  Isabella glanced around. Theirs was the only vehicle in the rest stop, aside from the motor home, which looked like it was getting ready to pull out. Hunter walked to the front of the Tahoe and slammed its hood shut.

  Glancing to the exit again, she watched as the motor home pulled out and backed onto the highway, without asking if they needed any help. She looked to Hunter, who now paced in front of the car.

  Isabella marveled at how a person’s appearance could change so drastically after you got to know him better. When she first spied Hunter at the beach, she found him handsome. He wore his hair longer than she preferred, pulled back into a haphazard man-bun. Some of her friends found the look quite sexy, something she never understood until Hunter entered her world.

  Days ago, the man-bun had again fallen out of favor with Isabella, and instead of finding Hunter attractive, now he repulsed her. Part of it might be attributed to the fact he hadn’t bathed since she had first seen him—nor shaved. The armpit stains of his ragged gray T-shirt grew daily. His stench didn’t detour Claire, whose grooming habits weren’t much better than his. They deserve each other, Isabella thought.

  “Maybe a car will come to us,” Claire suggested.

  “Perhaps Hunter will use his magic.” Justina snickered.

  “Oh shut up,” Claire snapped.

  “It’s okay, babe.” Hunter wrapped his arm around Claire and gave her shoulder a reassuring pat. “Justina gets a little cynical sometimes. I think she’s just hungry.”

  “I am that,” Justina agreed. “Do we have any more of those sandwiches?”

  “I ate the last one,” Hunter said.

  “Why doesn’t that surprise me?” Justina grumbled.

  “Don’t you have any more of those candy bars?” Claire asked. “I’m kind of hungry too.”

  “You mean the ones she stole at the last place we stopped for gas?” Isabella asked.

  Justina shrugged. She walked to the rear car door, behind the driver’s side of the Tahoe. Opening the door, she snatched her purse off the empty seat next to Isabella. Digging into the handbag, she grabbed a candy bar and then tossed the purse onto the floor before walking to the front of the vehicle, leaving the car door wide open.

  Isabella scooted across the seat to the open door and jumped down from the car. Walking toward the front of the Tahoe, she found Hunter sitting on its front hood.

  “You’re going to scratch the paint!” Isabella snapped.

  Hunter seemed oblivious to Isabella’s outrage and focused his attention on Justina, who had just unwrapped her candy bar and was preparing to take a bite.

  “Did you bring me one?” Hunter asked.

  Justina glanced up and glared at Hunter. “Did you offer me part of the last sandwich before you ate
it?”

  “And since when do I need to ask you anything? Either share the candy bar, or give it all to me.”

  Reluctantly, Justina snapped the candy bar in two and tossed a half to Hunter. Instead of eating the candy, he handed his share to Claire.

  “Thanks, baby,” Claire cooed.

  “Please get off my car! You’re going to scratch the paint,” Isabella repeated. When Hunter continued to ignore her, she angrily stomped her foot.

  Hunter closed his eyes while Justina and Claire silently devoured the candy. After a few seconds, he opened his eyes and asked, “Now did you hear that? Seems Isabella does not like me sitting on her precious car.”

  “I don’t think there’s much Isabella can do about it now,” Justina said as she popped the last bite of candy into her mouth.

  “I don’t want to upset her,” Hunter sniggered. He slid off the hood and walked to Claire, who now sat on the curb by the front of the car. He sat down next to her.

  “I want to sleep in a real bed tonight.” Claire leaned her head on Hunter’s shoulder. “And I want to take a shower.”

  “It’s about time,” Isabella mumbled under her breath.

  Hunter wrapped his arm around Claire and pulled her close. “If we play our cards right, we’ll be able to do that. I promise.”

  “I wish you would have listened to me yesterday when I said we needed to dump this car.”

  “Don’t start nagging me.” Hunter pulled Claire closer.

  “But it was a Mustang and that stupid woman left it unlocked with the key hanging in the ignition,” Claire whined.

  “Yeah, and the minute we take off she’d call the cops and we’d get pulled over. No thanks. We’re going to do it smart, like this one.”

  “Exactly what is that supposed to mean?” Isabella demanded. “We don’t need another car. I certainly don’t intend to abandon my Tahoe! I bet it’ll start if you just try. Put some water in the battery; that’s all it needs.”

  Hunter started to say something but looked up instead. Claire and Justina must have heard whatever he had because they looked in the same direction. Isabella turned around to see what caught their attention.

  A red Mustang had just driven into the rest stop. Silently, the four watched as it pulled into a parking space some twenty feet from the Tahoe.

  “It’s a Mustang,” Hunter said in a low voice. “I believe it’s a sign.”

  “Looks like she’s alone,” Justina noted.

  “How is this Mustang any different from the one Claire wanted to take?” Isabella asked. “I don’t think the woman will just let you drive off in her car. She’ll have the cops on us before we hit the highway.”

  Isabella watched as the driver, a young woman in her late twenties or early thirties, got out of the Mustang. The woman, a purse in one hand and keys in the other, slammed the car door shut. Isabella watched as she used the keychain to remotely lock the vehicle before heading toward the restrooms.

  “She didn’t leave the keys in her car,” Claire grumbled.

  Isabella watched as the driver of the Mustang walked into the woman’s bathroom.

  “I didn’t expect she would.” Hunter stood up and offered a hand to Claire.

  “So what do we do?” Claire looked up to Hunter and took his hand. He gave her a little tug, and she stood up. Standing beside him, she dusted off the back of her faded jeans.

  “We’re going to take the keys away from her,” Hunter said.

  “And her cellphone,” Claire said. “I bet she has a cellphone in that purse.”

  “With or without a cellphone, we can’t just leave her here,” Justina insisted. “As far as we know the next car that pulls into this rest stop could be the highway patrol.”

  “We can’t take her with us!” Claire said.

  Hunter began to laugh. “I don’t think that’s what she’s suggesting.” He looked over to Justina and asked, “Something a little more permanent?”

  “Yep,” Justina said with a nod, her eyes focused on the restroom building. “Lots of empty desert around here. Shouldn’t be too hard to get rid of her. But we’ll have to move quick.”

  Isabella felt a sickening twisting in the pit of her belly. “No, please don’t do this!” Isabella begged.

  “Justina’s right, if we’re going to do this we better hurry, before another car pulls in here,” Claire agreed.

  “While I take care of her, you guys start wiping down the inside of the Tahoe,” Hunter instructed.

  “Why do we have to do that?” Isabella asked.

  “It may not take long for them to find the car, and we don’t want to be tied to it,” Hunter said.

  “They’d expect to find my prints. After all, it is my car!” Isabella snapped.

  “And grab the license plate. We’ll need to put it on the Mustang,” Hunter said.

  “Should we put the Tahoe’s real license plate back on? It’s still in the back,” Claire asked.

  “I don’t care what you do with it. Just make sure it doesn’t have our fingerprints on it,” Hunter said.

  Justina glanced up to the restroom building. “You sure you can handle this by yourself, Hunter? I think you’ll need another hand. I’ll go with you.”

  “You’re probably right,” Hunter agreed.

  “Oh come on guys, you aren’t really going to do this, are you?” When they didn’t answer her question, Isabella took off running, racing toward the women’s bathroom in her bare feet. Barging into the building, she found the woman inside one of the stalls. Frantic, Isabella began pounding on the stall door.

  “If you have a cellphone with you, call 911 now! You are in danger!” Isabella shouted.

  Chapter Two

  Labor Day weekend officially signified the end of the summer season. It was a short first season for Marlow House Bed and Breakfast. Lily had already returned to California before Danielle accepted her first guests in early August. Yet, Danielle had other business she needed to attend to, such as planning her cousin, Cheryl’s funeral and settling the estate.

  Danielle sat next to Ian at Pier Cafe’s lunch counter. It was the first Wednesday in September, and Carla the waitress had just taken their breakfast orders and filled their cups with coffee.

  Danielle picked up her mug, took a sip and then said, “I guess there is life for a B & B after Labor Day.”

  “What do you mean?” Ian asked.

  “I got a reservation this morning.” Danielle smiled. “They arrive on Friday.”

  “Congratulations. Anyone I might know? Lily perhaps?”

  Danielle laughed. “Sorry, not Lily. Some couple from Portland. They’re staying for a week. Of course, they might turn out to be a no show.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “The man who made the reservation said he doesn’t have a credit card—claims not to believe in them. Promised to pay in cash when he gets here.”

  “Everyone has plastic, a debit card at least.”

  Danielle shrugged. “I guess not. No big deal really. It’s not like I’m in the middle of tourist season and turning people away.”

  “Sounds kind of sketchy to me. May not be safe.”

  “I’ll be fine.” After all, I have Walt. He’s better than an armed guard. Well, most of the time.

  “Okay, but remember I’m just across the street if you need me.”

  “Thanks, Ian.”

  “Have you heard from Lily?”

  “Not since last week. She was getting ready for her Labor Day trip.”

  “Can’t believe she drove that far for the weekend. Might as well have driven up here,” Ian grumbled.

  “She goes every Labor Day. Girl’s weekend.”

  “So why didn’t you go?”

  “They’re people she’s known since she was a kid. Not really my friends. Have you talked to her?”

  “I spoke to her right before she left. Didn’t want to bother her over the weekend when she was with her friends. I was hoping she’d give me a call when she g
ot home. But I haven’t heard from her.”

  “From what I understood, she wasn’t planning to get home until sometime Monday evening. Maybe she got home later than she expected and didn’t want to call you so late. Labor Day traffic and all.”

  “I tried calling her last night but no answer.”

  “Knowing Lily, she probably forgot to charge her phone. So what’s with you two?”

  “That sounds like a Lily question, not something you’d ask.” Ian smiled.

  “I guess after living with her for the summer, she rubbed off on me,” Danielle joked.

  “I’m going down there when I wrap up the Emma Jackson story. I hope to be finished before the end of the month.”

  “Does this mean I’m losing a neighbor?”

  “I think so. I have to admit, if it wasn’t for Lily, I’d be tempted to stay. I like working here, although I imagine it’ll be getting pretty cold come winter.”

  “Ah…” Danielle grinned. “So it is serious.”

  “Yeah, I think so.” Ian downed the rest of his coffee and motioned for Carla to bring the pot to the table.

  “I’m going to miss you. But I’ll miss Sadie most.”

  “Sadie will miss you too.”

  No, Sadie will miss Walt, Danielle silently corrected.

  “Did you hear they found Isabella Strickland?” Carla asked as she refilled their coffee cups.

  “Who’s that?” Danielle asked.

  In response, Carla grabbed a copy of the morning paper from behind the lunch counter and tossed it between Ian and Danielle. Ian picked up the paper and glanced over the front page article.

  “She’s a local girl,” Ian explained as he skimmed the paper. “She went missing when you were in California for Cheryl’s funeral.”

  “Missing?” Danielle asked. “I would have thought I’d of heard about something like that. This is a small town.”

  “Well, no one thought she was missing missing,” Carla explained as she set the coffee pot on the counter. “According to her uncle, she took off on a trip, but when he tried to call her cellphone, she wouldn’t answer his call. He was pretty annoyed. Said she was ignoring him. I swear, he complained to about everyone in town who would listen.”