“So tell me what’s going on with the new section,” Dylan said.
“That’s just it. I have no idea what’s going on. Guests complain about hearing things.”
“What kind of things?”
“Footsteps when no one is there. Chains rattling. People whispering in the hallway.”
“Chains rattling? Seriously?”
Jenny glanced away. “That’s what they say.”
“Come on, sis. You should be used to this stuff by now. Jerome is a ghost town, one of the most famous in Arizona, maybe the whole country. During its heyday, hundreds of people died working the copper mines. People come here specifically hoping to see a ghost. Hell, you can buy a ticket online for a ghost tour.”
“I know, but this is different.”
“Different how? The hotel is on the damned tour. There are stories of at least four dead people supposedly seen walking the halls upstairs.”
“Those are friendly ghosts.”
“Friendly ghosts?”
“I mean, if they’re actually real.”
He cocked a dark eyebrow, which Jenny could barely see beneath the bill of his ball cap.
“Uncle Charlie always kept those rooms blocked off,” Jenny said. “Back when he remodeled the hotel, he left that section untouched. When we opened it, the rooms still had the original furniture. I had some of it refinished and put back when we were done.”
“Yes, and the rooms look damned good up there.”
“Yes, they do. They’re as pretty as they were back when the hotel was first built, but . . .”
“But what?”
“Charlie never talked about it, but he told me once that odd things happened in the rooms in that section. Dangerous things. That’s what he said.”
The skeptical look on her brother’s face reminded her that he didn’t believe in ghosts, except the ones the kids dressed up as on Halloween.
“I always figured Charlie just didn’t want to expand the place,” Dylan said. “Be more work he didn’t need. Until the manager quit and you took over, he seemed to be enjoying his retirement.”
Jenny bit her lip. “Maybe you’re right. It’s probably just a result of the new construction. That part of the building is settling or something.”
“That would be my guess. And don’t forget how susceptible people are to suggestion. They come to Jerome looking for spirits. They find what they expect to find.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”
Dylan grinned. “You didn’t bring it up. Mrs. Friedman did.”
Jenny smiled. As the bell above the door rang again, her gaze shifted away from her brother to her best friend, Summer Hayes. Her family owned the Butterfly Boutique, where Summer worked. She was taller than Jenny, pretty, with a willowy figure, long straight platinum-blond hair, and a shy disposition.
“Hi, Jenny.” Her face lit up. “Dylan, nice to see you.” The blush in Summer’s cheeks betrayed the crush she had on Jenny’s brother. So far, he hadn’t seemed to notice.
“I thought you might have time for lunch,” Summer said to Jenny.
“I’m starving, but I’m swamped.” Jenny checked the ship’s clock on the wall behind the old-fashioned, slotted key holder on the wall. “I’ve got some paperwork I have to finish. Give me thirty minutes, and we can get something here.”
Summer nodded. “Okay, that sounds good. I’ll be back then.” She flashed a timid smile at Dylan. “Take care, Dylan.”
“Will do. You, too.”
