“We kinda... sorta...” My eyes dart around the room, avoiding him.
“Alyssa,” he drawls, knowing damn well that I’m hedging.
“We recruited Billy and Jackson into haunting you.”
His head jerks back, eyes bugging out of their sockets. “You what?”
“We needed to make you believe in their existence. So they agreed to find ways to make you second-guess your stance.”
He takes a menacing step toward me, and I back up in response. We’re doing a dance. One step forward. Two steps back.
“As in tripping me and moving my chair?” he grits through his teeth.
I shrug, gnashing my own teeth together. “No clue. They didn’t exactly give me details.”
Nick grunts, running his hand back through his hair. “A man is in a coma, and we have no leads on who shot him. I’m exhausted and I just need a straight answer. What were you doing at the bar?”
My hands lift. “First, you do have a lead.”
His head tilts. “Is this coming from ghosts?”
I shake my head. “An eyewitness. Nina saw a blond woman wearing a yellow shirt fire the gun.”
Nick’s breath hitches. “Is she positive?”
“Yes. One hundred percent.”
“Shit.” He starts to pace. “Shirley said she’s dating Marcus.”
“You know who it is?”
He turns to me. “Yes.”
He pulls his phone out of his pocket and makes a call.
“Malone. Get an APB on Amanda Hersch. She’s wanted in the attempted murder of Charlie Dunbar.”
My stomach tumbles at the news that Charlie is fighting for his life. I suspected that he was dead, but I’m relieved that’s not the case. He deserves to be brought to justice in another way.
“Now tell me why you were at Clementine’s,” Nick says, crossing his arms over his chest.
“In order for them to connect with you, I have to be close by. We followed you because it didn’t seem like the ghosts were making headway and I needed them to continue the quest.”
He groans, head falling back. Nick’s focus remains on the ceiling for several minutes while I sit here twiddling my thumbs and questioning whether I’ve just ruined any and all chance of experiencing that kiss again.
I break the silence. “Why would someone want to kill him? Did someone from Billy’s or Jackson’s family figure out he was behind their deaths?”
“No. It was the bartender, Amanda. She watched me drag Charlie out. Word around town is that she’s dating Marcus Wells, who I suspect had a hand in helping Richard cover up the accident, and more.”
“You believe that he killed Billy?”
Nick sighs. “He admitted to being the cause of Billy’s death, but he denied having anything to do with the others.”
“That doesn’t make sense. He has to be connected. Otherwise, I’m back to square one on how to get rid of these ghosts.”
Nick glosses right over my panic, but what he says next revives my hope. “I got the sense he might’ve had an idea who did.” He tilts his head, fingers steepled at his lips. “What I’m about to ask, I wanna make perfectly clear is only because I have had a day from hell, and I am at my wit’s end.”
“Okay. What do you need?”
