Unfashionably Dead

Chapter Twenty-five

Margaret is standing in front of her closet mirror, tugging at the neckline of the emerald dress.

I chuckle behind her and she jumps. As she whips around, I step backward, saying, "It's no use. You're stuck in that dress forever."

She glances at me then shifts her attention to the floor.

I look downward and shudder as I remove my heel from her corpse's eye. Thankfully there's no eye goo to be found on the shoe. That's one positive aspect of being a ghost.

"Forever? I doubt that." She gives the dress a yank and yelps when her skin bunches with the fabric.

"Do you honestly think I'd wear eighties' clothes if given a choice in the matter?"

She laughs. "Well, you've never been one with much style."

Omigosh.

"I don't have style?"

I'm not sure Margaret feels the slap to her face, but as the punch lands on her abdomen, she groans and raises an arm to protect her face.

"I'll bet you think the dress is Lanie's, don't you?"

She turns back to the mirror, but I catch the eye roll in her reflection.

"Well, Lanie borrowed that dress...from me. But let's talk about something even more unfashionable. You see, the vultures are going to come. They'll make off with your jewelry, shoes, whatever they can take from you, even pick it right from your dead body. So, I may be unfashionably dead, but at least I'm not an unfashionably dead vulture."

She winces. "I needed the money."

I shake my head. "Your dad is one of the richest men in America. If money were a real concern, you easily could have gone to him or gotten a job like a regular person. Instead, you stole from Lanie and me and you blackmailed Adam."

I look down at Margaret's corpse and shudder at its open eyes. Squeamish, I make my way toward the door. "Do you know who did this to you?"

She stares at me incredulously and scoffs. "I think that's obvious. Lanie had the scarf in her hand."

"No, I don't think so. First, I don't think she's strong enough, and surely you would have fought her. But let's pretend for a second that she could have done this. We both know that Lanie hasn't had access to the scarf for a couple days. She wouldn't have come with the intention of using it to kill you.

"Before I found you in Lanie's apartment tonight, your door was a little ajar. You were a ghost at that point. When I came to your apartment, the door was wide open, probably from when Lanie entered. I think she arrived while I was in her apartment with you.

"But her screaming drew me to your bedroom. It seems preposterous that if she were truly sneaking away from a crime she'd committed, she would scream while doing so. And it seems beyond stupid that she would open the door wider, instead of walking out while she had the opportunity. Lanie isn't stupid."

Margaret seems to consider my thoughts. "Maybe she returned for the scarf."

"If she had killed you with the scarf, I think she would've left with the scarf. The scarf was an afterthought."

"She was pretty pissed when she saw Adam with me earlier in the day. I think she came here still upset, saw the scarf, and in a fit of rage, used it to kill me."

She floats past me and through the kitchen island, stopping in front of the refrigerator, where she seems to search for something. "It's not here."