GHOST 👻 (A Paranormal Romance)

Recovery

Two days later, I'm restlessly sitting in bed, gazing at the beautiful bouquet of flowers that Dylan's sent me. They're on the night stand with a note saying how much he misses me.  He'll be coming by, later. I can't wait to feel his warm, comforting, presence near me again.

Meanwhile, Julia's on an adrenaline rush as she relives the past twenty four hours. When she first arrived, I thought she'd brought me an expensive box of truffles, but now she's devouring them all by herself. Like a voracious pixie sitting on a toadstool. She's already consumed half the box. Between bites, she relays what really happened to Harlan at the cemetery. "So it turns out, when I fired the gun, I missed him by a mile. That dirty bastard died of a heart attack in that hole!"

"He died of a heart attack?" I start shaking my head in disbelief, then stop as a massive headache overwhelms me. Shuddering, I remember Harlan's terrified screams while Donna's ghost attacked him.

Julia nods in confirmation, "Almost like something scared him to death." Done with the dark chocolate truffles, she digs into the coconut ones. She's obviously disappointed she didn't nail Harlan herself, but I'm relieved she hasn't really shot anyone. She's too old to go to prison. I want to jump out of bed and hug her, but my aching head restrains me. Reaching up, I feel the bandaged spot where I was struck the night I was abducted. My head throbs painfully, while my shoulders ache. Wincing, I take another aspirin with a sip of water. I'm tired, but I still have more questions for her.

"Do the police know who ran Donna down?" I ask.

Julia looks up from the box of candy, her face registering a look of disgust. "Mmm, hmm. It was a petty hood named Carmen D'Angelo. Harlan recruited him for the job. The idiot was so high on meth, he mistook Donna for you."

I look at her in surprise. "How could anyone mistake me for Donna? We have different color hair."

Julia pauses to daintily wipe chocolate off her mouth with a napkin, "Donna was wearing a hoodie, covering her hair. Also, you're both the same height. Lizzy, you and she look very similar from a distance."

I'm shocked that she thinks Donna and I could be mistaken for each other. My surprise is overridden by the anger I feel on behalf of her. No matter how mean she was to me, she didn't deserve to be run down in cold blood! Oblivious to my distracted thoughts, Julia continues her story. "Officer Cruise heard the call go out over the radio. She allowed Dylan to ride with her to the cemetery."

Hold on, what was Dylan doing with THAT female slut of a police officer? A seed of doubt pierces my heart. I try to push it aside, but it refuses to budge, like a painful splinter. Shaking my head, I try to clear my jealousy, but I know I'll have to ask Dylan about it before it infects my whole being. I focus back on Julia. Taking a deep breath, I question her about the relationship I suspect she had with Jerry. "I want to ask you something kind of personal Julia. Were you involved romantically with Jerry at some point?"

She's startled by the question, dropping a half eaten truffle. Then realizing she's busted, sighs heavily. "You have to understand something Lizzy, I've loved him for a long time."

"What?" Oh my God! This is incredible! She's still sleeping with him. I didn't expect her to admit anything sexual was happening in her life. Julia's been a very cagey role model. I didn't think she even had a sex life! Finally, I ask her the question that's been burning in the back of my mind all night. "Julia, do you have the Sight like mom did?"

She stays quiet a minute then looks at me becoming deadly serious. "That's how I knew you were in trouble last night, Lizzy. I had a premonition."

Thank you for reading!👻