Page 29 of Ghost Town Boogie

“Sirens woke me,” Colt said, taking the stairs down to the walkway on bare feet. “What are you doing here?” A sudden and horrifying thought stopped him in his tracks. The depot. His business, his home for a long time… home to a number of ghosts who came and went and waited until it was time for them to move on. He’d been so sure the sirens were too close for that, but he could’ve been wrong.

Mac was annoyed; there was a trace of condemnation in his tired eyes. “The Miller house is on fire, and a distraught Mrs. Miller can’t seem to find her daughter. I thought of you.”

CHAPTER 10

The house Anna had lived in most of her life appeared to be a complete loss. The structure stood, it hadn’t burned to the ground, but much of the house was black and ashy in the creeping light of day. One side, perhaps where the fire had started, was blacker than the rest. Instead of a sunny yellow well-cared-for home, what stood before her looked like a dilapidated haunted house.

As she watched firefighters go after the remaining hotspots, she realized she’d never again sleep here. All the things she’d complained about boxing up and saving were gone. Her mother’s treasures, her own clothes, her work laptop, everything but the sundress she wore, one pair of flip flops, and the few personal things she had in her purse — which was still at Colt’s house — was gone. If the fire hadn’t eaten it up, the water used to fight the fire had surely ruined it. Did she even want to go inside to see if anything could be saved? Not really, not right now. How depressing that would be.

Her mom’s car, twenty years old and parked in the driveway, looked to be ok, but she couldn’t be certain. Her own vehicle had been parked in front of a neighbor’s house, since the last time she’d driven it another car had been parked in what she considered her spot at the curb. The Honda was unscathed. She could leave town as soon as her mom was taken care of.

There was no reason for Nina not to head to Florida as soon as possible, and once she was on her way no reason for Anna to stay in Seawolf Beach. The house looked to be too far gone for any kind of repair, and she’d already decided she didn’t want to see what remained inside. What would come next? A bulldozer, maybe. Should they rebuild and then sell? Maybe they could clean the site and sell the lot. Insurance adjustors would lead the way, at least in the beginning.

There would soon be details to handle; arrangements for her mother and insurance came to mind. What else? Her brain was barely working, at the moment. Maybe she was still in shock. Once everything was taken care of she’d be able to return to Nashville in a matter of days. Many of those details, the ones that would take weeks or months, could be handled by phone and email. Her time here, her obligations, were almost done.

At least she’d had her night with Colt. She’d expected that maybe, just maybe, they’d have more. All they’d had was a bit of fun with no promises for tomorrow. She was an idiot for ever thinking there might be more. A long overdue orgasm would do that to a woman.

Nina Miller had been furious with her only daughter for not being in her room when she went to rescue her child. Anna didn’t have kids, probably never would, but she understood the fury, the tears of relief, the way her mother continued to hold onto Anna’s arm too tightly as they watched the firefighters do their jobs.

She didn’t tell her mom to loosen her grip, even though at times fingernails bit into her skin. She got it; she understood the shock and sadness, the panic, the unbearable sense of loss.

Together Colt and the chief had taken charge. They didn’t fight the fire, of course. There were two firetrucks, a number of firemen — paid and volunteers — who handled that arduous job. The local volunteers worked well with the fire department from down the road. It wasn’t the first time they’d joined forces. She recognized a couple of the volunteers from Seawolf Beach, when they stepped away and removed their helmets.

Maxwell contacted the insurance company, which was nice of him since it wasn’t his job. He recognized that Nina Miller was no use to anyone at the moment, and the insurance agent was a friend of the chief. He handed his cell to Nina for a moment, but she wasn’t capable of dealing with much at the moment. Tomorrow, maybe. Colt offered the Pine Street house for as long as they needed it. He said he’d move back to the depot so they could have the place to themselves.

She didn’t want him to move. She wanted him to stay with her. There were two bedrooms. Why couldn’t they put her mother in the spare room and share the bed they’d slept in last night? Her mom wouldn’t like it, and it wasn’t like she and Colt were an actual official couple, but still…

She wasn’t ready to give him up.

Chief Maxwell stayed at the scene with the firefighters while Colt walked Anna and her mother toward their temporary home.

Nina glanced back at her smoldering home often, sniffling and sighing. Each time she squeezed Anna’s arm more tightly, and the shaking of her body increased. She was in shock. When they turned the corner and Nina could no longer see what was left of her home, she focused straight ahead. “It’s lucky I woke when I did. I could’ve sworn the house was moving, though once I was fully awake I knew it wasn’t. My bed seemed to shake, that’s for sure. I must’ve dreamed it, or else it was one of those little earthquake thingies that got out of hand.”

Earthquake thingies… really… “Maybe you dreamed it,” Anna said.

“I suppose that’s possible.”

Colt walked directly behind them, muttering to himself as he had since they’d arrived at the fire.

Anna looked over her shoulder. When she did Colt stopped on the sidewalk, allowing the two women to get several steps ahead before he continued his whisper.

“I told you he was squirrelly,” Nina said in a lowered voice. With her attention distracted, she loosened her grip a bit.

“He’s not…” Anna began, but her protest died on her lips.

Last night had been everything she’d dreamed of, and more. She wasn’t a kid anymore and neither was Colt. She’d liked it, she’d loved it. She wanted more.

It didn’t matter if Colt was off his rocker or not. It didn’t matter if he was squirrelly. In a matter of days she’d be back in Nashville or in Florida getting her mother settled, and Coltrane Hart would become nothing more than a memory. Again.

Damn, she was going to miss him.

“They already think I’m crazy,” Colt said, watching the women he escorted continue on. “We can talk later.”

Jack’s spirit, agitated and glowing and for Colt’s eyes alone, shimmered. “It wasn’t an accident. You have to tell someone! A man walked around the outside of the house and splashed gasoline or kerosene or something everywhere, then he lit matches, one after another, and tossed them at the base of the house. He stood back and watched until he was satisfied with the fire he’d started.”

“I don’t suppose you have a name for this man.”

Jack shimmered again. “No. He seemed familiar but I can’t… I can’t remember. He was wearing a hoodie, so I couldn’t see his face.”