The Halloween Haunting
The Halloween Haunting
A Tess and Tilly Mystery
by
Kathi Daley
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2019 by Katherine Daley
Version 1.0
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
Tess and Tilly Cozy Mystery
The Christmas Letter
The Valentine Mystery
The Mother’s Day Mishap
The Halloween House
The Thanksgiving Trip
The Saint Paddy’s Promise
The Halloween Haunting
Table of Contents
Tess and Tilly Cozy Mystery
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Next from Kathi Daley Books
Chapter 1
Sunday, September 15
“Oh, I don’t know, Tess,” Doctor Brady Baker said as we stood side by side, looking at the dilapidated old house that hadn’t been lived in since before I was born. “I know I said that I liked your idea to sponsor a haunted house as a fundraiser for the animal shelter, but I wasn’t necessarily thinking of using a real haunted house.”
I glanced at the town’s veterinarian, animal shelter owner, and all-around nice guy, who was frowning so hard he’d created a crater in the center of his forehead. “The house isn’t really haunted,” I assured him in a tone I hoped conveyed confidence. “At least I don’t think it is.” I amended, realizing that, in the end, it was probably best to be perfectly honest. “There was that one event a while back, but I’m sure the whole thing can be explained by using a rational and scientific explanation.”
“What event?” Brandy asked, with a look of suspicion in his eye.
I remained silent, hoping he’d just drop it.
“You said there was that one event. What event?” he asked again.
I took Brady by the arm and walked him toward the rusty front gate which served as access the property. “It was no big deal. Really. You know how rumors get started.” I rolled my eyes and huffed out a short breath that was meant to be a laugh of indifference, but sort of came out as a laugh of panic. “Everything is going to be fine, and this event is going to be spectacular, you have a Tess Thomas seal of assurance on that.”
“What event, Tess?” Brady asked, digging his heels in at the gate.
I hemmed and hawed, but eventually answered. “Well, there was this one tiny incident a few years ago.”
“Incident?”
I crossed my fingers behind my back to nullify the tiny white lie I was about to tell. “It really wasn’t a big deal. Sure, it made the news, and there was a short investigation, but if you ask me, the whole thing was blown way out of proportion.”
“What whole thing?”
“This guy from out of state bought the house and planned to open a bed and breakfast, but apparently, there was some sort of problem with the electrical. The lights kept flickering on and off, and the kitchen appliances went all wonky. The guy tried to fix the problem himself rather than calling in an electrician, but I guess he didn’t know what he was doing because something happened and he was electrocuted. The estate was sold after the man who was electrocuted died, and the guy who currently owns the estate has assured me that the electrical has been dealt with, but not to worry, I plan to call in an actual electrician to fix any remaining electrical problems.” I paused, smiled, and then continued. “It’s a good deal, Brady. The new owner has plans to sell the place this summer after he has time to give the house a facelift, but I told him about the expansion we planned for the shelter, and he agreed to let us use the place for our fundraiser free of costs.”
“Free of costs?”
I took Brady’s hand and pulled him through the gate. “There are a few minor repairs that will need to be seen to, and I told him I would take care of those repairs, but I can get volunteers to help out with that. I have folks who will donate supplies and others who will donate labor if it means the shelter can be expanded to include a state of the art dog training facility and long term residential care for senior animals and difficult to place pets. White Eagle, Montana, is a town that cares about its citizens, even its four-legged citizens. I have no doubt if we sponsor this haunted house, folks will come. A lot of them. It really is a good plan.”
Brady looked somewhat dazed as he stared at the house. It had been abandoned decades ago and needed more than just a few repairs to make it livable, but we didn’t want to live in it. We only wanted to borrow it. I’d had a contractor look at it and had been assured that the house had good bones and was structurally sound. Yes, there were items we would need to address before we could use it to host a public event, but I hadn’t been exaggerating or lying when I said I had volunteers to see to that. Of all the old houses in the area, this house, with its creepy and unusual exterior and large plot of land, was the perfect place to create our haunted house.
“So what do you think?” I asked.
“It does look as if it could really be haunted.”
“It does if you believe in ghosts.” I looked at Brady. “Do you believe in ghosts?”
“Not really.”
“Me neither,” I said even though I knew that there had been ghost sightings in the past and there were those odd noises that I’d heard when my boyfriend, Tony Marconi, and I drove out a few nights ago to get a feel for how the place would look under the moonlight. Still, even if the place was haunted, I figured we could deal with that. The reality was the crumbling exterior, interesting clock tower, dark and brooding widow’s walk, and shuttered windows were absolutely perfect for what I had planned. “The large flat area to the left is going to be the graveyard,” I explained, as I steadfastly pulled Brady along behind me.
“Graveyard?”
Geez, the guy really was stunned. Hadn’t he ever seen a house that may or may not be haunted before?
I nodded and grinned, barely able to contain my enthusiasm. “It’s an additional fundraiser. Tony is going to make a bunch of wooden headstones that people can buy and inscribe with a short epitaph. We’ll place them in the cemetery, and everyone who comes out for the haunted house tour will be able to read them while they wait in line.”
“Line?”
“Yes, line. If we use this house for our haunted house, I guarantee you that folks will come all the way from Billings to see it.”
Brady frowned. “Billings? Doesn’t Billings have their own haunted house event?”
“Well sure, but they just use an old warehouse. Their haunted house doesn’t come with a legend the way ours will.”
He lifted a brow. “Legend?”
Oops. I probably shouldn’t have used the word legend. “You know how it is with small towns and their old houses. They all seem to have a legend.” I hoped I pulled off the cheery no need to worry tone I was going for.
“And what might the legend of this house be?” Brady asked.
I looped my arm
through his. “Oh, we don’t need to talk about that right now. Let’s go inside.”
“What legend, Tess?”
I huffed out yet another breath. I’d expected that Brady would need to be persuaded that the house was perfect for our event, but this was turning out to be a lot more work than I’d anticipated. “I guess there may or may not have been an old cemetery on this plot of land before the house was built, and I suppose there may or may not be those who believe the souls whose resting places were disturbed currently haunt the place.”
He frowned. “Why would anyone build a house on top of a cemetery?”
I giggled nervously. “Oh, you know how it is. The cemetery hadn’t been used since the gold rush and land in this area is expensive. I guess what it comes down to is that everyone is looking for a bargain, and a plot of land that was used as a cemetery a century earlier, presented a bargain to the man who built the house all those years ago.”
“So someone actually built a house on top of peoples’ graves?”
“No, silly.” I playfully swatted at Brady’s shoulder. “The remains of those who’d been buried on the land were moved to another location. Now, back to our fundraiser. I think once you see the interior, you are going to love this place as much as I do.” I leaned forward and really put my weight into dragging this tall man, who had to weigh double what I did, the rest of the way down the walk.
“Okay, wait.” Brady froze at the threshold to the front door. “Are you actually telling me that you want to hold our shelter fundraiser in a house built on land that was previously used to house a cemetery?”
I nodded.
“Are you crazy?”
“Do you want a state of the art training facility?”
“Well, yes.”
“And do you want to have a place to offer permanent housing for elderly and hard to place dogs and cats?”
“You know that I do.”
“And if you were the sort who was willing to pay, say twenty bucks, to walk through a haunted house, would you be more likely to fork over the big bucks to walk through the cafeteria at the high school or a real house that folks already say is haunted?”
Both Brady’s brows shot up. “You think people will pay twenty bucks to walk through a haunted house?”
“I think they will pay twenty bucks to walk through this haunted house.” I took in a long breath, held it, and then exhaled. “Look. I’m not thrilled that the guy who built this house more than a century ago built his home on land that should have been preserved as hallowed ground. And I’m not happy that the remains of those buried on that same plot of land a century before were moved. But things were looked at differently back then and not using this house as a fundraiser isn’t going to undo any of that. It makes no sense to pass on the opportunity to raise the money we need to expand our ability to help homeless pets in the area.”
Brady took a step back. He looked up at the tall structure in front of him. “Are you sure it is safe? As you just pointed out, this house is over a century old, and I know it hasn’t been lived in for decades.”
“I promise you that it will be safe once Tony and his band of elves get done with the place. Mike has even arranged for the county inspector to give it the green light before we begin decorating for the event.”
Mike Thomas was my brother and a local police officer.
“And you think people will actually come from as far away as Billings to see the place?”
“I think droves of people will come out to see the place once Haunted America airs.”
Brady turned and looked at me. “Haunted America?”
“TV show. Super popular. I know a guy who knows a guy who made the arrangements.”
Brady froze. When he did not speak or move for more than fifteen seconds, I was afraid I’d shorted out the poor guy’s brain.
“Look,” I continued in my most persuasive voice. “I know this is a little out of the box for a fundraiser, but it is October, and everyone is into the spooky vibe. The plans we discussed for the expansion to the shelter are huge, which means that even with the large donation Tony has already made, we still need a huge fundraiser to afford to do them. A kiddie carnival or pet parade is not going to cut it. We need to go big, and a real haunted house which will be featured on Haunted America just about the same time our haunted house opens is exactly the sort of fundraiser that is going to get us to where we need to be. So what do you think? Are you going to go big or are you going to be the guy who passed up the chance to do something amazing?”
Brady hesitated.
“Come on, Brady. Take a chance. For the animals. For the town.”
“Okay. I’m really not sure about this, but I guess we’re going to go big.” Brady put his hand on the doorknob. He gave it a twist and pushed the door open. I was glad I’d come by and unlocked it earlier or our dramatic moment might have been ruined. He took a step into the entry and froze. His mouth dropped open as he looked around at the large space. “Are you sure it isn’t going to cost more to make this place usable than we are going to make in ticket sales?”
“I’m sure. Do you want to see the second story?”
Seconds after I asked my question, there was a crash overhead.
“Uh, thanks, but I think I’m good.” Brady took a step back toward the still open door. “You’ve never steered me wrong in the past, and I have no reason to think you would steer me wrong now, so I guess I’ll get busy on a press release letting everyone know that the White Eagle Animal Shelter is going to throw one heck of a fundraiser this year.”
Chapter 2
Monday, October 7
“Morning, Hap,” I said to Hap Hollister, owner of the only hardware and home supply store in town.
“Morning, Tess. Tilly,” he expanded his greeting to include my dog, Tilly, who, as she did every weekday, was out delivering the daily mail with me.
“I love what you’ve done with your window. The bales of hay, scarecrows, pumpkins, baskets of apples, and fall leaves provide passersby with both the feel of the harvest and the feel of autumn and Halloween.”
“Exactly the mood I was going for. Did you notice the chainsaw sitting next to the log with the ax in the center of the window?”
“I did.”
“I have chainsaws on sale this month, so the window was designed to both entertain and provide advertising.”
I glanced back toward the window. “It really is perfect. If I needed a chainsaw, I’d buy one, but Tony took care of cutting, splitting, and stacking my wood for the winter. I might want one of those red scarves the lumberjack scarecrow is wearing if you have those for sale.”
Hap reached behind the counter and took out a red knit scarf. He handed it to me. “It’s a gift. I think red will look good on you with your dark hair.”
I accepted the scarf. “Thanks, Hap. I love it. Are you sure I can’t pay you for it?”
He shook his head. “I have a couple left from last Christmas and am happy to pass it along. By the way, did the supplies for the haunted house I sent over get to you okay?”
“They did, and thanks again.” I set the stack of mail I’d brought for him on the counter. “You’ve donated so many supplies for the event that I’m going to add you as a sponsor. I just wasn’t sure if you wanted to be listed by name or if you wanted the sponsorship to be listed as the hardware store.”
“A shout out for the store would be great, but you know I was happy to make the donation, even without the recognition.”
I smiled at the white-haired man. “I know, and that is what makes you such a special person.” I took the lid off the candy dish Hap kept on his counter and popped a butterscotch into my mouth. I had a long route covering the entire downtown section of White Eagle, and I usually liked to keep moving, but there were certain businesses which required more than a drop and run, and Hap’s store was one of them.
“Did you get that electrical glitch you’ve been having worked out?” Hap asked, after setting his outgoing ma
il on the counter.
“Not yet. The lights are still flickering even though we’ve had the electrician out twice. The folks from Haunted America will be here on Wednesday to film the segment they plan to air on the sixteenth, so Tony is going to see if he can figure it out before then. If not, I think that the Haunted America staff might be just as happy to have the lights flicker. It is, after all, a show about actual haunted places.”
“I guess you might be right about that. I take it you are going to wait to decorate the house for the fundraiser until after the filming. I’m sure the Haunted America folks will want the house to look as authentic as possible.”
I nodded. “They do want to film before we decorate, so I’ve scheduled the Haunted America folks on Wednesday of this week. They will spend the night in the house and will leave Thursday. The segment will air on Wednesday, October sixteenth. I have a whole passel of volunteers coming on Friday, October eleventh, to decorate for the haunted house. I figure with all the mechanical props Shaggy has tracked down, it will take the entire weekend to get everything set up. The haunted house runs two long weekends, Friday – Sunday, plus Halloween night. Opening day will be on October eighteenth. I went ahead and started the presale for the tickets early, and we’ve already sold out for both the Friday and Saturday of opening weekend. I think this venture might turn out even better than I’d planned.”
Hap leaned his forearms on the counter in front of him. “You know I’m pulling for you and the animals. I think your idea of building permanent housing for hard to place pets is inspired. If you need anything at all once you start decorating, you just let me know.”
“Thanks, Hap. I really appreciate it.”
I chatted with Hap for a few more minutes, and then Tilly and I continued on our route. Fall in White Eagle was about as pretty as you would find anywhere. The trees were painted in shades of red, orange, and yellow, and the sky was sunny and blue in spite of the crisp hint of winter in the air which served as a reminder that the first snow was right around the corner.