Murder Vows (Storage Ghost Murders Book 4) by Gillian Larkin Page B

from her face. In a quiet voice she said, “Where
did you get this?”
    Grace
hated lying. “In a storage unit not far from here. You look as if you recognise
it.”
    “I
do. I bought it, I had the initials put on it. You found it in a storage unit?”
    Hating
herself even more Grace opened the case. Jessie recoiled as if being hit. Grace
picked up Archie’s wedding jacket and held it up. “It looks like someone’s
wedding suit.”
    Jessie
blinked rapidly. “It is a wedding suit.”
    Grace
remembered that the necklace was in her handbag, which was in the shop. She
couldn’t leave Jessie whilst she went to retrieve her bag.
    A
familiar voice whispered in her ear, “Your bag is under the table.”
    It
was Pearl’s voice but not Pearl’s body. She’d obviously made herself invisible.
Was Archie here too? And how had her handbag appeared under the table? Was
Pearl half poltergeist, half ghost?
    Grace
reached under the table and into her bag. She took the necklace out. She heard
the wobble in her voice as she spoke, “I found this too, in one of the
pockets.”
    Jessie’s
hands flew to her heart. Grace tried to move the necklace closer so that Jessie
could take it.
    Jessie
jumped to her feet and screamed, “No! No!”
    Grace
pulled the necklace back. Jessie raised her face to the ceiling and let out a
scream that was full of anguish and pain. She sounded like a wounded animal
caught in a trap.
    Grace
dropped the necklace and rushed to Jessie’s side. Just in time to catch her as
she fainted.
     

Chapter 25
     
    Frankie
raced into the kitchen. “What the hell was that noise?”
    Grace
struggled to hold Jessie’s weight. “She fainted.”
    “After
seeing my room? It’s not that bad.” Frankie dashed around the table and took
Jessie into his arms “What do we do now? Shall I give her the kiss of life?”
    “Don’t
you dare. Sit her down, she’s coming round.”
    Frankie
placed Jessie into a chair as if she was a delicate flower.
    “You
can move your arms now, her eyes are open,” Grace instructed.
    Frankie
moved his hands a few inches away but hovered close to Jessie.
    Jessie
blinked and looked from Grace to Frankie, and back to Grace. “What happened?
Did I faint?”
    “You
did, and I caught you,” Frankie added. Grace could imagine him tipping an
imaginary hat in Jessie’s direction.
    Jessie
sat up straight, a slight blush on her cheeks. “I’m so sorry! I haven’t fainted
since ... Oh! The necklace! The suitcase!” She burst into noisy sobs.
    Frankie
looked horrified, he took three steps back. “What’s she doing?” he asked Grace.
    “Crying.
Move out of the way, I need the tissues.”
    “But
she’s so loud. Is that normal?”
    Jessie’s
wails increased in volume. Frankie jumped, he looked at Grace and indicated
towards the shop. “I’d better get back to it.”
    He
raced away before another sob burst forth from Jessie.
    Grace
sat next to her and handed her a tissue. In between sobs Jessie mumbled, “Sorry
... I haven’t cried properly since ... since ... oh! The necklace! He got me a
hammer necklace!”
    Grace
rubbed her ear. Jessie was a loud crier. Grace didn’t mind, better to get it
all out.
    It
took Jessie five more minutes of crying. At one point she became almost
hysterical and Grace took her in her arms and held her shaking body.
    The
crying stopped, Jessie gave her nose a huge blow and tried to smile.
    “Do
you want to talk about it? I presume the owner of the suitcase was someone
close to you,” Grace ventured.
    Jessie
nodded. Then she told Grace what she already knew, how she’d met Archie, the
story behind the hammer and the fateful wedding day.
    Jessie
said, “It’s all my fault, I should have gone to check on him earlier. If I had
I might have stopped whoever it was from breaking in.” With a small grin Jessie
flexed an arm muscle. “I’ve got quite a punch on me. I can’t believe someone
would kill him so easily. How could someone do that? Poor Archie, my