Read Online Haunted Renovation Mystery 1 - Flip That Haunted House by Rose Pressey - Free Book Online Page B

the
wall.
    “Aren’t you hiring a handyman? What about
having your neighbor help? He seems good with a hammer. Hell, I’m
ready to break something in my house just so I can ask him to help
me.”
    I shook my head and laughed. “Well, I plan
on hiring a handyman, but I’m not asking him for help. Plus, I can
do some things on my own.” I continued stirring.
    She snorted. “Oh, Lord is this like when you
tried to seal your parents’ driveway?”
    “No comment.” I paused. “How did I know the
fumes would get to me like that?”
    She rolled her eyes. “So, can I help?”
    “Can you stir this?”
    “Sure. I’ll use my crutch.”
    I laughed. “You just have a seat on the
window sill over there. You shouldn’t even be here.”
    “I was bored.” She hobbled over to the
window and perched on the edge.
    With a sponge, I wet the edge of the plaster
around the hole, then took a big glob of compound and spread it over the surface with a
knife as if I was icing a cake.
    “ That stuff
looks good enough to eat. Makes me want cupcakes,” Lacey
said.
    “Cupcakes do sound
good.”
    “ I think
you’re supposed to swirl it that way.” Lacey moved her hand in a
big circle motion.
    I stared for a
second, then said, “Like this?” I mimicked her movement.
    “Yeah. That’s
it.”
    “That doesn’t feel
right.”
    She shrugged. “Okay,
if you don’t want to do it right.”
    “Oh, like you know
anything about it.”
    I
put on another layer of the goop making it flush with the wall,
then u sed the sponge to wipe
any excess. I swiped across the patch with gentle strokes,
attempting to make it smooth.
    “There, all done,” I said satisfied with my
work as I put the tool down. “ I’ll
leave it like that to dry, then come back and remove my stick and
the wires.”
    “ I must say,
I’m impressed.” Lacey clapped.
    I took a bow.
    “When the walls are
painted, you’ll never know the hole was there.”
    “That’s the idea,”
she said.
    Repairing a plaster
over lath wall—easy peasy.
    A loud knock rattled the front door. I
jumped and clutched my chest again. My nerves were on edge. A
simple knock at the door made me anxious. A run-down house, a dead
body, ghosts, and a killer on the loose—could things get any worse?
Lacey looked at me without saying a word. I shrugged and mouthed,
“I have no idea who it is.”
    I eased over to the door and peered out. Jim
Richmond stood on the porch, smiling from ear to ear. He was not
the person I wanted to see. I knew why he was so happy, the twit.
He’d earned his thirty percent. But would he still get it with
Payne Cooper dead?
    I opened the door to the loud boom of his
voice and his familiar greeting.
    “Howdy!”
    “Hi, Jim, what brings you by?” I eyed my
chipped nail.
    “I wanted to stop by and check on you. Make
sure everything was all right. It’s terrible what happened to
Payne.” He blew out a breath and rubbed his bald head. “I was
stunned when I heard the news. I mean one minute he’s here and the
next…And then to hear you found him. I am so sorry.”
    I nodded. “I’m doing fine. Thank you for
asking.” My manners disappeared again, but Jim didn’t ooze of
kindness, either. Not after his ‘clueless sap’ comment.
    “I’m on my way out of town. The little lady
and I are taking a little vacation to the Smoky Mountains. Getting
some much needed rest and relaxation. You ever been to the
Smokies?”
    I nodded. I was in no mood for idle
chit-chat.
    I bet I knew how he could afford a trip. If
every client was treated as I was, he was living high on the hog.
The snake. The clueless sap, as he had referred to me, had just
paid for his little vacation. Water under the bridge, though. Time
to move on.
    “If you need a realtor…you know, when you
decide to sell. Think of me.”
    I’d think of him all right, but it wouldn’t
be for his selling expertise.
    “Thanks for stopping by. Have a nice
vacation.” I partially closed the door, giving him a