Ghost On Duty (Destiny Bay Cozy Mysteries Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

thing?”
    “Yes. We welcome a Marley or a Tiny Tim. Whatever the homeowner’s inspiration. Tom Torres, one of our members, does an old Fezziwig so well you’d swear he was an old British gentleman instead of a handsome young Puerto Rican. Many have formed community groups of up to twenty or thirty people who come to perform every year. It’s a huge draw and a chance for everyone in the local area to participate.”
    “I know. My Aunt Bebe is a member of the Riser Family Choir. They’re planning to sing Victorian Christmas Carols from the gazebo in front of the Riser house. They’ve been practicing for weeks. She loves doing it.”
    “Wonderful.”
    I couldn’t help it—I was a fan. “You know, this just seems like such a great idea. How could anyone be against this?”
    “Well you might wonder.” He looked sad. “It’s a town treasure, if you ask me. And I’m very proud my family initiated it.” He smiled down at me in a very sweet way. “I’m glad to hear your enthusiasm. Let me give you a tour of the preparations tomorrow. Would you like that?”
    We discussed a time and where to meet and he left, giving me that sweet smile again. Jill giggled and began to chant, “Mele has a boyfriend, Mele has a boyfriend.”
    I socked her in the arm, just like I used to do when we were roomies, and we made plans to join up for the meeting that night.  
    “You ought to come by for dinner,” I told her. “Bebe is trying out a new Kalua Pig recipe. It should be yummy.”
    “She’s not going to put the pig in the ground, is she?” Jill said, wrinkling her nose. “Like they do at luaus?”
    “No, silly. This is a regular oven recipe.”
    “Okay then. What time do you want me?”

    The three of us had a good time at dinner. We talked and laughed and told silly jokes. Then Jill made the mistake of asking Bebe why we didn’t have a Christmas tree and for a moment, I was afraid that had wrecked the mood. Bebe seemed strangely affected by this decision of whether or not to have a tree and her emotions seemed very close to the surface in a way they hadn’t seemed just a day or so before. I didn’t get it. But Jill made another joke and we moved on and the moment was over.  
    We were almost late for the meeting and had to sit toward the back when we got there. But we were pleasantly full of Kalua Pig, even though Bebe claimed to be disappointed in it.  
    “It was too dry,” she kept saying.  
    “But the taste was good,” Jill said. “And the texture of the meat was great.”
    Bebe nodded thoughtfully. “I think I’m going to work on developing a sauce to go with it.”
    A woman sitting behind us leaned forward.  
    “You’re Mele Keahi, aren’t you?” she said. “I’m Sue Hatchet. Peg is my sister. I want to apologize to you for what happened at Mad for Mocha yesterday. My son Andrew was there with her and he told me about how she behaved. She gets a little crazy where Ned Barlow is concerned.”
    “Oh, no problem,” I said with a smile, looking at her and wondering how someone so pretty and put-together-looking could be a sister to the Peg I’d seen the day before. “We all have our crazy-making buttons, don’t we?” I gestured toward the crowd. “Do you have a house in the Village?”
    “Yes we do,” Sue said. “Peg has been staying with us but she’s about to move down and stay with our brother in Ventura. We really think she should get away from all this hub bub over Ned’s death.”
    “Absolutely,” I answered, though that made me remember Peg’s claim that someone should shoot the man. Why had it seemed so personal? That was one of those questions that you couldn’t ask a family member, and the meeting was being called to order anyway.  
    We turned in our chairs and I looked around the room, noting that most of the people I knew in town were attending. Jill was looking around, too, and she spotted Captain Stone.
    She elbowed me and nodded toward him. “What’s he doing