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Eight
    Mary parked the Roadster in front of her office building, took a deep breath and opened the door.  She scanned up and down the street, and seeing no one, hurried to the door with her key already in her hand.  After unlocking the door and entering the building, she checked to be sure the alarm was still working and then deactivated it before she moved into the room. She still took a few minutes to check the bathroom, the supplies room and the back door to be sure everything was safe. Finally, she dropped her briefcase and purse on her chair, dialed the phone and held it between her ear and her shoulder as she shrugged out of her coat.
    “Well, hello again Mary,” Bradley said when he answered her call.
    “Hi, I’m at the office,” she replied. “I checked the alarm and all of the rooms and doors. I’m secure.”
    “Good girl. Did you lock the front door behind you?”
    She rolled her eyes and then walked back to the front door and flipped the lock. “Yes, I am now officially locked in,” she said. “And if I didn’t love you so much, you would be a little annoying.”
    “Lucky for me that you do.”
    Walking back across the room, she went to the small refrigerator and pulled out a Diet Pepsi and popped the can open.  “How are you doing?”
    “I still feel like I’m dreaming,” he admitted. “I called Jeannine’s parents and told them about Clarissa.”
    “Oh, wow, that was quite a wake-up call for them,” Mary said. “How did they react?”
    “They’re in Florida, taking the first vacation they’d had in years,” he explained. “They immediately decided they needed to pack and drive to the airport until I suggested that Clarissa might need a little time before she meets everyone.  I thought we could get together next week.”
    “That’s a good idea,” Mary said. “Clarissa needs to get to know her dad first.”
    “I can’t believe it. My daughter is getting ready to go shopping with me. I get to shop with my daughter.”
    Mary took a sip of Pepsi and smiled. “Well, we’ll see what you say once the three of you hit the mall.”
    “I can’t wait,” Bradley said. “Besides, how much could two little girls spend on a shopping spree?”
    Laughing, Mary rolled her eyes. “Just be sure to keep your credit card handy,” she said. “And let Katie take the lead, she’ll let you know if they’re taking advantage of your ignorance.”
    “My ignorance?” he asked, slightly offended.
    “You’ll see,” she replied.
    “Wait…Mary…what do you mean?”
    Mary grinned. “You’ll figure it out,” she said. “I have confidence in you.”
    “But Mary…”
    “Sorry, Bradley, I’ve got to go…there are mysteries to solve and ghosts to bust,” she laughed.
    “Mary…”
    “Love you. Bye!”
    She hung up the phone and laughed, picturing him sitting in a chair with that slightly panicked look in his eyes, worrying about shopping with Clarissa. Hopefully that will keep him from worrying about her. Yes, this was going to be a good day!
    A half hour later her office phone rang.
    “O’Reilly Investigations, Mary speaking,” Mary paused to listen. “Yes, actually I do investigate paranormal activities, but I’m not part of a paranormal investigation team.  I don’t use equipment to catch electronic images or sounds. Is that what you’re looking for?”
    Picking up a pen and sliding her notepad closer to the edge of the desk, she jotted down the woman’s name and address. “Sure, I can come out to see you in an hour or so, if that will work for you,” she replied and then a smile spread across her lips. “No, it doesn’t need to be dark outside. I can do my job in the daytime. Okay, I’ll see you in an hour.”
    She hung up the phone and reached over to turn on her computer.  In a few minutes she found the address she’d been given and whistled slowly through her teeth.  The house was more like a mansion, sitting on five acres of land. She mentally upgraded it to an