Sure enough Ember was right about my car. One repcement set of fuses ter and it was good as new again.

  Needless to say that was a huge relief, and I offered to pay the wolfgirl for her time but she wouldn't accept any money. According to her the gourmet burger lunch was more than enough. Not long after that she had to get to her part-time job, so Jenna and I spent the rest of the afternoon taking it easy. Then I took my girlfriend out Saturday evening for a nice date, to make up for missing out Friday due to the accident.

  Sunday was quiet, Jenna had to do some homework while I took care of a few chores around the house. Then Monday my girlfriend was back to school while I went to work, and things had more or less returned to normal. I was still a little uneasy about everything that happened Friday night, but it seemed like Constable McIntosh wasn't going to pay us a visit after all.

  Now it was a few minutes before ten on Thursday morning, and instead of being at the office I was pulling into the parking lot next to Jessie Vaughan's practice. Apparently she had another estate to liquidate, and she'd invited me in to help deal with the real estate side of things.

  "Hello Vikki," she greeted me as soon as I came in through the front door. "Thanks for dropping by. Can I get you some coffee, or tea? There's also soda or spring water if you prefer?"

  I greeted her back, and ended up accepting a bottle of water while she poured herself a mug of coffee. Then the two of us sat down in her office so we could discuss the property.

  "I'll warn you up front," she began, "This one isn't going to be anything like the Kovalenko pce. For one thing it's not going to be worth anywhere near as much."

  I nodded, "That's fine Jessie. Are we going to be meeting with the beneficiary this morning?"

  She shook her head, "No. I've already got power of attorney, this will be a complete liquidation of all assets and a settling of all accounts. Whatever's left over when the dust settles will go to the next of kin. That's a cousin, I believe they're out in Nova Scotia."

  That made me frown, "They didn't have anyone closer?"

  "No," Ms. Vaughan shook her head again. Then she sighed, "Honestly it's a bit of a sad story. The st occupant was a single woman. She lived alone, no close friends, no family. She kept to herself, and seemed to be something of a shut-in. The neighbours got worried when they realized they hadn't seen her for a while... You get the picture."

  I sighed, "That does sound sad."

  "I take it she passed away in the home?" I added after a slight hesitation.

  After a long sip of her coffee the wyer nodded, "Correct. Don't worry, after the police and other officials cleared the property I had a preliminary cleaning done. So there's nothing unpleasant waiting for us."

  She continued, "I still need to deal with the furnishings, but I wanted to get your opinion on it first? Like if you think the pce will show better with the 'lived in' look, or if we should dispose of the contents before listing it."

  I noticed she hadn't said anything about how the woman died, but I could guess it was probably something like a heart attack or a stroke. And if it was something more tragic, like falling down stairs and not having anyone around to help, then I really didn't want to know.

  Instead I asked, "Is there anything else you want to tell me about the property? Or are we going to have a look at it in person before we get into the details?"

  "We'll head over there shortly," Jessie replied. "Like I said, this isn't going to be a big sale. It's a small bungalow, and it does need some work. Maybe a good starter home for a handy couple that don't mind doing some of the work themselves? Or a project home. I know some folks buy fixer-uppers specifically to renovate then immediately sell at a profit."

  I asked, "Any problems with the pce that you know of?"

  The older woman shook her head, "I still need to get an inspection done before I can say if there's any structural issues. I can tell you the st occupant was a non-smoker, I didn't see any sign of flooding or fire damage, and I know there's no mortgages or liens on the property."

  "Alright," I nodded slowly. "In that case there's nothing else to do but go see the pce."

  My car stayed in the parking lot while Jessie and I both got into her Lexus for the short drive.

  Like she said the property in question was a small bungalow, in an older neighbourhood on the western edge of town. I already knew most homes in that area were between fifty to seventy years old, and the quality of construction varied greatly from one pce to the next. So did the value, depending on whatever upgrades and repairs had been done tely.

  The lot was just average, both in terms of size and appearance. What I could see of the wn suggested it hadn't been cut in a while, although mostly it was hidden beneath a yer of damp leaves that had fallen from the twisted old maple tree on the front wn. And two small garden beds appeared to be overgrown with weeds. The driveway was long enough to fit two vehicles, but it was in desperate need of a resurfacing.

  The house itself looked like it had seen better days as well. The exterior was a combination brick and wood siding, and the wood really needed to be repainted or repced. The roof was getting on as well, there were a few shingles missing and a lot more were curling at the edges.

  "I can tell from your expression we're not off to a great start," Ms. Vaughan commented with a grim smile.

  "You're the one who said it might be a good fixer-upper or reno project," I responded.

  She just nodded as she led me up a few weathered concrete steps to the front door. She unlocked it then led me inside, and as soon as I was in the door I immediately noticed something about the pce felt a little off.

  It was hard to pin down what was wrong though. There were no unpleasant smells and nothing specifically unusual that I could identify. It wasn't even particurily dark inside, there were plenty of windows and the blinds weren't drawn. Being almost the end of October it wasn't exactly a bright sunny day outside, but there was more than enough light coming in. Yet it felt slightly off to me.

  "C'mon, I'll give you the tour," Jessie said as she directed me further into the small house.

  It wasn't much of a tour in fact, the pce just wasn't that big. The front door opened into a short hallway. To the left a door opened onto the master bedroom, which was a good size for the age and style of house, the bed was made and the room looked fairly tidy. A little further down on the left was a smaller second bedroom. That one was a bit messier. A third doorway midway down the hall on the right led to a combination living-dining room, which was the star of the property. It was a big room, with high ceilings that made it feel even rger than it was.

  The bathroom was average in every way, and the kitchen was perhaps the biggest liability. It was functional, but the cabinets were ugly and the appliances were old. A combination undry and storage room was another liability, in part due to how much clutter the owner had accumuted.

  Clutter extended to other parts of the house as well, there were plenty of knick-knacks on shelves, along with books and boxes and things. The kitchen counters were home to pots and pans, even some dishes were sitting out instead of being away in cupboards. It wasn't anywhere near 'hoarder' levels, just signs of an untidy home. There were also a number of pictures on the walls, but nothing very personal. No photos of people, they were ndscapes and abstract paintings and things like that.

  One common theme throughout the home was I could tell several areas simply hadn't been cleaned in quite some time. I could see the accumuted dust in the corners and on the shelves, plus there were numerous cobwebs hanging from the ceiling along the tops of the walls and especially in the corners.

  We had a quick look in the basement, although I'd describe as more of a celr. And there were plenty more cobwebs down there too. Finally the backyard was a decent size, with a handful of mature trees. Unfortunately the grass hadn't been cut back there either, and there were plenty more fallen leaves everywhere.

  After the tour we ended up in the big living-dining room again, since that was the most pleasant part of the house. Jessie pulled out a chair at the small wood table and sat down, then gestured for me to join her.

  "So what do you think Vikki? What's your professional opinion, based on what you've seen so far?"

  "Like you said," I replied as I sat down across from her, "It'd make a good starter home for a couple with a handyman streak. Or a project home for someone looking to fix it and flip it."

  She asked, "What do you think about the contents? Would it sell better if I have the pce cleaned up but leave the furnishings and pictures in pce? Or would it be worth-while to gut the pce first?"

  After gncing around the living-dining room once more I shrugged, "It's a toss up? Some buyers find it easier to visualize a home that's got furniture in it, others prefer to see the pce empty so they can picture their own stuff inside."

  "Either way the important thing is the house needs to be clean," I added. "Properties are always going to show better when the contents are clean and neat. So I imagine it'll come down to what's the cheapest option? Gut it then clean the walls and floors, or clean everything including the contents."

  She made a face, "Understood. I'll need to get someone to appraise the possessions first then. If there's anything valuable we'll try and sell it, then dump the rest. Get it cleaned up, then you can take your pictures and put it on the market."

  "Sounds like a pn," I nodded. Then I asked, "Anything else? Or are we done here?"

  Jessie seemed to hesitate a moment, then gave me a funny look. She lowered her voice as she leaned forward and asked, "You and Erin are pretty close, right Vikki? I couldn't count how many times she's told me about how you've been impressing her with your work, and how you remind her of herself when she was starting out."

  "So I'm hoping maybe you can tell me what's going on with her," she continued just as quietly. By that point her eyes were wide and she looked uneasy as she asked, "What in the world happened to Erin? I saw her st week Vikki, she looks decades younger! She's practically your age now!"

  Just like that I felt my cheeks heating up as I did my best not to grimace, or squirm in my seat. At first I wasn't even sure how to respond or what to say, but fortunately that only sted for a second or two. Then I sighed and shook my head, "Sorry Jessie, I really can't say."

  Ms. Vaughan looked frustrated, "You know what I'm talking about though. When did it happen?"

  "It was about a month ago," I replied. I figured it was safe to say that much at least, since that was the sort of thing I'd have noticed at work regardless. "The st week of September actually? She came into work that Monday morning looking like a new woman."

  The wyer stared at me for another couple seconds before she spoke up again. "I know you know about this town, Vikki. Erin told me over the summer that you've started having your own experiences. I know that sort of thing makes her uncomfortable, so I can't imagine she'd ever willingly involve herself in anything supernatural."

  That made me sigh, but I really couldn't viote Erin's trust. Or Jenna's either, for that matter. So I shook my head again, "I'm sorry Jessie. I get that you're concerned, but even if I knew what happened I probably couldn't say anything. You and Erin are friends, right? You need to talk to her directly, if you have questions or concerns."

  "I've tried," she said with another frown.

  She continued to watch me for a few more seconds before finally sighing, "Alright Vikki. Sorry to put you on the spot like that."

  Then she got to her feet as she gestured, "If you want to head out to the car I'll be there in a moment. I need to go double check that I locked the back door and turned off the basement lights."

  I nodded as I stood up as well, then pushed my chair back in under the table. And while the older woman made her way through the kitchen towards the back door I turned and headed for the front exit. Except I only made it as far as the hallway when I practically jumped then stopped in my tracks.

  There was a woman standing infront of the second bedroom doorway. She looked to be in her early thirties, about my height, with shoulder length curly blonde hair. She was dressed in a rge dark hoodie and loose grey track pants, and she was staring at me with a sad look in her eyes.

  After being startled like that my heart was racing, but I tried to calm myself down as I apologized to her. "Sorry, I didn't realize there was anyone home. I'm here with Jessie Vaughan? She's the..."

  My voice trailed off as the woman turned away without a word, then disappeared back into the bedroom like she didn't want to talk to me.

  At the same time Ms. Vaughan came up behind me and asked, "What were you saying?"

  "I didn't realize there was someone else here," I told her. "In the second bedroom?"

  Jessie shook her head, "There's nobody here Vikki. It's just us."

  "She's right here," I insisted. I stepped into the bedroom as I added, "Hello? Sorry to barge in on you."

  I felt a little pang of anxiety as I realized there was nobody in the room. I even checked the closet, but needless to say there was nobody hiding in there.

  My heart was racing again as I looked at Jessie and said, "She was in her thirties. A blonde woman, curly shoulder-length hair? She was wearing a bck hoodie. And she looked sad."

  The older woman gave me a worried look and replied softly, "You just described the st occupant."

  PurpleCatGirl