A Haunting in Lottawatah

By Evelyn David

A Haunting in Lottawatah is the fifth book in the Brianna Sullivan Mysteries ebook series. A novella length story, A Haunting in Lottawatah continues the spooky, yet funny saga of psychic Brianna Sullivan who planned to travel the country in her motor home looking for adventure, but unexpectedly ended up in a small town in Oklahoma. In A Haunting in Lottawatah, Brianna is hired to exorcise ghosts from a mansion. But these spirits defy all the rules; a murder confuses the plan; Leon the bulldog continues to run interference as long as he has his beef jerky, and Deputy Cooper Jackson has competition for Brianna's affections. A Haunting in Lottawatah is a "must read" for mystery lovers and aspiring ghost hunters!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Evelyn David
• Release date: Mar 21, 2011
• ISBN: 9781458093042

Evelyn David

The author of Murder Off the Books and Murder Takes the Cake, Evelyn David is the pseudonym for Marian Edelman Borden and Rhonda Dossett. Marian lives in New York and is the author of ten nonfiction books on a wide variety of topics ranging from veterans benefits to playgroups for toddlers! Rhonda lives in Muskogee, Oklahoma, is the director of the coal program for the state, and in her spare time enjoys imagining and writing funny, scary mysteries. Marian and Rhonda write their mystery series via the internet. While many fans who attend mystery conventions have now chatted with both halves of Evelyn David, Marian and Rhonda have yet to meet in person.

Book preview

Brianna Sullivan Mystery Stories

Volume 5

A Haunting in Lottawatah

Evelyn David

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2011 Evelyn David

Discover other titles by Evelyn David at http://www.evelyndavid.com

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. Thank you.

cover photo by Jill Smith

A Haunting in Lottawatah

Chapter 1

My cell phone was ringing as I struggled into Matilda, my motor home. Juggling a squirming overweight bulldog and a bag full of groceries, I dropped the foodstuffs onto the floor and dug the phone out of my jean's pocket just as it stopped ringing. Naturally.

Leon, the flatulent bulldog I was babysitting, scrabbled to get down and immediately started pawing through the bag to find the bacon-flavored treats he'd smelled during the ride home. A quick crunch and he was into the bag of goodies and in heaven. Retrieving the torn bag, I gave him one and he trotted off to his bed, actually an old sleeping bag of mine that he had adopted during his stay in Matilda.

Ms. Pearl, owner of Ms. Pearl's Soak and Spin Laundromat, still wasn't back from Texas. She'd left more than two months earlier, to visit her brother in Galveston, but between his unexpected hernia surgery, and then her slipped disc from all her tending to him, the old lady didn't know when she would be back. I was permanently in charge of the Laundromat and even worse, Leon.

This was by no means my career plan when I first set out in Matilda, a 30-foot luxury home on wheels. I was going to criss-cross the country, having one adventure after another. Instead, I landed in Lottawatah, Oklahoma, population 1452 and an assortment of ghosts in transit. After eight months, here I was, stuck in a dead-end job, with a dog who had a more temperamental digestive system than an old man in a nursing home, and with zero clues as to my future with Cooper Jackson, lead detective of the Lottawatah police force.

Looking at my cell phone missed call list, I had absolutely no idea who Ned Foreman was and why he was calling me. If I could have that moment back again, I'd do things differently. I would have never returned his call. My name is Brianna Sullivan and I'm a psychic. I must not be a very good one because I never saw it, any of it, coming.

***

I normally wouldn't have used Ms. Pearl's scooter but at the last minute Beverly had a child care emergency and couldn't loan me her car. Once, last fall I'd ridden the scooter from Lottawatah out to the lake, and almost got blown off the road when a Volkswagen passed me. But I had an appointment to keep and no transportation. Cooper was in Dallas at a week-long law enforcement seminar. I could have gone with him, stayed in a nice hotel with room service, except for my canine responsibilities.

This is why I don't have pets! I mumbled under my breath.

Leon didn't respond, but he was keeping a close eye on the scooter. Ms. Pearl always let him ride in the basket on the back when she tooled around town and I could see from the rapid movements of his stubby little tail he was determined to ride shotgun.

I don't know where your goggles are. I didn't want to disappoint the aging fleabag but I was going to look ridiculous on the scooter. Leon's presence would make it so much worse. A photo of us would probably wind up on the front page of the Lottawatah PennySaver.

Leon growled and ambled off into the shed to get out of the wind. Although it was almost April, southeastern Oklahoma was still chilly in the mornings, especially with a stiff breeze coming off the nearby lake.

I finally got the gas cap off the scooter tank and filled it using the 2-gallon container of gasoline that Ms. Pearl kept in the shed. I vaguely remembered there was something wrong with using old gasoline–it had been in the shed over the winter – but I didn't have time to figure anything else out. I had an interview for a job that paid more than I'd make in two months running the Laundromat.

Let's go, Leon. You'll have to stay in the Soak and Spin until I get back. I'll put a few quarters in the dryers and you can take a nap on your favorite towel in front of them.

I glanced at my watch. If I didn't hurry I'd be late. Leon!

The old dog walked out of the shed, a pair of leather doggy goggles dangling from his mouth. He dropped them at my feet and glared at me, daring me to say no.

Leon one. Brianna zero. The day was off to a great start.

***

The Foreman house was ugly. Huge. Brown. Unwieldy. The structure was a mix of stone and dark wood, its construction obviously spanning multiple generations and several architectural styles. A circular drive fronted the oldest part of the house, three stories with rickety porches wrapping around each level. Overgrown shrubs and trees crowded around, obscuring the structure. Many of the windows were broken and boarded over.

What do you think, Leon? I parked the scooter near the entrance and removed my helmet.

Leon howled. I'm not sure if it was in response to the negative energy rolling off the house like waves or the static that had my hair standing