Hot Ghost

By Quinn Reilly

When 17-year-old Mark Rimsky moves across the country from North Carolina to California with fellow band mates Alex and Brandon, hoping to make it big in the music industry, the trio find more than they were expecting, waiting for them in their rented home. The previous resident, an A-list cheerleader from the local high school named Sarah, still haunts the home after being murdered in the downstairs kitchen. Sarah tries to scare the guys out, but eventually enters into an uneasy agreement with Mark and his friends to help her track down her killer.
Crazy circumstances and comical events that shape the gang’s quest for justice push Sarah and Mark closer together, sparking a hilarious and lighthearted romance between the two; even though they both know they belong to different realities. All the while, pressure mounts for Mark to write an inspired song, with the band’s record label threatening to drop them and end their dream of making it big.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Quinn Reilly
• Release date: Apr 13, 2016
• ISBN: 9780982990353

Quinn Reilly

Quinn Reilly began his love affair with writing at an early age, guest writing on his mother's online blog, just for fun. He honed in his craft later on, with his own series of blogs, and by taking an interest in writing short stories in Word files, on his old desktop computer. He began writing Hot Ghost, his first full-length novel, at the age of 17. Reilly continues to balance his passion for writing with his talent in both theatre and music. He also does work with people with special needs and is an advocate for animal rights. He hopes to continue writing and bettering himself through his work. However, the primary reason he writes is for the enjoyment it brings to others.

Book preview

Hot Ghost

Quinn Reilly

Copyright © 2016 Quinn Reilly

All rights reserved.

ISBN-13: 978-0-9829903-6-0

To my mom.

And to Julia.

Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Prologue

Normally, Sarah liked the walk home after school each day. But today leaves blew across the street, swirling up in miniature tornadoes, like tormented souls. A shiver ran down Sarah’s spine. The suddenly chilly air nipped at her exposed skin, yet there was something ominous in the wind. Something wasn’t right.

With a heavy sigh, Sarah continued walking down the street. Her favorite flats were worn from the familiar route, but it was a fair price to pay for the decompression time that the walk offered. She brushed aside the strange feeling that she had and smiled as she retreated back into the depths of her consciousness. She loosened her light cardigan as the warm autumn sun glanced off her face, giving her a small hint of the previous summer break.

Sarah’s swimsuit and towel still sat in a heap in her laundry room, caked with sand and damp to the touch. The long hot days, just recently departed, were chronicled by laying on the glistening beach and wading into the cool blue ocean, the waves forever wishing to pull her in. Her dark sunglasses reflected images of surfers, swimming far out to sea, and shirtless jocks eying her over with a gleam in their eyes. She had tried hard not to smirk at their tan skin wrapped tight around their torsos, boasting a clear view of the abs that they’d spent the colder months secretly building. If only summer’s spectacle ceased to fade.

A bus rushed by, blowing Sarah’s hair over her eyes. It made a stop at Sarah’s street but she shrugged it off – she rolled her eyes at the mere thought of riding in the loud orange tank. As she watched the bus disappeared out of sight, she caught a glimpse of a jack o’lantern grinning at her from the stoop of a nearby house. The tension was building at school, waiting to climax to an onslaught of holidays that didn’t relent until New Years. During these weeks, school days went by like mere minutes – teachers interested in simply wrapping up the first semester’s work presented the school’s trouble makers with ample free time to reap havoc and cause commotion in the hallways and classrooms. As Sarah walked, her hands deep in her pockets and her mind equally as engrossed in her thoughts, a girl sprinted up behind her, joining in her reflective procession.

Maddie caught her breath rather quickly, her skinny diaphragm pulsing in and out; still reserving plenty of energy to walk the rest of the way to her own house. Sarah grinned warmly as Maddie caught up to her. Maddie smiled back, reaching out and giving Sarah a gentle shove.

Sarah noticed the familiar texture and color of the school’s cheerleading uniform peeking out through an open zipper in Maddie’s monogramed backpack. The weight of her own identical uniform pulled on her shoulders, stuffed in her bag along with makeup and textbooks.

The sidewalk shook beneath girls’ feet as a sports convertible revved its engine behind them. Maddie turned her head and waved nervously as Jonathan and a handful of the other football players drove past in their gleaming machine. Sarah peered over her shoulder, trying to get a view. A mighty blast from the car’s horn resonated in their ears as the boys waved to them and quickly disappeared down the road. Maddie looked like she was about to swoon, watching after the car, with hearts in her eyes.

A different sound slowly grew louder as another car approached on the street. Three boys from the school’s math club clunked past, bouncing up and down in their seats as the prehistoric vehicle rattled over the concrete. The boy in the passenger seat nodded at them and grinned from behind his mask of acne and braces.

Way to kill the mood, Maddie sulked, shaking her head as the mathletes continued down the street.

Yellow and orange leaves tumbled across the sidewalk. Sarah’s sandy blonde hair blew into her face and she quickly brushed it back behind her ear, her dark blue skirt swishing against her legs.

Hey! Did you hear that Kristina is going out with Johnathan now? Maddie asked, suddenly perking up, steadying her pace to match Sarah’s.

Really? Sarah replied, aghast. "I wonder how on earth that happened!"

Sarah contorted her face to fabricate the perfect reaction to the news, before turning away and allowing a subtle frown to grow between her lips. Inside, a despair grew in the pit of her stomach, a kind of apathy towards the whole system of social hierarchy in which she was a part. She looked down the street, attempting to gauge how much longer it would be until she was within the welcoming solitude of her own home.

Her heart did admittedly skip a beat when she imagined Jonathan’s thick black hair and piercing blue eyes. But, speaking about Jonathan in anything but a negative connotation, in accordance to his awful personality and downright bastardized beliefs, gave her a sick feeling. Yet, it was a feeling she found herself enduring more and more often.

"I do not know!" responded Maddie, putting emphasis on every single word.

Another sudden gust of wind brought a chilly atmosphere to the street. Sarah crossed her arms and brought her cardigan tight around her shoulders. She tugged at the cotton material, but it refused to advance further than her forearm.

Sarah suddenly had a disdain towards boys. She walked through the halls of school every day with the vast majority of the guys’ population sufficing with a pair of cargo shorts and a graphic tee. When it was chilly out, they threw on a sweatshirt or even a light jacket. A quick inventory of most of Sarah’s female peers revealed that every one of their accessories had been carefully and meticulously picked out, creating the most perfect appearance possible. Every day. Non-matching clothing articles simply weren’t worn together. Her dad frowned at her decision to not wear a warmer outfit on days like today, but Sarah merely laughed at the image of a bulky jacket.

A green street sign rattled in the wind on the next street corner – a familiar sight to both the girls. Sarah stared up at the sign, bringing back nostalgic memories of the rendezvous and the various food and drink stands they had set up to fundraise for school events and trips over the years. Now it stood in front of them as a symbol of their childhood, reminding them of more innocent days.

Well, you know Johnathan well enough. He goes through a different girl ever week, Maddie said, gradually veering off of the sidewalk to cross the street.

Maybe next week it’ll be one of us! Sarah joked.

Except we’ll be the one to nail him down, Maddie replied with a mischievous glimmer in her eyes.

Sarah laughed, showing a glimpse of her even, white teeth against her perfect red lips. I’ll see you tomorrow, Maddie!

Maddie smiled back and turned to walk confidently down her street, her brunette hair blowing about and the sound of her Toms thudding quietly against the cement. Sarah’s eyes filled with melancholy watching her depart. Her sadness didn’t come on suddenly, but rather it had collected within her over time.

Sarah slowed her pace and closed her eyes, retreating back into her thoughts. She put her hand over her chest and scrunched up her face. Her heart became tight; it was not caused by a specific origin, but rather a number of points, each adding more and more weight. She looked to the dark sky with boys, grades, sports, all swirling around in her head like one giant computer hard drive. Her white backpack, lined with a clashing shade of red, softly padded against her back to the rhythm of her footsteps. The rubber soles of her own shoes made a subtle tap against the sidewalk.

She turned around in a complete 360, scanning the street, but no one was in sight. Jack o’lanterns spied on her from nearby porches with narrow eyes and demonic grins. Maddie had long disappeared down her street and gone into her house. Sarah’s brown eyes searched the street for mathletes, football players, cheerleaders, or anyone else for that matter, but found herself alone. Only tumbling leaves moved around her.

Sarah brought her shaking hand up to her face and began to bite the end of her fingertip with the edge of her teeth. The swift breeze seemed to sweep all of the sound right up off the street. Logic argued that there wasn’t anything to worry about, but Sarah’s heart still pounded in her ears, regardless.

A void formed in Sarah’s head, consuming all of the thoughts that had been swirling around inside her mind. Everything was gone. Her head was simply… empty.

For a moment, Sarah stood there on the sidewalk, her house still out of sight. Her blue skirt rippled against her legs and she brought her arms together tightly tucked across her chest.

A gathering of gray clouds engulfed the sky, cooling the sun that had only moments before warmed Sarah’s lightly tanned skin. The fiery ball of heat suddenly seemed so distant from the sidewalk. Earth itself became isolated from the rest of the galaxy – a floating outpost in space – on which Sarah was a refugee.

Sarah tucked her chin to her chest and started walking again. She jumped as a horrific scream came from a thoroughly decorated house, a skeleton swinging from a noose tied to the tree in the front yard, his eyes glowing red as he mocked her and screamed again. Her flats now tapped to a faster rhythm against the pavement. Wishing she was taller than she was, but grateful that she was no shorter, she widened her steps, covering pavement as fast as she could. Each stride took her ever closer towards home.

The little stones and markings in the sidewalk rushed past her in a blur. All other matters were at once forgotten and scenery ignored as she pressed on.

She soon reached her street and turned to go down it. Sarah counted the second house down on the left, not but a hundred yards away. A tiny drop of rain fell on her shoulder and a rumble of thunder jolted the sky.

No, no, no, no, she muttered to herself. I’m not dealing with another wrinkled top!

She hurried over the grass spanning from the sidewalk to the house, speed-walking up to the driveway and all but running up to the front door, finding shelter under her porch just as the sky opened up and rain fell all over the earth.

Water washed over the small awning that protected the porch, gushing like a waterfall from the edges. Sarah took her keys out of her pocket, fumbling to select the right one, remembering to keep the door unlocked for her dad.

Her foot creaked against the wooden floor and she glanced cautiously around the darkened house. Without knowing why, her heart once again began to resonate in her chest.

Calm down. You’re acting like a lunatic, she muttered quietly to herself.

Nothing made a sound. Although it was a small house, it almost always had some kind of hum or buzz in the background.

Not now. Dead silence filled the room.

Every step Sarah took echoed through the hollow house like a drum.

Sarah walked from the foyer into the seating area and dropped her book bag beside the couch. She stood in place and took a look around.

A grave feeling wrapped around her like a blanket. Nothing was present to provoke such a feeling, but it clung to her nonetheless. The shadows of the house crept up on the walls like night prowlers. She twisted her silver-banded emerald stone ring around her finger nervously, feeling it get slicker as her hands got sweaty and shaky.

Her feet became glued to the floor. Logic and instinct fought for jurisdiction over her actions, contradicting each other, but duly convicted in their respective advice. Sarah shook her head and headed into the kitchen to grab a snack and an iced coffee.

It was just a long week, she told herself reassuringly, but struggling to hide the fear in her voice.

She crossed over from the wooden floor, brushing past a small door frame into the kitchen, her wet shoes clicking against the mock-tile. Her muscles once again became tense and alert.

Goddamn it, she said, spinning around slowly in a circle, sweat starting to trickle down her neck. What is it?

She moved backwards towards the fridge, her eyes scanning the kitchen and the door in which she had just passed through. Nothing was there, nothing was out of place, and nothing suggested that anything was even slightly out of the ordinary. A teacup which she had neglected to put in the sink still sat at the table where she’d eaten breakfast. But Sarah felt it.

The house was no longer silent. Sarah’s ears were ringing. The empty space itself had filled the house with a single, high-pitched note.

Sarah’s shoes continued to click slowly backwards across the kitchen. She stopped, sensing that she would back into the fridge. She shook her head once more – there was nothing to worry about. She inhaled a deep breath just as a hand clasped over her mouth.

Air strained against her lungs, willing her to scream. It was useless. The hand held fast around her mouth and another arm brushed past her cardigan and grabbed her by the waist.

Her muscles drew every ounce of raw energy and power she had within her. She threw her legs back into the man’s shins, flailed against his weight, gnawed at the hand over her mouth, and struggled to get free. The hands didn’t loosen their grip.

Sarah soon found the mock-tile up against her face, pinned down under her assailant. He sent his knees directly into her back, pressing with all of his weight.

The dirty hand suddenly slipped away from her mouth, wiping saliva and sweat across her face. Sarah’s diaphragm collapsed and filled the room with the most ferocious cry imaginable; mustered only from a primitive part of the brain that’s accessed by an animal when it’s in the shadow of death. Her body throbbed against the floor, her muscles firing without control. She couldn’t think or fight or communicate. Instinct drove her to jerk and twist under the grip of the beast.

The struggle seemed to go on for an eternity. The panic slowly dissipated from her body as her muscles grew tired and ached. Her eyes drooped and her breaths became short and far between.

She heard weeping, yet her own eyes were not wet. Tears splashed against the back of her neck and ran down to her throat. Her body relaxed – exhausted and confused.

There was silence in the room but for the man’s sobbing and Sarah’s breathing.

A croak came from within his mouth. At the sound, Sarah choked on her spit and her own eyes became wet. Her legs and arms went stiff. Her blood froze in her arteries, cold in horror.

I’m so sorry, the deep voice rumbled slowly. It’s for the best… It’s for the best.

He barely got the words out, between sobs.

The rough edge of a thick rope scratched under her jaw. Before she could unglue herself from her body’s terror, the rope became taut around her neck.

Her lungs pushed air through her throat, but the voice came out muffled and cracked.

She flailed back and forth without thought under the weight of the man.

The rope pressed ever more into her neck. She couldn’t breathe. Her head felt like it was going to burst.

She opened her eyes as wide as she could, but all she could see was a burning white.

The next time Sarah would speak, it would not be from her own body.

Chapter 1

My legs ached and cracked while taking my first few steps out of the car. When the rent-a-moving-van started rolling along its first few miles of the trip, we plugged the destination into our GPSs as quickly as our fingers would type. Now, my hand rose slowly, as if it was moving through molasses, feebly jabbing at the end route button as the voice inside the machine announced my arrival.

In the weeks leading up to the drive, we sat behind our desks at school, watching the clock tick slowly around its face. By the end of each day, it seemed an entire year had gone by since the previous morning. When the last bell of the year finally rang, releasing the three of us into the June day, the sun fried our skin as we walked out to the parking lot, reminding us of the four solid weeks of working at the local burger joint we had left to endure.

Drops of sweat rolled down my face, remembering the heat of the burger griddle radiating against my skin and how I wiped my eyebrows with my apron and threw on another round of patties. Some days, I looked at the open door in the back of the kitchen, watching the bushes outside rattle in the cool breeze. I felt my feet gravitate towards it and my hand slip up to the knot in the back of my apron – but then Alex or Brandon would walk past holding a stack of buns or covered in soap suds and give me a friendly smile, so I took a deep breath and turned back to the griddle.

Presently, Alex’s feet hit the pavement ahead of me as he jumped out of the moving truck. He waved to me, grinning. Hey Mark, we made it!

Think about it, I joked, we’re three thousand miles away from home. Nobody here knows our names or bad work ethic!

Remember how our supervisor back at the burger joint used to bury his face into his hands and fill his office with an uneasy groan whenever he was forced to schedule the three of us together? reminisced Brandon.

"Frequent customers frowned when they saw us working the shift!" laughed Alex.

Now, Brandon clasped his hands over his stomach as he stumbled over to Alex and me. It wouldn’t have been such a long drive if we didn’t have to wait to eat at a place with vegetarian options, he mocked.

I smiled and punched him in the arm. Sorry to be such an inconvenience, Mr. I Require Five Meals a Day.

A reflection of metal against the sunlight glimpsed my eye, and I looked vexingly over at the North Carolina license plate on my car. Eagerly, I grabbed a toolbox from the truck and loosened the screws holding it on and threw the plate forcefully into the ground. I slipped the new state’s plate out of its envelope and fastened it onto the back of the car. With my hands on my hips, I stepped back to admire my work. The cursive red California matched the shade of the car perfectly.

It’s official now, you guys! I declared. Brandon’s fist shot triumphantly into the air and Alex laughed, his head nodding in agreement.

Brandon’s drum set peeked through the clothing and bags that filled the moving van, its sparkly finish reflecting against the light, just as impressive as it was when his parents bought it for his 7th birthday. As we unpacked, the contents were a blur as we pulled them out of the van. The boxes creased from the weight as we stacked contents on top of them on the sidewalk. The tearing sound of cardboard came from the back of the van as Brandon crushed fragile objects, fighting his way to his drum set.

Before we knew it, the van was shaking to the beat of the bass drum. Alex shoulders rose in disbelief, shaking his head as Brandon pounded away at the kit. Hey guys! he called from inside. There’s even less room in here than when we used to have practice in my bedroom.

Maybe Alex and I will grab our guitars and come join you, I suggested.

The truck stopped shaking. Very seriously, Brandon answered, Sorry, man. I don’t think there are any outlets in here.

Our muscles strained to lift the drum set from the van, but it moved under all three of us. My hands slipped against the cool finish of the hardware as we lifted, and a piece of paper brushed my arm. The tape holding the paper onto the hardware curled inwards as I pulled the note off. We love you and will miss you, Brandaboo. I snapped my fingers and Brandon came over and ran his eyes over the note. This is like when my mom used to put note in my lunch, said Brandon, except worse because now they’re on my drum set.

I looked over at my guitar case and frowned at the plain black plastic. Alex caught my eyes and squeezed my shoulder.

Alex had driven away from his home in the van and hadn’t even bothered to glance in the rearview mirror. I don’t think his parents even looked up from the TV as he left. Come to think of it, I wouldn’t be surprised if his dad asked his mom where he was going as he left, his mom shrugging a reply and lifting the remote to bring the television to a louder level.

I turned around and rippled Alex’s shirt as I patted him on the back. Brandon’s parents are such wussies, I whispered.

Yeah, poor Brandon, he replied, his lip turning red from biting it.

My mom had wrapped her arms around me when I’d slid the debit card to my newly opened bank account into my wallet. Her head had bowed towards the floor and found interest in a nearby painting as she threw