3 | T a u n t - a t i o n
Aiden slammed his fists on the kitchen counter. Not only did Jessica manipulate him, she also disappeared with the journal. He paused for a moment then burst out into laughter. He had to be imagining this. There was no way a ghost would have any business with a diary. Ghosts weren’t even real.
He shook away all the thoughts plaguing him. “I’m a nutcase," he told himself, “I’m alone in this big house. Of course I’m imagining things.”
“You’re not.”
Aiden snapped his attention to the voice and saw that Jessica was leaning against the pantry as she flipped through the pages of the journal. “I thought you were gone.”
“I was,” she sighed dramatically, “but I got halfway through this book and realized that I couldn’t understand anything. So, I need your help.”
He raised a brow. “What do you mean you don’t understand? Didn’t you write it?”
She shut the book. “I did. But I’m dead now, and all my memories of my life are gone. All I remember is that this is my house.”
“How’d you die?”
“What part of ‘I don’t remember anything’ don’t you get?” she questioned, raising a perfectly arched brow.
“Well, you look pretty normal. Aren’t ghosts supposed to be a different color depending on how they died?”
Jessica stared at Aiden for a little longer than she intended to. “This isn’t a Sims game.”
He swallowed harshly.
“I need to find out who did this to me and then I can move on.”
“Move on?”
“My death is the only thing that’s keeping me here.”
Aiden raised his brows. “I’m not following.”
“This house”--she waved her finger in the air--“I’m tied to this house because it belonged to me. You’re not the only one who bought this house, you know. People come and go and I’m still here.” She threw her hands at her sides and heaved a sigh.
Aiden dropped his gaze to the diary. “Is the diary tied to the house too?”
“What?”
“I put the diary in my briefcase this morning but when I checked later on, it wasn’t there.” He explained briefly. “But I saw it on the counter when I got home. I was almost certain that I had put it in briefcase.”
She glanced slowly around the room and nodded. “Yes, it does that.” She shrugged as she rubbed her throbbing temples. “I don’t know why though.”
Aiden watched her for a few seconds before he turned away. “This is a lot to take in. I’m going to bed.”
Jessica looked at him wearily as she placed the diary on the counter top. “Why?”
His teeth ground together as he turned to face her. “I’m tired.”
She blinked at him and dropped her gaze to the tile floor. She placed a hand on her hip and forced a smile. “Well, you get some rest. I’ll be reading the diary.”
YOU ARE READING
Diaries of the Dead
Mystery / ThrillerAiden Walker believes in himself. After all, he is the only person he can depend on considering his parents sent him away and his legal guardian died of cancer. Due to his difficult upbringing, making friends was a skill that never came easily to hi...
