The Haunted Bones (A Lin Coffin Mystery Book 3) Read Free Page A

couldn’t get out of. Lin even went with him once when everyone else was occupied.
    “Is his anxiety getting any better?” Lin swallowed a bite of her meal.
    “No.” Viv shook her head. “He’s fine with houses that are occupied. The empty homes are the ones that cause the issue. They remind him too much of the house where he found the body. And he still won’t set foot on that street either.” Viv scratched the ears of her cat who had returned from the back field with Nicky. “That’s why I hadn’t eaten yet.”
    Lin got up from the deck chair and went inside the house. She brought out some cookies that she’d made the day before. Even though they both had to get up early in the morning for work, the girls made tea and sat outside a while longer enjoying the warm August air, the peaceful night, and the tasty cookies.
    Neither one said so, but they each had the feeling that “peaceful” wasn’t how they’d be describing the days ahead.

3
    L in and Jeff sat on a blanket eating their lunches in the shade of a huge Maple tree at the wooded edge of a small island cemetery. Jeff, a carpenter and handyman, was working in the area where Lin had just finished up mowing and trimming a client’s lawn when they texted each other and decided to meet up for lunch. Lin handed Nicky a carrot dipped in hummus and he eagerly chomped it.
    “I didn’t know dogs liked carrots and hummus.” Jeff chuckled as he leaned against the trunk of the tree.
    The day was hot and humid and they both appreciated the coolness of the shady spot. Lin handed Jeff a plastic bowl and a bottle of water from her small cooler. He poured the water into the dish and set it down for the dog. As Lin and Jeff munched on their sandwiches, she told him about visiting the new landscaping project last evening with Leonard.
    “A bone? Chances are it’s an animal.” Jeff took a long swig from his water bottle. “I hope it doesn’t take them long to determine that it’s not human so you can get started on the yard. There’s a lot to do on that job.”
    Lin nodded in agreement. “Even a couple of days of waiting will set us back. We really need to keep on schedule. It’s a new business and we want to be sure to make good impressions on our clients.”
    Lin had not shared any information about her ability to see ghosts with her new boyfriend. Even though she wished he knew, she wasn’t yet ready to tell him, so she couldn’t reveal that she had seen the ghost of Emily Coffin while at the farmhouse. She would have liked to talk things over with him and express her worry about seeing Emily right after discovering the bone and what it might mean.
    “Are you okay?” Jeff asked wondering about Lin’s more subdued demeanor.
    Lin smiled. “Yeah, just thinking about how to adjust our schedule to keep all of our projects on track.” She offered Jeff one of the cookies she’d made and tried to shake off her concern about the bone. Lin rested back on the blanket and looked up at the sky between the branches of the tree. “We should meet for lunch more often.”
    Jeff leaned down and kissed the pretty brunette. “I agree. It’s nice to see you in the middle of the day.”
    “This is such a peaceful spot.” Lin could feel the tension draining out of her muscles. Nicky settled down on the blanket next to her. Lin had contracted with the manager of the small town cemetery to mow and trim and plant and take care of the flowers around the entrance. It was one of the very first clients she acquired when she moved back to Nantucket in June. The mid-island spot was surrounded by mature trees and had shady lanes running in a criss-cross pattern leading to nicely-tended plots. It was one of the oldest cemeteries on the island. Because of its vegetation and position on a bluff, the cemetery was often cooler than other spots in the area. There were often people from the nearby neighborhood taking walks or pushing strollers along the lanes.
    “I learned to drive