Free A Walk on the Haunted Side (Haunted Tour Guide Mystery Book 2) by Rose Pressey Page B

I quickly started talking again so that she didn’t have a chance. If she wanted to mention it she would have to interrupt me to do so. The other people seemed to be putting a distance between her and them. I couldn’t say that I blamed them because I wanted to do the same thing. I just needed to get her out of here.
    Alas, I’d thought I was going to get away from the tour tonight without Sandra even speaking to me, but no such luck. As soon as the other tourgoers left, she rushed to my side and started asking more questions. I didn’t want her there, but now would be my chance to ask about the ticket.
    “I hope you don’t mind if I ask you some questions.” She eyed me up and down.
    She didn’t even give me a chance to answer before she started talking again. Why did she ask when she was just going to do what she wanted anyway? It was as if she wanted to be as creepy as possible. Maybe that was her way of scaring people. Well, it was working.
    “Which one of Hank’s books was your favorite?” she asked.
    The more she talked the more uncomfortable I felt. “I’m not sure,” I answered without looking over at her. 
    “How can you not know? I know which one is my favorite. Of course all of them are my favorites. He never wrote a bad book as far as I’m concerned.” She waved her hands through the air.
    I would just let her rattle on and maybe she would get tired. Maybe I could sneak into a building and get away from her. If I went into the tavern and it was crowded I could probably get away from her. Maybe I could hide behind the bar. Tammy would let me sneak back there.
    I walked away from the cemetery toward the street. Maybe she would take the hint and realize that the tour was over. I hurried my steps, hoping that she wouldn’t be able to keep up.
    With her long legs, she had no problem keeping up with me. And now I was out of breath. She didn’t act as if she’d even made any extra effort. As soon as she stopped talking, I would tell her I had to go. She just moved from one topic to the next without taking a breath. I walked as quickly as possible, but Sandra easily kept up with my pace, still asking questions about Hank’s books.
    I wasn’t even answering her at this point. I just wanted her to leave me alone. If she didn’t stop following me soon, I would have to ask her to leave. I hated to be rude, but since the tour was over, she couldn’t expect to come home with me. She hadn’t even mentioned Hank’s murder, which I thought was odd. I knew that it was on her mind. Or maybe she was trying to forget about it.
    As I whipped around to see if I could get away from her, I smacked into someone’s hard and muscular chest. The soft feel of soft cotton rubbed against my cheek. A whiff of spicy cologne tingled my nose. It was just a hint, not too strong .  
    Brannon grabbed my arms. “Are you okay?”
    Once I caught my breath, I said, “Yes, I’m fine.”
    He looked over at Sandra. “Is everything okay?”
    “I was just asking questions.” She pulled the scarf closer to her face, as if that would hide her.
    “So the tour is over now?” Brannon eyed Sandra.
    I nodded. “Yes, and I think Sandra was just leaving, right?”
    I took the opportunity to let Sandra know she should leave. Brannon knew what I was doing.
    “You should let Ripley get home now,” he said, looking at Sandra.
    She shrugged. “I suppose we can discuss this later.”
    No! I didn’t want there to be a later. I’d had enough of her creepy talking.
    I knew that Brannon sensed my uneasiness. It was coming off me in waves. Sandra stared for a second, but then turned and walked away.
    I released a sigh of relief. I didn’t know what would have happened if Brannon hadn’t come along when he did. She would have probably followed me all the way home. I hoped that she didn’t show up tomorrow night. Or at the library tomorrow. Based on her last comment, I figured I hadn’t seen the last of her.
    “Thank you for coming to