Free Secret Reflection by Jennifer Brassel

the mirrors the ghost had mentioned in his explanation. While she couldn’t for the life of her see how they were pulling it off, she was sure that one of the mirrors had to contain some clue.
    Glancing about the room, she wondered about the pictures as well. Her mind flashed to some of the movies she’d seen where the eyes of portraits were used as peepholes so the villain could spy upon his victims. The idea might be absurd but at this point she was willing to consider anything. Like architectural plans. If Richard could be believed, the house harboured a number of secret passages and only the Lord knew what else. Perhaps the crew in charge of renovating the manor had some helpful information along those lines. She’d have to talk to the foreman in the morning.
    As she closed the telephone directory, Kelly gave a little sigh. For the first time since the divorce, she felt in command. The sniff of mystery, admittedly ridiculous in nature but a mystery nonetheless, made her feel alive again. This is what she did best, investigating a story. It was what defined her as a journalist, what drove her to the truth. That inner fire she’d thought had died along with her marriage was rekindled and she knew, deep down, that Tom and Nancy had manufactured the whole scenario for that very purpose. The need to confirm they’d done so already dug at the core within her – a core that refused to be truly quashed. She acknowledged the irony with a wry smile. They’d pay for their attempted trickery, but afterward she’d probably also thank them for forcing her out of her self-indulgent melancholia.
    The afternoon sun was just arcing beyond the row of willows when Richard pulled up alongside the coach house. He knew she would be there even if he hadn’t seen the bicycle. She had become too clingy of late and he knew he’d soon have to give Dee her marching orders. A shame really, she was a versatile little thing.
    ‘What are you doing here, Dee?’ he said in a low voice as he pushed the door closed. She stood in the kitchen, wearing nothing but one of his dress shirts, nursing a glass of wine.
    ‘Drinking wine is against the law for someone your age, Dee.’
    She smiled, one of those smug little smiles she wore when she had grand plans for them both. ‘I’ve missed you, Ricky. We’ve barely seen each other in the past few weeks and you promised we’d start making plans once the lease agreement had gone through.’
    Turning, he removed his jacket and took his time hanging it on the coat hook by the door. He kicked off his shoes and left them where they fell before turning back.
    ‘The money hasn’t come through yet, and the bank will be keeping more than expected. It seems a lot of interest accrues when you default on your loan repayments. So … the long and the short of it is … we won’t be able to take that trip for a while yet.’ He neglected to tell her that his bookie, Denny, still hadn’t been paid off and likely wouldn’t be so he’d have to come up with another way to get the money.
    He’d done a little research and discovered that Kelly wasn’t just a high-flying journalist, she also came from a very wealthy family and had a trust fund conservatively valued in the millions, which made her a very good catch for a man in need of liquid assets. He’d decided on a whirlwind courtship. No woman he knew had been able to resist his charm, and he was certain he could make her forget that ex-husband of hers if she’d let him. All he had to do was get a little time alone with her.
    ‘You better not be taking that American away with you instead,’ she warned.
    How the hell did Dee know about Kelly?
    ‘I think you’re jumping to conclusions again, Dee. I barely know the woman.’ He pursed his lips to suppress the snarl that wanted to surface; he hated that Dee always seemed to know what he was thinking. ‘Tom asked me to squire her about and show her the countryside. Maybe help her on her ghost hunt. She just