Ghosted

Chapter 17 POV Charlie

POV Charlie

I got up on Monday morning but I’d hardly slept a wink because I still hadn’t heard back from Mark or Amelia. It was my first day back to work since my trip away and for the first time in my life I really couldn’t face going to the office. I was completely and utterly lovesick and I didn’t want to face anyone. I decided to do some work from home but I had a lunch meeting that afternoon so I put on my suit and headed out to my car. I had gave my Range Rover to Mark whilst his car was in the garage so I thought I better take my Lamborghini. I had bought it the year before and Mark had said I was going through a mid life crisis, even though we were only in our thirties. Although I loved the car at the time, now I hardly ever use it. I was in the drive way and Mark drove up and I was pleased to see if he had tracked down Amelia. He got out and he didn’t look happy. I knew him too well and he gave me a fake smile but his eyebrows were down and I knew that there was something wrong. “Did you find her?” I asked as he approached me and he said “come with me, I’ll drive, we need to talk” he had his hands in his pockets and I knew that it wasn’t going to be good news. My mind was racing, what had he found out? “So what’s going on? Is she ok?” I asked as I put on my seat belt. He took a deep breath as he drove out of my long drive way and out onto the road “ do you remember last year I met that girl, remember I was really excited about her and she stopped returning my messages and calls and I was in a bad way” I nodded my head “yeah she ghosted you and you were gutted but I don’t think that’s what Amelia is doing with me. I think she must have lost her phone or…” he cut me off. “The thing is I wasn’t just gutted I was heart broken. I was crazy about her. She was everything I’ve ever wanted in a woman and she ghosted me. But a couple of months later I met her again by chance and she came back to my house but I was still living with Cheryl and when she found out I’d had a girlfriend the whole time she stormed out. She wouldn’t let me explain that I loved her and that I was only with Cheryl because I didn’t have the energy to end things with her. After that I was the lowest I’d ever been.” I wondered where he was going with this. “Yeah, but your loads better now, aren’t you?” He shook his head “no I’m not better now. I think about her every day” he let out a sigh and I felt awful for him because I knew he wasn’t happy but we were men and we didn’t discuss stuff like this. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you, but you’re like a brother to me, you should have told me that you were struggling” then a thought entered my mind. Why was he telling me all this? Had he found out something about Amelia and he was trying to break it to me gently. Had Amelia lied to me about what kind of person she was? Had it all been a lie? “Mark where are we going?” I asked and he rubbed his hand over his face and undid his tie a little. “The thing is it wasn’t her fault, she had ghosted me the first time because of personal problems but I didn’t know that and I spent two months blaming myself. I thought I had done something wrong or that I wasn’t good enough for her but the second time she stopped seeing me was because I had messed up and somehow that was easier to live with” We pulled up outside a really nice house and I had no idea what was going on. Mark parked the car and took off his seat belt and turned to me. “I want you to know that you’re my best mate” he said and I was starting to think he had lost his mind. “What’s happening, who lives here?” I asked and he said “it’s Amelia’s house. I think that you should speak to her for some closure because I don’t want you torturing yourself the way I tortured myself when she ghosted me” I thought that he was being slightly dramatic because we didn’t know if Amelia had ghosted me, for all we knew she had lost her phone. “I appreciate that you went through a hard time with that girl, but Amelia is different, I’m sure there’s more to all of this” he gave me a long stare and said “Charlie you’re not listening to me, it was her. Amelia ghosted me too” “what?” I said with a laugh “Amelia and I were seeing each other and it was great but she felt guilty about her husband Richard but she didn’t end it with me, she just disappeared” I couldn’t take in what he was saying. “You slept with Amelia?” I felt like someone had punched me in the gut. “When you told me her name yesterday I literally couldn’t believe it, but yeah she ghosted both of us. But I spoke to her last night. I came here because I was angry with her for leading you on, but she said that you two were getting on well until she figured out that we were friends and that’s why she hasn’t been answering your calls. She says that she doesn’t want to cause us any trouble so she just wants to stay away from us but I’ve never felt this way about anyone before in my life. I can’t get over her and I know how you feel about her. I think if we go in and speak to her and maybe we can sort all of this out” he gave me a little smile and I thought he’d lost his mind. “what do you mean sort it out amongst ourselves? What are we going to share her? You have her Monday to Thursday and I’ll get her at the weekend? Are you mental?” He looked at me with disgust “I don’t mean that, I just think that there’s no point in all three of us being miserable. We should go in there and ask her to pick between us. If she picks you then I promise I will step back and let you be together. And I hope you would do the same if she picks me” He had no idea that Amelia and I had deep feelings for each other and I knew he didn’t have a chance with her. “Mark if she wanted to be with you she would have been with you before now.” He took a deep breath and said “Well there’s only one way to find out” he opened the door and got out and headed towards her house. I didn’t have time to think I jumped out the car and I had to rush to keep up with him. We walked up her drive way and there was a really tall guy with jet black hair at the upstairs window of her house and he was looking down at us. “Who’s that??” I asked and Mark looked up and said “that’s her brother in law Robert, he’s a dickhead. He lives across the road, he was Richards twin brother” the guy was giving us both a deathly stare and it unnerved me a little but we had come this far and I was desperate to see her. Mark banged on the door like he was about to arrest someone. He looked like he was taking calming breaths and I have to admit that I loved this guy and she obviously meant a lot to him but me and Amelia are meant to be together. She wasn’t answering my calls because Mark was my friend and it was awkward but she wasn’t with him because she found out he had been a womaniser, and I knew that although he had changed she wasn’t the kind of woman to forgive that kind of s**t. I knew that once I explained that Mark had said he would step aside and let us be happy that she would be back in my arms in a second. When she opened the door she looked stunning. I had missed her so much in those few days that it hurt but now to see her again it hurt even more because she had told Mark she didn’t want to see either of us and here we were ambushing her at her home. She looked shocked and then Mark said “Can we come in Amelia, I think the three of us need to talk” she nodded her head and asked us to come inside. We followed her into the living room and it was sleek and stylish and I didn’t know what to say I just stood there looking around. She had an old fashioned record player that felt out of place and lots of photos on the fireplace. She didn’t ask us to sit down, she just stood there ringing her hands together and I felt bad for her. It was quiet for a moment before Mark spoke “I know you probably don’t want to talk right now, especially if your brother in law is upstairs” she looked at him like he was nuts “no Roberts not here, he’s due here soon for lunch” Mark looked at me and I wondered why she was lying and what else she had lied about. Then she pointed out the front window “see there’s Robert over there” we both looked over and this huge guy with black hair was taking his golf clubs out of his car. He looked over at my car parked in the street and then he went into his house. “I thought I seen the same guy upstairs” I said and she shook her head. I thought that he had probably seen us and went out to give her some privacy whilst she was talking to us. “Anyway there’s no one here, but Maria and Robert are due soon so it’s probably better if you both go” Mark squared off his shoulders “no Amelia, I’ve told Charlie everything because he has the right to know about you and me being together in the past” just then the record player started. “I’m sorry it’s old it does that sometimes” she went over and unplugged it at the wall “what was that song, are you into Disco?” I joked trying to break the tension “that was my wedding song” she said and I could tell she was annoyed with me for making fun of her taste in music. “As I was saying, Charlie and I are obviously shocked that you have been in a relationship with both of us but I totally get that it wasn’t your fault, you’re just as shocked as we are..” Mark stoped speaking because we could hear the same song playing again and this time it was coming from her phone. “sorry that’s my ring tone, I’ll answer it later” when she turned her phone off my phone started to play the song too and when I looked at Mark I could hear his phone was playing the same song in his pocket “it must be like a blue tooth thing or something” she said but it felt like she was lying.

“I brought Charlie here so that you could explain to him why you didn’t call him back after you guys were away together in Spain because..” said Mark and the lights started to go on and off really fast. “I’m sorry, I’ve called an electrician but he can’t fit me in until tomorrow” This was weird but I couldn’t think about that because I was desperate to hear her tell Mark she wanted to be with me. I knew he would be upset but I also knew that we were best friends and that he would get over it. “listen Amelia, I know this is an awkward situation and I appreciate that you said you’d rather not see any of us again. But when we spoke last night I could tell that you still have feelings for me too” The large mirror above the fire place started to swing from side to side and it was really building up speed. Mark looked at me and I could tell he didn’t know what was going on either. “I think you both should go and put all of this out of our minds. It’s been one big crazy coincidence and I think it would be better if we didn’t think about it or see each other again” Mark shook his head “no Amelia, that’s the problem with you. You can’t live your life pretending things are fine and not dealing with your problems. I read Dr Logan’s notes on you and he said the same thing” she took a few steps back and she looked so panicked “what did it say? Did it say I’m crazy because I don’t believe Richard is really gone? That was years ago, I’m better now. I think you both should go right now.” She had huge tears in her eyes and she was taking steps back as she spoke until she was nearly in the kitchen then the kitchen door slammed and it pushed her into the living room and her record player started again. The lights were going on and off and the mirror and the chandelier were swinging like they were about to come off the wall. “What the hell is happening?” I shouted because I’d never seen anything like it. “You need to leave” she said through her tears but the music was getting louder, but I had seen that she had unplugged it at the wall when she switched it off. Then one by one the photo frames flew across the room in Marks direction and I pulled him out of harms way, but there was no explanation for what was happening. She was crying in the corner and the front door blew wide open but it hadn’t been windy outside. Our phones were still playing the same song and she shouted “Stop!” And just like that the music went off and the mirror stopped moving and everything was quiet. I hadn’t even heard an older woman came in “Millie, what happened here? Is it him again?” Amelia nodded her head as the woman went over to her and took her into a cuddle and rocked her as she cried. “What the hell is happening?” I shouted and I knew I had to calm down but this was crazy. “It’s Richard, he can get a bit jealous from time to time” said the old lady and I looked at Mark for a reaction but he didn’t seem surprised and I wondered if he had seen anything like this before because this was definitely a first for me. “so your saying that this is the ghost of her dead husband?” I shouted and I started to pace the floor as Amelia wept. I wanted to go to her so that I could take her in my arms and save her from this but I was terrified that some ghost was going to appear. “Yes it’s Richards spirit, he was very well behaved when she was in Bali, except that his brother Robert came over to borrow his drill and poor Robert ended up with concussion because he dropped a paint can on his head” Mark shrugged his shoulders “maybe it just fell off the shelf” The old lady shook her head “no it wasn’t on a shelf, he said it flew from the other side of the room and then Richard burnt Roberts arm with hot water.” The old lady was scaring me because if this ghost could hurt his own brother he would have no problem hurting me or Mark. “Do you still speak to him Millie? because I do everyday. He helps me find things around the house he’s very helpful” said the old woman but I was in shock and if I hadn’t just witnessed all of this I wouldn’t believe it. “No Maria, I’m not speaking to him, I’m so angry with him that he’s dead and he always does this and now he’s ruined my favourite photo frames” she said through her tears. “Now, now Millie, I’ve told you before that you need to get away from here, you need a fresh start so that he can rest in peace” Amelia nodded her head in agreement “maybe I should stay with Robert until Richard has calmed down.” I didn’t want her to stay with her brother in law because I wanted to save her. “you can stay with me” I said before Mark could and he gave me a dirty look. I had no sooner said it when the mirror started to swing again “oh here we go” said the old lady and I was surprised by how calm she was, because this was nuts. I looked at the mirror and as it swung I seen the outline of a huge tall man standing between me and Mark and I was shitting myself. I couldn’t help but look at him and Mark was staring at him too. “We all need to get out of here” said Mark and although I knew he didn’t believe in ghosts I knew he couldn’t deny what was going on here. Amelia shook her head “I can’t go, I’m sorry to both of you, but I’d appreciate it if you both wouldn’t come back here, you’ve only upset him” it was clear to me that she wasn’t picking between me and Mark, she was picking her husband and I don’t think either of us ever stood a chance with her. “Ok we don’t want to cause any problems for you” said Mark and we both left in silence and I could hear the old lady say “let’s get this lot cleared up” when we got to the front door a huge guy with jet black hair and sunglasses barged by us but he didn’t go further in, he stood at the doorway and shouted “Millie, Maria what’s going on here? I can hear it from across the street” The old woman shouted “it’s your brother again” and his face was pale “I’m not coming in because he’s raging with me for some reason” I couldn’t believe that they were all talking like this was normal. Amelia walked over to Robert and he grabbed her into a hug and although she had told me she was still close to Richards brother and his dad seeing them close together made my insides turn with jealousy. “Dr Logan told me that it was all in my imagination but he’s getting worse” she said and Robert kissed her head “he is pretty bad, I was fixing your down stairs shower when you were away and he trapped me in there and put on the hot water. The bastard burnt the skin off my arm see” he held up his arm and it had a bandage on it. “I could actually hear him laughing as he was doing it” this situation was getting creepier by the minute “I don’t want to leave you here. You should come with us” I said and Robert looked confused “you’re chief inspector Jackman, who called the police anyway? Was it that nosy b***h Janet. She told the all neighbours that I was sleeping with Millie because she had seen me at her bedroom window late at night but she was away in Bali and I was in my own bed.” It made my blood run cold that we had seen him too. “We seen him at the window earlier when we were coming in, I thought it was you” said Mark and Robert nodded his head “well he is my twin brother so I can understand people thinking it’s me, but honestly I was playing golf with my dad. I just got home a few minutes ago” Amelia’s eyes were wide as he spoke “I wonder why I never see him?” She asked and she seemed sad “these police officers are right, you need to get out of here, come and stay with me” she shook her head “no I really need to speak to him on my own” she wiped the tears from her eyes and said “thanks for coming but I’m fine” to me and Mark and I was happy to play along that we were both police that had came to see if she was ok. Robert stepped back outside “Millie come over to my house when you’re ready. I can’t come in he’s going to end up really hurting someone” We walked down the path with Robert and Mark turned to him and said “keep an eye on her will you?” And he shook his hand. “Of course I will” and I was glad that he lived near by because someone had to be there for her. Robert looked around and said “Who’s car is this? It’s a belter” “It’s mines” I said and he gave me a half smile. “I’m sorry about all of this, I think we should get a priest round here with some holy water or something. I thought she was nuts to begin with that’s why I made her go into therapy with Dr Logan but you can see for yourself that it’s really Richard” I could tell that Robert really cared about her but I had to remind myself that they were like family and that there was nothing going on between them. “Yeah, just look after her” said Mark again and we both got into the car but this time I was driving. We drove out the street and I didn’t know what to say. “Can you believe all that?” I asked and he was staring out his window, he shook his head “there’s more too all of this” he said “always the the detective. So what do you think? Do you think that was like a set up and it’s all bullshit, because I believe it was really a ghost” He was quiet for a moment “no there’s no denying that s**t. It was totally creepy, but why would Richard want to hurt his own brother? I can tell that Robert is up to something, I knew it the first time I met him when I was investigating the death of her therapist, Dr Logan” “So what are we going to do?” He let out a sigh “I’m not sure but my gut is telling me that he’s a bad guy” “that’s not what I’m talking about, I’m talking about her. She said she doesn’t want to see us again” I said and Mark nodded his head “we need to give her some space, she needs to get there in her own time” I didn’t know what to think because yes I did love her, but she wanted to stay there with the ghost of her husband rather than be with any of us and there was nothing we could do to change her mind.