Dying is what changed Mary O'Reilly's life. Well, actually, coming back from the dead and having the ability to communicate with ghosts is really what did it. Now, a private investigator in rural Freeport, Illinois, Mary's trying to learn how to incorporate her experience as a Chicago cop and new-found talent into a real job. Her challenge is to solve the mysteries, get real evidence (a ghost's word just doesn't hold up in court), and be sure the folks in town, especially the handsome new police chief, doesn't think she's nuts. Twenty-four years ago, a young woman drowned in the swimming pool...

Black Friday - the official opening of the Holiday Shopping Season - and Patrice Marcum is stuck in the middle of her local superstore with a crying infant, a near hysterical desire to just abandon the diapers and milk she desperately needs, and the snowstorm of the century dumping a half-foot of snow on the parking lot outside. She needs a miracle. The little old lady seemed sweet, but there was no way Patrice was going to leave three-month old Jeremy with a stranger. She looked outside at the snow-covered parking lot and saw yet another distressed shopper's cart topple over in the drifts....

Stanley peered up into the shadows above the stage. There was a colorful blaze of fabric amidst the burgundy curtains and canvas backdrops. He moved closer, trying to get a better view from a different angle. "Hey, what's this play about anyway?" Stanley asked. "Is it a Western?" "No, it's a drama," Rosie replied. "How come you need a dummy hanging from a rope?" She looked over quickly. "No one gets hanged in the play." "Sure looks like it. Up there." Rosie looked up to where he directed and saw the caftan and silk pants ruffling in the slight breeze of the theater twenty feet over the stage....

The last few students climbed through windows, black smoke billowing out of them. The teacher turned to his student. "I'll let you down first." "But Coach, whose going to help you?" "Hey, you're my best fielder, I expect to jump right into your arms," he said. "Just promise not to whip me over to Smith for a double play." The young man, his face streaked with soot, grinned at his coach. "Yeah, Coach, I promise." He took the young man's hands in a tight grip and slowly lowered him out the window. When he had extended his reach as far as he could, he let him go. The student fell into the...

Jeannine appeared in the room across from Mary. Her face was streaked with tears and she was visibly trembling. "Mary, I remembered," she cried. "I remembered and it was awful." The time has finally come for Mary to investigate Jeannine's murder. As all clues point to someone in Bradley's old neighborhood, Mary and Ian move in to the former Alden residence and pose as newlyweds to set Mary up as bait for the killer. With Stanley and Rosie at their side, they expose the darkness hidden in the depths of Bradley's old neighborhood.

Clarissa yawned and rubbed her eyes. "Will I ever meet an angel, Daddy?" she asked, as she snuggled into her pillow. He leaned over and kissed her on her forehead. "I'm sure you will, sweetheart," he said. "You just have to watch for them." She nodded sleepily. "Night Daddy, I love you." "I love you too," he whispered, to the already sleeping child. A fierce feeling of protectiveness struck him as he watched her sleep from the doorway. There is no way anyone is going to take her from us, he vowed silently. Not while I'm alive. The trial for Gary Copper has begun, but was there another murder...

The man smiled at Timmy. "That would be nice of you. Why don't you lead the way?" Timmy moved past the man and started back up the hill. He heard the whoosh of something moving quickly through the air, but it hit him before he had time to react. He felt the impact against his head and his whole body flew sideways through the air. Landing in the dense ground cover, his face was momentarily buried in loose dirt, pine needles, dried leaves and twigs. Lifting his head, he took a deep breath and started to scramble away on his hands and knees. A strong hand caught him by the neck and pushed him...

Gloria Foley turned off the light in the hallway and made her way slowly upstairs to bed. She paused at the doorway of her daughter's bedroom and shook her head. It had been such an emotional day for all of them. She prayed she would have the strength to get them both through these treacherous teenaged years. Slowly turning the knob on the bedroom door, she quietly opened it to check on her sleeping child. Through the narrow opening, she could see the bed was still made and no one was sleeping on it. She opened the door wider and saw the shadow on the far wall and her heart clenched....

Mary closed her eyes in pleasure as the caffeinated beverage slipped down her throat. She'd been trying to cut back, but today she really felt like she needed one. "Excuse me, but that stuff will kill you." The man's voice came from right beside her. Mary jumped, looked over to where the voice was coming from and jumped again. "Oh My Goodness You're naked," Mary said, sliding a stool over to get away from the ghost sitting next to her. The ghost looked casually down at his fleshy and very naked body and nodded, "So it would seem I am," he said. Mary reached across the bar, grabbed a folded...