So Then There Were None

by Annie Adams

  His features softened. “Thanks, Pam.”

  “Would you care for anything, Quincy?”

  “I could use a Coke if you have any here,” I said.

  “Sorry, not here,” Pam said. “I can run to the kitchen.”

  “That’s okay, I’ll be fine. Thanks.” Pam must have gotten over our incessant amorous behavior. I wasn’t going to question it, I was just grateful she was in a good mood—for the moment.

  Pam sat between K.C. and Alex, and I sat next to him. Audra was on my right. She leaned over and pseudo-whispered, “Did you hear that?” The alcohol fumes on her breath could have dropped a charging rhino.

  “Uh, I don’t know what you mean. I didn’t hear anything,” I said.

  She nodded, her attention wandering elsewhere.

  I turned toward Alex, but before I could say anything to him, I felt an urgent tap on the back of my arm.

  I looked back at Audra who leaned so far off the side of her chair, she looked precariously close to falling on her face. “Hey, Quincy.”

  “Yes, Audra?”

  “Did you hear that?”

  “I didn’t hear anything. What are you hearing?”

  “It’s a weird gurgling noise.”

  “I’m sorry, I don’t hear it,” I said to her.

  “Now,” K.C. said, “we’re almost ready to begin. Everyone think of the question you would like to ask the spirits. Once we’ve invited them to join us, we will go around the circle, and each person will ask their question.” Alex cut his eyes to me. He definitely wasn’t thrilled. I gave his knee a gentle pat and smiled at him. Hopefully demurely, but I don’t know if he read it that way.

  “Pam, could you please bring the goblet and place it in the center of the table? And bring the photo too?” K.C. asked.

  Pam stood up dutifully and went to retrieve the items. She came back with a pretty champagne flute—I guess it was substituting for the goblet—and a framed photo, then placed them as K.C. had requested. My eyes had finally focused in the dim lighting, and I could see that the photo was the same one that had been hanging in the hallway upstairs until Alex and I accidentally knocked it down—more of that incessant behavior of ours had been the cause.

  “Now, let’s form the circle.” K.C. held her hands out for Audra and Pam to take hold and nodded toward us to follow suit.

  Alex made a brave attempt at hiding his annoyance at this step in the process, but anyone that knew him could tell he would rather have been anywhere else in the world at that moment. I took his hand and gave it a squeeze, and with my other hand, I grasped Audra’s very clammy one.

  K.C. closed her eyes and bowed her head, and then began to recite:

  * * *

  “Oh, spirits, as we form this circle, please bless this space.

  Let the light of these lamps bathe this room with protection.

  We ask you to release the negative energy from this place and let us communicate with entities of the Light to teach and inspire us for the Good of All. Please protect this house and all within it. AMEN.”

  * * *

  I thought I heard a sigh from Alex, and started to formulate a plan for our extrication from the séance, but when I looked over at him I realized he’d dozed off. He really was that tired, and I wasn’t that far behind him. I slowly lowered our clasped hands and rested them on my knee. I was sure Pam would keep her grasp on his other hand without paying attention to his level of active participation in the hold. Maybe he could pass as being meditative.

  I heard a gurgling noise off to my right. Audra’s face curled into a grimace. I figured the noise was coming from her stomach.

  K.C. continued the ceremony by asking the spirits in the house to join us. I surreptitiously watched Pam and Audra glancing here and there, possibly looking for signs of ghosts. The slow flicker of the lights lulled me into a feeling of warmth and something that felt like deep focus. K.C. remained quiet, with eyes closed. The silence in the room seemed to magnify, becoming its own entity, growing in intensity until it felt physically uncomfortable, almost painful to withstand.

  Suddenly, a high pitched whistling noise pierced the silence. K.C.’s eyes popped open in a look of startled surprise. She darted a look at Audra. Alex jerked awake and in a sleepy slur said, “Was that a ghost?”

  “Sorry,” Audra said. “My stomach is just tumbling around.”

  “Oh, my sweet lord,” K.C. screwed up her face and pointed it in the opposite direction. She strained to crane her neck as far away from Audra as she could. She lifted her arms up as if in a reflex, but she held strong to the hands she was holding. I had to admire her resolve to keep the circle intact.

  I’ll also admit that I had to stuff down the glee I felt in having Audra do something embarrassing in front of the others instead of me, for once.

  “Keep hold kids, don’t break the circle,” K.C. said in a quiet, determined voice, but, unable to withstand the powerful smell, she smashed her face against her shoulder.

  We all sat in uncomfortable quiet until the cloud passed. I tried with every muscle in my face to resist the urge to laugh. I pursed my lips in a tight, trembling line. I would have kept my composure, but I made the mistake of glancing at Alex. His eyes said it all and I spent the next minute sputtering and trying to catch the laughter that seemed determined to escape me. I too buried my face against my shoulder, biting the fabric of my shirt in an attempt to keep it together, or at least muffle the bursts of laughter that I couldn’t contain.

  “Elder spirit of this house, please reveal your presence by upsetting the water in the glass,” K.C. said.

  The four of us focused on the champagne flute. Beads of sweat had formed on the outside of the glass and slowly trickled downward. I felt similar beads developing on my brow. Someone must have cranked up the thermostat in the room.

  “Oh, for Pete’s sake, Audra,” K.C. shouted. She shook her hands loose and shoved her chair back, away from the table. She stood and said, “Let’s take a break, everyone.” She stared pointedly at Audra.

  “I’m going to visit the powder room,” Audra said, meekly standing and making her way to the door.

  “I’ll go with her.” Pam volunteered rather forcefully. She stood, but she still held on to Alex’s hand. “We need to go in pairs, right?”

  “I’m not going with you,” Alex said as he withdrew his hand from her grasp. It seemed to take a bit of muscle based on the recoil his arm made once she finally let go.

  “I really wanted to make this a fun evening,” K.C. said, her voice sounding like that of the downtrodden, as she switched the overhead lights on.

  “Ghosts are fun,” Alex said, obviously trying to placate her, but not making it believable for one second.

  “Ah, you’re a pal,” she said to Alex. “I appreciate you making the attempt, but I know you’re not a believer. But I am, and I really wanted to communicate with the spirits here before the boat comes to pick us up this evening. Find out why they chucked that rock at you, and why they keep messing with the electricity and—”

  “What boat is coming?” I asked.

  “The one Pam told us about. She said once one of us announces the murderer, a call will be made and the boat will come get the rest of us.”

  “A call?” Alex wondered out loud. “The phones aren’t working, and there’s no cell reception.”

  “When did you talk about all this?” I asked.

  “We talked a while ago, after we left you two. We were looking for Eva, and then Pam found Eva’s charm.”

  “So, are we all in agreement that Pam is the murderer?” I said.

  “Oh, a hundred percent,” K.C. said with conviction. “I just wanted to have my séance before we got to that. I would be the talk of the P.I.S. if I could prove contact with three witnesses to back me up.”

  I clamped my lips together tightly and looked off to the side for a moment to keep her from seeing me laughing at the acronym for the Paranormal Investigation Society she belonged to. I was r
elieved that she kept talking and didn’t seem to notice my inner giggling. “But seriously,” she continued, “Pam’s our suspect, no questions.”

  “Alex, what do you think?”

  “I think that when the two others return, we should finish this séance. I’d like an explanation for getting beaned without any provocation. And I’m told the ghosts were the culprits.” He winked at K.C.

  K.C.’s eyes welled up. “A pal, you are. A real pal.” She patted him on the back—actually it was more of a hearty thwack—enough to send him lurching forward a step to catch his balance. Without pause K.C. set about clapping in a rhythmic pattern, and then she veered off into the different corners of the room, continuing with the clapping.

  Before we could ask she said, “Gotta clear out the negative energy before we can start over.” She walked over to the door and swung it back and forth. “And the air. Thanks to Audra,” she said in an aside while grimacing.

  While K.C. occupied herself with more clapping, Alex and I sat on the small loveseat in one corner of the room.

  “That was very gallant of you,” I said.

  “What, sitting on the couch?” He gave me a knowing smile.

  “You’ve made K.C. very happy.”

  “Well, who knows? Maybe she’s right. There are ghosts here and they don’t like me for some reason. That would explain the rock to the head, the lights not working right, and the rain coming at precisely the moment when I was about to get lucky.” He bumped his eyebrows up and down and I gave him a tap on the arm.

  “I think she’s right about Pam being the murderer, don’t you?”

  He paused for a moment. “I suppose so. I don’t really see Audra as the mastermind type. Or as the type who would follow all the instructions required. Knowing her, and Mike and Christie like I do, I’m thinking they would have given their mystery company friends a heads up about Audra.”

  “Yikes, not exactly a ringing endorsement.”

  “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying she’s not capable of following instructions, just that she would probably choose not to. Kinda’ stubborn, I guess. I don’t want to come across as being mean to her.”

  “You don’t have to sugar coat it. I’ve dealt with her enough this weekend to know what you’re saying. And aren’t you a big meanie?” I said sarcastically. “Encouraging K.C. to continue the séance.” I gave him a knowing look. “I realize there are a million other things you’d rather do.”

  “As long as I’m with you, I’m right where I want to be.”

  Before I could get all emotional, Pam and Audra returned.

  “We’re so sorry for interrupting the séance, K.C.,” Pam said, even though she hadn’t interrupted. Audra took care of that all on her own. It seemed somewhat out of character for Pam to accept part of the blame for something, especially something she had no part of. “Do you think we could try again?” she said meekly to K.C.

  “Let’s do it,” K.C. said. The overhead lights were doused and everyone returned to their same places at the game table. We sat in quiet for a minute or two before K.C. repeated the prayer.

  As I sat, holding hands with Alex and Audra, I felt an unusual kind of calm slowly drifting through and eventually filling the room. And then I had a new feeling, which I can only describe as the flow of energy. It seemed to be passing through me. It was coming from my hands and then going through my arms. It felt the way a drink of hot cocoa on a cold day flows down your throat coating and soothing and warming your whole body. Once the energy passed through my body, it flowed through the other arm and moved on to the next person.

  The energy felt circular, but it moved in both directions, coming and leaving through both of my hands. In that moment, I didn’t try to analyze what was happening, I just let myself feel it, which, looking back is quite a feat. Because my usual self would have felt silly and stopped to look around to watch what was happening to the people around me, or to see if they noticed something strange about me and then the magic would have disappeared. If that’s what it was.

  K.C.’s voice interrupted the quiet, but not enough to ruin the mood. She asked if a spirit from the house would join us and let their presence be known by disrupting the water in the glass in the center of the table. One of the lamps was nearby and the flame—as much as it could be considered a flame, since it was battery operated—flickered in an almost hypnotic dance.

  K.C. implored the spirit once again, this time her voice louder and more bold. It was probably a trick of my imagination, but the candle light seemed to flicker faster, and I could feel it in my heart rate. The two seemed to be beating together in synchronicity.

  I felt my grip tightening in both Audra and Alex’s hands, and theirs did the same. I watched the champagne flute as K.C. implored the spirit a third time, even louder.

  I was caught up in staring at the glass, thinking that the water was going to spill out at any moment. Suddenly something grabbed my attention.

  I don’t know if I heard a sound, or saw movement, but I looked up, directing my gaze at the gap between K.C. and Audra. I didn’t exactly know if I saw anything at first, but then, the dark outline of a person formed in my vision.

  Someone screamed and all the lights went out at the same time.

  No one said anything for a few beats, but then Alex let go of my hand, and after a few seconds more, the overhead light came on. Alex stood next to the light switch, but he looked back toward the table, his mouth open, as if in surprise.

  I surveyed my surroundings. K.C. and Audra, who still gripped my hand like a vice, were sitting at the game table. And Pam was gone.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  "What the hell just happened?" I wondered out loud.

  Pam had just disappeared in the middle of K.C.’s second ill-fated séance. Of all the things I might have expected to happen at such an event, this definitely wasn’t one of them. I suppose I’d imagined a whole lot of nothing would happen until someone got bored and left, or K.C. gave up and tried to entertain us in another fashion. But instead, we had Audra’s embarrassing gastrointestinal distress, which I have to admit—made her seem a little more human—and then there was our prime murder suspect vanishing, leaving Audra as the only remaining bridesmaid besides myself.

  The sudden change from flickering candlelight to full-on overhead lighting in the small room added to the overall state of confusion.

  "Where's Pam?" Audra asked.

  "Pam…? Pam, where are you?" K.C. called out.

  I wouldn't put it past Pam to hide in some kind of childish maneuver to gain attention. After all, a large part of the focus of the afternoon had been on the ghosts instead of on her.

  Once my eyes adjusted to the lighting situation, I took a cursory look around the room. It didn't appear there were any places for Pam to hide, despite her small stature. "She's gone," I said.

  A sputtering sound, like that of a mouth trying to spit out feathers, came from K.C. "That can't be possible. That door makes a loud noise when it opens and closes. You've all heard it." K.C. marched over to the one door to the room and opened it to demonstrate. It did make a loud, familiar groaning noise at the hinges. Alex stood nearby at the light switch panel.

  "Alex, how quickly did you get over here and turn on the lights?" K.C. asked.

  "I don't know, very quickly? I’d say within seconds of the lights going out. I just had a weird feeling right before, and it seemed strange for Pam to let go of my hand, since she'd been squeezing it from the moment she grabbed it. When she let go, I came over and turned the lights on. I think the candles went out on my way over here."

  "I don't understand how all the lights went off at once," said Audra in a muffled voice from her seat at the table.

  "Audra, are you all right?" K.C. asked.

  Audra had buried her head in her arms as they rested on the table. She lifted her head, and her usually pale skin seemed almost transparent now, with a slightly green cast to it. "I really don't feel well.” The muscles in her face g
athered up in a wince and she grabbed her abdomen. "I think Pam put something in my drink."

  "What makes you say that?" K.C. said.

  "She just got really intense about getting me drinks. The entire time we've been here she hasn't been that accommodating. Suddenly this afternoon, she's playing the hostess. I knew something was up, but I was just trying to be nice, and make it through to the end."

  "What do you mean, make it to the end?" K.C. asked. "Do you mean the end of the game? Are you really playing? I thought you weren’t interested."

  Audra gasped, I assumed it was in pain. "I kept toying with the idea of participating, even though I said I wasn't. After a while, I realized if I said I wasn't playing, and just observed, people might let their guard down and accidentally give me clues as to whether they were the murderer or not. And I could definitely use the prize money."

  "Well if you're not the murderer, the only one left is…" K.C. looked over at me her eyes wide, her mouth open in a wordless accusation.

  "It's not me," I said. "We all thought it was Pam, didn't we?"

  Alex, K.C., and Audra looked from one to another, all while nodding their heads in the affirmative.

  "Well if it’s not me,” Audra said, “and it’s not Quincy, it’s got to be one of you two."

  "Oh, don't be ridiculous," K.C. said. "I'll remind you once again, I came late to this party. I wasn’t even supposed to be here. I was invited to stay by the bride herself, but only after I arrived. How would she have known that I was coming?"

  "I can vouch for that," I said. "I made all the arrangements to come and do the flowers with London, the other florist. I spoke a little bit with Christie, but most of that was preliminary stuff. The real details were settled between me and London. Once I agreed to do the wedding and figured out everything that would be needed, I asked K.C. if she could help me, because it was more than a one person job."

  "What about you, Alex?” Audra asked.

  "What about me? I'm just a wedding guest, like everybody else. And it appears to me that all the victims have been bridesmaids. I heard a little bit about the planning in the beginning, but after that I was kept in the dark about details."