Skeptic in Salem: An Episode of Death

by Fiona Grace

  “Well,” Cindy said as she opened the door. “Let’s see what your gadget does, shall we? This is the room where Donnie Browder was found.”

  They entered a rectangular room that ended in a hexagonal bay window. The room would’ve been beautiful if it wasn’t covered in cobwebs and dust. It was also brighter than the entryway and Mia looked up to see a circular skylight. The furniture in the room was neglected. The tall bookcases were filled with crumbling books. Something scrabbled in the walls.

  “I think you’ve got mice,” Sylvie said helpfully.

  “Those little pests,” Cindy said. “First the neighborhood kids try to break in, and now the mice.”

  “Must be a tough sell,” Sylvie said.

  “You have no idea,” Cindy said and pointed to an old leather chair.

  “What does your gizmo say about that chair?” Cindy said.

  Mia swept the area.

  “I’m getting some spikes,” Mia said. “A slightly higher field.”

  “That’s where they found Donnie Browder, lying in this chair with a book open, unconscious. At first, they thought he was dead, but no such luck.”

  Mia held the EM reader over the chair. The magnetic needle swung up, but just barely.

  “Not very impressive,” Johnny said, looking over her shoulder.

  “True,” Mia said. “These readings are within a normal range.”

  “Maybe you gotta be dead to spike that thing,” Cindy said. “Donnie’s just in the nut house. This way.” She led them all through a dining room to the kitchen.

  “The house is built in a spiral,” she said. “See that small alcove? That’s the mud room.”

  “Mud room?” Sylvie said.

  “At the turn of the century, people took their muddy boots off there. The right door leads to the yard, the one on the left to the garage. She pushed open the garage door. Tandy bristled immediately, ears flattening.

  “This is where Donnie Browder left the car running,” she said. “He made sure all the windows were closed in the house. Then he left this door wide open and went to read his book. They say there is a very effective duct system in the house that moved the carbon monoxide up into the bedrooms.”

  Mia held up her EMF reader and the needle moved, spiking. She rotated the reader to test all directions. As Mia looked into the garage, she felt sick, her stomach queasy and her legs weak. The garage was pitch-black, like a sucking wound in the center of the house.

  Suddenly, Mia felt dizzy and began to sweat. She touched her forehead, surprised at her own reaction. Tandy nudged her hand with his head and nipped at her heel, trying to move her away from the dark space.

  “Are you okay?” Johnny said, noticing something was off about Mia’s demeanor. “You look pale.”

  “I’m fine,” Mia lied. The whole thing seemed impossible. She stared at her EMF reader and the needle spiked higher. She’d been exposed to higher EMF readings than this without such a terrible reaction.

  What the heck was causing her to feel so much dread?

  “I can’t wait to see what happens when we get upstairs,” Cindy said, staring at Mia. She led them through the kitchen and up the main staircase.

  Cindy stopped at the first door on the left.

  “This is the master bedroom, where Angie Browder was found,” she said. Inside the room was a double bed, flanked by two bedside tables and a vanity.

  Mia took a reading but the EMF was relatively quiet.

  Next, Cindy walked them across the hall and opened the door to what was obviously a children’s room. There was a bunkbed and the wallpaper was decorated with trains and cars. The room seemed heavy and Mia felt that strange pressure again. The curtain in the window fluttered softly from a draft.

  Then Tandy faced the window and growled.

  “What is it, boy?” Mia said, inching toward the window.

  In answer, Tandy growled and placed his paws on the window ledge.

  Mia checked the EMF reader. The electromagnetic energy jumped. She walked over to the window. The needle spiked again. Then she saw something down in the yard. A small figure stood at the very edge of the woods, dressed in a cloak. That’s weird, she thought, trying to get a better look. Who is that?

  The window was covered in a film of grit. Mia rubbed the glass, trying to clear a visual patch. Was that a child? It looked like a little girl. The figure looked up directly at her, eyes black and haunted. The fear came rushing back, almost knocking the wind out of Mia.

  “Do you see that?” Mia said, pointing at the child standing in the dry grass. Tandy whined and started to lick her hand as Sylvie walked over and looked out the window.

  “I don’t see anything,” Sylvie said. “Where?”

  Mia looked again, but the little girl was gone.

  “A kid,” Mia said. “She was there a second ago.”

  Johnny walked over to the window and looked out. The backyard was wide and seemed to merge into the old abandoned playground. There was a rusty swing set and an old metal merry-go-round, turning slowly in the wind.

  “There’s nothing there, Mia,” Johnny said and looked at her with concern. “Come on, I think you need to get some air.”

  They headed back down the steps and outside into the yard where Graham and Ollie waited. Tandy ran down the steps, trotting as far away from the house as he could manage while still keeping an eye on his human tribe.

  Mia glanced back toward the spooky playground. The old swing set stood with a rusted swing twisting in the wind. Where did that kid go?

  “Come on,” Johnny said and pulled Mia away from the house. “Let’s take a break, that energy was intense.”

  Mia looked at Johnny and immediately felt better.

  “Well, what did you think?” Graham said, rushing over. “Isn’t it great?”

  “I think it’ll make a solid show,” Johnny said.

  “Mia?” Ollie Cooper said. “You look a little faint, is everything okay?”

  “I’m fine,” Mia lied. “Are you sure you want to film here?”

  It wasn’t something she wanted to admit to her coworkers. But the truth was she wanted to get away from the house and never come back.

  “It’s a great location,” Graham said. “Super scary and exclusive. No other ghost hunting show has ever gotten access to this house. We’ll scoop them all.”

  “But I need more time to research,” Mia said, desperate to come up with a reason to back out of the situation.

  “When can we film, Cindy?” Graham said.

  “Let’s see, I have a potential buyer coming tonight, Mr. Fat Cat. After that, the place is all yours.”

  “So, does that answer your question, Mia?” Graham said. “You’ve got all day tomorrow to do your research, then we regroup.”

  “Great,” Mia said, desperate to get away from the place. The real mystery was how she was going to get anything done with her family in town. When would she find the time? Maybe late at night once they retired for the day?

  “Meeting adjourned,” Graham said, happy that he’d gotten his way.

  “Sylvie? Can you come back to the office? I want to go over the scene list,” Jake said and headed for the van with Will and Johnny.

  “No problem, just a second.” Sylvie pulled Mia out of earshot. “Listen, what just happened? Did you see something in there?”

  Mia nodded reluctantly. “I can’t talk about it here.”

  “Meet me at Café Noir in an hour,” Sylvie said.

  “Okay, see you then,” Mia said and walked with Tandy to the car.

  The further away from the house she got, the better she felt. It was like she had been exposed to some kind of dark radiation. And even though EMF could cause all kinds of strange symptoms, she hadn’t seen a sustained spike that would account for the feelings of aversion she just experienced.

  Mia opened the door for Tandy and walked around to the driver’s side. The house drew her attention back like an awful magnet. She looked up and there, on the second fl
oor staring at her from the window, was the little girl from the abandoned playground.

  That’s impossible! Mia thought and began to tremble. She climbed into her car and drove away as fast as possible. How was she going to manage her family with an investigation like this going on? If feelings were anything to go by, the Elmswood House was the most extreme place she had ever investigated before in her life. The idea of coming back to this terrible place took her to a deep well of primal fear. She wondered if this was what people who experienced hauntings felt like; this sick, awful feeling. How would she survive this episode of Bell, Book, and Candle?

  CHAPTER SIX

  Mia walked into Café Noir with Tandy. The restaurant was in that twilight time between lunch and dinner, so she picked a quiet table for two by a green ficus tree and sat down. She felt a deep sense of relief to be back in the spacious, familiar room after being in that creepy house. She wasn’t sure why the Elmswood House had brought up such uncomfortable feelings, or how to tell Sylvie about what she experienced. Had there been something about that house that affected her senses? Something other than EMF? No one else had seen the child in the cloak. Could she have hallucinated? Mia wondered. The thought was unnerving. Her phone buzzed. It was Brynn again.

  Daniel and Reynolds on a rampage.

  If I see another colonial house, I will scream.

  When are you coming back?

  Mia texted back as quickly as her fingers could manage.

  One more hour…

  Hang in there!

  Mia really wanted to decompress with Sylvie before the next round of Middleton madness. Sure, her family was busy antiquing now, but eventually they would come up for air.

  Tandy settled at her feet, relieved to be away from that place too. Mia reached down and rubbed his floppy ears, reassuring him as he rested his head on his paws to nap. Becca came over and Mia ordered a coffee and eased back, enjoying the cheerful atmosphere and the soft murmur of conversation.

  Across the room, Hugh Wolfe spotted Mia as he polished a glass. He made his way over to where she was sitting, his apron dusted with flour. When he smiled his eyes were warm and inviting. The minute he was within distance of the table Tandy jumped up and greeted him. Hugh petted Tandy and smiled at Mia.

  “So, your family was interesting,” he said.

  “Oh, good grief,” Mia said. “I am so sorry about that scene this morning. The Middletons can be high maintenance.”

  “Oh, believe me, I’m used to it,” Hugh said. “Going to chef school in Paris was incredibly demanding. I felt right at home with their vibe, actually.”

  “Well, you were wonderful.” Mia smiled.

  “So, what’s the story? Daniel’s your stepdad?”

  “Yes, my real dad, Frank Bold, left when I was a kid.” The moment Mia said his name, a wistful memory rose up in her mind. She was just a kid the last time she saw her father. He used to take her on outings along the Jersey Shore. She could still remember playing games with him at the booths, tossing bean bags through the clown’s mouth to win a prize, or riding on the Ferris wheel overlooking the sea.

  “Frank, huh?” Hugh said. “What was he like?”

  Mia took a deep breath and sighed.

  “He was funny, charming, and he did some strange things I’d really like to ask him about sometime. He used to pretend to be other people, nothing ever too serious, but he would tell people he was a spy or a Scottish lord.”

  “A mystery man,” Hugh said.

  “You could say that. He used to take me down to the Jersey Boardwalk on the weekends.”

  Hugh nodded, taking in what she was saying with interest.

  “Well, even if Frank was a little odd, there’s nothing like spending time with your dad,” he said. “It’s almost mystical.” He rubbed Tandy’s ears and looked up at Mia with his deep, brown eyes and handsome, rugged face. “Hey, Mia, speaking of spending time with someone, I was wondering—”

  “Mia? Is that you?” said a low masculine voice.

  Mia looked up, and a wave of shock rolled through her body.

  Standing in the middle of Café Noir was her ex-fiancé, Mark Harris. Tall and athletic with light blue eyes and short, tightly curled hair that reminded Mia of a Roman sculpture, he sported the relaxed grin of a man who was used to getting a lot of attention.

  What was Mark doing in Salem? Tandy seemed surprised too. He knew Mark and sniffed his hand, but not with the enthusiasm he reserved for Hugh Wolfe. Mia supposed that this was the dog version of keeping his social obligation but not being very impressed.

  “Mark? Well, this is a surprise,” Mia said, at a total loss.

  “A good one, I hope,” Mark said and grinned.

  Out of all the places in the world to run into Mark Harris, Salem was the last place on earth she expected to see him. The spooky, eclectic town of Salem was diametrically opposed to Mark’s personality. He was ambitious and practical. He aspired to live in New York, to get ahead and climb to the top of the heap. Mia knew his stringent social standards, because she’d run afoul of them in the past. Why would he show up here in Salem?

  “Didn’t you always make fun of the Witch City?” Mia said. “You used to call this place Wacko City.”

  “I’ve developed some new interests,” Mark said and sniffed.

  Hugh Wolfe stood back and stared at Mark curiously. Tandy wagged his tail and watched Hugh, eternally hopeful that someone would take him for a walk.

  “Brynn said you might be here,” Mark said. “It’s good to see you.”

  “I—the thing is that I’m actually meeting my friend Sylvie,” Mia said, horrified at the way Mark was barging into the conversation.

  Hugh extended his hand to shake.

  “I’m Hugh Wolfe,” he said and glanced at Mia, confused as to who he was greeting. “This is my place.”

  “Nice. Mark Harris. A pleasure to meet you.”

  As the greetings were exchanged, Tandy decided to settle back down. He laid his head in his paws waiting for the human ritual to complete.

  “How do you two know each other?” Hugh asked.

  “We went to college together,” Mia said.

  “Oh, we were closer than that,” Mark said. “After all, I was your fiancé.”

  Mia’s cheeks flushed red and she glanced at Hugh in abject horror. This was like one of those nightmares where you were naked and the whole room was staring at you. She shook her head back and forth trying to signal to Hugh that she had no idea why Mark was here.

  “I see,” Hugh said, taken aback.

  “Hey, buddy, no offense but Mia and I need to catch up here—” Mark said and slipped into the seat opposite Mia.

  “Oh no, I told you my friend’s coming,” Mia said uncomfortably. “This is just a strange coincidence.”

  “Didn’t you say you owned this place?” Mark said and turned to Hugh. “I’ll have a cappuccino, please.”

  Mia cheeks blazed red with embarrassment, but Hugh didn’t miss a beat.

  “Coming right up,” Hugh said. “Listen, Mia, I’ll catch you later.”

  Mia recognized the look on Hugh’s face. He was hurt and she couldn’t blame him. Mia was utterly embarrassed as Hugh disappeared behind the counter.

  She had a horrible sinking feeling and a dawning realization at the same time. Her family was capable of the most ridiculous social behavior. They were impressed by status and now that she thought about it, so was Mark. Everything Mia had ever done was eventually picked apart and examined in the context of whether it was acceptable to society.

  Just like his ridiculous itinerary, Mia’s stepfather, Daniel, had a list of professions he thought were acceptable. Mark Harris, who worked in the finance sector, was the epitome of acceptable. They had made their feelings clear that they thought Mark was an excellent choice for her.

  Was this whole “Middletons coming to Salem” thing some kind of set-up? Did Daniel and Madison arrange a trip to ambush her with her ex-fiancé?

  Mia’s
embarrassment started to turn to anger.

  Seated across from her, Mark smiled.

  “You look great, Mia,” Mark said. “Still working out. Listen, why don’t we have dinner—”

  “Why are you here? Did my family have something to do with this?”

  “Of course not! I only found out they were here when I texted Jeffrey.”

  Mia cringed at the mention of Jeffrey, her brother-in-law, the guy who always gave her a hard time every chance he got.

  “I haven’t heard from you in a year and suddenly you just show up?”

  “Why not? You’re overreacting, Mia. Come here, boy,” Mark said and patted his thigh, trying to get Tandy to come over. But the dog was wary and just looked at him without moving.

  “Listen, Mark, we broke up. Remember?” Mia was livid at this point. “You thought my ghost-hunting podcast was ridiculous.”

  “I might’ve been a little hasty; at the time the whole ghost-chasing angle sounded kinda crazy. But things have changed.”

  “Changed? What do you mean?”

  “Well, I hear your little podcast is going to be a TV show now and that’s not silly at all.”

  What was Mark’s game? Mia wondered. Were success, money, and status so important to him that now that Mia might be on a TV show, he was back? At that moment, she realized she didn’t know Mark at all. When they were at university, he’d always seemed so funny. Now he just came off as sneaky and calculating.

  “Nothing’s changed, Mark. I’m still doing the same thing I did before. Whether or not you approve of my career is immaterial to me.”

  Mark laughed out loud. “I love when you get all crazy like this.”

  Mia felt the heat rising to her face. What was that supposed to mean?

  At that moment Becca Wolf came over with Mark’s cappuccino. Mia looked up to see Hugh behind the counter polishing glasses. He gazed over at Mia with a forlorn expression and a wistful smile. Mia wanted to go and apologize to him but she was trapped. The minute Becca left, Mia leaned in toward Mark.

  “Look, Mark, I have a new life now. I don’t know why you came here but you need to back off.”

  “Gosh, I missed you, Mia,” Mark said, ignoring every signal.