by Wendy Wang
“There is no but!”
Haley made an indignant sound in the back of her throat. “That’s easy for you to say. You’re not the one being haunted.”
Emma sighed. “We have been over this. There is no such thing as ghosts.”
“Do you know how many times I’ve had to replace my bathroom mirror this year alone because of her?”
“Haley—” Emma sighed, sounding impatient.
“She’s touching me now. Waking me up.” Haley put her head in one hand and leaned her elbow on the black granite counter. She closed her eyes. “She jerks my leg in the middle of the night, pulls off the covers. I haven’t slept through the night in months.”
“What are you talking about? She can’t touch you, Haley. She’s dead and buried, right where we left her.”
Haley’s voice shook, and she took another gulp from her Jack and Diet Coke. “I know but —”
“Haley, how much have you had to drink tonight?”
“What does that have to do with anything? I've seen things. Okay? Weird, frightening things.”
Haley could almost hear Emma rolling her eyes. “Haley. Come on now. You are spooking yourself.”
“I know what I've seen.”
“Sweetie, you need to lay off the Jack and Diet Coke.”
“I can prove it. Just hold on a second.” Hayley thumbed through her pictures and found the one she needed. She attached the photo to a text and pressed send. A shiver crawled over her shoulders. “I just sent you a picture.”
Hayley heard Emma shifting her phone in her hand. Then silence stretched between them.
“Is this a joke?” Emma’s tone was sharp, but Hayley knew she was just scared. At least she hoped Emma was scared. Maybe now she’d come. Maybe she’d help Haley convince the others to come too.
“No. It’s not a joke. It’s not photoshopped either. I took that not more than half an hour ago,” Haley said.
“It’s not real,” Emma muttered.
“Yes, it is.” Hayley couldn’t stop herself from being defensive.
“Sweetie, I don’t know how you did this. Or why but you need some help.”
“That’s why I am calling you. I need you to help me. Please Emma. Help me.”
“Fine. I'll have to rearrange some things at work,” Emma whispered.
“Oh, my god, really? Thank you so much Emma.” Haley's shoulders slumped and her eyes stung with tears. Help was coming.
“I'll text you tomorrow,” Emma said.
“Thank you. Thank you so much for believing me.”
The line went silent, and Haley buried her face in her hands and wept.
Charlie awoke and reached for her phone. She sat up in bed and quickly thumbed through her contacts for Jason’s number. The phone rang twice before he picked up.
“Tate.”
“Hey, it’s me.”
“What’s going on? Everything all right?” His tone changed from grumpy to concerned.
“I had a dream about Haley Miller. She's not quite as innocent as we thought.”
“What do you mean?”
“She was being haunted, and she knew who was haunting her.”
“Okay.” Jason's breathing evened out. “Who was haunting her?”
“Well, she didn't exactly say her name.”
“All right. Anything else?”
“I can’t explain it, but all her feelings about this spirit were ambiguous.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean she felt scared of the person haunting her, but there was also this underlying guilt.”
“Guilt? Like she’s responsible for this ghost?”
“Yes and no.”
Jason sighed and the phone crackled. She could almost see him rubbing his face, the way he did when he wanted to believe her but what she was telling him was hard for him to embrace. “Oh-kay. Tell me why it’s both?”
“I think she felt guilty. Remorse even. But it’s almost like if she wasn’t being haunted, then she wouldn’t have given this person a second thought.”
“Nice,” he said, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
“Haley was talking to another woman. Someone named Emma.”
“Uh huh.” He sounded almost as if he were falling back asleep. “Emma is a pretty common name. Not a lot to go on.”
“No, I know. I'm sorry I didn't see more. I think they may have caused the spirit's death. Maybe that’s why she’s haunting them.”
“Wait.” He grunted, as if he were sitting up “Did they say that?”
“Not exactly.”
“What exactly did they say?”
Charlie recalled the dream for him giving him as much detail as she could remember.
“Well, that makes sense now.”
“What does?”
“We got the autopsy report back this afternoon. Haley’s blood alcohol level was point one one, and for someone who was only thirty-one years old she pretty much had an alcoholic's liver.”
“Wow,” Charlie said softly. “That's really sad.”
“Yeah.”
“So, do you think you have enough to go on? To find this Emma person?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. I’ll go back through her social media to see if I can find an Emma. Her phone was locked so I’m still waiting on phone records and texts from the carrier.” He sighed. “Call me if you have another dream. Especially if you learn the name of the dead girl. The other dead girl I mean.”
Charlie chuckled. “I will.”
Charlie stared at the computer screen on her desk, listening to the customer drone on. Her cell phone vibrated on the under-mount keyboard tray, distracting her from her phone call. She glanced down at it and could see it was a text but couldn't quite read it.
“Yes ma'am,” Charlie said into her headset. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”
“No, I think you've answered all my questions,” the customer said.
“Well thank you for calling and you have a wonderful day.” Charlie pressed the end call button on her phone, making herself available to take another call. She looked up and glanced around the call center making notes of where the supervisors were. Kaylee was at the supervisor-of-the-day tower feeding numbers into a spreadsheet for the hourly reports. Charlie didn't see any of the others. They may have been in their offices meeting with their reps about performance or any number of issues that came up daily. She picked up the cell phone and held it at an angle where she could at least see the text better.
Jason's name displayed across the top.
Call me when you've got a minute. I think I may have found Trini.
Charlie's heart beat a little faster. She hadn't stopped thinking about the girl since she first met her. If she hadn't been interrupted by Tom Sharon in the woods a couple of days ago, Charlie would've been able to contact her instead of having to rely on Jason. She quickly texted him to let him know she would call him on her break in 45 minutes. She pushed her phone back under the cover of her desk.
“You know one of these days you're gonna get caught.” Brian gave her a wry grin. Charlie frowned and tipped her head to the left. She spotted his phone on his keyboard tray. The silver metal of his smart phone winked at her. She rolled her eyes.
“And that is the pot calling the kettle black,” she muttered.
“Pot meet kettle.” Brian held out his hand like he was going to shake hers, but jerked it away quick to answer his phone.
She heard a beep in her ear indicating she had a call.
“Thank you for calling Bel-Com Credit Union. How can I help you today?”
“Well,” Jason chuckled into the phone. “I think I found Tom Sharon.”
“You did?” She said incredulous. “That was fast.”
“I just sent you a text with a photo attached. Let me know if that’s him or not.”
Charlie checked her texts and found Tom Sharon’s driver’s license photo staring at her. “Yep. That’s him. So, is he wanted for murder or anything?”
“What?” Jason laughed. “Why would you ask me that?”
“Because when I met him, I sensed that he was surrounded by death.”
Jason laughed again, harder this time.
“Oh my god, it’s not that funny,” she grumbled.
“No, you’re right,” Jason said, trying to get himself under control. “It’s just he is surrounded by death. Or at least dead people.”
“Huh?” Charlie said, reaching into the large refrigerator in the break room. She pulled out her lunch bag and took it to a deserted table near the back wall. It was after 1:30 PM, so she almost had the break room to herself. Only a couple of women from another department lingered near a vending machine, debating whether to get chocolate sandwich cookies or a granola bar. Charlie shook her head. Neither was a good choice in her opinion.
“The Tom Sharon you just identified is one of the sons of Sharon and Sons funeral homes.”
Charlie sat down hard in the plastic chair and put her head in her free hand. She could almost hear him smirking. “You have got to be kidding me.”
“Nope.”
“Well, no wonder he looks so damned familiar. That’s where we had Bunny’s funeral.” Charlie made an indignant grunt in the back of her throat. She opened her lunch bag and pulled out her salad in a jar. Jen had whipped up a weeks’ worth of salads for her. This one had buffalo chicken in it. At the bottom of the bag, she retrieved a small container of ranch dressing and a yogurt cup.
She twisted off the top to her jar and poured the contents onto a paper plate. “I still think it's weird that he just appeared out of nowhere.”
“Maybe. But my guess is you were so engrossed in trying to find this girl you just didn't notice. I've seen you do that before when you’re concentrating. Sometimes you don't even hear me.”
Charlie frowned. “Was that all you had for me? I thought you had information about Trini.”
“Yeah. I found one girl matching her description with the name Trini. Trini Dolan went missing in 1977 when she was thirteen years old. Went out on her bike one day and just didn't come home. The police thought she was a runaway.”
“Why?” Charlie opened her yogurt and licked the creamy bit clinging to the top.
“It was a pretty common assumption at the time. They never had a break in the case that I could find. No one ever saw her again,” he continued.
“Any chance I could get a look at the file?” Charlie stuck a plastic spoon in her yogurt carton and stirred up the fruit from the bottom.
“Sure. Are you gonna be home tonight?”
“Yes. But come to the cottage, not my uncle’s house.”
“Have you officially moved in there?”
“Mostly. Jen and I moved a bunch of my boxes last night.”
“Great,” Jason said. “I'll drop by tonight.”
Chapter 8
Charlie walked into the Kitchen Witch Café and looked around. The small restaurant was already bustling with the dinner crowd. She spotted a table for two near the lunch counter and took a seat. She grabbed an unused menu from the nearby counter and began perusing the specials listed inside. She spotted Jen near the register and waved. Her pixie-sized cousin waved back and finished ringing up a customer, before picking up an order pad and heading toward Charlie’s table.
“You know you don't have to eat here in the café every night,” Jen teased and sat down across from Charlie. “You're still welcome to come eat dinner with us at the house.”
“I like eating here. I like the hustle and bustle.” Charlie glanced around and took a sip of her iced tea. She closed the menu and glanced at the clock hanging on the wall behind the lunch counter. “What are you still doing here? Don’t you have to pick up Ruby?”
“Nope. Daddy picked her up. Evangeline's having to leave early this week so I'm staying later.”
“Is everything okay?” Charlie asked.
“I think so. It's sometimes hard to tell. She wants to be all up in our business but she doesn't want to share anything,” Jen said.
“Well, it's probably hard for her to think of us as anything but kids.”
Jen chuckled and rolled her eyes. “I don't think that's it. I think she has a boyfriend or girlfriend or something.”
“You know everything doesn't have to be about boyfriends or husbands or girlfriends. Maybe she just needs some time to herself. She has a lot of demands on her between the business and the family. I mean we’re not easy,” Charlie said.
“You're probably right,” Jen said frowning. “I just wish she would let me in. Maybe I could help.”
“I know.” Charlie tapped the top of Jen’s hand. “If you want we can do some sort of quasi-intervention. But we have to get Daphne involved. She may know something we don’t.”
Jen looked up at her. The blue tips of her bangs glimmered in the overhead light. “That’s probably a good place to start.”
“So, you gonna take my order or what?” Charlie teased.
Jen took an order pad from her apron and placed it on the table. The bell over the front door rang causing them both to look up just as Tom Sharon walked into the cafe. He stopped and glanced around as if he were looking for someone. His gaze settled on hers.
“Oh crap,” Charlie muttered.
“Well, hello gorgeous,” Jen said doing her best Fanny Brice impersonation. Tom smiled, showing his gleaming white teeth amid his dark brown beard. He wore a navy pinstripe suit and a purple satin tie. Charlie frowned. There was something almost too perfect about him.
“What's with the suit?” Jen said under her breath.
Charlie whispered. “I think he’s a mortician.”
“Oh.” Jen scrunched her nose. “Well that’s interesting.”
“Hello Charlie.” Tom outstretched his hand as he approached the table. Charlie stared at it and when she didn’t return his gesture, he dropped his hand to his side. Had he not learned his lesson the first time? “Do you live here in town?”
“No.” Charlie frowned. “Not exactly. What are you doing here?”
“God Charlie,” Jen half-laughed, half-scolded. “You’ll have to excuse my cousin. Evidently, she’s saving her people skills for work. I’m Jen, by the way. Jen Holloway.”
“Nice to meet you, Jen.” Tom offered his hand and Jen hopped up from her seat and took it. “Tom Sharon.”
“Oh – Sharon. Like Sharon and Sons?” Jen asked. “I saw the sign for the new branch coming to work.”
“Yes.” He smiled and Charlie watched Jen’s face for any sign that she might sense something about him. When Jen returned his smile and then cast her gaze toward Charlie, her blue eyes full of expectation and a little scheming, Charlie’s heart sank. Surely Jen could feel it too? There was something about Tom Sharon. Something she couldn’t quite figure out. It was felt more than seen and it flitted around the edges of her brain, like vapor, disappearing completely if she tried to look at it squarely.
“Y’all just opened up, right?” Jen asked.
“Yes, we did. I’m running this office,” Tom said.
“It’s always good to meet another business owner,” Jen said. “Make sure you join the Chamber of Commerce. I’m on the recruitment committee by the way.”
“This is your restaurant?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Wonderful. I’m not much of a cook, so you’ll probably see me here a lot.”
“Great!” Jen said. Tom shifted his attention to Charlie, his golden-brown eyes fixing on her. “I’m really glad we ran into each other. We got off on the wrong foot the other day, and haven’t been able to get it out of my head.”
“Don't worry about it. It's not a big deal.”
“I was rather hoping I could make it up to you.”
Jen cleared her throat. Charlie glanced at her cousin. Jen’s dark eyebrows were raised and she had a mischievous light in her eyes.
“Well, since you’re here, you may as well have dinner.” Jen chimed in. “I’m sure that Charlie would lov
e to have the company.” Charlie’s eyes widened, her cheeks filling with heat. “Wouldn't you, Charlie?”
“Sh-sure,” Charlie stuttered and threw her cousin an I’m-going-to-kill-you glare. She called up a smile. “Of course, please join me.”
Tom sat down across from her and placed his hands on the table. Jen picked up Charlie's menu and handed it to him. He opened it and smiled. “What's good?”
“Everything.” Jen grinned. “But of course, I’m a teensy bit biased.”
“What would you recommend, Charlie?” Tom’s gaze bounced from Jen to the Charlie.
“The jalapeno bacon and avocado burger is to die for.” Charlie narrowed her eyes, waiting for him to take the bait. “If you can stand the heat.”
“I can.” Tom grinned and closed the menu. “Sounds great. I’ll have that.”
Jen’s smile widened but her eyes tightened. “You sure? It’s pretty spicy. I can always make it without the bacon. Not everybody has Charlie’s iron stomach.”
Tom fixed his stare on Charlie. “If Charlie can stomach it, so can I.”
Jen sighed and wrote the order in her pad. “Alright then. Do you want fries with that?”
Charlie leaned forward and folded her hands on the table, weaving her fingers together. “Do you trust me?”
He narrowed his eyes. “I have no reason to distrust you.”
Charlie looked at Jen. “Add the Cajun onion rings, extra spicy.”
“Sounds perfect,” Tom said.
“You sure about that?” Jen’s voice arced, but the smile never left her lips.
He gave her one quick nod. “Yes. And some iced tea please.”
Jen scribbled it down in her order pad shaking her head. “Okay, but I’m adding them for you too, Charlie. I can't very well in good conscience let him suffer alone. Now do you want your usual?”
“Yes please,” Charlie said.
“What’s the usual?” Tom asked.
“Soft shell crab sandwich. It’s dredged in hot sauce, breaded and deep fried and served with habanero pepper added to the tartar sauce. Can you add some extra sauce please?”
“You got it. I’ll bring a fire extinguisher in case you two burst into flames,” Jen said. She turned and headed toward the kitchen with their order.