Summer Shadows

by Killarney Traynor

  Katy shrugged and muttered, “Yeah.” She wore a set of over-sized sunglasses and hadn’t looked up from her cell phone since she first walked in.

  Sheila gestured to her companion. “Have you guys met the grandkids? This is Katy and Dylan. Katy’s fifteen and Dylan’s nearly fourteen. Guys, Julia Lamontaigne and her entourage: Ron, Dana, and Jack. Say hello.”

  “Hello,” Katy muttered. Her voice was musical, despite her disinterest.

  “Hey, sup,” was Dylan’s response. Dylan was shorter than Katy, with curly reddish-brown hair, bright eyes, and an open, friendly expression. He put his phone away and gave Ron an approving nod. His legs and arms were scratched and bruised. Ron thought he must be a skateboarder.

  “’Sup,” Ron replied.

  Dana seemed put off by them. Jack’s only response was to take hold of Julia’s shirt again.

  “Whatcha getting today? More paint?” asked Sheila.

  Ron wondered how she knew that they had gotten any paint.

  “Just some chair rail to finish off the rooms,” said Aunt Julia. “We’re nearly done with the upstairs. By the way, thank you for telling me about the furniture in the storage room. It looks like we have everything we need now.”

  “Well, I’m glad someone’s using it. My husband had to put up with my rants for days about people being so wasteful. By the way, the last time I was in the house, I noticed a few things that…”

  Julia signed the receipt while nodding her head to Sheila’s stream of talk.

  Unsure of what to do, Ron shoved his hands in his pocket and listened. Dylan began nudging Ron’s elbow. Ron ignored him until the nudging became a painful pinch. He turned, rubbing his elbow.

  “What?” he asked, annoyed.

  Dylan put both palms up. “Easy. I just wanted to know - you guys are in that house on Whipple Avenue, right?”

  Ron was puzzled by the question. “Yeah. So?”

  “So, nothing. I just wondered if you’ve noticed the old Lang place yet, that’s all.”

  “The old what place?”

  “The old Lang place. You know, the cobwebby one that looks like it’s from every horror movie ever made.”

  “The haunted house?” Dana asked.

  “Yeah, that one.”

  “We’ve seen it,” Ron said. “What about it?”

  Dylan stepped in closer to speak quietly. “Have you, you know, checked it out yet?”

  “No,” Ron answered.

  “It’s closed up,” Dana said. “No trespassing.”

  “I don’t mean break in,” Dylan said. “I just meant, have you been up close? They say, at certain times, you can still hear the screams.”

  A cold chill raced down Ron’s spine.

  “What screams?” Dana whispered, turning white.

  “Of the murdered woman, of course. Some of the locals around here say that she’s still there, wandering. She doesn’t know her husband killed her.”

  “They didn’t bury her?”

  “He means,” Katy broke in, “the ghost of the woman who was killed. Come on, Dyl, you’re scaring the kids.”

  “I just want to see if they’ve heard anything.” He studied them, curious. “Have you?”

  “I don’t believe in ghosts,” Ron said firmly.

  “Everyone believes in ghosts, no matter what they say. How about you, Dana? You’ve heard something, I bet. Am I right?”

  Dana bit her lip and looked at Ron for direction.

  Dylan grinned. “You have! What did you hear?”

  “Nothing,” Ron said quickly. “We haven’t gone near the place.”

  “Too scared?” Dylan sneered.

  “No time,” he shot back. “We’ve been helping Aunt Julia.”

  “Well, that’s as good an excuse as any.”

  “Knock it off, Dylan!” Katy said.

  “Only little kids believe in ghosts,” Ron snapped. “And I’m not scared of anything that’s dead.”

  “But you’re afraid of the house,” Dylan taunted.

  “This is stupid. It’s just an old building.” Ron tried to calm down. He had to set a good example for Dana and Jack. “There’s nothing there.”

  “How would you know if you’ve never been near it? You can’t be sure that there isn’t something there.”

  “Neither can you, Dylan,” Katy said. “It’s not like you go and hang out there either, you know.”

  Dylan rolled his eyes and returned to Ron. “Okay, look, here’s the thing - everyone knows that place is haunted. It’s a fact and I want to prove it by getting something on camera. Have you seen anything even slightly mysterious?”

  He seemed so sincere that Ron felt sorry for being so defensive. He shook his head. “No, sorry, I haven’t.”

  “But I have,” Dana piped up.

  Dylan whipped around. “You have?” he squeaked.

  “It was just the wind, Dana,” Ron said nervously. He didn’t want to get Dylan’s hopes up and anyway, there was too much going on to start a ghost hunt.

  Dana’s chin lifted. She was going to be stubborn.

  “It wasn’t the wind. Something moved those bushes. I just couldn’t see who…” she paused for effect, “or what it was that moved them.”

  “When was this?” Dylan demanded.

  “Yesterday.”

  “What time?”

  “Lunchtime.”

  “Ghosts don’t come out in the daylight,” Katy drawled. She pulled off her over-sized sunglasses to reveal large blue eyes. “They only appear at night when everyone’s too tired to be very observant or smart.”

  “No, she could have seen one,” Dylan said thoughtfully. “I mean, there are all sorts of apparitions and they all have their own rules.”

  As Dylan started grilling Dana on what she’d seen, Ron and Katy exchanged glances. She rolled her eyes and he grinned at her. Ron thought the whole topic was silly, but decided to let Dana and Dylan have their chills and thrills and be done with it.

  Katy seemed to think the same thing. She shook her head again and returned to her cellphone.

  Ron was momentarily disappointed in that she didn’t want to talk with him, but he understood that she was a lot older. It was a compliment that they’d even shared that brief moment of sympathetic annoyance.

  Dylan was saying, “We’ve got to stake this place out and watch it. If we can capture something on film, that’d be awesome.”

  “I don’t have a camera,” Dana said, “but Ron has a camera phone.”

  “No, I’m talking video,” he responded. “My grandfather has a digital movie camera at home. I’ll talk him into letting me borrow it. If we all work together on this, we can take shifts and get it all on film. What do you say?”

  “Come on, Dylan,” Katy groaned.

  “It’s not like they have anything better to do,” Dylan shot back. He turned to Ron and Dana. “Come on, guys! How often is it that you have a real live ghost in your backyard? This is, like, epic!”

  Dana looked pleadingly at Ron. He didn’t get her at all. When he’d suggested investigating the house, she told him that he was nuts. Then Dylan suggests it and now she’s for it. To say that she was changeable and confusing would be putting it mildly.

  He hesitated. He did want to investigate the house, and hanging out with another guy would be cool. Ron had been wishing for someone to hang out with, who knew how to shoot hoops and do guy things.

  But there was Dana to consider. She was so easily swayed by other people, and Dylan seemed like he might be trouble. Cops usually didn’t like it when people hung around boarded up houses and, if they got in real trouble, it might interfere with Aunt Julia’s guardianship.

  Of course, except for Officer Wilde, he hadn’t seen a patrol car near the street and Ron thought it was more than likely that they’d neve
r be caught. If he agreed, he risked getting into trouble with Aunt Julia and the law. If he didn’t, he’d look like a coward. It didn’t take a genius to see that Dylan would never let him live it down, even if Dana did.

  Ron was spared making a decision. Just then, Julia glanced at her watch and exclaimed loudly about the time.

  “We have to get going, too,” Sheila O’Reilly said. “Lots to do today. We should get together sometime. Are you coming to the Fourth of July picnic?”

  Julia shook her head. “This is the first I’ve heard of it.”

  “You should definitely come. It’s the highlight of the Franklin social calendar, and we’ll all be there. There are games, food, and a fireworks display, provided it doesn’t rain.”

  “Like it did last year,” Katy said flatly.

  “That was disappointing. You should come. It’s a good way to meet the neighbors.”

  “I’ll think about it, thank you,” Julia said quietly.

  “And don’t forget about my Tupperware party tonight,” Sheila added

  “Oh, I don’t think I can make it. I’m sorry.”

  “No worries. It was nice to have the young ones meet today. We should get them together again sometime, right, guys?”

  Dylan jumped right in. “Totally,” he said. “Actually, we were already planning to hangout so we can trade skating techniques, right, Ron?”

  He shot Ron an anxious look, and Ron nodded. “That, and shoot some baskets,” he agreed.

  “Absolutely.” Relieved, Dylan feigned a toss and then gave him a victory sign. “Got to get ready for the Celtics. They’ll be calling any day now. Okay with you, Grandma?”

  “I don’t have a problem with it,” she said. “How about you, Julia?”

  “No, that’s fine.”

  “Takes a load off of my mind. Do you have any idea how hard it is to occupy two teenagers for an entire summer? It’s more than this old lady can handle. Come on, you two. We need shingles. Later, guys.”

  She walked away. Dylan gave Ron a thumbs-up signs as he and Katy followed.

  Julia didn’t say anything until they were in the minivan and driving towards Concord.

  “Sheila’s grandkids seemed nice,” she said.

  “They are,” Dana answered. “Dylan knows all about…”

  Ron shot her a cautionary look, but she pretended not to notice and continued, “…skateboarding. I can’t wait to try it!”

  “I don’t want anyone getting hurt on the skateboards,” Julia said. “They make me nervous. You can do them for now, but if I say ‘no more’ that’s it.”

  Ron felt irritated. He wasn’t stupid – if they started getting hurt on the skateboards, they would stop right away, on his say-so. They didn’t need hospital bills on top of everything else. And, anyway, when had he ever disobeyed a direct order?

  “Yes, Aunt Julia,” was all he said.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Dana said quietly. But her eyes, as they met Ron’s, glittered with excitement.

  17

  “Grande peppermint tea?”

  It was late in the afternoon, and the youthful barista glanced around the little café with the steaming cup in his hand. He looked new and a little out of place that afternoon. Despite the fact that he’d been the one to take Julia’s order, he didn’t seem to recognize her when she stepped up to claim it.

  “This yours, ma’am?”

  “Yes, thank you.”

  “Cream’s over to the left,” he said, and turned to go back to work.

  Julia held the cup under her nose and took a deep breath. The steamy sweetness was like an embrace from the inside out, and she could already feel herself relaxing in response. Still taking in the fragrance, she made her way back to the little table where her laptop was waiting for her.

  It was a slow afternoon at the bookstore. Even the presence of a local author, with a stack of books and a hopeful expression, failed to disturb the aura of calm. The cool, quiet atmosphere was just the tonic Julia thought they all needed. It had been a long day of shopping.

  After the hardware store, they’d gone to a department store to pick up necessaries like light bulbs, lamps, and seeds for Dana’s garden. Dana was very excited about her garden and kept up a steady flow of questions about planting, harvesting, and whether or not Julia thought Amelia would be interested in gardening with her. While there, they ran into Mrs. Jurta and Amelia.

  “What a coincidence!” Mrs. Jurta beamed. “Twice in one day.”

  “Astonishing,” Julia agreed wryly.

  “We’re helping Mrs. Ojacor,” Amelia said, smiling at Ron. “We’re shopping for the food pantry. You know Mrs. Ojacor, don’t you?”

  They had to admit that they didn’t and went with them to meet her. Caroline Ojacor was a beautiful Kenyan woman with dancing eyes and a wide smile who spent most of her time helping refugees get acclimated to New England.

  “She’s a living, breathing saint,” Mrs. Jurta said.

  Mrs. Ojacor simply smiled and asked Julia if she was bringing the children to the Fourth of July picnic.

  “We haven’t made any plans yet,” Julia answered.

  “Oh, you have to go to it,” Mrs. Jurta said. “It’s the social highlight of the annual calendar. Lots of fireworks and food and fun – your kids will love it.”

  “I’m going, too,” Amelia announced.

  “You really ought to go,” Mrs. Ojacor agreed, and the matter was settled.

  It was after lunch at a local diner, where Jack dumped his soda on Dana, that Julia decided that they needed some quiet time. They mopped Dana up and drove to the bookstore, where Julia could check her emails and the kids could wander around.

  “Stay together,” she’d said when they first arrived. “You can look at the books, but if you damage anything, you’ll have to pay for it out of your allowance.”

  “Naturally,” Ron said.

  “I’m still wet,” Dana pouted.

  “I’m sorry, but we can’t do anything about it until we get home. Why don’t you see if they have the second book in that series you’re reading?”

  They scampered off with Ron taking charge as usual, and Julia settled down to business. It had been a week since she’d had an opportunity to check her email, and she was anxious to see if she’d gotten any replies to the job applications she’d sent out just before leaving Springfield.

  Julia drummed her fingers on the table as her computer connected with the Wi-Fi. It had been foolish of her to wait so long to check. She was either going to have to make this a regular thing or find a way to cheaply set up internet at the house. Perhaps there was a computer at the local library. She would have to look into that.

  Her mail box was full of messages. Julia scanned them quickly, weeding out the junk mail and sale notices. There were several emails from Sherri the real estate agent, three from Julia’s mother, Rachael, a few from friends, and then some from the job application sites. Heart pounding, she clicked on those first.

  To her intense disappointment, all of these emails were form replies: Thank you for your interest in this position. Your application has been received and will be reviewed by a member of our staff. You will be contacted should further information be necessary.

  Julia tried to be philosophical. In this economy, she told herself, it would be a miracle to get a position on the first round of tries, and she could reasonably expect a wait of a few months before something came her way. She had to be patient, which was tough –only two weeks since her dismissal and she was already biting her nails with anxiety.

  She archived the job emails and tackled Sherri’s next.

  Hi Julia –

  Hope you’re enjoying Franklin and this lovely weather! How’s the house? Be sure to send me photos as you finish the rooms. I’ll put together a portfolio and see if we can’t drum up some interest in the pl
ace.

  With regards to your Springfield house, I’ve got a couple who are very interested in moving into that neighborhood. They’re a young family with a two-year-old and another on the way and, really, this house would be perfect for them. I don’t think I’d be talking out of turn if I told you that money is no object for these people. I’d like to give them a tour – they already said that they were interested in it – but I wanted to get your approval first. Let me know ASAP: they’re in the area and leaving shortly. Thanks, toots!

  Julia sighed and took a sip of her tea. Letting Sherri show the house had been a bad idea. She’d done it only to get the persistent woman off her back, but as usual, her inability to stand up to Sherri put her in the more embarrassing spot of having to tell her that she wasn’t selling yet.

  On the other hand, if a lucrative offer did come in, didn’t she also owe financial security to the children? They did have an emotional attachment to the place, but with the job market looking so poor, would she really have the right to refuse a legitimate offer?

  She replied:

  Hi Sherri,

  I’m still not comfortable with selling the place yet. If you think it’s a good idea, go ahead and show it, but please make it clear that we’re not sure about letting it go. Thanks for everything you’re doing for us!

  She sent it and got a reply almost immediately.

  Great, will do. I’ll keep you informed of developments re: Springfield. Hope the kids are enjoying the lake!

  Sherri G.

  Julia made a note to take some pictures of the Franklin house, then she opened the email from her mother. It was a long and chatty message, filled with stories about their Florida adventures. Dad was starting to fish and was hoping to catch an alligator “by accident”, so he could have some photos for the park newsletter. Mom was jogging with some of her friends and had already started losing weight. Both sent their best wishes to the kids. Mom worried that Julia hadn’t written, but understood that she would be busy.

  The last email she opened was from an old college roommate, a woman named Markie Parks. Julia was surprised to hear from her: she and Markie hadn’t communicated since Markie’s wedding two years earlier. Markie had an enviable job at a top Boston advertising agency, a gorgeous husband, and little time for friends. The email was written in Markie’s usual clipped and businesslike style: