Later on, when five of the six girls had been collected Carol collapsed into a chair in the kitchen and said, “Never again am I going to help you out with a party. Those children are like animals! And why is one of them still here? Have the parents forgotten her?”
The little girl that was left was called Lucy and she lived nearby. I asked her who was collecting her.
“My brother, George, is supposed to be picking me up. He’s probably forgotten me, he doesn’t like me much,” Lucy said.
“I’m sure that’s just a big brother thing,” I reassured her.
There was a bash at the door as if someone was trying to knock it down. I opened it to see a sullen looking teenager. His hood was pulled halfway down his face.
“Is Lucy here?” he mumbled.
Lucy was right behind me. “I’m here.” She held out her hand to her brother. He ignored it.
“Hurry up,” he ordered. He turned and walked away, not even checking to see if Lucy was following him.
“Typical teenager,” Carol said. “No manners at all. If I had my way I’d ban them from all shops. And the streets. They always look so untidy.”
I felt someone tapping my back. It was Emily. She looked worried.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her.
Emily said, “Charlotte’s crying. She said that boy, Lucy’s brother, is the one that hurt her. She thinks he’s the one that made her die.”
Chapter 5
“What’s going on?” Carol asked.
Carol didn’t like me talking about ghosts. She didn’t know that Emily could see them too. And I didn’t want her to find out.
“Emily’s just worried that one of her friends has forgotten her party bag,” I lied.
Carol tutted, “Party bags. They’re lucky to get anything. When I went to parties you were expected to bring things, not to go away with things. Children expect so much nowadays.”
Emily went over to Carol and gave her a hug.
Carol looked surprised, “What was that for?”
Emily said, “It’s because I love you so much, Auntie Carol. Thanks for coming to my party. I’ve got a party bag for you too.”
Carol seemed to melt. Her face softened as she gazed down at Emily. I noticed that her eyes glittered as if with unshed tears. That couldn’t be. Carol never cried at anything.
Carol gently shoved Emily to one side and said gruffly, “Thank you, Emily. And thanks for the party bag. I’ve never had one before. I’d better be going home now.”
Carol collected her little pink party bag and left the house.
“That was a kind thing to do, Emily,” I said.
Emily nodded. “Auntie Carol needs lots of hugs. Her heart is cold sometimes, it needs warming up.”
I almost started crying myself. “ Now that Auntie Carol’s gone we can talk about Charlotte. Tell me exactly what she said about Lucy’s brother.”
Emily looked to her left. She said, “Charlotte’s crying again, she won’t stop. I think she needs a hug. Will you hug her, Mummy? Your hugs are really warm.”
I sat down on a kitchen chair and said, “I can’t see her though. Do you think she will come and sit on my knee? Then I’ll try to give her a hug.”
I had no idea if I could hug a ghost, but I had to try.
Emily looked to her left again. She nodded and said, “Charlotte’s walking over to you now.”
I held my hands out as I would if Emily was going to sit on my knee.
I couldn’t feel anything.
“She’s sitting on your knee now, Mummy,” Emily said
I still couldn’t feel anything. Then I began to feel a small pressure on my lap as if something light was sitting on my knee. I also felt a cold tingle in my arms. The space between my arms and lap began to shimmer slightly. Slowly, a figure began to form.
A few seconds later I saw a little girl sitting on my knee. A little girl with long blonde hair. She was wearing jeans and a T shirt that had an image of a band that was popular about eight years ago. Her little arms were wrapped around my waist. She was softly crying.
“Are you Charlotte?” I asked her.
She raised her head and looked at me, tears rolling down her cheeks. I didn’t know that ghosts could cry.
She nodded at me. “I’m Charlotte.”
“Do you need my help?”
Charlotte nodded again.
I held her a bit tighter. I could feel a slight presence. I didn’t know if she could feel me hugging her.
“I’ll help you,” I said. “Can you tell me what you know about George, Lucy’s brother.”
Chapter 6
Charlotte told me that a few days before her seventh birthday she had been playing in the park. The one near our house. George had been pushing her on a swing. For some reason, he pushed her too high and she flew off the swing. She hit her head on the ground and she remembered that it really hurt. George picked her up and then took her home. She couldn’t remember anything else.
“Perhaps if we went to the park you might remember more,” I suggested. “Would that be okay with you?”
Charlotte looked over at Emily and said, “Will you come with us?”
“Of course I will. I love going to the park,” Emily said.
We left the house and walked down the street to the park. There were only a few families around. Charlotte led us to the play area where the swings were. She pointed to the middle one. She said, “That was the one that I was on.”
“Can you remember when this was? What year it was?” I asked.
Charlotte shook her head. “All I can remember is that it was just before my seventh birthday. I can’t remember when I was born, my head feels mixed up.”
Charlotte began to look around the park. “It’s changed a bit. That slide wasn’t here the last time I came.”
The slide had been in this park for the last five years. Which meant that Charlotte had died at least five years ago.
Charlotte gasped and pointed. “That boy! That George has come back. I can see him over there.”
I looked over to where she was pointing. The grumpy teenager was sitting on a bench. Lucy wasn’t with him. He must have taken her home and then come here. He was staring at the ground, hood still covering half his face.
I knew I had no option but to go over and talk to him.
I told Charlotte what I was going to do. I told her to stay close behind me, near to Emily.
“I’ll look after you,” Emily said and she held out her hand to Charlotte.
I walked over to George and sat down next him on the bench. He didn’t even look up.
“Did Lucy enjoy the party?” I asked. The girls stood at my side.
He looked up at me and muttered, “What?”
“I’m Emily’s mum, Mrs Greenwood. You’ve just been to collect Lucy from her party. Did she have a good time?”
George shrugged and looked down at the ground again.
It was always difficult telling people that I could see ghosts. I had mixed reactions. Some people accepted it calmly, most were angry and wouldn’t believe me. I decided just to tell George the truth.
“Did you recognise the birthday banners and party bags?” I asked.
George didn’t reply.
“I found them at a shop that I work at. ‘Second Hand Rose’ in the high street. Have you seen it?”
Again, no reply. It was hard to talk to him with his hood pulled over his face. I resisted the urge to push it down.
“This might sound strange but I can see ghosts. And a ghost was attached to the box of birthday decorations that I got from my shop. The ghost of a little girl. A girl called Charlotte who was soon to be seven.”
George’s head snapped up. He glared at me. “Are you having a laugh? What’s wrong with you? Are you crazy? Get away from me!”
I carried on. “Charlotte has been talking to me. About how she died. She said it had something to do with you.”
George stood up and pointed a finger at me. “You�
��re lying!”
“I’m just repeating what Charlotte told me.”
“If you really could talk to Charlotte then she would have told you that I’m her brother!” George shouted.
Chapter 7
“Her brother? Charlotte tell me that,” I said.
“Because Charlotte isn’t here! You’re making it up.” George began to walk away.
Charlotte shouted out, “ I remember now! George is my brother. He used to watch Princess movies with me when I was little. He used to make me special princess mud pies. He put a Mars bar in the microwave and melted it. Then he stirred it up and gave it to me. He said I was a mud princess and that was what mud princesses ate!”
“George! Wait!” I said and I ran after him. “I can prove that Charlotte is here.”
George sped up and headed towards the park gates. I went after him.
“She said you used to look after her. She told me that you made her special mud pies. Mud pies made from Mars bars because she was a mud princess.”
George stopped. He spun around. “How do you know that? Is she really here?”
I nodded. Emily was at my side. She said, “I can see her too. She’s got long blonde hair, just like a princess.”
George collapsed onto the ground. I ran over to him and put my hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”
George looked up at me. “But there is. If Charlotte is really here then she knows what I did to her. She knows that it’s my fault that she died!”
He began to sob. Great big noisy sobs. People nearby looked at us but I ignored them. I felt a cold hand on my shoulder. It was Charlotte. She told me something. I nodded.
“George, Charlotte’s just remembered what happened. It wasn’t your fault at all.”
I told him what his sister told me.
He sighed and wiped his runny nose on his sleeve. “Did she really do that? But why? Oh, I think know why. And all these years I’ve felt guilty. I was sure it was my fault.”
Charlotte said something.
“Charlotte wants to know why you’re so grumpy,” I said.
“How could I be happy? Thinking that you’d killed your sister, even by accident, is enough to make anyone miserable.”
George stood up and brushed dirt off his jeans. “Can we tell my parents what happened? They never said anything but I know they think it’s my fault that Charlotte died. Things haven’t been right between us since she died.”
“Are your parents at home now?”
George nodded.
I didn’t know George’s parents, Sue and Dave, very well. I talked to Sue at the school gates in the afternoons when we were waiting to pick our girls up. She always seemed friendly and was ready for a chat, but what would she say when I told her I could see ghosts? What would her reaction be when I told her I could see her dead daughter? I didn’t even know she had a daughter that had died.
There was only one way to find out.
“Lead the way,” I said to George.
George walked out of the park. He glanced nervously to the side as if expecting to see Charlotte. I followed a few steps behind him with the girls. I held Emily’s hand and she held Charlotte’s hand.
A few minutes later we arrived at George’s house. His dad, Dave, was washing the car in the driveway. When he saw us he put his sponge down and said to George, “What have you done now?”
George looked down at the ground and muttered, “I haven’t done anything. Mrs Greenwood wants to talk to you and Mum. I’m going to my room.”
I touched George’s arm and said, “I think you’d better stay with me. I might need some help convincing your mum and dad that I can see Charlotte.”
George grimaced, “Okay, if I have to. I know Mum’s going to shout though. She shouts all the time since Charlotte died.”
I followed George into the house. I could hear Sue’s raised voice.
“Lucy! Will you just be quiet and stop messing about!”
George looked at me and raised his eyebrows, “Told you, always shouting. If she’s not shouting at me, she’s shouting at Lucy, or Dad.”
I was surprised. This wasn’t the friendly Sue that I’d seen at the school gates.
I was beginning to get worried about telling her about Charlotte. She was probably going to shout at me too.
We went into the living room. Sue was standing next to Lucy and holding out a colouring book and felt tips. She said, “Can’t you just do something quiet? I’m trying to work.”
Lucy sighed, “I don’t like being quiet, it’s boring.”
George spoke, “Mum, Mrs Greenwood is here to see you.”
“Kate! What are you doing here? Did Lucy leave something at a party? She’s always doing things like that.”
“Hello Sue, I have something difficult to discuss with you, and your husband. Would you mind if I sat down?” I said.
Sue’s brow wrinkled, “This sounds serious. I see you brought Emily with you. Lucy, do you want to play upstairs with Emily?”
Lucy grinned and ran over to Emily. She grabbed Emily’s hand and dragged her out of the room. Charlotte didn’t go with them. She was staring at her mum.
“She looks older,” Charlotte said to me.
Sue indicated that I should sit down on the settee. I raised my eyebrows at George as if to say ‘come and sit next to me’. He did so.
Dave came in to the room and immediately picked up on the strained atmosphere.
“What’s going on? It must be George again. He never gives us a minute’s peace,” Dave said.
George blurted out, “I haven’t done anything!”
“I’m not here about George,” I began. “I’m here about Charlotte.”
The colour drained from Sue’s face and she collapsed into a nearby chair.
Dave folded his arms and glared at me, “How dare you? How dare you mention our daughter? What’s George been telling you?”
There was no easy way to say this so I just carried on. “I think I’ve mentioned before, Sue, that I work at a second-hand shop in the high Street. I recently found a box of party celebration things. They were for a seven-year-old girl. Do you know anything about them?”
Sue shook her head.
Dave looked at his wife and said, “Those might have been Charlotte’s things. Do you remember that we bought some party stuff a few weeks before her birthday? Then after what happened, I gave them to Rose at the second hand shop. I thought someone else could use them. It seemed a shame to throw them away.”
Sue’s face hardened, “You never told me that! You should have just thrown them in the bin.”
I went on, “Anyway, I took the box home for Emily’s party. You might find this
hard to believe but I can see ghosts, and the ghost of Charlotte is here with me now.”
Nobody spoke. There was an ominous silence, like the silence you get just before thunder.
Chapter 8
Sue leapt to her feet and screamed, “What a horrible thing to say! Get out of my house!”
George jumped up and grabbed his mum’s arm. He shouted, “It’s true! She can see Charlotte. Charlotte has told her things that only me and her know, things we used to do when she was alive. If you stop shouting then Mrs Greenwood can explain everything.”
Dave looked down at me and said quietly, “Is this true, Kate? Can you see Charlotte?”
I nodded. “Charlotte is here with me now. She says she likes your washing T-shirt. She remembers that she bought it for you as a birthday present.”
Dave unfolded his arms. He gave a little smile and said, “That’s right. I couldn’t bear to throw away this old T-shirt so I wear it when I’m washing the car. Is she really here with us?”
“No she isn’t!” Sue shouted. “How can she be? She’s dead!”
Charlotte said something to me. I looked up at Sue and said, “Charlotte wants to know why you’re angry. She wants to know where your smile has gone. And she called you mum-mum.”
Sue’s hands flew to her chest, “Mum-mum. That’s what Charlotte called me. She couldn’t say mummy properly when she was young and the name just stuck. I can’t believe she’s here. Are you sure? Why would she come here anyway?”
“I think she wants to talk to you about the swing accident.”
George sat down next to me again and said, “It wasn’t my fault that she fell off the swing.”
Sue sat back down, Dave joined me on the settee and said, “Has Charlotte told you exactly what happened that day?”
I said, “She told me that George took her out to the park to play. She had been pestering him all morning till he gave in.”
I looked over at George. He was smiling at the memories.
“Charlotte said she loved going on the swings because she felt as if she could fly.”
George said, “She always wanted me to push her higher and higher. I told her that it was too dangerous and that she might go flying off the end of the swing.”
“She knows that,” I said. “And on that day she really thought she could fly and when you stopped pushing her higher she decided to throw herself off the swing to see if she could actually fly.”
Sue gasped, “She threw herself off? It wasn’t George’s fault? I don’t know what to say.”
George put head in his hands and said, “I can still remember the sound of her head hitting the ground.”
“Charlotte can’t remember much of what happened after she left the swing,” I said.
“I picked her up and ran home with her,” George said. “Dad was out at work so I told Mum.”
“But I was too busy to look at her properly. I told her to go and lie down on her bed until she felt better. I didn’t realise that she’d banged her head. She was always falling over and having accidents. She seemed fine when George brought her in, she asked me when tea would be ready. I’ve relived that terrible day a thousand times.” Tears trickled down Sue’s face as she spoke. “And, then when I went to check on her later, it was too late. She was dead. I thought she was asleep at first, she was smiling.”
Dave said, “I’ve told you not to feel guilty, Sue. You didn’t know how bad she’d been hurt. I would have probably done the same. And George, we always said it was an accident, we never blamed you.”
The 7th Birthday Party: A Ghost Mystery Story (Second Hand Ghosts Book 3) Page 2