by Bobbi Holmes
“Oh bother,” Walt muttered with a sigh as he closed his book and tossed it on the sofa next to him.
“So this is the infamous attic?” As she entered the room, Agatha glanced around curiously.
“I had really hoped you had moved on.”
“I’ve always wanted to see this room, but I didn’t quite make it before.” Standing in the middle of the attic, she looked up to the ceiling. “Is that where George Hemming found you hanging?”
“You’re rather ghoulish.”
“I’m a ghost, aren’t I?” Agatha chuckled. “Aren’t ghosts supposed to be ghoulish?”
“You really need to move on. I believe the proper protocol is follow the light. Have you seen the light yet?”
Turning to Walt, Agatha spied a folding chair next to the sofa. She walked to it and sat down. “I’ve heard people talk about the light. I was beginning to think it was nothing but a myth. You’re here, so I have to assume you didn’t see it.”
“It’s not a myth. And why I’m still here is not your concern.”
“Did I ask why you’re still here?” Agatha snapped. “I couldn’t care less.”
“You do understand you’re dead, right?”
“Obviously. Although, I was a little confused at first. I ran into Chief MacDonald’s boy, and he started talking to me. At that point, I was disoriented, and I assumed I was still alive. I ended up outside, but no one seemed to see me. I walked all the way home and waited for Joyce. And do you know what she did when she came home?”
“What’s that?”
“At first, I thought she could see me too. After all, she was asking me questions. But then she started emptying my closet, throwing my clothes on the floor. I asked her what she thought she was doing and told her to stop.”
“That was quick. She started getting rid of your things the day you died?”
“That was when I realized I had to be dead. Joyce would never dare go through my things when I was alive.”
“Why did you come back here?” Walt asked.
Agatha frowned at the question. She sat in silence for a few moments before answering. “I’m not really sure. It was as if something was pulling me here. I didn’t really have a choice. And then I ran into Lily Miller downstairs.”
Agatha shifted slightly in her seat and looked directly at Walt. “How is it some living people can see me and some cannot?”
“You mean how was Evan MacDonald able to see you, yet Lily wasn’t?”
Agatha shook her head. “No. I mean how are Evan and Lily able to see me, yet other people don’t?”
“Are you saying Lily could see you?” Walt asked in surprise.
“She must have. Very rude young woman, if I do say so myself. Quite rude. After all, I’ve only recently departed, and one would think that would demand some respect from those who can see me.”
“Are you sure Lily saw you?”
“She called me by name. What else am I supposed to think?”
“What did she say?”
“She told me to leave Marlow House.”
“You obviously didn’t listen to her,” Walt smirked.
“I would have if I could,” Agatha said primly, her back straight as she sat on the edge of the chair. “I’m not about to stick around where I’m not wanted. I endured enough of that during my life.”
“You seem to have adjusted to the fact you’re dead,” Walt observed.
Agatha shrugged. “It’s not as if I didn’t know it was coming, considering my age. I just assumed I would die in my sleep. I never expected a violent death.”
“You remember how you died?” Walt asked.
Agatha frowned at Walt. “Of course I do. I admit, things were a little fuzzy at first. When I left Marlow House, I didn’t realize I was dead. Then I saw Joyce throwing my things on the floor, and when she didn’t answer—obviously could not see or hear me, well, then I knew. After that, things became very clear.”
“So clear that you remember how you happened to fall down those stairs?”
“Maybe that’s why I came back,” Agatha muttered, speaking more to herself. “I needed to walk up those stairs again—but this time, I wanted to make it all the way up.”
“Who helped you upstairs the first time?” Walt asked.
Agatha started to say something, but then changed her mind and remained silent.
“What happened? Who took you up there and just left you?” he persisted. “How did you fall? Did someone…push you?”
“I…I don’t want to talk about it.”
“If someone pushed you, I think we should let the police know.”
“How do you expect to do that?” Agatha laughed.
“I have my ways. But you need to tell me what happened that day.”
“Didn’t I just say I don’t want to talk about this?”
Agatha vanished.
DANIELLE STOPPED by the police station on the way home. She wanted to talk to the chief, but the first person she ran into was Joe Morelli. Wearing his Frederickport Police Department uniform and holding his baseball-style department hat in one hand, Joe stood in the middle of the hallway. Danielle wondered if he was on his way in or heading out on police business.
“I talked to Kelly when she was on her way back to Portland this morning; she told me Ian and Lily broke up,” Joe said.
“Wow, I guess this is really official if Ian is telling people,” Danielle muttered. She glanced down the hallway at the closed door leading to the chief’s office.
“So it’s true?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
Joe shook his head. “I can’t believe it. I thought Lily was crazy about Ian.”
Danielle frowned. “She is. Ian broke up with her. She didn’t break up with him.”
“No way. Ian is nuts about Lily. He was going to ask her to marry him.”
Danielle arched her brow. “What?”
“Damn,” Joe muttered. “I wasn’t supposed to say anything. I didn’t even say anything to Kelly. Please, keep this between us. Especially now. Damn, I wonder what happened…”
“Why do you think he was going to ask her to marry him?” Danielle asked.
“Because, last week when I went to Portland to see Kelly, I stopped to pick up some wine, and next door to the wine shop was a jewelry store. Ian was inside. He was buying Lily’s engagement ring. He asked me not to tell his sister. He told me he was planning to ask her during the fireworks show. That’s why he didn’t want to go with us when Kelly invited him.”
“Oh my…” Danielle whispered.
“What happened, Danielle?”
She shook her head. “It’s kind of complicated. Didn’t Kelly tell you?”
“No. Kelly said she had no clue what happened. Her brother refused to talk about it. I just assumed Lily must have called it off. Maybe he asked her to marry him, and she turned him down?”
“No. In fact, Lily has no idea he intended to propose.”
“I really thought they were a great couple. Considering everything they’ve gone through this last year, well, if anyone could make it, I would think it would have been Ian and Lily.”
Danielle wondered briefly if Joe was thinking what she was. This same time last year, they had been dating several weeks when their relationship had fallen apart, unable to pass its first test.
“I WAS TALKING to Joe in the hall,” Danielle told the chief when she entered his office a few minutes later. She closed the door behind her so they would have some privacy.
“He told me about Lily and Ian,” the chief said.
“Did you say anything?” Danielle asked.
“I pretended I didn’t know. But I can’t believe Ian would just walk away from Lily over this.”
“He obviously thinks she’s blatantly lying, and we’re all in on it. He won’t even talk to me.”
“If I didn’t have a murder to investigate, I’d be tempted to shake some sense into that boy.”
Danielle’s eyes widened. “Murder?”
&nb
sp; WALT WAS WAITING in the kitchen for Danielle when she got home. She found him sitting at the table, smoking a cigar.
“Hey, Walt. The Missing Thorndike is safe and sound in the safe deposit box at the bank, and as long as another klepto ghost doesn’t come along, it should be fine.” Danielle tossed her purse on the counter.
Walt’s eyes followed Danielle as she went to the sink and washed her hands. “Agatha is here.”
“Crap,” Danielle muttered as she turned off the faucet and wiped her hands on a dishtowel. “Where?”
“She was in the attic, but when I asked her about the fall, she disappeared.” Letting out a smoke ring, Walt watched as it drifted to the ceiling and dissolved.
“The chief is convinced she was murdered.”
“Why does he think that?” Walt asked.
“It’s how Agatha landed. According to the coroner, she must have fallen backwards. I guess they would have expected her to land differently had the fall been the result of her missing a step or stumbling.”
“If it was murder, she doesn’t seem overly concerned,” Walt noted.
“But, does she know how she fell?”
“Yes. But she won’t say who helped her get upstairs or if someone pushed her.”
“You asked her if someone pushed her?” Danielle took a seat at the table.
“Yes. She didn’t want to talk about it.”
“And you’re sure she remembers what happened?”
“Fairly certain. She has accepted the fact she’s dead.” Walt then muttered before taking another drag off the cigar, “Hell of a lot faster than I accepted my death.”
“Well, dear, you have always been a little slow,” Danielle teased, reaching over and patting his hand—which didn’t particularly work out, as her hand moved through his, tapping the tabletop. With a frown she pulled her hand back.
Walt let out a dramatic sigh and asked, “Why do I take this abuse?”
“Because you love me?” Danielle teased.
Yes, I do, he silently thought.
“You’re home,” Lily announced when she walked into the kitchen a moment later.
“Hey, Lily. I’m sitting here with Walt. Have you had lunch yet?”
“No. But stop trying to feed me. I feel like I’m living with my mother again.” Lily plopped down on one of the empty chairs.
“Another interesting development,” Walt piped.
“What’s that?” Danielle asked.
“Apparently, Lily can see Agatha.”
Danielle turned to Lily and stared.
Noticing Danielle’s peculiar expression, Lily frowned and said, “What?”
“Walt says you can see Agatha.”
“Agatha? What do you mean?”
“Walt says Agatha’s spirit was here earlier.”
Slamming her fist on the table, Lily shouted, “I knew it!”
“So you did see her?” Danielle asked.
Lily rolled her eyes at Danielle. “Don’t be silly. I didn’t see her. But Max did. He was in the library, hissing up a storm, staring at the wall. And I’ve learned when Max or Sadie start acting as if something is there that I can’t see, it’s normally a freaking ghost. I just made a guess it was Agatha. What was the chance it was some other ghost?”
“What did you say to her?”
“She told me to leave, rude girl,” Agatha said when she appeared a moment later.
SEVENTEEN
Danielle had to admit, death looked good on Agatha. She appeared to be about the same age as Agatha’s last living version, yet she was no longer hunched over, nor did she seem to have a problem walking around. Of course, Danielle understood the body she was seeing was nothing but an illusion, so she wasn’t surprised at the transformation. Although, in the past, Danielle had noticed new spirits typically displayed whatever handicap they had during life, and it was not until they fully adapted to death did they shed those illusions before moving on. Apparently, Agatha had adapted very quickly to her death, Danielle thought.
“Hello, Agatha,” Danielle said calmly.
Eyeing Danielle curiously, a smile curled on Agatha’s lips. “So you can see me too?”
“Oh dang, don’t tell me she is here.” Lily groaned. “I really can’t deal with this.” Without another word, Lily turned and marched from the room, and on her exit inadvertently walked through Agatha.
“Why! How rude!” Agatha looked down at her own body in dismay, startled by Lily’s abrupt movement through it.
“You’ll have to excuse Lily, she didn’t realize you were there,” Danielle explained after Lily left the room.
“What are you talking about? I know she can see me, so you can’t use that excuse for her utter rudeness. She’s made it perfectly clear she doesn’t want me here. And frankly, I don’t want to be here either!”
Danielle watched Agatha as she paced the kitchen. “No. Lily can’t see spirits. She just guessed you were there earlier, because of how Max acted.”
Coming to a stop, Agatha turned to Danielle. “Max? Who’s that?”
“It’s my cat.”
“Another rude one! He also told me to leave!”
Danielle forced a smile. “Would you like to sit down? That way we can have a little talk without me getting dizzy watching you circle the room.”
Agatha looked from Danielle to Walt, who sat at the table, quietly observing as he puffed on his cigar.
“I suppose you can see him too?” Agatha nodded toward Walt.
“Yes. Unlike Lily, I can see spirits.”
“Like the chief’s boy?”
“Yes.” Danielle nodded. “Evan is able to see spirits.”
“I’ve heard of people who can see ghosts, but I never quite believed it before.”
Danielle glanced at Walt and thought, Agatha doesn’t seem to have a problem calling herself a ghost.
“I’m not sure how proper it is, your sharing a house with Walt Marlow,” Agatha said in a huff as she sat down.
Danielle joined them at the kitchen table. “I’m not sure what you mean.”
Agatha eyed Walt critically. “He is an attractive young man. And you and Lily are both single women. Of course, with Lily’s nasty disposition I doubt she has anything to worry about. However, you…” Agatha turned her attention to Danielle.
“Me?”
“It’s rather scandalous, if you think about it.” Agatha shuddered.
Walt flashed Danielle a grin.
“How about we talk about you,” Danielle asked Agatha.
“What’s there to talk about?”
“You said you didn’t want to be here.”
“I don’t.”
“Normally when a spirit is somewhere they don’t want to be, it’s because they have some unresolved issues to deal with,” Danielle explained.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Agatha snapped. “What unresolved issues do I have?”
“It could be the cause of your death that’s keeping you here. You need to come to terms with it. Walt tells me you remember what happened, but you don’t want to discuss it.”
“I don’t. There’s nothing I can do about it now. So why dwell on the unpleasantness?”
“I understand your grandson Larry helped you upstairs.”
“Helped me?” Agatha scoffed. “Is that what you call it now?”
Danielle was about to ask Agatha if Larry had pushed her down the stairs. But then she remembered what Walt had told her, that when pressed about the cause of her death, Agatha had vanished earlier. Danielle preferred to resolve whatever issues Agatha had in order to help her move on to the next level. She did not wish to play a perpetual game of peekaboo with a ghost who randomly appeared and disappeared, or worse yet, one who remained indefinitely at Marlow House.
Deciding to take a different approach, one that hopefully wouldn’t cause Agatha to disappear, Danielle asked, “Can you tell me a little bit about your grandson Larry?”
“He’s just like his father. Even has the same name. Look
s like him too. That boy has been a constant disappointment.”
“I was under the impression you were close to your grandchildren. Whenever I’ve seen them with you, they appear to be very attentive.”
“Yes, they appear that way. Henry is the only one who ever cared about me. Darling boy. But Larry, his only interest is what he can get from me. When we came over here on Saturday, he was very angry with me.”
“Why was he angry?”
“The same reason he always is. He wants money, and I won’t give it to him. I’m not going to keep throwing good money after bad. The boy, just like his father, couldn’t keep his marriage together. He expected me to bail him out. I told him he could just wait until I die to get my money.” Agatha paused a moment and considered her words. She then broke into laughter.
“What’s funny?” Danielle asked.
“I suppose he can try to get his money now.” Agatha disappeared.
“She’s gone again,” Walt said as he flicked his cigar in the air. It, like Agatha, vanished.
“I suppose I need to call the chief, let him know she’s here.” Danielle stood up and walked to the counter where she had dropped her purse earlier. From it she removed her cellphone and made her call.
When Danielle got off the phone a few minutes later, she returned to the table with Walt.
“Agatha think’s it’s scandalous I’m living here with you,” Walt said with a chuckle.
“I think Agatha has a dirty mind,” Danielle scoffed.
Walt silently studied Danielle for a moment and then said in a low voice, “In some ways, Agatha would be disappointed. Our time together under this roof is fairly innocent. It’s the dreams we share that seem to take us places we probably shouldn’t go.”
Danielle’s gaze met Walt’s. “Harmless kisses.”
“Harmless?” Walt smiled. “Are they? If so, why is it we’ve never discussed them?”
Danielle absently fidgeted with the table’s edge. “We are now. And they’re just dreams. You can do anything in a dream.”
Walt let out a harsh laugh. “Ahh, if that were the case, then Agatha would truly be scandalized.”
“I didn’t mean that,” Danielle said with a blush.
Walt smiled softly.