“Trevor, what do you want with Kate and her brother? Are you following them?” Again, nothing. Luke passed the recorder back over to Kate.
“Why are you here?” Kate asked.
Rewind.
Play.
“Why are you here?”
“... Don’t remember...”
“Don’t remember!” Luke clapped his hands together. “Did you hear that? That is an intelligent response!” Kate thought it was cute the way he still got so excited about capturing a spirit voice, even after five years.
“You don’t remember why you’re here?” she asked, pressing the record button. No response. “Is there anything we can do to help you?” Again, nothing.
“Are you the one making Kate’s brother sick?” Luke asked.
Rewind.
Play.
“Are you the one making Kate’s brother sick?”
“...Maybe...”
The voice was the same, but it was much harsher than before; violent, menacing. Luke had been right. He was angry.
“Why?” Kate asked.
Rewind.
Play.
“Why?”
“...Won’t tell you...”
Kate felt chills run down her spine again for the second time that night. She could see how a skeptic might pass off any voices they’d heard up until that point as static, a faulty connection to a radio, or even a glitch in the static. That, however, was a direct response to a question she’d asked. It even sounded like it was mocking her. Luke, however, was absolutely giddy.
“Oh, so that’s the way you’re gonna play, huh Trevor? You wanna be a smart ass?” he asked. Kate stared at him, horrified.
“Don’t make him mad! I still have to live here!”
Luke ignored her. “Talk to us! Come on, use my energy! Use it all!”
CRASH!
Kate screamed. Luke leapt almost a foot off the couch. “Get the light,” he told her. But Kate was shaking too hard to move. Somewhere down the hall, a door opened with a loud bang.
“What the hell was that?!” Gavin demanded. Kate could barely make out his shadowy figure stumbling around in the darkness. He switched on the overhead light and Kate had to blink several times before her eyes adjusted.
“Shit,” Luke muttered. Kate looked over his shoulder to see his night vision camera, or what remained of it anyway, leaning up against the wall, still attached to the tripod. It had hit the wall with such force that bits and pieces had gone flying. It was only upon closer inspection that Kate noticed the damage done to the wall itself.
“What the hell did you do?” Gavin demanded, staring at the hole in the wall. “Do you have any idea how much it’s going to cost to fix that?”
“Gav, it wasn’t us - ”
“Kate, I don’t want to hear it,” Gavin snapped. “I have had enough of this. You need to grow up,” he hissed. To Luke, he said, “And you need to leave.”
“But we - ” Luke started to protest, but Gavin cut him off.
“Get out.” Gavin wasn’t as tall or muscular as Luke, but he could be tough when he wanted to be. Luke, obviously not wanting to cause any trouble, grabbed his tripod and camera and stuffed them into his backpack.
“I’ll pay for the wall,” he muttered to Kate.
“We don’t need your help. Get out,” Gavin ordered.
“Sorry about your camera,” Kate told Luke. He shrugged.
“Wasn’t one of my good ones.” Kate couldn’t tell if he was lying or not. She handed him his digital recorder. “Thanks for tonight,” he told her and kissed her on the cheek. Gavin must have made a threatening move behind her back, because Luke took two steps backwards and threw his hands up, “Hey, I’m going. See? I’m going.” Seconds later, he was out the door.
Kate and Gavin stood in a tense silence, neither seeming to want to look at the other. Finally, Kate said, “It wasn’t his fault.”
“Kate, just stop talking.”
“We didn’t do that, Gavin. Something else did.” Gavin had clearly had enough, because without another word, without even acknowledging her, he turned and stormed back to his room. She knew she should just let him go, but she didn’t want him to think he’d won. “Don’t you want to know what we caught?” Gavin turned and glared at her.
“Stop. Talking,” he snarled through gritted teeth. Stunned by the furious look on his face, Kate froze in her tracks. Gavin disappeared into his bedroom, slamming the door in the process. Kate winced. If Trevor really was there, she hoped that he would keep his haunting to a minimum once the lights went out, because she had a feeling she wouldn’t be welcome in her brother’s room, no matter how scared she felt.
Chapter 10
The next morning, Michael was exhausted. Part of it was his fault. He had stayed up visiting with Gram until almost 4 A.M. He wouldn’t have gotten such a late start, however, had it not been for his little cousins, all of whom had stayed up until almost one in the morning, jumping, screaming, eating junk food, and playing on the new Wii that Uncle Carl had brought up for the holiday.
Furthermore, his Great Aunt Martha, who drew up the room assignments, just couldn’t seem to get it through her head that he was any older than twelve, because every year, she stuck him in the kiddie room. His mother tried to make him feel better by telling him that she probably thought the room needed a chaperone. That theory was disproven, however, when he’d asked Aunt Martha if someone else could chaperone the kids’ room and she’d responded with, “What are you talking about? You never have a chaperone.”
So he had an uncle who thought he was five years from forty and a great aunt who thought he was prepubescent. He couldn’t decide which one he found less flattering.
It was the Fourth of July, and although Michael knew he had a fun day ahead of him, he was seriously considering driving back home as soon as the fireworks were over. He wanted to spend the day with his family, but he’d be leaving first thing in the morning anyway. If he drove back tonight, he’d be able to sleep in his own bed.
After lunch, the family headed out onto the lake for swimming, kayaking, and fishing. Michael opted for fishing, the most relaxing option, even though he’d never caught a fish in his life. A few of his cousins fished with him for a while, but soon the allure of the cool lake won out over the summer heat, leaving Michael alone on the dock.
While he sat there, watching his cousins splash around in the murky water of Lake Texoma, he let his thoughts drift back to Kate. How had her night with Luke gone? Had they made plans to see each other again? And what if they had? Would their one night evolve into something more? He didn’t know Luke to be real big on commitment. Then again, Luke had probably never dated a girl like Kate; smart, funny, normal...
Footsteps behind him snapped him out of his stupor. He glanced around to see his mother, dressed in a navy sundress and sunglasses, smiling down at him.
“Hey,” she smiled, taking a seat next to him and dangling her feet into the water. “Catch anything yet?”
“Nope,” Michael replied.
“You know, I remember when you were little and we’d come out here. You were so determined to catch a fish. You would sit out here for hours, just waiting for a bite.”
“And I haven’t caught one yet,” Michael quipped matter-of-factly. His mother laughed. Michael grinned too. “Kinda pathetic, huh?”
“I was just thinking you were the opposite. More than twenty years later and you haven’t given up. That’s something I admire about you, Michael. You’re so strong-willed.” It wasn’t a phrase Michael would have used to describe himself, but he supposed his mother was a little biased. He was her son, after all. She was supposed to think the world of him.
“I’m not as strong as you,” Michael told her. It was true. From his older brother Jonathan being diagnosed with depression and bipolar disorder at an early age, to his father walking out on the family after Jonathan’s disease became too much for him to handle, to Michael’s accidental arrest at seventeen, Dianne Sinc
lair had endured more than anyone’s fair share of turmoil in the past three decades.
“I’m not strong. I just do what I have to to make it through each day.” If that wasn’t strength, Michael didn’t know what was.
“Trust me Mom, you’re the strongest person I know.” His mother smiled and wrapped her arm around his shoulder.
“I’m glad you came. Even if you’re still in the kiddie room,” she teased. Michael chuckled.
“I’m glad too.”
“But you still don’t want to talk about what’s bothering you?”
“How can you tell something’s bothering me?” He was genuinely curious.
“Mothers always know,” she replied. “So tell me. Is it about work?”
“No. Work’s fine.”
“Is it about one of your friends?”
Michael wasn’t sure what friends she was talking about. Most of his college buddies were married and in different states. But he simply replied, “No.”
“So then it must be about a girl.” When Michael didn’t respond, his mother groaned. “I swear Michael, there will be a snowstorm in July before I get any sort of straight answer out of you.”
“Good. It’s hot,” he grinned.
“Don’t be a smart aleck. Talk to me. What’s her name?” Michael sighed. She wasn’t going to let it go, so what was the point in denying it? Maybe she could offer him some advice.
“Kate.”
“How’d you meet her?”
“She’s my new neighbor.” He proceeded to tell her everything, except of course, the parts about the ghost and about her date being television’s hottest ghost hunter. His mother had no idea that he’d even met Luke Rainer (not that she’d know who he was because he wasn’t that famous), and he certainly wasn’t going to brag about it.
“Well, I’m pretty sure I already know the answer, but have you told her how you feel?”
“Not really, but - ”
“No ‘buts.’ You didn’t call. You didn’t tell her. You can’t blame her for saying, ‘Yes’ to someone who did.” It was nothing Michael hadn’t expected to hear, but he felt like she could have sugarcoated it a little.
“So what do I do?”
“Be her friend, and if the time seems right, be honest with her. Don’t pressure her or anything, just lay it on the line. And most importantly, be yourself. Any girl who doesn’t love you for you isn’t worth it.” She smiled at him. “Now was that so hard?”
“No,” he grinned. She kissed his forehead.
“I love you.”
“Love you too.”
“Well, I think I’m going to go help Aunt Martha with dinner,” she announced, rising to her feet. “Are you going to stay out here a little longer?”
“Yeah. Who knows? I might catch something.”
As Dianne walked away, Michael turned his attention back out to the shimmering surface of the lake, to his cousins kayaking and laughing, and to the great blue heron that watched from the neighboring shore. Talking to his mother really had made him feel better, even though she hadn’t told him anything that deep down, he didn’t already know. It must be a mom thing.
Just then, something tugged on his line. Acting instinctively, he leapt to his feet and began to reel it in. After what seemed like much longer than a few seconds, the silver hook appeared, glinting in the sunlight and stripped clean.
The fish had eaten his bait.
~*~
Kate sat in the passenger seat of Gavin’s truck, pretending to text and wishing she’d had the sense of mind to bring her own car. Gavin had turned the radio on high and stared straight ahead at the road, barely acknowledging his sister. They hadn’t spoken much since the night before, and the few words exchanged had been uncomfortable. Kate knew Gavin still hadn’t forgiven her for the hole in the wall, and she was pretty sure that Gavin knew she hadn’t given up on the ghost thing.
“So are we going to act all grouchy and awkward around Mom and Dad?” Kate finally asked.
“Guess so,” Gavin grunted as he pulled out a bottle of Super-B Energy, which he downed in one gulp. Kate tried not to scowl as he tossed the empty bottle into the backseat. She knew that he was trying to irritate her with that nasty stuff, but she wasn’t about to give him the satisfaction of knowing that it was working.
“Don’t you think they’ll ask what’s wrong?” Kate asked, keeping her voice calm and her tone smooth. “You know they’re more paranoid than I am. Especially Mom.”
“They’ll be fine, Kate.”
“Okay,” Kate replied in a patronizing tone that she knew would get on Gavin’s already frazzled nerves. Sure enough, he clenched his jaw and tightened his grip on the steering wheel. “You know, we really did talk to someone last night,” she told him, knowing full well she was egging him on. He ignored her. “Gav, what happened to you? You always used to listen to me when we were kids.” Gavin sighed.
“Fine. What did your ghost friend say?” She knew he was humoring her, but she didn’t care.
“He said that he didn’t remember why he was there, but he admitted that he was the one that was making you sick. The cool thing is that they were all intelligent responses. You know, actual answers to the questions we asked? He even told us that his name is Trevor and - ”
Suddenly, Kate felt herself flying sideways. Pain shot through her right arm as her shoulder collided with the window and a passing car blared its horn as Gavin swerved quickly back into his own lane.
“Gav, what the hell?!” she cried.
“Sorry!” he gasped, his face even paler than usual. “I thought there was something in the road.”
“Well, be careful. Do you need me to drive?”
“No. I’m fine,” he said.
“Well anyway, that’s all we got. Oh no, wait! He started talking back to us, so Luke started provoking him and that’s when he kicked the camera into the wall. Trevor, I mean. Not Luke.” Without warning, Gavin pulled over to the side of the road and parked the car. “Gav? Is everything okay?”
“Kate, I need you to listen to me,” he looked her in the eye. “I don’t want you mentioning any of this to Mom and Dad.”
“What? Why not?” Kate wasn’t sure that was even possible. There were very few things she didn’t share with her mother. She couldn’t not tell her that she’d met Luke Rainer, let alone had a date with him!
“It’s complicated,” Gavin rubbed his forehead.
“You want to elaborate?”
“I just don’t want them worrying about you any more than they already do,” he said. “You know if Mom had her way, you’d be living with them in some sort of cushioned room to make sure you didn’t get hurt again. I think that if you told them all that about... Trevor... It would just be too much for her.”
“I guess you have a point,” she conceded, although it really didn’t make a lot of sense to her. “Can I at least tell her I met Luke Rainer?” Gavin thought about it.
“Yeah, that’s fine,” he said, though she could tell by his tone that he’d rather she didn’t.
They didn’t speak again until they’d reached their parents’ house. It was an older house, built by their grandparents back in the sixties. Although there were several things that could have been spruced up and modernized, Kate loved her childhood home, and couldn’t imagine anyone other than her family ever living there. Before they’d even made it to the front porch, their mother, Terri, a vivacious woman with fading fiery hair and loads of freckles, opened the door and ran out to greet them.
“Hey!” she squealed, engulfing them in one big group hug. “Happy Fourth of July! How was the drive?”
“It was fine.”
“Uneventful,” Kate and Gavin answered simultaneously.
“Excellent! Well, come in, come in! Your dad’s out back, finishing up with the burgers.” She ushered her children into the house, which smelled like freshly cooked beans, rolls, and even a hint of potato salad.
“Good, I’m starving,” Gavin said.
“Better than we were last week. Your father picked up a flu bug at work and I caught it the next day.”
“That’s a pretty short incubation period,” Kate noted.
“Uh-oh! Sounds like the family nurse is here,” her dad teased, appearing in the kitchen with a plate full of grilled hamburger patties. Rex Avery looked the same as he always did; casual clothes, big nerd glasses, and a baseball cap to cover his shiny, bald head. Kate grinned and rose to give him a hug. “How you doing, Pumpkin?”
“Good. Are you feeling better?”
“Much. Not sure what that was wrong last week, but it was miserable.”
“Glad you’re over it,” Gavin said.
“Speaking of, how are you feeling, son?”
“I’m alright,” Gavin replied.
“Have you gotten any better?” Terri asked.
“I think so.” That was bull, but Kate didn’t feel like calling him out on it. They seemed to be back on neutral ground after their discussion in the car, and since she still had to live with him, Kate wanted to keep it that way. Besides, though she’d never tell him to his face, she really did love him and she hated knowing that he was upset or stressed out because of something she’d said or done.
As a family, they filled their plates and sat down at the dinner table. Once they were settled, Terri asked, “So what’s new with you two?” When Gavin didn’t volunteer an answer, Kate spoke up.
“Well, I had a date with Luke Rainer last night.”
“That name sounds so familiar,” Rex muttered through a mouthful of potato salad.
“He’s that cute boy from Cemetery Tours,” her mother reminded him. At first, Kate was confused by her nonchalant tone. Then she realized that her mother must have thought that when she said she’d had a date with him, she meant she’d spent an entire night in front of the television, staring at his face and eating ice cream straight out of the tub.
“Oh right. The loud one,” her father remarked.
“No, I mean I actually had a date with him. Like, the dinner-at-a-fancy-restaurant kind of date,” she told them. Her parents didn’t seem to comprehend.
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