Spiritwalker

by Siobhan Corcoran

  Since that accident Anna had been able to enter her body and leave it whenever she liked. At first she had been cautious and not gone too far from her body in case she wasn't able to get back. After a while she realised that all she had to do was concentrate on returning to her body lying in her bed and in an instant she was back and eyes open looking up at the ceiling. Nobody had believed her at first, her parents had been very worried about her. They thought she was imagining it and had taken her to see a specialist, needless to say he didn't believe her and couldn't find anything wrong with her. Her sisters decided that she should prove these claims so they used to lock her into her room and go somewhere and she had to tell them where they were and what they were doing and saying. Once one of her sisters stayed in the room with her just in case she was escaping unknown to them. Eventually they had to believe her as they couldn't find any other explanation. Her parents too began to believe. She knew things that she otherwise wouldn't have known. Her mother warned her not to do it again and not to go broadcasting this ability, she was worried in case people would think her daughter was crazy. Anna eventually realised that her mother's fears were justified she didn't want people to think she was a freak. She could count on one hand the number of people that knew of her ability. Extremely intuitive was how her mother and sisters described her. In the past few years she had begun to use her abilities in the course of her work as a private detective. She was very good at finding missing people. Those she helped were convinced she was a psychic.

  As Anna sat at her desk drinking a fresh cup of coffee, she set about booking a flight for London for the following day. Luckily Aer Lingus had a few remaining seats on their midday flight out of Cork airport and she promptly booked one and hired a car for a week, she didn't book a return flight as she wasn't sure how long she would be away. This done she decided to Google Jane Turner, curious what kind person she had been hired to find. Most of the hits included her husband Ian, he it seemed was a big fish in the music industry, he was the majority shareholder in one of the biggest record labels in Britain. There were lots of photos of him with various pop stars and actors, some she recognised some she didn't. Ian Turner was a very good-looking man, he was in his forties, he had a full head of dark hair receding slightly at the temples, he looked like he was in good shape. His wife Jane was in many of the photos, she was a stunning blond woman, had to be aged somewhere in her forties judging by what her sister had told Anna, but she didn't look a day over thirty five. She was always beautifully dressed, not a hair out of place and looked the picture of happiness in all the photos. Her arm nearly always linked possessively through that of her husband's. On further investigation Anna discovered that Jane wasn't just arm candy for her husband, she had a degree in biology and chemistry and had in her younger days been a teacher. Her name was also linked to a lot of charities, everything from children's charities to homeless shelters. And she wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty, she was pictured handing out meals to the homeless in London on Christmas day and washing the dishes after. She also ran in the London city marathon last year for the RSPCC.

  Anna was so engrossed in her research that she didn't hear the knock on the door until it opened and Boozy, her golden Labrador bounded in followed by her neighbour Jamsie.

  “God Jamsie, you gave me a fright, creeping up on me like that.” Anna said petting her dog vigorously behind the ears

  “Sorry” Jamsie laughed. “What have I told you about locking your back door, anyone could walk in. Has your visitor gone? She stopped earlier asking for directions, nice looking woman, very polite.”

  “So it was you she asked for directions, she said she got a bit lost” Anna said emphasising Lost. Jamsie was the local signpost turning vigilante. “If you left the signposts turned the way they were meant to be maybe people wouldn't be getting lost.” She was always admonishing him about it but he never changed. He was a good neighbour though and not much escaped his notice. “I'm off to London in the morning Jamsie, will you keep an eye on things here and feed Boozy for me.”

  “Of course I will, sure you don't even have to ask. Them robbers won't get past me. You mind yourself over there. How long will you be gone?” Jamsie for all his easy going attitude was a bit of a worrier and he was very fond of Anna.

  “Hopefully only a week or so” Anna replied. “God it's nearly two, I'll make us some sandwiches and heat up that soup. Better feed Boozy too, don't want him to think he has to survive on a diet of Guinness.” She was referring to Jamsie's habit of going to the pub ordering a pint for himself and a half for the dog. She had wondered when she first got him why when he came back from his ramblings that he always smelt of alcohol. Jamsie had sheepishly admitted that he had been giving the dog Guinness. So the dog's name had been changed from Shep to Boozy.

  The following morning Anna got up early, fed Boozy, locked up and headed to the Airport. Her flight was on time so it wasn't long before she was seated on the aeroplane and headed to Gatwick. After clearing customs on the other side Anna went up to the Hertz car hire desk and collected the keys to her car. She had no trouble finding the car in the allotted space, she unlocked it stored her luggage in the boot and sat in. It had a Sat Nav so she switched it on and keyed in the address Eva had written down for her. As she didn't fancy getting stuck in the motorway traffic and absolutely hated those enormous lorries thundering past her, she avoided motorways as much as possible and took the smaller roads through Tunbridge Wells and then on to Ashford and from there it was only another forty minute drive to Eva's home, she lived close to Canterbury. The English countryside was beautiful at this time of the year and she loved the drive past the fields of crops growing on either side of the road, stopping only once to allow a herd of cows to cross the road to the field on the other side. The farmer waved cheerily to her as he closed the gate behind them. People are always much friendlier in the country she thought to herself as she drove happily along.

  It wasn't long before the Sat Nav informed her that she had “Reached her destination”.

  Anna indicated to turn right, in front of her blocking her passage were two ten foot high metal security gates with a keypad and intercom located on the wall beside them, she pressed the buzzer and waited.

  “Can I help you?” a woman's voice answered with a slightly foreign accent.

  “My name is Anna Cotter, Mrs Westhall is expecting me.” Anna replied

  “Okay I open the gates now.

  Anna waited a moment for the gates to open sufficiently and drove through. The avenue up to the house was lined on both sides with old oak trees, the leaves were just starting to turn and the autumnal colours were amazing as the evening sun danced through them. The avenue gave way to a wide gravel drive, which continued around both sides of the house. The house itself was a majestic Georgian three storey, with large stone steps leading up to the massive, oak front door. It’s like something out of a romantic novel she thought to herself as she surveyed her surroundings. The gardens were immaculately manicured with flower beds full of blooming roses. To the right of the house, just beyond the garden was a wood, trees rocked gently in the warm evening breeze. On the other side beyond the garden, the countryside rolled like green velvet for as far as the eye see. She parked the car and was climbing the steps, just about to reach for the knocker when the door opened. It was opened by a rather plumb, middle aged woman wearing a colourful short sleeved dress that revealed sturdy arms and hands white with the remains for flour. Over her dress she was wearing an apron of equally colourful design.

  “Hi I'm Anna Cotter.” she said reaching out to shake the woman's hand.

  “Please, please come in. My name is Olana, Mrs Westhall not here but she be back soon.” The woman said wiping her hands on her apron before shaking Anna's hand.

  Anna walked past the housekeeper into the hallway. It was obvious from the décor that Eva's talents were considerable. The hallway was beautifully decorated, with lots of artwork on the walls and photographs of family a
nd friends stood in silver frames on the mantle of a large white marble fireplace. There was a coal fire burning brightly in the grate, giving the whole room a warm cosy feel.

  “Mrs Westhall tell me to make you at home, and to give you some food.” Olana said in her thick eastern European accent. “She be back soon, she collect her daughter from dance. You like soup?”

  “Thank you that would be great, I'm starving, didn't have much of a chance to get a decent lunch, I just a quick sandwich on the plane.”

  She followed Olana down the hall, at the end the door opened into the kitchen. This too was like something straight out of “House and Home.” The cabinets were painted white, and what seemed like acres of black granite worktops gleamed all around. In the middle of the kitchen was a breakfast bar, also made from a polished granite, the floor was covered in white spotless tiles, if you looked down you could see your reflection in them. At one end of the kitchen was a green four-oven Stanley stove, everything was gleaming and spotless and new like a show kitchen.

  Olana indicated to Anna to sit at the breakfast bar, she placed a large bowl of steaming soup in front of her, unwrapped a loaf of fresh baked bread from a tea-towel and cut generous slices of it and placed it, along with butter in front of Anna. She ate hungrily.

  “This is the best soup I've ever tasted” Anna declared. “And that bread is so fresh and crusty.”

  Olana beamed with pride. “I like to cook, Mrs Westhall she like my cooking, Sassy too, I feed her up when she come home for the weekend, they don't feed her at that school, she get too thin.”

  “Have you worked for Mrs Westhall long?” Anna enquired.

  “I here five years now. My son he study to be doctor. Just like Mrs Turner daughter.” She said , but a look of sadness came over her face as she remembered Jane. “You here to find her Mrs Westhall say”

  “I'm certainly going to do my best.”

  Olana looked at her doubtfully. “You not look like police lady.”

  “I'm not” Anna smiled at her, understanding that she really meant that she didn't look like much of a detective. She didn't blame her, she didn't feel too much like a detective herself most of the time. It wasn't the first time she had been judged on her looks. “From what I gather the police haven't been much use so far”

  “Bah, the police no good, they think she leave, she not leave, something happen her, something bad. I see it in the tea cup. Olana said lowering her voice and looking dramatically around as though she suspected that someone might be lurking in the house eavesdropping on them.

  When Anna had finished her soup, Olana showed her to her room. She brought her back down the hallway and up the wide staircase, at the top they turned left down the long corridor, she opened the door at the end.

  “This is your room, it has bathroom too. Mrs Westhall say to give you quiet room, she say I not to disturb you, that you need to be quiet for finding Mrs Turner. I not disturb you, if you need things I always in the kitchen. I tell Mrs Jacob, she the lady that clean every day not to bother you too.” She left Anna to inspect her bedroom.

  “Wow” Anna exclaimed, “Peering into the room, this is lovely”

  Anna's room was large, with a king size four poster bed, there was a big mahogany wardrobe at the other end of the room and between the two windows stood a writing desk and leather chair. Also in the room was a twenties style chaise lounge and a dressing table with an oval mirror attached. The room was very tastefully decorated, thick soft cream wool carpet covered the floor and the wallpaper was an embossed floral design. There was another door which led into the bathroom. It had a large white bath at one end and an electric shower stood in the other corner. The tiling on the walls was black ceramic, and the floor was chequered black and white like a draughts board. The mirror and the bathroom fittings gleamed and sparkled, soft fluffy towels were sitting neatly in a pile on a little table, beside them was every kind of hygiene product one could wish for.

  Anna walked back into the bedroom and stood looking out the window onto the garden. She had a perfect view from her vantage point of a lake which she hadn't noticed earlier, hidden as it had been from view by a small hill, there were ducks swimming happily in it. A movement in the shadow of the trees caught her eye, she opened the window for a clearer view, it appeared to be a man running towards the wood, in an instant he was gone, swallowed by the foliage. Thinking nothing more of it, she closed the window and headed down to the car to collect her luggage. When she opened her car door she was shocked to see the contents of her handbag strewn all over the passenger seat. She was positive she had hidden it under the seat. She checked the littered objects and replaced them back in her bag. Relieved that everything seemed to be accounted for. She checked her purse next, all her money and cards were there her passport was on the driver’s seat and beside it was her driver’s licence. She rummaged through the small sections of her purse but she couldn't find it anywhere. Her private investigators licence was missing. She searched the floor of the car turned everything inside out but there was no sign of it anywhere. Why would anyone take that and leave all the money and cards she wondered.

  She gathered her belongings and brought them up to her room, then she headed down to the kitchen to find Olana. She was in the kitchen stirring a big pot of something that smelt like stew.

  “Olana, is there anyone else around today, I thought I saw somebody over by the woods?”

  “No, nobody here today. Why you ask?”

  Somebody broke into my car and was riffling through my bags. Does Mrs Westhall have a gardener?”

  “Yes he come every day, but he on holiday this week. Did they steal anything? You think they come back, break in maybe shoot us?” Olana asked beginning to work herself up into a state, she was very nervous since the disappearance of Jane so suddenly.

  “No, I don't think so, I'm sure they've gone.” Anna said trying to reassure Olana that they weren't in any danger. Anna sat at the breakfast bar and calmed the housekeeper down.

  Olana reluctantly sat down with her but kept throwing furtive glances out the kitchen window.

  Chapter four

  Eva Westhall and her daughter returned home a half an hour later. Sassy went straight to her room and Eva went in search of Anna and found her and Olana seated in the kitchen. Anna was still trying to reassure the housekeeper that they weren't going to be murdered in their beds.

  “I'm so glad you're here” Eva said, shaking hands with her guest and poured herself a cup of coffee from the pot on the counter. She eased herself down onto a seat opposite Anna.

  As usual she was smartly dressed in figure hugging black jeans and a crisp white shirt, with gold buttons down the front, on her feet she wore black knee-high boots over her jeans.

  “Oh Mrs Westhall, someone came and stole this lady's things, right out of her car” Olana said her voice high with nervous excitement.

  “What, what happened?” Eva asked looking alarmingly at Anna.

  “Not quite.” Anna said “Nothing was stolen, except... I can't find my Investigators licence. And someone broke into my car and turned my bag upside down onto the seat, while Olana was showing me to my room. When I went to get my things from the car I discovered what had happened.”

  “But they didn't take anything else?” Eva enquired. That's odd, did you see who it was?” She was looking almost as alarmed as her housekeeper. “I'm going to call the police, how could someone have the audacity to break into a car in full view of the house, in broad daylight. This might have something to do with Jane's disappearance. There might be some lunatic out there stalking us right now.”

  “I'm sure it’s not that bad” Anna tried to reassure her, Olana softly moaning to herself wasn't helping matters either.

  “Do you think it was kids?” Eva asked “No it couldn't be how would they get in, no it must be connected to Jane. That policeman said to ring if anything happened. I'm going to demand he come out and investigate.”

  Anna saw that there was no dissu
ading her, she realised that Eva was not one to take no for an answer once she got an idea into her head. Eva pulled her phone out of her bag and after a short, curt conversation hung up.