I got into the driver’s seat and waited for Tommy. I felt so powerless. I felt like I had led Devlin to Rose.
A few minutes later Tommy got into the car. Jake floated in after him and sat in the back.
I started up the car.
“Aren’t you going to wait for the old lady?” Jake asked.
I looked back at him and said, “Devlin’s taken her.”
Jake pointed out of the window and said, “Who’s that then?”
I looked over to where he was pointing. Rose was coming out of a neighbour’s house. She joined us in the car.
“What’s wrong with your face, Kate? Has something upset you?” Rose asked.
I couldn’t help it, I burst into tears, “I thought Devlin had taken you! I thought your soul had gone to a dark horrible place!”
Rose smiled, “I told you I wouldn’t let him do that. I just popped into Edith’s house over the road there. Before I died she told me she was having a new bathroom fitted. I thought I’d go and have a look. She’s got one of them fancy power showers.”
I took a tissue out of my pocket and wiped my eyes. Tommy was looking around the car.
“How many ghosts have you got in here?” he asked.
“Just the two,” I replied. I felt much better now that I knew Rose was safe.
“If Devlin wasn’t after you, who was he after? He said he’d been working on ‘her’,” I said.
There was a silence for a few seconds then Jake shouted out, “Mum! He’s after my mum!”
Chapter 12
I quickly drove off.
“Can’t you go any faster!” Jake shouted.
“I’m going as fast as I can!” I shouted back.
“Not fast enough. I’ll meet you there,” Jake said and he disappeared out of the car.
Rose shook her head and tutted, “I’d better follow him.” And she disappeared too.
Tommy looked at me and said, “What just happened?”
“We’re a ghost free car,” I replied.
I told Tommy what had happened at Jake’s house earlier.
He crossed his arms, “I thought that Father Devlin looked shifty, but you don’t like to say things like that, do you? Not about a priest.”
“He’s not a priest. I don’t even know what he is,” I added.
We arrived at Mrs Abbott’s house. We got out of the car and ran towards the house. I didn’t bother knocking, I went straight in.
I heard raised voices, I followed the sound to the living room.
Mrs Abbott was lying on the settee, her eyes closed.
“Let go of her! Leave my mum alone!” Jake was shouting.
Rose was yelling, “It’s not her time! You can’t do this!”
They were shouting at Devlin. He was standing over Mrs Abbott, his arm outstretched over her body, his palm facing downwards. He was oblivious to the yelling ghosts.
“What’s going on?” Tommy asked from behind me.
I looked over to Rose for an answer.
“He’s taking her soul, she’s not even dead yet!” Rose said. “He’s a monster. We can’t stop him.”
I was suddenly so full of rage at this evil creature that I rushed towards him with my arms outstretched. I knocked into him and he toppled to the floor. He looked up at me in surprise.
Then he sprang to his feet and bared his teeth, “Get away! You can’t stop me. You’re too weak.”
His anger made me more determined and I pushed him again. He didn’t fall this time. He hissed and raised his fists to me.
“You don’t hit a woman!” Tommy yelled and he threw himself at Devlin. Tommy was much bigger and he sent Devlin crashing to the floor. Tommy landed on top of him.
Jake hovered over his mum, calling out to her. I went over, Mrs Abbott was breathing as if she was asleep.
“I think she’ll be alright, she’s not dead,” I told Jake.
“Not yet,” Devlin warned. He disappeared from under Tommy and appeared at my side. He seemed bigger.
“I’m taking a soul today and if I can’t have this one then I’m going to have yours, Kate Greenwood!”
Devlin raised his palm at me and I instantly began to feel sleepy.
“Leave Kate alone. You can have my soul,” a voice said quietly.
It was Rose.
Chapter 13
“No, Rose, I can fight him!” I pleaded with her. I shook my head to get rid of the drowsiness. “Me and Tommy together can stop him.”
Tommy stood up and came to my side, “Yeah, we’ll keep knocking him down till he gets fed up and clears off.”
Rose shook her head, “You don’t understand. He won’t go back to where he belongs until he’s collected a soul. And if he’s resorting to murder then he’s getting desperate. Desperate enough to kill you, Kate, and I’ll never let that happen.”
Devlin looked at Rose with a satisfied smirk on his face, “You’re not my first choice but you’ll do.”
Rose gave him a scathing look, “You’re lucky to have a soul like mine.”
“Rose, aren’t you scared? You don’t know where you’re going?” I asked.
She chuckled, “It’ll be an adventure, going somewhere new.”
Devlin sneered, “We’re not going to a holiday park. You won’t like it”
Rose glared at Devlin and said, “I’ll decide if I like it or not. You don’t know anything about me. You’ve no idea what sort of person I am.”
A flicker of what looked like fear crossed Devlin’s face.
Rose looked kindly at me and said, “Kate, I can tell from your face that you have questions. Spit them out now.”
“Will I ever see you again? Are there more creatures like him,” I nodded towards Devlin. “Are you sure Emily will be safe?”
Rose grinned, “I’m not sure if you’ll see me again but I’ll try.”
Devlin snorted, “No, you won’t.”
Rose ignored him and carried on, “Emily is safe, and so are you. You’re doing a great job helping ghosts, don’t you stop now. Have fun with the shop and give my love to Carol.”
“That’s enough! We’re not at a party!” Devlin said. He held up his palm to Rose and a black mist came out. It swirled around Rose until she was almost covered.
Her lovely old face looked out at me through the mist. She winked at me just before the mist completely covered her.
Devlin clapped his hands and the mist evaporated. Rose had gone.
“Time for me to go home,” Devlin gave us a satisfied smug smile. He moved closer to me. I could feel a chill coming from him. “Rose didn’t answer one of your questions. Yes, there are many more like me, looking for lost souls. We love feeding off their misery. And there’s nothing as miserable as a soul that doesn’t know where it’s supposed to be. Look out for us, Kate. We’ll be looking out for you.”
Devlin laid a cold hand on my shoulder and then he was gone.
Chapter 14
Mrs Abbott was stirring on the settee. I walked over to her and sat down on the floor. I gently called her name.
She opened her eyes and looked at me, “You again. What happened to me? Did I fall asleep? What’s Tommy doing here?”
I helped her to sit up. She looked groggy. I ordered Tommy to make us all a cup of tea. He grumbled as he headed to the kitchen.
I helped Mrs Abbott into a sitting position and I sat next to her. She still seemed very weak so I put my arm around her to support her.
All the time, Jake hovered nearby, a concerned look on his face.
“What happened to me?” she asked again.
“How much do you remember? Do you remember that I was here earlier, talking about Jake,” I asked her.
She nodded, “Yes, I do. And that priest was here. I can’t think of his name now.”
“Father Devlin,” I told her.
Mrs Abbott sat up straighter. Her hands flew to her face. “That man! He’s evil! I don’t think he’s a priest at all!”
“What did he do?” I asked.<
br />
“When you’d gone he started talking about Jake. He said a son would never take his own life if he had a loving mother. Then he said it was my fault! And the way he talked to me made me believe it too. He went on and on about it. He made me cry. I felt so guilty about letting Jake down. I felt like I wanted to die. That’s when he told me to lay down on here. I don’t remember anything else.”
Mrs Abbott began to cry.
I handed her a tissue, “None of what he said is true. That man was evil but he’s gone now.”
Mrs Abbott blew her nose, “But it’s true about Jake killing himself, isn’t it?”
“No, it isn’t,” Tommy came into the room carrying a tray of tea things. He set the tray down and continued. “Jake slipped. It was an accident. He was trying to make me laugh. You know what he’s like, or was like. Always acting the clown.”
Mrs Abbott smiled through her tears, “He made me laugh so much, my little Jake.”
I listened as Tommy told Mrs Abbott exactly what happened that night. Then he told her about other things Jake had done to make Tommy laugh. Mrs Abbott was soon crying tears of laughter.
I looked at Jake. He was laughing too. He seemed to be glowing brighter as if he was getting ready to leave soon, to go to that other, better place.
Mrs Abbott asked, “Is Jake still here? Can you see him? Can you talk to him for me?”
I said yes and then spent the next half an hour passing messages between Jake and his mum, and then Jake and Tommy.
It felt good to be helping people.
When everything had been said I looked at Jake and noticed that he was glowing much brighter.
“I think it’s time for you to go,” I said gently to Jake.
“I know,” he smiled. “Thanks for all your help. Will you sell my joke things at your shop? If mum keeps them she’ll just put them away in a cupboard. I want them to get used, for people to laugh.”
I made sure that that was alright with Jake’s mum. She nodded.
I heard some laughter behind me. Jake looked my way. His face lit up.
“Clowns! There are lots of clowns just behind you. They want me to go with them,” Jake grinned.
I told Mrs Abbott and Tommy what Jake had said.
“You go with them!” Mrs Abbott cheered, “It’s what you’ve always wanted.”
After calling out his love to his mum Jake lit up brightly and floated over my head. Then he disappeared.
I could faintly hear something - Jake’s last laugh.
Chapter 15
I said goodbye to Mrs Abbott and Tommy and then drove back to the shop.
I felt like I’d been gone all day but I’d only been gone for two hours.
As I walked towards the shop I saw a big crowd outside. They were an angry crowd.
“What’s the point of having a sale and then not opening the shop!” an old man grumbled.
“It’s just ridiculous. I bet it’s some sort of publicity stunt,” a grey haired woman added.
I pushed my way through and tried the door of the shop. It was locked.
“Oi! There’s a queue!” the grumbling man shouted at me.
“I work here,” I told him. I opened the door and quickly slipped outside. Carol never locked the door during business hours so I knew something was wrong. People behind me tried to come in the shop so I asked them as politely as I could to keep outside for a while. Some of them swore at me.
I called out, “Carol? Are you here?”
I didn’t receive an answer so I walked further into the shop.
Then I saw Carol. She was hunched down behind the counter. She was as white as a sheet and she was trembling.
I knelt down next to her, “I don’t want to say this but you look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
Carol looked at me with frightened eyes, “I have! I saw two of them. Right here in the shop.”
“Can you tell me about it?” I asked.
“It was Rose, and a funny looking man with sunglasses. He was arguing with Rose and saying they didn’t have time for social visits. Then Rose said it was important and that she had something she needed to tell me, a message to pass to you.”
“Go on,” I said. I moved closer to Carol.
“Rose said she forgot to warn you about the shop cellar. She said there were some bad ghosts in there and you had to be careful if you went down there. She doesn’t want you to get hurt. I was too scared to speak! I just nodded and then they just disappeared.”
“Was that all?” I asked.
“Isn’t that enough? I nearly wet myself when those ghosts appeared!” Carol blustered.
I tried not to smile, “They’ve gone now and I don’t think they’ll be coming back. I’ll put the kettle on and make your tea extra strong.”
Carol said, “I don’t like this, Kate. It’s bad enough that you mess around with ghosts but I don’t want to see them. And to know there’s a cellar full right under me! Well, I’m not sure I want to stay in this shop.”
“They’ve gone now, Carol, and they can’t hurt you. You’re not going to let a silly thing like ghosts stop you, are you? I thought you were stronger than that. You’re one of the strongest people I know,” I said.
Carol gave a little nod, “That’s true.”
“Don’t worry about the ghosts in the cellar, if any pop up I’ll deal with them,” I assured her.
Carol stopped shaking, “We could board the cellar door up. That would stop them coming through.”
I didn’t tell her that doors don’t stop ghosts.
“There are some customers waiting outside the shop. They’re not happy that they’re having to wait,” I told Carol.
Carol’s lips set in a firm line. She stood up, brushed some dust off her skirt and looked towards the window. “They’ll have to wait a little while longer while you make me a tea. Did I hear some of them swearing at you?”
I straightened up and stood next to her. “That man in the flat cap even pushed me.”
Carol pushed up her sleeves and narrowed her eyes, “Did he now? I’ll be having a word with him. What are you standing there for, Kate? The kettle won’t switch itself on.”
“Carol, are you alright? Will you stay with me at the shop?” I asked.
Carol looked at me and gave a determined smile, “Let’s make a deal, if any more ghosts come near me I’ll send them straight over to you.”
“That’s a deal,” I agreed. “Shall I open the door?”
Carol nodded, “I’m ready for them. And, Kate?”
“Yes?” I said.
Carol pointed towards the kitchen, “Tea.”
I walked into the kitchen, happy that Carol was her bossy self again. I glanced at the cellar door on the other side of the kitchen.
I just knew that I would be opening that door soon.
About the author
I live in a town in the north of England. On the high street there are about 7 charity shops. They always have lovely window displays enticing you to enter. Quite often I have looked at the things in the windows and wondered who they belonged to, and why they have given them away. I also wondered what would happen if there were ghosts attached to some items. For a while I thought about the possible stories – and then I eventually wrote them down!
I set the stories in a second hand shop, rather than a charity shop, as it would give characters the opportunity to sell items they don’t want, or need, anymore.
I still look in the charity shop windows, it’s amazing the things that people donate.
If you liked this story would you be able to put a short review on Amazon, or to click the ‘like’ button?
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Thank you, I appreciate it.
The first book in this series is, ‘The Final Bet’ :
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The second book is, ‘The Lost Baby’ :
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You can visit my website a
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www.gillianlarkin.co.uk
Read on for the first chapter of the fourth book in this series, ‘The Hidden Picture’.
Kind regards
Gillian
The Hidden Picture - Chapter 1
“We need something eye catching, something to draw the crowds in,” Carol said.
I looked around the shop, “We need better things to sell.”
“One thing at a time, Kate. If we get people into the shop then we can flog them other things,” Carol said.
It had been one month since Rose, the owner of Second Hand Rose, had died and left her shop jointly to me and Carol. We were struggling to make a profit, mainly because we had a lot of old and bulky furniture to get rid of.
“We could try a sale again,” I suggested.
Carol shook her head, “We’ve had two already, people will think we’re one of those companies that are always having ‘closing down sales’. We’ve got a reputation to think of. Come on, Kate, think of something.”
“I’m trying,” I told her.
Carol fixed her gaze on me.
“Well I can’t think if you’re staring at me!” I retorted.
The shop door opened. Carol’s eyes lit up as she spotted a potential sale.
A woman who looked to be in her mid thirties staggered in with a large cardboard box. I ran over to help her. Together, we put it on the counter.
Carol frowned as she realised the woman was here to sell something, and not to buy anything.
“Yes?” Carol asked rather rudely.
The woman huffed for a bit as she caught her breath.
Then she spoke, “I need to speak to Rose, please.”
“You can’t,” Carol replied.
“But it’s important. I have to speak to her,” the woman went on.
“I’ve just told you that you can’t. You’ll have to speak to me instead.”
Carol is so embarrassingly rude sometimes.
I smiled at the woman and said, “I’m sorry to tell you that Rose passed away recently. She left her shop to us. If you have business with Rose I’m sure we could help.”
The Last Laugh: A Ghost Mystery Story (Second Hand Ghosts Book 3) Page 3