Fixing To Die

Mrs. Pace shrugged. “Spirits are capricious. This one could decide to reveal itself to anyone it wanted to. Although I must say I am usually the person they choose.”

“Naturally,” Henry Howard said.

He wasn’t taking any trouble to hide his hostility, An’gel thought, somewhat puzzled by his attitude. She had thought him more open-minded than this, though perhaps his behavior resulted from the strain he and Mary Turner had been experiencing in recent weeks. After a moment’s further reflection, An’gel put it down to that and resolved that she and Dickce would do their best to put an end to these manifestations or whatever they were. If Mrs. Pace turned out to be a hindrance, then An’gel would personally get her out the door.

Mary Turner cleared her throat and took a sip of water. Setting the glass aside, she said, “All I know is, if there is an unfriendly spirit in this house, I want it out as soon as possible.”

“I’m sure I can help you,” Mrs. Pace said.

Henry Howard snorted but made no other comment. Mrs. Pace didn’t appear in the least bothered by his attitude.

“Won’t you join us?” Mary Turner indicated the empty chair to her right. “If you would like lunch, I will ask the housekeeper to prepare a plate for you.”

Mrs. Pace took her place. “No, thank you, I’m fine.” She glanced around the table. “Please, continue with the discussion of the strange events going on here. I need as much information as possible in order to cleanse the house of any lingering spirits.”

Mary Turner began to list the types of occurrences and their frequency, and Mrs. Pace focused her gaze on her hostess’s face. When Mary Turner mentioned the problems with their cell phones, the medium frowned briefly, An’gel noted with interest.

Was that not something the medium had encountered before? An’gel wondered.

Mrs. Pace said, “Besides the cold spot on the stairs, the lightbulbs, and the interference with the electronics, have there been any other unexplained things happening?”

An’gel decided to mention the odd shadow she had seen earlier. “Right after we arrived,” she began, “while I was waiting in the hallway for my turn in the powder room, I happened to glance up the stairs. I saw a shadow that looked vaguely human in form. I thought it might be Henry Howard’s, actually. I called out to him, but there was no response, other than that the shadow simply vanished.”

“It moved away?” Mary Turner asked.

“No, it was there one moment and gone the next,” An’gel said. “There was no movement, more like a light suddenly switched off, if you see what I mean.”

“That is really interesting,” Mrs. Pace said, her gaze intent on An’gel’s face. “Did you feel a sense of menace, or sense the presence of another being anywhere near you?”

An’gel thought for a moment. “Can’t recall that I did. Only that shadow. I certainly didn’t feel the cold the way Dickce did. Do you think that whatever cast the shadow is also the source of the cold?”

“It’s certainly possible,” Mrs. Pace replied. “Some spirits can manifest themselves in more than one way.”

“Where were you when this happened?” Mary Turner addressed the question to her husband.

“In one of the bedrooms changing the lightbulbs,” he said.

“Did you see anything, or anyone, upstairs that could have cast a shadow?” Mary Turner said, still focused on Henry Howard.

He shook his head. “No, not a thing. As far as I know, I was the only person upstairs at the time.”

“Mrs. Catlin, have you observed this shadow for yourself? Or you, Mr. Catlin?” The medium glanced at them in turn.

Henry Howard shook his head. “I haven’t.”

“I haven’t either,” Mary Turner said. “Is it significant that Miss An’gel is the only one who has seen it?”

An’gel was wondering the same thing herself, now that she knew no one else had seen it.

“It could very well be important,” Mrs. Pace said after a brief silence. “I will have to consult my own spirit guides and ask their advice on this. Now, to finish the original subject of my question. Are these all the strange things that have happened?”

“No,” Mary Turner said. “I find things moved from their accustomed places almost every day.”

“What kind of things?” An’gel asked.

“Knickknacks, vases, pictures, things on shelves around the house,” Mary Turner replied.

“Don’t forget about the dictionary,” Henry Howard said.

“Dictionary?” Dickce asked. “What does it do, fly around the room?”

An’gel threw her sister a quelling look. Dickce was a little too flippant sometimes.

Mary Turner smiled briefly. “No, it doesn’t fly. It never leaves its place. We have it open in the library on one of those old-fashioned book stands. As long as I can remember, it’s been open to the same page, because now if I want to look up a word, I do it online.”

Henry Howard said, “But now it’s on a different page every day, sometimes two or three times a day. This only started happening last week, after we closed down for our annual holiday.” He snorted. “Some holiday.”