Madison Johns - Agnes Barton Paranormal 01 - Haunted Hijinks Page 6

  Chapter Six

  We walked through the house to where Martha sat next to Brad, who was in an in-depth conversation about the best surfing beaches with Tony. When Martha spotted us, she said, “Oh, Mother. Give me a ride back to my car.”

  Brad barely looked up, and when she wasn’t able to even get him to look up at her when she announced she was leaving, she stomped off toward the door with us in tow.

  When we were back in the car and I was backing up, Eleanor turned to look at Martha in the backseat. “Brad seems nice, but is he—”

  Martha sighed. “Probably. I sure know how to pick them.”

  Eleanor faced the front again. “Oh, don’t be too hard on yourself. I’m sure you’ll find a new one on the beach later.”

  That was classic Martha. She liked young men and had a healthy supply. Even though she was forty, she was quite shapely and dressed provocatively most days. Cat suits were her favorite piece of apparel. She did have a gig at the local realty office once, but she’s not a conformist. She instead prefers to live for free in my Winnebago that has been parked at the Tawas campground next to the pier.

  “How about after we drop you at your car, we follow you back to the campground?”

  “Sure, I can throw something on the grill.”

  “But shouldn’t we get back to the mansion soon?” Eleanor asked.

  “We will, but I’m sure Bernice is overseeing things just fine.”

  The man who had closed it behind us earlier opened the gate, and Martha hopped out on the other side and followed us to the campground. I glanced in the back seat to assure myself that my ghost partner was still with me and she was, but staring out the window.

  “Why do you keep looking back there, Agnes?” Eleanor wanted to know. “You’ve been doing that a lot lately. Is there something you’re not telling me?”

  I gripped the steering wheel and laughed nervously. “Whatever do you mean by that?”

  “Ever since the accident, you seem a bit off-kilter, is all.”

  “Well, I did rattle my head.”

  “People change sometimes after an accident. How have you been feeling, really?”

  “I’ve had some headaches. That’s why I had a CT scan yesterday.”

  “Did you get the results?”

  “You know, I never did. I’m sure if there were any problems, Dr. Thomas would have told me.”

  I made the turn into the campground and parked alongside my Winnebago where a group of young men were sitting on the picnic table, all of them wearing cutoff shorts.

  “I’ve never seen so many bare-chested men in my life,” Eleanor said. “It looks like it won’t be long before Martha has herself a new beau.”

  “Nothing new there, but just why are these men here when Martha isn’t?”

  “Not sure, but looks like she’s not too upset about it,” Eleanor pointed out as Martha raced from her car that she parked in a hurry to greet the men.

  Eleanor and I struggled out of the car, which made me believe that Eleanor was about as tired as I was. It had already been a long day. While Eleanor made her way to the group of young men, I stopped and looked across the way, where the black monstrosity of a trailer stood with thick drapes covering the windows like usual.

  Leotyne Williams rolled into East Tawas a while ago and hasn’t left yet. Eleanor and I have also called her a gypsy, on account of she lives in a trailer and is of Romanian descent. Of course, early on we also thought she was a witch. I think it had something to with the fact that she has long, stringy hair and wears long black dresses despite the heat. The ghost floated nearby, and instead of joining Martha and Eleanor, it might be the time to ask Leotyne to look into that crystal ball of hers, since she’s known to be a clairvoyant. She’s also given me advice in the past, but it’s usually sketchy at best. More like a riddle than anything else, but it’s always rung true, so I have learned to take her advice.

  I rapped on the door and the ghost bobbed next to me when Anna Parsons opened it. I had met Anna in the hospital on one of my numerous overnight stays there. Leotyne took Anna in not long ago when she needed a place to stay and Anna is Leotyne’s apprentice.

  “Hello,” I said as I clambered up the steps of the trailer and Anna raced out of the way, pressing herself to the wall of the kitchenette.

  Before I had time to ask if Leotyne was here, I jerked my head sideways as an earth-shattering scream coming from Leotyne echoed in the trailer. My ghost companion was also quite frightened and her mouth was wide open in a screaming motion, too. She formed a black mist that flew into one wall of the trailer after the other, sending books flying to the floor. Leotyne grabbed a broom and began to swing wildly at the mist and I shouted, “Stop it! You’re scaring her.”

  Leotyne stopped mid-swipe. “Scaring her? She’s wrecking the place.”

  “That’s because you were screaming.”

  Leotyne put the broom down. “Why’d you bring a ghost into my trailer for?”

  “It’s okay, I won’t let her hurt you,” I cooed to the ghost that appeared in silhouette form now, her chest rising and falling. She then threw her ghostly arms around me and I hugged the air lightly since if I did it too hard, my arms would go straight through her. Or that was my reasoning, since this was way bazaar.

  Leotyne smoothed her hair and straightened her clothing now, motioning Anna to join her at the table. “It’s okay, dear, the ghost is with her.”

  Anna raced over and sat down, her eyes round and wide. “I-I didn’t think gh-ghosts were real.”

  “Of all the crazy things for someone to say that proclaims herself as clairvoyant. Of course they’re real,” I said as I sat opposite them and the ghost floated close by. “I’m staying at the Butler Mansion and I can tell you that I’ve seen one there, too. Or I should say, Eleanor and I did.” I pursed my lips since I had to tell them the whole story. At least someone besides me could see the ghost now. “Not sure if you were aware of it or not, but I had an accident where I suffered quite the concussion, and when I woke up this ghost was there and has been with me ever since.”

  Leotyne leaned forward, her eyes squinty. “Don’t be too hard on the girl, she’s learning. So it’s attached itself to you, then. When was the first time you saw the ghost?”

  “In the hospital.”

  Leotyne’s fingers tapped the table. “Interesting. So it had nothing to do with the body that was discovered at the Butler Mansion that they spoke about on the news?”

  “Not that I’m aware of.”

  Leotyne fingered her crystal ball thoughtfully. “The ghost isn’t the same person who died at the mansion recently, but it’s a bit foggy. She’s attached to you for some reason and I’m not so convinced that it was at the hospital for sure, but you could ask around. I expect if someone has seen a ghost at the hospital before, they might tell you. Maybe.”

  That really didn’t help much. “They might think I’m off my rocker, too.”

  “You are that, Agnes. Have your partner, Eleanor, ask the questions, since she’s perceived as a brick short of a full load already.”

  I frowned. “Oh, come on. Eleanor might be a little impulsive, but she’s more sane than most. I can’t ask her to do that without telling her the whole story.”

  “You mean she doesn’t also see the ghost?” Anna asked.

  “No, and she doesn’t know I see one, either. It’s so hard to keep this all to myself.”

  “Yes, it’s important not to tell anyone, but you do need to figure out who she is at some point. Ghosts often want something and you need to figure out what it is.”

  I pointed out the crystal ball. “Can’t you see something in that globe of yours that might help?”

  Leotyne looked into the crystal ball and shook her head. “It’s all fogged up.”

  “Let me try,” Anna said. She then leaned toward the globe, putting her fingers on it. “Yes, all fogged up. She might not want us to tell you who she really is.”

  The ghost shook her head
.

  “Do you even know who you really are?” I asked the ghost. When she only shrugged, I added, “I just don’t understand. Can either of you at least tell me something about the woman who died at the mansion, Katherine Clark?”

  Leotyne once again looked into her ball. “Beware of the three o’clock hour.” She then stared at me. “It’s not safe for you to stay at the mansion. It’s a very dangerous place, with many angry spirits.”

  “Why angry?”

  “That’s all I see.”

  “Anna, you try, please. I have to know.”

  Anna smiled sadly. “Sorry, that’s all there is to know. Try back in a few days and maybe we can see something more.”

  I stood up, more aggravated than ever, just as Eleanor waltzed into the trailer. When she spotted me, she clutched her chest. “Oh, thank the heavens above. I was so scared when I couldn’t find you.”

  “Oh, come now. You had to have known I’d be here.”

  Eleanor’s eyes darted around nervously. “I suppose. Hello, Leotyne. Where’s your hellhounds?”

  “I had only one hound and he’s met an unfortunate end.”

  I gulped. “Run over by a car?”

  “Nope, old age. Let me just say that he was an old dog.”

  “What did she tell you?” asked Eleanor.

  “Nothing much. You know, another riddle: ‘Beware the three o’clock hour’ and something about ‘the mansion being dangerous.’”

  “I knew it. We shouldn’t be there.”

  “Well, we’re not there right now, so don’t worry. I’m not about to be chased from the mansion … not in this case. Let’s go.”

  Eleanor and I made our way back to where Martha was turning hot dogs with a fork on her grill. “About time you turned up, Mother. I was about ready to gather together a search party.”

  Just then, a trashcan was tipped over as a ferocious bark was heard. It came from Leotyne’s dearly departed hellhound that was now in ghostly form, chasing my ghost up a nearby tree.

  “What on earth,” Eleanor began. “What tipped that trash can over?”

  “Oh, probably a squirrel.”

  “I didn’t see any squirrel.”

  “W-Well, you know it must have darted away fast, is all.”

  “Hot dogs or no hot dogs?” Martha asked as she tapped her fork on the grill to get our attention.

  “Sure, I’m starving.”

  Soon we were all digging in and the men left to go swimming, informing us they had already eaten. They laughed when I told them to wait an hour after they ate to go swimming.

  “So what’s your case about?”

  I quickly gave Martha a run-down about how Eleanor and I had found yet another body and what Jack had told us.”

  “Wow, you two sure manage to find a lot of bodies. It’s like your specialty.”

  Between bites, Eleanor asked me, “Do you think Jack offed Katherine?”

  “You know, I’m not sure. He sure had reason to, but he seemed to believe that he might just get that money back.”

  “I know, but there was nothing stopping him from showing up at the mansion and choking Katherine silly.”

  “I’m aware of that, but Jack seemed pretty upset that she’s dead. I think he’s come to the realization that he’ll never get his money back. At least his son wasn’t all that upset about the missing money.”

  “Well, it was Jack’s money from the sounds of it. I just would hate for my son to show up one day and try to take my purse strings.”

  “From the sounds of it, Jack had agreed to allow his son to do that.”

  “Yes, well, he wasn’t too happy about being kept on that short of a financial leash.”

  “True, but boy, Jack sure wasn’t the man I thought he was.”

  “I’m wondering about that. Other than calling me fish lady once, he wasn’t himself at all. He’s never been kind to either of us.”

  “People sometimes do put up fronts.”

  “I’ve known him longer than you and I’m telling you, I’m just not buying his calm demeanor. He’s on the top of my suspect list as far as I’m concerned.”

  “We really need to find out if there really is an International Energy. I can’t think that Jack would come up with an elaborate story like that.”

  “I’m not saying he made up that part, just that his temper might have gotten the best of him when she swindled him. I can so see Jack throttling that woman.”

  I could too, actually. “We need more proof than that. We need to find out if Katherine might have had an accomplice, or if anyone else in town had been taken to the cleaners by her.”

  “Most seniors we know don’t have the kind of money to invest like that.”

  “Elsie Bradford does, but I don’t really understand why senior citizens need to invest their money. It’s not like they need a ton to enjoy their lives.”

  “That’s true, but not everyone has much at all. Many of them are barely making do on their social security checks. Not really the type of folks who can afford to invest money at all.”

  “We need to do some checking around, and soon.”

  “Hopefully, by that you mean tomorrow, because I’ve about had it for today,” Eleanor admitted.

  “Believe me, I know it.” I stood and stretched and asked Martha, “What’s up with your brother? I haven’t seen Stuart since he left my house in a rush the other day. I sure hope he hasn’t left town.”

  Martha rubbed a cloth over the picnic table, cleaning it. “Stuart? Well, he’s been busy, I guess.”

  My hands went to my hips and I demanded, “Do you know where he is or not?”

  She shrugged. “I have more important things to do than worry about Stuart.”

  “Like lounging on the beach all day?” Eleanor asked.

  Martha smiled kindly. “You know yourself, Eleanor, that you’d rather be doing that instead of hanging around with my mom all the time.”

  “I don’t hang around with your mother all the time, but actually we’re in charge of getting the Butler Mansion ready for the opening on Halloween.”

  Martha clapped her hands together. “That sounds splendid. Are you planning to make the place look all Halloweenie inside?”

  I made a face at the ghost who was still up a tree with the howling ghost dog below. Since nobody reacted to hearing the beast, I just had to wonder if it was all in my head. Then again, why was I able to hear the dog barking, but I couldn’t understand a word the ghost said?

  “Are you okay, Mother?” Martha asked.

  I snapped my neck around and sputtered, “Y-Yes, I’m fine. Why?”

  “Well, for one thing you keep making faces at that tree over there. Is there something over there that you see, but we don’t?”

  “Yeah, Aggie? Is there?” Eleanor also wanted to know.

  They both had the most peculiar expression on their faces and I knew they must be worried, so I laughed it off. “For a moment, there were a couple of squirrels, is all. Ever since my accident, my mind sure has been wandering.”

  “Yes, like right out of your head. You better give that Dr. Thomas a call to see how your CT scan turned out,” Eleanor suggested.

  I made the requested quick call to appease the two of them, and Dr. Thomas’ nurse told me everything checked out fine. When I hung up, I asked Martha, “Would you mind entertaining Eleanor for a few hours? The doctor wants to see me,” I lied.

  “I’ll go with you, Agnes. I insist.”

  “Come on, Eleanor. I’d really rather go alone. You could lounge at the beach while I’m gone.”

  Martha grinned. “That sounds great. Come on, Eleanor, I’ll introduce you around.”

  “Okay, but remember, I’m engaged to Mr. Wilson.”

  “That doesn’t mean you can’t look, dear.”

  I got into the car and headed straight to the hospital, not to see Dr. Thomas, but to question the staff about the presence of ghosts there. The ghost floated down into the passenger’s seat while the ghost dog
chased after our car all the way to US 23 before he gave up.

  “Whew, I didn’t think we’d ever lose that dog.” The ghost bobbed her head in agreement and I asked her, “Are you sure you can’t speak?”

  She shook her head in response.

  “Weird. How come that dog can bark, then?”

  She shrugged and I gripped the wheel hard as I turned toward the hospital. “I’m going to ask around at the hospital to see if anyone knows who you are.”

  The ghost shook her head.

  “I saw you in the hospital the first time.”

  She shook her head again. Fog then appeared on the inside of the windshield and the letters appeared that read ‘1930.’

  “You died in 1930?”

  The ghost nodded.

  “Why did you attach yourself to me?”

  She pounded her head and more letters were scribbled into the fogged window, ‘murder.’

  “So you were murdered in 1930?”

  The ghost bounced on the seat in excitement.

  “Okay, so you want me to find out who murdered you?”

  ‘No,’ was scrawled into the fog and then, ‘help you.’

  “So you were murdered in 1930, but you want to help me in my investigation?”

  The fog writing disappeared and was replaced with the word, ‘investigations.’

  I skidded to a stop at the red light and my heart pounded in my chest. “If you were murdered, I suppose that whoever did the deed might just be dead now, right?”

  She nodded her head.

  I clammed up now. I had hoped to find out a little more about her than that. Not only has this ghost now attached to me, but also fancied herself an investigator.

  I advanced through the intersection as I asked, “What is your name?”

  “Caroline,” she said.

  I crashed over the curb in disbelief when the ghost finally spoke. I had my head on the steering wheel when my door was opened with a concerned Trooper Sales searching me for injuries. “Are you okay, Agnes?”

  “Y-Yes,” I choked out. “I really made a mess of things,” I added as I got out of the car.

  He stared at where I had run over the curb. “It looks fine. Did you have a spell or something?”