My Inherited House Might be Haunted

Seven

Calix

Phaedra showed up at closing time with a bag full of goodies, her sewing machine, and her patented you-must-be-joking look. She wore that a lot with me. To be fair, I often did things that warranted it.

My sister had apparently gotten her hair redone, as it was now in blue and black braids going down to her waist, and she was in a cute little blue sundress, which made me wonder.

“You got a date with hubby or something?”

“Later tonight,” she confirmed. “I’ve got two hours to straighten this all out.”

“Uh, we’re actually doing fine?”

“Uh-huh,” she said with blatant disbelief, which was just hurtful, then handed me her sewing machine before beelining for the couch. “Hi, Brownie, my name is Phaedra. I’m this idiot’s sister. How are you?”

Brownie gave a smile and wave.

She sat on the couch next to it, still all smiles. “I brought some things for you. What’s your name?”

The Brownie gave an uncertain shake of the head.

Phaedra’s frown grew more pronounced. “Honey, can you not talk?”

Brownie pointed to the throat area and gave a mournful shake of the head.

A light went on in the back of my head. “Is that why you were eating a peppermint stick? Your throat’s sore?”

A nod this time.

Well damn, now I did feel like an idiot. “Hang on, I’ve got a remedy for that.”

I darted for my kitchen and went to the cabinet that held all of my infused medicines. I used to get laryngitis regularly every two years, almost like clockwork, so I kept infused honey on hand to help heal the throat. I pulled a small teaspoon of that out and carefully brought it back to my new friend.

Phaedra had already pulled out several Barbie doll–sized outfits, most of them looking like they’d fit fine. I guessed she’d brought the sewing machine to do alterations with. She had everything from dresses to pants and even a green jumpsuit.

The Brownie liked the look of the jumpsuit very much and tugged it on with Phaedra’s help. It was a tolerable fit, if a bit too long in the legs.

“Hmm, good thing I brought the sewing machine. Looks like we need to hem those up a little.”

Brownie took them back off, a tad reluctantly, and Phaedra took both it and the sewing machine to my (rather crowded) table.

I changed places with her and offered the honey. “This should help heal up your throat. Uh, if you don’t have a name, can we think of one?”

Brownie seemed excited over this and eagerly nodded.

Phaedra, not even glancing back in our direction, advised, “Once given a name, a Brownie considers it a contract with the human. Also, they like nature names. You also have a girl on your hands.”

“Both good to know.” Nature names, huh. I watched my Brownie happily eat the honey, then lick the spoon clean. Reminded me of when I found it with the peppermint stick. “How about Pepper?”

Brownie stopped licking the spoon to give me a wide smile and enthusiastic nod.

“Pepper good? Awesome.”

The sewing machine started up. Phaedra was a really good seamstress, so I wasn’t worried.

“How about you try on some of the others? Can’t have just one pair of clothes to wear.”

Pepper went through the selection and tried on the jean and shirt combination. Which also seemed to fit rather well, although the shirt was baggy.

Changing outfits again, this time to the summer dress, I felt it only right to say something. “Thanks for cleaning the bathroom, Pepper. I do appreciate it. I know it was a mess after we washed Myst.”

The sewing machine abruptly stopped. “Myst?”

Ah, right. She was behind in the news. “So the tech guy next door—”

“Oh, the one you’ve been drooling over?”

“Drooling is such a strong word. Accurate, but still. Anyway, he got adopted by a cat. Said cat came to work with him and then had him open the back door to the shop, only to promptly lead in a neglected puppy.”

“You’re kidding.” Phaedra started laughing. “Now that’s fun. I take it he borrowed your tub for a puppy bath?”

“Yup. Really sweet dog, just absolutely filthy. But I’m beyond grateful for it even if it did destroy my bathroom. I finally, finally found a chance to ask the man out on a date.”

“Ha, about time! You’ve been crushing on him for months now.”

I was pleased with myself. “We’re set to go out tomorrow night. I’m trying to think of a good place to take him.”

“How about Magnolia Grill? It’s got lots of vegan options too if you need some.”

True, I had no idea if he was vegetarian, vegan, had food restrictions or what. Plus Magnolia Grill was on the upper side of being fancy without being need-a-suit formal, so it was a great place for a date. “That’s a suggestion I’ll take. Wait, is that where you and hubby are going tonight?”

“Yup. Which is why I thought of it.” She stood from the machine and came over to Pepper. “Try this on.”

Pepper promptly shucked the dress and pulled on the jumpsuit, which now fit perfectly. As expected of my sister.

Pepper was so excited, she immediately gave Phaedra a hug around the hand.

“Aww, you’re welcome, sweetie. Now, I’ve also brought a dollhouse with me. Do you want to use that as your own mini apartment?”

From the way Pepper’s eyes shone, my sister had offered a lottery ticket with winning numbers.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Phaedra pointed to the door. “It’s in my trunk. Car’s not locked.”

My Beast of Burden training kicked in. “Yes’um, I’m going. Wait, how big is this thing? Where am I supposed to put it?”

“We’ll figure that out while you’re fetching it.”

I should have expected her answer.