Epilogue
Weeks passed and turned into months. Winter snow turned to spring mud and Mudville lived up to its name in spectacular fashion.
The citizens of Mudville had short memories and soon the next tidbit of gossip grabbed their attention and the shop’s business returned to normal.
Natalie and Lionel settled into a routine built around a truce and at least a growing tolerance if not mutual respect for one another.
It worked. As the ever cranky mailman dumped yet another pile of mail on the counter, Natalie spotted something different beneath the stack.
She rushed to the counter, pushed aside the envelopes and smiled.
“It’s here!” she shouted to anyone, living or ghost, who might be in the vicinity.
Liam emerged from the door to the apartment and Jules from the back where she’d been unboxing yesterday’s shipment of wine.
Natalie held in her hand a copy of the journal containing Lionel’s promised Mudville article. The historical world was eating up the discovery of the train depot’s hidden documents. And even if it was posthumous, Lionel was basking in praise.
“Is that the article?” Liam asked, two mugs in his hand.
Natalie nodded. “Yes. I have to text Harper.” So that Harper could tell Gabe, so that Gabe could tell Lionel, who’d claimed the second floor of the library as his personal space.
“Cool,” Jules said, then turned back to her task. History was not her field of study nor her interest. Not even local history. But she’d grow into it, hopefully. A person couldn’t live among it like Natalie did and not take an interest.
Liam extended one of the mugs toward her.
“Thanks.” She glanced up to take it and noticed him staring. “What?”
“You okay?”
She lifted a brow. “Yeah, sure. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Lionel is leaving today.”
She let out a laugh. “Oh. Yeah, I’m fine. And I actually mean fine,” she added, knowing Liam’s feelings about that word.
“It’s okay to be sad. He was here a while and you two spent more hours together than you and I do.”
“Jealous?” she joked.
“No.” He smiled.
“It is kind of bittersweet, I guess,” she admitted. She wouldn’t miss the criticism or the comments. But they had accomplished some good work together. The article she’d had a large hand in creating was something she was proud of.
But it was time for Lionel to move on.
Lionel’s wishes, laid out in detail in his will, were that when his body was done being researched, he was to be buried in Grove Street Cemetery located right next to the Yale campus. It was a historic, established in 1797.
Natalie couldn’t have chosen a more perfect location for the final resting place… for his body. Lionel’s spirit of course would live on to haunt Yale’s hallowed halls. She had no doubt he’d audit every history class, passing judgement on each and every living professor. He’d love it.
“Hey.” Harper strode toward them, a newspaper in her hand. “I got here as soon as I could. Gabe is going to tell Lionel.”
“The journal is next to the register if you want to look at it.” Natalie tipped her head toward the counter.
“I will.” Harper hesitated, finally raising her gaze to Natalie. “I did something.”
“Okay.”
Harper stepped forward and laid a copy of the New York Times on the counter, folded so that the OpEd page faced up. She took a step back then said, “I hope you’re not mad. I didn’t tell you because I honestly didn’t think they’d print it. But they did.”
Confused, Natalie took a step forward. So did Liam, who was tall enough to see over her.
OPINION
GUEST ESSAY
Death by AI
by Harper Lowry
Ms Lowry is a bestselling novelist.
Natalie glanced back at Harper.
“After the whole situation with Peter and Lionel… I mean a man is dead because of it… I had to do something. So I wrote that. Don’t worry.
It doesn’t mention anything about you or the ghosts.
It’s just the facts. And about how dangerous it is that artificial intelligence and technology is advancing faster than our understanding of it. ” Harper cringed. “Are you mad.”
She should probably read it first before making that determination, but Natalie shook her head. “No. It’s okay.”
“And I know you were worried about any accusations, however false, casting doubt on Lionel’s work, so maybe this will insure that never happens,” Harper suggested.
Natalie nodded. “You’re right. Thank you. It’s good.”
“It really is good,” Liam said from where he was leaning on the counter reading. “It lays out the dates of publication, the AI training and use, and the murder, of course. Basically the bones of what happened and why, without the ghosts. Good job, Harper.”
“Thanks.” Harper focused back on Natalie. “Are we okay?”
“Of course.” Natalie stepped forward and hugged her friend. “Never better.”
“So Lionel is leaving today?” Harper asked.
She nodded. “We got confirmation. The donor program arranged for his internment in New Haven.”
“Are we happy or sad about his leaving?” Harper asked. “I can’t decide.”
“Little bit of both I guess.” Natalie shrugged.
“Where is it? They better have made those final edits we sent them,” Lionel declared, swooshing through the front door. He came to a stop in front of the counter and spun to face Natalie. “The brute is leaning on it and it’s not open to the page. Seriously, Miss Chase. You knew I was coming.”
Natalie glanced at Harper. “Lionel’s here…and he’s making it much easier to say goodbye.”
Harper smiled. “I have no doubt.”
The van from Albany Medical College arrived early, sending Natalie scrambling to make sure everyone who wanted to see Lionel off could.
The Mudville network worked and judging by the number of ghosts and livings who showed, Lionel had actually made more friends than enemies, which was a bit of a surprise.
But at Liam’s suggestion, the public goodbyes were said and the crowd dispersed before they actually loaded the corporeal remains of Lionel into the back of the van.
Now, it was just Liam, who was occupying the driver, and Natalie and Lionel, who were left for a private goodbye.
“Are you going to be okay there at Yale all by yourself? You wont be able to leave the area. And I won’t be there to talk to,” Natalie reminded Lionel.
“Miss Chase. I’m quite sure I’ll be fine. I can’t think of a better place for me to spend eternity.”
“On this, Lionel, I think we can agree. And who knows? Maybe you’ll discover another living there who can see and hear you. Then you could write more books and articles.”
“Should I find another who can communicate with the deceased I will most certainly have them contact you. It must be a lonely existence for you, Miss Chase, having no one else with your unique abilities to commiserate with. Of course, whomever I find would be a Yalie. I can’t promise as an ivy-leaguer they would want to establish a camaraderie with you, but as you say, who knows? ”
Natalie couldn’t even be angry at Lionel’s insult. It was just… him.
“Goodbye, Lionel. Have a good afterlife.”
“Goodbye, Natalie. It was interesting getting to know you.”
She smiled. “Ditto. Oh, and don’t forget to look up Sally Lee when you get there.”
He acknowledged that with a tip of his head and a wave, then slipped through the side and into the passenger seat of the van.
Turning to look at Liam, Natalie nodded.
“All good?” Liam asked.
“All good.”
He slammed shut the van’s back doors, closing the door on Lionel’s remains and this chapter of their time together.
Liam pounded on the side of the van to signal the driver. The engine started, and with a puff of exhaust and a flash of brake lights, off it went, Lionel inside.
Liam wrapped his arm around her. “Deny it all you want but you look sad.”
She blinked away the moisture in her eyes. “You know I’m a sap.”
“Yes, you are. At least Gabe should be happy. Those two never did click.”
She nodded. “True. And Alice is happy too now that the article about her Mudd ancestors is published. Oh, I forgot to tell you. While Lionel was going over the research for the article again he found documentation that the descendants of the Axtell family once owned the train depot. They must have hidden the documents in the fireplace and walled it up.”
“That solves that mystery. It makes sense. If one of the later generations discovered those papers, they wouldn’t want any one to see evidence that could have tarnished the family’s philanthropic reputation.“
“Right?” Natalie agreed. “Purchasing property illegally and not making it right isn’t great for the family image. Not to mention fighting the claimant in court until the Mudds ran out of money.”
“So the case of the murdered professor, and the case of the hidden documents are both solved. So what’s next, Nancy Drew?” Liam asked as he squeezed her shoulder.
She smiled. “For tonight that answer is the village meeting. Alice is insisting Lionel’s Mudville article be read in its entirety at the meeting so it will be entered into the official minutes. I promised Harper I’d go for moral support. Wanna come?”
“Yeah, thanks for the invite but no. I think I have to work tonight.”
“Liar,” she accused.
Ignoring her, Liam continued, “But I’ll be waiting for you at your place after the meeting.” He flashed her a dimple that had her stomach flipping even after years of being together.
“You’d better be,” she said.
Tonight, and every night. She was counting on it.
“Oh, and Liam. Please don’t order any more corpses for a little bit. I need a rest.”
He laughed. “You and me both, baby. You and me both.”