Chapter 24 #2
If you refuse to treat your abilities like a party trick, the doubt begins. If you won’t summon certain people who have nothing to do with the client, they will doubt you. And, worst of all, if you have no interest in working with the police, the doubt begins.
I will not come to your dinner party, thinking I’m being treated to a meal, only to find out my entrance fee is a séance.
I will not summon Marilyn Monroe so you can ask her about JFK.
And I will not put myself and others in potential danger to help the police.
Could you imagine everyone knowing you have a one-hundred percent success rate finding bodies and who killed the person?
I’d constantly have a price on my head. I’d never be safe anywhere.
No, thank you, please.
If you want to have a decent life as a medium, you have to do one of two things.
Ignore your abilities, or become comfortable dealing with the doubt and skepticism of even those closest to you.
You have to understand that even the people who love and care about you most may feel you’re full of horse crap.
It’s part of the gig.
As I approached Rhonda’s mansion, Danny’s truck came into view.
Immediately, I was tempted to turn around and head back to the diner.
However, the wind had already turned my cheeks red and my fingers into icicles.
The thought of Rhonda’s oppressively warm front room, with all of the candles aglow, was more tempting.
I let myself in through the gate, dashed up the walk, and made my way up the stairs to the front door.
Since she had company, it took Rhonda a little bit longer to come to the door.
However, it wasn’t too long before the door flew open and Rhonda was screaming and ushering me inside.
I followed her, as I always did, while she proclaimed to know that this particular day was the day we’d be successful.
I knew better. Even mediums can grow to be skeptics.
As she dragged me into the front room, I was focused on her and removing my coat and scarf.
So, we’d been standing in the doorway of the room, as I listened to her talk, for several moments before I looked over at the sofa she typically sat on.
I kept my face neutral somehow as I took in Danny sitting there, crossed-legged and tense, watching us.
“I just know that one day you’re going to—” Rhonda cut off.
She looked at my eyes and then followed their gaze over to her son. Lighting up with excitement, she clapped her hands with glee.
“Oh,” she said, “I hope you don’t mind, Silas. I invited my son to sit in on this session.”
“I see,” I said.
Danny gave me a polite nod.
“You remember him, don’t you?” she asked, pulling me towards the sofa and practically shoving me into it.
I laid my coat and scarf over the back of the couch and settled in, trying to look comfortable. Keeping my eyes on Rhonda standing next to me, I ignored Danny.
“You two were in high school together,” Rhonda said. “It hasn’t been that long. Surely you—”
“Of course,” I said, managing a small smile and nod at Danny. “How have you been?”
“Danny,” Rhonda said, reminding me.
“How have you been, Danny?” I asked.
Danny managed a small smile.
“I’ve been great,” he said. “You?”
I gestured vaguely. “Can’t complain.”
Rhonda chortled and glided over to sit down on the sofa next to Danny. She reached over and patted his knee, but Danny’s eyes stayed on mine for a moment before he glanced over at his mother and smiled at her. A better smile than he’d given me.
“I don’t know,” Rhonda said, looking at her son, “but I thought maybe if Danny was also here…”
I watched her hand on his knee for a moment and how they were staring at each other. There was so much hope there. It both broke my heart and angered me. I wasn’t so certain that it was Rhonda’s idea to invite her son. Danny planting the seed in her mind was definitely likely.
His mother didn’t even know that we’d been seeing each other since high school.
I was his little secret. I didn’t even know if Rhonda knew that her son preferred the company of other men.
However, I’d respected that Danny liked to keep his private life private.
So, inserting himself in my private moments with his mother made my blood pressure rise.
It wasn’t the central heat and dozens of burning candles in the front room that was warming me up quickly.
“Of course,” I said as naturally as possible. “Maybe it will make Harlan more likely to want to appear.”
You’re wasting your time, I thought to myself. Harlan isn’t going to appear. Just as he hasn’t since he croaked.
“And him being here gave us time to have a good catch-up talk,” Rhonda said, patting Danny’s knee in an admonishing way now. “Every time he comes down, he pops in for a quick chat, then he’s off to God only knows where again.”
I chuckled. Because it was expected of me. Mother makes a joke about her son not spending enough time with her. Comedy. All that.
“I was talking to Mom about the Inn,” Danny said, turning his head to look at me.
Somehow, I managed to keep my face neutral, yet inquisitive, as though I had no idea about the inn.
“Oh?” I asked.
“Danny,” Rhonda sighed, rolling her eyes with a chuckle, “seems to think it might be better to open it back up. Not take the doors off or anything, but maybe it would be a place for the local homeless people to use as shelter when it gets too cold this winter.”
“That’s nice,” I said, cocking a discreet eyebrow at Danny.
He gave me a surreptitious shrug while Rhonda was distracted.
“But,” Rhonda said, “Harlan closed that up before he died. I just can’t bring myself to do it. He didn’t want anyone messing with its beauty and history. I can’t open it back up.”
I choked back my first thought and responded the way I was supposed to respond.
“That’s understandable,” I said.
I shot a look at Danny, but he was keeping his face neutral as well.
“All of those lovely, historic rooms,” Rhonda said wistfully, then suddenly had a thought and sat forward. “Have you ever stayed at the inn? I know it has been closed for a while, but…”
“No,” I said. “Never had a reason to. But when I was a kid and things were still kind of booming around here, I remember a lot of people in and out of there. Raving about it.”
She was nodding along excitedly.
“So gorgeous,” she proclaimed. “Every room a different gorgeous, rich color theme. The burgundy room. Gold room. Teal room. On and on. Beautiful old furniture. All of the rooms had en suites. I’m sad to know that it is going unused, but the utilities are off now, anyway.
And there is no reason to turn them back on. Who would come stay?”
The homeless could stay, I thought.
“That would pay for the privilege, anyway.” Rhonda chuckled, as though reading my thoughts.
A strained chuckle escaped my mouth and I felt like a jerk.
Danny joined in, but I could tell his heart wasn’t in it.
Rhonda looked around wistfully, then focused her attention back on me.
She slid back in her seat and got comfortable, then her hand returned to her son’s knee.
My eyes darted to the corner of the room when the ghost caught my attention.
“Shall we try summoning Harlan again?” she asked. “Get started?”
“Sure,” I said, staring at the ghost in the corner, ignoring her. “Your mother has already joined us again. Are you sure you don’t want to talk to her?”
Danny frowned deeply at me, then turned his head to see where my eyes were pointed. He stared at the corner for a moment, then whipped his head back around to look at me.
“No,” Rhonda said firmly. “In fact, ask her to leave my house.”
A barrage of curses and insults came from the ghost in the corner—none that I hadn’t heard from the ghost before.
“She knows you don’t want her here,” I said, turning my attention back to Rhonda. “She hears you.”
“But she won’t listen,” Rhonda said, shaking her head with a rueful smile.
“No.”
“Nana is here?” Danny interjected. “Why don’t you ask her something?”
His eyes were pleading with his mom. I knew it wasn’t because he loved his grandmother.
He wanted to test me now that he had the chance.
I was going to leave the decision up to Rhonda—she was the paying customer.
Though I was seething from the thought that Danny had joined our session simply to get confirmation of my abilities.
“I do not want that woman in my house,” Rhonda said through clenched teeth.
“Can I ask her something?” Danny asked desperately. “Please?”
Rhonda rolled her eyes and gestured vaguely at him. Danny turned to me quickly.
“What is she wearing?” he whipped his head around to me. “What is my Nana wearing?”
“That’s…not a question,” I said.
“Just tell me,” Danny barked.
I stared at him for a moment, trying to decide if I’d refuse to answer his question, simply out of spite.
However, I wasn’t sure how this would go over with my most reliable, well-paying customer.
So, after staring daggers into Danny for a moment, I turned to look at the old woman, who was still cursing at the back of Rhonda’s head.
I took stock of Danny’s grandmother’s appearance, then turned back to stare at him.
“Dark suit,” I said. “Navy, I believe. Straight leg pants with a crisp pleat in front. I believe a white silk blouse with a cowl neck under the suit jacket, also navy. White buttons at the cuffs. An impressive pearl necklace with a cameo. Navy ballet flats. Her hair is pulled back, I think in a chignon. She’s looking at me, but it’s a bun or chignon, I think from how her hair is pulled back.
She wanted to be buried in the caftan dress with the butterflies that she always wore after church when she’d sit out on the back porch with her half-lemonade-half-tea and smoke Pall Malls. ”
I answered Danny’s question and delivered grandma’s grievance with Rhonda all in one go. Danny stared at me and Rhonda laughed a windchime like laugh.
“Can you imagine, Danny!” Rhonda chuckled. “Burying Mother in that monstrosity? What would people have said?”
Danny said nothing as peals of laughter poured from his mother. Instead, he stared at me, blank faced.
“She wants you to donate her box of caftans to a nursing home,” I added. “Because a caftan is an older woman’s best comfort in a world that slowly becomes more uncomfortable. Except the butterfly one. She wants that left at her gravesite.”
Rhonda laughed harder.
“I got rid of those years ago!” she chuckled, mocking the ghost.
With a poof, Nana Milner disappeared in a cloud of anger. She was there, then she was gone. And Danny was staring at me, ghostly pale. I let Rhonda’s laughter die off as I stared at Danny. Finally, when his color began to return, and Rhonda was settling down again, I gave them a tight smile.
“Do you want to try Harlan again?” I asked. “I’d hate to let the whole hour go by and forget to try.”
“Yes,” Rhonda said, still smiling. “Let’s try.”