Chapter 30
“They’re still over there,” Ginny said from her place by the window.
She’d been sneaking peeks out the front window of the diner all morning.
The ghost that had been following me was right in front of her face, on the other side of the window, but she had no clue.
I had been busy scooping Swedish meatballs, mashed potatoes, and buttery peas into to-go containers while she busied herself being a snoop.
“What?” I said, looking up from the prep table.
“The police,” Ginny whispered, as though they could hear us. “They’re still over at the inn.”
I shrugged, though I knew her attention was elsewhere.
“Could be anything,” I said nonchalantly.
“For hours?” Ginny was incredulous. “No. Unless…do you think there’s a gas leak we need to be worried about? No. Police don’t deal with that. Do they?”
“Have you seen the gas company vehicles?” I asked, slopping more food into containers.
Ginny didn’t answer me, but she didn’t have to respond. Obviously, I knew the answer.
After leaving The Eternity Inn the night before, I walked over to the Gas & Go.
I asked Caleb to call the county police when he was ending his shift in the morning and report that he’d seen someone go into The Eternity Inn.
No more. No less. He gave me a nod, asked no questions, and followed my directions. I knew he’d say nothing about me.
I was arriving at The Lunch Counter when the police finally came and bothered to check it out.
I let Ginny get away with snooping all morning, feeding me information as the cops worked.
At first, I was afraid that they would see the boarded-up front door and windows and simply ignore the tip.
However, they’d found the bulkhead doors I’d left open at the back of the inn and investigated further.
Within twenty minutes of the first cop car showing up, three more arrived, along with an ambulance and fire truck.
It been Grand Central Station all morning since.
“I wish we were closer!” Ginny moaned, sending a chill up my spine. “I can barely see anything.”
“How about you come over here and see about these meatballs,” I grumbled.
Ginny laughed, sighed, and pushed away from the window. The ghost outside continued to stare in at me. I ignored it as I always did. Ginny came and took my place at the stove to scoop portions as I stepped back to remove my apron.
“I don’t plan to be at Rhonda’s long today,” I said. “So, I shouldn’t be gone but a few minutes.”
Ginny looked at me for a few moments, and simply nodded. She didn’t ask any questions for once.
“I’ll be back,” I added, once I was certain she was going to mind her own business.
A minute later, I was on my way to Rhonda’s house with my coat on.
I’d left my scarf at the shop since the day had proved not to be as windy or chilly as the one before.
Still cold enough for an overcoat, but not nearly as cutting.
The ghost floated behind me, haunting me, as I made my way to my typical weekday appointment with Rhonda.
When I got to her house, the ghost waited outside the front gate, as it usually did, and I let myself inside.
Up on the porch, I took a deep breath and knocked on Rhonda’s door.
As always, it took a few moments, but she finally found her way through her cavernous house to the door.
Swinging it open, she was all smiles and screams as she tried to usher me inside.
However, I didn’t step past the threshold this time.
When I didn’t move, she frowned at me, confused.
“Rhonda,” I said, “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” she asked.
She stood in the open doorway, folding her arms around herself against the cold and looked at me with pleading eyes.
I shook my head.
“It’s obvious,” I said, “that Harlan is never going to show up for you. For me. And after thinking about it, I realize it’s wrong to keep taking your money every day and letting you have hope that he will one day allow himself to be summoned.”
“Are you—”
“I’m firing you as a client,” I said. “I’m sorry. But I can’t keep trying to coax Harlan into showing up here. He’s gone. Whatever that means. I can’t get him to come and talk to us. So, you should keep your money and we should stop wasting our time and hope.”
Rhonda didn’t cry. She didn’t plead with me. She seemed to accept what I said with a great sigh.
“All right,” she said, frowning.
Then she allowed a smile to take over her face.
“Well,” she said, “I guess we’ve at least proved that he’s moved on or whatever spirits do. That’s good, right?”
I shrugged. “I just summon ‘em. I don’t know what comes after the ghost life.”
She nodded. “But…”
“I’ve never seen evidence of anything bad in the afterlife,” I said. “At least, nothing worse than what we have here.”
I gestured vaguely around and chuckled.
Rhonda snorted.
“Well,” she said, “I suppose that’s bad enough.”
I laughed. “It can be.”
I looked at her a moment longer, gave her a nod, then turned.
“Wait,” Rhonda said. “Silas.”
“Yeah?” I turned back to her.
“You could still come around,” she said, thoughtfully. “Maybe once a month? Do a little séance for me. And a few of my friends? Like old times?”
“I—”
“A few hours?” she quickly added. “I’d pay you what I’ve been paying you for daily visits all month. It could be a little secret club. The girls and I are desperate for excitement. Something silly we can all do. I can’t talk to Harlan, but we could talk to others?”
I stared at her for a moment. Ghosts weren’t games. But The Lunch Counter didn’t pay for itself. My electricity bill couldn’t be paid with charm, not that I had a ton to spare.
“Okay.”
Rhonda danced in place with glee.
“We’ll keep in contact and set the dates up?” she asked quickly.
I nodded.
“I’ll text you my available evenings later tonight,” I agreed.
Rhonda squealed, said a few pleasantries, then locked me out of the house like the help once more. I made my way off the porch, down the path, and through the gate again. The ghost fell in behind me as I made my way back to the diner, following me the entire way.
When I was putting my coat on the rack by the door inside the diner a few minutes later, Ginny was handing the daily bag of orders to Sal.
I greeted her as I rounded the counter and grabbed my apron to tie it back on.
The two were in an animated discussion about whatever might be happening at The Eternity Inn.
Fortunately, that kept me from having to say anything.
Of course, all good things come to an end, and finally they ran out of things to say about the scene across the way.
I was beginning to clean things up when Sal’s attention turned to me.
“Have you seen Gary?” she asked when Ginny disappeared into the back.
“Yes,” I said, turning to look at her across the counter.
“He’s back,” Sal said simply. “With the camp.”
I nodded.
“Did you have any information for him?” Sal asked, full of hope.
I considered my answer for a moment.
“I think he’ll tell you when he’s ready,” I responded. “If that’s good enough for you.”
It took her a moment to answer, but Sal finally indicated that she would respect the request. She watched me a moment longer, as if trying to figure something out, glanced at the diner window, then back to me. She started to say something, but decided against it at the last moment.
Shaking the bag at me, as if waving goodbye, she headed to the diner door. Before she could pull the door inward to let herself out, I stopped her.
“Watch out for Gary,” I said. “Keep an eye on him.”
Sal’s brow furrowed as she considered me.
“He has all of you,” I said. “But I think he feels like he’s alone a lot. Now. Just keep an eye on him.”
Sal’s frown didn’t disappear, but she nodded before heading out the door.
“Going to the bathroom, Si!” Ginny bellowed from the back of the diner.
“Okay!” I bellowed back. “I’ll just be up here, waiting to hand out meals!”
She didn’t respond, but I knew Ginny had heard me.
The Lunch Counter isn’t that big, after all.
I sighed and propped myself against the counter with my elbows and turned my head to stare out the front window.
I ignored the ghost but watched the people and cars in the distance over at The Eternity Inn.
The Grove Gossip would have all the theories and speculations, mixed in with a version of the truth, the following day.
I wouldn’t have to wait long before everyone knew what had been found.
Then cops would be coming around asking questions.
As far as I was concerned, I knew nothing about Marcella Washington’s disappearance.
She had been found, after all. The cops knew she had been murdered.
I’d done enough.