The House on Findlater Lane

by Helen Goltz

  He crossed his arms across his chest.

  As long as he doesn’t start having sleepovers. I’m prepared to let her live here, but I’m drawing the line at extras.

  He saw the lights of a car pull up out the front.

  ‘The taxi is here, let’s go,’ Juliette said, grabbing her handbag.

  ‘I’ll just lock up and leave a few lights on,’ Holly said. ‘Why don’t you let him know we’re on our way?’

  Holly lingered behind as she waited for Juliette to get down the stairs and head out.

  Alexander appeared.

  ‘Are you okay?’ she asked.

  ‘Sure, why wouldn’t I be?’

  ‘Did you look over my shoulder this afternoon?’

  ‘I thought about it,’ Alexander admitted. ‘But no. Not that I’m worried. I just thought I should leave you to do your thing.’

  ‘Right.’ Holly nodded.

  ‘Did you find anything?’ he asked, then shook his head. ‘Forget it, tell me later.’

  She nodded again. ‘I’d better go, I’ll see you later’.

  ‘You look good,’ he said, with a casual shrug.

  ‘Thanks,’ she smiled. ‘Don’t wait up’.

  ‘Yeah, not likely.’ He descended behind her down the stairs and watched as she closed the door, locked it from the outside and, with one last look at the window in his direction, set off happily and disappeared into the warmth of the taxi. It drove off and he was home alone. Again.

  Alexander returned to Holly’s desk, sat and flipped open a cream manilla folder that sat beside her laptop. He saw her scribblings… there was no hint to what she had found out about his own death or Meg. He moved on and saw the photograph of the necklace… that’d be worth a pretty penny, he thought. He read the story.

  Then, deciding he’d do something good for Holly, just because, he faded from sight and left to make “enquiries”. One hour or so later he reappeared and wrote on the edge of the file: Check the family line –Bellerose of Paris.

  He put the pen down, closed the file and called it a night; or he would have, if ghosts slept.

  Love and sea spray is in the air

  Holly was just about to pour pineapple juice into her glass when she felt a chill near her arm, and a voice behind her said in a whisper: ‘Incoming ghost alert.’

  She chuckled, poured the juice and turned to face him. He looked so solid, even with the sun streaming into the kitchen through the window behind him; you’d never pick him for a ghost, she thought.

  ‘Morning, Sergeant,’ she raised her glass to him. ‘Juice?’

  ‘Good morning to you and no thanks, I’m not a pineapple guy. So that was a piss-weak party effort, wasn’t it?’ he said. ‘Home at 12.30 pm? I know there was never a lot to do when we lived here… but in the last forty years I’ve been dead, haven’t they opened anything after midnight?’

  He leant on the edge of the table, folded his arms across his chest, and observed her.

  ‘We could have partied on, but we had a good night and it was a good time to put an end to it. Besides, Juliette and I are driving to Salcombe for the day. We’re going to check out the village and the antique stores, do brunch, a bit of clothes shopping, and then head home mid-afternoon, so, we didn’t want to be wasted.’ She studied his face as she mentioned Salcombe, but Alexander showed no reaction; perhaps he didn’t know that Meghan lived there.

  ‘Lord, so sensible,’ he said, with a shake of his head.

  ‘Yeah, sorry not to live up to your party standards. I feel like a failure,’ she joked.

  He made a scoffing sound. ‘Sure you do. So, did you have a good night?’

  ‘We did, thanks, it was great.’

  ‘And this guy, Luke?’

  ‘He’s lovely.’

  ‘What’s lovely?’ Juliette asked barging into the kitchen. She looked around. ‘Who are you talking to?’

  Holly flushed. Alexander disappeared – not that Juliette could see him yet.

  ‘Myself. I do that a bit, talk to myself… I was just saying this juice is lovely,’ she said, holding up her glass. ‘Just what I needed. It will be fun exploring a new village today for a spot of shopping, sightseeing and coffee!’ she exclaimed, trying to divert the conversation with excitement.

  ‘I know. I haven’t been there since I was a kid on a road trip with Mum and Dad,’ Juliette agreed. ‘Last night was brilliant, thank you. He’s dreamy, isn’t he?’ she sighed.

  Holly grinned. ‘I think he thought the same of you,’ she said, waving the pineapple juice and when Juliette nodded, filling a glass and passing it to her.

  ‘Do you think he is interested?’ Juliette asked. ‘I couldn’t get a read on him.’

  ‘Trust me, he was watching you every chance he got. You should go out with him tonight, just the two of you,’ Holly said.

  Juliette sat at the table. ‘No! I’ve come to visit you. That would be bad form.’

  Holly could tell Juliette would love a date night out with Luke. She continued. ‘And you’ve visited me… seen me Thursday night, all day Friday and last night, and all day today,’ Holly said, generously. ‘Luke hinted he’d like to see us Saturday night, meaning you, so let me have a night’s recovery – you know I’m not as social as you are – and we can have breakfast out somewhere together Sunday morning before you return.’

  ‘Really? I feel bad about that. Are you sure?’ Juliette asked.

  ‘Positive. Want some breakfast, or shall we do brunch at Salcombe?’ Holly asked.

  ‘Definitely the latter.’ Juliette sighed. ‘What are the stats on long-distance relationships surviving?’

  ‘I’m not sure a three-hour drive from London could be classified as long-distance.’

  ‘True. And I’ve always wanted to start my own antique buyer business. I could make this my base and travel everywhere and anywhere I need to,’ she said.

  Holly grinned at her. ‘Um, you’ve given this some thought since you met Luke yesterday, haven’t you?’

  Juliette looked sheepish. ‘You know me… plunge straight in. Life’s short, or so they say. Although most of my relatives have lived to a ripe old age. Oh well, I’m off to the shower. Leaving in twenty minutes?’

  ‘I’ll be ready!’ Holly said. She watched as Juliette drained the pineapple juice from her glass, placed it in the sink, and headed up the stairs to the shower.

  Holly exhaled. Alexander didn’t reappear.

  Then Holly realised something. ‘Oh great, I’ve become Loopy Lily!’

  It was a quieter than usual morning at How Does Your Garden Grow?, but Alfred didn’t mind a slow start on a Saturday. Luke was of the same mind – he hadn’t got to bed until 1 am and even then, he didn’t sleep much after that; he was happy for a quiet day at work.

  ‘… so it went really well,’ Luke said, giving him a summary in under a minute. ‘I’m hoping to see them tonight, or just Juliette if I’m lucky.’

  ‘Praise the Lord,’ Alfred said, looking skyward. ‘As long as she moves here when you settle down and you don’t move to London.’

  ‘Yeah, well hold that thought… we haven’t had an official one-on-one date yet. I’ve got plenty of time to put her off,’ Luke teased Alfred.

  ‘Don’t even joke about it. Seriously though, I am really happy for you, son,’ Alfred said. ‘I hope it will be wonderful.’ He sighed, looked around and shook his head.

  ‘What?’ Luke said, concern sweeping his face as he glanced around to find out what was going wrong in the business.

  ‘Well, it’s quiet already… I knew it would be bad for business.’

  Luke grinned. ‘C’mon, not everyone saw me out with the two of them last night.’

  ‘Just most of our single female clients,’ Alfred said. ‘Oh well, leave it to me, I can step up when the company needs me. I’d better increase my wooing of the old girls.’

  Luke laughed and hit Alfred on the shoulder. ‘Thought you’d be glad to see me showing an interest in something other than th
e plants,’ he said, and lifted a bag of soil onto his shoulders.

  ‘Oh, trust me, I am. Neither of us is getting any younger and we need to start grooming someone to take over the business. How soon until you have kids, do you think?’ Alfred winked at him, and went to serve a customer who was looking confused near the hydrangeas.

  Luke was surprised by how much he liked the idea – that was a novelty.

  Alone to begin again

  Juliette left later than she had planned – after 2 pm – to head back to London and to psyche herself for work on Monday. At last Holly found herself alone. Well, not really, as Alexander was there, but she was officially on her own now to begin her new life.

  She realised since she had arrived last week, that her Aunty Kate, her ex-husband and Juliette had all arrived almost back-to-back, but she had run out of immediate visitors – she was alone, starting again. She really had to do it. Holly waved goodbye to Juliette until she was out of sight and then she stood there, not knowing what to do. There was no work to go to tomorrow, although she had work to do for clients; there was no-one to meet and no-one local she could call and say, ‘Hey, want to meet for a drink?’ She was alone for the first time in years, and she couldn’t move.

  She didn’t want to go back into the house, which would feel empty now, so she headed to the beach, determined to go for a long walk from one end of the cliffs to the other. She needed a few hours to think through life, and get back in the good space she was in when she first rented Findlater House and was excited about the change. Perhaps the visitors were too soon – it would have been better if she had established herself in her new zone first.

  It was a beautiful afternoon; the sun was out, the air was fresh, and the beach was dotted with families, walkers, and the occasional optimistic sunbaker. She took off her shoes and walked along the waterline. Holly had only been walking for about fifteen minutes when she stood on something cold. She jumped away from the object, expecting to see a jellyfish, but it was something shiny and metallic. Holly reached for it and picked up a gold pocket watch. She looked around to see if anyone had recently walked that way, thinking they might have dropped it, but there was no-one nearby.

  Hmm, she mused… yet again a lost item had found her. They always did. It was why she started Lost, Found and Broken – she was the human magnet for all things missing or broken. The watch was old, perhaps even an antique, with a slim chain full of sand and, surprisingly, not rusty. Holly kept walking slowly ahead as she pried open the clasp. She gasped; it was beautiful. Inside, it was decorated with small moon and sun engravings and had distinct Roman numerals. It was not working, but she expected that when it had been lying in sand and saltwater.

  ‘Where have you come from, my friend?’ she asked. ‘You’re very special.’

  Holly looked out to sea and imagined it falling off an old sailing ship, hopefully not with its owner attached; or being washed ashore from buried pirate’s treasures; she had a good imagination. Suddenly, the watch had made her feel better; it had reminded her of her usefulness.

  ‘Well, we’d better find your family and get you home,’ she told it. ‘We’ve got a pearl and diamond necklace, and a wife to find, too, not to mention a mystery to solve!’

  And with renewed energy in her step, she hastened her walk, shoulders back, inhaling salt air and everything looked better.

  Alexander had Findlater House to himself for the first time in days. Holly had headed for the beach, her best friend was gone, the ex-husband had vanished back to London, along with the Aunty, and hopefully the gardener was watering his own plants!

  He sat on the couch with a glass of the finest port and the Stones on the record player. His foot tapped away to the tune and he contemplated having a cigar. He didn’t really care if the “tenants” didn’t like the smell and complained to the real estate agency. But he begrudgingly cared if Holly didn’t like it, not that he was really prepared to admit that. He rarely had a cigar, but every now and then, with a good port, there was nothing better.

  Then the door burst open. Holly slipped off her shoes, banged them together to get the sand off and, leaving them outside, came in with a show of energy. She heard the music and her eyes scanned the room, spotting Alexander relaxing in the lounge area.

  ‘You’re back,’ he said.

  ‘You sound surprised. Did you think I had left, too?’ she asked. ‘Or were you hoping?’

  ‘No way, young lady, I’ve got plans for you,’ he said, rising from the couch.

  ‘A pocket watch found me!’ she exclaimed excitedly. He was relieved. He’d expected her to be morose and was contemplating ways to lift the mood, but now he could just chill out.

  ‘Yeah, a hat, a key, a dog collar and one of those modern CD-things found you as well. I picked them up from the front yard,’ he said, indicating the items on the kitchen table.

  ‘Oh well,’ she shrugged, ‘we’ll find their families.’ She looked up at him. ‘And yours, too.’

  He smiled and nodded. ‘I believe you will.’

  The research begins

  The next morning, armed with her laptop, Holly arrived at the library right on opening time. It was in a large building that appeared to be a former church and church hall. She intended to go through the microfiche and seek any relevant local news stories on Alexander’s death – she could have looked up the news clippings at home but she didn’t want him hovering behind her. Not that Holly could stop him coming to the library and hovering there, but she figured he wouldn’t leave the house unless he had to; he sure as hell grumbled enough about accompanying her to the beach when he thought he had to protect her. Kind of sweet really, she thought.

  Hmm, I must find out if that’s a choice or necessity, she mused. He might have a radar whereby he can only travel so far, or maybe he’s not strong enough to be too far from his base. So many questions, so little time…

  ‘Wow,’ Holly said, entering and taking in the beautiful surroundings. There were bookshelves on every available inch of floor space and climbing up the walls as well, accessible by stepladders and staircases. Long, dark timber tables ran down the middle of the room for anyone wanting to study, read or work, and tasteful black and silver chairs were pushed in, waiting to be used. There had been some money spent on this library. Add to this, beautiful stained-glass windows featured saints, not books and the occasional original church pew was placed around the library for those who wanted to sit and ponder or read.

  She was the first to arrive, admitted by the librarian – a woman in her thirties who looked like she had just stepped out of a gothic fancy dress store. Her name tag read Abby.

  ‘Yeah, it’s pretty special, isn’t it?’ Abby smiled. ‘Newbies always react like that. You’re the lady that just rented the ghost cottage, aren’t you?’

  Holly grinned. ‘That’s me! Word travels fast. I was hoping to use the microfiche to research the ghost’s history.’

  ‘Sure, that’s doable,’ Abby said, indicating Holly should follow. ‘So, seen the ghost yet?’

  ‘I made tea for him just this morning,’ Holly answered, and it was Abby’s turn to laugh. She knew the truth would do… who would believe that? ‘This place is amazing. I never thought a small town… well…’

  ‘Would have a library like this?’ Abby finished. ‘We were lucky, a benefactor provided it. One of our elderly citizens who loved to read and spent a lot of time at our previous dinky library, bequeathed his fortune to build our village a landmark library. Fortunately, one of our old churches and its hall became available so it was converted. That’s our dedication area over there,’ she said, nodding to the pew under the stained-glass window.

  ‘How good of him. Shame he never got to see it,’ Holly said. ‘Have you been working here for long?’

  ‘Feels like it,’ Abby said, dramatically. ‘Just kidding. I love it here. I’ve been here for ten years and two months now.’

  ‘No way! You don’t look old to be working here for that long,’ Hol
ly said, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

  Abby switched on the microfiche reader to let it warm up, and leaned on the edge of the large, dark timber table where it sat. Holly placed her bag and laptop down on the table and pulled out a chair.

  Abby continued. ‘My grandmother was the village librarian for a hundred years… well, maybe forty years, and I came here to do work experience with her after doing my library qualification. Thought it’d be fun, you know… small town, stick around for a few months and leave.’

  ‘And you stayed? Seems to be catching,’ Holly said.

  ‘I stayed for three months, then six months, then a year, then two years, then Grandma passed away and I just kept going.’

  ‘Oh, I’m sorry about your grandma,’ Holly said.

  Abby shook her head. ‘She died doing what she loved. Literally had a heart attack while reading a romance novel in her lunch break in the A to F section. All over in a second,’ Abby said, clicking her fingers. ‘Worse ways to go.’

  ‘For sure,’ Holly agreed.

  ‘Although I wouldn’t be caught dead in the romance aisle,’ Abby said. ‘If you find me dead there, promise me you’ll drag me to fantasy?’

  ‘Consider it done,’ Holly promised, with a grin.

  Abby turned to the door as a couple of customers entered. ‘Righto, you’re all set.’ She returned her attention to the screen. ‘On the left is the date column. Click through to what year and month you want and keep clicking until you find it. Use this button to blow things up bigger, this one to reduce the size.’

  ‘Got it, thanks,’ Holly said, keen to start.

  ‘If you need a hand, just yell. I’ll just be over there getting my checkout stamp ready,’ she teased, and with a flurry of black skirt and flick of long black hair, left Holly to it.