The Secret of Sleepy Hollow

by Andi Marquette

  “Yes,” Eleanor said as she entered the break room. “Baltus talks about the horseman in the summer of 1800. Something to do with several sightings in the area, though he didn’t personally see anything. I think Katrina mentions a sighting that fall, but it was second-hand for her, too.”

  “Do you know how often sightings were mentioned over the course of the Katrina and Baltus correspondences?” Abby took a second donut.

  Eleanor thought for a moment. “I couldn’t say, exactly, but it was more than a few times, and the sightings seemed to both attract and repel people because she mentioned visitors in the area asking questions about the phenomenon.”

  “Early ghost hunters,” Abby said with a grin.

  Lu laughed. “You might also have a look at mid to late nineteenth-century newspapers in the area, on into the twentieth century, to see how the legend evolved. Though I’m sure that’s part of your research.”

  “Yeah, that’s the second phase. I wanted to have a look at this early stuff, see what I could determine about the legends.” She finished the donut. “Better get to it.”

  “I’ll bring you the box,” Lu said.

  “Thanks. And thanks so much for everything.”

  “Always fun to have historians around who take an interest in the area.”

  “And when you come back, give me a call,” Eleanor said. “We’d love to have you as a guest again.”

  “I will.” Abby finished the coffee and tossed her cup into the wastebasket. She went to the reading room and set up her laptop. When Lu brought the box in, Abby got right to work. Losing herself once again in the past, she finished a couple of hours later. When she took the box back to the front counter, no one was there, but someone was in the back, so Abby waited. A few people wandered through the exhibit. She thought she heard Eleanor talking about one of the displays.

  “Hi.”

  The voice made sparks rocket up her back. She turned toward Katie, who had just emerged from the back. “Hey,” she said, smiling.

  Katie wore her usual jeans, but she had a flannel shirt tucked in this time, and a white tee underneath. She’d left her hair down, and Abby longed to run her fingers through it.

  “How are you?” Katie asked as she logged in the box, both on the paper form and into the computer.

  “Excellent.”

  Katie looked up at her and smiled. “Same here. I’ll go get the next box. See you in the reading room.”

  Abby nodded and watched her walk away before she returned to the reading room, her heart pounding amidst what felt like a full-body flush. She clearly had it bad for Katie. Really bad. And she didn’t care. She held the door open for Katie, who set the box on the table and turned toward her.

  Katie glanced through the door, then kissed Abby, a quick soft melding of lips that made Abby ache.

  “I’m going to get sandwiches later. Can I get you one?” Katie asked, her face inches away. “It’ll sort of be like having lunch together. Only with Lu, Eleanor, and probably Robert. Though I think he has a lunch thing, so maybe not Robert.”

  “I’d love one.”

  “What kind?”

  “Surprise me.”

  Katie grinned. “It’ll require that I interrupt your work. And I know how you are with Katrina.”

  “I think she’ll understand.”

  “I hope so. See you in a bit. I’m going to do a couple of tours so Eleanor can take a break. Kind of busy today.” She left the memory of her smile and the smell of her cologne behind, and Abby forced herself to focus on the box and the work she had to do.

  At twelve-thirty, Katie reappeared. “Could you let Katrina know that your lunch is here?”

  Abby looked up. “I’m hanging out with Baltus at the moment. He doesn’t mind.” She took the gloves off and followed Katie to the break room, remembering how it felt last night, to lose herself in Katie’s kisses in the dark, miles away from anyone else.

  “Oh, there you are,” Lu said. Eleanor was already eating. “I have some interesting news.”

  “What?” Katie handed Abby a sub sandwich.

  Abby unwrapped it. Turkey and Swiss. Yum.

  “Well, according to all my sources, there was only one rider in the glen Saturday night.”

  Abby frowned. “Clearly, that wasn’t the case. Somebody decided to join in. And kept it a secret, obviously, until show time.”

  “The society knew nothing about it,” Lu added.

  Katie raised her eyebrows as she unwrapped her own sandwich. “Do you actually know somebody in it?”

  “I know somebody who might know somebody,” Lu said with a chuckle. “Let’s just say I put the word out.”

  “So what was the response when you asked if anybody knew whether another rider was out there?” Katie sat at the table and Abby sat next to her.

  “Confused. Apparently, it’s never happened before, at least not that anybody remembers. And it’s not society policy, because two riders could cause problems.”

  “It’s true,” Katie said. “That one sure did.”

  “What did the rider look like, again?” Lu asked.

  “Big black horse,” Abby said. “The rider was dressed in dark clothing. Sword on his—uh—right side, I think. And there was something brass. Like buttons on a coat. He had some kind of coat on, maybe.” She went back to that night and remembered how the horse had jumped over her, no sound. No smell. Nothing. “You know what was weird? I didn’t hear anything. I mean, besides the hoofbeats.”

  Katie stopped chewing. “Yeah. I heard those, too. But none of the usual horse and rider sounds.” She caught Abby’s gaze and Abby saw her own thoughts mirrored in Katie’s eyes.

  “You don’t think—” Abby started.

  “I’m not sure what to think.”

  “Where were you when you saw this rider?” Lu asked.

  “That one path north of the place where ghost hunters normally park,” Katie said. “About a mile in. We started at that little bypass just off the main route because the society horseman normally takes it. And he did. So then we went out onto the main road and then we walked north to that path so we could take it across the glen, since we parked on the other side. The regular horseman usually goes south, to the periphery, and that’s where we heard cheers coming from.”

  “Let me make a call,” Lu said. “Maybe I wasn’t specific enough.”

  She left and Katie gave Abby a wide-eyed look. Eleanor’s cell phone rang. She answered and took the call out of the break room, leaving Katie and Abby alone.

  “Some things are beyond science,” Katie said.

  “I know, but really? A ghost?”

  “Somebody back in the day saw something, and that’s what started this whole legend thing. Whether it was a ghost or something the person thought was a ghost isn’t really the issue. Either way, a legend was born.”

  “And you called him a dick.” Abby laughed. “Do you think if he was a ghost, he knew what that meant?”

  “Had I known we were possibly dealing with a dead guy over two hundred years old, I guess I could have said something like, ‘verily, you, sir, are the son of a sow.’ Though ‘asshole’ is enough like ‘arsehole’ that he might have understood that. Assuming he spoke enough English in life.”

  “But then there’s the matter of his head. He probably wouldn’t have heard you no matter what you called him.”

  Katie laughed. “I hope the horse spoke English, then. And regardless, ghost or not, he was a dick.”

  Abby smiled. “That is totally based on scientific observation.” She caught Katie’s gaze and neither spoke for a few moments.

  Katie broke the silence. “I really want to kiss you.”

  Again, Abby understood what “swoon” meant. She was about to reply when Lu returned.

  “Well,” Lu said, “the annual horseman doesn’t r
ide that route and has never ridden that route because it’s safer on the southern periphery and gives the best chance of visibility.” She looked first at Katie and then at Abby. “However, historically speaking, the northern area of the glen has many recorded sightings of the actual horseman.”

  “So could it have been somebody who’s not from this area?” Abby asked.

  “Seems it would be kind of hard to pull off that kind of prank if you’re not from the area,” Katie said. “If you don’t know the glen, you’ll have a hard time racing at top speed along those paths. Especially if your horse hasn’t done it.”

  “And there’s no chance it was a local playing a prank?”

  “Of course there’s a chance of that, but what would be the point, given that most of the spectators are to the south?” Lu sat down again. “It seems that if you want your prank to have an impact, you want lots of people to see it.”

  “So you’re basically saying that there is a distinct possibility that we saw the actual horseman.” Katie fiddled with the wrapper her sandwich had come in.

  “It would seem that way,” Lu said.

  “As much as I don’t want to believe it, there are only two options. Ghost or prank. And so far, prank doesn’t make much sense.” Abby looked at Katie.

  “Damn,” Katie said softly and Abby remembered how the horseman had seemingly just appeared from the darkness, without much warning.

  “Would you like to log an official sighting?” Lu asked with a smile. “Because your experience involved a lot more than many.”

  “No,” both Katie and Abby responded.

  “We don’t have proof,” Abby added. “Because there is still a chance it was a second human rider.”

  “Though circumstantial evidence suggests otherwise.” Katie smiled at Lu. “Let’s just make it part of family lore.”

  “I’d like that, too.” Abby smiled. “Family lore.” She thought about the dreams she’d had every night in Sleepy Hollow, and how they seemed to be both messages and reflections. Some things were definitely beyond science.

  “All right.” Lu looked at Katie. “Can you handle a couple more tours this afternoon?”

  “Yep.”

  “Great. Ten minutes.” Lu threw her sandwich wrapper away and took her drink with her.

  “What do you think?” Katie asked after Lu had left.

  “I’m leaning ghost.”

  “Same here. But I’m not sure why. Maybe because I want it that way.”

  “Isn’t that part of legends? People need them in a way, to help identify with something, whether it’s a place or something else.”

  Katie took her hand. “I like that we have a story to add to the legend. Speaking of, are you going to include our theories about Elizabeth and Katrina in your dissertation?”

  “I don’t know. I thought about it, but then I wondered if it would ruin the rest of the legend.”

  “But it could start whole new ones. And the horseman doesn’t need a shift in gender perceptions to ride. There’ll always be a festival, and there’ll always be sightings of a ghost. A change in Ichabod’s story isn’t necessarily going to change that.”

  “I guess I could address it that way, and include it as a ‘what if’ sort of thing, and what it might mean in the context of a much older folklore.” Abby liked that approach, because it left room for conjecture, and the development of new stories to layer into the older without uprooting the latter.

  “Exactly.” Katie ran her thumb over the back of Abby’s fingers. “So how about I pick you up at six?”

  “Definitely.”

  “Great. Okay, off I go.” She released Abby’s hand and cleared the table as she left.

  Abby finished her iced tea and went back to the reading room, thinking about stories and the events behind them. And she thought, too, about the coincidence of a Crane meeting a Van Tassel so many years later. Or was it a coincidence? You’re part of the legend, now, Eleanor had said. Maybe she was. And maybe Elizabeth and Katrina would finally rest. She pulled another file out of the box.

  Katie pulled up in front of the bed and breakfast and put her car in park. “This has been an amazing few days.” She took Abby’s hand.

  “I agree.” Abby wished dinner hadn’t ended, wished neither of them was going back to their respective universities the next morning. She lifted Abby’s hand to her lips and kissed it. “I want to keep seeing you,” she said against Abby’s skin. “Is that possible?”

  Chills shot up Abby’s spine at Katie’s touch. “Will it involve dressing up as a headless horseman to create a diversion?”

  “Not unless you’re into that. But hey, I’ll roll with it.”

  Abby laughed. “All in good time.” Katie’s lips made her tingle in all kinds of places.

  “Is that a yes?”

  “Yes. I mean, yes, it is a yes and yes. To the other thing. Yes all around.”

  Katie leaned in and kissed her, and Abby lost herself again in the feel of her lips and tongue and how she tasted like coffee from the cup they’d shared with dessert at the restaurant.

  “I have to stop,” Katie said after a few delicious moments. “Because if I don’t, I won’t be able to.”

  “You do have a back seat,” Abby teased.

  “True. But we’re not in high school.”

  Abby gave her another long, lingering kiss. “I don’t know. You kind of make me feel that way.” And right now, she would totally get into the back seat with Katie and fog up the windows.

  “Is that a good thing?”

  “Very.” Abby gave her another kiss.

  “When can I see you again?” Katie asked. “In real life. Not just FaceTime or Skype.”

  “The weekend before Thanksgiving?”

  “Done. I’ll check to make sure. How about I come to Connecticut?”

  “I would really like that.”

  “Same here. And now, I really need for us to get out of this car before I do invite you into the back seat.”

  “Which might be memorable,” Abby said as she opened the car door.

  “I have no doubt. But I’m being responsible, here. We both have to drive in the morning.” Katie walked her to the front door of the bed and breakfast, a habit Abby enjoyed. She glanced into the building’s interior to see if any of the other guests were up walking around or hanging out in the front room, but it was late enough that they weren’t.

  She pulled Katie into a hug. “I don’t know why, but I feel really connected to you,” she said softly near Katie’s ear. “Talk to you later.” She pulled away trying to be responsible, too, but oh, it was hard. She unlocked the door, went inside and turned to wave at Katie through the glass. Katie blew her a kiss before returning to her car, and Abby watched as she drove away from the curb. Damn. Should’ve taken her into the back seat, maybe. She went up the stairs to her room, still tingling, still aching, wishing for Katie’s company.

  Abby threw her sweatshirt onto her suitcase, kicked her shoes off, and flopped onto the bed, Katie’s cologne still somehow lingering on her T-shirt. Her phone rang with Katie’s tone. She rolled over and retrieved it from the bedside table.

  “Hey,” Abby said. “What’s up?”

  “I decided I don’t want to be responsible tonight.”

  Abby’s heartbeat sped up. “Good. What does that entail?”

  “Letting me in. I’m downstairs.”

  “I’ll be right there.” Abby didn’t bother putting her shoes back on. She practically raced down the stairs to the front door. “Hi again,” she said when she opened the door.

  “Hi.” Katie smiled and stepped inside. She pulled Abby close and kissed her in a way that made crazy little bombs explode up and down Abby’s back and made heat pool between her legs.

  When Katie finally stopped, Abby barely remembered to close and lock the door. She
took Katie’s hand and guided her upstairs to her room.

  Katie closed the door behind them. “I didn’t want to leave tomorrow without seeing you.”

  “We could’ve met for breakfast,” Abby said as she pushed Katie’s coat off her shoulders.

  Katie shrugged out of it and tossed it onto a nearby chair.

  She wrapped her arms around Abby. “Not the same thing.” Katie pressed her lips against Abby’s neck.

  Oh, how Abby loved that. She buried her fingers in Katie’s hair and closed her eyes as Katie’s lips worked their way to Abby’s ear and then back down to her skin just above the collar of her T-shirt.

  Katie had one hand on Abby’s hip, and the other cupped Abby’s cheek as Katie’s mouth met Abby’s. Katie kissed her hard and deep, until Abby wasn’t sure she was still standing because she couldn’t feel her feet on the floor. Abby worked her hands down to the hem of Katie’s sweatshirt, and she slid her hands underneath it and Katie’s tee. Her fingertips met the warmth of Katie’s skin just above her jeans.

  Katie’s breathing sped up against Abby’s lips. She stopped kissing Abby for a moment and started to pull her sweatshirt off, leaving her T-shirt in place. Abby helped and tossed it aside. She felt Katie’s hands moving under her shirt, Katie’s fingertips gliding over her skin, and pinpricks of pleasure danced down Abby’s legs.

  Abby withdrew her hands, but only to start taking her shirt off. She tore it off, impatient, and Katie took hers off, too, and dropped it on the floor next to Abby’s.

  Katie stared at her and ran her fingers across Abby’s bare shoulders then down her arms. A mixture of chills and heat made Abby tremble, and the look in Katie’s eyes made her breath catch.

  “You’re gorgeous.” Katie leaned down and kissed the bare skin above Abby’s bra.

  Abby ran her hands down Katie’s back, and she wanted much more of Katie against her body, without the barrier of clothing. Her fingers brushed Katie’s belt, and she worked them around to the front of her jeans and tugged at it.

  Katie’s fingers moved between Abby’s as they fumbled with the belt, her breath hard and fast against Abby’s mouth. “I was worried you’d think I was a little too forward, showing up like this,” Katie said. “But clearly, I didn’t need to.”