by Olivia Swift
“He is really unpleasant. I hope he disappears from the bank building,” Magda said as she started another batch of centers. Merle got up and put the finished ones in the fridge.
When the men came back from the bank building, Jefferson Dunn accepted a coffee and told them he could start the next day.
“It will be noisy for a short time as we cut it into the pieces which will go through the door. We will have to drill out the cement underneath as well, but the good news is that we can do it in a day.”
“I can apologize to customers and offer them a free drink to make up,” Magda told him. “It has to be done, so the quicker the better.” He thanked her for the drink and left.
Sam and Declan looked hopefully for sandwiches.
“If I tell you that I will take Katie’s drawings and do the plans this afternoon, do we get food?” Sam asked. Rula made the sandwiches and then added more as Bart came back in.
“Go and ask Mikey if he’s hungry,” Magda said. “We might as well feed them all.”
She kept on making truffle centers and Katie kept on decorating the chilled ones. Then when Bart told them he had found the Hoffstanders, they stopped the production line and went to look at what he had found.
“They are wealthy businessmen, both of them with families, and their employees made it expressively clear that they would not talk to a reporter. These are the two houses.” He pushed the tablet across the counter and they all looked at it. When it reached Merle, she touched the house on the first one with her finger and withdrew the hand very quickly.
“What did you feel?” Branston asked her. Merle shivered and answered that the place did not feel comfortable.
“Maybe just my imagination,” she suggested.
“We have trusted your instincts in the past,” Rula said.
“I did have a quick look at where their money had come from and they are both self-made men. One of them in investments and the other in oil. They do not seem to be related and have been in the county for at least two generations.”
“We have enough to think about without looking there. Leave well alone,” Sam said. “Interesting that the business instinct is in families with that name.”
Merle stood up to go and thanked Magda for the crystal ball.
“By tomorrow night, we should be able to see the place without that massive vault,” Sam said and suggested they meet up to see what it was like without it.
“See you then,” Branston said.
Bart took off to chase up another story and the girls went back to chocolate making. The little model railway chugged around overhead. Magda smiled and wondered what Sam was doing over by the steps.
15
Sam came back to the kitchen and told her that Declan was dying to wield a heavy mallet and knock a hole through the wall.
“Really?” she asked with a grin.
“When the vault people are there with a pneumatic drill, they can break through the wall and we can demolish it once there is a place to start. We can board it up temporarily until we make it a decorative, authentic doorway. If we do that tomorrow, we can go and make a start on a job that actually pays money and come back to the doorway at the weekend.”
Magda kept on working at the truffles but couldn’t help doing a little jig at the same time. Sam smiled and left to measure the place up. Declan was pointing out where Magda thought the pathway of the model railway could be.
The next day had a feeling of excitement about it. Magda put up large notices apologizing for the noise and promised free refills for the inconvenience.
The men had arrived to remove the vault and warned her that the noise was about to start. They waited and then it seemed like the whole universe was shaking. It stopped quickly, to which they breathed a sigh of relief, but it was short-lived as it turned out that only the door had been removed. The noise went on for much longer and felt like it would never end. The customers took their coffee and chocolate in to-go cups and disappeared.
Magda and Katie made truffles despite the assault on their ears but by the end of the morning the worst of it stopped. They could not resist going to watch the heavy pieces of vault loaded onto a flatbed truck. Jefferson told them that they would use the drill and remove the cement under the vault and then break through the wall. He put barriers around the steps and advised Magda to move the chairs and tables inside.
“Another hour or so of noise,” he said cheerfully and pulled down his ear protectors.
Sam and Declan had gone inside to see what the space was like and came back to say the cellar now looked enormous. They closed the double doors to the café and apologized to the few customers inside. Then the sound of the pneumatic drill could be heard but it was bearable. Then suddenly it stopped and did not start again. Sam and Declan went to find out what was happening.
Jefferson Dunn came back with them and put several buttons on the counter surface. Declan was carrying a piece of cloth of some sort and found a paper towel to cover the table before he laid it down. They all crowded around - even the customers who had stayed and braved the noise.
“Stopped because we thought there might be a body,” Jefferson said, and everyone drew a breath. “But it was the remains of a jacket and buttons.”
“I told him about finding a similar button,” Declan added, and they all peered at the ones on the counter.
“Old police uniform,” one man said who had been quietly having a coffee. “Got pictures of my grandad wearing one,” he added when they looked at him.
“Anyway,” Jefferson said. “One more burst of noise as we drill through the wall and then we will take away the debris. In fact, if we make a hole in the wall, it will be easier to bring it out this way. Is that okay?” Magda said that she would make sure the customers were safe and the man went off to finish the job. The drill started and they all watched the wall until the edge of the drill broke through and stonework tumbled around the well of the steps. Jefferson’s face looked out and then the drill made the hole big enough to use. In fact, he decided to do the rest of the opening they required and then his team started to wheelbarrow the debris away.
“I can taste the dust,” Rula said. “We’ll need to clean up really well after they finish.”
Mikey had come to watch the wall break through and he, Declan and Sam ended up helping the men load the wheelbarrows. Jefferson came to say they were finished, and his gang drove away.
“The front door is open,” Mikey said. “We had better check inside and lock it up.”
“And bring some boarding for the new entrance,” Sam added.
Rula was busy wiping down surfaces and told the rest of them to go and have a look.
There was dusty rubble all of the way from the front door to the cellar and Declan had been correct. It was an enormous space. They looked through the hole and waved to Rula. Katie said to Sam that it was easier to picture the finished room without the ugly vault.
“Speaking of which,” Sam answered, “we should just check there is nothing else buried there.” He stepped down and found a piece of stone to scrape away at where the jacket had been. One more button was there, and he popped it into his pocket. “Nothing else here. We can sweep this clean and fill it with new cement to smooth the floor.” He said he would go for the boarding and they all went back out. Mikey locked the front door.
There was a curious influx of customers who had heard the noise and wondered what was going on. The girls served the new batch of customers and purchases were extremely brisk.
Bart arrived and was mad that he missed the action. A big traffic accident had held him up. He photographed the jacket remains and the buttons. Then he climbed into the hole in the wall and took more shots inside and out.
“Could that,” Katie asked Magda, “be decorated as an old railroad station and then have items for sale that are related?”
“That’s a good idea,” Magda and Rula replied together.
Sam brought some big boards. He and Declan set about m
aking a frame for the boards to be screwed onto. Rula put coffee in front of them when the job was done.
“That should be safe enough,” Magda observed, “because the alleyway will be locked off.”
“I think,” Bart looked round, “that we should have a séance before you concrete over the floor.”
“When?” Katie asked.
“Tomorrow night,” Magda answered. “What do you think?” There was general agreement and she called Merle. “It’s on,” she told the others. “I do need a night’s sleep tonight. The jet lag is still making itself felt.”
“We can clean in the morning,” Rula said. “Let’s call it a day.” There was no argument from anyone, so they closed down and locked up.
Back at the house, Crystal was knocking the wooden buttons around the floor.
“Yes, we found some buttons. You are right as usual, Crystal.” Magda found some cat nibbles and distracted her from the game. Sam rustled up a simple meal and brought it to Magda on the sofa.
“You really are jetlagged,” he said. “I am glad to be working again. New build to start tomorrow but the place is measured out and the team under Katie’s dad is ready to go. Put your feet up and watch some television.” After a few minutes, he realized she was sound asleep. He picked her up and put her to bed, pulled off her shoes and covered her over. She slept on and after a short while the four cats all joined her on the bed. Sam went to his drawing board and started on plans for the old bank building which was destined to become The Color Gallery.
Morning dawned and Magda was ready to go. Sam showed her the plans and then roared off in his enormous truck to the new job. She fed the cats and had a smoothie.
“One thing about a café is that you can eat if you feel hungry,” she said to the cats as she did a final check and closed the door. When she arrived at the café, she opened up the alleyway and saw that the boards to the bank were still securely in place. The girls set about removing the dust and setting up for the day. The first customers trickled in and yet more truffles were made. The stock was building up again.
Bart slid onto his stool and showed them some copy he had done the night before that told the story of taking out the vault and finding an old uniform.
“The editor is quite keen. He likes the story. Do you mind if I publish it?”
“All publicity is good as far as I am concerned but you better check with the others.”
Rula ran through to check with Mikey and Bart called Sam and Declan. Everyone agreed that they would need the publicity when they eventually did open.
“I did find these old pictures from different times. The Hoffstanders in the area are both very wealthy. One man is quite elderly and the other two are brothers and in their forties. There is no connection between them as far as I can see.” He pushed across the tablet and they flicked through the shots from several years ago. “The two brothers spend most of their time in New York with their investment business, but they have homes here.”
“Pretty expensive homes,” Katie remarked and then flicked back to a couple of photos showing impressive front entrances. “Magda is that not one of our regulars?” She showed Magda the picture of a very elderly couple.
“Well spotted, Katie. I think her friend calls her Geraldine. We would never ask for a surname unless someone paid by card on the telephone.”
“She’s a nice lady,” Rula added as she looked at the photo. “Must be over eighty, I would think.”
“But very smart and lively,” Katie replied.
Bart took his coffee and said he would be back at seven.
Sam and Declan ate their sandwiches and then went back to work. As the day wore on, the supply of truffles in the chiller grew and the café finished for the day with the stocks almost back to a normal amount.
In the evening they opened up the double doors to the bank and closed them when they were all inside.
There were chairs left from when the place was a bank and they utilized them in the cellar. Bart had a copy of the paper that was fresh off the press and on page three was an account of the bank and the communal effort to open it as an art gallery and exhibition center. He talked about the noise of the removal of the vault with humor. Then built up to the surprise at finding a jacket and buttons but no body buried in the concrete.
“I like it,” Magda said. “People can have a laugh at the noise, think you found a body and then be relieved that it was only a jacket.”
“I am a wordsmith.” He pretended to dust off his lapels and give himself a pat on the back. Sam put up his hands to show how big his head was, and they all smiled and laughed at it.
Merle talked them through a protection which they all knew by heart by that time and when the lights were switched off she called out.
It was very quiet and still in the cellar because the stone walls were thick. They were at the back of the building which came out in the courtyard. Nobody was in the café and there was no sound from the main street.
The moaning sound took them all by surprise and they clutched each other’s hands.
“Gee whiz! That’s different,” Mikey said.
“Hoffstander is here,” Declan reported.
“How does he look?” Merle asked. “I am feeling a great deal of anger.”
“He looks angry,” Declan replied, “and I rather think the moaning sound is part of it.”
“Hello, Mr. Hoffstander,” Merle called out. “Are you angry about something?” There was no noise. She reminded him that one noise would mean yes and asked the question again. There was a loud and resounding bang from immediately beneath their feet.
“Are you annoyed that we found both of your great granddaughters?” Magda queried and there was no response.
“Are you angry that we moved the vault?” Sam asked and again, there was no reply.
“Did you want the vault to be taken out of the house?” Merle asked and this time a bang was heard beneath their feet.
“Is it more like the house you remember?” Magda asked and there was a slight noise.
“He is looking around the circle and moving towards it,” Declan added. Bart said that he could see a ball of light in the circle itself.
Suddenly a stone flew past Sam’s head and rattled against the wall.
“Good Lord,” Branston exclaimed as another pebble landed in the middle of the circle.
16
Bart went and picked up the pebble. He was right beside what he thought was a ball of light.
“Are you telling us about the stones on the ground?” he asked, and the bang sounded loud and clear. “You know that I found other Hoffstanders in the area?” Bart went on, but before he could continue, stones rattled against the walls and gave them all a cause for concern. Bart went back to his seat.
“He sure is mad about something,” Sam observed.
“Mr. Hoffstander,” Merle said quietly. “I will try and find out what it is you are upset about. Please don’t throw any more stones.” There was a subdued bang beneath her feet. “Thank you,” she said. She looked around. There was enough light from the staircase to see the people in the circle and they all had flashlights if they were needed.
“Can anyone think of questions that might shed any light on the matter?”
“The stone on the floor seems to mean something,” Katie suggested.
“He was glad the vault had gone,” Magda added.
“And he definitely didn’t like that I mentioned the other Hoffstanders,” Bart reminded them. Then he suggested that Merle ask about the uniform they found under the floor.
“Good idea Bart,” Merle said. She took a breath, “Mr. Hoffstander, did you know that we found a uniform and some buttons under the vault?” There was such a loud bang that they all jumped.
“Were the other Hoffstanders related to you?” Magda asked. A weird noise was her answer.
Declan told them that he looked a bit embarrassed about that.
“Did they mean you some harm?” Merle questioned and th
ere was another loud bang.
“We will try and find out about them and the uniform,” Magda told the man she could not see. “We are going to make this an art gallery and we would like it to be calm and friendly.” There was another bang that sounded as if the anger had subsided.
“He is losing power and fading,” Declan told them.
“He is one very determined man,” Merle said. “I guess we have to try and find out what bothers him before the place is open to the public.” She talked them back to reality from the séance with her visualization and then turned on the lights.
Sam kicked a few stones about and looked around.
“That uniform must mean something,” he said and there was a faint and fading bang from beneath his feet.
“Crystal is still button obsessed and we found these buttons as well,” Magda remarked.
“Can anyone who has some time, look up to find anything at all about these other Hoffstanders?” Bart asked.
“I wonder if Geraldine would mind if we asked her about the name?” Magda mused. Then she asked Bart if he could bring a few copies of the paper to have on the counter.
They locked up and left for the night.
Magda was still tired and had another early night, but Sam worked on the plans for a while. It was coming together nicely, and he rolled it up to take to show the others the next day.
The morning saw them separate again to their different places of work, but Magda was stopped in her tracks when she reached the courtyard. Rula stopped when she saw what Magda had seen. The boards covering the hole in the wall was shattered and had been pulled away with some sort of crowbar. The wood was ripped and there was an opening into the bank building.
Rula ran for Mikey and Katie called Declan and then Bart as Magda stepped gingerly inside the opening. She knew that whoever had done it would be long gone but it was still a silly thing to do. Mikey shouted out to her when he came running and stopped her going any further.
