by Maria Geraci
“How convenient,” Tom said.
“The ghost told you he didn’t object to us?” Allie said.
“Not in so many words, but I was able to feel it. Because as I’ve said, the ghost and I are—”
“Simpatico,” Allie finished.
“Exactly.”
Allie itched to wipe the smug expression off Phoebe’s face but she needed to be in the old bat’s good graces. Phoebe began to list off all the supplies they’d need for the séance.
“And of course we’ll tape it,” Phoebe finished. “I’ll put Roger in charge. He’s good at that sort of thing. Oh, and it’s imperative the table be sturdy. We can’t have one of those flimsy card tables with the wobbly legs.”
“No wobbly legs,” Allie said. “Anything else?”
“Just one more thing. After I leave here the building must be closed for the twenty four hour period before the séance. Absolutely no one must enter. The atmosphere must be as pure as possible. Any lingering negative vibrations and the ghost might not respond to Madame Gloria.” She seared them both one last time with her bug eyes before making a grand exit from the building.
“I don’t get it,” Allie said, “why doesn’t she like me?”
“She’s a kook. And she’s threatened by you.”
“By me?”
“Sure, you honed in on her little ghost business.”
“You have to admit the door thing was creepy. And the smell—”
“A random burst of air shut the door. The windows are all boarded up, so any lingering smells are going to be exaggerated. That’s all it was, Allie.”
“You really believe that?”
“Yeah, I do.”
She sighed. “Well, thanks for getting Phoebe to agree to let us take part in the séance.”
“Did you really think I was going to let her do her thing in here without us?”
“Poor Phoebe has no idea what’s she up against,” Allie said. “Insurance regulations, demolition deadlines, and a budget.”
She hoped he might smile at that but he didn’t. “So, are we going to pretend our previous conversation never happened?”
Yes, please. “I don’t want to fight with you, Tom.”
“I don’t want to fight with you, either.”
“Then, yeah, can we pretend it never happened? Can we start over as just…friends?”
He stared at her a moment, then shrugged. “Sure, we can be great pals.” Before she could say anything to that, he added, “It’s been a long morning, let’s get out of here.” He made a quick inspection, going room to room, making sure they didn’t leave anything behind. He was securing the padlock to the front door when Allie stopped him by placing her hand on his arm.
“You really didn’t feel anything? Or smell anything unusual? Because if we’re going to be friends then we have to be honest with one another.”
“I’m sorry, Allie, but all I smell is musty old building.”
She wished she could say he was lying. But unlike before, this time Tom was telling the truth.
Mimi was fascinated by this latest development. “So, you were the only one who smelled the lemons? I mean, if this Phoebe Van Cleave expert person didn’t smell it…do you think she smelled it, too, and just didn’t want to say?” She passed the meatloaf in Allie’s direction, which Allie eagerly took. All this ghost hunting could leave a girl hungry.
“I don’t know. I wouldn’t put anything past that woman. She definitely has her own agenda.” She should fess up and tell them it wasn’t lemons she’d smelled, but Buela’s cologne. Wouldn’t her brother just love that one?
“All the kids at school are talking about what happened,” Cameron said. “Josh Bellamy said the ghost put some kind of force field around the senior center and if anyone tries to get inside they’ll be vaporized.”
Claire snorted. “Yeah, right.”
“I didn’t say I believed it,” Cameron said defensively, “I just said he said it.”
Allie winked at her nephew. “No one is getting vaporized. But there’s definitely something strange going on in that building.”
Zeke calmly took a bite of his scalloped potatoes. “Personally, I think the whole thing is a bunch of bunk.”
Her brother was out of his cop uniform and dressed in khaki slacks and a red polo shirt. Unlike Mimi, Zeke showed no signs of gray in his dark hair, which he kept military short. Allie had to admit upon occasion to being somewhat envious of her brother. The two of them looked enough alike that everyone who saw them together instantly recognized they were brother and sister, but Zeke had inherited the pretty gene. Not that Allie felt unattractive, but as a guy Zeke was definitely in a different league.
Back in his single days, girls had phoned the house at all hours. It had driven Buela crazy. “That boy is going to end up getting some poor girl in the family way,” she’d predicted. Which of course, was exactly what had happened. Allie was just glad that it had happened with Mimi. She didn’t think Zeke would have straightened out his life for anyone but her.
“Don’t listen to Zeke. He thinks everything’s bunk,” Mimi said.
Her brother kept on eating.
“Zeke,” Allie said trying to sound casual, “do you remember the cologne Buela used to wear?”
He laid down his fork. “Where did that come from?”
“I was talking to one of those Gray Flamingoes this morning at the protest and I could have sworn I smelled Buela’s cologne. It got me thinking, is all,” she lied. “What was it called again?”
“Jean Nate,” he said, reaching for a second helping of potatoes.
Bin-go! She tried to keep her expression neutral. “Wow. You have a good memory.”
He shrugged. “We used to buy it for her every Christmas, don’t you remember? I don’t know if she really liked it as much as she let on, but it was all we could afford. We’d go to the mall in Panama City and get the big gift pack. Cologne, powder, after bath stuff. I think it lasted her all year, then Christmas would roll around and we’d get her another one.”
Of course she remembered.
If the lemon smell was really Jean Nate, could it be Buela’s spirit haunting the old senior center? Allie’s pulse began dancing a jig. This was crazy! Even if she did believe in ghosts, and even if somehow, that ghost was Buela, why show up now? She’d been gone for over twelve years. Plus, there was the fact that Phoebe thought the ghost was male. Of course, Allie was beginning to think Tom was right and Phoebe wasn’t quite the ghost authority she made herself out to be.
“My grandmother used to wear Jean Nate,” Mimi said wistfully. “I really miss her.”
Allie’s pulse tripped on a step, then sputtered. Mimi was right. Every grandmother in the country probably wore Jean Nate at some time or another. Even if the lemon smell was real, and not just some figment of Allie’s imagination, it could mean anything. More than likely one of the protestors had worn the perfume and Allie, being Allie and having that nose of hers, had picked up the scent.
“I hope you don’t mind eating dinner this early,” Mimi said. “I know it’s barely five-thirty but Cameron has soccer practice at seven.”
“No problem. I’m just happy to have a homemade meal. Especially yours.”
“It’s rare that we all sit down to dinner these days as a family. So I aim for whatever time I can get.”
Allie noticed that Mimi barely ate anything herself. Was her sister-in-law watching her weight? Mimi didn’t look like she needed to drop any pounds. Just the opposite. She was thinner than Allie had ever seen her. Still, she looked good tonight. She wore a lime green shift that picked up the blue in her eyes and her shoulder length brown hair was freshly blow dried and straightened. She even had on make-up.
“Pilar told me you helped organize the protest,” Allie said. “So I guess I owe you a big thanks.”
Zeke put down his fork and eyed Mimi.
Oops. Maybe Allie shouldn’t have mentioned that.
“Oh, I didn’t do muc
h. I just initiated the Bunco phone chain. I wanted to make sure the rest of the Babes knew about that letter. If I hadn’t had a PTA meeting this morning, believe me, I would have been there, too.”
“Well, thanks to you the whole town knows now,” Zeke said. He picked up his fork and resumed eating.
“Good,” Mimi said. “The whole town should know what’s going on.”
Allie coughed. “Um, I’m surprised Bruce Bailey didn’t show up this morning. Seeing as how he’s the mayor and all.”
Zeke made a disgusted face. “Bruce Bailey is worthless.”
“I agree,” Mimi said. “As a matter of fact, I’m thinking of running against him in the coming election.”
Everyone except Mimi stopped eating.
“The coming election,” Zeke said slowly. “As in, six months from now?”
“Sure, why not?”
Zeke laughed. “I thought you were serious.”
“I am serious.”
He gave Mimi a long look, then laid down his napkin. “Bruce Bailey might be worthless but he’s vice-president of a bank. He knows just a little bit about how to balance a city budget.”
“And I know just a little bit about how to balance a family budget,” Mimi responded. “They’re probably not that much different.”
Allie stuffed her mouth full of meatloaf. What in holy heck was going on here?
Zeke eyed Cameron’s empty plate. “You done there, champ?”
Cameron nodded, wide-eyed.
“Then finish your homework and get ready for practice. We need to drop you off early.”
“Now?” Cameron whined. “But I want to hear how mom is going to be mayor.”
“Your mom and I have to be in Panama City by seven, so yeah, now,” said Zeke, the hard-ass, in a tone that encouraged no back talk.
Allie almost felt sorry for Cameron, but then, she didn’t. Their own dad had been a total slouch. Zeke might be a strict disciplinarian but he was a good provider and a steady influence. Considering the role model he’d had, it was amazing he’d turned out to be such a good dad.
Cameron took his plate and laid it in the sink.
“What’s going on in Panama City?” Allie asked.
Before either Mimi or Zeke could answer, Claire said, “I can take Cameron to practice.”
“And what? Drive by yourself?” Mimi said.
Claire made a disgruntled teenage noise. “I’m sixteen. I’ve had my license for three whole weeks now but you still think I’m a baby. Everyone else at school already drives alone and half my class has their own car.”
“Good for half your class,” Zeke said.
“If you’re nervous about Claire driving Cameron to soccer, I can go with them,” Allie volunteered.
Claire brightened up. “Would you?”
“Sure,” Allie said.
“I don’t know, technically, your aunt can’t drive right now,” said her not-so-helpful brother.
“What’s the use of having a driver’s license if you never let me use it?” Claire left the table in a huff with her plate barely touched.
Mimi pursed her lips.
Before Zeke could say anything about Claire’s behavior, Allie said, “I wouldn’t be driving. I’d be sitting in the front seat supervising her. There’s no law against that, is there?”
“She’s right, Zeke,” Mimi said. “If Allie wants to help out, then I say let her.” She glanced at her watch for the third time since they’d sat down for dinner.
“I get it,” Allie said, grinning at her brother. “It’s date night.” No wonder Mimi and Zeke seemed on edge. After Zeke’s out of town trip, they were probably chomping at the bit for some alone time. Not that Allie blamed them. Between Zeke’s job and the kids’ activities they hardly ever saw each other.
“Date night. Right,” Zeke said without much enthusiasm.
“Don’t forget we have to pick up Henry,” Mimi said. “It’s our turn for carpool.”
“I’ll call Tom and see if he can drive the boys.” Zeke excused himself and went to the other room.
Allie waited until Cameron left to get dressed for soccer before saying, “Speaking of the boys, why didn’t you warn me that Henry was coming over last night?”
“I didn’t tell you?” Mimi asked innocently.
“You know you didn’t.”
“He’s a cute kid, huh?”
“Very cute.”
“Just like his dad.”
“Yeah, just like his dad, who as I said before, I have no interest in, so if you’re thinking of playing matchmaker, I already told you, that’s never going to happen.”
“Never is a long time.”
“True, but in this case it’s an eternity. We’re partners, nothing more.”
“Partners?” Mimi said perking with interest.
“As in, we both have a common goal. As soon as I get this ghost story, I’m out of Tom Donalan’s hair for good. Other than an occasional rare sighting, I predict with my biannual visit back home, odds are I’ll only run into him every fourth or fifth year, at best.”
“Already figured out the odds, have you?”
“In the interest of ruining your Fiddler on the Roof moment here, can I change the subject? Did you hear Roger Van Cleave admitted to being Concerned Citizen?”
“Yeah, pretty dramatic timing, huh?” Allie didn’t say anything. “What? You don’t think he wrote it?” Mimi asked.
“Let’s just say, I wouldn’t be surprised to find out he made it up. Plus, it makes no sense really. Why write me an anonymous letter when he could have gotten his sister, the ghost hunter to investigate?”
Allie couldn’t put her finger on it, but there was something decidedly feminine about that letter. She’d wanted to ask Roger about it this morning, but by the time she and Tom had locked up the senior center, Roger had disappeared. She tried calling him, but there was no answer, so she left a message on his machine, but he still hadn’t returned her call. It didn’t take a genius to figure out Roger Van Cleave was avoiding her.
“Well, eventually, the truth will come out.”
“It usually does,” Allie agreed. She just wished it would come out sooner than later. She watched as her sister-in-law made a pot of coffee. It occurred to Allie that she’d never really questioned what Mimi did or didn’t know about the ghost. “You sure you never heard the ghost rumors before? I mean, before I came to town to investigate?”
“I think I would have remembered anything about a ghost,” Mimi said. She narrowed her eyes at Allie. “What are you thinking?”
“I just find it strange that I get this anonymous letter but there isn’t one person who’s come forward to say that they’ve seen anything, before today’s sighting, that is. Even Phoebe, who’s supposedly on top of all the paranormal activity in the area, was surprised to hear about this ghost.”
“And?”
“And I have no idea what I’m doing. I just hope this séance makes a good enough story to trump a piece on illegal immigration.”
“I’m just bummed that the séance has to be on the same night as Bunco. I would have loved to have you come play with us.” Mimi poured herself a cup of coffee. “So who’s going to be there tomorrow night?”
“Whoever Phoebe and Madame Gloria think the ghost will approve of.”
Mimi giggled. “But you and Tom will be there, right?”
“Oh, yeah, he made sure of that.”
“He’s a good man to have around.”
“If you say so.” Which, in this case, Allie had to silently agree with, but she didn’t want Mimi thinking she was jumping on Team Tom. “Phoebe says there can only be six people at the séance, tops.”
“Well, I know of at least a dozen people who want to be there,” Mimi continued. “As head of the Gray Flamingoes, Viola Pantini should be considered.”
Allie nodded. “Definitely.” Pause. “Were you serious earlier? About running for mayor?”
Before Mimi could answer, Zeke came back in the
room. “Tom can’t drive tonight. And Lauren won’t be back from Pensacola till after eight. She had to take Dan to see the doctor.”
Mimi’s forehead scrunched in worry. “Is Dan all right?” She turned to Allie to explain. “Lauren’s daddy hasn’t been himself lately.”
“He’s what, a cousin of your mother’s?”
“Something like that.”
“He doesn’t see Dr. Morrison here in town?” Allie asked.
“I believe he does, but they wanted a second opinion.”
Allie thought about Lauren and her quirky little sixties shop and of course, how darn nice she was. “I hope everything’s okay.”
“The bottom line is we’re responsible for getting the boys to soccer,” Zeke said, getting them back to the dilemma at hand.
“Really, guys, I think you two are making a bigger production of this than you need to,” Allie said.
“I think Allie’s right. If she goes, then it will be fine if Claire drives,” Mimi said.
“It’s up to you,” Zeke said. “You’re the one who’s been supervising her driving.”
“Fine. Let’s give Claire a chance. And if after next week she hasn’t crashed the car, I say we let her go solo.”
“Thanks, Aunt Allie,” Claire said, getting behind the minivan’s wheel. “You’re the best.”
“Just drive safely.” Allie watched as her niece went through the routine of adjusting the mirrors.
Claire drove the short distance to Tom’s house perfectly. No speeding, no wobbling, no slamming on the brakes. Allie leaned back in her seat and relaxed. Mimi and Zeke were too overprotective. If she ever had kids, she hoped she wouldn’t be as anal as her brother and sister-in-law.
Claire cruised the minivan up a paved driveway leading to a cream colored stucco house directly across from the beach. Allie had to admit to being curious about Tom’s place of residence. From the outside the house looked small, but cozy. Nice location. A perfect bachelor pad. She’d love an excuse to take a look inside, but Henry was out the door the instant they pulled up.
