Haunted Ever After

by Juliet Madison

  I chuckled. ‘Especially during your strip. If only you could have seen her then. Her dancing was nowhere near as good as yours though.’

  Ty clicked his fingers. ‘That’s why you laughed. I’m right, yes?’

  ‘Yes. She was mocking your movements and I was having trouble keeping my composure. That’s why I said out loud that I wanted it to stop.’

  ‘You said ‘red’, what was that about?’

  ‘That’s what I called her up until this afternoon, when she finally revealed her name.’

  Ty tipped his head back in understanding. ‘Red. Good nickname,’ he said. ‘The candles on the dinner table that night, was that her?’

  ‘Correct.’

  ‘And what about the Winter Solstice Festival, was she there too?’

  I cringed at the memory. ‘My little performance? Courtesy of Her Royal Ghostness. She was tugging me sideways and I had to keep resisting, to stay with my friends. Before I knew it I’d camouflaged the awkward situation with linedancing. Got into the spirit of it and thought, “what the heck?”’

  ‘Ha! I knew there was something more going on with you. And the gemstone down your top?’

  ‘Red’s fault.’

  Ty laughed. ‘Sounds like she’s been the life of the party.’

  ‘Ironic, hey? Oh, and you can also blame her for the bruise on your foot. I was trying to dislodge her from my shopping trolley.’

  ‘Aha, so that’s why you were going so fast around the corner.’ He slowed as a car ahead stopped to turn off the road, then resumed normal speed. ‘And let me guess, she’s the reason you got stuck in the pub toilets?’

  ‘Oh God. I’m so embarrassed about that.’ I shook my head. ‘She made the lock break, and well, I made my own trouble from then on.’

  Ty laughed again. ‘What a sight that was, seeing you stuck under that door. Barron Springs has never been so entertaining.’

  ‘Gee, thanks. I’ll probably go down in history as the “toilet woman” or something.’

  ‘Nah, to me you’ll always be Sexy Sally.’ He smiled, and our midnight rendezvous jumped to the front of my mind again. It must have jumped to Ty’s too, because he didn’t say anything further for the next few minutes.

  ‘Ty,’, ‘Sally,’ we both spoke at the same time.

  ‘Sorry, you go,’ he said.

  ‘I was going to say…last night, it was…well, I don’t ever do things like that. I’m not normally like that. I don’t want you to think…’

  ‘I don’t think anything bad about you. I was concerned for you, and I let my attraction to you take over. I’m sorry.’

  The idea that a hot-as-fire stripper thought of me as attractive was as difficult to believe as the idea of seeing ghosts. I never thought someone like him would be drawn to a Plain Jane like me.

  ‘Don’t be sorry. I’m extremely flattered.’ I could feel my face becoming pink as we spoke. ‘And it was…amazing, last night. But you were right. It all happened too fast, and we should probably just leave it in the past.’

  He clamped his lips together and nodded.

  ‘Wait, you two did the hokey-pokey last night? How did I not know this?’ Nancy suddenly piped up, sitting in the back seat and leaning forward between us in the front.

  ‘Oh, hello again,’ I said. ‘And no, we didn’t do the “hokey-pokey” as you call it, not that it’s any of your business, you nosey thing.’ I shot her a teasing look.

  ‘Oh, so you like, just kissed or something?’

  ‘Gee, you are a nosey thing, aren’t you?’ Ty said.

  ‘Well there’s a slight shortage of gossip on my side of the world and I could do with a fix,’ she explained. ‘So was it good? Is he better than Greg, Sally?’

  ‘Nancy!’ I exclaimed. ‘I think that’s enough of this topic. Discussion over.’ I glared at her in embarrassment, but when Ty’s focus turned back to the road I eyed her and gave surreptitious thumbs-up sign. She bounced up and down in satisfaction.

  ‘I think you two would make a great couple,’ she added. ‘Ty and Sally. Sally and Ty. Tysally. Has a nice ring to it.’ She tapped her chin.

  ‘Enough,’ I said, though I knew she was just trying to distract from the upcoming task. The distraction was temporary, though, and she gulped as we slowed and turned into Bentley Street, Wattle Falls, then pulled up outside number 15.

  CHAPTER 19

  The cute, white, weatherboard house screamed ‘family home’, a place to raise kids and live a happy-ever-after. But this homely facade concealed a deep grief within and a secret that would have remained hidden had Nancy Silverton not haunted me.

  ‘Here goes,’ I said, drawing a deep breath and walking to the front door, flowers and chocolates in my hands, and Ty by my side. Before knocking, I turned around. Nancy hung back, her ghostly body seeming tense and unsure. ‘C’mon,’ I encouraged. ‘It’ll be okay.’

  She came to my side and breathed deeply too, though how ghosts could breathe I had no idea. Maybe it was a residual habit from living almost thirty years in the human body.

  ‘It hurts,’ she said. ‘I can feel his pain. The emptiness, the guilt, the sadness. I’m not sure I can handle it.’

  ‘You can. Just think how much better it will be when he knows the truth. I mean, not better, but he’ll have closure. He’ll be able to move on.’

  ‘You’re right. I know. Okay, let’s do this.’

  Ty knocked on the door with a firm rap of his knuckles, and despite my nervousness I noticed how masculine and strong his hands looked. Somehow they gave me a feeling of strength, an assurance that I could handle this. That we could handle this.

  Ty was about to knock again when footsteps sounded inside. The door opened inwards and the doorway framed a tall man with a slim build, light brown hair, and a pallor that I’d seen many times in my career. The pallor of grief. Of loss. Even if I didn’t know who he was, I would have deduced that he’d been through something traumatic or lost someone close to him.

  I offered a kind smile.

  ‘Can I help you?’ he asked, and the sound of a baby’s mumblings could be heard within the house. Nancy made a sound, a cross between a gasp and a cry. Her daughter was inside, and she wouldn’t be able to hold her.

  ‘Hi, Chris?’ I said. ‘My name’s Sally, I knew your wife, Nancy.’

  ‘Oh,’ he said.

  ‘I wanted to offer my condolences, and give you these.’ I handed him the flowers and the chocolates.

  ‘Chocolate macadamia nuts,’ he said, eyeing the box Nancy had picked out when we stopped at the service station for petrol and gifts.

  ‘She told me they’re your favourite.’

  Chris’s gaze connected with mine, and this seemed to comfort him a little.

  ‘She did? Yes, they are. Thank you, that’s very kind.’

  ‘If you like I can come in and put the flowers in water for you?’ I peered beyond him, hoping I wasn’t being too forward.

  ‘How did you know Nancy, exactly?’ he asked, obviously unsure whether to invite a stranger into his house.

  Oh gosh, we hadn’t thought this through properly. I didn’t even think! We should have come prepared with a list of possible questions and answers, like a FAQ list. If Lorena was here she would have thought of it.

  I glanced surreptitiously at Nancy, whose hand was over her mouth at the emotional impact of seeing her husband again. She quickly composed herself, and said, ‘Tell him you were my nurse a few years back, when I broke my arm.’

  ‘I was her nurse, a few years back when she broke her arm. We got along well and kept in contact ever since.’

  ‘Oh. Right. I don’t remember her ever mentioning a Sally. Then again, we only knew each other for about two years. Marriage and a baby happened so fast. There’s probably a lot I never got to find out about my wife.’ He lowered his head and appeared to go deep into thought, then snapped his head up. ‘Sorry, yes, I’d be grateful if you could put these in some water.’ He stepped back to allow us to enter, and Ty
put his hand out for a handshake.

  ‘I’m Tyler, a friend — ’

  ‘Say boyfriend! No, say fiancé,’ Nancy directed.

  ‘I’m, ah, Sally’s fiancé.’ He cleared his throat and I scratched my head. Maybe Nancy wanted us to look as together and normal as possible.

  Chris shook Ty’s hand. ‘Hi.’

  We stepped into the house, and Chris ducked his head into another room, obviously to check on his daughter who sounded like she wanted company, then returned to us and led us to the kitchen. He lifted a vase from a high shelf and handed it to me. ‘You can bring them into the living room through there,’ he pointed, ‘I better check Ruby.’

  I turned on the tap and filled the vase with water, and Ty took the paper from the flowers and placed the colourful display into the vase. I raised my eyebrows at him as if to say ‘so far so good’. Ty carried them into the living room and placed them on the dining table at the end of the room, next to the bay window that had a picturesque view of the street outside.

  ‘Thanks,’ Chris said, picking up Ruby from her walker. ‘Have you met Ruby?’

  I stepped closer and smiled at the chubby baby with a light layer of red curls on her head. ‘No, I haven’t. Hello little one,’ I said in the usual accent reserved for speaking to human beings under the age of three. I took Ruby’s small hand and gave it a wiggle. She gripped my finger and giggled. ‘She’s gorgeous,’ I said to Chris. ‘And has her mother’s hair.’ I regretted saying that last bit, as Chris’ expression became sadder.

  ‘She’s a real cutie,’ Ty said, offering his finger too. Ruby swapped mine for his, her whole hand barely wrapping around it.

  I turned to look at Nancy. She stood at the entrance to the living room, her arms hugged tightly around her body, her face filled with despair. I wanted to comfort her, but I couldn’t. We had to pretend she wasn’t here in order to have a chance of building up to telling Chris the truth.

  ‘She’s a good girl,’ Chris said. ‘I just wish she’d sleep through the night. Ever since…it happened…she’s been extra wakeful.’

  The poor guy. Grief and sleep deprivation to add to the mix.

  ‘A back massage can sometimes help,’ I suggested. ‘Baby’s usually love it. A warm bath and a gentle massage before bed might make a difference.’ I hoped he didn’t mind me offering my advice, I often found myself doing that when anyone presented their problems.

  ‘Thanks, I guess I’ve been too tired to do anything but the essentials. Might give it a go.’ He returned Ruby to her walker. A small advantage of losing her mother so young was that she wouldn’t feel the same grief as her father. Sure, I bet she missed her mother, but babies at that age were adaptable and generally warmed to whoever warmed to them, whoever fed and changed and comforted them. Later, when she grew up, when she transformed into a young woman. That’s when it would really hit. That’s when she’d need her mum the most.

  ‘Can I get you a coffee or tea?’ Chris asked.

  I eyed Ty, whose expression said ‘it’s up to you’. ‘Um, thanks, but I don’t want to put you to any trouble. I was just hoping to, ah, discuss a few things about Nancy if that’s okay. I was so shocked to hear the news, but I wanted you to know how much I admired her.’

  Chris gave a small smile. ‘Take a seat,’ he said, gesturing to the couch. Ty and I sat there while he sat on the armchair next to it.

  ‘Nancy is — was — such a vibrant, funny, friendly person,’ I said, aware that there was no way I would have said that before, after what she’d put me through. But now I meant it. And I was starting to understand how she must have been in real life.

  ‘It’s funny you say that, because that’s what I miss about her most. Her energy. Her enthusiasm.’ He shook his head and rubbed his temple. ‘I missed it even when she was alive, though ever since the…’

  ‘The depression,’ I finished for him.

  ‘Yes. It took all that away. She lost that spark that made her who she was and it was heartbreaking to see. It’s not how I want to remember her.’

  ‘Then don’t.’ I leaned forward in support, like he was a relative of a patient who’d died. ‘Remember the energy, the enthusiasm, the joy she had. She’d want that.’

  He nodded, and I hoped he wouldn’t start crying, because I didn’t want to upset him, and I didn’t want Nancy to lose it and run off.

  ‘Did you know her too?’ Chris asked Ty.

  He opened his mouth but didn’t speak right away, obviously formulating an answer in his mind. ‘No. I never met her, but from what Sally told me, I know she must have been a great person. Someone who was fun to have around, and very…determined, I think.’

  ‘She did like to get her own way,’ Chris mused with a smile. ‘Always liked to be right. And she was such a practical joker.’ He eyed the side table, which displayed a photo of her pulling a funny face.

  ‘Oh yes, I’m sure she was,’ I replied.

  Nancy seemed to be coping better, and came closer, perching herself on the arm of the couch between Chris and us. I shifted on the spot and tried to think how to steer the conversation to where it needed to go. ‘And I’m sure she’s at peace now, watching over you and Ruby.’ I swallowed a hard lump.

  Chris seemed unsure. ‘Well, I hope she’s at peace, if that’s even possible. Everyone says she must still be with me, in spirit, but that seems a bit far-fetched to me. I know they’re just being nice. She’s gone, and we have to get on with life as best as we can.’

  ‘But I’m here, honey, I’m here!’ Nancy cried, by her husband’s side.

  My heart ached, and Ty spoke up. ‘When my parents died, I thought that too, that they were just gone. But after a while I felt more,’ he circled his hands, ‘I don’t know, open, that some small part of them still existed. It gave me strength, believing they might still be with me in some way.’

  The ache in my heart turned to overwhelming gratitude for Ty. That he was here, and that he was actively trying to help me get through to Chris. I wanted to squeeze his hand but hesitated, then remembered we were supposed to be a couple. I put my hand on top of his and squeezed it, his warmth radiating up my arm. He glanced at it with raised eyebrows, then must have remembered the facade too because he lifted my hand and kissed it. Softly, tenderly. Nancy noticed our moment and a brief smile flashed on her face.

  ‘I guess it can make things a bit easier, having some sort of belief like that,’ Chris said, his gaze hovering on our entwined hands. ‘Don’t ever take what you have for granted,’ he said. ‘Make the most of your life together, and talk about life when it gets hard. Don’t push things under the carpet or assume everything’s alright. I wish I’d been able to help her more,’ he added.

  Nancy sat back down on the edge of the couch, shoulders sinking.

  ‘You did the best you could, I know she loved you, and by the looks of things you’re doing a great job with Ruby.’ I watched her play with the various buttons and amusements on her walker.

  ‘She keeps me going, to be honest. I have to keep going strong, for her.’

  I eyed Ty and we exchanged a knowing glance. He needed to know, and soon. We couldn’t outstay our welcome and had to make progress.

  ‘You know, after reading the news report about Nancy, there’s something that just didn’t feel right about it,’ I said.

  Chris looked me in the eye. ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘The Nancy I knew, she was so excited about her future, about becoming a mother. I just can’t believe it’s true.’

  ‘Well, the depression obviously took its toll. It took all that desire for life away. I thought she was getting better, but I guess I was wrong.’ His voice quivered on the last word, and Nancy moved away and hugged her chest again.

  ‘I don’t think you were wrong. I think she was getting better. It’s possible she could have just…fallen.’

  Chris straightened in the chair, and I knew things were getting awkward but I had to try my best.

  ‘I agree,’ said Ty.<
br />
  ‘No,’ Chris said. ‘She’d given up. She didn’t even have her wedding ring on when they found her. I had a feeling she was considering leaving me, and this confirms it.’

  ‘But I changed my mind, Chris! I wanted to start over!’ Nancy urged him to hear her.

  ‘What if she dropped the ring and tried to get it? Did the police consider that as a possibility?’

  Chris seemed to consider this seriously, then as though the effort in believing it was too much, he returned to his denial. ‘No, they concluded that it was clearly suicide, with her history. It makes sense.’

  I bit my lips in frustration.

  Ty fidgeted on the couch.

  ‘Chris, I know you hardly know me, but I knew Nancy. And I believe that she didn’t take her own life.’

  Chris stood. ‘What does it matter? She’s gone, and there’s nothing I can do about it.’ He held his arms to the side. ‘I thought we were going to discuss memories of Nancy, not how she died. I’ve gone over this way too many times in my head and I don’t particularly want to do it again.’ He stood closer to us, as though subtly telling us it was time to leave. We stood.

  ‘Oh yes, I understand. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.’ We walked to the entry foyer. This was it, our last chance.

  ‘You know,’ said Ty. ‘I work with disabled people, and one of them is in a wheelchair from a fall. When he was unconscious in hospital, they thought it had been a suicide attempt as he was going through a hard time. It was only when he woke up and told them that he’d fallen from the roof of his double-storey house because he wanted to get a better view of the local fireworks that the truth was revealed. If he’d never woken up, they never would have known.’

  Wow. I mouthed a ‘thank you’ to Ty as our eyes met.

  Chris raised his eyebrows. ‘Interesting. I wish Nancy could come back for a minute to tell me what happened that night. Then again, if it was indeed suicide I don’t think I could cope with hearing the details.’

  A spark of resolve shot through me. Enough. He had to know. ‘It wasn’t suicide,’ I blurted. ‘I know that for a fact.’

  Ty cleared his throat and Chris stepped backwards a little. ‘And how do you know that?’ He crossed his arms.