Treasured Legacies - a Mary O'Reilly Paranormal Mystery

by Terri Reid

  Mike bent over. “You know I’d do everything I could to protect you,” he said.

  She nodded. “But what if something happens and you’re not there, like when I took my bike and the bad man tried to catch me?” she asked.

  Mike’s face dropped and he sighed. “I couldn’t help you then,” he said. “Because of the choices you made. But other times, I’ll be there.”

  “But what if you’re not?” she asked.

  Bradley squatted down next to Clarissa. “You’ve been through some pretty scary times, and even though we know the bad man is gone, it’s hard not to think about it.”

  “Yes, my brain tells me he’s gone, but my heart still jumps when someone comes in the door.”

  “Exactly,” Bradley said. “That’s a perfectly normal thing. And I had been thinking you might feel that way, so I bought you a present.”

  “A present?” Clarissa asked. “How can a present help me?”

  Bradley stood up and walked across the room to his briefcase. He opened it and pulled out a little box. “First, you need to know that I trust Mike and I know he will do everything he can to protect you. He’s part of our family and he loves you as much as Mary and I love you,” Bradley said.

  Clarissa shook her head. “Yeah, I know,” she said, turning to her guardian angel. “Sorry Mike.”

  Mike shrugged. “That’s okay, sweetheart,” he said. “I’d be a little nervous too if I were you.”

  “And that’s why we have this, to make you less nervous,” Bradley said, pulling out a small plastic device. “It’s a little GPS device that you can carry with you everywhere you go. It sends out a signal, that lets us know where you are all the time and it also has a button that you can push if you’re scared that will alert us immediately. Would that be helpful?”

  Clarissa took the small box in her hand. “This is so cool.”

  “Really?” Mary asked, looking at the device. “She’s right, this is so cool.”

  Bradley nodded. “Yeah, I was just reading about it last week and thought it would be great for Clarissa,” he said to Mary and then turned to his daughter. “What do you think?”

  “I just push it when I need you?” she asked.

  “Yes, just push it,” Bradley replied. “And it will ring an alarm on both my phone and Mary’s phone. Will that make you feel safer?”

  “Yes. And I promise only to push it in emergencies,” Clarissa said.

  “And remember, pizza, hamburgers and ice cream are not emergencies,” Mike added.

  Clarissa giggled and then stopped. “Oh, ice cream,” she said. “I almost forgot about the ice cream.”

  “I think we should eat dinner and then pig out on ice cream,” Bradley suggested. “Anyone else interested?”

  “Yes!” Mary and Clarissa agreed.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “You’re going out tonight?” Bradley asked, later that night once Clarissa was tucked into bed. “Are you sure you’re feeling up to it?”

  “I’m fine,” Mary said, slipping on her coat. “Besides, all I’ll be doing is sitting in an ice cream parlor having a discussion with dead people. No big deal.”

  Bradley chuckled. “Do you think it’s strange that I don’t think that’s strange?” he asked.

  She walked over and kissed him. “Nope, because since you’ve met me, you’re a changed man.”

  He kissed her back. “Changed for the better? Or just another step closer to crazy?”

  She laughed. “For the better.”

  “How long will you be?”

  “Not more than a couple of hours,” she replied.

  “Okay, if something comes up, call me. I can get Katie or Clifford to run over if you need my help,” he said. “I’ve got some paperwork I can work on while you’re gone.”

  “Great! See you soon,” she said.

  The moon was bright and full. The night air was cool with just a hint of spring. Mary took a deep breath as she walked to the car, inhaling the moist scents of damp earth and spring flowers. She paused for a second, savoring the fragrance of a nearby hyacinth. She really loved spring.

  The drive back to Union Dairy only took a few minutes. The downtown streets were fairly deserted by this time of night, except for the Lindo Theater a few blocks down Chicago. Mary parked directly in front of the ice cream parlor, slipped out of her car and pulled the keys Jodi had given her out of her pocket. She paused at the plate glass door and stared inside for a moment before entering. The restaurant was motionless and quiet, with the only light coming from the glow of some of the equipment behind the counter. Everything else lay in shadows.

  Slipping the key in, she slowly turned it and opened the door. Entering the building, she locked the door behind her to ensure she didn’t have any company of the human kind. She walked forward to the short counter with the bright red parlor stools that surrounded it. The counter snaked around from the front of the restaurant around a curve at the side and then along the back of the front area, so a soda jerk could stand in the middle and take care of all of the customers around him. The second dining area was a smaller room with a collection of tables and booths for people who wanted a little more privacy than the counter afforded. Between the two rooms was a small alcove that held an old jukebox with tunes from earlier years. Customers from either side of the restaurant could enjoy the music for only a quarter.

  The restaurant was warm; Mary was sure Jodi had left the heat up for her comfort, so she slipped off her coat and laid it on the red Formica counter. She glanced around the room. Light glinted off the chrome fixtures behind the counter and the lines of sparkling sundae and shake glasses on the shelves. Mary started when she thought she saw someone behind the counter, but released a soft breath when she realized it was only her reflection in the mirror on the wall.

  The sounds of the night were different than the sounds during the day. The freezer hummed softly, the ice maker thumped and the furnace occasionally whooshed as it started a new cycle. There was no clattering of silverware, no chattering of customers, no clinking of dishware or ringing of the cash register. It was as if the restaurant were asleep, breathing deeply, waiting for someone to wake it up.

  Mary slid onto a short stool; making sure to avoid the one Jodi said had been occupied by the ghost. She couldn’t help herself; she twisted the seat from one side to the other, enjoying the movement just as much today as she did when she was a child. She was about to laugh out loud when a new noise stopped her.

  Cha-ching. The jukebox suddenly lit up. She could hear the sounds of the mechanism lifting the record from its shelf and moving it over to the player. Then the voices of the Everly Brothers singing “Whenever I Want You All I Have to do is Dream” echoed throughout the room. The figure of a young woman slowly materialized in front of the jukebox, swaying to the music. She was dressed in a plaid cotton shirtdress with a full skirt and a matching cardigan sweater draped over her shoulders. She looked like she stepped out of a movie from the fifties, from her shoulder length hair, styled in soft waves and bangs, to her ballerina-style flats.

  Mary just sat and watched the girl as a frisson of paranormal electricity swept up her back and along her arms. As the song ended, the girl turned and walked toward the counter, perching on the stool next to Mary. The pedestal stool slowly turned, but instead of the quiet, well-oiled stool Mary was on, the mechanism squealed painfully. In a moment, Mary was face to face with the specter. “Hi,” Mary said, “I’m Mary.”

  The ghost stared at her for a moment and then slowly smiled. “Hi Mary, I’m Erika,” she replied. “Do have any smokes?”

  Shaking her head, Mary said, “Sorry, I don’t smoke.”

  “That’s okay,” Erika replied evenly. “The guys will be along soon and they always have them.”

  “The guys?” Mary asked.

  “Yeah, you know, for cruising,” she said. “I’m dying to ride in Adam’s Chevy, it’s dreamy.”

  “Cruising?” Mary asked.

  “What
are you from outer space or something?” Erika asked.

  “Yeah, well, I’m from Chicago originally.”

  Erika’s face brightened considerably. “You’re from Chicago? That is just dreamy,” she said. “I bet you hate it here in Freeport. There is absolutely nothing here compared to Chicago. Do you know any gangsters?”

  “No, sorry, my family is in law enforcement,” Mary replied.

  “Oh, that’s too bad,” Erika said.

  “So, you were telling me about cruising,” Mary prompted.

  “Oh, ya, sure,” Erika said. “The boys drive their cars downtown and they pick the girls who get to ride in their cars, unless, of course, they got a steady.”

  “A steady?” Mary asked.

  “They don’t teach you a lot in Chicago,” Erika said, rolling her eyes. “You know, a steady, like a boyfriend and a girlfriend. Going together. A steady.”

  “Oh, got it,” Mary said. “So, if they don’t have a steady, they pick up the girls and let them ride in their car.”

  “Exactly,” Erika said and she added with a small smile. “Or they have a secret steady and they both act like they’re free.”

  “And where do they go?”

  “They just drive, up and down Galena,” she said.

  “Just up and down the same road?” Mary asked.

  “Yes, it’s called cruising,” Erika replied. “We cruise the drag.”

  “Why?”

  “So people can see us and we can see other people.”

  “Couldn’t you just all see each other here at the ice cream parlor?”

  “Are you from this century?” Erika asked.

  Mary just smiled. “Sorry, I guess it’s a new concept to me. It sounds like fun,” she tried to sound enthusiastic. “It’s just seems like a waste of gasoline.”

  Shrugging, Erika spun on her stool. “So, it’s only a quarter a gallon,” she said. “No big deal.”

  “A quarter a gallon,” Mary repeated. “Wow.”

  “You sound like my dad,” the ghost replied. “He says that’s highway robbery.”

  Then Erika peered past Mary and sighed.

  “What’s wrong?” Mary asked.

  “He’s late again,” she said, her face dropping. “He promised he’d be here.”

  She stood up and walked to the plate glass door and peered out.

  Mary followed her to the window. “Erika, how long have you been waiting for him?”

  Erika paused, considering Mary’s question. Finally she turned to her. “I think I’ve been waiting a long time,” she said, her voice dropping to a whisper. “A very long time.”

  “A very, very long time.”

  Then she faded away before Mary’s eyes.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Mary sat in the dark restaurant for short while longer, hoping to catch another glimpse of Brandon. But as the wall clock echoed loudly in the relative quiet and the various machines went through their cycles, no other supernatural event occurred. Finally, Mary placed her hands on the counter, pushed herself up and walked across the darkened ice cream parlor to the front door. Turning, she took one last look around the large room. Everything was still and in place for the next morning. Shrugging, she unlocked the door and stepped outside to the street. Maybe Brandon and Erika would contact her at home, now that they’d made a connection with her.

  Locking the door behind her, she hurried to her car and drove back in the quiet streets to her home.

  “So, how’d it go?” Bradley asked her as she walked into the house. “Did you make any new friends today?”

  Chuckling, she nodded. “Yes, as a matter of fact, I did,” she replied, slipping her coat off and hanging in the closet. “I met Erika, a teenager from the fifties. She was waiting for someone to take her cruising, but they never showed up.”

  He turned from the desk he was sitting behind. “She’s been waiting a long time,” he said.

  “Yeah, I hate when dates go that way,” she said. “You wait for half a century and they still don’t show up. That’s just plain rude if you ask me.”

  Standing, he walked over and wrapped his arms around her. “I’m sure you never had to worry about being stood up for a date,” he said, placing a kiss on her head.

  She looked up at him with disbelief on her face. “Excuse me?” she asked. “I do recall sitting around in a sexy black dress for several hours while my date was otherwise occupied.”

  “Well, there was a train derailment,” he said.

  “Oh, yeah, the old train derailment excuse,” she teased. “I’ve heard that one a hundred times.”

  He pulled her closer. “I promise you I would have much preferred to be in the company of you and that sexy black dress,” he murmured, trailing kisses down the side of her face. “But, as I recall, I did make up for it later.”

  She turned her face, so her lips met his. “Oh, yes, you did,” she whispered just before she kissed him back.

  Lifting her into his arms, he carried her to the staircase. “Why don’t we continue this discussion upstairs?” he suggested, his voice slightly rough with emotion.

  Mary snuggled closer. “Excellent idea.”

  Sometime later Mary lay next to Bradley, her head nestled in the crook of his shoulder and his arms wrapped around her. “Well, this was a great day,” she sighed contentedly.

  He leaned over and placed a kiss on her forehead. “Yes it was,” he answered. “I still can’t believe it. A baby.”

  She smiled softly and slipped her hand down over her still flat abdomen. “I know how you feel,” she replied. “I can’t believe it either.”

  “When do you want to tell your family?” he asked.

  “I really think I want to wait until we’re sure,” she replied. “After the first trimester. Is that okay with you?”

  “Yes, that sounds fine. You know, I’ve been thinking that the baby ought to have an amazing and distinct name,” Bradley said. “Perhaps a family name.”

  “That’s a great idea,” she said. “I love the idea of a family name. Any ones come to mind?”

  “Well, I have a great aunt Berengaria, she’s named after a thirteenth century queen,” he suggested.

  “Berengaria?” Mary asked, not quite believing her ears.

  “Yes, Great Aunt Beren,” he replied.

  “Okay, well, that’s one name we can cross off the list,” Mary stated.

  “We could call her Gari,” he suggested.

  “Let me think about that,” she said, and then before less than two seconds passed added. “No.”

  “Okay, well, if we have a boy, I have a great-great uncle Eustace,” he said.

  Mary rolled over to her side and gently placed her hand on Bradley’s lips. “So, what you are trying to tell me is that if we choose a family name, we’re using my family.”

  She could feel the rumble of laughter in his chest, although he tried to keep a straight face. “Okay, you try to do better than Eustace and Berengaria,” he challenged.

  “Oh, well, that’s easy,” she replied with a twinkle in her eyes. “There’s my cousin, Drizella, a lovely girl who lives in County Cork.”

  “Didn’t she try to kill a bunch of Dalmatian puppies?” he asked.

  “That was Cruella,” Mary pointed out. “Not Drizella.”

  “Oh, well, that’s much better,” he said. “And for a boy?”

  “Well, I have a great-great uncle Porick,” she suggested.

  Bradley shook his head. “Like bacon?”

  “That’s pork, not Por-ick,” she explained.

  “But when he’s little and tells someone his name, it’s going to sound like we named him after the other white meat, right?”

  “Okay, maybe,” Mary agreed with a sigh, rolling back and snuggling against him. “This is going to be harder than I thought.”

  “Yeah, and maybe we stay away from family names,” Bradley suggested, “For the sake of the baby.”

  Mary giggled. “I agree.”

  Chap
ter Fifteen

  Mary opened her eyes and waited, doing a mental inventory of her physical status. Stomach feels fine, she decided, no lightheadedness, no nausea and I really have to go to the bathroom. I think I’m good.

  Slipping out from beneath the blankets, she hurried to the bathroom, optimistic that her bout with morning sickness was over. But once she was on her feet for a few minutes, her stomach clenched and she bent over the toilet.

  Twenty minutes later she was showered, dressed and heading towards the staircase. She was actually feeling hungry. This was going to be a great day. She placed her foot on the first step and stopped. What was that smell?

  “Hey, good morning sunshine,” Mike said, appearing next to her. “Taking it a little easy this morning?”

  She smiled wanly at him and nodded. “Yes, I’m, uh…”

  The scent of the food drifted upward and she caught a full whiff. Green peppers and onions? Her stomach spun and she clapped a hand over her mouth, dashing back down the hall to her bedroom.

  “Hey, what’s wrong?” Mike asked, chasing after her. “Are you okay?”

  “Mmmph,” she muttered, racing through her room to the bathroom. She made it to the toilet just in time.

  “Oh, gross,” Mike said, gliding into the bathroom and gliding quickly out. He stood on the outside of the doorway and cringed. “Hey, are you okay?”

  Mary gagged again.

  “I’ll take that as a no,” he replied. “Do you want me to get Bradley?”

  “No…I’m fine,” she whispered weakly.

  Cautiously, he ventured into the bathroom. “Are you okay?”

  She straightened up and grabbed a bottle of mouthwash, pouring out cap full and swishing it around in her mouth. Finally, she spit it out, breathed a sigh, leaned back against the wall and patted her face with a hand towel. “How do I look?” she asked.

  “Like a woman who just emptied her entire stomach cavity into the toilet,” he said moving closer and demanding, “What’s wrong with you?”